Our Neat Little Home In Hell

Chapter One: Our Neat Little Home In Hell
~BlackRoseRaven

The winged unicorn grinned, feeling the thrum of exhilaration like she always did when she ran along the arch of the Bifrost: a bridge of crackling, luminescent energy that thrummed beneath her hooves, the edges burning with ethereal ivory fire. It was like running on a rainbow made of flame... and what made the experience all the more exhilarating to the dark sapphire female was the fact that her soulmate, her husband, her best friend ran alongside her.

She looked up, cyan eyes flashing, tall horn almost glowing: not with magic, but with pure excitement as adrenaline thundered through her veins as they charged towards the ground… and behind them, the rift in the sky slammed shut as the rainbow bridge began to disintegrate rapidly, shattering into shards of light as her broad, proud wings fluttered once, the tall, gorgeous equine laughing as she threw her head back and her mane and tail – made not of hair, but instead of swirling, ephemeral starlight that flickered and danced of its own accord – swayed and snapped backwards, shouting cheerfully: “Faster, Scrivener Blooms, ‘lest we both take another tumble!”

“Luna I hate you!” the charcoal earth pony beside her half-retorted, half-laughed despite himself, his messy white mane and tail all-but-glowing as his powerful, large frame flexed, chestnut irises glinting behind glasses over features that were half-covered by a hoof-shaped scar. “Oh hell!”

“That’s where we’re going, daydreamer!” Luna winked at him as they charged down the end of the slope, the bridge behind them rapidly dissolving before the two leapt forwards just as the rainbow beneath their hooves began to dissolve, Luna landing neatly on her hooves and skidding through the dirt as Scrivener landed in a stagger and then flopped forwards, rolling several times with a wheeze of pain through the fine sand, his glasses falling askew as he landed in a sprawl on his stomach.

Luna grinned widely as she looked down at him, shaking her head briskly as she turned towards the male, the only adornment she wore clinking quietly against her chest: a beautiful black pearl engraved with the shape of a rose blossom, strung upon a woven cord of thick green vines. “Oh, ‘twas fun as always! But tell me, Scrivy… is it good or bad that when we return now to our home in what is essentially an extension of Hell, I feel peaceful?”

“Well, Luna, you are the evil Nightmare Moon.” Scrivener said dryly as he carefully picked himself up, brushing himself off as Luna rolled her eyes with an amused smile. “Besides, look at me. Not only did I chase you into exile, marry you, survive having my brains blasted by pure evil and follow you on a quest that saw the world as we know it turned into this… I still feel this undercurrent of twisted enjoyment in our life.”

“Aye, there always is, and always will be… because there is always hope.” Luna said softly, and then she stepped forwards suddenly and hugged him fiercely, Scrivener looking surprised before he smiled and returned the embrace, the two leaning together as she murmured softly: “I love thee, Scrivener Blooms. My sick, twisted, evil beetle.”

“And I love you too, Luna. My horrible, arrogant, nightmare Valkyrie.” Scrivener replied gently, squeezing her closer… and then the two parted, studying each other with smiles before the male glanced absently back at the cutie mark on his flank: a black rose blossom with a raven-feather quill overtop it. “You ever think my special talent isn’t actually writing, but more like masochism?”

“All the time.” Luna agreed emphatically, and then she glanced over her shoulder at her own mark: a splotch of black that covered much of her hindquarters, with an ivory crescent moon. “And of mine, Scrivy, what does thou think my emblem really means?”

“Considering what a good job you’re doing herding souls along the Bifrost and the fact that you seem to enjoy living in Hell – not to mention your bad habit of pummeling anything that gets in your way – I think it means you really were meant to be a reaper.” Scrivener said dryly, winking as he strode past her, and Luna gave him a sour look before the male grinned as he reached up and slapped her flank playfully with a front hoof, making her snort in amusement. “Now come on, let’s go home.”

“That we shall, Scrivener Blooms, but do not go making promises thou has no intention of keeping later.” Luna replied mildly, turning around and half-lidding her eyes as she quickly fell into pace beside him, the two striding easily side-by-side together as they both looked back and forth, surveying the world that had been their home… and that despite everything, they did both still feel a deep sorrow for, buried in their heart of hearts.

Sand became rock beneath their hooves: rock, gravel, and shale was what chiefly made up the ground now, as well as frozen chunks of ice here and there. Molten slag burned in fetid-reeking holes, and the skies above were only ever one of three shades these days: glowing, terrible crimson in which burned a sickly sun, terrible, dark gray and black when the great, unpredictable storms of acid, poison, and ash rolled through the skies, or depressed purple-blue, when Hell’s uneasy night settled silently in. But night and day came unpredictably, sometimes lasting hours, other times lasting what would have in the past been referred to as periods of ‘days,’ were the day and night not measured by times of light and darkness respectively.

The world had changed: where they walked now, there had once been forest; to the north, Canterlot Castle was a destroyed hulk amidst mountains that had been warped, ripped into and smashed apart, and now crawled with both vermin demons as well as a great and terrible monster that took the shape of a wolf, snarling and frothing. A little to the southeast, there had once been a beautiful village called Ponyville… and now it was only an empty ruin, a few buildings still standing amidst the decay, haunted by shades and good memories turned bittersweet and painful.

It had all once been beautiful, even after the shadows had first begin to rise in Equestria: green fields, verdant forests, and best of all, understanding ponies… at least here, in Ponyville. It had been a little utopia… and Luna lowered her head a bit with a quiet sigh, shaking her head slowly before she paused and glanced towards Scrivy, and the male looked back at her softly as he halted, their eyes meeting, thoughts swirling between them as their linked minds, hearts and souls pushed together in that gaze, sharing thoughts and emotions in a wild hurricane.

Luna and Scrivener Blooms: they were soulmates and soul-bound in a literal sense. Lovers who had gone into exile together, they had ended up fighting a demon known as Ignominious, who had possessed Scrivy… and to save Luna, Scrivy had guided his wife’s horn into piercing his own heart. Luna had refused to lose him, however… and instead of letting him die, had bound their lives, their souls, tightly together. Now they shared one life, one mixed soul, and felt one another’s joys and sorrows, pleasures and pain, and could share thoughts and emotions and ideas and images at will and often unconsciously.

Even more, Scrivener could access Luna’s countless years of experience, of knowledge and wisdom and brash passion… even if sometimes the last could outweigh his own thoughts and drive his body – still, even after the years they had spent together, not nearly as strong or durable as Luna’s – to do things well-past his limits that would leave him aching. And likewise, Luna could root through Scrivener’s modern day mind to allow herself access to his own modest talents… something that she had never underestimated no matter how often Scrivener grumbled embarrassedly about how useless he was compared to her.

Luna smiled a bit as these thoughts whispered through her mind… and then she leaned forwards and kissed him gently, and Scrivener’s eyes fluttered closed as he returned the soft kiss, before the winged unicorn pulled away as their mouths gently parted, saying softly: “Stubborn creature. Thou clung to me as I fled into exile, and helped build our home in what was then the Everfree Forest. Thou hardened thyself, learning the art of war, fighting by my side against the Velites, and then against Nibelung and demons and worse. Thou spent years with me then, until the world ended in Ragnarok… and thou has spent eight years beside me since those cursed days, helping me shepherd souls across the Bifrost and into what we hope will be a better world for all, a new Equestria. Thou has never faltered… thou art… admirable.”

She blushed a little, pawing at the rocky ground… and then she gazed up towards the crimson sky as Scrivener only lowered his head with an awkward smile, touched. “Besides, how many others would live in Hell beside Nightmare Moon? ‘Tis not all altruism on my part, Scrivy, there is much selfishness here… for I want thee by my side, always have, always shall… as does Nightmare Moon, as does every part of me. Thou fears too much, and thinks too deeply… and I cannot help but find it incredible how thou fears so much that is ridiculous whilst we walk through a world that has been destroyed, ravaged by demons and the Black Wolves of Helheim, treating the undead, the demons, the Pales as calmly as thou would treat any mortal pony!”

She shook her head with a grin, turning and striding onwards, and Scrivener rolled his eyes as he followed behind her, saying awkwardly: “Like you said, Luna, I’ve had… eight years. Furthermore, I was a poet, as you’ll remember. Writers, like you always say, are a sick breed. And you know on top of that I’m a little twisted, too.”

“Yes, but ‘tis why we get along so well.” Luna remarked as she strode over broken terrain, grimacing a bit as she glanced to the right: in the distance, a massive wall of ice stood, a cliff made of steaming, glacial frost that twisted and had been formed from the rampages of the chaotic monsters that had destroyed the world. “I swear that the Frozen Reef moves closer to us, Scrivy. I do not wish to awaken one day to discover it lurking outside our home.”

“Don’t be paranoid, Luna, that’s my job.” Scrivener said mildly as they strode onto a worn path through the rocky wastes, and Luna grumbled at him as they began to pass tall, blackened trees that stood here and there, the bark twisted into shapes that looked horribly like faces: once, this had been the Everfree Forest… now, they called it the Empty Forest, with the only trees being these haunted, withered, lifeless ash. “So how did we do today?”

Luna looked thoughtfully down at this question, and then she glanced up and murmured quietly: “Better than I expected, perhaps. Aye, at first, Scrivy… it felt awkward and strange and admittedly, a little nostalgic to herd souls… and it hurts. I know thou feels it too, the hurt that comes when we gather the Pales of the dead killed in and around the time of Ragnarok… seeing those sad souls of ponies who have managed to stay on their hooves, wandering endlessly across this world but lingering most often near their home, or where they died. We shall have to make another grand journey soon, I think, another pilgrimage to gather up more souls far and wide… they come to us naturally sometimes, aye, because even spirits gossip and whisper of hope, and the energy emitted by the Bifrost must be as flame to a moth… but I have not seen as many faces as I would like.

“And I know. I know we cannot save every last Pale… just as not all Pales cling to this world. Some have become lost and despairing and been drawn back into the Pit. Some have been destroyed, the prey of demon, Grimm, and other terrors of this broken world. Some lucky few have perhaps realized that there is another path, a path into the light, and risen to the Vale of Valhalla as Odin works to fix what was broken and offer peace to the departed… and some simply cling so desperately to delusion and loss that they refuse to leave this plane, this place.” Luna halted, shaking her head and murmuring: “I cannot blame them, not any of them. They died in the apocalypse we should have stopped, but failed to. We lost all our friends… we lost our family. We lost everything, Scrivener Blooms…”

She stopped, then smiled a bit, looking up and continuing in a quiet but firm voice: “But I know we are fortunate all the same. We survived. We stopped Valthrudnir… thou, Scrivener Blooms, epic bard, defeated the monster at his own game.” She smiled across at him, and the earth pony only blushed and mumbled a bit as he lowered his head awkwardly. “Oh, insipid creature, thou art insufferable and impossible. All the same, it has led to us being given this chance… and while I wholeheartedly wish we had allies apart from whiny, lecherous, grabby fallen god Odin, I am… happy, at the same time. He gave us the tools by which to use the Bifrost to move back and forth between this world and others – and we have had the most remarkable vacations with the abuse of this knowledge, have we not? – and although I am sure he will snatch it away and seal the Bifrost out of our hooves the moment our job is accomplished, it has given us hope and serves us well.

“Yes, why despair? The Pales of our friends survived… we saw Celestia, Twilight Sparkle, and all the others.” Luna closed her eyes, smiling faintly. “So beautiful and bittersweet, to see the very souls of those thou hast loved, standing and waiting for thee… and listening to thy guidance as thou leads them into a new world, where with luck and effort, their souls shall be reborn, given anew the chance at life they deserved. Aye, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Tis insane. ‘Tis horrible. ‘Tis beautiful. ‘Tis like thy poetry, bittersweet and serendipitous and awful all at once.”

“Thank you, Luna, you always know just what to say.” Scrivy said mildly, glancing ahead, and Luna laughed and shook her head out before she checked him gently, the male smiling as he swayed in mid-step before bumping back against her as they slowly made their way down the rocky, often-trod path. “But we’re getting close, aren’t we? And the Pales seemed… to understand what was going on. Well, most of them… some, it seemed, thought they were in Valhalla when we led them across the Bifrost… and as always, I wonder what we’re doing. On a philosophical level, is this the right thing?”

“Oh, shut thy traitorous mouth, thou art just looking to be beaten now.” Luna said flatly, and Scrivy shrugged meditatively as the winged unicorn rolled her eyes before she leapt forwards and pounced on top of him, Scrivy wincing before he wheezed as the larger equine scrambled over the male and wrapped her front legs around his neck, pressing her body firmly overtop his as she muttered into his ear: “We are fixing what should never have been broken, Scrivy, that is all. Be not so selfish: think not of what we are doing, but what they deserve. I swear thou just wants to live in Hell forever, sick and twisted poet.”

Scrivener rolled his eyes at this as he continued forwards, Luna making herself comfortable on his back as the earth pony rolled his shoulders and smiled despite himself, feeling the black pearl pressing quietly between their bodies as he murmured: “Doesn’t matter where I am, Luna, because as long as we’re together, even Hell is wonderful. Really, all I worry about at the end of the day, is what’s best for them… what would be kinder.”

“Thou art far too kind, then. Let them suffer mortality a second time, I say, be not so ‘nice’ in thy twisted way.” Luna retorted imperiously, leaning her head slightly up, and Scrivener laughed despite himself as he carried onwards, smiling and leaning forwards as the winged unicorn added quietly: “We have a chance to save them, that is all I care about. That… and we have a chance to escape this hell ourselves by doing this, by fixing this. Thou should be proud, though… how many poets can say they have been reapers of souls, with the chance of being a guardian of a world in the near future?”

“If a writer does his job properly, he creates a world in the words on his pages: and since writers and poets constantly kill those people in the worlds, subjecting them to his every whim and stupid idea, I’d say a lot.” Scrivy remarked, and then he winced when Luna leaned down and bit his ear, flicking his head wildly to the side as his faintly-glowing white mane tickled against Luna’s face. “Hey!”

“Thou deserved it. Sick creature.” Luna grumbled, her mane twisting backwards before she settled herself against him and squeezed him slowly around the neck, adding grouchily: “I swear thou takes pleasure in arguing with me.”

“And who likes to start arguments all the time?” Scrivener asked pointedly, and Luna cleared her throat and then pushed her face firmly down against the side of his neck, making him smile before he glanced to the side and softened a bit at the sight of the three glowing ivory ponies standing and silently watching them, frost sparkling quietly around their bodies as details flickered through their forms.

Pales: the spirits, the souls of ponies who were trapped in this broken world, wandering silently, unable to move on… no longer because of unfinished business, but because the connection between the worlds had been severed. Some few still managed to worm their way up to the ether, found their way off this shattered world… but the rest, Luna and Scrivener Blooms would gather up into large herds that they would lead across the Bifrost and into what they both had begun to refer to as the ‘Looking Glass World.’

It was a reference that would have been appreciated by a chaos entity that had been a friend and ally… and Scrivener smiled faintly as he bowed his head to the Pales as Luna gazed up at them, softly, sadly. But the Pales only watched as they walked by, manes and tails floating and incandescent with cold mist, before they flickered quietly out of reality one after the other, vanishing back into the ether, the spaces between reality where souls found solitude and rest.

Luna and Scrivener both gazed ahead, moving onwards in silence: Pales, demons, undead, and all sorts of other creature made their home here… and occasionally, they even saw what looked like a battered survivor of Ragnarok, but they had never had much luck contacting these ponies. They were often insane, or fled and hid, or attacked them out of terror and almost-feral aggression for defending their territory; it was strange how the survivors had become the most unpredictable part of their hellish dystopia. Then again, everypony knew the stories of Nightmare Moon… and to see her and Scrivener Blooms walking so boldly through what had become Hell, it was obvious what conclusions they would draw.

They were quiet as they made their way deeper into the barrens, until they crossed over a shallow, dried-out bog-trench and stepped in front of a quaint, patched cottage: behind it stood the broken shards of a collapsed mountain, and Luna carefully slipped off Scrivener, sighing a little as she gazed reflectively over the peeling wood of their home. “Well, home at last. I remember when I had once thought the worst had befallen us because thralls brought the mountain crashing down upon our cottage. I was foolish then.”

“You’re still foolish, Luna. But it’s a good quality.” Scrivener said softly, and Luna smiled wryly at him before he walked forwards, stepping up onto the patio and pushing the door open as the winged unicorn paced after him, still looking moody. The male paused inside the corridor beyond, looking down for a moment, and Luna softened as she felt his thoughts before he murmured: “Funny what you remember, huh? What you miss. What hits hardest.”

“I know, Scrivener Blooms. I know.” Luna stepped quietly up beside him as she kicked the door closed, kissing the side of his neck tenderly before she glanced towards the door to their bedroom… but then only smiled a little and motioned down the hall, saying quietly: “We have a week before the Bifrost recharges. Perhaps tomorrow we shall go scavenging, if thou feels up to it. But ‘twill lead to a good meal, and in times like these it can have wonders upon our morale, can it not?”

“True, Luna, but we’re running out of luxury resources… and your magic can only make so much.” Scrivener glanced over his shoulder at her as he headed towards the den at the end, then he gazed down at their patchy bedding, marked with wear and tear and crudely-sewn rips as he smiled despite himself. “Amazing how you can handle yourself so well in a fight but can’t sew in a straight line to save your life.”

“That is why I have thee, Scrivener Blooms. Thou art a perfect housewife, with thy knowledge of sewing, cleaning, and cookery.” Luna responded with a quiet laugh, and Scrivener gazed amusedly over his shoulder at her as she stepped forwards and pushed their foreheads together, looking with entertainment into his eyes. “Dark thoughts away. We have a bright future, do we not?”

“We always will.” Scrivener replied softly, and then he laughed a bit as he glanced up, looking slowly around the room: a bit dusty, a bit damaged here and there… but a fireplace stood with logs piled in it, and above the mantle hung a beautiful, slightly-blurry painting of Scrivener himself, charging through a forest of indistinct shadow. Pillows were cluttered around the room and a few other paintings hung here and there, including one of a violet winged unicorn standing and laughing with Luna on one side and Scrivy on the other, and a desk rested against the far wall, piled high with manuscript pages.

The room was separated from the kitchen only by a thin, cracked wall and more prominently, a wide countertop, which was stacked with boxes of supplies. Neither winged unicorn nor earth pony needed to eat: it was one of the perks of Luna’s immortal vitality, but at the same time it didn’t mean neither of them ever got hungry, even if it wasn’t the hunger of necessity, but the simple desire to have something around to snack on.

The two smiled at each other, then headed towards this room, Luna immediately walking over to the coffeemaker as her horn glowed and she flicked it absently to open a cupboard with telekinesis, revealing no less than five large cans of coffee inside. “And speaking of the bright side of things, I do honestly believe that it will not be much longer before-”

She halted and looked up with a frown as there was a rattling behind them, Scrivener turning quickly around as he looked back and forth sharply… then he glanced up as he thought he caught a flicker of movement along the ceiling, whispering out into the den. He glanced at Luna, and she scowled immediately, saying distastefully: “Reveal thyself, creature, we are in no mood for games.”

For a moment, there was only silence before the air sparkled… and a moment later, a Pale faded into existence in front of them: unlike the other Pales, however, this one was run through with streaks of darkness and shadow, and Scrivener made a face as he and Luna both glared at it before it flickered violently in the male’s vision, solidifying into a grinning, sharp-toothed pony with a straight mane that fell in a waterfall over her face, her eyes rimmed with red and glowing a faint blue. “And still, thou persists in haunting us.”

Scrivener smiled despite himself as the Pale stuck its tongue out at Luna, then looked towards him with a wink: the more he allowed his eyes to linger on her, the more he could see her details: the dull gray-pink of her body, the tautness of her coat against her form, the awkward mix of entertainment, narcissism, and perhaps relief in her eyes as Luna looked dryly at the male and said moodily: “Continue to stare at Pinkamena so and I shall be forced to accuse thee of being fond of her. Then I shall have to bludgeon thee.”

“Just letting my eyes adjust, Luna, that’s all.” Scrivener glanced amusedly over at his wife, adding mildly: “You’re cute when you’re jealous.”

Luna only grumbled in response, turning around as Pinkamena laughed silently before she strode forwards with a wide grin, purposefully bringing her ethereal, icy form through Luna’s, making the winged unicorn shiver a bit before she gritted her teeth and stepped sideways, saying irritably: “Thou can be fine company, Pinkamena, and I am touched that thou chose to remain here with us, even though thy sister and thy friends have all safely moved to Valhalla… but think not that I will hesitate to exorcise thy half-demon self all the way back to the bowels of Helheim if thou continues to be such a nuisance.”

Pinkamena laughed silently again, then her eyes flashed as she grinned over at Scrivener, who looked at her dumbly for a moment before he winced as he realized what she was about to do, and a moment later the Pale burst apart into black smoke that rushed violently at him, hammering into the male’s face as Luna groaned and rolled her eyes, dropping her head forwards with a loud bang against the counter. “Oh thou wretched monster. Fine, fine! Scrivener, art thou still in control?”

Scrivy grimaced, his teeth grinding together painfully as he felt the spirit of the half-demon Pale slithering through his body and mind, hearing her darkly-cheerful giggles through his brain as he muttered: “Yes, but not for long. I’m going to go and lay down, you don’t have to come if you don’t want to.”

“I shall put on coffee, and then join thee in the conversation. The idea of leaving thou alone with Pinkamena in thy head ruffles me.” Luna said sourly, and Scrivener smiled a bit despite himself before he winced at a series of short stabbing pains through his head, and then he grimaced as a voice whispered through his mind: Ooh, poor Nightmare Moon and her easily-hurt feelings. And here I thought the world being destroyed would end all the drama.

“Shut up, Pinkamena.” Scrivy mumbled under his breath, and Luna stepped forwards and gently touched his shoulder with a front hoof, gazing at him with concern, but the male only smiled dourly. “No, it’s fine. I’ll go deal with our… tenant.”

With that, the equine turned, heading back into the den and closing his eyes as he flopped forwards onto the bedding with a grumble, allowing the alien presence in his mind to snare him and drag him downwards into the depths of darkness… before a moment later, he opened his eyes to find himself standing in a stone room across from the now physical-looking dull-pink pony, Pinkamena striding leisurely forwards as she glanced back and forth. “Minimalist as always, huh, Scrivy? God you suck, you know that?”

Scrivener only looked moodily at her, and Pinkamena grinned widely, shrugging as she stopped a foot or so away from him and showing off her sharp teeth. “Hey, being half-demon needs to have some advantages other than bloodlust, right? Possession is a nice trick I picked up, and ain’t like you guys don’t encourage it every now and then. Besides, you’ve been gone for the better part of a week or so. I just want a little face time, that’s all.”

“You know, if we took you across Bifrost, you could hang out with the Pales of your friends and Pinkie Pie and harass them instead of us for a few years.” Scrivener said dryly, but Pinkamena only snorted in distaste at this before the male grimaced a bit and twitched as a short, quiet pain throbbed through his head… but this wasn’t from the half-demon, as he reached up and muttered: “Besides, we told you not to possess me. It stirs up… things that should better be left alone.”

Pinkamena, however, glanced up at him with strange sympathy shining in her eyes despite her ruthless mask of a grin, saying softly: “Like that corruption from the Tyrant Wyrm? Still bothers you, doesn’t it… all that knowledge of torture, suffering and evil… bottled up inside your poor, damaged mind. Corruption that flows through you, mixed with that taint of darkness passed on from Nightmare Moon – both Nightmare Moon and the real Nightmare Moon, that is – and your own… evil, as you like to say.”

“I don’t like to say it, but it’s true, isn’t it?” Scrivener glanced up sourly, glaring at her a bit, but the pony only laughed as she shook her head and strode away from him, the charcoal pony looking moodily after her. “I survived having eons of evil crammed into my brain all at once. Most other ponies would have died. I survived because some sick, depraved part of me actually admired it-”

“And what isn’t to admire about all that power and prestige? Besides, you aren’t alone in the madhouse, Scrivener Blooms.” Pinkamena said in a strangely-comforting voice. “I’m here with you, and it’s nice to have a cellmate now. Two, maybe three, really, because Luna’s plenty dark and evil herself, isn’t she? The point isn’t that we’re good or evil, those are stupid, flawed concepts and they’re fairy-tale words good people apply to us so they can pretend we don’t have feelings, that we aren’t just like them, that they could never become us or worse than us if the right pressures were applied. Don’t be a freaking idiot. But tell you what, if it bothers you so much, let’s all break each other down into pieces, and we’ll see who can put humpty-dumpty together again right first.

“Except what would that accomplish? It’d just be running away, I’ve had the time to see that now, and I’ve had the experiences to know that even if friendship is based upon nothing but one pony pretending to like another pony so they can get what they need out of them, necessity only increases value.” Pinkamena licked her lips slowly, leaning forwards as she murmured: “I’ve listened in plenty to you and Luna talking, and to that big old guy, too. We’re going to be in a world that’ll need defenders. ‘Defender’ is only a fancy term for ‘kills people so other ponies don’t get their hooves dirty.’ I look forwards to being needed. To having lots of friends.”

Scrivener only sighed and shook his head slowly, saying moodily: “Sometimes I think you almost believe yourself, Lemon Drop. The rest of the time I just think about what a pain in the flank you are and look forwards to when we finally drag you over the Bifrost, because Luna and I both know by now what you’re really scared of.”

Pinkamena glared at him moodily, and then she stepped forwards and almost shoved their faces together, saying irritably: “I wouldn’t talk, Scarface. You and Luna have talking about wanting a foal for how long, and it’s how important to her? And yet for the last eight years, both of you have been doing quite a bit to avoid having a foal, haven’t you?”

“Well, Pinkamena, we figured it would be rather irresponsible for me to bear a foal in Hell, especially given our current obligations.” Luna said drolly as she appeared in a swirl of blue mist beside Scrivener Blooms, and she gave a dark look to the dull-pink earth pony as she stepped backwards and grumbled a bit. “Also, I shall ask thee to refrain from thy savagery. Thou art becoming as nasty as a full-blooded demon.”

Pinkamena snorted at this, then she flicked her straight mane to the side, saying distastefully: “And sissy was always an angel, right? Anyway, I just call what I see, that’s all. By the way, Nightmare Moon, I saw an old friend of ours wandering around, a Pale that’s a lot more demon than I am… I think you know the only pony I could be talking about.”

“Sol Seraph?” Luna looked disgusted, shaking her head slowly and muttering: “Of course, when the Gates of Helheim were blown open, she would have been quick to escape the wrath and suffering she had rightly earned. Worry not, though, Pinkamena… the monster will not be able to enter our home here. And should we come across her, she will brook no threat to myself or Scrivener Blooms. Her blows will lack the substance to give them dangerous force.”

“I hope so.” Scrivy muttered, rubbing absently at his throat for a moment and remembering the vicious battle they had fought against the awful, Pegasus-turned-predator, then he shook his head slowly and glanced towards Pinkamena as the pony turned her eyes back to him, sighing and saying distastefully: “I am not… going to do it. I… look, Pinkamena, we all share similarities here. We are all touched by darkness, but you and your… half-demon stuff is one thing, and Luna and Nightmare Moon is another, and me and this… this poison in my mind is different from both, okay? It’s poison. It’s corruption.”

“But it makes you stronger.” whispered a new voice, and the three ponies looked up as a nearby wall shuddered before dissolving into a black archway, and an enormous, dark winged unicorn strode out of this, smiling benevolently at them as she added softly: “I hope you do not mind me intruding upon this little palaver… but tell me, my children, who better than me to help offer guidance?”

Her eyes glowed with eldritch light as her reptilian pupils gleamed knowingly, and her sharp teeth were half-revealed by her cunning smile. Her features were beautiful, and like Luna, her mane and tail were ephemeral, made of shimmering blue starlight but kissed deeper by night’s shadow as she strode forwards, enormous, imposing: she towered over them, with long limbs and a regal frame, her body black as night, her hooves glinting like metal… and around her neck hung a rope of ivy, with an engraved black pearl like Luna’s dangling from this, but ornate black rose blossoms woven through the cord of vines as well.

Nightmare Moon: the fearsome force of darkness that had once taken over Luna entirely, driven by jealousy and passion and rage before a blast from the artifacts known as the Elements of Harmony had driven the poisons from her system and freed Luna from her grip. But Nightmare Moon had remained inside of her, passion given sentience, regaining her strength and forging an alliance that had first been uneasy… but now she was almost a mentor with her dark knowledge, her ability to delve for answers into the deep subconscious for Luna and Scrivener’s connected soul, and her strange, honest wish to bring happiness to her ‘precious treasures.’

Pinkamena grimaced a bit, half-bowing towards Nightmare Moon as she slipped carefully sideways, and the enormous equine laughed quietly as she murmured gently: “Oh, worry not, half-demon. I know you respect me. I know you wish well for my treasures… and you are precious to me too, are you not? I will not bring any harm upon you… especially as in your own way, I know you are trying to help.”

She paused, then half-turned towards Scrivener Blooms, adding softly as she leaned down to gaze eye-to-eye with him: “We have discussed this many times over these years, have we not? Part of the reason it still poisons you even now is because you insist upon treating it like poison… do you disagree, my husband? What about you, my darling child?”

She glanced towards Luna with a soft smile, and the winged unicorn blushed as she looked uncomfortably away before leaning down and burying her face against the side of Scrivener Blooms’ neck, murmuring quietly: “We do not wish to disagree with… either thee or our husband, Nightmare Moon. We are together in all things… play us not against one-another.”

“Now, Luna, you know I never would. After all, I want to see you both happy…” Nightmare Moon half-lidded her eyes, saying softly: “Making you argue would be a childish act of self-destruction. But Scrivener Blooms needs reassurance, that is all… and most of all, confidence in himself. He worries too much, thinks too deeply… so let me instead remind you that we will love you no matter what you do. As you have followed us into Hell, we shall follow you, whatever path you may choose, beloved poet… it is our darkness that gives light its meaning, after all, and our darkness that will save the sun-loving ponies.”

She reared back, smiling serenely, imperiously down at them as Scrivy only closed his eyes, swallowing thickly… before Nightmare Moon calmly looked back and forth, saying softly: “Our husband is in no mood for quarrel or such unpleasant conversation, however. Let us speak another time. Pinkamena, please leave our mind… and little Luna, do not worry so deeply, and think not so heavily.”

Luna mumbled as Pinkamena grunted and stepped backwards, bowing her head again before she simply vanished in a puff of black smoke… and Scrivener finally glanced awkwardly up to meet Nightmare Moon’s eyes, the female smiling down at him tenderly, lovingly, as she said tenderly: “It is a gift, my husband. It is a blessing. Perhaps it is even destiny… know only that we will be there with you, as beloved Luna said. We shall always be at your side…” Slowly, she leaned down, kissing Scrivener’s forehead before she whispered into his ear: “Now go, my treasures. Rest and relax in one another’s company. We will discuss this more in time.”

Scrivener closed his eyes as he felt the world around him swirl… and when he opened them, he was once more in the den, tiredly looking at the ground as Luna squeezed a foreleg around him with a faint smile as her horn glowed, lifting a mug of coffee from in front of the empty fireplace to the male… and Scrivy glanced up at her quietly, at her faint blush as he felt a tugging inside of his chest, beginning quietly: “Luna-”

“Say it not.” Luna murmured, looking down and shaking her head quickly, and the male only smiled faintly as the coffee mug stuttered in midair before he reached out and caught it between his front hooves, then leaned up and kissed her cheek, as she closed her eyes and laughed faintly. “I shan’t cry in front of monstrous Pinkamena. The foul creature has enough to mock us for as it is.”

You don’t have to blame yourself. Scrivener thought clearly, looking quietly at Luna as he sipped slowly at his coffee… and Luna smiled faintly as she saw this in images, in memories, as well as heard his mental voice, gazing at him and then simply kissing the side of his neck as she pushed her side close against his.

She glanced towards the fireplace, her horn glowing brightly… and a moment later, the logs burst into sapphire flames before she sighed and muttered: “No wonder we are perfect together, Scrivener Blooms. Either we are children who act like idiots or we are children who act like crying foals. This is all thine fault, beetle.”

Scrivener began to open his mouth to reply… and then they both grimaced and looked up as their bedroom door swung open, and there was a loud clattering as Pinkamena’s voice echoed eerily towards them: “Are you two done your pretty little princess session yet?”

“Oh, wonderful. Our roommate approaches in her fancy dress.” Luna said sourly, and Scrivener snorted in amusement despite himself as he sipped at his coffee moodily. “Forget not that I can bash thee into pieces.”

“And I’ll put myself back together.” Pinkamena retorted as she strode into the den… or rather, the marionette they had built for her and inscribed with runes so the half-demon could possess it at will, allowing her to interact physically with the world around her for periods of time… even if it was awkward for a wide variety of reasons, including the fact the puppet was built out of an old dress pony they had hammered several rusty joints into, then layered here and there with armor and cemented on gemstones for eyes… although the sharp slivers of metal in its working mouth Pinkamena had added herself. “I kind of enjoy that. It makes me feel like I’m one step closer to finding the right combination.”

“Thou art sick.” Luna muttered, and she turned back around to moodily pick up her coffee as the wooden mannequin strode forwards, rusted metal glinting over its lower limbs and back. “While I do admire in a way thy tenacity, and admit thou art a very useful ally in this terrible world, thou should understand by now thou art no replacement for our lost pet, even if that is apparently what thou aims to be.”

Scrivener grimaced, and Luna winced and glanced at him awkwardly as he rubbed at his face with a mumble, but Pinkamena only snorted, her gemstone eyes flashing as her voice echoed out of the unmoving jaws of the mannequin: “Please. You know you two are just fun for me to be around, that’s all, even if you have all kinds of dumb rules. Don’t possess this, don’t write on that, don’t spy on us, don’t bring dead bodies in the house. Must suck for all the pony-Pales, who seem so stupid and lost all the time… being a half-demon no longer seems so bad now that I get to experience all the positives of being removed from my meat-bag body.”

“And yet thou seems to long for nothing more than to be in a body again all the same.” Luna commented dryly, and Pinkamena growled from where she stood as she leaned forwards in the wooden mannequin. “Or is it just because that when thou possesses an object, thou manifests in a physical enough way that thy annoying voice can be heard by all?”

Pinkamena glared at them… then she suddenly threw her head back and laughed, leaning away and the puppet’s body language falling loose. “Alright, alright, you win for now, Nightmare Moon. How about I go make myself useful then and do a patrol? Maybe you two will be in a better goddamn mood by the time I get back and we can play a depraved party game or two.”

Luna and Scrivy both looked thoughtfully towards the possessed puppet… then the winged unicorn finally nodded and said quietly: “It is… greatly appreciated, Pinkamena. And I do apologize should we seem… shorter… than usual. Perhaps thou art right. Scrivy and I can be… moody, at times.”

“No moodier than sissy.” Pinkamena shrugged, her body language grouchy before she shook her head and said distastefully: “But fine. I’ll give you two lovebirds some space. Sickens me that after a decade you’re still acting like teenagers who just learned what Rod A and Slot B are for.”

Luna glowered moodily as Scrivener Blooms snorted in amusement despite himself, and then he sipped slowly at his coffee as he looked back towards the blue flames, saying in a light singsong: “You know you gotta share, you gotta care…”

“Oh, shut the hell up.” Pinkamena grumbled embarrassedly, and then she spun around and stomped down the hall, muttering: “Sissy’s stupid songs get stuck in my head sometimes, that’s all… stupid sissy, stupid losers, hope the goddamn mountain falls on you again…”

There was the sound of the front door opening and then slamming shut, and Luna gave the male an entertained look, saying quietly: “Thou really can be crueler than me, Scrivener Blooms. I admire and respect that.”

“Well, like you’re always saying. All writers are evil.” Scrivener replied after a moment with a small smile, and Luna laughed a little as they both sipped at their coffee, studying one another for a few moments before the male added softly: “She does kind of have a point though. Most other couples by now would be in the ‘arguing about everything’ phase or the ‘long periods of silence’ phase. Not still the… well. I don’t even know how to describe us. We’re weird.”

“Then thou hast described us perfectly, has thou not?” Luna smiled a little at him, then she took a slow, thoughtful sip of her coffee as she squirmed a bit closer against his side, adding meditatively as she looked into the blue flames of the fireplace: “And it is not as if we are perfectly-perfect. Perhaps it is due in part to the corruption that now taints the atmosphere and the very earth beneath our hooves… or perhaps it is because… as a couple, we are maturing, despite how impossible that may seem. But I know not. I know little more of relationships than thou does.”

Scrivener grunted at this, nodding after a moment but smiling amusedly all the same: “Maybe it’s because when we actually disagree on something, you get your passion and desire to settle pretty much any problem physically… mixing with my stubbornness and bad habit of letting my sarcastic mouth run at the worst of times.”

“Yes, but it would be boring otherwise, Scrivener Blooms, and we always reconcile, or sometimes our aggressions lead to… other aggressions.” Luna grinned slightly, half-lidding her eyes, and Scrivener rolled his eyes with a snort of entertainment. “Passion is a strange and wondrous thing. And thou knows well that even when we argue-”

“Or, more properly, start arguing, then start beating on each other?” Scrivener said pointedly, and Luna cleared her throat even as she nodded, looking embarrassed and resolute all at once. “You know, you’re an awful influence. Starting fights, making me hit people, leading me down the path of wrongness and darkness and depravity.”

Luna rolled her eyes at this, then bopped him firmly with her horn, saying in an entertained voice: “Hush now, Scrivener Blooms, thou wert no fragile butterfly before I came along. According to all sources, including thyself, thou lorded thy position of Court Poet around Canterlot and made grand abuse of the fact thou worked directly under Celestia. Not that I would have done any different mind thee, but that in and of itself perhaps tells the tale.”

“Yes, well, before you came along I was much more hesitant about pummeling ponies. You just like to break things.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna grumbled and headbutted him lightly, making him wince before he sipped at his coffee and added softly: “Thank you, though, Luna. For being here. For the good coffee. For… everything.”

The winged unicorn only smiled a bit, however, sipping quietly at her own mug of coffee as she studied him and he gazed back at her, trading thoughts and memories and affections in mind and heart and soul as the two rested together, turbulent emotions settling as they found a space of calm in their quiet home in derelict Hell.

Passions And Nightmares

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Chapter Two: Passions And Nightmares
~BlackRoseRaven

Pinkamena had returned after some twenty minutes to find Luna and Scrivener curled up together, and she had loudly banged her wooden hooves against the floor and rattled her metallic, marionette body until the two had sourly glared at her. She had announced there was nothing dangerous lurking nearby: only the usual assortment of Pales, a few Velites, and creatures they referred to as ‘Haunts;’ zombie-like entities that clung so desperately to the delusion they were alive their spirits had yet to shed their rotting physical forms. They were harmless: uncomfortable to look at, distinctly pitiful and miserable, but harmless all the same.

After this, Pinkamena had further complained that they were boring and had left them alone, returning her marionette body to where she kept it in awkward storage in the bedroom. But since Luna and Scrivener spent most of their time in the den, it was better that the creepy doll stayed somewhere out of sight and out of mind than where they would be constantly reminded of their strange roommate, even if now she was floating moodily back and forth above their heads, Pale-like… but the strings of darkness stuttering through her spirit and the variety of strange abilities she had testifying to the fact she certainly was far more demon than pony spirit.

Not that this was any particular surprise, considering how the creature had come to be: manifested first in Pinkie Pie’s mind – or had it really been the other way around, as Pinkamena argued so often? – Pinkamena had eventually been forced ‘into the mirror,’ as she phrased it, and fallen into deep dormancy. She had struggled against her imprisonment for years, creating a terrible schism in the mind of the earth pony that had manifested in schizophrenic episodes… until finally, the touch of a demon had brought Pinkamena out of her imprisonment, giving her the freedom to run wild in Pinkie Pie’s body.

Pinkamena had been stopped, and after the demon was destroyed, Twilight Sparkle had managed to reason with the strange, sad creature… and long after, during the ill-fated march of the Starlit Knights, Pinkie Pie had again been exposed to a demon, and this time, demonic magic and amplification. A spell that brought their fears to life brought Pinkamena out of Pinkie Pie… and yet all the same, the creature had chosen to fought beside them. She was cryptic and difficult to understand and loved to cause friction and conflict… but at the same time, she was a welcome friend to Scrivener Blooms and Luna. She was stained with darkness and blood, but also misunderstood; she was like nature’s cruelty given form, but there was often a method and reason behind her bloodlust and madness.

The half-demon halted in the air upside down, glaring down at them moodily and silently, and Luna and Scrivener both glanced up at her flatly: to Luna, she looked merely like an ivory, mostly-indistinct Pale run through with streaks of darkness, but Scrivy could see the color of her coat, the distinct shape of her body, the glowering moodiness of her face. It was a side-effect of the corruption in his mind, letting him see ‘through the masks,’ as Pinkamena herself phrased it… and Scrivy thought that part of Pinkamena’s lunacy probably came from the fact that she herself had apparently always been able to see the true shape of things, like he now could thanks to the corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm. Not the outside layers… but visions of what was inside.

Over the last eight years of learning to cope with not only living in hell and shepherding souls to another world, but also the poison still working its way through his mind, Scrivy had learned to adjust to this, however: as long as he kept himself calm and focused, he was able to look at things ‘normally’ instead of letting his eyes… stare too deeply. When they were at home, however, he preferred to just let his mind wander… and catching the occasional glimpse of Luna’s dark but comforting aura or seeing Pinkamena’s shape buzzing around didn’t bother him all that much.

“Oh yes, because thou art fond of her, I think.” Luna grumbled, and Scrivener laughed despite himself as she glared at him and checked him lightly, Pinkamena rolling her eyes above their heads as she flitted absently away with a silent grumble. “Sick and twisted Scrivener Blooms. Thou art vicious and depraved and evil.”

“Oh as if you’ve never flirted with other ponies, dead or alive.” Scrivener retorted, and Luna huffed and waved a hoof absently as if this was an entirely different matter. “Besides, she seems to get me, Luna, and you like her plenty too, when she’s not being grouchy and evil.”

“I understand thee.” Luna said quietly, glaring at him moodily, and Scrivener winced a little, feeling the faint pang of hurt as he began to open his mouth, before Luna added sharply: “Thou complains far too much about thy darkness for somepony that always claimed to want to be ‘more like thee, Luna.’ Perhaps it was thee who did not understand what Nightmare Moon was to me.”

Scrivener reared his head back slightly… then he glared at her for a moment before closing his eyes and grumbling under his breath as he climbed to his hooves, Luna now wincing and blushing a bit as she scurried to her own hooves as Scrivener headed towards the kitchen, the winged unicorn saying awkwardly: “I know, I know thou understood well even before this, and I know our situations are… different… Scrivener Blooms, listen to me.”

Scrivy, however, kept his back to her as he stood on his hind hooves and leaned against the counter, pointedly not looking at her as he fumed to himself, and Luna ground her teeth together behind him before she seized him and yanked him backwards, making him stumble before he spun around, beginning to open his mouth… but instead, their eyes locked, and they both growled at one another as sparks sizzled between them, electricity bursting though Luna’s ethereal mane and tail as she leaned aggressively forwards… but as images, thoughts, insults, apologies, and recriminations shot back and forth between their minds, it only worked to further fuel the anger and stubbornness and passion between the two.

Scrivener leaned forwards, and Luna’s head smacked into his as she shoved herself towards him, the male gritting his teeth as Luna gave him a challenging, furious look, their eyes still locked, their minds still swirling violently as Scrivy’s body flexed and his hooves ground into the floor, and Luna’s mane snapped backwards before she winced when Scrivener reached up and shoved her shoulders hard. She staggered backwards, their mental link cutting out as they both winced away for a moment, before Luna looked up furiously, still feeling their mixed frustrations before she leaned forwards and swung a hoof out, punching Scrivy across the face.

The male winced, his glasses knocked askew as his jaw flexed… and then he glared at her, seething, as Luna leaned forwards and pawed the floor aggressively with one front hoof… then her eyes widened dumbly before Scrivener simply tackled her, knocking her flat on her back as he pinned her and she cursed in frustration and pain before kicking him hard backwards, making the cupboards rattle and several bottles on top of the counter fall over before she threw herself forwards, tackling him against the counter with a wince, but the male only shouted in wordless frustration as he brought his hooves down on Luna’s shoulders, knocking her half-sprawling so he could pounce on her.

They rolled together across the kitchen floor, yelling at each other senselessly like children, cursing and snapping at each other as images, memories, emotions lashed violently between the two before Scrivener managed to throw Luna off, sending her crashing into the side wall by the refrigerator with a wheeze before he barreled forwards and rammed his shoulder into her, making her curse even as she grinned violently and seized him around the neck, twisting hard to send him crashing down to the floor on his back with a wince before she leapt on top of him.

Scrivener tried to kick her backwards, knocking her into the fridge, and Luna threw herself with the movement, slamming painfully against the heavy appliance before she launched herself off it to crash down on Scrivener with both weight and strength, the floor tiles beneath his body cracking as his eyes bulged and his breath wheezed out of him, even as Luna felt the same pain spark through her own ribs and body, giving a shout of triumph and anger as she glared down at him with a deep flush… before her eyes widened as Scrivener stared stupidly past her shoulder as the fridge tottered slowly backwards, then rumbled as it toppled forwards.

Immediately, Scrivener shoved all four legs out past Luna, half-catching it against his hooves as he braced his back against the cracked tiles of the kitchen floor, hissing through his teeth in effort as Luna cursed and winced as the fridge landed against her back before she anchored her hooves against the floor on either side of Scrivy, gritting her teeth and shoving backwards, the two equines putting their combined strength into holding up the heavy, cold metal box and their quarrel instantly forgotten.

Luna breathed hard as Scrivener pushed upwards, hooves grinding against the fridge on either side of the winged unicorn’s head as she looked down at him, her breath washing over his face as her horn sparked and her mane fell like a curtain of lightning and starlight around them… and then their eyes locked, and her mouth fell open for a moment as cyan and chestnut irises met before Luna leaned suddenly down and kissed Scrivener firmly, hungrily, back arching and body pressing down even as her limbs and solid frame flexed with the effort of keeping it up, Scrivener feeling the weight increase on his limbs for a moment before loosening even as he kissed her passionately in return, their tongues twisting, jaws working together before they parted with a gasp.

Luna moved down slightly with a soft whisper, kissing slowly down the side of his neck, and Scrivener grunted and shuddered, hooves loudly scraping against the metal front of the fridge as he arched his back, feeling his body grinding up against hers as she flexed under the weight of the heavy refrigerator, the male gritting his teeth before he managed: “Maybe we should… deal with the large, heavy object first, L-Luna…”

Luna cursed under her breath even as she straightened slightly and grimaced, pressing herself back against the fridge as it clanked loudly behind them before she said roughly: “Then be quick about it. On three: one… two… three!”

The winged unicorn gritted her teeth as she threw herself backwards and Scrivener shoved hard upwards at the same time with all four limbs, and the fridge rumbled as it was knocked back to a standing position, Luna wincing as she slammed back first against it and landed heavily on her haunch, making it wobble slightly again for a moment as Scrivener sat up across from her, the two looking at each other for a moment, bruised, Scrivy a bit bloodied, Luna breathing hard as electricity sparked through her mane… and then they lunged at each other, kissing hungrily, Scrivy stroking his front hooves through her mane and Luna grinding down against him aggressively, sharing breath and life and images and wild passion…

Half an hour later, Luna and Scrivy were once more settled in the den, Luna gently kissing along the faint bruising over Scrivener’s jaw as she smiled slightly and the male murmuring despite himself: “You know, we have a few really bad habits, Luna. One day we might actually have to grow up.”

“Liar.” Luna replied softly, and then she buried her face against the side of his neck, adding embarrassedly: “And I do apologize, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Twas an unnecessarily low blow, even if thou wert being an idiot.”

“Yes, well. I apologize too, Luna, it’s my fault more than it is yours. You’re right, after all… how often have I admired darkness? But now dealing with it in my own head, I’m acting like a whiny foal… besides, I shoved you first.” Scrivener gave her an entertained look, wrapping a foreleg around her and squeezing her closer against his body. “I should know that always leads to me getting pummeled.”

Luna laughed, then she gently pushed herself against him, rolling the male onto his back and sliding her body overtop his to gaze warmly down into his eyes, nose-to-nose. “Well, thou can take a beating, and so can I. Besides, when we fight so… I wonder if we aim to really hurt each other or only punish ourselves. We feel the other’s pain, after all… ‘tis a strange thing, passion. ‘Tis strange what emotions and love compel us to do, and dangerous… and I like that, mayhap more than I should be willing to admit.”

They smiled at one another, sliding their bodies against one-another’s, studying each other as Scrivener stroked along her sides and she pressed her hooves down against his shoulders… then she murmured thoughtfully: “And still. Thou makes me admit things I should not. Thou makes me do things I should not. ‘Tis fun.”

“You’re fun.” Scrivener replied mildly, and Luna snorted in amusement before he added quietly: “But we are weird, mixed-up ponies… literally. We both have problems… and while I am usually the one who starts our problems by delving too deeply or getting all whiny…”

“Yes, my reaction is never to let thee apologize or give thee space, ‘tis to escalate the situation. Still, as I prove again and again, it is obviously my tendency to resort to physical violence that lets us vent our frustrations and completely fixes all problems.” Luna said imperiously, arching her body to press herself firmly down against Scrivener even as she rose her head with a grin, a mischievous glint in her eye as Scrivy laughed and shook his head. “I am only so fortunate thou takes such pleasure in being beaten around.”

Scrivener only smiled amusedly up at her, squeezing her sides before he leaned forwards and said pointedly: “I don’t mind taking a hit or two, but as I recall someone here-”

“Shut up.” Luna leaned down and kissed him firmly even as she blushed, and Scrivener closed his eyes with a half-grin even as he kissed her back for a few moments before she pulled back and stroked thoughtfully along his chest… then glowered moodily as there was a loud knock at the door, muttering: “I refuse to entertain company today.”

There was silence… and then another loud two knocks, and Scrivener looked amusedly up at Luna as Luna glowered towards the hall, then gritted her teeth when the door rattled in the frame before she shouted: “Go away, foul cyclops! Thou art not welcome here!”

A shape rose moodily up through the floor as the front door was irritably booted, and then Pinkamena slowly sailed down the hall like a shark, Luna cursing under her breath as she sighed and shoved herself off Scrivener Blooms, the male wincing before he rolled to his own hooves and followed as Pinkamena burst apart into black smog in front of the door before the wood shuddered in the frame… then the handle twisted and the door opened, revealing the figure of falcon-headed once-god Odin beyond as he grouchily looked over his shoulder. “There you are. Took you long enough.”

“Nay, I was ignoring thee.” Luna replied sourly, and then she glared at the door as Odin looked up in surprise, the wood crackling and reshaping itself into Pinkamena’s grinning face near the top of the wooden frame. “Pinkamena, cease this abuse of thy abilities. ‘Tis not thy place to gleefully use thy powers everywhere, that is mine. Now eject thyself from my house and return to thy fetid domain.”

“Hey, why are you so bitchy? Usually after you and Scrivy kick each other’s flanks and then celebrate by doing the nasty, you’re in a much better mood.” Pinkamena’s voice sounded oddly muffled as it spoke from the bulging, twisted-up wood, and then it contorted slightly as the half-demon’s expression became playfully-mocking. “What, did you not draw enough blood or get enough-”

Luna snapped her horn briskly upwards, and the door shook violently as Pinkamena’s spirit was ejected from it, stupidly shooting through the air and over Odin’s head as he only glanced tiredly up before the half-demon crashed into the ground in a puff of frost and dark mist, the Pale climbing awkwardly to its hooves as the winged unicorn said grouchily: “One day, Pinkamena, thou shall be physical again. And I shall roundly, horribly, gleefully pummel thee into a pulp. Nay, I shall not kill thee, only because it would take away the pleasure of doing it all again later!”

She huffed as the Pinkamena Pale glowered moodily at her before vanishing, Scrivener awkwardly stepping towards to gently rub a hoof along Luna’s back before she shook her mane out, wings fluttering once at her side before she glared at Odin as he simply looked at her meditatively. “Now, old lecher. What does thou want?”

“You keep strange company, Brynhild. Then again, I suppose you always were a little strange yourself.” Odin shook his head slowly, then he tiredly stood up and cracked his back with a grimace before reaching into his coat, producing a flask and carefully opening this. He took his time taking a slow drink, grimacing a little at the contents, as Luna only glared at him irritably… and then finally, he sighed and wiped the back of his wrist across his beak, saying quietly: “I wanted to let you know where we stand in regards to… Looking Glass World, as Scrivener Blooms named it.”

Odin nodded towards the earth pony, who smiled awkwardly, still not exactly sure on how he should address a once-god after all these years… and then the falcon-headed being grimaced a bit as he shook his flask, adding ruefully: “I think we’ll make it just in time, too. I’ve been rationing my stores of Ambrosia, but I’m going to run out sooner rather than later at this rate and then all I’ll be is a feeble old fool.”

“Thou art already nothing but a feeble old fool; powers granted by suckling at a magic fruit are not thine own abilities at all.” Luna retorted, and Odin gave her a sour look as he slowly twisted the top back on his flask. “Besides, we require not thy aid to open the Bifrost any longer, and the Looking Glass World is being repaired and built up as we speak from whatever catastrophe had struck it… catastrophe which thou still does not speak of, Odin.”

“Because there is no catastrophe to speak of, Brynhild, I don’t understand why you won’t believe me when I say that.” Odin replied quietly, looking at her with a small smile. “There were ponies once, in that world, yes. But you studied for yourself how ancient the damages done in that world are… and sadly, it was not because of any great war. It was simply because the unicorn, earth-servant, and Pegasus could not find harmony between them. Equestria was eventually abandoned as the tribes moved apart… and then, one-by-one, the tribes collapsed from within as they were ground into by pressures from without. Sadly… it reminds me all too well of what I did to the Aesir, in stubborn pride…”

He glanced up for a moment towards the sky, then shook his head ruefully before returning his eyes to Luna as she muttered: “Very well, Odin, I shall attempt to believe thy words. But know that if thou art lying, I shall break thy arms and legs and head, in that order.”

“Yes, Luna, I’m very well aware of that by now, thank you.” Odin said tiredly, and he grimaced a bit as he rubbed at the scarred side of his face. “And I know the fact we have brought Nibelung artisans bothers you, but they will return to Niflheim or at least the wilds afterwards, and they are the few of the tribe that remember the old way, when they were builders instead of murderers. We have precious few allies and not the luxury of picking and choosing though…”

“Which is why we employ not only them, but the strange, silent creatures that live here and there in Equestria, aye?” Luna looked moodily up at Odin. “’Tis a grand joke and grand folly, old lecher. Ponies should do the work themselves, should build their own nation… not wake up in walls and rooms designed by barbarian and stranger.”

“Again, we have little choice. And both the Nibelung and the Strange Ones are following the same designs they were able to gather from the very cities they’ll be building models after, you know this, Brynhild. You spent a year helping the engineers gather information from around Equestria and cross back and forth over the Bifrost while herding souls from the further reaches of this nation…” Odin replied gently, holding up a hand to quiet her when she began to open her mouth. “I understand your concerns. I understand your discomfort. But again, we do not have the luxury of choice here… we have to make the best of what we have. Or would you rather try and build an entire nation by yourself, Brynhild?”

“Scrivener and I could do it.” Luna said stubbornly, and Odin smiled amusedly and shook his head before the winged unicorn grumbled and slouched, muttering: “I see thy point, doddering old fool. All the same, I do not approve. But does thou have a real reason to be here or art thou simply here to make a conniving, obnoxious nuisance of thyself?”

Odin looked at her for a moment, then he shook his head before he reached a hand into his jacket, muttering: “As impatient and rude as always… some things never change, I suppose. Yes, I was recently in the north, tracking Fenrir… and I found something I thought would be of interest to you, hovering around the mountains. It took some piecing back together, but they are hardy entities.”

Odin removed a large, spherical glass vial from inside his jacket, the thin neck corked tight, and a shape stirred inside the blue-tinted glass… before both Scrivy and Luna leaned forwards to stare in amazement as a tiny Draconequus tiredly opened his black eyes from where he was laying against one wall of the bottle, tiny white pupils focusing in on the two almost curiously from his half-draconic, half-pony features as he rose an eagle talon and waved slowly. “Discombobulation, I believe the creature took as its name, yes? Normally I would send it back to Ginnungagap, but-”

“Give it here!” Luna flicked her horn as it glowed blue, and Odin winced as the vial was ripped out of his hand, Discombobulation bouncing around in the glass sphere and flailing his mismatched limbs before Luna’s eyes snapped upwards and settled on the flask in the falcon being’s other hand, and it glowed as she spun around, yanked free from Odin’s grip as the winged unicorn marched back inside and snapped: “Arrogant, doddering old fool, thou would let the creature suffer? How long has thou locked this beast away in a bottle like a djinn, accursed old goat?”

Scrivener winced a bit and spun around, awkwardly heading down the hall after Luna as Odin only stared, then began to mutter grouchily under his breath as he ducked and wiggled his way into the front hall, saying flatly: “Brynhild, it is a chaos entity. Only long-term neutralization can destroy them, or shattering and being left to rot… I did not torture the creature, I saved-”

Then he cursed sharply as he banged his head against a rafter, wincing and grabbing at his skull as Luna grumbled in the den, putting the glass vial gently down on the counter that separated living room and kitchen as Discombobulation moodily stood up and regarded them with his talon and dexterous, gray-skinned hand behind his back. The Draconequus was chimerical creature, his legs that of a giraffe and a feline, a long, thick kangaroo tail swaying beside him and his lithe, long torso covered in black scales. One arm was thin and like the leg of a bird, the other covered in shaggy red fur, and a fin stood out from either shoulder-blade like wings: one was shark like, the other thin and frilled with small spikes almost invisible in its thinness.

A stiff, short black Mohawk adorned his head and ran down the back of his neck, a ram’s horn curling along one side of his face, a simpler white, J-shaped horn standing out from the other side of his head, as he looked moodily up at them. He sniffed after a moment, the colors of his body distorted by the blue glass, and then he leaned forwards and breathed over his crystalline imprisonment, leaving a fog of breath before he wrote a one-word question: ‘Dead?’

“Nay, Bob, we are alive. We are… the only survivors, though. Twilight Sparkle, my sister Celestia, all the others… they have all passed on.” Luna said quietly, and Discombobulation frowned from behind the glass before he nodded slowly and looked down… then glanced up again when Luna smiled faintly and said softly: “But not all is lost. We cannot restore this world, but we have a new home waiting for us all… and all shall live again there, and ‘tis not madness speaking. And whether thou likes it or not, thou will be accompanying us there too… although it seems that thou art severely weakened.”

Discombobulation glared at her, then flexed his arms, but to little avail as he winced back and forth before huffing silently and crossing them moodily. Then he looked up sourly as Odin slipped forwards, looking moodily at Luna as he said tiredly: “The creature was in pieces and talking to itself when I found him. He’s suffered extreme deterioration, made worse by the fact I was not able to gather up… every piece of his body. That is why he is so small, and kept safe in the bottle, Brynhild. Even being in the air could poison and kill him in this state. He will require a long period of rest and rehabilitation.”

“And until then, what, he should simply ornament my countertop? I think not, Odin.” Luna said irritably, and she glanced at the flask, spinning the top off of it and making the once-god wince before Luna glared at him dangerously when he began to reach for it. “I think not, old lecher. Thou can share thy stash of wonder-fruit.”

“No, wait, you aren’t really going to-” Odin began incredulously, and then he winced as Luna flicked her horn imperiously and the cork popped out of the bottle, Discombobulation staring stupidly upwards before Luna emptied the contents of the flask into this, pouring a mulberry-colored liquid into the spherical vial and making Discombobulation flail and dance around before the waterfall of liquid Ambrosia knocked him over.

He splashed loudly in the half-full vial, and Luna shook the flask briskly a few times to get the last few drops out of it before she threw the container to Odin, the once-god catching it against his chest with a wince before Luna flicked her horn and corked the vial closed once more, leaving it half-full of slowly-bubbling liquid. Then Bob’s head slowly pushed out of the potion, glaring at her, and Luna grinned as she leaned down, saying kindly: “I do this because I am fond of thee, Bob, and thou did a grand, noble thing for us… and I know that Twilight Sparkle, too, will be eager to see you in the other world. Worry not, though shall thank me later. The Ambrosia will be absorbed bit-by-bit into thy body from this luxurious bath I have prepared thee and restore thy strength all the faster.”

Discombobulation only continued to look sourly at her as liquid dripped along his body, and then Odin sighed as he tucked the flask away, saying moodily: “And now what am I supposed to do? It’s a long trip back to Asgard-”

“Then thou had best be on thy way.” Luna retorted imperiously, straightening slightly and glaring at him, and Odin grumbled tiredly and rubbed disconsolately at his temples, looking upwards as if pleading for patience. “Hurry off now, and out of my house, old lecher. Thou art tracking dust and apocalypse grime all over the floor in any event, and were rude enough to leave the door open on top of that. Get thyself hence or I shall roundly bash thee, and I do not think thou wishes to test my patience or my strength.”

“Alright, Brynhild, fine. I’m going.” Odin muttered grouchily, rubbing slowly at his face before he added moodily: “Although I think at least a ‘thank you’ is in order.”

The winged unicorn sighed grumpily, then glared at Scrivener Blooms, who winced a bit before he looked up and said lamely: “Thank you, Odin. From me and Luna. She just doesn’t want to admit how much she appreciates this.”

Luna punched him firmly in the shoulder, making him wince and sway to the side slightly, and Odin sighed again before nodding and turning around, carefully making his way down the corridor as he grumbled: “Once, I struck fear in the mightiest of gods. Now I can’t even get a prancing pony that was once my handmaiden and battle-guard to say a proper ‘thank you…’”

“But I shall say to thee a proper goodbye!” Luna called irritably, striding to the top of the hall as Odin managed to slip outside, and the once-god turned around before Luna childishly blew a loud raspberry at him, then flicked her horn as it glowed and slammed the door loudly in his face, Odin cursing and staggering backwards with a wince as it almost slammed into his beak. “Now give us peace, cyclops, and bother us not!”

The winged unicorn huffed at the closed door, and Scrivener only looked at her back mildly for a moment before she shot him a moody look over her shoulder, saying grouchily: “I do not have to like him, Scrivy, or even act anything less than a child around him. First he attempted to molest me. Then he put me into coma. Then he murdered me in my sleep. And lastly, he sat around, hiding, while Valthrudnir played his sick and insane games. ‘Tis his fault the world is in the shape it is, ‘tis his fault all my family and friends died. And worst of all, ‘tis his fault that I met thee, and a terrible, sick, depraved, wicked part of me insists upon constantly reminding me of this fact and making me actually feel indebted to the old goat for all that has happened.”

Scrivener smiled despite himself, and Luna sighed as she turned around, striding towards him and then firmly kissing him for a moment, and the male returned it affectionately, mouths moving together, tongues twisting before Luna slowly pulled back and let her head drop forwards, foreheads rubbing together as their eyes remained closed and she murmured: “’Tis all twisted up inside me, mixed and mangled. And look, now, now I have to be thankful to him for the fact that we have another old ally returned to us… and another strange roommate, although ‘twill be a long time before Discombobulation may roam freely outside his glass prison.”

The two ponies opened their eyes, gazing towards the counter… and then both stared as Pinkamena slowly rose up on the other side of the countertop as Discombobulation floated moodily on the surface of the liquid in the vial, before he frowned a bit and slowly looked over his shoulder to stare as the Pale of Pinkamena grinned widely down at him and licked her lips slowly, slamming her hooves down on either side of the countertop and making the vial rattle.

Discombobulation flailed and splashed around in the liquid, and then he quickly dove beneath the surface, peering awkwardly up and out at the half-demon spirit as her eyes gleamed before Luna cleared her throat loudly, and Pinkamena looked sourly up as the winged unicorn said mildly: “I shall ask thee not to disturb Discombobulation too heavily. He is a welcome friend in our home, after all, and he did much to help us. ‘Twould not be any fun to kill the fragile soul at this juncture, would it?”

Pinkamena looked moodily up at this, shrugging as she rose a hoof and tilted it back and forth, and Luna rolled her eyes before she said dourly: “Very well, then let me put it this way. Harass the creature overmuch before he has recovered enough to be beaten on freely without concern that it shall actually kill him, and I shall stuff thee into a bottle as well and thou can sit next to each other in matching cells.”

The half-demon glowered at them, then she leaned forwards and moodily chewed at the top of the bottle before sighing silently and nodding once, then she simply flickered out of existence as Luna grumbled under her breath and Scrivener smiled despite himself. “I’ve always enjoyed how it’s the people you beat on yourself most often that you’re the most protective of, Luna. It’s a very cute quality.”

“Everything about me is cute to thee, Scrivener Blooms, even when I pummel thee. Thou art infuriating.” She stopped, then leaned down, studying the vial with the Draconequus inside as Discombobulation sank back into the liquid, looking ruffled and grumpy but slowly adjusting to his new, wet home. “Bob, while I know thou hast a tendency to be stupid, do thy best not to be for at least a week or until the Ambrosia is absorbed into thy spirit and body. ‘Twill greatly speed up thine healing, but miracle or not, ‘tis nothing that can repair a spirit that was left so tattered for eight long years. If thou requires anything, write a message on the side of thy bottle, Scrivener Blooms and I shall check on thee every hour or so.”

Discombobulation looked moodily up at Luna, then he sighed and nodded briefly, rubbing at his face before he gave a thumbs-up, and the winged unicorn smiled softly as she stepped back, murmuring quietly: “Perhaps the next I see Odin, I shall actually thank him honestly. I am indeed surprised, after all, daydreamer… the old lecher must actually be growing a heart to have saved the Draconequus instead of leaving him to rot or killing him out of ‘mercy.’ It has taken eons but it gives me hope, hope that in the new world, perhaps even Celestia will continue on her peaceful path instead of being the scheming, evil, wicked, dangerous pony she once was.”

Luna lowered her head thoughtfully, then she leaned forwards and headbutted Scrivener gently, making him laugh a bit before he turned around as she nudged him insistently. “Come, though. We have had excitement enough for today. Let us retire for a short nap, handsome beetle. Thou looks as if thou could use the rest and I surely can myself, and a short sleep always rejuvenates us both and puts us in better spirits… no matter what nightmares may lurk in our minds.”

Scrivener smiled a little even as he lowered his head hesitantly, striding towards their bedroom as Luna fell in step beside him, gazing softly at the male as she added quietly: “We are linked in mind, body, and soul, Scrivy. I shall be there beside thee, as always… and perhaps today will mark the day thou shan’t have the dark dreams.”

“Perhaps the Black Wolves of Hell will also stop in after we wake up and have a quaint tea party with us.” Scrivener replied mildly, and Luna rolled her eyes even as a faint grin quirked her features despite herself. “Sorry. I know you’re trying to be positive, Luna, since I pretty much never am… and I really do appreciate it, I do. Almost as much as it soothes me to know that you… are always going to be there for me. No matter how little I deserve it.”

“Shush, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna replied softly, giving him a quietly-entertained look as the male pony turned to the door leading into their bedroom, pushing it open and gazing silently up at the ceiling even as he approached their large, circular bed, smiling a little to himself as his eyes roved the constellations and lunar symbols that detailed the black roof. Then he laughed a bit and shook his head as the winged unicorn kissed the side of his neck, nudging him forwards past the pair of dress horses that were each adorned with a set of armor: Luna’s sapphire gear, and Scrivener’s own black and silver light plate. “Let us brave the world of dreams together, even if but for an hour.”

Scrivy nodded, gazing at her affectionately as they both slipped onto the messy bed in their dark room, the curtains swaying softly over shuttered windows and the furniture looming around them, throwing strangely-comforting shadows across the room. For a moment, he glanced towards where Pinkamena’s puppet lay, but its back was turned and it was curled up in a corner, as if asleep itself, like some half-sentient guard dog… and Scrivy smiled amusedly at this thought as Luna half-shoved him down into the pillows, then gently pulled his glasses off and put them aside before she tossed the blankets over them, saying with quiet entertainment: “Disturbing creature.”

“I know, I know.” Scrivy wrapped his front limbs around her as they pressed close to each other, bodies pushing tightly together, eyes closing as their foreheads rested side-by-side, feeling one another’s breath as Luna’s starry locks swirled quietly backwards and her forelegs massaged up his chest, over his shoulders, and then tightly locked around his neck. Her horn glowed softly as they both closed their eyes, but in their minds, they could still clearly see one another as they laid side-by-side in warm comfort, Luna’s voice clearly murmuring through his thoughts: Thou never feared my darkness, Scrivener Blooms. I do not fear thine own… let us descend without fear, side-by-side… as always.

Scrivy smiled faintly, comforted more than he could express by the unyielding loyalty and love of the winged unicorn as they curled tighter together… and almost all too soon, he felt himself falling silently, alone for the moment, but unafraid, as sleep claimed him. The sensation was strange and raw, gazing upwards as darkness swirled around him, as he sailed downwards through black clouds and gazed up at a faint, lost point of light high in the distance, yellow and weakening… and he sighed softly, a faint hint of sorrow touching his soul but no fear as his eyes tightly closed.

His fall began to slow, as he knew it would, like the air itself was cradling and catching him… and Scrivener gritted his teeth as he felt his body ripple, as a feeling like claws tickled over his body and terrible, soulless blue light flashed around him for a moment, forming into grinning teeth and glowing, soulless spotlight-eyes that hovered beside him as a voice whispered: “Welcome back, vassal. Your will weakens; you will embrace us soon.”

“I will not.” Scrivener said quietly, and the voice only laughed softly before the male arched his back and flipped easily, a dark bog appearing beneath his hooves as he landed with a grunt and a flex, looking up with his teeth grit as the sickening, warm ooze pulsed and writhed beneath him, thick, large vines slithering slowly back and forth through the ill mire. “You’re just an infection brought on by the Tyrant Wyrm… you’re just… something that was always there inside me anyway.”

There was a quiet chuckle through the wide, black marshland that surrounded the male, the swirling, obsidian mist that bordered this in on all sides seeming to form into leering faces and distorted creatures before the mud in front of Scrivener bubbled slowly upwards, and a hulking, ominous shape slowly pulled itself out of the muck, dripping fetid ooze and dark poison dripping in long strings off the sludgy, half-reptilian shape as it whispered: “You deny and thank us in the same breath, mortal creature. But beneath it all, we feel your longing… we sense your desire for us… for our power.”

The creature leaned forwards, breathing over him… and Scrivener shivered at the memories that sparked through his mind, mixed with pallid, torturous imagery as the terrible, sludgy beast grinned callously. “We are part of you, now and forever. We are patient: for us, years are mere seconds, and your fight against us fills us with amusement. We are already mixing… you are already tainted and poisoned. You fear us… because more and more, you are becoming like us.”

“No!” Scrivener shouted, and the monster laughed even as it burst apart, raining ooze down around him as the pony staggered backwards through the mire, gritting his teeth and shaking his head even as dark vines and roots began to crawl up along his body, muck and poison and corruption hailing down around the earth pony as he leaned forwards and clenched his eyes shut. “I don’t want to be like you, burning… pointless disease and destruction! You are not my savior or my idol… Luna is, with how her darkness makes the stars and moon shine so bright…”

Then he slumped forwards, cursing, trembling, as the muck ran down his body and the vines and roots crackled and crumbled away to dust around him, trembling as he looked up… before flexing and wincing as pain radiated through his right forelimb, looking down with a shiver as he rose his hoof and watched as it split in half, then into quarters, warping and distorting as it became a draconic, ugly claw.

He cursed under his breath he felt his muscles flexing and bunching, sinew twisting like living serpents beneath his coat as patches of black, dark-colored scale grew here and there over his body. He gasped, spittle falling from his jaws as teeth reshaped themselves, becoming sharp and dangerous, fangs sprouting on one side of his mouth as he cursed under his breath before his left eye clenched shut as pain shot through his face.

On the left side of his skull, an ear crumbled away like dust as his features rippled, the unscarred side of his face warping and distorting, becoming reptilian as his eye snapped open with a gargle of pain as blue, unholy light glowed out of the sunken socket, his teeth larger, crueler, two gnarled horns twisting out of the sides of his head as he fell forwards and his tail burst apart into straw-like white hairs, the pinkish appendage left behind snapping and thickening as it grew and blackened. Spikes ripped out down the length of it as Scrivener arched his back with a miserable howl, one shoulder warping and thickening upwards as three large, bony protrusions ripped their way through his coat near the shoulder-blade as his white mane lengthened and sizzled with black and blue electricity, as a voice whispered: “You are us, and we are you. The same power that let you resist our Black Verse… now makes you kin to us, now ties you to us. You will become us. We will become you.”

Scrivener breathed hard in and out, trembling a bit as he leaned forwards, closing his eyes as his three hooves and single claw dug slowly against the marsh beneath him, long tail snapping back and forth as the bone spikes standing out along one side of his spine moved slowly like pistons, trembling a bit as he felt revulsion, anger, and worst of all, sick and twisted pleasure spilling through his body… before he looked up sharply as a hoof gently touched his shoulder.

Nightmare Moon gazed at him silently… but when he looked into the eyes of the enormous, ebony pony that he now stood almost at head level with, he could see that it was Luna. Luna, draped in Nightmare Moon’s shape and form, as she leaned forwards and whispered quietly: “I am here, daydreamer. I shall not abandon thee to shadows… and thou art not permitted to go on adventures into the blacker realms of even thine own self without my company, not considering all the trouble thou does excel so supremely at getting thyself into.”

“Luna…” Scrivy flushed deeply, glancing away awkwardly even as he slowly straightened… and then he closed his eyes as she almost lunged forwards and wrapped her front legs around him, squeezing him in a fierce embrace. He hated to be seen like this… but he also never needed her presence more than in this state. “This isn’t…”

“Shush, Scrivener Blooms. This is the nightmare. This is our nightmare. I… am a Nightmare.” A faint smile spread over Luna’s face as she slipped backwards, flicking her starry mane as her eyes glowed quietly, with both affection and bittersweet pleasure. “We have gazed long into the abyss… we have hunted many monsters. But if we fear what it may make us… we shall only succumb all the quicker to becoming that which we wish to avoid. Let us… let us face our nightmares with pride and dignity… let us remember that these visions cannot hurt us. Let us recall always that they are only the world inside ourselves… and as thou taught me… we can choose to be who we wish. No one else, not even the Norns… can choose for us.”

Scrivener smiled a little despite himself, glancing up and nodding hesitantly, and Luna nodded slowly back, her Nightmare Moon body flexing as she studied him, and he gazed back at her with his corrupt, half-Wyrm, half-pony features. They looked at one another as the marshes beneath their hooves became cold black stone, as the skies overhead became ebony night, littered with stars and the glowing skull of the moon… and then Luna bowed her head forwards and whispered: “I feel thy thoughts, and thou feels mine. And in the nightmare, I know our desires go further untapped, I know that we are able to see deeper into our strange and mixed and exotic subconscious than we normally can… but thou art handsome to me, even now.”

She blushed a little even as her eyes glinted enticingly, tilting her head to the side as Scrivener smiled despite himself, straightening a bit as he allowed his eyes to draw along her features; the face, the body, the size and strength and shell of Nightmare Moon, but with Luna’s eyes, Luna’s depths… and he leaned forwards, murmuring quietly: “And you are truly beautiful, my Valkyrie…”

Luna laughed quietly, her eyes flashing as she leaned forwards and their jaws met in a soft kiss for a moment, a violent swirl of thoughts and passions passing between them as the kiss went from tender to rough for a short moment, then they drew quickly apart… before Luna gave a seductive, knowing smile as she turned, and Scrivener fell in pace beside her as details filled in around them, the female murmuring: “Our nightmare awaits, beloved…”

They strode silently forwards as shapes formed around them out of black mist and ashes, becoming an entire world in a matter of moments as the two darkness-kissed creatures paced forwards, both faintly-flushed, regrets and recriminations and self-loathing slowly evaporating as they strode through an open set of enormous, wrought-iron gates and into a black city of stone and metal, strange creatures and ponies that had been transformed by the touch of night gazing at them with adoration and respect: but they did not bow, they did not grovel, and most of all, they did not fear.

Earth ponies with darker coats and eyes that almost glowed, designed for seeing by the light of the stars and moon; Pegasi with supple leather wings and bulkier bodies, defenders and masters of the night sky; unicorns, with long, spired horns and glinting, metallic-looking hooves. Warrior breeds, strong and honorable, who lived in comfort in the embrace of shadows.

And the city was home to stranger sights as well: skeletons of ponies that populated the streets as naturally as the dark ponies, working here and there and others simply standing and chatting. They were not Velites, bound by magic and runes and dark charms, but defenders and crafters who stayed of their own choice in this, their nameless black temple city, sworn to defend and serve until either they were no more or their dark kingdom collapsed.

And they saw other fantastic sights as well, as they made their way down the main road that cut through the center of the city: creatures that were half-wolf, half-pig working at forges, assembling weapons and armor and chains and tools. They saw wingless drakes that rested on ramparts, armored with collars and braces around their limbs, side-by-side with enormous, bull-headed minotaurs armored in heavy plate that covered their bipedal bodies, deadly pole-arms glinting in their hands.

Luna smiled, her eyes glowing, and Scrivener felt his own pride growing as he looked over these warriors: ingrained with honor, true equals, truly strong, who protected and watched over the weaker creatures that shunned their beautiful night, who did not see the glory of the shining moon. And then he blushed a bit as Luna gazed at him, half-lidding her eyes as she whispered: “We are the defenders and the destroyers. The first and last lines of defense… we are life-givers and life-takers, as the night has always been, the cloak under which the prey escapes and the predator hunts. And I love this, Scrivener Blooms…”

She blushed as she bowed her head forwards, and they halted at the end of the road: a tall, towering structure loomed ominously on one side of them, and a barracks rested on the other, ponies running through short, disciplined drills in the gravel-floored grounds in front of the building as an instructor shouted short, clipped orders. Then Scrivener and Luna both gazed ahead, to where the road ended, and a long, wide flight of steps began, leading up a rocky mountainside to a looming fortress at the top that was guarded by enormous, stone statues of winged unicorns in full, lunar-stylized raiment.

The two began up this, Scrivener’s long tail flicking as his features tensed and his body shivered, as Luna licked her lips slowly, the steps beneath their hooves almost pulsing with warmth, textured like they were alive instead of heavy stone. They were silent as they made their way upwards, as massive, heavy gates made of ivory metal slowly rolled open like the hungry jaws of a dragon, inviting them inside, eager for their presence… and the two smiled faintly at each other before Scrivener murmured quietly: “The nightmare truly begins now.”

Luna nodded, and she couldn’t repress a shiver of both fear and excitement… although more and more, her passions were winning out over the part of her that whispered this was wrong and worrisome, and for Scrivener it was the same. Primal hunger and unnatural desire tangled in their mixed soul as they strode into the courtyard beyond, looking back and forth as armored ponies bowed to them, and creatures of darkness gazed respectfully, tenderly down at them from their vantage points, framed in starlight against the black sky.

The two made their way slowly forwards through the open square, past brambles and beautiful black rosebushes, past trees from which hung heavy and ripe, verdant fruits. The very air of the fortress seemed to thrum with their presence as soldiers saluted them and bowed graciously, and they nodded in return and smiled as their eyes met the fearless, respectful irises of both ponies of the darkness and entities of shadow.

As they approached the opposite end of the courtyard, a pair of armored black doors swung slowly, welcomingly open, and the two passed without hesitation into the red-stone halls of the fortress. They paused for a moment past the threshold, as the doors slowly creaked shut behind them… and then Luna smiled slightly, a shiver passing through her body as electricity sparked through her mane, her Nightmare Moon form almost glowing as they were faced with a choice: a hall to their left, a hall to their right, and a large corridor that went straight ahead, as she murmured quietly: “Where do we begin, my beloved, my daydreamer, my dark poet? Where shall we let the nightmare lead us first?”

“Luna, I… I shouldn’t choose…” Scrivener murmured, blushing a bit as he looked down, and Luna gazed at him quietly before he smiled a little at the ground, murmuring: “Pinkamena was always right… the nightmares are the good dreams… the good dreams are the bad ones. I feel like this nightmare will last for longer, will hit harder for some reason… I feel all these urges, and this corruption… pulling at me, fusing with me. I feel…”

Scrivener looked up towards her, and the expression was half-pleading, half raw passion as he whispered: “It can be seductive, and exotic. It can be subtle, and alluring. But tonight, it just feels strong, and powerful… it makes me feel strong, and powerful, and like I can do anything I want, it gets in my brain and makes me forget… it makes me not want to remember… it makes me want to…”

Scrivener gritted his teeth, his body flexing, his claw scraping slowly against the ground as he cursed and trembled, fighting for a moment before Luna stepped forwards and pushed her lips to his ear, whispering: “No, my husband. We do not fight this here. Whether it comes from spending too long in Hell’s warping ether, slaying too many monsters, or worst of all, from our own taint of darkness that burns and spread and grows stronger and stronger and wider and deeper inside ourselves… we do not fight it in the nightmare. That is how we survive the nightmare. That is how we master the nightmare. That is how we will master ourselves and learn to use this darkness we now both possess…”

Scrivener’s glowing eye flashed, and then he half spun, seizing into Luna’s ethereal mane with his claw, the starry locks sparking in his hand as his hoof snagged her shoulder, yanking her head back and pushing nose-to-nose with her… but she only grinned, her eyes faintly glowing as a shiver ran through her body and she said softly: “We are connected, and we are one. The same blood flows within our veins… and the same shadows now flood our mind and soul. In these nightmares I taste thine corruption… and thou hast lived and breathed the shards of shadow that infused Nightmare Moon with such strength, such life. I know what thou desires, in the darkest, deepest corners of thy soul… as thou knows… I am eager, too…”

She began to lower her head… but instead, Scrivener pulled her forwards, kissing her again, and their jaws worked together fiercely for a few moments before a single speck of blood spilled from between their mouths, a droplet of crimson that fell towards the floor from a lip cut by a fang… but neither creature of darkness knew which had done the cutting, which had been the cut, as they drew slowly apart and licked their lips. Their blood was the same… their wounds were shared… and Scrivener felt the last of the shackles of his fears and anxieties crumbling away as he lowered his head before looking up and saying quietly: “Then we’ll start slow.”

Luna smiled slightly at this, leaning forwards and licking slowly up the side of his neck, and Scrivener growled in quiet pleasure as he half-closed his eyes before striding down the center corridor, the tall, ebony equine easily falling in step beside him as her mane fluttered and sparked along behind her, a sultry smile on her face and her eyes glowing as she murmured: “I won’t lie, Scrivy… I do fear that left alone, left to soak in these shadows, we could become monsters. But I know all the same…”

“We will always have one-another, we will always have the saving grace of friends and family…” Scrivener murmured with a slow nod, and Luna smiled slightly at this before the warped, nightmare version of the pony grinned towards her, saying quietly: “But there’s no reason we can’t still live by our own rules, no reason we cannot indulge our passions, a bit of hedonism, and the things the sun-kissed shy away from, is that what you’re saying?”

“Yes, Scrivener Blooms, why yes it is. Thou art beginning to learn.” Luna replied with her eyes half-lidded, and then she flicked her horn forwards as they approached an enormous set of iron doors, the heavy, plated metal gates glowing as they both swung backwards and open, revealing a plush, expansive hall beyond littered with pillows and lined with beautiful pillars covered in detailed, spiraling engravings of ancient legends of the night. A soft carpet ran along the center of the floor, leading to a comfortable, plush blue bed covered in pillows and soft blankets, on either side of which rested servants: winged unicorns with ivory bodies and angelic, white wings, horns glowing faintly as they bowed their heads low and respectfully as Scrivener and Luna strode down the hall.

Two were female, adorned with golden chokers and thin, sparkling chains that draped along their bodies like silk… and two were male, with black leather collars tight around their necks, bodies large and powerful, vambraces over their forelegs. All of them had a lunar symbol for their emblem, and they stayed in low, submissive bows until the two stepped onto their bedding and turned around to settle, before Luna looked up and said calmly and kindly, her eyes glowing through Nightmare Moon’s features: “Attend to us, Moon-Blessed. It is thine pleasure to serve, is it not?”

“It is, Lady Luna.” murmured one of the winged unicorns, and on either side, a pony stepped forwards, beginning to soothingly massage the two as Luna smiled and Scrivener Blooms arched his back with a sigh of relaxation. “And how shall we entertain our most cherished, our most adored?”

Luna smiled at this, her starry mane flickering backwards as she laughed quietly and bowed her head forwards, then she looked towards Scrivy as the male tilted his head forwards, closing his eyes in relaxation as the other ivory female servant began to gently massage along his scalp and through his messy mane, as her almost-twin massaged along his back and spine. “Husband, what suits thy tastes for now, in this wonderful dream?”

“Oh, but this is a nightmare, Luna… this is us, given ultimate power… and so easily it could consume us. So deep runs the temptation to ask for awful, terrible things…” Scrivener murmured, arching his back as he added quietly: “And let’s not forget what lays down the other halls… the things that bring us joy, even as they torment us…”

“Thou teases me.” Luna leaned forwards after a moment with a quiet laugh, reaching a hoof over to touch gently against his shoulder, and Scrivener grinned despite himself. “Then shall we ask for more servants, to lay before us and praise us? Shall we ask for gladiators, and a spectacle of violence? Or shall we ask them to bring what lay down those darkened hallways here? Later, yes, I may feel guilt, and worry, and fear… but for now, I feel the part of me that makes even Nightmare Moon seem as tame as a kitten writhing up. I am passion, and I am darkness, and I am a Valkyrie, and I realize how tired I am of acting like a normal pony even in Hell, Scrivener Blooms. I am not giving in to this darkness… I am making the darkness bend and break and give in to me.”

Her eyes flashed as she looked at him… and Scrivy smiled slowly, leaning towards her as the winged unicorn servants all hesitantly leaned away, before he said softly, challengingly: “Prove it, then, warrior princess.”

Luna grinned slowly, widely at this, her eyes gleaming as she slowly stood up, shaking her body out as she leaned forwards and starry mane and tail sparked violently around her, eyes glowing before she stepped towards him and shoved the male onto his back, pinning him down and leaning down to glare into his eyes with delight and entertainment. “What is this? A sign of life from the dead and boring and so-worried poet? Art thou finally relenting, art thou finally ready to face this, and even embrace this new part of thyself, whatever it may bring?”

Scrivener grinned up at her, then he half-rolled as he seized her shoulders, slamming her down onto her back and pinning her as he pounced on top of her, his eyes glowing as he leaned over her and then slowly licked up her horn… and Luna’s jaws fell open as her eyes closed tightly, a shudder of pleasure going through her as sparks twisted along the tall spire. “Look at me, Luna. I’ve spent eight years fighting this. Eight years complaining. Eight years of nightmares… and now my subconscious self is nothing but a mess, a half-transformed freak. You embrace the darkness fully, take on the shape of Nightmare Moon freely, and run with your instincts, your passions… maybe it’s not that I need to have your physical strength… maybe what I need is more of your wild spirit.”

“And thou may have all of it. Thou may have every piece of me… I am thine, thou art mine, we are one…” Luna whispered, her eyes glowing as she looked up at him and nodded, licking her lips slowly as the male reached his claw forwards, sliding it through her mane… and then she leaned up, adding softly: “The nightmare climbs towards its apex. Towards the true darkness. I do not fear what I will become as long as I am beside thee… thou should feel the same.”

“I do, Luna… what I’ve only ever truly feared is what that darkness might compel me to do to you… and I don’t want this corruption… to spill into you. There is evil in my mind… but your soul is like the night… dark, but pure. Embracing.” Scrivener replied quietly, cupping her cheek gently with his twisted claw, and Luna smiled lovingly up at him as she reached up and gently grasped his face with her front hooves.

“Idiot Scrivener Blooms… I am thy queen, and thy slave. I am thy owner, and thy most precious possession. I am everything to thee, and thou art everything to me… good and bad together, but at the end of the day, we are equals. We are soulmates as well as soul-bound. And I will do anything, anything to see thee happy, and know thou would do the same for me.” Luna replied quietly, and then she slowly pushed him backwards and stood up, arching her back and grinning down at him, licking her lips slowly. “Such thoughts run rampant in thine head! Thou truly are a beast. A monster, in fact.” She half-lidded her eyes, leaning forwards, growling hungrily. “Danger excites me.”

“First, we have another danger to attend to, Luna.” Scrivener replied quietly, and the enormous, ebony winged unicorn nodded after a moment before Scrivener smiled slightly as he glanced over his shoulder at the four ivory servants, adding kindly: “Come with us, pets.”

“An audience. Dream fragments are not as thrilling as real ones, but thou truly art on a remarkable and sudden impulse of evolution… and I like it.” Luna murmured thoughtfully, and then she strode towards the open doors, grinning to herself as Scrivener fell into step beside her, reality almost flickering around the two as the four servants bowed their heads and followed. “If only those in reality could witness our dark imaginings and be humbled by them… if only we could see what lays inside the hearts and souls of others, what distortions exist there, my husband, and then wrap them in our black veil with the promise that we shall be there to understand and comfort them…”

Scrivener only smiled slightly at this, however, not needing to speak as they strode onwards, burning with passion, bathing in the darkness… ready to face the shadows that lurked at the very heart of the nightmare world that they both reviled and reveled in.

What Lies Beneath

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Chapter Three: What Lies Beneath
~BlackRoseRaven

Scrivener Blooms and Luna strode side-by-side down the corridor, the walls around them slowly turning from smooth red stone to crudely-stacked black bricks, held together by soil and crumbling gray mortar. This corridor was much longer… and the further they strode down it, the more it transformed, the very atmosphere darkening and deepening even as Luna murmured in Nightmare Moon’s shape, her voice echoing faintly with excitement: “The only path through the nightmare, beloved… is straight through the heart of darkness.”

The male nodded slowly as he looked over his shoulder, gazing at the four ivory winged unicorns that still followed them, the Moon Blessed, the dream fragments… their powerful, almost angelic servants in this twisted world inside their mixed soul. And he couldn’t help but smile to himself before he looked forwards as the walls around them warped further, no longer black brick, but thick soil held up by ancient wooden rafters and netting of ivy and roots, the surfaces pulsing almost as if alive as they strode over a floor that went from tiled stone to corrupted earth, Scrivener shivering a bit as he whispered: “I’m scared of how excited I am, Luna… or shall I call you Nightmare Moon, in this blackened world? But then what does that make me?”

“My husband, my pet, my devil, my monster… does such a thing as a name or title matter, in this dark dreamscape?” Luna asked softly, her eyes glowing as she glanced towards him with a slight smile, then she leaned over and kissed gently beside his jaw, and the male closed his eyes with a quiet breath, arching his back slightly and shivering in pleasure. “All that matters is that we are together, and we push forwards… together.”

Scrivener nodded slowly as they passed through an archway and into an enormous cavern, the male equine gazing back and forth as he licked his lips nervously and eagerly, his eyes betraying both hesitance and anticipation as they looked back and forth: chains and hooks hung from the ceiling, heavy tables, racks, and instruments that could only be meant for inflicting pain stood around the room… and at the very back, a terrible, obsidian statue stood of a draconic, snarling Tyrant Wyrm with glowing eyes, jaws open in an eternal roar, a waterfall of crimson blood and black corruption spilling into a deep basin that stood in front of it that never overflowed and swirled continuously.

Luna smiled slightly, stepping past Scrivener Blooms and tilting her head back as she took a deep breath, then gazed up towards the ceiling and murmured: “Inside thee… is eons of evil, inflicted by the parasite. Corruption that has streamed through thy mind, that thou has fought so hard against… that yet part of thee strives to embrace. For reasons I understand all too well, Scrivener Blooms… as thou has said before, the tortured make the best torturers, and thou has suffered greatly… I understand all too well wishing to return that pain to those who would deserve it.”

Luna lowered her head, gritting her teeth for a moment as her mane sparked and shuddered, floating upwards as she whispered: “And we tainted thee. Nightmare Moon and I dragged thee down into shadow… and yes. I know. Thou had a part of thee… hidden beneath the cynic, the sarcasm, the armor, that was filled with anger and resent and hate. I remember it well, when thou almost killed Bramblethorn… how some days we wish we had allowed thee to. How some days we wish that Nightmare Moon had done worse to the ‘proud’ unicorn… we will never forget the treatment we received in that town, even whilst we worked so hard to save it. We will never forget how much that journey cost…

“Do not be ashamed, Scrivener Blooms. This is not reality, this is only play. Thou art scared… but this is a nightmare, after all. This is our darkest nightmare, because it brings with it the darkest, sickest, most twisted delights for us both… for thee, making those suffer who have hurt thee so badly. Learning to use the evils of the Tyrant Wyrm, coached further by Nightmare Moon… and myself. For me… aye, there may be no honor in this. There may be no good in this. But I am darkness. Thou art darkness. Good intentions are what have helped pave the path to the hell we ended up in…” Luna looked up, speaking in both Nightmare Moon’s voice and her own at once as she murmured: “Let our surging darkness be what brings us to paradise…”

And then she smiled slowly… and Scrivener Blooms licked his lips before he gazed towards the fountain of blood, striding slowly towards it as he bowed his head, knowing what he had to do. Knowing what he had agreed to… knowing what he was even excited to do, as he rose front hoof and warped claw and rested both on either side of the terrible basin before he leaned his head forwards and sipped slowly at the crimson elixir.

Memories not his own, thoughts, visions, knowledge tore through his mind as he gritted his teeth and clenched his eyes shut, body flexing, warping further even as he struggled to allow himself to accept even this tormented part of himself, as he breathed hard in and out before he looked up as an ivory winged unicorn stepped up to either side of him, gently grasping his shoulders… and then slowly, his eyes opened, eyes glowing as he looked over his shoulder towards where Luna was watching with both eagerness and faint sorrow, as he whispered: “Then let us begin.”

Scrivener Blooms and Luna awoke from the nightmare, curled tightly together, breathing hard, bodies pressed tight… and they shuddered a bit before smiling awkwardly at each other as the male flushed deeply, murmuring: “Did… I mean…”

“Well, it all sounded like a good idea at the time, Scrivy. I… I am sorry if I pushed too hard.” Luna blushed a bit, then she looked down at herself… and both she and Scrivener laughed awkwardly as she mumbled: “But it seems we were both perhaps… excited.”

Scrivener blushed deeper: passions had grown intense at one point, even amidst the metal, the bone, the blood, and what they did in the dream world could certainly affect their physical bodies… but Luna only shook her head, blushing herself as she mumbled: “Come, Scrivener Blooms. We should relax in any event, and partake of our softer side now that our… rough edges have been given vent.”

She shuddered a little, and Scrivener awkwardly stood up, tossing the sheets aside as he and Luna carefully made their way out of the bedroom together, both of them looking down, both faintly tinged with shame… but also longing. Also excitement that they could feel in one another’s bodies… and Scrivener laughed weakly before he muttered: “It’s a good thing there’s no one around for me to actually do things to. That’s a very distinct sign of a sociopath or psychopath, you know, and eventually fantasy isn’t enough…”

“There’s always Pinkamena.” Luna hesitated, then stopped in the den, turning around and reaching up to rest her front hooves on his shoulders as he hung his head awkwardly. “It was a nightmare, Scrivy. We call them such because that is what they are: they are the darkest parts of ourselves rising to the surface, that we know better than to give release at any other time but we cannot resist in our deepest, blackest places. They are not a part of us we are proud of… but thou knows that my anger has always been there. My enjoyment of bloodlust… my love of battle; perhaps… in a way, I am almost as warped as Sol Seraph was, yet I hide it better because I, at least, have a conscience.”

“We’re both warped and twisted, Luna… but neither of us is near the level of Sol Seraph, that I can say with certainty.” Scrivener muttered, shaking his head grimly and looking down for a moment, and then he blushed a bit when Luna leaned forwards and kissed his forehead quietly. “You always encourage me. You always accept me. Even though I fear sometimes I am going to become a monster… and I love you for that. Even if this also does go to show that romance really is the scariest thing in the universe, because of what it can make you do for another pony.”

“Fool.” Luna smiled a bit, and then she hesitated again before stepping back. They paused only long enough to glance at the vial on the counter, but Discombobulation seemed to be sleeping with his head just sticking up past the faintly-ripping surface of the Ambrosia. “Well, at least it seems our new tenant sleeps well in his glass sanctuary. ‘Tis funny, we are plagued with such nightmares and yet the beast of Ginnungagap sleeps as placidly as a lamb.”

“Chaos. Besides, we’re both a little… gross right now. Let’s uh. Keep going.” Scrivener nudged her gently, and Luna rolled her eyes with a smile even as she nodded and headed through the kitchen, striding towards the cracked back door of the cabin as the male murmured: “I hate the way our nightmares feel so good, Luna. Afterwards, there’s nothing but shame and sometimes even heartache, but during… sometimes I feel so powerful. It’s cowardly, and it’s shameful, but I do.”

“And so what of it? They are nightmares, that is all. Thou art too… whiny and complacent to do such things in reality.” Luna muttered, and Scrivener smiled as she flicked her horn and the back door flew open, striding out into the small rear yard of their home, which was fenced in by boulders and jutting chunks of rock and shale. “That is why they are the worst nightmares, Scrivy, because they feel good while there, because they prey upon us. Yet all the same… thou art more stable than thou usually are after such… indulgences.”

Scrivener shrugged a little at this as they strode towards the center of the yard, where Luna had years ago shaped a large, rocky bowl that was now filled with faintly-steaming water, an unnatural hot spring in a world that was crazed and unpredictable: some days, they would come out here and find the water and basin completely frozen… other days, it would be like this, kept hot by some strange reaction beneath the warped earth.

Scrivy leaned carefully over the side of the strange hot tub, reaching in and gently swirling a hoof through the water… and he smiled a bit. Hot, but not boiling… and then he winced when Luna shoved him firmly from behind and knocked him sprawling into the water with a splash, coughing and flailing a bit as he sat up with a grimace and then glared over his shoulder at Luna as she grinned widely at him and winked. “’Twas just a boost, my daydreamer, it looked as if thou were having trouble climbing into the tub.”

“Of course, Luna. Of course.” Scrivener said dryly, slipping backwards through the water as it bubbled quietly around his body, feeling the soothing heat working steadily into his frame and muscles and relaxing him even as he flicked his sopping mane out of his eyes, only glad he hadn’t put his glasses back on. “Come on, warrior princess. You’re the dirtier one here.”

“Thou always says that about me, I am always the worse and better one.” Luna complained, and then she huffed and stepped forwards, slipping into the tub herself as her mane sizzled faintly against the water, moisture seeming to run upwards in reverse through her ephemeral locks and tail in shimmering trails as she settled herself into the hot water with a relaxed sigh. “I could always simply cast a short spell to clean ourselves… but this is so much nicer. And ‘tis well deserved… ‘tis nice that even in Hell, there are little pleasures.”

She paused, then slipped through the water until she rested side-by-side with Scrivener Blooms, and the equine smiled as he wrapped a foreleg around her, the two dropping their heads to rest together as she murmured: “We live a strange life together, Scrivy. We know each other’s deepest, darkest secrets… and we exacerbate each other’s best and worst qualities. The atmosphere of this Helheim-flooded, broken world around us works to rile our emotions and passions all the further, makes us stranger, darker, and the taint of Nightmare Moon in me makes part of me cunning and cruel… the corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm in thee exaggerates thy nature into the primal and the violent.

“Yet… would I change it? Nay, I would not.” Luna looked up towards the bleak crimson sky, smiling faintly as she snuggled their sides tighter together in the steaming water. “We have learned so much about each other and ourselves in these past eight years. We have done things I never dreamed were possible… we have shared things I never imagined even mixed souls like ours could share. We have suffered, but it has given what we fight for so much more meaning… had we lived in happiness, were we more normal, we would not be where we are today. And most important of all, for all we have suffered… we work to atone for our sins, we work to prove that our darkness cannot simply be controlled, it can even be used for good… best of all, we have a chance to save and salvage our friends and family.”

She quieted, then buried her face against the side of his neck, closing her eyes and murmuring: “But I have thee, and thou has me. That is what matters most… no matter what goes on otherwise, we are together… we have each other.”

Luna blushed a bit, then smiled when Scrivener kissed her forehead and hugged her tightly around the neck against him, the winged unicorn murmuring: “Oh silence, Scrivy. At least I give voice to my so-called codependency. Besides, we are soul-bound soulmates. And furthermore, thou art just as horrible as I am, filthy evil poet, if not worse, clinging to me as thou does and writing thy silly poems about me when I am right here.”

“Shut up, Luna.” Scrivener replied with a slight smile, and the winged unicorn grinned even as she ground her horn firmly against his features, making him laugh a bit as they rested together in the comfortable heat of the water, both sliding down a bit further with sighs of relaxation before the male added softly: “But I know. Sometimes I feel bad about it, Luna… but I’m happy, as long as I have you. We’ll always have each other, and that thought comforts me in ways I can’t describe… even when I get scared that I’m going to make things… hard for you, or steer you down a bad path.”

“Thou, steer me down a bad path? Silly, ridiculous Scrivener Blooms. ‘Tis I who do all the steering in this relationship.” Luna retorted, and Scrivy snorted and rolled his eyes with entertainment before she headbutted him playfully, making him grunt and wince back a bit as the water quietly splashed around them. “But I am not afraid what will come. Once we are… out of Hell, back with friends and family, back existing in a natural world without the surrounding of all this darkness we have been forced to adapt and adjust and in a way, to even enjoy in order to maintain some sense of rationality and sanity… I believe we will go back to being more like our old selves. Insane, violent, bloodthirsty, aye, but calmer and more placid as well, and without the nightmares that plague thee so, handsome daydreamer.”

“I hope you’re right, Luna.” Scrivy replied softly, gazing over at her with a small smile before he leaned forwards and kissed her cheek quietly. “About the Moon Blessed…”

“Yes, yes, I know, I am greedy, blah-blah-blah.” Luna waved a hoof dismissively, rolling her eyes as she leaned back against him before smiling slightly as he gave her a firm squeeze. “What can I say, Scrivener Blooms? I do not mind the idea of having loyal servants. I would take care of them, I would bless them with the powers I could give. And they would tend to us in return, I see not what is wrong with this. Besides, they are merely figments of the nightmare, the subtle use of lures of passion and adoration… furthermore, they are formed as a mix of our desires, as thou should know from the cries of ecstasy instead of pain they gave when thou… put practice to the skills of the Tyrant Wyrm.”

She smiled quietly, looking down at the water and splashing at it softly as Scrivener blushed, but she only murmured: “Thou art strange, Scrivener Blooms. Thou takes some measure of delight in pain… both to thyself and to others. But thou enjoys it more when thou hurts another and they too pleasure in it. Thou art sick. Are all writers and poets so damaged, so convoluted, so immoral and foul?”

“Only the good ones.” Scrivener smiled despite himself, and Luna laughed and shook her head before she nipped the side of his neck gently, making him twitch, then curl closer to her as she kissed slowly down the nape of his throat. “I just worry about what the corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm said, most of all. That it will become me… that I will become it.”

“And I am Nightmare Moon and she is me, but we are still two distinct and different things, Scrivener Blooms… and thou knows she has added great benefit to our cause, and is a powerful ally.” Luna replied quietly, glancing up at him softly, and Scrivener nodded hesitantly. “Perhaps she is evil. Perhaps she is only dark passion… I care not. It is what we do with our skills and powers and the choices we make that define us… must I constantly remind thee of the very things thou taught me?”

“Apparently.” Scrivener replied mildly, and Luna looked at him for a moment before she grabbed his head with her front hooves and dunked him beneath the water, making him flail and splash wildly before he surfaced with a grumble and blew a stream of water into the winged unicorn’s face, making her wince back and slap at him childishly.

They looked at each other… then both smiled a bit before they once more pressed their sides together, hooves quietly linking beneath the surface of the water as Scrivener bowed his head forwards and asked quietly: “Do you think it’s possible… that somehow, this corruption inside me… might make me…”

“No, thou art both too stubborn and too whiny.” Luna replied gently, but it was strangely soothing as Scrivener laughed a bit despite himself, glancing at her curiously as she softened. “The mental image of thyself is warped and distorted, but it is part of the nightmare, it could be nothing more than mere illusion brought upon by fear. Thou has tasted the darkest of enjoyments now and been fueled by the blackest of pleasures, but I look at thee, Scrivy… and I still see thee. The poet I knew in Canterlot, whom I love so dear and deep. Stubborn, obnoxious, cynical and sarcastic, qualities that in thee are somehow all good.”

Scrivener smiled, leaning forwards and sharing a short, chaste kiss with the winged unicorn before he said softly: “And you’ll always be that same winged unicorn to me. Beautiful, frustrating, impatient and noble beyond words… without your darkness in the world, Luna, or the light of the moon, there would be no beauty, no harmony, no honor.”

“Flatterer.” Luna laughed, then she reached up and quietly touched the black pearl that hung around her neck, gazing down at it for a few moments before she nodded firmly. “Then let us make a deal, Scrivener Blooms. We have spoken enough of corruption, philosophized enough on good and evil, worried too much on these ridiculous subjects that I do not completely comprehend anyway. I am not a thinker, that is thine job: I am a fighter, a warrior, a Valkyrie, and I am now proud to call myself by that noble heritage. So let us promise to no longer worry of such things inordinately. Let us merely enjoy what we can enjoy… remember that good or evil, dark or light, it is the world we strive to honor and protect, it is friends and loved ones and family we fight for. There is too much to do to allow ourselves to mire and stew in deep thoughts, let them work themselves out and let us work instead towards fixing these much greater problems than our petty dramas and silly mental wars that bring us pleasure even in the pain anyway.”

The male nodded firmly in response to this, and then he winced when Luna grabbed him by the shoulders and pinned him backwards, leaning forwards and kissing him firmly for a few moments, his eyes widening before they slipped closed as he returned it slowly… but then the winged unicorn drew quickly back and grinned. “Then our deal is sealed with a kiss, Scrivener Blooms. Thou can bitch and moan and whine and philosophize later, once the world is fixed. ‘Twill be delicious to see the horror on the face of Twilight Sparkle as she wrestles with moral quandaries and lectures us so.”

“Why doesn’t anything phase or bother you, Luna? Why is it that no matter what happens, you find some way to take delight in it?” Scrivener asked dryly, and when Luna gave him an entertained look, Scrivener snorted and splashed her, making her huff. “Hey, we know why I do it. I’m self-destructive and compartmentalize almost everything, and when I’m not joking about something I’m whining about something else.”

Luna rolled her eyes, then splashed him back, beginning to open her mouth… and then both she and Scrivener Blooms looked down as the water ceased to bubble around them, the temperature rapidly dropping before ice slowly started to spread from the other side of the pool, and both ponies winced and scrambled over the edge of the rock tub, Scrivener half-falling on the rocky ground as Luna flapped her wings to sail into the air, mane and tail sparking as they released a hail of droplets before she spun around and dropped to her hooves with a grimace, glowering moodily at the now-frozen tub as she grumbled: “Why must the world work to take away all our nice things, Scrivener Blooms? Are we that hated? Must the gods toy with us so? ‘Tis even worse than stuffy Canterlot. Hell is stuffy.”

“Your face.” Scrivener said grouchily, and Luna gave him a look for a few moments before she firmly shook herself out, sending water droplets cascading over the male and making him wince and flail at her. “You’re not a dog, Luna!”

“And thou art not a beetle, yet it is what thou most reminds me of all the same.” Luna grumbled, and Scrivener sighed, then he winced as she rose her head, her horn glowing a faint blue as she closed her eyes… and a moment later, a hot wind gusted over their bodies, rapidly drying both ponies as Scrivener closed his own eyes with a grumble.

The wind slowed to a halt after a few moments, and the winged unicorn straightened imperiously, nodding once and giving a thoughtful look to Scrivener Blooms. “But as I was about to say, my daydreamer, before we were so rudely interrupted… I simply have worked to take a page from thine own book. ‘Tis no point in staying upset over things… ‘tis far better to push forwards.” She stopped, then smiled a bit, adding quietly: “I remember too, how my brother Sleipnir… would always laugh off the worst of burdens and pains. Even when he died… he laughed, and wished us well, even snared in the jaws of terrible Fenrir as he brought down the mountains upon the skulking monstrosity.”

She looked down thoughtfully, then rubbed absently at the underside of her jaw and nodded once as she smiled across at Scrivener, who gazed back at her softly. “Yes, I can think of nothing better to be, Scrivener Blooms, then a laughing, honorable fool like my brother was. Thou art the second best thing to that, a sarcastic, blissfully-cynical idiot scribe.”

“Thanks Luna, that just warms my heart to hear.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna laughed and shook her head before she turned and strode towards the door, the male automatically falling in step behind her as he smiled slightly. “So what are our plans for the rest of the day, in that case?”

“What plans, Scrivener Blooms? We have earned a break for at least a few more hours.” Luna replied with a shrug, striding in through the open door, and Scrivy nodded after a moment as he kicked it closed behind him. “I wish to gather food and supplies at some point during the week, doing one last scavenge of Ponyville… or perhaps even of Canterlot. It may also be wise to stop by Zecora’s hut… it is protected by powerful magic and it seems that every time we return there, we find the shelves restocked with what we need, even if there has been not a single hoof-print to speak of the shaman’s presence.”

Scrivy nodded slowly, saying quietly: “But we saw those strange ghosts around there, too. Shadows… like Pales, but dark as night, faster, much more… connected to the world. The last time we tried to chase them, they easily outmaneuvered us…”

“Aye, because I did not expect the specters to be so wily.” Luna said sulkily, striding through the kitchen, and Scrivener smiled despite himself as he headed instead towards the coffeemaker. “I sense they are harmless to us. Just. Irksomely quick. But it means nothing.”

“You’re as bad about winning as Rainbow Dash ever was.” Scrivener said mildly, and Luna grumbled as she turned around and leaned down to study the glass vial, as Discombobulation laid sprawled on top of the liquid, looking bored and pouty as he floated in a slow circle and pointedly ignored her.

She leaned closer, then shook her head and turned around before wincing as she was faced with the Pale of Pinkamena, the half-demon spirit studying her moodily before she cocked her head curiously, and Luna rolled her eyes, knowing all too well what the specter was interested in. “No, Pinkamena, I shall not divulge the nightmare to thee at this point and time. Scrivener Blooms and I have an agreement in place… if we do speak of such things, ‘twill be lighthearted from now on, and we shall not muse and ramble upon it. Sick creature, go down to Helheim if thou wishes to dance amidst the pain of others.”

Scrivener turned around, heading into the den and glancing towards the ghost, and Pinkamena rolled her eyes before she grinned at Scrivy and then jumped up on her rear hooves, doing a short, awkward little jig that made the earth pony snort laughter. Luna sighed at this, but smiled all the same herself, saying dryly: “It never ceases to amaze how death has made thee so much more agreeable than any beating ever could in life, among everything else.”

Pinkamena dropped back down to all fours, then she shrugged moodily before grinning widely as Scrivy began to walk by, and she pretended to cozy up beside him, immediately making Luna glower. Scrivener looked dumbly at the winged unicorn for a moment, then he winced and shrank his head back as her horn glowed faintly, half-covering his face with a hoof. “What did I do?”

“’Tis not thee, ‘tis the grabby ghost seeking to antagonize me once again.” Luna grumbled, and Scrivener glanced towards Pinkamena… but the Pale only laughed silently as she leapt into the air and floated across the room, grinning mockingly as she twisted upside down before vanishing from sight. “Foul half-demon. ‘Twould not bother me half as much if I thought the creature was actually fond of thee. Or at least had a body.”

“This is what I love most about you, Luna. You don’t get jealous of physical things, but I’m definitely not allowed to date ghosts.” Scrivener said dryly, and Luna looked at him for a few moments as he strode towards her and flopped down on the bedding across from her… and then a grin spread over her face before they both laughed and leaned forwards, nuzzling each other and gently pressing their faces together.

They settled after a few moments, drawing back and apart, and Luna gave him an entertained look as she said kindly: “Incorrigible poet. Perhaps ‘tis strange, admittedly, but… I do become jealous at times, and protective at others. Thou art mine… my husband, my soulmate… my best friend. The titles… have never been important to me, though, the love is what is important to me: I am no more and no less yours now than I was before we were married, I like to think. I like to think that even then, long before we were tethered in soul… we still shared… this. This thing between us that… goes so deep. And I guard it jealously, as I know thou does, too.”

She stopped and smiled a bit, leaning forwards and murmuring: “Aye, so is it so strange? I know well that physical affections cannot threaten what lays between us. Thou could sleep with a thousand ponies and ‘twould not harm that bond of souls, not one of them would be able to breach that first layer of thine insufferable armor of sarcasm and foiling cynicism… although, by the way, if thou did sleep with a thousand ponies, I would pummel thee senseless a thousand times for a thousand days, and would be quite frustrated with thee.”

“Only if I didn’t invite you along.” Scrivener said mildly, and Luna grinned deviously at him, making the male laugh and wave a hoof. “Stop switching sides of the argument! Go back to being jealous and clingy.”

“I can do both.” Luna retorted, tilting her head upwards imperiously. “Thou art only jealous of my superiority. But as I was saying then… I know that the physical cannot harm what is between us. If it could, my constant pummeling of thee long would have left bruises not just upon our bodies, but upon that bond as well, for I can be…”

“Enthusiastic.” Scrivener supplied, and Luna looked pleased at this word choice, nodding thoughtfully as her starry mane sparkled and swayed backwards.

“Excellent! Enthusiastic, yes… ‘tis a good word for me.” Luna smiled slightly, leaning forwards and tapping Scrivy with her horn once, making the male roll his eyes in amusement. “Nay, I am not wary of the physical. But those who connect emotionally I can be… perhaps… a tad bit suspicious of. ‘Tis not like Twilight Sparkle… we both cared for her very deeply, as she did for us. She was a great friend, always there, always beside us…” Luna closed her eyes, her smile softening, her head bowing forwards before she shook it briskly and added ruefully: “Pinkamena, on the other hand, is a predatory hunter. And all too often I look at her and think that she has chosen thee specifically as her prey.”

Scrivener only snorted in amusement at this, shaking his head and saying mildly: “She hangs out with both of us, Luna. She’s just trying to frustrate you, and admittedly, she does a very good job of that. But don’t worry. I’m not going to date the ghost of the half-devil that lives in our house.”

Luna rolled her eyes at this even as Scrivy began to climb to his hooves, but she promptly hopped up to her own, reaching out and grabbing the back of his head to shove his face firmly down into the bedding. “Oh how reassuring thou art, poet. Stay there, I shall fetch the coffee. Although I swear thou must exist merely to test my patience at times, beetle.”

The earth pony grunted at this as he rose his head from the bedding, settling himself down and glancing towards the empty fireplace… and then he glanced up curiously at the sound of a rattle, craning his head over his shoulder to peer at the vial Discombobulation was in as it bounced again. Luna ignored this pointedly as she dug through their cupboards for mugs and sugar, so Scrivy rolled his eyes as he climbed to his hooves and headed to the counter, leaning down to peer curiously at the tiny Draconequus as he hammered against the glass wall of his prison.

Scrivy winced after a moment as he caught a spark of a strange, alien shape, and then he shook his head briskly, forcing himself to focus and calm as he returned his eyes to Discombobulation and he frowned a bit as the chimerical creature scrawled a quick message across the glass of the bottle in what looked almost like red lipstick. He frowned a bit at this, then leaned down, muttering to himself as he made out the shapes of the letters… before nodding and grimacing. “I think we might have intruders. Bob says he smells ‘roast pig.’”

“And nothing burns better than Helheim’s ice, as I believe the creature once said.” Luna glanced up with a frown, looking over her shoulder at Scrivener as the male smiled to her, and she sighed a bit even as her horn glowed, holding the carafe of dark liquid in the air beside her. “Alright, Scrivener Blooms. Thou may go and check… alert me if they are a hostile war band. But as thou knows, if they are only drudging past… there is no point in picking a quarrel with the creatures. Now that the Nibelung have been oh-so-successful in helping to conquer Midgard, they seem to have realized that they once more are on the bottom of the food chain, after all… ‘tis too bad, Discombobulation, but the dwarves are not so much our enemies as they once more. Now, like us, they too simply seek to try and escape Helheim’s festering disease.”

The Draconequus wiped the lipstick message off the glass as he frowned curiously up at this, but Scrivy only shrugged a bit, saying quietly: “We’ll fill you in on all the details later if you have the strength. I’ll be back in a minute or two then, Luna… try not to burn down the cottage or anything, huh?”

“Hilarious, Scrivener Blooms. Worry not, I shall prepare thy pretty and frilly apron so thou may do thy housewife’s work when thou returns.” Luna deadpanned, and Scrivener opened his mouth dumbly as he struggled for a retort, before grumbling and turning around, Luna grinning and looking pleased with herself as the male headed for the front door.

He pushed his way outside, becoming more serious as he shut the door carefully behind himself, gazing back and forth over the rocky tundra that lay in front of their home… but amidst the few dead trees, he couldn’t see any trace of Nibelung nearby. As a being of Ginnungagap, Discombobulation was sensitive to the presence of those affected by Helheim’s energies, however… and the earth pony shook his head, murmuring: “Better check a little ways ahead… see what there is to see.”

The male nodded to himself, then he carefully made his way forwards, over the rickety bridge that lay over a shallow trench in which had once flowed a beautiful creek, and Scrivy winced a bit as he looked down and for a moment saw green grass, beautiful flowers, flowing, crystalline water and the bridge in perfect, repaired condition before he looked up… and breathed sharply at the sight of a light blue unicorn that smiled at him sadly from beneath a purple cloak, matching, tall hat pushed back on her head to reveal her horn. Then she faded away with the other sights, nothing but illusion of memory… and Scrivener took a slow breath before he continued quietly onto the path, murmuring: “Don’t be useless now, Scrivy. Twenty feet away from your own damn house and already almost lost… you’d never hear the end of that from Luna.”

He walked quietly down a wide path of rock and dirt, gazing back and forth slowly as his hooves crunched softly against the gravel… then his eyes sharpened and he frowned a bit, slipping quietly behind a tree and peering carefully out to watch as several Nibelung prowled by ahead, his gaze sharpening as he studied the creatures.

They were lanky, walking heavily on large paws and carrying weapons in dexterous hands, with greasy black fur covering their squat bodies and features that were a mishmash of wolf and pig: long tusks extended from winkled, short muzzles in faces that were otherwise lupine, and short, bristly tails flicked back and forth behind them as the three marched onwards.

The leader’s eyes glowed terrible crimson, clad in dented battle armor and carrying a heavy axe in one hand… but the other two Nibelung were whimpering as they followed along, smaller, their eyes not glowing but terrified dark irises that flicked back and forth apprehensively. One had his arm bandaged heavily in an ugly sling, the other was half-helping his ally along… and then the head Nibelung stopped and sniffed the air, Scrivener ducking back behind the tree before the Helheim-corrupted dwarf snarled: “I smell you, creature! I smell pony! We hungry, pony, come and fight!”

The other Nibelung, however, only whimpered again before the bandaged one pleaded: “No boss, we join up with war band first… we need to find war band before we go fight-hunting! We can no back you like this… we wounded!”

The corrupted wolf-pig snarled… but then he sulkily nodded as Scrivener slowly leaned out from behind the tree, watching apprehensively as the dwarf pig glared back and forth before muttering: “Fine. You hear pony-pony? You lucky! Or maybe you not so much… maybe better to die at Nibelung blade than live in Hell…”

The Nibelung dropped its head forwards, slouching and muttering as it began to lead the others onwards… and Scrivener Blooms sighed softly in relief, rubbing slowly at his features before he frowned a bit as he heard a quiet crackling, looking back and forth before a shape moved in the distance, hurrying past a large, rocky outcrop.

Scrivener frowned a bit, hesitated… and then sighed, muttering and dropping his head forwards as he slowly began to walk towards this, guided by curiosity more than anything else as he grumbled: “This is sure to end fantastically after all… I’m going to blame Luna for this if anything goes wrong, I was a far bigger coward before we tied our souls together.”

He glanced for a moment towards the direction the Nibelung had gone in, but the trio was thankfully hurrying onwards, moving vaguely in the direction of where Ponyville had once stood… and then Scrivener returned his eyes to the outcropping of rocks, noting the rotten, warped tree that stood to one side of it and studying the geography moodily as he made his way forwards… then halted and stared as a head poked hesitantly around the corner for a moment before wincing and quickly pulling back.

The earth pony jogged forwards, smiling a bit now even as he kept his pace careful, hearing rustling on the other side of the mound before he carefully halted at the corner and apprehensively leaned around it, not exactly wanting to get an arrow or anything else to the eye… but the figures were curled up at the far corner of a hidden, small campsite, and Scrivener sighed in relief as he carefully stepped out into view even as the ponies trembled and stared at him, one of them whispering: “Oh no, I… no, no, p-p-please…”

“Hey, it’s okay.” Scrivy said softly, keeping his voice gentle as he lowered his head, careful not to move forwards as he looked back and forth: the rocky mound formed a wall on one side, and the campsite was recessed into the earth, leaving it protected on the others by walls of shale and soil and twisted brambles. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

The three ponies looked at him apprehensively: they were filthy with dirt and bruises, features sallow from trying to survive out in the desolate world. Scrivener felt an ache in his heart to gaze over them: two stood, and the last was curled on the ground as if expecting to be beaten, wrapped in a blanket, gaunt and sallow…

Carefully, Scrivener stepped forwards… and the ponies trembled, but the male smiled awkwardly before he took another pace and sat down, just inside their campsite, saying quietly: “My name is Scrivener Blooms. My wife and I live in a cabin not far from here. What are your names?”

“I… I barely even remember anymore…” One of the ponies laughed weakly, his mane ragged and tattered, his eyes losing some of their nervousness as the mare standing beside him smiled in a faint, sorrowful way as she bowed her head forwards, closing her eyes. “It’s been so long since… we’ve seen anypony out here. Those awful monsters… they destroyed everything, and I still… I still can’t believe it… I can’t believe for this long, we’ve been out here…”

“We’ve… been so cold. So lonely.” whispered the mare, shivering and shaking her head, and faint trails of tears spilled from her eyes as the pony on the ground closed his own tightly and slowly lowered his head to the ground, as if the simple act of raising it had been enough to exhaust him. “Those… Nibelung… they hunted us, like sport… like trophies, until… until they realized they were being hunted, too, by the dragons that have adapted to the environment and the other monsters… and the skeletons… they try and… they took our friend, dragged her off to do… Horses of Heaven know what to her…”

Scrivener nodded slowly, lowering his head before he gazed quietly down at the weakened pony, sensing Luna’s presence now: she had caught his emotions, caught his thoughts, and was making her way quickly towards them. “What about you, can you stand? If you’re injured, my wife will help you. She’s Luna, the former Champion of Equestria… I know that name is associated with… certain bad things, but-”

But the mare only laughed weakly, shaking her head and whispering: “Equestria… I’d almost forgotten that this was once a country. And Luna… her sister… was Queen, right? But I don’t remember her sister’s name…”

“It was Celestia. That name I remember, at least… we revered her, but she couldn’t stop this.” murmured the pony on the ground, and then he slowly rose his head before he shivered as he carefully began to push himself to his hooves… and Scrivener grimaced as he realized the male was missing one of his hind legs, as the blankets fell away from him. “I think… I think I can manage…”

Scrivener began to step forwards… and then he glanced up as a shadow passed over them before Luna shot down towards the ground and landed easily, turning around… and she looked with surprise at the ponies that immediately turned to silent sympathy. But it was for the wrong reasons, as her eyes slid to Scrivy, who frowned a bit as he caught her emotions and thoughts… before she closed her eyes and reached a hoof up to touch his shoulder gently. “Look again, Scrivener Blooms.”

Scrivy did so, gazing ahead… and then he blanched and stumbled backwards in shock, staring at the ponies as they looked silently back through cataract eyes and empty sockets, their skin peeling from their mummified corpses, bodies blackened with rot and age. They were Haunts… and Scrivener shivered a bit and closed his eyes tightly before he slowly bowed forwards, touching his forehead to the ground as he whispered: “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean… to mock you, to offer you… what I cannot give after all. I can’t help you… not even Luna can help you. Please open your eyes, and don’t… be afraid. I’m… I’m sorry.”

Scrivy slowly straightened, shaken more than he wanted to admit as he breathed hard in and out, and when he gazed over them, they flickered: he saw the Haunts, and then he saw the weakened ponies, looking at him with begging eyes, one of them raising a hoof as it whispered: “W-Wait, don’t go… we don’t understand…”

“Come, husband. I am sorry, but there is nothing we can do for thee… thou must look at thyselves, and accept… what has come to pass. I bless all of thee, in the moon’s name, in Valhalla’s honor and mercy.” Luna murmured, as Scrivener turned around… and then the two ponies silently left the campsite of the dead, as the Haunts stared pleadingly after them.

The winged unicorn and earth pony strode in silence, the male’s head hanging a bit as Luna gazed at him compassionately, and as they began to cross over the dried-up creek, he sighed and shook his head, saying finally: “I hate this, Luna. I look too long at the living, and I see… the shapes, ‘beneath the masks’ or ‘through the mirror,’ like Pinkamena says in that sickeningly-excited way of hers. And I look at Velites and Haunts and Pales and I see who they were in life… Horses of Heaven, this is the most useless, maddening ability ever to exist. No wonder Pinkamena was always such a pain in the flank.”

“I know husband, thou says it often.” Luna said quietly, as they halted in front of their home… and then she smiled faintly, adding softly: “But perhaps in reality nothing has really changed. Thou has always been… strange, after all, and always gifted with a talent to look beyond the physical, the outside.”

She smiled a bit, glancing over at him as Scrivener sat down, laughing a little as thoughts and images swirled between them, before she continued softly: “I remember when thou insisted on sparing the life of a Phooka. ‘Twas the strangest of mercies… and yet, I still respect it even now. Thou has… thou has an inordinate, unnatural affection for darkness and monsters. But without it, thou wouldst not be who thou are: and I fear… I would not be so beloved by thee.”

Luna blushed a bit, shuffling a hoof almost shyly against the ground as he glanced down, and Scrivener smiled faintly as he slipped closer towards her, wrapping a foreleg around her and dropping his head to press his face quietly against the side of hers, her mane wafting gently over and against him as he murmured: “I love you for more than your darkness, Luna. I love you for your mind, your soul, and the hope you bring to me, even in literal Hell… for the fact that you accept me, and do so goddamn much for me.” He paused, then smiled a bit wider, eyes closed as he added meditatively: “And you’re pretty damn hot, too. Not to mention how much I enjoy you beating everything up. The important things in life, you know?”

“Truly, Scrivener Blooms, thou art a sophisticated and refined pony.” Luna replied dryly, but she looked entertained all the same even as she headbutted him playfully. “But I am glad thou art so fond of my most esteemed, virtuous qualities.”

Scrivy rolled his eyes as he leaned away, looking entertained as Luna stood up and flicked her horn, the door to their home swinging open as she added musingly: “’Tis remarkable, though, fair beetle. Thou speaks so highly of my body but rarely ogles it. I am almost offended by this, thou should understand.”

“Luna, I’ll never understand how you can both encourage and set back mares’ rights at the exact same time.” Scrivener said mildly as he followed the winged unicorn inside, shutting the door behind him… and then he winced when Luna pinned him back against the door, a mischievous glint in her eye as he looked at her awkwardly.

“Be not silly, Scrivener Blooms, we are in Hell. Not mare nor stallion, filly nor colt have any rights here.” Luna replied, half-lidding her irises, and Scrivy gave a dumb giggle when she kissed the side of his neck before she spun back around, looking pleased with herself as she said kindly: “Now come and join me for coffee, husband.”

The winged unicorn walked with a little more bounce in her step as she strode back towards the kitchen… then sighed and rolled her eyes when she found the Pale of Pinkamena chewing slowly at the cork of the bottle, her hooves on either side of the vial before the spirit looked moodily up as Luna said dryly: “It is not a chew-toy, Pinkamena, and neither is Bob. At least not at the moment. Leave the Draconequus alone.”

Pinkamena grumbled silently as the winged unicorn strode past to the counter, her horn glowing and lifting the two steaming mugs of coffee she had left out with telekinesis, pleased to find they were still hot… and then she sighed as she turned around and the Pale gave her a wide grin, standing purposefully in her way. Luna, however, only stormed forwards, making the spirit flicker in and out of reality even as the winged unicorn felt a distinct chill pass through her body, muttering: “I will trample thee one of these days, ghost or not.”

She flopped down on the bedding beside Scrivener, the male shifting a bit so that Luna could lay against him as the mugs of coffee floated down in front of the two before she flicked her horn at the fireplace, and sapphire flames burst into life, glowing over the logs as she murmured: “Funny, how little our days and nights have changed from that time we spent in exile together, even now… but I enjoy it. Yet is it really so strange? I imagine in even deep Helheim, not every day must be spent in the monotony of torture… demons, too, must get bored or tired or perhaps even simply lazy, must they not? I am only glad we have not had to test the theory overmuch, even if I do admit to enjoying the challenge of engaging such ruthless and powerful foes.”

“But like the tides, they’ve receded from the world over the last few years… we know the location of the ‘hives,’ as you call them, the demonic colonies… but we also know that a lot of them have fled back into Helheim.” Scrivener shook his head as he picked up his coffee, sipping slowly at it as he looked thoughtfully down at the black liquid before a smile quirked his mouth as he glanced towards Luna. “Admittedly, the subject fascinates me, as I know we’ve talked about a lot. But they have a culture, a civilization almost. It makes sense when you think about it but at the same time… it’s more terrifying than thinking of them as just monsters that like to maim and kill and hurt ponies.”

Luna nodded slowly, her mane wafting backwards as Pinkamena strode over and dropped herself down on Scrivy’s other side, the Pale looking at them intently… but now, the winged unicorn only smiled softly, and Scrivener glanced over his shoulder before he laughed awkwardly at the sight of the spirit. “Didn’t you actually end up in Helheim for a little while? Why do you always look at us like that when the subject comes up but never say anything, you’re the half-demon here. Luna’s the Valkyrie and I’m just the psychopath.” He paused, then looked meditative at this, rubbing at the scarred side of his face slowly. “Huh. I’m the one always rambling about it and yet I’m the least qualified of all to talk on the subject.”

“Oh silence, thou has access to my memories and experiences.” Luna shoved him firmly with one hoof, giving him an entertained look. “Besides, ‘tis not as if thou has no experience with demons and their kin now. I remember well that succubus of a few years back, Scrivener Blooms.”

“Gee, Luna, thank you for bringing that up, that’s something I really want to remember.” Scrivener said dryly, looking at her pointedly, but when Luna only grinned and leaned towards him, he sighed and rolled his eyes. “So what, it took on the form of Twilight Sparkle and tried to seduce me. So did that Nightmare years and years ago. We all know that neither of those things worked out.”

“Thou thinks her flank is better than mine, doesn’t thou? Admit it, thou art as foul a lech as Odin.” Luna said seriously, nodding and wiggling her rump, and Scrivener dropped his head forwards against the bedding before the winged unicorn laughed and rubbed a hoof along his back gently. “I shall never forget the hilarity that ensued as thou headbutted the creature and then chased it angrily around until it fled.”

Scrivener grumbled, saying grouchily: “Well, it was… annoying.” He cleared his throat lamely, then added dryly: “Besides, we already have a rather uh… active and healthy amount of intimacy between us.”

“I enjoy how even when thou phrases things so politely it sounds as if thou art complaining.” Luna remarked, and Scrivener gave her an amused look from the bedding before he rose his head and winced when she ruffled his mane teasingly. “Thou art like a sulky but cute foal that cannot phrase its words properly. Adorable even when thou whines.”

“I have a lot of words for you too, Luna, but if I say them, you’ll pummel me.” Scrivener replied dryly, and then he winced when Pinkamena rudely shoved a hoof against him: although it simply passed through his body in her mostly-ethereal state, he still felt a twinge of cold and a distinct, odd pressure, giving her a flat look as she looked at him pointedly. “What?”

She glared at him, and the earth pony winced back a bit even as she seemed to solidify in his vision, as distinct and real as Luna as she mouthed several words… and Scrivener groaned as he threw his head back before he looked sourly over at the winged unicorn. “She’s being cranky. Can we please kick her out?”

“Oh, be kind, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna said kindly, looking at him with entertainment. “Even Pales need to rest every now and then in the intangible ether… and Pinkamena is not merely a natural Pale, but also a half-demon. And if we do not permit her to feed she will grow crankier, and perhaps even fade away to nothingness in time… and then how shall I take a terrible vengeance upon her in the Looking Glass World? Permit her to feed a little.”

Scrivener muttered under his breath at this, then he nodded grouchily and sighed, saying dryly: “I love how we’re opposites on this subject. Normally it’s ‘Pinkamena is bad, stay away from my Scrivy,’ but then you’re all doting and maternal over her when she starts grumpily asking for a snack.”

The Pale of Pinkamena glanced up thoughtfully at this, then grinned, and Luna only rolled her eyes, grumbling under her breath as she said distastefully: “Well, ‘tis no worse than thou, grand hypocrite. ‘Oh we must be nicer and kinder’ but when she is actually in need ‘thou art wicked and I am a grand coward.’”

The male glowered at her, then he grumbled under his breath as the winged unicorn added: “Besides, Nightmare Moon is not fond at all of permitting the creature’s presence inside my mind. She is also dangerously protective of thou, too, but at least in thy mind, Pinkamena is to a point… protected by the very corruption that makes thee suffer, Scrivy.”

She softened, and Scrivener smiled a bit before he sighed when Pinkamena waved a hoof through his body again, turning his gaze towards her and saying flatly: “Go ahead. But I swear you’re on your way to becoming a full demon.”

Pinkamena only grinned in response, then she burst apart into dark smoke that flooded over Scrivener, making him wince as he felt her sliding sinuously through his mind, cozying herself into his brain and beginning to extract recent memories, pieces of nightmare, to stroke along parts of his tortured psyche as she whispered teasingly: Well then at least you’ll have a study-buddy, won’t you? Besides, I can think of worse things to be… like a big wuss who keeps denying who he really is…

Scrivener grimaced a bit, and then Luna looked at him flatly before she closed her eyes, her horn giving a faint spark before her voice said calmly and clearly into Scrivener’s mind: Forget not I can hear thee too, Pinkamena. Or does thou wish to add to the pummeling I shall surely be giving thee after all is said and done and we are safely in the next world?

The half-demon only laughed in Scrivener’s mind, however, and for a moment, the male caught a distinct image: Pinkamena, grinning as she lounged in a cot in a messy room filled with books, stacked papers, and half-completed models. It was gone as suddenly as it came, and Scrivy made a face as he tilted his head to the side, a tingling sensation spilling through his mind. It wasn’t entirely unpleasant, and it helped numb and soothe his mind even as he felt Pinkamena dragging her hooves through his remembrances of nightmares, sampling them like they were fine wine, numbing his conscious mind even as she fed off the negative and positive emotions they brought up.

Luna looked at him sympathetically, and with honest apology in her eyes, but Scrivy only smiled a little, shaking his head and murmuring: “It’s okay. It’s a little strange, certainly, but I’m used to this by now… remember when we first figured this out, after she tried to possess me out of frustration?”

“Aye, I do. We have strange allies, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna glanced over her shoulder towards the vial that Discombobulation was soaking in, but the Draconequus was still quiet and had written no other messages for them, and Luna smiled despite herself. “I am glad for it, though. Variety, ‘tis the spice of life, is it not? And we are misfits ourselves… I like their company, I truly do. Much as I do wish to beat Pinkamena some days and as frustrating as I remember Bob being, but they grew quickly on me.”

Scrivener nodded after a moment, absently rubbing at his head, but the sensation of having the half-demon nibbling at his psyche was fading into the background thrum of his thoughts. “I know what you mean. I guess… she reminds me of myself in some ways. You know, the self-destructiveness and morbid self-loathing hidden under the layers of armor and defenses. Except hers are pointier than mine.”

Luna gave him an amused look at this, shaking her head and leaning forwards to kiss him quietly, and the male kissed her slowly back for a few long moments before she drew apart and murmured softly: “Frustrating poet. Thou drives me mad, and I enjoy it.”

The two smiled at each other… then they both gazed quietly towards the fire, and Luna couldn’t help but laugh softly as she murmured: “Funny. Thou has a half-demon currently in thy head, and the corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm… and I have Nightmare Moon inside of me, esurient manifestation of passion and shadow. We are soul-bound, like one entity, and the same blood runs in our veins… even though the corruption of the Wyrm does sometimes try and harry our mental link, making thoughts… static-riddled, distorted, when thy emotions get too high.”

Scrivener smiled awkwardly, and then they leaned towards one-another, quietly nuzzling each other as Luna murmured softly: “But yet, we exist together. I shall never, ever let us exist apart, either, Scrivener Blooms… not even if we could. Aye, we live the impossible romance. We live a life I never thought possible… thou art my beetle.”

“And you’re my Valkyrie.” Scrivener replied softly, and the two shared a soft laugh before they both gazed towards the fire again, even as they slipped closer side-by-side, smiling softly as they relaxed in one another’s comforting and welcome company.

Adapting To The World

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Chapter Four: Adapting To the World
~BlackRoseRaven

Luna strode calmly towards the dilapidated village with a faint, lingering smile on her face, before glancing over her shoulder at Scrivener Blooms and Pinkamena, the latter now in her marionette body. She regarded them for a moment, and then the winged unicorn said mildly: “Gossip not behind my back, Scrivy, thou knows I shall hear everything thou speaks anyway.”

“We weren’t gossiping, Luna. Stop being so jealous, she’s made of wood and metal.” Scrivener retorted as he absently adjusted the empty satchel bags he was carrying, and Luna huffed before looking forwards again, the male smiling a bit even as Pinkamena snorted in entertainment. “Anyway, are we going to split up or stick together?”

The winged unicorn looked thoughtful at this, glancing musingly towards Scrivy before she said slowly: “Let us… stick together, thou and I, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Tis not for any doubt of thy prowess, but… it seems that as of late, thou art having greater difficulty with…”

“With the visions, yeah. Alright, better I don’t mistake some Velites for angry ponies, I agree.” Scrivener nodded after a moment, then he looked towards the puppet as it sniffed disdainfully despite having no nostrils and needing no oxygen. “You’re welcome to come with us if you want, you know.”

“How about no.” Pinkamena retorted flatly in her echoing, unnatural voice, and then she shook her head and twisted the jaws of the puppet into a grin, gemstone eyes glittering strangely with demonic light. “I’m going hunting. Last time I was wandering out here I saw a Seahorse Drake. Probably one or two of them hiding out in a wet cellar somewhere. I’ll even share with you guys.”

Scrivener and Luna both glowered at the half-demon before Luna said flatly: “Thou art acting like Sol Seraph now, hunting for sport… thou cannot even eat, Pinkamena!”

Pinkamena, however, only laughed and shook a hoof, leaning back and making her metallic plating rattle against the wood of her dress-horse frame. “Oh please, I’m not that far gone. Fine, then I’ll hunt one down and kill it as a gift for you two, just because I’m such a nice pony. Then you can both pretend to be mad at me while we drag the corpse back to the cottage, and we’ll have a barbecue tonight after picking its guts for gemstones and party favors.”

“Thou art sick.” Luna said finally, halting just outside the ruins of Ponyville, but Pinkamena only snorted and shrugged as she continued past them and down the dusty, beaten road into the collapsed town, and the two ponies watched the demon-possessed puppet as it walked down the road like nothing had ever been different than it was now.

Luna and Scrivy both drew their eyes upwards; even now, eight years later, it was hard to take in the ruins of this place and believe that this was all that remained of their once-glorious Ponyville, a town that had been a sanctuary, a utopia, even after they had been cast into exile, even after darkness had begun spreading across Equestria.

Now it was only ravaged, broken piles of splintered wood and crumbled rock: a razed city in a world that had been laid to waste. A few tottering structures still reached weakly for the sky like ancient and helpless sentinels, but many buildings had collapsed in on themselves, and the jumbled disarray left behind rarely stretched higher than some dozen feet above the dusty, debris-strewn tundra.

Scrivener Blooms and Luna traded a quiet look, and then the male smiled a bit, saying quietly: “I know neither of us like to see this. The fact that even if we are a little… evil… we don’t like the sight of this, that we both strive so hard to… bring the world to new birth, new life… it brings me hope, Luna. For us. For what the world will be like if it’s going to be… a little darker than old Equestria.”

“Aye, Scrivener, I know what thou means.” Luna murmured softly in response, lowering her head a bit and nodding slowly… and then the two started slowly forwards, carefully treading down the dusty road into town as the winged unicorn glanced back and forth moodily. “It always feels like failure when we return here though, beloved. It always serves as painful, awful, and unwelcome reminder that… we were unable to stop Ragnarok. That we were unable to defeat the machinations of Valthrudnir… that even though we killed him, he all the same won that day.”

“Yeah, but he sure as hell didn’t win the war.” Scrivener said quietly, glancing towards her, and Luna smiled wryly at the male as he nudged her gently with his shoulder. “We’re going to fix everything. You’re the one always reminding me of that, telling me to cheer up. So don’t you go plunging down into moodiness now, that’s my domain.”

“Oh, hush.” Luna replied with a soft laugh, and then she glanced towards the wreckage of Sugar Cube Corners, hesitating as they both looked at the collapsed storefront. A single table still stood outside, half-rotten and with a lonesome, fallen chair laying beside it, covered in silky spiderwebs: Bitterweavers, toxic arachnids, had long taken up residence inside some of these buildings, eking out a cannibalistic survival. “Does thou remember how much was left? We have raided the storage rooms of Sugar Cube Corners often, after all, and I wish not to try and muddle through Bitterweaver nests without reward.”

“Then let’s check around first. I’d rather not take the chance of driving them into frenzy and getting nipped by one of them. The paralysis will end up affecting us both and Pinkamena will stand around kicking us until we can move again.” Scrivy replied dryly, and Luna grunted in agreement, the two turning and striding deeper through the village until they found themselves in the town square, and gazing upon the remains of the great tree that had once housed Ponyville’s library, and served as Twilight Sparkle’s home.

Now it was little more than a broken, burnt-out stump, shattered chunks of petrified wood laying like discarded bones around a misshapen hunk of blackened wall and char. Little was left: the spacious interior of the library had been burned to nothing but cinders, and Luna shook her head slowly as she murmured: “So much lost… so much destroyed. It is not just… it is not right. We must do everything we can to restore what once was… to bring these wonders back to the new world.”

“Books are going to be rarer.” Scrivener remarked quietly, and Luna looked at him for a moment… then shook her head again and smiled faintly, quirking an eyebrow at him as the earth pony shrugged and laughed a little. “Sorry. You know how my mind works… not very well, goes to the weirdest places at the weirdest times.”

“Yes, but… it has a way of making things… I know not. Better? Or worse, perhaps, so they became so ridiculous I cannot help but to smile.” Luna glanced slowly over the remains of the stump, her mane swaying backwards in the windless air before she glanced quietly towards a ramshackle, collapsed house. “But come. Let us search that dwelling, if we can find a way in.”

Scrivener and Luna spent the better part of twenty minutes sifting through the rubble of the house once they found a passage beneath the half-collapsed roof: it was creaky, and Scrivener felt anxious, but Luna pronounced it safe enough to search. They managed to wiggle a broken beam out of the way of where it had fallen over several large cupboards and then tear the splintered doors off to discover a small stash of supplies they could put to use: flour, sugar, salt, and several tins that the labels had worn off of but were likely icing or some kind of powdered mix.

There was little else, but it was already better than the two had expected. They were not necessities, perhaps, but a little bit of comfort food in the Hell they lived in went an extremely long way… and it was always nice when they didn’t have to cross the Bifrost to the Looking Glass World or ‘a vacation spot,’ as Luna coined using the dimensional bridge to gleefully explore other worlds Odin had specifically told them not to go to, just to get baking supplies.

A lot of it they could improvise: instead of chicken eggs, Basilisk and Cockatrice eggs would also often do the trick, and these dangerous creatures had both adapted quite well to survival in the Hell-flooded climate. Milk was the toughest to get, and usually required a trip to the Looking Glass World to harvest from the calm and placid herds of cattle there. Only once had Luna ever tricked him into trying to milk a female Manticore after days of the winged unicorn insisting their milk was perfectly consumable, and he would never again listen to her advice on livestock and agriculture.

The two emerged from the ruin to find Pinkamena waiting for them in the square, standing easily despite the six foot long, sinuous creature half-hanging off her back, and Scrivener grimaced a bit: a Seahorse Drake, the upper body almost pony-like but with large, sharp teeth in vise-like jaws and a thick, rubbery frill in place of the mane. It had large shoulders and gangly arms that ended in webbed flippers, and the rest of its body was serpentine and ridged, ending in a rudder-like tail that still twitched weakly before the half-demon said kindly: “Happy birthday. Or joyous Heart’s Warming Eve, or whatever the hell day it is… either way, here’s your present. Sorry I couldn’t gift wrap it, but I’m sure we’ll enjoy the party tonight all the same.”

“Thou art evil.” Luna said distastefully, and Pinkamena threw her head back and laughed loudly before the winged unicorn sighed, looking moodily over the puppet: some of the armor plating had been torn away, but the damage overall was minimal. “But… I suppose thou has our thanks all the same, Pinkamena. Come, let us return home. We have what we came for, after all, and I do not like to tarry here overlong… ‘tis asking for trouble.”

“And usually you like trouble. What’s wrong, Nightmare Moon, still feeling all scared after your little fantasy session with Scrivy?” Pinkamena asked mockingly, and Luna’s eyes narrowed as she leaned forwards, Scrivener grimacing and glaring as well before the half-demon laughed and shook her head. “Please. I get to feed off your memories and emotional energies. I know you two better than you give me credit for. You’re my friends, after all.”

With that, Pinkamena began to walk forwards as Scrivy and Luna stared and gaped stupidly at the same time, not even meaning to mimic each other even as they moved in perfect synchronicity as their eyes followed the puppet pony’s path… and then the half-demon glared over her shoulder as she passed them, asking rudely: “Well are we going or not? Or do you two wanna cry a little?”

Luna glared as she huffed and stomped forwards, and Scrivener grimaced as he hurried to fall into pace at the winged unicorn’s side, the male saying finally: “It was just… a little unexpected to hear you say that, Pinkamena. We both know how you feel on the subject of ‘friendship,’ after all…”

“You losers don’t know anything.” the half-demon retorted, then she grumbled under her breath and said moodily: “Besides, don’t go spreading it around. Maybe it’s all of sissy’s stupid talk ringing around in my head… maybe it’s because even I chose to die for no good reason, when I could have saved my own sorry flank if I’d really wanted to… not that it was ever worth saving to begin with.

“Or maybe it’s just because I do feed off your emotions and I’ve gotten to taste plenty of you both. I don’t know, I don’t care. What it is, it is, so shut the hell up and keep moving, I got the shivers. I ain’t got sissy’s ‘Pinkie sense’ but I can sure as hell smell something big on the prowl…” Pinkamena grumbled a bit, looking restlessly ahead, her puppet-body clanking quietly. “Maybe the dogs of war are on the loose again…”

“I doubt that, Pinkamena… while the Black Wolves of Hell spread like a scourge throughout Equestria, destroying everything they came across, they were each quick to make a corner of the world their own.” All the same, Luna grimaced a bit, looking up and saying quietly: “I know not what must have happened to the other countries, but I fear the worst… I know that oceans and mountains are no barrier to beasts that alter reality with their very presence.”

“Great.” muttered Pinkamena, and she snorted in entertainment as she looked up, adding dryly: “Still, hate to think of what’s on the hunt, then. Maybe it’s something even nastier. Maybe it’s one of those demons from way down south in Helheim’s darkest pits… maybe it’s Hel herself, coming to make this world her new frozen throne.”

“Even if it is, I shall pummel her and vent all my frustrations upon her head, and drive her back down into her inglorious kingdom.” Luna grumbled, and Pinkamena laughed as Scrivener gave the winged unicorn an amused look, but Luna only huffed in response and rose her head proudly. “I am a proud Valkyrie, Scrivener Blooms. I may not be proud of the Aesir, but I am proud of my heritage… strong warriors, who took guardianship of the gods, and who pummeled mighty foes on a daily basis and ensured that peace – albeit peace rife with warfare – reigned supreme throughout the Vale of Valhalla and Asgard itself. It is how I have always dealt with things… pummeling. Thou art only jealous because it works.”

She nodded once to herself, then looked ahead and added quietly: “But nay, Pinkamena… perhaps it is no demon at all. Perhaps it is another corruption storm moving in… in which event we shall have to ward our home and prepare for another tumult.”

The half-demon growled indecisively, but after a moment, she sighed and relented, muttering: “I hope you’re wrong about that, Nightmare Moon. I would much rather an enemy we can fight and kill, and maybe give us a shiny new skull to add to our collection. Freed up and mutated and pissed off mother nature sucks… no wonder Princess Sunshine tried to put that bitch in chains and the Pegasi have always done their screwing with the weather.”

“Thou art so pleasant, Pinkamena, truly.” Luna grumbled, and the half-demon snorted and shrugged, the dead Seahorse Drake shifting on her back with the clanking movements of the puppet. “On a better subject, where did thou find the Drake? ‘Twas it in a cellar, as thou suspected?”

“No, found it lurking at the edge of town, where Fluttershy’s old cottage used to be. Was slithering in the marshland that's there now, near where everything turns to ice.” Pinkamena glanced over her shoulder, then looked ahead again down the rocky tundra, muttering: “That reminded me of home away from home, Helheim… this place all over though, makes me think of the goddamn rock farm. It’s just peachy, Nightmare Moon… Hell looks just like home, and I guess that’s the reason it’s called Hell.”

She fell silent, and they walked in quiet for a while, passing into the Empty Forest that had once been so beautiful, that he and Luna had called ‘Everfree’ with such warm and hidden meaning in their exile… and then Scrivener looked up and asked abruptly: “What was Helheim like, Pinkamena, for the time you were trapped down there?”

“Wow, what a rude goddamn question to ask.” Pinkamena halted in the middle of the road, and Scrivener and Luna both stopped and traded a surprised look before the half-demon turned around, leaning forwards towards Scrivy, and the earth pony winced a bit as he looked at the puppet, then sighed as she said flatly: “Look at me.”

Scrivener closed his eyes, letting his mind fall loose… and when he opened them, he was looking across at Pinkamena, seeing beneath the puppet, seeing the dull gray-pink pony… but she was smiling softly despite her tone, looking almost gentle even as she said in a quiet, almost menacing voice: “It was like nothing you could ever imagine… made worse by the fact that once you got there, in the freezing, burning ice, you knew why you belonged there. It wasn’t just ‘life sucks, then you die, and hell sucks,’ it was ‘life sucks, then you die, and we’re now going to show you why your life sucked and why so much of that was your fault.’ Torture’s bad enough, and it hurts, but you know what hurts more? When they shove in your face again and again the reason you’re down here with the corpses and the shells and the screaming, laughing demons, is because you goddamn well earned it. And all the justifications you can give, all the reasons, all the anger, all the everything… it all becomes meaningless, and it all collapses away into sand, as they bleed you and cut you and hurt you… but no matter what they do to you, ain’t nothing compared to what you do to yourself.”

She stopped, then shook her head briskly before turning around, Scrivener wincing as the shape of Pinkamena flickered before he blinked several times, until he was once more just looking at a strange, possessed marionette as Luna gazed after her silently… and as the two began to follow, the half-demon suddenly continued, as if she had never left off: “Of course, I’m lucky, really. Gates of Helheim were blown open by the time I tumbled all the way down into the pit… didn’t take me long to break out. Normally, after all, there ain’t nowhere to run to in Helheim… prisoners who escape usually end up in Niflheim, homeland of the Nibelung that’s now just an extension of demon-turf. Yeah, there’s hidden tunnels, secret words that’ll open the gates to little offshoots and tunnels and passages that eventually wind their way up to once-pretty Equestria, but demons keep a close eye on those. It’s like a game, see: they let some prisoners feel like they got a fighting chance to get out of Helheim… and they run right into that trap, and the demons sweep ‘em up like they’re little helpless baby bunnies and take them back down to boil them in the icy pot, all the more delicious ‘cause they’re flavored with broken hopes.

“But the big gates… those were blown open. And while a lot of demons stayed down in Helheim, thinking it was too good to be true, maybe just taking pride in their work, maybe even scared of this world of ours and all that empty sky above our heads… a lot of ‘em ran for it. From drooling beasts like Hellhounds to Nightmares to things I don’t got a name for, they ran out into the world, eating up the very air as they went. Sure, the Black Wolves got the meat… but they were the ones who helped pick the bones clean, and they were fast and happy to do so.” Pinkamena’s puppet jaw grinned sourly, shaking her head slowly. “When I came through, everything was just a horrible mess… and the demons were gorged or gorging, and couldn’t be bothered with one little Pale.”

She stopped, then lowered her head and said moodily: “Ponyville called me for some reason. ‘Cept it wasn’t Ponyville, because my home isn’t Ponyville. That’s Pinkie Pie’s home, sissy’s home… my home was the rock farm, until we were thrown out like trash, worthless as brittle shale. I ended up being drawn to you two, and I know why now. I’m glad you both took me in, but I’m not thanking you, understand? You two needed me. You need somepony who can warn you about Helheim’s approach, a guard dog in a marionette body like this, a murderer that can’t be murdered but at least won’t cut you up in your sleep. Don’t you two forget that.”

“Plus you’re really quite the conversationalist. Always so cheerful.” Scrivener added dryly, and Pinkamena snorted and looked moodily ahead before he smiled a bit. “Thank you, though. I’m glad you’re here with us. Luna is too.”

“Shut up, Scrivener Blooms, I was about to thank the creature myself.” Luna said grouchily, and then she huffed and straightened a bit before both pony and half-demon looked at her, and she said sulkily: “Well I shan’t now, ‘tis no point to it.”

Scrivy rolled his eyes with a sigh as Pinkamena grumbled to herself and faced forwards again, and they walked onwards in silence for a few minutes before the marionette-possessing creature asked mildly: “So Scrivy, theoretical question: if I was chained down and at your mercy, what would you use on me first? The knife or the screws?”

Scrivener grimaced at this, head twitching to the side before he halted and adjusted his glasses on his face, Luna glaring daggers at Pinkamena’s back… but then the winged unicorn looked surprised as Scrivy replied icily: “Maybe I’d just take a page from Luna’s book and pummel you with my own hooves.”

“Ooh, I touched a nerve. Let me kiss it better; that idea tickles me, Scrivy, right in the funny-bone I thought I didn’t have.” Pinkamena looked over her shoulder, and her glittering gemstone eyes sparkled with visible entertainment, precious stones seeming to pulse with erratic life. “I like you. I always knew you were different. I always knew you were a freak. Oh the fun we could have together…”

Luna grumbled at this, and Scrivener sighed a little, looking exasperated as a faint flush crept over his features. “Can we just not talk about this anymore? Can we stop bringing it up? Luna and I made a deal anyway and-”

“To not talk about the Tyrant Wyrm’s corruption, but I’m not talking about that, am I?” Pinkamena interrupted, and even though the marionette was facing forwards, Scrivener could swear he still felt the half-demon’s eyes on him somehow, making his skin crawl. “No, I’m not, there you go. I’m talking about you, y-o-horseshoe. I mean, come on, you married Nightmare Moon… and this time I’m not just using a pet name for Luna.”

“Oh, wonderful, thou has such ardent thanks from me for that.” Luna’s eye twitch as she glowered at Pinkamena’s back, but the possessed marionette only gave an echoing laugh. “Scrivener Blooms married me, who stands here, who strides beside him, not merely my… my darker side, my passionate self. And if thou continues to aggravate us both, Pinkamena, Nightmare Moon herself will be more than glad to come out and have a word with thee on manners.”

“No need for threats now Luna… I didn’t mean to scare you.” Pinkamena teased, but she sounded a little more unsure of herself: if there was one thing the creature feared and respected, it was Luna’s dark alter ego. “It’s all besides the point anyway, isn’t it? Scrivy’s sadistic. You’re darkness. Me? I’m a half-demon, half-psychopath. I wonder if that makes me the best of you or the worst of you… either way, though, I do admire you both. You’re just what the doctor ordered, you’re as fascinating and beautiful and impossible to me as a burning ocean beneath the starlit sky… we should start a band. We should throw a party. We should play a game.”

Scrivener and Luna remained silent as Pinkamena lowered her head forwards, and they continued onwards in silence until they reached the cottage. Once there, the puppeted demon rose her head and shrugged off the corpse of the Seahorse Drake, saying distastefully: “I think you were right, Luna. I feel Helheim’s energy building, but there’s no madness and no mind to it… a storm is coming. Don’t worry, I’ll cuddle up tight and keep you both safe tonight.”

“Enough, Pinkamena.” Luna said in a gentle but firm voice, and the half-demon sighed and rolled her eyes before the winged unicorn grimaced a bit, glancing up towards the skies and adding with a mutter: “Although tonight we will have to be careful indeed, this much I must agree with. Scrivy, take the supplies inside. I shall attend to… our gift.”

“Good. Be a shame to let it go to waste. Want me to get the knives?” The puppet cocked its head as Scrivener walked past and pushed the door open, and Luna sighed before she nodded grudgingly, Pinkamena almost bouncing to her metallic hooves. “Delicious. I’ll be right back.”

Luna grumbled under her breath as she moodily looked down at the body of the Seahorse Drake, hitting it lightly in the obviously-broken neck: likely how Pinkamena had killed it. Then the winged unicorn sighed, leaning over the body and grumbling under her breath, feeling a faint repulsion… not for the corpse, or the work, or even for the fact that they were actually going to make a meal out of this body. It was guilt for half-encouraging these meals in the first place, especially as Scrivener’s curiosity on the subject grew.

Luna could and had eaten meat before: in the old days it had been more common, especially with her and her siblings traveling across the world, immersing in different cultures. It was not something that she allowed to bother her or ever thought too deeply on… it just was what it was, and she would rather put the corpse of an animal that had been killed to full use than leave parts of the body behind to rot. And memories of the Valkyrie days were filled with feasting of fare far different from the vegetables and fruits and salads of ponies…

She smiled despite herself, then glanced up quietly as she felt Scrivener’s soothing thoughts, more intangible images and emotion than words, stroking through her mind. He had been getting more and more curious about meat, and as luck would have it, they had come across a wild boar that had been driven into crazed bloodlust by the corruption of Helheim only a week or so after Scrivy began to fumble about perhaps trying a taste at some point. Large, bulky, wounded and a danger to everything around it, Luna had killed it mostly out of mercy when it had attacked them.

She had checked it over, then declared it was edible. Scrivener had turned a little pale, but he had been apprehensively interested all the same… in part because of the Tyrant Wyrm’s corruption, perhaps, but they were both aware that wasn’t even the biggest reason. It was simple curiosity, the most compelling and dangerous reason of all.

Luna had cleaned the body and done most of the cooking, talking about the past the entire time, sharing the little she had learned about meat preparation, warning him he might not like it and that at first it might make him a little sick. But Scrivy had only grimaced and mumbled that he was ready to give it a try, and Luna had been strangely proud… and perhaps a little overenthusiastic.

She had made all kinds of cuts, frozen what they didn’t eat, put every part of the body she knew they could use to use… and they had eaten together, in a strangely-romantic, slightly-macabre dinner date in their own den, Pinkamena jealously hovering around the entire time. At first, Scrivy hadn’t enjoyed it… but as the meal went on, he first became accustomed to it… then eaten ravenously.

Luna opened her eyes and drew back from the memories as she heard a loud double-clank, looking moodily at Pinkamena as the possessed puppet stepped back in front of her and unrolled a kit of tools and knives, looking up at her knowingly. “I know what you’re thinking, Nightmare Moon… but hey, at least it isn’t cannibalism. At least, not yet.”

“Neither Scrivener Blooms nor I would ever eat another pony, Pinkamena. ‘Twould not just be disgusting, ‘twould also be rather rude.” Luna said darkly, and the marionette gave an echoing laugh, loose metal plates clanking quietly against the wooden body of the construct.

“I’m sure we’ll find out one day… but who’s to say that it’s ponies that would be cannibalism for you two? You’re a Valkyrie and Nightmare Moon… Scrivener is somewhere between halfway and three-quarters corrupted into a Tyrant Wyrm, at least in mind.” Pinkamena replied easily, and Luna gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes, but there was something in the half-demon’s tone that made her hesitate to pummel the puppet into pieces, much as she wanted to. “Still, look at the three of us. Minions of evil wanton destruction and chaos, and we’re living in a nice little family unit together. Oh, and there’s that Draconequus too. I guess he’s like our pet or something right now, like a goddamn myna bird. Either way I love it and I hate it and I want it to last forever.”

Luna looked for a moment at Pinkamena… and then she flicked her horn grouchily to the side, and a large bolt tore itself free from one of the puppet’s forelegs, the half-demon cursing as she fell on her side with a wince and then glared irritably up at Luna from the ground. “Oh, hilarious.”

The winged unicorn, however, only smiled wryly in response before her horn glowed brighter, a sapphire aura surrounding the knives and tools as they lifted upwards into the air and hovered eerily, polished and glinting. Pinkamena looked up with interest at this even as she reached out to begin reattaching her foreleg to her puppet body, and Luna sighed a little as she muttered: “Please do me a favor, and comment not upon every incision I make.”

“Fine, be that way. Just know that I admire your style.” Pinkamena replied kindly, and Luna couldn’t help but shiver a bit at the honest admiration in her tone as the puppet’s jaws seemed to grin wider. “You shouldn’t punish yourself for liking your work, babe. Ain’t right. Ain’t natural. But hell, what do I know about natural… or maybe my problem is that everything about me has always been a little too primal, right?”

“Shut up.” Luna muttered curtly as she lowered her head forwards, and her eyes focused as she began to work on the carcass. The entire process, Pinkamena watched with fascination, perhaps even delight, murmuring every now and then to herself at the precision with which Luna moved and the way she began to organize the cuts of meat and other pieces of the fallen beast.

When she was done, Luna didn’t even have to ask for Pinkamena to help: she was all too eager to, picking up the scaled hide of the creature and carrying it around the house as Luna started to bring the cuts of meat inside. She laid them with almost embarrassment by Scrivener Blooms, who had prepared a batter for the meat and had a greased frying pan already sizzling quietly, the earth pony giving his own awkward smile to the winged unicorn as they traded a short, quiet kiss before Luna headed back outside.

Pinkamena had returned to gather up the pearls and gemstones Luna had extracted from the creature’s stomach, the marionette humming to herself as she yanked a metal panel in her side down. It revealed a hidden compartment in the construct’s own body, and the half-demon tossed most of the gemstones into this before she slapped it closed nonchalantly, making Luna shake her head in exasperated entertainment at the strange naturalness the creature acted with.

Then the half-demon sat back, picking up a small silver jar and unscrewing it as she watched the winged unicorn glance over the last of the meat and lift it with telekinesis as her horn glowed, before Pinkamena asked: “Care to join me afterwards and help me polish the rest of these knives of yours up? Pretty sure Scrivy can handle cooking meat by now by himself, he’s been doing it for six years.”

Luna frowned a bit, looking curiously at the half-demon as she asked slowly: “Art thou… asking me to spend time with thee, Pinkamena?”

Pinkamena only grunted moodily in response, and Luna looked at her thoughtfully before she nodded finally, saying quietly: “Very well. Afterwards we shall toss the remains and organs into the forest as a gift for the Phookas and we shall bleach and harden the bones for traps and implements.”

“Some days it’s really hard to tell which one of you is less fun and more anal, you or Scrivener.” Pinkamena muttered, and Luna smiled despite herself at this, still holding the remaining slabs of meat easily in the air beside herself as the half-demon nodded grouchily. “Good. Don’t keep me waiting long.”

Luna rolled her eyes, turning and heading back into the house and down the corridor… and she smiled faintly at Scrivy’s back, carefully stepping forwards and dropping the meat on the counter as the earth pony applied batter over other slabs of fish-like meat, before he laughed a bit when the winged unicorn embraced him quietly from behind, resting her body overtop his for a moment as she pushed her face against the back of his neck. “This was not the meal I intended us to have, daydreamer, but… I think it will serve well enough all the same. Strange as we are.”

“I don’t mind being strange.” Scrivener said quietly, reaching up to touch her foreleg gently as he lowered his head forwards with a faint smile. Luna laughed quietly into his ear at this, then she kissed his cheek before she slipped backwards, the earth pony glancing curiously over his shoulder at her as he caught her thoughts. “Really?”

Luna shrugged at this, saying mildly: “I will not feign to understand the creature, Scrivener Blooms. I do not believe Pinkamena even entirely understands herself… she seems more a creature of the moment and passion than I myself am, after all. So yes, I shall try and… spend time with our odd friend without pummeling her.”

“Good.” Scrivy smiled a bit, then he glanced back towards the sizzling frying pan and added quietly: “Since this is more fish meat than meat-meat, it shouldn’t take me too long to cook… but there’s quite a lot to batter and fry up, so take your time. I still need to make tartar sauce and everything too, after all.”

Luna grunted after a moment, then she smiled a bit and reached up to quietly touch her black pearl, saying with soft entertainment: “Foul Scrivener Blooms, such evil thoughts run rampant through thy mind. Aye, once the Seahorse Drakes tried to eat thee, but thou did sneak into their nest and steal from them.”

“Oh, get out of my head, Luna, you know I don’t think right.” Scrivy replied dryly, but he smiled wider despite himself as he looked with amusement over his shoulder. “You can see all the thoughts that I think without meaning to think them, it’s not fair. It’s like when someone hurts you the instinct is to kick them really hard, but you submerge those thoughts and you don’t act on them unless they’re real jerks. Or unless you’re you, since that’s how you deal with everything. Pummeling it.”

“Wretched creature.” Luna gave him an amused look nonetheless, and then she reached out and firmly slapped his rump, making him twitch. “Thou hast my thanks, Scrivener Blooms, for encouraging me.”

“What?” Scrivy only looked dumbly over his shoulder at her, but Luna smiled, trading thoughts and emotions with him for a moment before she winked and turned away, and the male couldn’t help but laugh a bit, shaking his head slowly as he returned his eyes to the food he was preparing and murmuring: “Amazing how we’re bound in every possible way, and you still always manage to surprise me… and make me feel so damn good about us.”

Luna joined Pinkamena outside, and was surprised to find the half-demon had already dealt with moving the bones. The winged unicorn smiled awkwardly, but the puppet only shrugged and offered her a rag, and the two worked quietly, polishing and cleaning the knives and other tools by hoof with a silvery substance from a small jar, not talking much, but both relaxing with the simple work.

When they finished and slipped the last of the tools back into the cloth kit, Pinkamena rolled it up and then drew her gemstone eyes over Luna before grunting and nodding to her. “Good. Glad we could make nice, Nightmare Moon. But I got a question for you… do you really think Valthrudnir’s miracle cards are going to pack enough juice to give all those Pale souls physical bodies again?”

Luna frowned a bit at this, then she lowered her head and sighed a little, murmuring quietly: “To be honest, Pinkamena, ‘tis… unsure. I have discussed it many times with my husband and with Odin, and while Valthrudnir was of awful power, he was of even worse ego. ‘Tis hard to say what his true strength must have been… but one way or another, we shall find the way to give our friends and family and all who we are able to save in this plane their lives back.”

“Although still, we’re selfish, aren’t we? Ain’t just Equestria that suffered and died. So did the rest of the world… all we can save are ponies of this land, and the pony Pales that you’re able to get across the Bifrost at that.” Pinkamena looked down, the puppet visibly meditative, Luna frowning curiously at the possessed marionette. “What a goddamn joke. And who knows? On the other side… maybe the Pales will begin to fade, too. Ghosts can’t stick around forever.”

“Thou art being creepily philosophical, Pinkamena. I much prefer thee to be rude and insulting.” Luna said finally, and the half-demon snorted at this before the winged unicorn added with a bit of a smile: “But worry not. The Pales of our friends even now support each other even as phantoms, wander and rest together and this makes them stronger. And Pales can be of more than ponies: Spike is there too, but perhaps ‘tis also because he is bound so tightly up in the magic of friendship with the others, ‘tis hard to say… and truly, ‘tis also not my place to assume or try and pull such things apart, but rather to only be thankful. It is Scrivener Blooms’ job to overanalyze the world and cynically break the world down piece-by-piece-by-piece.”

The half-demon shook her puppeted head slowly with a snort of entertainment, then she leaned back and said distastefully: “What can I say? I’m half-demon, half-pony, trapped seeing the world beneath the world and with sissy’s goddamn advice always ringing around in my mind. You try and be sane and stable with all that going on in your brain, Nightmare Moon.”

Luna rolled her eyes as Pinkamena leaned down and picked up the cloth case after a moment, before she paused meditatively and added in her echoing tones: “Know what pisses me off the most, though? How eager I’m getting to go over the Bifrost and finally be part of that new world. How much I look forwards to seeing all those familiar faces and burying myself in sociopathic happiness, if only for a little while before I’m once more shoved out of the friendship circle. How much I want to see sissy…”

The marionette body shuddered… and then she shook her head briskly, muttering: “I need to have a goddamn rest. I’m starting to actually feel things, like emotions and anxieties and worries and happiness and sadness, and thinking of… happy worlds. Ugh, makes me shiver.”

Pinkamena turned, grumbling, and headed into the cottage as Luna sighed a bit, then glanced quietly aside to the discarded pile of useless matter from the Seahorse Drake. She grimaced, but then flicked her horn upwards, and the organic debris glowed faintly as it floated into the air before the winged unicorn turned to head towards the forest, muttering: “’Tis funny, Nightmare Moon… when Pinkamena talks like that it makes me think of thee, before thou wert purified by the Elements of Harmony. Oh, how thou loved to rave and ramble…”

Now, now, Luna, when you say things like that it makes me wonder whether or not you’re trying to start an argument with me… just like you started an argument with our dearest beloved earlier. Nightmare Moon replied softly, and Luna winced a bit at the tone of her darker self, her wings fluttering lightly at her side in apprehension. Just as you pushed him inside the nightmare… but yet always remind me not to push my own habits upon others. We are not happy with ourselves right now.

“Nightmare Moon, ‘tis already in the past, ‘tis already long forgotten… and to be honest, I do not think Scrivener Blooms entirely minds the flare-ups that occur between us.” Luna said mildly… and then she winced and staggered as her shadow suddenly darkened as her mane and tail flared backwards, electricity sparking through the ethereal starlight as viscous, sticky blackness spilled up her limbs and she stared down in shock.

Eyes opened and sharp teeth formed in the shadow, glaring up at her furiously, glowing ivory and eldritch green as Nightmare Moon’s features leaned slowly upwards, and Luna swallowed thickly as she dropped the pile of organic matter at the side of the path as the darkness hissed: “Do not press my patience, child, or I will be forced to become unpleasant. You are not as sly or as strong or as cunning as you seem to think you are, my pet… and I find it strange and deeply frustrating that whenever I move to help Scrivener Blooms, whenever I say that we must aid our most-beloved in his transformation, his evolution, you hurriedly chastise me and get in the way… but you yourself seem to think it perfectly fine to willy-nilly encourage and pain him as you so please!”

“Nightmare Moon, release me. We are… there is no point in us fighting one another. I am not thine enemy and thou art not my foe.” Luna replied firmly, but her eyes betrayed more than a hint of nervousness as she struggled against the gooey shadows locking her legs in place, frustration, anger, and a shiver of fear rolling through her body. “Unpleasantness and battle between us, it… it serves no purpose, ‘twill only upset thine treasure, our beloved, all the more, will it not?”

Nightmare Moon’s eyes glared at her for a moment longer from the pool of shadow, her ivory snarl twisting as her features pushed higher towards Luna… and then slowly, the dark beast shrank backwards, vanishing bit-by-bit into Luna’s shadow as the winged unicorn’s ephemeral mane and tail both settled slowly and the strings of sticky blackness receded and vanished into nothing but harmless, intangible shade. “Thou… has my thanks.”

There was silence for a moment longer, and Luna hesitated before she began to turn around… but then she froze, back arching and looking at the cottage in the distance as an almost-physical hoof brushed along her spine, sending a chill through her body as Nightmare Moon whispered softly in her mind: Do not selfishly change him, and do not selfishly try and keep him the same. Let him grow as he wishes to… he is our most vaunted, our most beloved treasure. We will protect him even from you, if we must. I know what is best for you both… I only hope I you do not force my horn or hoof.

“Do not threaten me, Nightmare Moon… I am not afraid of thee. And do not blind thyself to what Scrivy means to me… thou art nothing but passion and control, perhaps ‘tis thou who truly works to try and corrupt him and steal him away.” Luna muttered grimly, glaring at the ground as her eyes flashed… but Nightmare Moon was silent, and the winged unicorn shivered before she cursed under her breath and spat: “In a jealous war with mine own very self, how utterly adorable a way to suffer in Helheim!”

She shook her head grimly, then sighed and slumped slowly as she headed moodily back towards the cottage, her mind feeling like static as she sensed Scrivener slowly touching through her mind, confused by the flurry of emotion and anger he had likely sensed but unable to decipher what it meant; whether do to the corruption in his mind or Nightmare Moon tampering with their link so she could better scold Luna, the winged unicorn wasn’t sure… and she glowered at the ground and moodily kicked a rock as she passed it, knocking the hoof-sized piece of rubble flying into a tree as she muttered: “Treating me like a child… even if the creature has always been with me in one form or another, ‘tis still the same age as me… scolded by myself, by my own inner evil… what a ridiculous notion.”

Yet there was guilt, too, and a hint, a whisper of shame… and worst of all, the worry that Nightmare Moon was right, which made Luna want to strangle both herself and the darkness-kissed creature inside of her. She grumbled under her breath as stormed over the broken, short bridge and onto their front lawn, heading towards the cottage as she looked slowly over the cracked and damaged surface before sighing and leaning her head forwards, saying grouchily: “Well, as I am out here anyway…”

She closed her eyes, her horn beginning to glow as she leaned towards the dwelling, and runes sparked quietly into life over the walls of their home, beginning to glow with faint ivory and sapphire light as Luna gritted her teeth and bowed slowly forwards as she concentrated, feeding energy and magic into the runes.

Bolts of energy sparked over the cottage as the surface of the structure seemed to ripple like liquid, and then Luna winced backwards at the flash of light, feeling magical recoil twist through her body as she slumped a bit and breathed hard. Her eyes flickered open after a moment, and she grimaced as she looked up at the cottage, now enshrouded in a whitish-blue aura that pulsed slowly, rhythmically, like a beating heart.

Luna rubbed slowly at her face with one hoof, then she sighed a little and murmured: “Not as strong as it was before, though… the wards have been rotted from Helheim’s energies, and our home… our beautiful little cottage has fallen into such disrepair.” She halted and smiled a little, studying the glowing log cabin silently before shaking her head and grimly glancing over her shoulder, looking towards the skies.

In the distance, red light was slowly turning to black and purple, like a spreading bruise… and the winged unicorn’s mane sparked quietly with electricity as she muttered: “I know not whether to be happy or sad that my prediction was correct… for Pinkamena spoke true, a physical enemy can be beaten, but this… we must simply wait out. ‘Tis frustrating, so… impossibly frustrating at times. But at least… my husband, and a good meal awaits.”

She halted, then laughed a bit at this thought despite herself as she strode silently forwards and carefully opened the glowing door of the cottage, making her way inside and flicking her head absently as she stepped down the corridor to slam the door loudly behind her. Then Luna smiled awkwardly as she stepped into the den and saw Scrivener still in the kitchen, gazing at her with both soft concern and affection as he said quietly: “You and Nightmare Moon at each other again, huh?”

“It happens, Scrivy. We do not always agree on things, especially when the subject of thou arises.” Luna said quietly, smiling awkwardly, and Scrivener smiled a bit in return, thankful for both her honesty and her bluntness. “But worry not… it could be far worse, and I know that at the end of the day… we do both want what is best for thee. It just… bothers me that…”

“I know, Luna.” Scrivener said gently, and Luna gave a bit of a mumble and a blush before she walked forwards and buried her face against the side of his neck, as Scrivener laughed quietly and turned back towards the stove, checking the batter-covered, frying fish-steak as he murmured: “But I don’t think I’d change things, honestly. Some days I wonder whether or not I was destined for this, Luna… not just to be with you, but to become… I dunno. It sounded smarter in my head than it does out loud.”

“So do most things, Scrivy, but I care not, I enjoy listening to thee talk.” Luna mumbled against the side of his neck, and Scrivener laughed a bit despite himself, shaking his head with a smile as he glanced towards her with entertainment. “I command thee to talk more. And to make dinner done.”

“Patience, warrior princess, it’s almost ready. Just two more pieces to cook.” Scrivener answered soothingly, and Luna grumbled against him even as she mashed her face firmer into his mane. “But I am being honest… I mean…”

He halted, thinking quietly even as he picked up a spatula to carefully lift a fried piece of fish out of the pan and maneuver it onto a plate already stacked with several large, cooked cuts. Then he nodded a bit to himself as Luna rose her head curiously , glancing towards her as he tossed the last two battered pieces of fish into the pan, wincing back a bit from the spitting grease before he said softly: “Do I always like who I am? No. I’ve never really been… overly-fond of myself though, as you know, and I think sometimes when… I’m not being a big pansy about whatever the future might hold… it might be nice if I could actually become somepony who could… protect you for a change, Luna. I’d… I’d be willing to become anything to do that.”

Scrivener smiled a bit, looking at the frying pan as Luna gazed at him softly, a tenderness in her eyes even as she chastened teasingly: “Misogynistic Scrivener Blooms, thinking us weak mares need the protection of such blackened knights, that all females must find the darker stallions the more attractive, is that so?”

“Oh yes, Luna, you know that’s exactly what I think.” Scrivener replied dryly, looking over at her seriously. “That’s why I never wear that frilly apron when I’m doing all my traditionalist masculine work around here, while you should be cooking and cleaning and washing the dishes, silly useless mare.”

“Gosh, Scrivener Blooms, thou art so gallant and chivalrous. I am truly fortunate to have thee as my big tough husband.” Luna replied mockingly, grinning a bit as her eyes flickered with mischief. “Why, without thee, I would never be able to find my way from the kitchen to the bedroom.”

“You always seem to find your way to the bedroom just fine, Luna.” Scrivener replied mildly, then he grinned widely as the winged unicorn opened her mouth before glaring at him and leaning forwards to headbutt him firmly, knocking him backwards with a laugh. “Okay, okay! So wonderful that whether I win or lose, Luna, you’re going to be right there, pummeling me back into place.”

“’Tis my job.” Luna gazed at him for a moment, then she stepped forwards and nuzzled him softly, the two embracing tightly for a few lingering seconds before she pulled back as strange images flittered through their minds, of shapes and memories, of emotions and hidden forms and lingering wonders.

Then Luna stepped backwards and awkwardly pawed at the ground with one hoof, adding hesitantly with a bit of a blush and looking almost shy: “Besides, thou… has held me every time I have needed it, and comforted me in ways… no other ever would or could. I feel safe in thine embrace, Scrivener Blooms… thou needs not greater size nor strength to be… a great and wonderful hero in my eyes.”

Scrivy smiled softly from behind his glasses, and Luna grumbled a bit as she swung her horn at him, making him wince back before she added grouchily: “Enough, enough, thou has had thy fun and… thou art burning the fish. Make me not slap thee around, Scrivy, much as thou deserves it sometimes.”

“Oh Luna, you and your domestic violence.” Scrivener remarked, and Luna gave him an amused look before she turned and strode out of the kitchen, before hesitating as she glanced over her shoulder at him… and Scrivener met her eyes curiously before images sparked between them, their mental thoughts mixing into one strange picture.

It was Nightmare Moon, curled up with Scrivener’s corrupted and warped subconscious form, the two looking strangely content and serene together in a field of black roses, surrounded by a fencing of brambles… and then both Luna and Scrivy glanced hurriedly away from each other, both blushing deeply even as smiles lingered on their faces. The male felt strangely lightheaded as an odd shake ran through his body, and Luna felt shivers tickle through her own spine, of excitement and inexplicable euphoria as she headed to the bedding and flopped down in the den, murmuring softly to herself: “Wicked, sinful creature that you are, moon-kissed Valkyrie… corrupting thy husband worse and worse…”

“There you go again, Scrivy, you hack, over-romanticizing darkness and trying to make parasitic destruction cute… the hell is wrong with your everything?” Scrivener mumbled as he flipped the fish meat with the spatula and poked at it absently, checking the juices: they had cooked and eaten Seahorse Drake before, and Scrivener knew that the tender meat fried up quite quickly even battered, but it was much better to be safe rather than sorry. It wasn’t that they couldn’t handle a little raw meat… but rather because anything that survived in this broken world tended to carry a little bit of Helheim’s poisons soaked into its body and spirit.

Scrivener halted, glancing down at his hoof as he put the spatula aside and studying it silently, thinking of his subconscious, broken self image… and he closed his eyes after a moment. They cooked meat well, they washed and purified vegetables and fruits, they filtered the water they found… but it was all perhaps only an exercise in futility. Both he and Luna, after all, were already tainted, corrupted… and maybe by worse things than the rumbling energies of Helheim, at that.

“Think not so heavily, Scrivy, thou shalt ruin my appetite and dinner before we even have a chance to sit down.” Luna said loudly from the den, and Scrivener blushed a bit as he turned awkwardly around to look at the stove, the winged unicorn smiling into the blue flames flickering in the fireplace as she added in a softer voice: “And anyway, ‘tis not so bad, Scrivy. Besides, did thou not just wish to be a large, scary monster?”

“Yes, but we all know I’m a hypocrite and horribly self-destructive, Luna.” Scrivener smiled a bit, looking thoughtfully into the frying pan and over the sizzling fish before he added softly: “Besides, that’s different. That’s me… trying to be something better for you. Even if it’s also me being… uglier.”

“Thou art not ugly in body or soul, Scrivy… what makes me feel so safe is that I think, even if something terrible happened and thou… changed…” Luna halted awkwardly, glancing over her shoulder before she closed her eyes and said firmly: “Thou may change on the outside. Thou may find new outlets, and be bathed in and touched by darkness… but never, fair and annoying beetle, do I believe that thou will ever lose what makes thee who thou truly are. Thy obnoxious cynicism, thy stubborn will, and thy resolve to bravely face whatever the world may hold… and somehow, despite everything, put family and friends before thy wretched, self-loathing self.”

“I like how you make all my bad qualities sound good.” Scrivener said softly, and Luna laughed at this in the den, looking back towards the fire as the earth pony picked up the spatula and tested the fish absently. “I guess that’s part of why we lock together so nicely though, isn’t it? I still don’t get how you can’t look back on that day you saved my life and think: ‘Horses of Heaven, why didn’t I let that jerk die?’”

“Which day does thou mean specifically, Scrivener Blooms, for there are many days I have had cause to think this and many more than that I have saved thy wicked life upon.” Luna quipped, and Scrivener grumbled under his breath as he reached up and turned the stove element off, briskly shaking the pan once before he moved it to an unheated element as the crackling grease began to settle. “Is dinner ready?”

“Almost, Luna, almost.” Scrivener rolled his eyes as tested the fish meat absently with the spatula, then he smiled a bit to himself, shoveling them out of the pan and dropping them on the stack of cooked cuts, turning to open a cupboard. “Let me wrap up the extra and put it away, make up some tartar sauce, and-”

“Oh thou art an insufferable perfectionist. We need no finery, bring a plate of food to me and I shall use my hooves.” Luna retorted, and then she added cheerfully: “I also desire a cola. Get me a cola Scrivener Blooms. Do it now.”

Scrivy sighed, then he picked up the spatula, looking at it thoughtfully before turning around and flinging it over the opposite counter and into the den, and Luna winced as this smacked into the back of her head and landed in her mane, leaping up to her hooves and shaking her head wildly before the greasy, crumb-covered spatula flew out of her ephemeral locks and she glared over her shoulder at him. “Beetle, I shall squish thee!”

Scrivener only grinned, however, leaning forwards as she glared at him, her horn glowing… before she cursed under her breath as Scrivy wrinkled his muzzle in concentration, barring her magic. Her eyes narrowed as she leaned forwards challengingly, and Scrivener gritted his teeth, feeling their wills wrestling as her horn sparked and sizzled, her mane and tail flickering around her, wrestling mentally as Luna tried to lash out with telekinesis or magic but the earth pony connected to her in mind, heart and soul halted her attempts.

Luna was grinning back before she even realized it, growling as her hooves dug into the bedding, shivering a bit as Scrivener bowed his head forwards slightly, teeth grinding together with the effort it took to battle Luna’s monumental will… and then he suddenly snapped his head upwards and ducked, and the winged unicorn’s eyes went wide as her own head lashed skywards before she released a blast of raw force that knocked her back on her rear and hammered a crack in the ceiling, dust and a few splinters of wood hailing down as she rested back on her haunch.

Scrivy peered awkwardly over the counter, Discombobulation hiding mostly beneath the surface of the Ambrosia in his vial and looking dumbly back and forth between the two… before Luna and Scrivener both threw their heads back and laughed loudly, and then Luna leapt to her hooves with a short shout of triumph and snapped her head forwards, Scrivy yelping as he was lashed by a blast of telekinetic force and sent sprawling on the tiled floor as she posed imperiously despite the faint pain that ran through her own body at the shocking blow. “Now that I have once more proven my superiority, daydreamer, fetch me my cola and my dinner, and be quick about it.”

Scrivener Blooms grumbled as he lay prone on the kitchen floor for a moment, and then he sighed and rose a hoof, saying dourly: “Coming right up, warrior princess.”

Renewal Beneath The Rain

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Chapter Five: Renewal Beneath The Rain
~BlackRoseRaven

Luna and Scrivener shared dinner in front of the fireplace, a small, simple piece of wood laying on the bedding acting as their table, resting side-by-side in comfort and sharing soft conversation. They both ate hungrily, and the food was good, even if it was also not exactly standard fare for ponies… but in a way, that made it even better, gave it an extra exotic flavoring despite the lingering sense of awkwardness that hovered around them.

They both had glasses of Colt Cola, a large plastic bottle of it resting nearby. It was bubbly and sugary, and Luna looked thoughtfully at her glass, swirling it gently as it floated in front of her before she murmured a question: “Tell me, Scrivener Blooms. Of all the maladies in the world, what does thou believe the worst to be? And say not love, or I shall strike thee roundly upside thy silly head.”

“Even if it’s true?” Scrivy asked with a smile, and Luna nudged him threateningly with her shoulder as she lowered her horn towards him. “Okay, okay. I think the worst malady in the world… is loss of memory. If we can’t remember where we’ve come from, if we forget our history, good or bad, we begin to lose ourselves.”

“Thou great cheater, ‘twas going to be my exact response.” Luna scoffed, and Scrivener gave her an amused look before she rolled her eyes and muttered, as she absently poked at what was left of her fish with a fork: “Alright, perchance… not exactly my exact response, but all the same. Furthermore, I see thou art using me as an example in thy mind to further illustrate thy point. ‘Tis a terrible infringement, Scrivener Blooms. A theft. Thou art a thief.”

“I’m a poet, it’s what we do.” Scrivy replied dryly, and Luna gave him an entertained look as she snuggled herself closer, the male smiling slightly as he slid a foreleg around her and scooped up a bit of his fish and tartar sauce on his fork, but then offered it to her.

She took it gladly, gazing at him affectionately as she chewed slowly before picking up her own and shoving the fork insistently towards him, and Scrivy laughed before he ate the morsel with an amused look to her. They gazed tenderly at one another, and then Luna rolled her eyes when Scrivener looked at her pointedly and she nodded, looking thoughtful.

She was quiet a few moments longer, then said softly: “The worst malady… it is to be alone. Because if thou art alone all thy life… then even memories of loneliness can do naught but torture thee further, is it not so? I remember even in Valhalla, I was alone, the night maiden who preferred the darkness. And thou wert alone for so long, with only little Samael for company… tell me, Scrivener Blooms. Of how did thou acquire the poor lost friend, may he rest now forevermore in peace?”

“Sometimes I do almost want to ask you if you could bring him back… but I couldn’t do that to Sammy again. It wouldn’t be right… because he was my friend. Not my pet, my friend.” Scrivener smiled despite himself, looking curiously at Luna as she gazed at him with both curiousness and warmth. “I guess I never did tell you the story, did I? Even though you probably know it already… you know everything about me, after all.”

“Not everything, Scrivy.” Luna smiled slightly, tilting her head towards him with a wink. “Thou art annoying like that. Every time I think I have thee all figured out, suddenly I realize that there is yet another side to the puzzle, and I am forced to bludgeon and smack it angrily against things until once more I think I have it aligned… only to find yet another hidden riddle amongst the curves and twists and turns. Thou art like one of those frustrating colored cubes that are impossible to solve, with all the… mocking, annoying colors. Except worse, because I cannot simply smash thee to pieces and hope that solves my problem.”

“No, but Horses of Heaven know that doesn’t stop you from trying.” Scrivener replied mildly, and Luna laughed and shook her head, giving him an entertained look before she picked up the last of her fish, chewing it slowly and looking at him softly as the male smiled a bit. “Okay, okay. First off, as to your very hurtful assumption that I stole him from somepony… I did not. I stole him from the magic academy.”

“Terrible creature!” Luna threw her head back and laughed. “So my suspicion from the start was true… they are very rare, after all. But how did thou get away with such a thing?”

“In time, Luna, let me start at the beginning.” Scrivener replied with entertainment, and Luna smiled slightly before her horn glowed, lifting the last piece of fish on the male’s plate to his mouth, and the earth pony gave her an amused look as he began: “It’s not horn food L-”

She shoved it firmly forwards into his jaws, and Scrivy winced and flailed his front legs, gagging a bit before he managed to chew the food as Luna leaned back and said comfortably: “Everything is horn food, dearest.”

The winged unicorn paused, then flicked her horn, and the plates and silverware rattled softly as they lifted into the air and floated towards the kitchen, Scrivy grumbling under his breath as he swallowed before he looked up in surprise as Discombobulation’s glass vial floated over to them, the Draconequus standing with his face and hands pressed tightly up to the surface as he stared stupidly out at them. “Bob, will thou not join us? ‘Tis not as if thou has much of a choice in the matter, really, but I figured ‘twould be polite enough to ask, all things considered. And thou enjoys a story of mischief, does thou not?”

Bob rolled his eyes as he stood back and crossed his arms, and Scrivener paused as he leaned curiously forwards when the vial settled gently down just in front of their bedding, the earth pony saying thoughtfully: “There’s less stuff in there than there was before.”

Discombobulation gave the earth pony a flat look, then he pretended to gape as he slapped his hands against either side of his face, mimicking a look of shocked horror, and Scrivener rolled his eyes before he slapped the top of the vial, making it wobble back and forth as Luna snorted laughter and Bob flailed around inside the liquid. “Just saying that I’m glad Luna was telling the truth and not just trying to drown you in juice, Bob.”

The Draconequus gave him a surly look, then he brought his legs up to sit on top of the liquid as if it was a solid thing, limbs primly crossed beneath him and eagle talon and arm moodily crossed. Scrivy smiled a bit as Luna leaned down, studying the creature, before Scrivener Blooms said softly: “It’s good to have you back, though… I guess we started thinking of you as one of us at some point, even if we only knew each other for a few days, really. Welcome back to this little misfit band.”

The chimerical creature looked up with something like honest surprise for a moment… but then he quickly batted his eyes at Scrivy as he used his eagle talon to trace the shape of a heart on his own chest, and Scrivener sighed and gave him a flat look. “This is why I’m never nice to anypony. Ever.”

“Now, tell us the story of how thou stole from the magic academy without being executed for it.” Luna encouraged, and Scrivener gave her an amused look, the winged unicorn grumbling. “Well, ‘tis what they would have done in the olden days! Thou art boring. Now tell us a story, we demand a story.”

Luna childishly hammered her hooves against the bedding as Discombobulation nodded and flailed his own upper limbs for a moment, and Scrivener groaned and dropped his head back before sighing and saying flatly: “Very well, Poppa Scrivener will tell the story of how he got away with felony theft if you two shut the hell up.”

The winged unicorn huffed but nodded as Discombobulation made a zipping motion across his mouth, sinking a little into the liquid beneath him, and Scrivener sighed before he smiled despite himself, saying quietly: “It wasn’t long after I had started working under Celestia as Court Poet. One of her first tasks for me – and to be honest, one of my hardest writing projects I’ve ever tackled – was assembling an anthem and a retelling of famous ballads and stories about Canterlot’s past, specifically around the magic academy.

“See, unlike what Twilight and the Royal Courts thought, I did my damn job. I just was never exactly overeager to go far beyond my bounds… and I had my own projects to find the time for in there, too.” Scrivener paused for a few moments reflectively, glancing down before he nodded thoughtfully. “Anyway, that’s off-topic. Because my duties were to write on the magic academy, and I wasn’t very familiar with stories about Starswirl the Bearded and his apprentice what’s-her-face and all those other fancy unicorns, Celestia granted me a research pass and I was permitted to go in and out of the magic academy as I pleased.”

Scrivener paused, looking reflectively up at this. “That was nice. That was also when I began to realize that now, I could be massive jerk to anyone I pleased and there wasn’t a whole lot even the fancy-pants unicorns could do about it. So I essentially took over an entire table in the magic library, signed out about a dozen of the tomes from the Advanced Studies wing, and sat around pointedly ignoring the no-food-or-drink rules. The librarians absolutely hated me, and I suppose I kind of enjoyed that.

“Anyway, three days of researching backgrounds, spells, and histories, and I figured I was ready. I flitted around between the Canterlot Grand Library and the magic academy and harassed unicorns that got in my way.” The earth pony smiled despite himself. “I think I was a little jealous too, though… I mean, if I hadn’t been born without a horn…”

Scrivener laughed a bit, shaking his head as Luna softened, but then the earth pony continued quietly: “That’s not important, though. What is, is the fact that I spent plenty of my time wandering around. Now that I knew the history and my subject matter, I wanted to get a feel for the place itself… I had already cranked a few poems out but I needed something that captured that part of Canterlot itself. I’m pretty sure everypony thought I was just being obnoxious and lording my inordinate amounts of power over them, and I probably was to a point, but I was also doing more than that. I was discovering the place, walking in the hoof-prints of the past, imagining how much and how little everything had changed there.

“And then, that was when I found it. The Advanced Studies Laboratory, past the Hatchery and the dragon nursery.” Scrivener grinned slightly. “And I won’t lie, the moment I saw that large, greenhouse-like building, guarded by armored knights and with all those intense unicorn staff… I wanted to make a nuisance of myself. It didn’t help I saw plenty of nobles from the Royal Courts going in and out, too… so I marched on up, and the guards stopped me and the unicorns looked like they wanted to have me dragged to a cliff and thrown off it, but then I waved around my clearance permit.

“Everypony looked like they wanted to strangle me. But they also knew they couldn’t stop me, so I marched gleefully in. It was spectacular, Luna… greenhouses filled with exotic plants, galleries filled with showcases that contained incredible magic objects, mages and engineers working together to build golems and constructs…” Scrivener laughed quietly, shaking his head slowly… and then he grinned slightly. “And at the very back, the rare creatures research wing, which was really more of a tiny zoo than anything else, and housed artificial nests for exotic beasts.

“And among these were three pseudodragon eggs, and one pseudodragon, which was being taught tricks by a mage for some snobby unicorn noble and his spoiled brat kid. I spent a lot of time back there… I liked watching the trainers work with the animals, and these unicorns were more… down-to-earth. I didn’t feel the need to harass them as much as I did everyone else, and they seemed to appreciate that I saved up all my jerkiness for the nobles from the Royal Court who went in and out and used the research wing like their own personal pet shop.” Scrivener smiled amusedly, and Luna nodded, gazing at him with warmth. “I visited every few days, got to know them better, even did some of my writing there. And one day, I stayed late into the evening, to finish up a few poems… and well…”

Scrivener cleared his throat, saying awkwardly: “See. I’d actually been inside the pseudodragon habitat once or twice, since I was friendly with the trainers. I knew how to unlock the cage doors and everything. And I was distinctly unhappy about the fact that these three eggs were going to the same unicorn, who already had a pseudodragon, when there’s only a few thousand of them across Equestria. So… I went into the cage. Picked up one of the eggs, and I was sitting there, just looking at it… and it cracked.

“I, of course, just stared at it, and the egg hatched right in my hooves and little baby Sammy stuck his head out, blinked at me, and then chirped. I had no idea what to do, but the pseudodragon is trying to scramble out of the shell and looks all… you know.” Scrivener rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, Luna looking at him tenderly as a smile quirked Discombobulation’s features. “I helped him out of the egg, and picked him up and put him on my back and my first thought is ‘maybe I can find some information in one of the encyclopedias in the library.”

Scrivener paused, then he cleared his throat and said awkwardly: “I forgot about the building’s security systems. The moment I stepped into the library an alarm went off, the doors locked behind me, and the decorative statues started moving. Turns out they were security golems and they kind of beat the snot out of me and dragged me to a holding cell. When I woke up, it was early morning, and Sammy was curled up on top of me and whimpering, scared and weak, so I wrapped him in my cloak and hugged him against my body to keep him warm. It was all I could really do… and soon enough, the Pegasus Guard came in and found me.”

Luna looked at him for a few moments, and Scrivener looked blandly back before the winged unicorn covered her mouth and giggled, and Scrivy sighed and rolled his eyes, saying flatly: “I didn’t know how to fight back then, Luna, and I wasn’t soul-bound to a Valkyrie, either. I vaguely remember flailing at them but they were very large and made of stone, eventually the only thing I could do was curl up and hope they didn’t break every bone in my body as they pummeled me.”

The earth pony paused, then he looked moodily at Discombobulation as the Draconequus breathed over the wall of his glass vial, fogging a large section of it up so he could quickly scrawl with one finger: ‘You have been terminated.’

“Very funny.” Scrivener grumbled and adjusted his glasses, then he said dryly: “Anyway. The Pegasus Guard looked like they wanted to drag me to prison but I kind of went ballistic, furiously waving my royal orders around, yelling about the fact I was supposed to be here doing research, etcetera, etcetera. It was enough that they freed me, and I picked up my cloak and stormed off with it, Sammy still curled up inside of it.” Scrivener paused, then cleared his throat. “I ran into one of the trainers in the hall, and he asked me what had happened… both to my face and to the egg. I just kind of looked at the cloak hanging from my mouth, he realized there was something wrapped up inside it before Sammy squirmed his head out and peered at him… and I remember the look of absolute exasperation and maybe a little relief on his features before he told me to just go.”

“I tucked Sammy back up inside, and… went.” Scrivener looked lame, shrugging a bit. “Made my way all the way back to my quarters, and found a letter waiting for me. Not signed or anything, just simple instructions on what pseudodragons ate and how to care for them. And a note that said they have a tendency to imprint on what they see when they hatch.”

He halted, then smiled despite himself, glancing down and murmuring softly: “And he was my friend. I was bruised, bludgeoned, bloody, and I got lectured by a whole bunch of ponies afterwards, including Celestia herself, but… I now had a little friend, who I named Samael because the little jerk almost got me killed the moment he hatched. He grew up fast, and he went everywhere with me, always riding on my shoulder… and even though it was obvious where he came from, the trainer at the magic academy had a deal with me: as long as I didn’t go screwing around anymore in the research labs, he stuck to his lie that somepony must have left the door open and the pseudodragon had escaped. He was a nice guy… but I think even more than that, he didn’t want to see the pseudodragons all going to some unicorn noble who was just going to treat them as fancy possessions.”

Scrivener stopped, then he smiled a bit and closed his eyes, and Luna gazed at him tenderly as she murmured softly: “Perhaps Sammy wanders this world, still, Scrivy, looking for thee, in that case. ‘Twas not like even in death he forgot thee, after all… and even Bob came back from being blown asunder.”

Discombobulation shrugged at this, then he half-submerged himself into the Ambrosia as he laid back against the wall of the glass vial, talon and hand behind his head as he curiously looked at Scrivy. The earth pony glanced back at the Draconequus, then shrugged a bit before he returned his eyes to Luna, saying quietly: “Wherever he is, I hope he’s okay. That’s what matters to me most, Luna… that he’s at peace.”

Scrivener paused, then he and Luna both glanced up as a faint humming built in the air, followed by a soft pattering that grew into a louder rhythm of rainfall. A moment later, Pinkamena sizzled into being, the darkness running through the Pale growing deeper as she strode silently forwards, the frost humming softly off her body making the air sparkle as she looked apprehensively at the roof as well.

The sound grew, and there was a crackle of lightning… and Scrivener winced as the air seemed to spark and he looked towards Pinkamena to see not her Pale outline, not her dull-pony form, but some half-beast, half-pony creature with torn stumps of wings, its features bestial and yet etched with despair and longing before it once more reverted to the form of a Pale… and Scrivener cursed and quietly touched his forehead as Luna looked worriedly across at him. “Just the suddenness of the storm coming on…”

“It will be alright, my daydreamer…” Luna paused, then glanced quietly down at Discombobulation before she frowned as she saw the Draconequus shivering, the Ambrosia rippling around him as he covered his face. “Bob…”

But the chimera creature only shook his head weakly in response, and Scrivener grimaced a bit as he looked up… and winced as thunder boomed outside and the air sizzled around them with almost visible arcs of darkness, and he saw not Luna laying across from him, but instead Nightmare Moon. His eyes widened, then he blinked and cursed… and once more it was only Luna looking worriedly across at him. “Daydreamer…”

“It’s… it’s alright, we’re all going to be okay.” Scrivener murmured, lowering his head as he kept his eyes closed… and while the beat of the heavy rain against the aura-enshrouded exterior of the cottage was almost soothing, the tenseness and sizzling corruption through the air that came with it was feeding all their worries, their passions, their hope and their despair. “It always starts rough…”

Then he winced as he felt something cold press against him, glancing to the side to see Pinkamena looking down imploringly at him before she jerked her head insistently to the side… and both Scrivy and Luna stared at her before the earth pony said flatly: “Go outside in this? Are you insane?”

Pinkamena glared at him and gritted her teeth, leaning down and almost shoving their faces together, cold frost kissing along Scrivener’s features as he winced back and Luna leaned up, feeling a shudder run through her body as the winged unicorn snapped: “Pinkamena, ‘tis madness! The storm is not natural, ‘tis Helheim’s spreading influence, ‘tis nature forced to bend and vomit Hell’s rabid disease… ‘tis not a happy shower to wash away the dirt!”

Pinkamena glared upwards at this, and then she stomped her hooves uselessly, cursing them both angrily and silently before glaring at Scrivy… and then Discombobulation hammered against the glass wall of his vial, and all eyes were drawn to him as he pointed at the message he had scrawled in black ink, Luna leading down to read this as thunder sizzled through the air, the Draconequus looking both terrified and determined all at once.

“‘Victory through defeat.’ Bob, that is the most ridiculous notion I have ever heard… made worse by the fact I wholeheartedly understand.” Luna said quietly, leaning down and frowning a bit… and then she sighed and looked pleadingly at the Draconequus as he leaned against the side of the vial, before wincing as there was another crackle. “Thou cannot be serious, thou of all creatures agrees with Pinkamena? But why?”

Discombobulation grumbled and hammered on the wall of the vial uselessly, giving her an exasperated look… and Luna muttered under her breath before she glanced up as Pinkamena shouted silently before bursting apart into dark smog, rushing sideways and colliding with a painting on the wall, a simple profile of a young, red-eyed foal that had been named Scarlet Sage… before the image twisted, the spackled silvery paint that made up her coat almost shimmering, the eyes taking on a terrible vibrancy as the reddish mane rolled and Pinkamena whispered out of the painting: “Because hiding in here is only making it worse… because we’re already broken and tainted. The protection surrounding this cottage is cracked anyway, we can all feel the corruption leaking in… and it preys on our emotions, Nightmare Moon, just like any other taint. Sometimes the only way to survive insanity is to plunge down the rabbit hole and play along with the crazy games and give in to the sweet sickness of delusion. Sometimes the only way to defeat fear is walk boldly out into its claws and let it consume you completely, until there’s nothing left for it to eat and it lays glutted and helpless.”

Scrivener closed his eyes, shivering as there was another peal of thunder, memories sparking in his mind of terrible things, a horrible thrill running down his spine at the thought of standing out in the full presence, the full terror of Hell’s storm… and Luna looked silently at the male before Nightmare Moon stroked through her mind and whispered: Remember what I said. Perhaps the only one here who’s scared anymore is you, Luna… maybe you’re the one magnifying all this out of proportion, because you don’t want the others to be exposed to this darkness… because you know, that still, we grow stronger. The shards of darkness inside of us, grow blacker with each passing day… but you forget that you have always been this way. You forget that the darkness without we absorb… is not the same as the darkness within that you fear so much and so deeply…

Luna cursed under her breath… but when Scrivy looked up, when their eyes met, she gritted her teeth before murmuring: “To bathe in shadow, to stand beneath a rain of poison and hope for the best, because staying inside our aged sanctuary riles us with indecision and panic… I do not like this.”

“You don’t have to.” Pinkamena said rudely from the painting, and then it returned to normal as the Pale burst out of it and landed on her hooves, dark shocks of energy traveling through her spirit as she leaned towards them insistently.

Discombobulation shrugged as he stood up, fearful but ready… and Luna shook her head before she sighed and raised her head, her horn glowing and lifting the vial to float beside her as Scrivener stood shakily up on his hooves, murmuring quietly: “It’s a heavy storm, at that…”

“Aye. A storm we face… together.” Luna laughed faintly, looking back and forth as there was a crackle through the air, wincing a bit as she felt Nightmare Moon twist inside her eagerly, as Pinkamena grinned even as invisible tears slid along her frozen cheeks and Discombobulation hugged himself tightly. “This is the stupidest thing we have ever done.”

Scrivener smiled faintly… and then he and Luna took the lead, walking down the corridor towards the closed, glowing door leading out of their home, Discombobulation’s vial floating alongside them and Pinkamena following, before Scrivy reached out and grasped the handle… then he gritted his teeth before yanking the door open, and he cursed in surprise at the reek that greeted his nostril: of ice and sulfur, of ashes and wood-smoke. The mix was sour and aromatic all at once, and they stared out for a moment at the black rain beyond that soaked the landscape in liquid darkness, as shapes writhed through the storm, as purple and red lightning crackled through the roiling, rumbling clouds above.

Scrivener Blooms and Luna gazed at each other silently… and then both walked ahead and into the black rain, and Luna gritted her teeth and arched her back as Scrivener clenched his eyes shut, bowing his head forwards. They had felt it before, but never in such quantity, never had they stood brazenly in a literal storm of corruption, never had they faced it like this. It awoke memories, made their nerves tingle, made their bodies shiver as they both panted hard… and then Luna’s back arched as she straightened, her eyes glowing as her body expanded and her mane sizzled, becoming like blue flame as her form changed to that of Nightmare Moon’s.

She gasped, her sharp teeth glinting as sparks of pain radiated through her body before she clenched her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. Beside her, Scrivener stared up at her… and then he closed his own eyes, bowing his head, feeling a shiver pulse through his body. He lowered his head forwards as darkness-made-liquid spilled along his body… and then, the eyes of the soul-bound ponies snapped open at once as they arched their backs, hearts beating a perfect pulse, in perfect time, as they stared up into the darkness with wonderment.

The pain was gone… the fear was gone… and most important of all, the lucidity was still there. Corruption sparked and slid over their bodies, and whether or not the others could see it, when Luna looked at Scrivener she saw not just a pony, but a pony more than half-warped towards the shape of Tyrant Wyrm… and yet they were both at peace, here in Hell, here in the place that they had always feared would consume and destroy them.

And Pinkamena was calm as well, the Pale almost physical beneath the downpour, gazing with tranquility towards the sky from beneath her straight waterfall mane, a faint smile on her face… and on the other side of the pair, Discombobulation stood at his old tall height, his vial laying open on its side, the Draconequus breathing hard but with eagle talon and shaggy arm crossed, streams of black water sliding down the crimson scales of his face like dark tears.

They stood together beneath the black rain, with the glowing sanctuary of their cabin to their back… but Luna felt finally like she no longer needed it. She realized that for eight years, for all the time they had lived in this Hell-corrupted world, for all the enjoyments they had discovered, for all the fighting they had done, for all the faucets of themselves they had opened and given vent to… for eight years, she and Scrivener Blooms had also been cowards. They had refused to face their fears, they had refused to face the corruption or the consequences of it, they had rationalized, raged, and most of all, run away.

Despite knowing that the darkness fed best off their insecurities, that fleeing from it was what would empower it most of all… they had all the same, always run. Always found a reason to avoid giving in entirely… always tried to hide their desires away in what they called ‘nightmares,’ fearing what the corruption would make them do… fearing most of all what the shadowy parts inside themselves desired. It was easier to avoid and lay blame… and Luna closed her eyes slowly, her Nightmare Moon body shivering as the fiery blue of her ephemeral mane sparkled with stars and electricity, as the darkness slid over her, almost invisible against her ebony coat as she whispered: “Fear can only stab the fleeing back… it cannot maim a visage that faces it…”

“Ignorance and cowardice are what Helheim preys on… those who find the strength to face it are not cursed, but perhaps… blessed, in some dark, strange way…” Scrivener whispered, looking up as flashes of lightning sparked overhead, as the rain fell over them, warming their bodies, and then he laughed weakly, whispering: “I can’t understand it. But most of all, I can’t understand how we could always talk such a big game and at the end of the day end up being such wimps, Luna.”

Luna smiled faintly at this, blushing despite herself… a strange expression on the face of the enormous ebony Nightmare Moon, and he shook her head slowly as she murmured: “Because, Scrivener Blooms… we do not always think. We are stubborn… perhaps, even arrogant at times. We are flawed… and we are… scared of ourselves. I will admit that… for I do not think it always weakness, all the same. Perhaps it is healthy, in a way, to be a little afraid of what we would do permitted full freedom to explore our most dark of desires… but it is not healthy to deny who we are, it is not healthy to run from it, it is not healthy to hide it away in the shadows.”

“Just like with sissy… she stuffed me through the mirror, and I got stronger, even as I got more insane and… and weaker.” Pinkamena murmured, and both Scrivener and Luna glanced at her with surprise as she grinned, looking almost physical as the black rain spilled over her body, gray-pink form pulsing with atramentous luminescence. “It’s the energy in the air… the energy of the corruption, the reality-distorting powers of Hell. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you, Discombobulation?”

“Yes, I do. It’s enough to stabilize me, or keep me unstable, whichever way you prefer to look at it… perhaps I should just have said ‘it’s enough.’” Discombobulation said softly over the heavy patter of the rainfall. His voice was calm, his tone cultured, as his eyes flicked upwards and his white pupils narrowed thoughtfully, a seven foot tall Draconequus that rested with head raised high. “Now I know all the better why Helheim and Ginnungagap hate one-another so… it is not just because one destroys and stops all motion, while the other thrills in starting the most crazed of perpetual movement… it is because like so many other things, we stem from the same source, we are paralleled antidote and poison for a body that needs neither.”

“I am glad thou art feeling better, Bob, but do not overexert thyself… and I do not know how healthy it is for a creature of chaos to stand in a rain of poison from Helheim.” Luna paused, then she smiled a bit, adding softly: “But of what do I know? Here I and Scrivener Blooms and Pinkamena all stand too, and it has done naught but clear our minds.”

“And my mind was very empty to begin with, so you have nothing to fear, touched as I am by your concern for my well-being.” Discombobulation replied calmly, and then he smiled a little as he reached up and rubbed at the underside of his muzzle thoughtfully. “Perhaps it’s not healthy, but… as I have learned, life without risk and without doing unhealthy things is a very poor life. I was never more proud of myself than when I did the most idiotic thing of all and sacrificed my life – and dignity, I dare say – to help destroy that wretched Fafnir.”

He stopped, then quietly touched his chest and closed his eyes, saying quietly: “I suppose I truly earned the degrading nickname that Helheim’s kind has for mine… ‘patchwork doll.’ And I’m more patchwork than ever, if you must know… grateful as I am for being pieced back together, you see, I feel a part of me that’s very distinctly not a part of me, very alien to this exotic rat of Ginnungagap. A part of me that finds a sense of home in this poison even more than I find a feeling of home myself… a part of now-me used to glue the other parts of me together by a not-god who probably didn’t have a sharp enough eye to make out the subtle differences between the silk and the spiderwebs. Yes, exactly: I’ve had a little plastic surgery and an organ transplant or two, and I believe the skin grafts and the gooey insides came from the only available donor at the time, who would have been laying in as many wretched pieces as me, just with a different kind of madness keeping him alive instead of dissolving away. Fafnir.”

Luna frowned at this, both she and Scrivener looking sharply towards Discombobulation… but the Draconequus only smiled faintly as he hugged himself and shivered a bit. “Worry not, Scrivener Blooms, it is not like you, or Luna, or even the nasty little devil sprite. Nor do I believe I’m about to begin seeing ghosts and terrible grim reapers, all while being unable to stop them, and nor do I have any plans of pursuing the reasons behind these haunting grim images to an old beach house if I do. It is just… uncomfortable to know that the resin and sap and wood that was used to help piece this puppet together comes from the gallows tree, where countless souls both innocent and murderous were hung until they died.”

The tall winged unicorn nodded slowly, then she bowed her head forwards and smiled a bit, saying softly: “Then perhaps thou can take solace in the fact that even pieced together from a killer’s parts… I do not believe that thou could any more freely take a life than thou could go ten minutes without annoying someone, Bob.”

“Or five minutes without a pop culture reference.” Scrivener added with a bit of a smile, glancing towards the Draconequus, and the chimerical creature chuckled quietly as he looked back at them, before the four all glanced up as there was a crackle of thunder above their heads, purple shocks bursting through the clouds above as the dark rain continued to fall in a torrent around them, hitting the ground with the sound of a thousand stomping hooves and yet barely felt by those gathered.

And in silence they stood beneath the rain together, beneath the fall of corruption, in a moment of peace brought about by the strangest, darkest storm, as they silently renewed their hopes, their dreams, and their determination for a better future.

The storm continued to rage outside, despite the fact that hours had passed… and Luna and Scrivener lay comfortably lay half-curled together on the futon, Scrivy resting his head against the female’s side. Pinkamena had vanished without a word, and Discombobulation was back inside his vial, once more tiny and sleeping comfortably in the bath of Ambrosia, a little pale but at the same time looking much happier and far less fragile than before.

Luna was smiling softly, Nightmare Moon receded in body and mind, the passionate darkness once more locked away somewhere down deep in perhaps the depths of her soul as she sketched quietly on a large paper pad by hoof. She gazed thoughtfully over the image, splotched here and there with eraser marks, smudged a bit by her sometimes-overeager movements, and then she bit her tongue as she made one smooth, slightly-twisted stroke with the pencil before grumbling under her breath. “Accursed expressions can be so difficult… absolutely ridiculous how one foul curve in one foul line can distort or glorify an entire picture…”

“You’re talking to yourself again.” Scrivy mumbled against Luna’s side, and she absently reached back and smacked him, knocking his glasses askew from his features and sending them tumbling to the bedding, but the earth pony only yawned, reaching down to toss these lightly off to the side before half-crawling over the winged unicorn and burying his face against one wing. “Also, you’re drawing me in… uglier-than-I-already-am form. Of course it’s going to look grim and distorted.”

“Thy face is grim and distorted.” Luna grumbled, and she slapped at him again with a roll of her eyes, but the earth pony only huffed and lightly hit back at her flank. “Anyway, I feel… compelled to draw this. I like it. ‘Tis fun. And thou cannot stop me so there.”

She looked over her shoulder and blew a short raspberry at him, and Scrivener grumbled under his breath before he finally sat up, stretching absently and mumbling: “Well, I’m tired of exploring my deranged psychology. I’m also tired of this storm. Now that we’ve finally been exposed to the corruption so much we don’t feel it anymore – or you know, whatever happened, in smarter-sounding words – it’s just a big rainstorm that stops us from going outside or doing anything, and much as I like being inside and enjoy the sound of the rain… it still makes me feel tired and like complaining.”

“Everything makes thou complain, insufferable beetle.” Luna grumbled, and Scrivener shrugged moodily after a moment before she glared at him challengingly. “Do not force me to draw thee engaging in horribly depraved acts.”

“Because yes, that would be so scarring compared to you forcing those mental images into my brain like you already do every so often.” Scrivener retorted dryly, and Luna paused before she looked at him thoughtfully, the male wincing and covering his head. “Okay, okay, don’t, you win! I’ll go and do the dishes.”

“No, no, thou shalt not. Instead, thou shall lay down here with me.” Luna replied firmly, and Scrivener gave her an amused look before he squawked when her horn glowed blue, a firm telekinetic grip seizing him by the head and yanking him back down to half-flop over her, and Luna nodded firmly after a moment as she turned her attention back to sketching, saying kindly: “’Twould be wonderful of thee to massage my back, Scrivy. I may even forego pummeling thee if thou does so.”

“How generous.” Scrivener said drolly, and he smiled despite himself after a moment as he slipped upwards and straddled her lower back, resting his weight down on her and making her smile as she closed her eyes for a moment. His front hooves rubbed upwards along either side of her spine to her shoulders, working and massaging gently as he leaned over her and gazed down with soft entertainment, her flickering mane spilling off to one side to allow him easier access as he gazed past her head and watched her continue to draw.

It was fascinating to him: the way she moved, adding a line here, shading a little there, not really following any order or clear thought, making changes based mostly on her whims. It made him smile to watch, as his hooves gently worked along her shoulders, one hoof sliding through her ephemeral mane and sending a distinct tingling along his foreleg as he leaned a little further down and murmured softly: “You know, you’re actually making me look okay. Like one of those comic book superheroes or something. One of the ones with the really screwed-up back-story and is probably more hated than respected even by the ponies he saves.”

“Oh, Scrivy, thou art the most insufferable mix of sweet and sour. We should bottle thy words and sell them… ‘twould surely make us rich.” Luna replied dryly, not looking up from the page as she shaded the darker patches of scale in thoughtfully. “Thou art so strange though, Scrivener Blooms… why did thou never simply… pursue thy dreams in life?”

“Because then I never would have ended up in Canterlot with you. Maybe it was destiny that made me a selfish, unmotivated loser.” Scrivener replied with a smile, and Luna laughed at this before she cursed when she accidentally dragged the pencil against the page and left a long line extending off Scrivener’s back. “I don’t think I have one of those.”

Luna began to open her mouth… and then she closed it thoughtfully before beginning to draw quickly, and Scrivener frowned curiously as he leaned over her shoulder, the winged unicorn adding more lines that seemed disconnected at first, but shortly became a large, draconic wing before she smiled slightly… and Scrivener smiled despite himself at this, gazing down at it and half-leaning his body overtop hers as he said softly: “Tyrant Wyrms don’t have wings, though… and you know I hate flying.”

“Aye, I do… and Scrivener Blooms, thou art no Tyrant Wyrm, whatever the creature’s corruption did to thee.” Luna said softly, and Scrivener smiled as he closed his eyes, pushing his face against the back of her head as he embraced her tightly around the neck, Luna reaching a hoof up to quietly touch one limb. “And whether or not thou enjoys the skies… thou art always soaring in my eyes.”

Scrivener laughed despite himself, murmuring softly against her starry locks as they sizzled gently against his features: “You’re the true poet in this relationship, Luna. My words can’t hold a candle to yours.”

“Only because thou insists upon using thy gifts to write poems of horrible despair and darkness most of the time, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna replied with a slight smile, eyes flicking backwards as she slid her hoof along his forelimb to gently grasp the male’s own. “I have a pondering, Scrivy.”

“When don’t you?” Scrivener leaned back, smiling despite himself, and Luna grumbled as she closed the notebook and put it and her pencil aside, before she wiggled beneath him until she managed to roll over as the male raised himself a bit, then laid down and rested his front hooves on her shoulders as she played her own against his chest. Scrivy’s weight pressed quietly down against her, and Luna flicked her head to the side, their eyes meeting and trading emotions and thoughts and affections before the earth pony gave her a quietly-entertained look. “You’re hiding it from me.”

“Only because thou art being nosy. Nosy-nosy-nosy.” Luna retorted, and she blushed a bit before squeezing into his shoulders, leaning up and kissing his lips suddenly and quickly, and the male blinked before he smiled when she dropped back and asked curiously: “How would thou like me to polymorph thee for a time into thine subconscious form in the real world?”

Scrivener reared back in dumb surprise at this, not knowing what to even think, and Luna blushed a little deeper before she said awkwardly: “’Tis… just a random idea that occurred, Scrivy, that is all. Thou knows it is not hard for me to temporarily transform one shape to another… and I know that… in taking on Nightmare Moon’s shape myself as I have over the years, for one purpose or another… in a way, it has made me more… I know not. Accepting of her necessity in my life? Or simply more confident that no matter what I look like, I am the controller of my destiny. I… I only wish to aid thee, even if it sounds… awkward, I know. Oh, silence, Scrivy, ‘tis dumb.”

“It’s not dumb. At all.” Scrivener said softly, leaning down and kissing her cheek, and Luna smiled lamely even as a faint blush tinged her dark sapphire body. He drew back a bit, looking down at her curiously, and then he smiled awkwardly and asked softly: “How long were you thinking? And this isn’t just so you can live out some awkward fantasy of yours, is it?”

“Oh, Scrivener Blooms. Were we not connected in soul and did I not know thee so well, I would smite thee horribly.” Luna said dryly, and Scrivener shrugged amiably, which only made her sigh and roll her eyes even as she fought back a smile. “’Twould only be a short-term transformation, I think. Perhaps a day at most… I am not sure how difficult the spell would be to cast, after all. I can transform thee with almost the same ease I can change myself, after all, and as I will be creating a reflection of thy subconscious and thou will be able to greatly aid me in the crafting of the polymorph, both physically and mentally…”

“I get what you mean, Luna, yeah.” Scrivener nodded after a moment, and then he looked down at her thoughtfully before he finally gave a smile, saying quietly: “Alright. I’d… be willing to try, Luna, just to-”

“Then let us try it right now!” Luna said firmly, and Scrivener groaned and dropped his head forwards before he blushed when Luna seized him by the back of the skull and leaned her forehead up to press against his own, her horn pushing along his scalp as she said softly: “No fear, and no regrets, Scrivener Blooms. Close thine eyes and concentrate.”

Scrivener did so, taking a slow breath as he let his weight rest down on Luna, her horn beginning to glow, thrumming softly against him as she pushed back up beneath the comforting mass of the male… and as their hearts, their souls, their minds began to move as one, as Scrivy felt his skin begin to tickle, his muscles flex, his frame shiver, he felt Luna’s emotions and compassion and love and-

There was a spark in his mind, and Scrivener looked back and forth in surprise as he found himself standing alone, lost in darkness… before a grinning face of muck and mire and toxin leaned down out of the shadows, grotesque and alien, draconic as an amber eye glowed terribly in one socket and blue light shone out of the other. Scrivener snarled up at this, a chill rolling down his spine as the creature whispered: “See? More and more, you become like us. This is destiny. This is fate. You helped kill us, but we do not experience death like pathetic mortals do… our Black Verses live inside you, and thus so do we. And you destroyed our creator, our master, our king… but all that has done is free us, and make us understand that in you there is great potential, for great destruction. Now you become us. Now we become you. In body, and soon in mind. We are Tyrant Wyrm; you are Tyrant Wyrm. You cannot change your destiny. You are poison, and we are eager to show you torment that makes even Helheim quake…”

Scrivener looked silently up at this face, seeing the Tyrant Wyrm in it, seeing Valthrudnir in it, seeing everything he feared and hated, and in some terrible, never-healed, broken part of himself, longed for and even admired… and he forced himself to take a slow breath before he looked up and said quietly: “I don’t care.”

The corruption snarled down at him at this, and Scrivener felt his confidence returning as he stepped forwards, continuing clearly, coldly: “Whatever else you are, you’re a tumor, a cyst, a boil, an infection, left behind by a parasite. Now, I’ve dealt with a lot of parasites and tumors over the course of my life. Editors, snobs, critics, and worst of all, fellow writers, or, as they would always carefully call themselves with such dignity and refinement, ‘authors.’ Normally I don’t argue with them, but when they really get out of hoofon their high-and-mighty streak, then I start to lose my temper a little.

“So first let me say I appreciate your constructive criticism. You’re right, I’m not entirely a pony anymore… but I never said I was a normal pony even to begin with. I think you misinterpreted that and reached a little too far when you said I was ‘Tyrant Wyrm.’” Scrivener continued drolly, and the corrupt face only stared down at him disbelievingly. “You also seem to have a bad grasp of what certain words actually mean: saying that I will become you, and you’ll become me, well, that all sounds nice and fancy, but you’re a giant monster made mostly from decomposing sludge and I am a frustrated, obnoxious poet. If we really did become each other we would trade places. You would be me, and I would be you. So I would be the annoying voice in your head compelling you to pointless acts of destruction and pain and you would be the jerk pony being beaten up by Luna all the time. It’s very prosaic but I think what you literally mean is ‘we shall fuse together and become a new entity.’ Although I think what you really mean is that you’re going to absorb me somehow and turn me physically into some manifestation of a Tyrant Wyrm, and I’m having trouble seeing how that’s going to happen.

“Next. You continue to purposefully over-exaggerate my emotions. You seem to forget that first and foremost I’ve never exactly been Mr. Happy Pony, and this whole being a moody, cynical jerk thing is not entirely because of you. Nor is the fact I obviously enjoy lording power over another pony in one way or another.” Scrivener sat back and flailed his hooves at the air, and the monstrosity snarled as it leaned down, glaring at him furiously as the light intensified in its sockets. “You’re doing this really annoying habit some people seem to have: you make the story all about you, and what you want, and what you desire, and what you believe in, and what you think should happen. But guess what? It’s not your story. I am the writer – oh sorry, author – and it’s my story. You’re the audience. If you don’t like it, don’t read it. And if you continue to claim you hate it, why the hell is it you sit back, reading it again and again, giving me these long, drawn-out editorials on exactly why you hate it so much, telling me all these mistakes I’m doing wrong that often fall to matter of personal preference or simple intolerance for being unable to see anything any way apart from your own goddamn narcissistic world view? You know what that tells me? You don’t actually hate it. You hate what it makes you feel. You hate that it’s a good story. You hate that you are not nearly as good at your job, as I am at mine. You’re that annoying brat who flunked out of art school and spends his whole day sitting moodily around galleries telling people in a loud voice all the tiny flaws that are wrong with their pictures, so that you can try and make them as miserable as you are.

“Well guess what? It isn’t going to work anymore.” Scrivener snapped, and he strode forwards as the creature looked down at him with surprise before he drew a hoof back and slammed it into the monstrosity’s nose, sending up a splatter of black mire and making it flinch back in shock as its jaws fell stupidly open. “No matter how this story ends, I refuse to worry anymore about trying to change it, to make anyone happy… including my own goddamn self! I am not the potter, I am only the potter’s clay… I am only the tool through which these things are written. I don’t know where they come from, I don’t know how they begin, and I never know how they end… I just put the words on paper. Just like my life, monster: my hooves are going to walk down this path and find the way no matter what, and I’m not going to fight against it, and I’m not going to run away. I’m going to walk the path in front of me, I’m going to make the decisions where I can, but it’s not about what you want. It’s not about what I want. It’s just about living my goddamn life instead of trying to control every last thing or letting myself be controlled by every outside influence, and all I know is that I’m sick and tired of you trying to scare me and order me around and I’m ready to embrace the future of this story, whatever the hell it holds. So bring it on, crowbait. I’m right here!”

Scrivener Blooms breathed hard in and out, glaring up at the monster as slime and bog-filth dripped from its features… and then the creature snarled slowly before it leaned down and roared furiously with enough force to send Scrivy skidding backwards with a wince, his mane blowing back and his eyes widening as poison and spittle splattered over him before the creature’s jaws lunged forwards, the male clenching his eyes shut-

“Daydreamer?” Luna asked worriedly, and Scrivener’s eyes fluttered before they hesitantly opened, gazing dumbly down at the sight of the winged unicorn looking up at him with concern in her deep, dark eyes. “What is wrong, husband? I sensed a flurry of emotions in the moments the transformation took… I heard a growl, and I heard thou lashing out in anger at something I could ill define…”

“You have pretty eyes.” Scrivy said lamely, and Luna blushed a bit in surprise even as their irises locked and they traded thoughts back and forth… before she smiled in soft entertainment and embraced him fiercely around the neck, and he hugged her tightly back, claw gently stroking through her mane before he blinked and stared dumbly over her shoulder as he rose this warped, twisted limb. “What?”

“As I said… the transformation took only moments. Thou art… malleable.” Luna said softly, and Scrivener smiled despite himself as he leaned slowly backwards, flexing his body as he glanced over himself, realizing he was larger… larger even than Luna now, his body distorted here and there, half-Wyrm, half-pony. A long tail snapped lazily back and forth, and Scrivener tried to move this carefully to his will as a wing stretched out… and the male’s eyes widened in surprise before he looked at Luna, who only shrugged and grinned up at him. “’Twas not a bad addition, I think, creature. Besides, thou cannot fly with just the one wing.”

Scrivener glanced back over his shoulder as the leathery, thick black wing stretched outwards, tipped with a claw at one end, strong and wide… and he whistled slowly after a moment as he flapped it once, then flexed it forwards, half-curling it around himself as he murmured: “Feels rubbery. Feels pretty damn easy to move too.”

“Good.” Luna said softly, and Scrivy returned his eyes to her embarrassedly before she reached up and gently touched his shoulders. “Thou has nothing to fear, daydreamer. I am here to catch thee, should thou stumble… and more importantly, I see now… thou has braved the monster inside thyself, the face thou feared most of all. Or perhaps the word is not ‘braved,’ the phrase I seek is more akin to ‘once more lost thy temper and yelled at things much larger than thou art.’”

“So okay, I have slight temper issues sometimes, but only with certain things.” Scrivener mumbled, and then he cleared his throat before he smiled a little, pushing down against her quietly, and she closed her eyes with a smile at the feeling of his weight, his body, his heat gently moving down against her, at the powerful thud of his heart as her own beat in easy time. “Thank you for… for doing this, Luna. I have to admit… it feels almost natural. And it’s nice to be bigger and scarier than the warrior princess.”

Luna snorted in amusement at this, grinning as she pushed her hooves against his chest and leaned upwards challengingly. “Oh truly, Scrivy, is that all thou cares about? Such a modest male, such a dignified beast thou art.” She paused, then half-lidded her eyes, stroking teasingly along his body. “But indulge me then, daydreamer… what would thou do if thou had thine princess trapped and helpless to resist thee, oh great and terrible monster? Would thou… gobble me down, tender morsel that I am?”

Scrivy couldn’t help but grin wider at this… and an hour later, he lay curled tightly around Luna, the winged unicorn smiling at the warmth of her husband’s body and the feeling of being enfolded completely in his embrace… not something she was able to feel very often, being larger than he was, before she laughed as he nipped the side of her ear before whispering into it: “I thought this wasn’t about fulfilling your horrible unhealthy fantasies.”

“Oh shut up, Scrivy, thou enjoyed it.” Luna retorted, and then she squirmed around to roll over and shove her face against the side of his neck, grinding against smooth scale and tangled mane as she wrapped her forelegs tightly around him and felt his own limbs encircle her, hugging her tightly into his body as she added with a mumble: “And get not such ideas into thy head. I am merely continuing the fantasy. Thine own sick fantasy. Chauvinist beetle-monster.”

“Yep, that’s me. A chauvinist beetle-monster.” Scrivener murmured agreeably, and then he kissed the side of her horn gently, a soft spark of blue flicking along the spire as Luna gave a sigh of relaxation against him, squirming herself tighter and closer. “This is still easily among the weirdest idea you’ve ever had though, Luna, just so we’re clear on that.”

“Yes, well, the point of it is to make thee comfortable with thyself, to let thee understand that… no matter what the outer shell, thou art who thou art.” Luna shrugged a bit, playing a hoof quietly across his chest as she added softly: “’Tis not like it is entirely without selfishness though, Scrivy, for whatever benefits thee also benefits me… and I often… am at war with myself over how I treat thee, and Nightmare Moon ponders the same: do I corrupt thee for my own ends? Or is this awkward attempt after attempt at saving thee somehow?”

“You’re being weird, Luna.” Scrivy said kindly, and Luna rolled her eyes and headbutted him lightly, making him snort in amusement as he leaned back a bit before gently pushing her away so he could stand up and stretch, cracking his back absently… and then grinning down at her when she got to her own hooves, saying meditatively: “I really, really do enjoy being taller than you, though.”

Luna grumbled at this and responded by reaching up to seize him by the head before yanking him hard down with a firm twist to the side, Scrivener crashing loudly back to the bedding with a wheeze of surprise before the winged unicorn sniffed and said disdainfully: “The larger the giant, the greater its fall, Scrivener Blooms. Especially when weighted by an ego such as thine own.”

“If we’re going to talk ego here, Luna, you’re the one who bends space and time.” Scrivener retorted as he stood back up… then grinned and caught her by the face with his gnarled claw when she tried to headbutt him, making her squawk in surprise. “Also, I am well-aware that you can still beat the snot out of me, but at least now I’ve got the weight and reach advantage.”

The winged unicorn grumbled, then huffed when Scrivener’s claw stroked quietly backwards, playing through her mane, and she fought back a smile as she looked up at him and said firmly: “Thou art incorrigible.”

“I love you too, Luna.” Scrivy replied mildly, and Luna sighed and rolled her eyes as the male’s claw dropped away before he winked and strode past her, saying kindly: “Come on then. Let’s see if I can still make you a proper snack in this big body of mine.”

“Agreed.” Luna nodded firmly, then she smiled despite herself at her husband’s back, softening visibly as part of her felt happiness for the way Scrivy was beginning to accept his darkness… and part of her wondered if this was truly a step forwards, or just a hidden power play by her own selfish passions.

Puppets And Puppeteers

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Chapter Six: Puppets And Puppeteers
~BlackRoseRaven

Luna and Scrivener Blooms strode side-by-side through the Empty Forest, passing gnarled, mottled trees every so often, the rocky, jagged earth speckled with snow and frost. The red skies overhead hummed quietly, arcs of strange electricity jolting back and forth through the crimson beyond as Scrivener rolled his head absently before his sharp eyes glanced downwards through his glasses as he caught an odd glimmer.

He reached down with his gnarled claw, picking up a gemstone with a grimace and studying it, warped, half-pony and half-Wyrm features twisting a bit as he muttered: “Yep. You were right, Luna… there’s Velites in the area. I’ll never get how you can know these things just by going outside.”

“’Tis a warrior’s instincts, and thou knows perfectly well what I speak of, thou art soul-bound to me.” Luna retorted, and the male gave her an amused look before he gently lobbed the rune-covered gemstone at her, but the winged unicorn’s horn glowed quietly and she easily caught it in the air with telekinesis before it could hit her, leaning forwards to study the runes on the cracked surface. “Art thou sure that thou are fine like this, Scrivy? ‘Twould be no trouble to end the polymorph early if thou wanted to return to thy normal form. Thou… thou seems to be growing comfortable with thyself quickly. More comfortable than I expected… thou learns lessons faster than I do perhaps, with all the months, nay, years, it took for me to grow comfortable with Nightmare Moon.”

“Yes, Luna, but this is just a reflection of my subconscious. Knowing that at any time I can go back to looking like an ugly pony instead of an ugly monster and not having to worry about ever taking on this form again probably helps me adjust to… who I am. Understand more, who and what I am.” Scrivener paused, then he glanced away and smiled a bit. “Or maybe I should say… never have to look like this again unless I wanted to.”

Luna glanced towards him, and she blushed a bit at the way her heart leapt a little in her chest. More and more, she wondered if she was just trying to make Scrivener more like her… trying to make the perfect companion for Nightmare Moon… but when Scrivy shot her a dry look, she shook her head and muttered: “Shush, Scrivy, if thou gets to be paranoid so often than so permitted am I. Also, it disturbs me that we both take enjoyment in… well. Thou knows. Thou art sick. I am sick.”

“Which is why we go together so well.” Scrivener said gently, and Luna gave him an amused look despite herself, a smile quirking along her features before he sat back, and winked, extending his single large wing to gently slap her side. “Look, we have other things to focus on right now, anyway. We need to track those scouts and make sure we aren’t dealing with raiders or a war band, right?”

“Correct, Scrivy, and if we are, then we need to intercept it and send them scattering to the winds, so they do not have a chance to attack our home.” Luna replied softly, and she smiled a bit as the two fell into pace, the winged unicorn stepping quickly forwards and looking apprehensively up towards the enormous glacial wall that loomed all too close here, the terrible and vast Frozen Reef. “I do not like to draw this near to that barrier though, Scrivener… all walls exist for a reason, to keep things from intruding… and worse, to keep other things from escaping.”

“What a pleasant way to look at it.” Scrivy muttered, and Luna grunted despite herself as they continued carefully forwards, passing through an area where more trees grew in a thick, ugly tangle, wedging their way along what seemed almost like a narrow, carved path before they emerged from speckled tundra into a wintery wasteland, the corrupted earth here completely covered with snow and chunks of ice, dunes of powder and frost forming bizarre shapes as both Luna and Scrivy glanced down, recognizing the faint tracks leading through the powder… then both looked sharply up as over the next rise, they heard a loud clattering.

The two crept forwards carefully to the top of the hill and gazed in surprise at the sight of an industrious Velite camp working together only some hundred feet away, rune-covered skeletons with both bleached and yellowed bones using pickaxes and ugly tools to chip eagerly away at an enormous block of ice out of which stuck several enormous bones and half of a massive, yawning dragon skull.

Luna cursed under her breath, quickly drawing her eyes back and forth: there were over thirty gathered Velites, including no less than three immense skeletons of drakes that were covered in runes and standing ominous guard at the perimeter of the work site. It was an encampment without a camp, as the undead needed little rest… and the winged unicorn shook her head slowly before she muttered: “This does not bode well.”

“And look at the bones they’ve already extracted…” Scrivener muttered, and Luna followed the male’s gaze to what Scrivy had spotted near a large drake: there was already a large pile of bones of all shape and size, ranging from femurs and ribs and vertebrae to two other immense skulls.

Velite unicorns were standing near these, unholy fire burning in their sockets as their horns glowed with black light, slowly inscribing unnatural runes over the bones and fusing rune-covered gemstones to them. They worked calmly and patiently, sending up faint flares of blue and black every now and then as they moved with the ease of long practice and infused instinct… and Luna cursed under her breath before her eyes flicked backwards, both she and Scrivener sensing more than hearing the sound of something stirring behind them, of snow pattering down as the winged unicorn said slowly: “I think, Scrivy, we shall have to engage these creatures…”

Scrivener smiled grimly… and then without looking, he and Luna both slammed a rear hoof backwards and smashed a Velite skeleton’s skull into fine powder, the headless body rolling stupidly through the snow as the other two Velites stared in surprise before Luna and Scrivy both spun around, the male grinning widely and distorting his warped features further as Luna’s horn glowed and she snarled: “As cowardly as ever, I see!”

One of the Velites began to open its jaws… and Luna immediately snapped her head downwards, sending a blue fireball slamming into the creature and erupting with enough force to blow it into nothing but fragments of ivory, the other Velite staggering with a hiss of shock. Terrible, unnatural flames burned in its sockets as engraved runes hummed over its bones, the spiderweb-filled wings of the Pegasus skeleton spreading in surprise before it leaned forwards… and then simply stared as Scrivener loomed towards it, much larger and much-more-terrifying with his distorted features as he leaned slowly down, then said mockingly: “Boo.”

The Velite winced backwards, then scrambled around in a circle and sprinted away towards the warped trees, and Luna threw her head back and laughed loudly before she grinned widely at Scrivener as her eyes glowed, the two feeling excitement twisting through their mixed souls even as roars and shrieks rose up from the encampment. “Well, they beg to be put back to rest, Scrivener Blooms… let us generously give them what they desire!”

The two spun around and charged over the rise and into the field, and several of the Velites only stared in shock even as two of the drakes ran forwards with snarls and roars, as bestial now as they had been in life. But Luna only grinned, throwing herself into the air as she and Scrivener traded instinct and desire and emotion and wild passion between themselves as they shot towards their foes, even as the Velites yelled furious orders at one another and began to run forwards.

The first drake in line began to lean forwards, opening its jaws… and then Luna crashed across its skull, knocking its head snapping backwards with a grunt before Scrivener plowed into the thirty-foot long skeleton with his head lowered, and the ivory goliath flailed wildly at the powdery snow as its large but lightweight body was knocked backwards and several ribs were shattered from the force of the impact. Then Luna swept back down and smashed her front hooves into its upper vertebrae, decapitating the enormous skeleton before Scrivener leapt forwards and shattered the drake’s skull beneath his hooves.

The second drake roared as it took the moment to close and sweep a claw out, smashing Scrivener in the side and knocking him staggering with a curse… and Luna snarled as she flinched and faint welts formed over her body, both infuriated and pleased: Scrivener’s polymorph was working to their advantage in more ways than just the terror it inspired, giving him more weight, more strength, more solidity as the male turned towards the Velite drake as its jaws lunged forwards… and the male reached up and managed to shove his front hoof and twisted claw against it, catching it by the muzzle.

Luna leapt forwards with a grin as her horn boiled with blue flames, her wings spreading wide before she lashed her horn downwards, releasing a sapphire blast that smashed into the skeleton’s spine and then exploded into greedy blue flames that rapidly began to eat away at its bony body, the drake shrieking mournfully as it staggered backwards. Luna let the force of the explosion carry her backwards as Scrivener nimbly leapt away at the same time, the drake skeleton clawing uselessly at the air around it and the headless undead drake next to it bursting into sapphire fire as well, Velites hesitating for a moment in trying to attack at the sight of the destruction.

Then the third drake came towards them, shooting through the air, two mismatched, draconic wings now fused into its spine and a Velite unicorn standing on its back with a snarl, his horn glowing blackly as he shouted: “Destroy Luna Lightblade and her demon!”

“Daydreamer, pardon me while I deal with this. Do be a dear and keep the others entertained.” Luna remarked almost teasingly, winking down at him before she grinned as the Velite unicorn leaned forwards and a black fireball erupted from its horn, but she only flapped her wings firmly and launched herself upwards, the black sphere narrowly missing her before she shot towards the drake as it opened its jaws with a roar, then suddenly dodged to the side, easily avoiding a vicious bite and wild rake of its claws before it turned to pursue her, the unicorn Velite cursing as it was almost thrown from the creature’s back even as it howled orders and insults.

Scrivener only shook his head with a snort, then ran forwards and around the burning wreckage of the other drake skeletons to find some ten Velites: skeletons of earth ponies and Pegasi, as near the Frozen Reef, Velite unicorns were hurriedly working on something as the remaining skeletons hammered wildly at the ice and struggled into broken armor and to grab what damaged weapons they could. These ten, however, had little to spare between them: bodies glittered here and there with gemstones and a few were clad in ragged, rusted armor, one or two others carrying rusted knives.

One of them ran towards him… and Scrivener easily rose a hoof and crushed it into dust with a single stomp, not even needing to access Luna’s memories to halt the clumsy undead. His eyes burned and his body flexed with excitement, with a dark pleasure he both reveled in and loathed to feel, but there was no time to deny it, no time to fight it, as he ran to meet the swarm of Velites and simply trampled another feeble skeleton.

A Velite lunged at his side, grabbing onto his front limb… and Scrivener flung it hard off into another before he lashed a claw across the skull of a Pegasus skeleton that tried to dive into his front, crushing it down into the ground as his tail snapped back and forth like a whip, keeping his large hooves moving, his body twisting with agile sinuousness it had learned from Luna over the years of battle and confrontation as he snarled: “Run away, and I’ll let you cling to the excuse for lives you live!”

One of the Velites staggered backwards… then took his advice, turning and fleeing even as the other Velites continued to try and press the attack, attempting to swarm him with their numbers… but Scrivener leapt forwards, crushing one under hoof, another under his claw, before he swung his head savagely down into the face of another and sent it crumpling to the ground. Then he hissed as a knife whickered across his features, tearing a short cut open before several Velites lunged into his side, clawing, biting uselessly, trying to force him down, and Scrivener responded by throwing himself to the side and dropping on them, crushing the skeletons beneath his heavy weight and sending another toppling backwards even as the undead that hadn’t been destroyed hurried back to their hooves.

More Velites were swarming towards him across the field… and in the air above the wintry wasteland, the drake spun sloppily around as the mage on its back hissed and uselessly hurled scorching black fireballs through the sky, Luna laughing as she circled sharply. The monster’s mismatched wings made it unwieldy, causing it to list and leaving it unable to hover in one spot, and then Luna’s eyes sharpened as she caught the opening she wanted.

The creature tipped too far to one side, and it hung almost sideways in the air as it flailed its limbs uselessly to try and regain balance, the unicorn Velite on its back cursing and clinging to it… and then Luna shot forwards and ripped through the raised wing, and the drake howled in shock as it lost all chance of staying airborne and plummeted downwards, the unicorn Velite on its back yelling in terror, scrabbling wildly and stuck beneath the back of the drake as it fell belly-up… then struck squarely down into the mob of Velite reinforcements like a meteor, sending up a puff of white snow and chunks of ice as bony shrapnel flew in all directions.

Skeletons staggered stupidly, several turning to stare in shock at this as the drake skeleton flopped weakly, skull cracked and only one limb still attached to the fragile construct… and then three blue fireballs hammered down from the skies, smashing in a short, straight line across the drake, and it was blown into pieces as other Velites were shattered themselves by the resulting explosions.

The remaining creatures battling with Scrivy were distracted for a moment by this… and then the half-pony, half-Wyrm stepped forwards and seized a Velite by the narrow body in his jaws in a sudden burst of bloodlust, leaning up as other Velites stared in dumb shock before Scrivener bit down and the creature was torn in half, the male’s eyes glowing as he leaned forwards with a wide grin… and immediately, two more of the surviving Velites cut and fled, the last staggering backwards and whispering: “We didn’t… I… it was become this or die in Ragnarok! I don’t want to die! I didn’t have a choice!”

“So you decided to serve evil ends, to try and spread your pain to others, to live forever even if it meant living as nothing but a broken skeleton?” Scrivener asked coldly, raising a hoof and then crushing the upper half of a stunned Velite body beneath it, before he rose his claw and gestured at himself. “I pity you. But you disgust me, because now I understand becoming a monster has nothing to do with what you look like. It has everything to do with the choices you make. Now run away!”

The Pegasus Velite shivered, then he spun around and fled, and Scrivener looked after him with disgust before Luna flew down and landed beside him, the winged unicorn looking coldly towards the last of the skeletons as they formed a crude battle line in front of the charred remains of the crashed drake. “Thou art too kind, husband.”

“Or perhaps I’m too cruel. Only the unicorn Velites can spread their sickness into others… and I personally think death would have been a much wiser choice than living forever in Helheim as nothing but a pile of animated bones.” Scrivy replied quietly, and Luna grimaced and nodded grimly as the six or so earth pony and Pegasus pony skeletons began to ready themselves to charge.

Scrivy and Luna were silent, Luna’s horn glowing and Scrivener’s eyes narrowing as they sized up their opponents and traded battle plans and strategy back and forth… before a terrible roar shook the air, and the two looked up in surprise at the sound of shattering ice, gazing past the row of Velites to where bones of all shape and size glowed darkly as they floated and converged upon a block of ice, and then the winged unicorn cursed before she shouted: “We have dallied too long!”

She and Scrivener charged forwards, and the half-dozen Velites began to lean forwards… but with a snarl, Luna snapped her horn upwards as it gave a flash, and a wave of ice exploded upwards, slamming into the skeletons like a tidal wave and knocking them sprawling as it formed into a tall ramp, one or two Velites managing to scramble out from beneath it but the others frozen solid as the frost spread rapidly over their bones. Both Scrivener Blooms and Luna ran up this, bypassing those who had avoided being snared in an icy prison, then leapt forwards and over the ruins of the shattered drake skeleton and charred Velite bones to sprint down the field… and then skid to a halt with matching winces as bones clacked and hissed and snapped together before something terrible began to haul itself upwards with another roar.

The monster’s two immense front legs ended in ripping, scythe-like claws, ripping easily through ice and twisted earth as it hauled itself upwards to its terrible, seventy foot high glory. It snarled at them as a third huge, ugly arm reached slowly into sight from over its back, jutting rudely over a shoulder and ending in fingers made from what looked like the skeletal limbs of smaller creatures, flexing eagerly at the air.

Its enormous dragon’s skull was half-covered in sheets of ice, the head alone nearly the size of their cottage, and from the side of its vertebrae-and-ice neck jutted a second, cracked and smaller skull like a bony growth, the mouth opening and closing spasmodically as steam hissed up from the awful black flames that glowed in its sockets. Runes pulsed over both where the ice didn’t cover, glowing as insanely as the dark eldritch fire that lit the monster’s sockets, its main head curled in a half-grin from the mask-like ice that covered half of its awful visage, smaller head twitching wildly and belching smoke from its sockets and clacking jaws.

Its body was made of smaller skeletons and bones of every shape and size, squat and short, leading to large legs that ended only in stumps instead of talons, and a short, snapped-in-half tail twitched weakly back and forth as it hauled itself forwards. Runes glowed with sinister light over its entire frame and gemstones burned across its body, fueling the terrible construct with unnatural, horrible life… and adding to its malevolence, its sheer horror, were the unicorn Velites that had fused themselves literally into the great beast here and there across its body, giving it one awful hive mind bent clearly only on one thing as it leaned down and snarled at them, before the draconic head rasped in the voices of countless stolen souls: “You killed Veliuona. You ensured our suffering would never end. You took away our goddess, and broke our ability to control the Velite thralls. Now we shall make you suffer as we do.”

“Scrivener Blooms, we battle this foe the same as any other.” Luna said quietly and calmly, and Scrivy nodded firmly despite the fear he felt in his own system, as he snuck a quick glance over his shoulder… but the remaining Velites were now only gaping in shock, perhaps even horror, making no attempt to bridge the distance towards them, before the winged unicorn added quietly: “We may require the Black Verses.”

“For now, let’s do this the old-fashioned way, Luna… last time we did that, it almost killed us both.” Scrivener replied softly, and Luna smiled a little before the two faced forwards, their courage and strength mixing even as the enormous monstrosity leaned down, the Velite colossus seeming to grin wider at them as black electricity crackled over the ivory and yellow of its bones, runes and gemstones pulsing with unnatural light.

“Locate the positions of the fused Velite unicorns. They are the beast’s mind… remove that, and the body shan’t be hard to take down!” Luna shouted, and then she leapt upwards and flapped her wings hard, soaring into the air as electricity crackled through her ephemeral mane as her horn glowed, eyes taking on a faint ivory sheen. “Thou art nothing but a pile of bones and arrogance, and I have no reason to fear either!”

The Velite colossus roared in response to this, its unnatural third arm lashing upwards to snatch at her with surprising speed, but Luna winced as she threw herself backwards and shoved herself away in midair, fingers made of limbs that had been woven together almost like rope breezing just past before she lashed her horn down and sent a blast of electricity hammering into its hand. The colossus only snarled in irritation, however, the damage to the construct minimal as it rose its squat body higher, grabbing at her again as the smaller head breathed out a gush of black fire and smoke as the dragon skull hissed: “You cannot harm us… you cannot fight us! We are too powerful!”

Luna cursed under her breath, then she flipped her body and dove straight down as she caught flashes of images in her mind from Scrivener Blooms, as the male hurriedly dashed around the monster while its attention was on her. She gritted her teeth… then her eyes widened in shock as it suddenly brought one of its forelimbs up and raked its enormous claws towards her, the winged unicorn cursing as she concentrated, a barrier of blue light appearing in front of her before the claw crashed into this.

It shattered through, but the barrier absorbed most of the momentum and strength of the blow before the heavy claws smashed into Luna’s body, knocking her sailing backwards with a wince as blood burst from lacerations across her chest and limbs before the creature’s third arm lashed down, lightning fast and with freakish grace, the fingers snaring her in their grips before it began to crush her… and Scrivener Blooms winced as he staggered to a halt at the monster’s side, his eyes bulging as bloody cuts formed along his own body before he coughed and cursed as pressure built around his ribs… then he dropped forwards, almost as if in prayer, sending his energy, his concentration to Luna as she clenched her eyes shut and shoved her hooves and back against the hand attempting to squish her as her horn and eyes glowed.

Pain and her link with Scrivener amplified her concentration and her power… and then she threw her head back with a howl of fury, a shockwave of blue flames erupting from her form and ripping the skeletal hand apart, the colossus grunting in surprise as the end of its limb burst into sapphire fire before Luna simply let herself drop, her horn crackling with energy and her eyes glowing white as in the distance, Scrivener gritted his teeth and arched his back slowly, his strength and energy flowing to her.

The colossus roared as it brought a claw up to lash downwards… but too little, too late, as Luna grinned widely, her horn giving a short, sharp pulse as she flapped her wings and launched herself just out of reach of the monster as it leaned forwards into the attack. The sound of its claw crashing into the frozen tundra was loud… but it was drowned out by the deafening peal of thunder that ripped through the air as Scrivener turned and bolted as Luna shot through the air above the fields before twisting upwards to ascend towards the sky.

She spun around as the colossus looked back and forth with a snarl as there was another massive rumble, confused… and above its head, cracks ripped through the massive wall of ice known as the Frozen Reef, the enormous wall of frost giving a third mighty crackle as walls of frozen water shifted and ground together, sending more faults tearing through the glacial barrier before massive chunks of solid, crystalline ice began to hail down in a tremendous avalanche over the behemoth.

It was battered downwards with roars of frustration, bones splintering and breaking as blocks and chunks of frozen liquid larger that boulders crashed against it, sending it flopping forwards to crash to the ground on its ivory front in a burst of snow and powder, and Scrivener staggered at the shakes that tore through the tundra before he skidded awkwardly around in a circle once he managed a safe distance away, wincing and then looking up to watch as Luna flipped in midair and dropped into a straight dive.

She hurtled downwards as the last of the avalanche of ice pelted over the stunned colossus, the creature snarling as it twitched a bit and its hive mind scrambled to force the massive monstrosity back upon its feet… and then Luna arched her back at the last moment, shooting forwards across the field and just past the monster’s draconic skull as Scrivener looked up and concentrated on what he had seen, filling Luna’s mind with images of where to aim as she smashed into its upper chest and directly into a fused unicorn Velite, blowing the creature into pieces before her hooves sprinted upside-down along the box-like body of the construct as her wings flapped to keep her moving despite being upside down, lowering her horn as a startled unicorn Velite that was half-melted into the lower fused ribs of the monster looked at her with shock before she crashed through it, then leapt off the monster to hit the ground and run forwards through a hail of ice and snow as the beast arched its back with a miserable howl.

Powder, bony shrapnel, and chunks of frost spilled around her as the beast’s body shifted, hailing down off its cracked and damaged form as she ran towards its hip, where another fused Velite unicorn rested with a snarl, horn glowing blackly and its lower body completely melded into the monster as it shouted at her, and the colossus roared with it in synchronization: “Your resistance is pointless! You cannot destroy us!”

The Velite unicorn lashed its horn outwards, releasing a blade of black fire that shot through the air towards Luna… and the winged unicorn snarled, sweeping her own horn into this as it glowed blue, sending it bursting apart in a cloud of smog before she leapt upwards and flapped her wings hard to shoot through the air like a missile and rocket into the unicorn, shattering it into pieces before she kicked off the hip of the immense colossus and shot skywards again, replying in a furious voice as her eyes glowed white: “Do not tell us what we can and cannot do, broken vessel!”

The colossus snarled in response as it began to haul itself upwards, shrugging the broken boulders of frost off its frame as it regained its senses, beginning to raise its head as its jaws fell open, breathing steam and smoke as it followed Luna’s path of flight through the air. It roared at her, and the second, warped head twitched on its neck, shattered like an egg, bleeding smoke and dark fire into the sky even as its jaws continued to open and close as they spat streams of steam and ghastly black flames in arcs that twisted violently and unnaturally through the sky, trying to follow Luna’s swift movements. “Stay still, Luna Lightblade!”

Scrivener Blooms cursed under his breath as he drew his eyes quickly over the monster… then he gritted his teeth before running forwards, sweeping in a wide circle around it. Luna darted back and forth around its skull, harrying its head with attacks and keeping its attention as she dodged bites and burst of black flames, and slow, now-lethargic snaps of its limbs through the air: it rested heavily on one front arm that had cracked near the center, and the other shoulder had been disjointed, making its movements clunky and rough as its limbs wobbled every time it put too much weight on one or swung the other too hard.

Scrivy leapt around chunks of fallen ice as Luna harried the monstrosity’s skull with quick attacks and blasts of lightning, the colossus roaring and biting at her, locked on the winged unicorn as it snarled: “You cannot run forever!”

The colossus hissed as Luna gritted her teeth, her eyes flashing before she shot suddenly downwards as the monster opened its maw… and then its head snapped back in shock when Luna shot straight into its jaws, teeth clacking shut too slow to catch her before she spun upwards and ripped out the back of its skull, smashing a hole through the back of its head as black flames burst out around her, the winged unicorn covering her face with her front hooves even as her horn glowed and she shouted despite the burns over her body, dark fire whiffing out as she shot back into the air: “I run from nothing, monster!”

She snarled as she spun back around to its front, her eyes and horn glowing, hovering in front of it as the colossus glared at her furiously, leaning forwards even as cracks spread steadily through the center skull and dark fire spilled like blood from its sockets and burned slowly over the ivory of its features, rasping: “Then you must surrender. Give up to us. How can you kill us? Our spirits are fused into the colossus, we are one with it… you are not Celestia. You have no light to purge us with. Your exorcisms will not work upon us, anchored as we are in the physical. The night cannot destroy what walks it with impudence.”

“Aye, perhaps not. Therefore, much as I am loathe to do this, we resort to a different method.” Luna said disdainfully, flicking her starry mane to the side as she closed her eyes, and she channeled her powers forwards as the monster leaned towards her, snarling, not noticing Scrivener Blooms charging up its own spine, running between jutting bones and formations of frost before he dove through a broken hole in its case-like body, the monster rearing back in surprise as Scrivener crashed into the white-and-blanched tunnel of its chest, surrounded by sharp bones, staring skulls of Velites, and terrible spirits as he gritted his teeth and felt Luna’s strength flooding through him, her magic empowering him even as bony claws began to reach out of the walls and dark fire boiled slowly towards him-

“Shallock…” Scrivener dropped his head forwards, his voice rough, the language guttural and terrible… and the single word made the black fire in the air turn to ice, made skeletal limbs hesitate before Scrivy grinned as he threw his head back, eyes glowing as blood leaked from them, shouting in a terrible, echoing language as electricity burst along Luna’s body as she fed him the magic he needed to give the words their full and awful might and the corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm in his mind did the rest: “You shall bow before us, servants, for we are master and destroyer, and in our presence reality itself trembles… living death, feel the despair of your own cold suffocation, the emptiness of the grave inside your very soul from which you can never claw your way out of, be brought low by the fear of the very thing which your pathetic shells embody…”

Agony ripped through Scrivener’s body, his vision blurring even as a horrible ecstasy writhed through his mind and his twisted soul at the same time, and he could hear Luna laughing despite the pain in her own body as the colossus howled and fell flat, bones cracking and splintering, black fire turning rapidly into obsidian, crystalline dark frost as blurred voices shrieked: “S-Stop, stop, what are you? The pain, the fear, the evil… stop!”

“Your soul bleeds dry; your suffering ends, for true torment awaits. You shall sink into the Void, where all things fade to, where the deep and eternal darkness lays, where rot and death and putrid life all comingle to one blasted essence that we, the controllers, the creators, the destroyers, shall glut upon… and know that even now, your eternal life is meaningless, but you shall feed us and from your death you will be given the moment of reason you do not deserve…” Scrivener continued roughly, leaning forwards, bracing himself against the monster’s bony body as he grinned wider, reality around him rippling even as blood began to drip from one nostril and his jaws and his single, twitching ear, even as pain continued to rip through his body… but the pleasure was growing greater as well, the sense of strength, and the excitement that came with watching as Velite skulls exploded, as the bones around him shattered and bent, drool forming at the corners of his mouth as he rasped: “You are the broken and we are the breakers. You are the dominated and we are the dominant. Bow your heads now, pathetic pawns of death, and-”

And then Scrivener grunted in surprise, interrupted as the bony floor beneath him cracked and sank, looking down stupidly before it shattered outwards and the warped earth pony was sent plummeting out of the ivory case of the creature as much of its chest shattered, the colossus howling mindlessly as it tried to drag itself backwards at the same time. It narrowly missed ripping its claws across Scrivener as it backwards upwards into the frozen cliffs and the male crashed to a puff in the snow amidst ice and shale and deadly chunks of bone, and the pony looked up stupidly before he winced over his shoulder as the monster reared back, grasping at its draconic skull even as it began to crack apart, howling: “The words are like poison in our mind… what have you done? Merciful and beloved Veliuona, why do they ache so? What has the monster and its demon done to us?”

Scrivener looked groggily up as the pleasure rapidly faded into exhausted pain… and then he cursed under his breath as he felt Luna’s emotions ripping through his mind as she sailed down through the air, the male gritting his teeth before he cursed under his breath as he staggered up to his hooves and fell into a stumbling run through the snow, ignoring the shrapnel of bone and blades of ice that bit at him from the ground as he gritted his teeth and the winged unicorn landed at the edge of the field, breathing hard as she leaned anxiously forwards.

Scrivy felt fatigue ripping through his muscles, his mind a broken haze as behind him, the Velite colossus howled miserably again before its grasping claws ripped through its own skull, twisting as it gave jagged, insane laughs amidst the howls that rose up from it as it shrieked in a thousand voices: “Y-Yes, we understand… Veliuona waits for us, doesn’t she? This is the freedom she spoke of… we are going to her!”

Then it ripped upwards, tearing its skull off as the secondary, smaller head exploded in a blast of dark fire that rapidly froze over, becoming black ice that glinted like metal, cracks ripping through the body of the colossus as frigid frost violently spilled along the monster, and Scrivener risked a glimpse back over his shoulder, cursing and knowing it was going to be close-

Blackness surged across his vision… and Scrivy’s eyes rolled up in his head as he fell forwards, flopping face-first into the snow as Luna felt a spark of agony rip through her mind, flinching… then staring in horror at the sight of Scrivy laying prone as the massive, dead skeleton of the colossus slowly began to tip forwards, countless tons of ice and bone, casting a terrible shadow that grew deeper and darker as it spilled forwards and stretched outwards, eclipsing Scrivener as it began to fall-

Luna snarled, horn glowing as she seized Scrivener Blooms with telekinesis, knowing she didn’t have the luxury of being gentle as she lashed her head backwards and threw him with enough force to send herself flying to crash onto her back with a grunt of pain. Scrivy’s body hurtled through the air bonelessly, out from beneath the shadow of the colossus before he crashed face-first and rolled through the snowy fields as the monstrous Velite-construct crashed down into the plains, sending up a gust of snow and ice and wind that knocked Scrivener’s unconscious form rolling several times as Luna was blasted backwards with a curse from the force, winded by not only the overuse of her powers but the pain ripping through her system, her mind reeling, lost amidst shapes and signs and sounds as another blast of pain tore into her before she gasped and shivered, starting to climb to her hooves… before her body grew too weak, and instead she flopped forwards, falling into mindless unconsciousness.

Scrivener Blooms lay shivering and alone in the darkness, his subconscious, half-wyrm, half-pony self slowly sitting up as he breathed hard in and out. He looked tiredly back and forth, blood splattered over his face… and then he raised his head with a shiver of horror as a familiar voice said kindly: “Hello, cheating little mortal. It’s such a pleasure to see you again…”

Slowly, Scrivy hauled himself to his hooves, turning around with a shudder… and then he stumbled backwards and fell to sit on his haunches, staring in horror at the sight of a bipedal, smiling white dragon in a pristine ivory suit, looking elegant and refined as the crystal, wolf-shaped bolo tie at his neck glimmered. Two long black horns stood out of his skull, and his amber eyes gleamed maliciously, his handsome features somehow childlike, petulant, for all his terrible splendor and grace. “Valthrudnir…”

“Yes and no, Scrivener Blooms, yes and no.” Valthrudnir replied patronizingly, leaning back in a comfortable ash throne as he rested an arm on a table, grinning widely at the male. “You see, sadly, Brynhild was capable of killing me… merely a fragment of the Valkyrie she had once been or not, she still carried that divine spark necessary to outright kill me. A mortal like you couldn’t do it, soul-bound or not… but her horn, unfortunately…”

Valthrudnir’s smile faded for a moment, grasping at one eye, and Scrivener snorted in disgust before he winced when the dragon snapped his fingers, and a massive, terrible head loomed out of the darkness around them, the snarling bog-dripping features of a Tyrant Wyrm hissing lowly as the Jötnar gazed at him distastefully. “To continue my story, and answer your question… my lovely little pets, the Tyrant Wyrms, all share a mental link with me, and were made with certain pieces of other gods and Jötnar who… how shall I put this… were persuaded to donate their organs, blood, and souls to me for my good cause.”

The dragon smiled slightly, and Scrivener only gritted his teeth in disgust, the pieces falling together in his mind before he interrupted rudely: “The Black Verses. When the monster shoved them into my mind, you got a hook into my brain, didn’t you?”

“Oh, you’re just as polite as you always were. The only improvement I see is that you look more now like the belly-crawling pet rock you are.” Valthrudnir replied disgustedly, and he held up a hand, gold and platinum rings on his fingers glinting as his eyes narrowed darkly. “Tell me, would you like to experience a little something I’ve been working on called molecular anti-synthesis? It’s when the bindings between the particles that make up your body begin to break down and you slowly and visibly begin to tear apart.”

“Yeah, one problem. You’re dead. You’re just an echo, a ghost in the machine, a bad dream that won’t get out of my goddamn head.” Scrivener replied quietly, and he leaned forwards with a snarl as memories flashed through his mind as the dragon leaned back with a disgusted look, slowly lowering his hand. “Wait… you knocked me out somehow, didn’t you?”

“Please, you fatigued yourself abusing my pet’s overly-generous gift of the Black Verses. Do not blame the fact your plebian mind cannot handle their magnitude upon me, philistine.” Valthrudnir retorted disgustedly, and then he smiled grimly and reached up to smooth the lapels of his suit slowly out. “At most, all I did was… invite you in. You’re the one who fell down the rabbit hole… you’re the one who seems so eager to linger in the darkness and pursue the abuse of the little power you have, rude little creature.”

Scrivener gritted his teeth, leaning forwards as the bog-faced monster chortled beside Valthrudnir. Then the dragon crossed his arms, looking coldly down at Scrivener Blooms as he said softly: “I may not be the true Valthrudnir. An ‘echo’ is perhaps not altogether an untoward sentiment for this state I’m in. But rest assured, even at my weakest, I am still more than you ever are and ever could be. All your weapons, your strength, come from others: your pathetic little stories are stolen snippets of other pony’s lives, and your physical aptitudes come from Brynhild and her romantic and devious soul-link with you… and your most powerful weapon, the Black Verses, are fueled by the link with the Void, by dredging up the raw destructive energy and endless despair that emanates from it and surges forever within its collective ranks.

“You cheated, Scrivener Blooms… you cheated, and it resulted in my demise. I will not forget that… and I will not allow you and Brynhild to go happily prancing off into the sunset together. I will not allow everything I worked for to go to waste.” Valthrudnir continued, standing slowly up and looming over him, terribly tall as he reached into his suit jacket and produced a deck of cards, starting to calmly shuffle as the fourteen foot dragon glared down at Scrivener Blooms. “So we’re going to play a game. The rules are very simple: I’m going to try and catch you at the right moment… and then I’ll destroy you. I’ll work through the corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm… and while I cannot reach out and simply make Brynhild spear you through the eye as she did me, fitting and ironic and sweet delicious justice as that would be… I can still make you suffer. I plan to make you and her suffer terribly before the end… I plan to draw this out as long as possible, Scrivener Blooms, because I don’t entirely want to kill you.

“No. Destroy you, everything that makes you, yes. Kill you? Only if you force my hand or a particularly-entertaining method of death presents itself.” Valthrudnir smiled coldly, squeezing the cards and sending them flying with a quiet hiss in an accordion to his other hand, before he swept up the bottom card and held it out, facing Scrivener Blooms… and the male shuddered and winced backwards at the snarling image of the Tyrant Wyrm on the card. “But the foundation has been laid to turn you into something a little more useful, and you seem to be eager to become it. I’d like to see if I really can convince you to just give in, one way or another… and become a new breed of destroyer. You see, I have a feeling, after all, that if I can convince you to become a monster… Brynhild will surrender, too. Maybe she even wants it herself… and just imagine, using the Black Verses and the old magic to fuse yourselves together into one awesome killing machine, a Tyrant Wyrm with the soul of a Valkyrie, and which could be even further empowered by using those magic cards of mine I know you have sealed safely away…”

Scrivener snarled and shook his head, setting himself and leaning forwards as he shouted: “I won’t become that! You can’t make me become that, you’re insane, you’re nothing but a goddamn nightmare that I can’t escape!”

“Really, mortal?” Valthrudnir leaned down at this, grinning widely as he reached a single finger down to tap the male’s nose as he said softly: “Take a good look in the mirror, Scrivener Blooms. You’re far more than halfway there already. Now we just need to take down the rest of those mental stumbling blocks.”

Then the dragon stepped backwards and laughed as the corrupt face of the leering monster grinned beside him, Valthrudnir reaching out to rest a hand on this before he held his other hand towards Scrivy, adding kindly: “Oh, by the way. Since I’m feeling generous, you may want to wake up… this entire little revelation will be meaningless if you’re murdered by Velites, after all. Go on, Scrivener Blooms, now I don’t know if I’m more eager to throw you into danger or watch you continue to persevere and survive… either way, after all, I win.”

Scrivy yelled as he lunged forwards… but Valthrudnir vanished as the male felt his entire body jerk, before he shouted wildly again as he lashed his head upwards and his eyes opened… and he stared in horror as several Velites staggered away from him before a skeletal unicorn rasped: “Finally awake, demon? Good.”

Scrivener Blooms breathed hard in and out, gritting his teeth as his eyes focused slowly… and then he grunted as he dropped his head forwards, looking dumbly down at the frozen ground and his manacled rear hooves before he gazed slowly to one side, then the other: he could feel a pole at his back, likely where the chains from his manacles fed into. A second pole rested horizontally, and the male’s front limbs were stretched out to either side and secured to it by chains.

He cursed under his breath, struggling a bit, but the chains around his upper limbs gave him no slack and kept him standing in an awkward T, as he cursed under his breath… then he rose his head tiredly and gritted his teeth at the sight of Luna laying inside of a cage inside a circle of warding runes only a few feet away, her mane and tail sparking violently and flickering back and forth between ephemeral starlight and light blue locks as she said tiredly: “So nice of thee to join us, Scrivy. Tell me, did thou sleep well?”

“Shut up, Luna.” Scrivener replied moodily, and then he winced when the Velite unicorn strode forwards and stood up on his rear hooves to seize him under the muzzle, yanking his head back and forth. “You could just ask.”

The skeleton snarled at this, then slammed a hoof into Scrivener’s stomach, making him gag and drop his head forwards, eyes clenching shut as Luna flinched in the cage and cursed under her breath, then gritted her teeth as she concentrated and sent him images, numbers, and a plan… and Scrivener groaned after a moment, not just because of the pain in his system but because of what her plan entailed. A dozen Velites, but only the one unicorn at least… although most of them are armored and armed. “So there’s… no chance you can just let us go, right?”

“You destroyed everything we were working for, that we were building. In a few days, we would have had a mighty dracolich to serve as the vanguard of our deathless army. And instead, you broke the bodies and spirits of every creature here and annihilated a congregation of zealots.” The unicorn Velite snarled, the flames in its eyes burning higher with rage as its horn began to glow blackly and it gestured at the devastated Frozen Reef behind it and the remains of the work site, where smoke still rose up from the shattered hulks of Velite drake and the frozen-over, destroyed colossus. Then the unicorn Velite looked squarely at Scrivy as it stepped backwards, rasping breaths in and out despite the lack of its lungs as it whispered: “How could you? Why would you?”

“Because we found your scouts’ tracks at our home, maybe, and followed them back to your encampment… furthermore, you Velites have a nasty habit of holding grudges and coming after us given the chance. Well, Velites like you, I mean…” Scrivener looked coldly at the unicorn, saying disgustedly: “The ones who manipulate ponies and steal from the graves of the resting dead to replenish their sick army, still believing in Veliuona even though she was blown to kibbles and bits.”

The unicorn snarled in fury and slammed its hooves into Scrivener’s stomach, making him curse in pain before he hissed when it leaned forwards and shoved its horn against his body, not gouging but instead grinding the length of it into his chest. The terrible dark glow engulfing the horn burned against his body like fire, charring into his warped flesh and sending up a hiss of steam and smoke as the male leaned his head back, agony ripping through his body as Luna clutched at her own breast with a curse of pain and anger, a welt slowly spreading and darkening as the skeletal unicorn growled: “I would not talk so loudly if I were you, demon… we know you and Luna Lightblade are pact-bound… and we are very, very eager to hurt you both.”

Then the unicorn stepped suddenly backwards, and Scrivener cursed as he dropped his head forwards… before the unicorn leaned back and slammed a hoof into his face, his cheekbone cracking and his head snapping to the side as blood flew from reopened cuts on his features, the unicorn asking coldly: “What are you, monster? How did you learn the words of the Tyrant Wyrms, the terrible monsters that lived a thousand years ago, in the time before Luna Lightblade became Nightmare Moon? And what are you doing with her… are the rumors true that it was Nightmare Moon who brought Ragnarok?”

“My great-great-whatever had a fetish for planet-destroying parasites.” Scrivener retorted, and the Velite unicorn glared at him furiously. “Luna and I met through a dating service. We hit it off and got married because we were both reformed evil entities. We’re both very sorry that trying to visit Helheim for our honeymoon destroyed the planet, you have my sincerest apologies.”

The unicorn Velite snarled in fury, looking as if it wanted to strangle the male as Luna snorted in entertainment and grinned out of her cage, her eyes flashing in dark entertainment… but then the unicorn managed to get itself under control, cursing as its horn glowed blackly again before it slowly met Scrivener’s eyes, saying coldly: “Fine, demon. It doesn’t matter, because now I am going to peel the flesh from your bones to get the answers I seek. Once you are revived as one of us… once you become a Velite, a servant of Veliuona’s memory… I think you will be much more willing to share your secrets with us. You and Luna Lightblade both.”

The creature began to lean forwards, and Scrivener snorted and mumbled something off to the side… and the unicorn immediately halted, straightening slightly as it asked darkly: “What was that?”

Scrivy only shrugged, however, looking up… and the unicorn growled in frustration and fury before it rose itself up and shoved both hooves against Scrivener’s shoulders, the glow fading out from around its horn as it leaned up and shouted in Scrivy’s face: “Listen to me, ingrate, because this process can be as painful or as pleasant as you like, now what did you say?”

Slowly, Scrivener Blooms turned to face the creature as it leaned towards him aggressively… and then the distorted pony only grinned widely, and the Velite had a moment of dumb surprise before Scrivener slammed his skull forwards as hard as he could into the unicorn’s head, knocking him crashing backwards before he threw himself back against the T-shaped poles as the other Velites stared in shock, and then Scrivener roared as he braced his lower hooves against the ground and shoved forwards as he yanked with his body and threw his weight and momentum into the pull of his upper limbs, and the push of every other fiber of muscle in his frame.

The wooden post tore free of the scraggy soil, and Scrivy staggered awkwardly forwards on both hooves, half-hopping towards the cage as he yanked the heavy crossed poles with him, Velites staggering out of the way and shoving at each other even as the unicorn howled: “Why aren’t you idiots killing him?”

A Velite leapt onto Scrivener’s back, but despite the added weight, he still managed an awkward half-step forwards even as the butt of the pole dragged against the ground… and then he threw all his weight and strength into turning around with a roar, dragging the butt of the pole around in a wide semicircle that tore a trench through the dirt and ripped through the circle of warding runes, the anti-magic ward immediately sparking violently out of existence even as Scrivener flopped forwards onto his stomach with a wheeze… but even as Velites began to step forwards with snarls and hisses, Scrivener only looked up with a weak grin of his own despite the heavy pole now pinning him. “You got this?”

Instead of a reply, there was a sizzle of energy… and then a crackling boom, Scrivener wincing as the cage behind him exploded in a shockwave of electricity and sapphire fire that knocked the Velites sprawling like dominoes and disintegrated the one on top of Scrivy’s restraints, chunks of metal ripping through their ranks as waves of force rippled through the air before Luna stomped a hoof and cracked her neck loudly, pawing at the ground as she replied in a firm, serious voice: “I have got this, Scrivener Blooms.”

The Velite unicorn at the back of the fallen ranks of skeletons looked stupidly up as Luna leapt upwards, using her wings to propel her forwards before landed and charged into him, crashing against him with her shoulder and knocking him staggering before she followed up with a quick, effective slash of her horn that sliced his head from his shoulders, and the skeleton topped backwards as Luna smashed the skull out of the air without bothering to look, reducing it to fine powder. Then, as the headless skeleton began to rise, she pounced forwards and smashed it into pieces before glaring over her shoulder at the rest of the Velite band, her horn glowing sapphire as she grinned sharply.

Seven were left standing: the rest had been damaged to the point where they could no longer move, and even these seven were burned, cracked, and one had several very large pieces of metal stuck through the armored vest he was wearing, rubbing awkwardly at these before Luna ran towards them. At the sight of this, one of the Velites yelled miserably and bolted to the side even as several others leapt to meet her: a force of violence powered by fury and necessity and a need to protect her beloved mixed with battle-lust and confidence in her abilities; a Valkyrie reborn, and living well up to her name.

She ducked low and swept a skeleton’s front leg out from beneath it with a flick of her horn, knocking it staggering even as she moved with liquid grace to brace her front hooves against the ground and twist her body, kicking both rear hooves into the face of another skeleton and then launching herself neatly backwards with a grunt to narrowly evade the lash of a rusty sword. Then she grinned, leaping forwards, horn sparking as it parried and crashed against the rusted blade guided by the remaining Velite and not even having to look down as she stomped the knocked-flat Velite as she passed, crushing its skull in before she swung her horn hard to the side and disarmed the blade-swing Velite, knocking its weapon away before she slammed her head once, twice, thrice into its skull, the last vicious headbutt shattering the bony pate and knocking it in a broken, stupefied heap.

Two more Velites ran towards her as the rattled, cracked-skull survivor of Luna’s hard kick charged at her back, and the winged unicorn glanced over her shoulder, tensing herself before she leapt upwards at the last moment and flapped her wings hard to boost her height, the charging Velite shooting past her and instead crashing into one of the head-on attackers, the two skeletons cursing as they collapsed in a pile together and the last staggered to the side… before he was crushed flat, bursting apart into shrapnel as the Luna landed on him and stomped her hooves up and down with a grunt. Then she disdainfully flicked her horn towards the two Velites on the ground, and a burst of sapphire fire washed over them, the two howling in misery as their bones rapidly charred, runes sparking violently as they began to fall apart as the flames ignored the rags and armor they wore and instead burned at the ivory of their bodies.

Luna looked towards the last Velite, but it was still only standing stupidly, staring at her… and so she sighed and rolled her eyes, approaching it and glaring into the sockets of the earth pony Velite, looking imperiously down at it as it stared stupidly up at her, rusted chainmail jingling with its shivers before she asked sharply: “Well?”

The Velite swallowed thickly, and then it slowly laid itself down in front of her and curled up, and Luna sighed and kicked it grouchily in the head, making it whimper and fidget weakly as she muttered: “Cowards. Thou art all great cowards. Very well, stay there then, it does me no honor to squash a whimpering bug.”

“T-Thank you.” the Velite mumbled, and Luna grumbled and kicked it in the head again before she glanced towards where Scrivy was smiling exhaustedly up at her, the winged unicorn sighing as she bowed her head towards him despite the faint smile that spread over her face as their eyes met for a moment, memories, emotions and pure relief sparking back and forth between them.

Then her horn glowed a faint blue as she flicked it upwards with a grimace, and the chains binding Scrivener’s forelegs shattered, falling limp and letting the male wheeze and carefully wiggle his front limbs free as Luna stepped forwards and grasped the side of the T-shaped pillar… and then she looked up in surprise as the Velite scurried forwards and grasped the other arm of it, helping her lift the pole off and shove it off to the side so he could sit up and start yanking the bolts out of the manacles binding his back legs. “What devilry is this?”

“I… you know.” the Velite said awkwardly, and then he stepped backwards nervously before simply dumbly sitting back on his haunches, looking at her awkwardly. Luna looked back for a few moments, then slowly looked towards Scrivener Blooms, giving him a pointed glare as the half-earth pony, half-Wyrm snorted and managed to yank one of the restraining bolts free.

He shook a manacle off… then winced as the other glowed blue before tearing itself in half as Luna bowed her head towards him, saying grumpily: “Come, Scrivy. Let us return home, this foray into the wilds has been more taxing than I expected and we still have much to do, and much to plan.”

Scrivener grunted as he stood up¸ then he smiled as he approached her, the winged unicorn gazing up at him in surprise before she smiled faintly when the male leaned forwards and embraced her fiercely, whispering a ‘thank you’ into her ear, thoughts and emotions and worries and reassurances swirling between them as she hugged him tightly back, the two resting in silence for a few moments before they pulled apart… then quietly turned and began to stride away from the ruins of the Velite encampment.

After only a dozen steps or so, however, Luna halted as her face twitched, and Scrivener couldn’t help but grin despite himself as she shot a horrible glare over her shoulder at the Velite that was awkwardly following them, the female asking rudely: “Looking to take me up on my offer of a swift death?”

“No, no, no!” The Velite flinched, shaking its head wildly as it held its hooves up, and Scrivener had the distinct impression that if the Velite could blush, it would. “I just… well…”

“Out with it creature, what?” Luna snapped grouchily, and the Velite twitched backwards before the winged unicorn added flatly: “I shall thank thee but we already have an undead pet, and one that is made of far sterner stuff than thou art.”

“Wait, come on, can’t I come with you guys?” The Velite winced a bit, gesturing at himself awkwardly, and Luna’s face curled as if she had bitten into a lemon as Scrivener smiled in entertainment, half-turning and making Luna grumble as she shoved her face against the side of his neck. “I… I never chose to become this, you know, I was just… minding my own business, trying to survive in the wasteland the world had become, and then one day I’m being dragged out of bed and before I know it they’re… torturing me and…”

The Velite hugged itself and shivered a bit, resting awkwardly back on his haunches and looking lamely towards the two. “But… a lot of us were like that, you know? They just kept trying to brainwash us between bouts of hurting us… and all the original Velites were fixated on was hurting everypony to make their own pain stop hurting, to… worshiping their dead goddess, Veliuona. But most of us… half of us were there because they thought becoming a Velite would let them survive in this broken world. And most of the rest were like me… poor slobs who got dragged off and tortured into these new shapes, spirits bound into our bodies as they skinned us alive and tried to make us just like them…”

The Velite hesitated, looking down, and Luna sighed against Scrivener’s neck before mumbling a bit… and then the skeleton looked up, rubbing awkwardly at his vertebrae neck as he asked lamely: “So can I come and hang out with you guys? I mean. I don’t want to go find the other Velite bands, and I definitely don’t want to join up with Nibelung raiders… I just kind of… want to hide somewhere safe.”

“And what makes thou think it would be safe with us?” Luna asked sharply without looking up from where her face was buried against Scrivy’s neck, as the male reached up and gently stroked his claw through her mane, making her mumble a bit and press closer. “Scrivener I demand thou eats this annoying skeleton. Thou art a giant monster. Eat him.”

“I’m not giant, Luna, and I’m not going to eat him. Try and be a little nice.” Scrivener replied kindly, and then he grunted when she smacked her head against him firmly, the Velite looking at the two awkwardly as the half-pony, half-Wyrm smiled a bit towards him. “It’s alright. We’re both just a little grumpy on account of… well. What just happened. So you’ll pardon us for being suspicious.”

“What… are you two?” the Velite asked hesitantly, and Scrivy and Luna both looked at the skeleton with entertainment as the creature winced back a bit, waving its front hooves. “I-I mean, you… the zealot called you a demon and a whole lot of fancy names and said Luna probably was using you as a thrall or something. I mean… but you’re and… her… and…”

“’Tis my husband.” Luna retorted, glaring at the skeleton, and the Velite rose one hoof, then simply dropped it dumbly as it gaped and processed this. “Oh… dratted stupid skeleton. Very well! Fine! If Scrivener Blooms continues to insist that we ‘play nice’ and thou seems so determined to make a nonsensical nuisance of thyself, we might as well add another freak to our growing menagerie.”

“I’m… I’m not a freak.” the Velite said awkwardly in a hurt voice, but Luna only grumbled and spun around, storming forwards as Scrivener shrugged amiably before he followed the winged unicorn, and the skeleton winced and hurried after them, saying quickly: “My name’s Pollen!”

“I don’t care.” Luna said grouchily, and Scrivy laughed despite himself as the Velite hurried after them, looking thankful despite the winged unicorn’s tone for its new allies.

Explanations

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Chapter Seven: Explanations
~BlackRoseRaven

Pollen rambled almost the entire way back to the cabin, until Luna turned around and shouted at him in her thundering, echoing voice to silence himself, and the skeleton had wilted almost into the ground before Scrivener had given Luna a flat look, but she had only mumbled defensively to herself, then stormed across the lawn to the front door, saying finally with a glower over her shoulder: “Thou art… free to explore around the area, and may set up camp wherever thou likes. I shall send our other dead pet out to meet and become acquainted with thee, Pollen.”

“Thank you?” Pollen looked nervously up at this, and then he winced a little as he glanced awkwardly back and forth before turning his eyes to Scrivener. “Can… can I come inside at some point?”

Scrivener shrugged a bit, glancing towards Luna, but the winged unicorn only grumbled and stormed through the door before the equine said quietly: “Luna has a big heart, she does. She just also hates it when we have enemies who… aren’t really enemies. It might not seem like it, but neither of us enjoy even squashing skeletons when… they’re victims too, in a way. She just needs to warm up to you a bit, alright?”

Pollen gave him an awkward look, cocking his head even as he shrank back a bit… and Scrivener smiled embarrassedly before he began to turn, and the skeleton scrambled a little after him, asking nervously: “How… how long will that take?”

“Shorter than you think.” Scrivener smiled a bit, and then he turned and headed for the open door before wincing a bit as the Pale of Pinkamena ran through him, before she skidded to a halt and spun around, staring at Scrivy. Scrivener looked back at her awkward in his half-pony, half-Wyrm form, and then Pinkamena leaned forwards, grinning widely before she stepped towards him, her translucent form passing through his thick body and making him wince before his eyes widened as she teasingly pretended to kiss his lips.

“Pinkamena!” Luna shouted furiously from the den, and Scrivy looked dumbly down the hall before a blast of lightning slammed into him, knocking him rolling stupidly backwards off the patio as Pollen scrambled out of the way of Scrivy’s fall. Then Luna winced and cursed even as reflected pain twisted through her frame, her horn glowing as she charged down the corridor, but Pinkamena only grinned mockingly at her before she winked and vanished, the winged unicorn looking embarrassedly at Scrivy as he wheezed and slowly began to pick himself up. “In all honesty, Scrivener Blooms, I meant to blast the cretin, not… thee. Thou art just… larger and… happened to be in the way. ‘Tis thine own fault. Be not so large and in the way next time.”

“I’ll keep it in mind.” Scrivy mumbled, and then he grimaced and cracked his back as he slowly stood up with a groan, muttering: “Glad to know my sex appeal is so high with the undead, though.”

Pollen began to awkwardly raise a hoof, and Luna glared horribly at the Velite, who quickly shrank down with a wince and made a sound like he was clearing the throat he didn’t have, mumbling: “Never mind.”

“I do not blame even other males for being attracted so to my husband, but all the same, Pollen, he is mine.” Luna said imperiously, and Scrivener only sighed and hung his head, Luna giving him an awkward grin. “Oh, worry not, I shall not blast or smite anything further, agreed?”

Scrivener only grumbled, and then Pollen looked up and said embarrassedly: “Actually I’m a mare. I know it’s kind of hard to tell but-”

“Nay, all Velites are referred to as male, even thou none of thee have any… parts.” Luna replied huffily as she gestured with her hooves, sitting back and tilting her head upwards slightly as Scrivener and Pollen both stared at her. “I shall therefore still call thee a ‘he.’ Unless thou prefers ‘it.’”

“I. I want you to know that if I could cry, I would probably be crying right now.” Pollen mumbled sulkily, dropping his head forwards before he sighed and flinched a bit when Luna glared at him. “Fine, fine! You’re right, anyway, I don’t have any… parts. Male it is.”

“Good. Now excuse myself and my daydreamer, we must speak on things. If thou can make nice with Pinkamena, thou can come inside later and we shall… figure out lodgings for thee, Pollen.” Luna said moodily, and Scrivener smiled a bit as Pollen looked up hopefully; the half-pony, half-Wyrm was aware that a lot of this was because Luna was now trying to get him in a better mood, but he did appreciate her attempting to be a little nicer and more forwards all the same.

The Velite seemed to smile at them as Scrivener gazed at it… then he winced a bit as his eyes focused, and for a moment, he was gazing at not a Velite, but a mare with an almost bright-green coat and hazel eyes. A moment later, however, Pollen was once more a Velite… a ‘male’ Velite instead of a mare, as Luna had put it. “Thanks, I’ll… you won’t regret it, okay? I’m… thank you, I really just… just want to survive this somehow.”

Luna mumbled a bit, and then she turned around as Scrivener nodded to the skeleton awkwardly before he followed the winged unicorn inside, quietly closing the door behind him before he followed her to the den. They sat quietly, gazing at one-another for a few moments, their eyes locking together… and in silence, they traded emotions, thoughts, felt their hearts beating as one before a tear slipped down Luna’s cheek as she whispered: “No.”

Scrivener closed his eyes, and Luna stepped forwards and hugged him fiercely, burying her face against the side of his neck as she murmured: “Stop it, daydreamer. Thou art not a monster… and no matter what is in thy mind… no… no matter what happens, I will not abandon thee. I will not leave thee, never, ever…”

She squeezed him firmly, and Scrivener wrapped his own forelegs around her, silently reaching up to grasp into her ephemeral locks with her clawed hand as he held her tightly against his larger frame. She pressed closer, and her mane sizzled softly as she gritted her teeth. “Valthrudnir was no match for us, beloved… even now, even if… some echo, some repetition, some ghostly dissonance from that accursed monster is inside thee… I will not… I will not abandon thee. We will find a way to destroy him… and no, I… I am wary of telling Odin of this. He may wish to separate us and destroy thee… I… I will not risk losing thee.”

“Maybe…” Scrivener hesitated, then he winced when Luna leaned back and glared at him before shoving him down onto his back, leaping forwards and pinning him against the bedding as the male swallowed and winced up at her. She glared down at him, and although her mane crackled with electricity and her body radiated anger for a moment, when their eyes met, the emotions they traded were despair, fear, concern, and love… and terrible, awful regret, before the male reached up and whispered: “This isn’t your fault. How can you blame yourself, Luna?”

“Because I gave the monster the way in… because I am always the one who… who nurtured that shadow inside of thee…” Luna clenched her eyes shut… and then she shivered before sighing and slowly laying herself down on top of him, resting herself over the male’s form as he quietly wrapped his front limbs around her. She leaned down, pushing her forehead to his as he pressed back, trembles running through her frame as Scrivy breathed slowly in and out, before the winged unicorn laughed weakly and murmured: “The corruption has grown stronger inside of thee because of my meddling, Scrivener Blooms. How can we share the greatest of all connections and at the same time… serve as such poison to each other…”

“Like how I poison your honor, your thoughts, make you… give up so much?” Scrivy smiled faintly as he reached his claw up, stroking along her face slowly… and Luna laughed quietly and shook her head slowly, smiling despite herself in return.

“Nay, monster, I shan’t fall for thy deceit this time, thy treacherous words will not trick me into pummeling thee.” Luna murmured softly, and she straightened a bit as she looked down at him, studying him quietly as he looked back at her… before she smiled faintly, closing her eyes and bowing her head forwards, and Scrivener closed his own before grimacing a bit as a surge of energy passed through his body.

He shrank down as he felt the claw locking together, morphing back into a hoof, as his scales receded and his features once more returned to that of an earth pony… and then he grimaced and blinked a few times before reaching up and rubbing at his face, now once more in his normal form. Luna’s eyes opened after a moment, and the two looked at each other quietly before the male said softly: “I lost my glasses at some point… and you know, strangely… I feel a little hollow now. I learned that looking like that, doesn’t make me a monster… but now, even looking normal again, I still have a terrible… thing inside of me.”

Luna, however, only closed her eyes and laid down beside the earth pony, then wrapped her forelimbs around him and pulled his head against her chest, and he curled up against her willingly, thoughts and memories and emotions rushing back and forth as he clung against her and clenched his eyes shut, a shiver rolling down his spine as she kissed his forehead and murmured: “We shall take another day to rest, Scrivener Blooms… we shall take time to figure this out, and then… make another long trip. Our journeys, our little quests, sometimes clear our heads after all…”

Scrivy laughed despite himself at this, shaking his head slowly and muttering: “Is that a good or bad thing, Luna? That we often feel most comfortable, that things and problems most often happen to slide away whenever we’re out… wandering this dead and gone world, finding Pales and herding them onto the Bifrost, and doing battle with whatever monstrous entities dare to challenge us on our path?”

Luna smiled at this, looking softly down at the male as she squeezed him gently before nuzzling affectionately through his mane as she said softly: “I think it is good, husband. Because we are doing something… because of what we are working towards; a world where our friends can and will be reborn, a place where there will again be a peaceful and warm Equestria, even if it will not be without danger and strangeness.”

Scrivy nodded slowly, resting against her for a few more minutes… before Luna looked curiously up as the male wiggled free and stood up with a shake of his head, the winged unicorn climbing to her own hooves as the earth pony said softly: “Alright. I feel better, Luna… thank you for… for always knowing just what to do, and what to say. I’ll fix us a snack, and maybe we can invite Pollen in… are you really going to call her a ‘him,’ by the way?”

“I meant what I said, Scrivener Blooms, Velites are all male, whether they were mares or fillies or colts or stallions in life.” Luna retorted, and Scrivy rolled his eyes with a bit of a smile before grunting when she stepped forwards and headbutted him gently. “Be not so difficult, creature. And speaking of creatures…”

Scrivener turned around as Luna stepped past him, and the two approached the countertop, where Discombobulation was laying in his vial, looking bored and grouchy. The bottle was now only a quarter of the way full, and the Draconequus splashed moodily at the liquid before he glared up at them as they both peered down at the male, Luna remarking: “Well, he seems cranky, at least. ‘Tis a sign of heightened energies, is it not?”

Discombobulation looked at them moodily, and then he stood up and traced a shape on the glass with a finger, a rough image of stick-figure ponies copulating that made Luna snort laughter… before the Draconequus sighed and dragged a large red X through it, and Scrivener and Luna glanced at each other before the winged unicorn giggled harder as the male blushed a bit. “Oh, you mean… before… when…”

Discombobulation huffed silently inside the vial as he erased the image moodily, and Luna grinned and shook her head before saying cheerfully: “’Tis our home, Discombobulation, thou art currently merely a paperweight. Besides, long have we abandoned the pretense of modesty in this destroyed world, especially with Pinkamena floating in and out of reality as she pleases. And besides, thou did not have to watch our celebrations.”

The Draconequus glared at them, then he slowly rose his hand, gesturing at himself with his thumb, before pointing his index finger towards Luna. Then the chimerical creature firmly clenched his hand into a fist, fingers shuddering a bit as his knuckles whitened slightly as he continued to glare at her before wincing when Luna leaned down and bumped the vial with her nose, saying dryly: “Do not make threats thou cannot live up to, Bob, or I shall fill this bottle with Manticore urine.”

“You’re kind of a bully.” Scrivener remarked dryly, and Luna huffed and glared at him before shoving him firmly, and the male snorted in entertainment as he staggered and Discombobulation grumbled, crossing his arms sulkily inside the vial. “You have my apologies, Bob, I guess we forgot you’re stuck sitting out here on the counter. We’ll try and keep our bedroom antics in the bedroom from now on.”

The Draconequus grumbled but looked a little mollified, beginning to turn away… and then his head suddenly spun almost completely around to stare towards the door, Scrivener frowning a bit at this before both he and Luna glanced up as there was a loud double-knock. Immediately, the winged unicorn glared down the corridor as Scrivener winced a bit, and there was an awkward silence for a few moments before another knock slowly sounded, and Luna ground her teeth together before she stormed down the hallway and flicked her horn, the door flying open to reveal Odin standing awkwardly on the patio before he winced at the sight of the winged unicorn stomping furiously towards him. “By the Vale of Valhalla, how does thou always time thy visits to occur at the moments of utmost, absolute frustration?”

“I was here earlier as well, Brynhild…” Odin began… and then he winced and staggered backwards when Luna lashed her horn at him childishly, the falcon-headed not-god cursing under his breath as he almost fell over. “Ymir’s beard, are you crazed, woman?”

“Yes!” Luna shouted angrily, and she reared back, pawing her hooves at the air as she glared at him and breathed hard in and out as Scrivener awkwardly strode up behind her as she sat down on the patio on her haunches, glowering at the not-god as he winced and Pollen stared stupidly from the side of the yard, the Pale of Pinkamena having a laughing fit as she rolled back and forth on the ground beside the skeleton. “Art thou here to tell us to hurry up with a process that cannot be hurried? To try and molest me again perhaps? To just spread thy old-man-misery unto others?”

Odin groaned and grabbed at his face tiredly, and Luna grumbled irritably even as Scrivy gently wrapped a foreleg around her and gave her a squeeze, sitting beside her. For a few moments, she continued to glower at Odin, and then she sulkily turned and buried her face against her husband’s mane, Scrivener smiling awkwardly as the once-god surveyed them tiredly before he shook his head moodily.

He let the silence spiral out, however, and Luna calmed little-by-little as she rested with her face buried against Scrivy’s neck… and finally, Odin sighed as he straightened and finally said: “I don’t enjoy making trips like this, Brynhild. Traveling from one world to another is extremely tiring for me and my old bones… I am not the god I once was. But it was only moments after I returned to Valhalla that my few friends who have been so inclined to aid me – aid us, I should say, since this concerns you as well – came to me and told me of a problem.”

Luna grumbled a bit, but looked up at Odin moodily, apparently willing to listen, and Odin looked relieved at the reaction before he explained quietly: “This world… this layer of reality… is not going to last much longer. Connected to nothing but a layer of Helheim, and constantly poisoned by corruption storms and the reality-warping influence of the Black Wolves of Hell, with so much of the land warped and distorted and destroyed… sooner or later, this layer is simply going to… dissolve. I need to ask you to begin final preparations to leave, Brynhild. Take everything that’s important that you’ve left here, and bring it to your home in the Looking Glass World, along with any other materials and belongings that will be necessary for you. You’ve spent eight… no, in a week or so, it will be nine years here. Nine years is long enough. You have saved all the souls you can.”

Luna frowned at this as Scrivener looked up quietly, the two hesitating as Odin looked down at them silently… and then the winged unicorn slowly shook her head, saying softly: “No, Odin. Aye, Scrivy and I shall find a wagon, load up the few items with meaning we have left here, and bring them across the Bifrost… but then we shall return here. We shall not abandon this world until we have saved every last soul we can. Thou shalt not amputate this planet and all those wretched souls until the last possible moment… I will not permit the soul of anypony that I can save to be destroyed forever because of an act of cowardice under the guise of ‘safety.’”

“Brynhild, woman, are you insane? Do you want to be trapped in limbo or purgatory for eternity, when these layers of the ninety-nine worlds fall into darkness?” Odin asked incredulously, leaning forwards and gesturing violently outwards, but Luna only glared up at him stoically. “You have saved tens of thousands of lives, does your ego-”

“’Tis not about my ego, ‘tis about doing the right thing. Those lives are but a drop in the bucket compared to the lives we are responsible for and the lives we failed, Odin.” Luna retorted sharply, and the not-god winced back a bit and rubbed slowly at the scarred side of his face. “Not Scrivener Blooms nor I will abandon this place. We shall continue to work to save all the Pales we can, until reality begins to crack around us and we are forced to move on to complete the second half of our mission.”

Odin closed his eyes, rubbing slowly at his face… and then he finally nodded slowly, muttering under his breath: “Fine. Fine, very well. Arguing with you, I should know by now, is pointless… but Brynhild, you cannot force every Pale to follow you across the Bifrost. Nothing is guaranteed when working with the intangible, as I have well-learned myself… and you have searched south, east, and west far and wide for many years, marching and collecting all you could.”

“Then we shall march north. We shall march all the way to the Black Baroque, Odin… I know that it emits an energy, a putrid essence, that the Pales mistake for an escape from this world, when it is merely the door to a worse prison beyond… I know that even now, many are lured there. And I do not fear the fact that it has become a tomb of demons and that Fenrir lurks through his ancient hunting ground of the terrible mountains…” Luna looked up grimly, evenly facing Odin as he frowned down at her worriedly. “We shall save the few souls that deserve to be saved even in those barren wastes, where ponies were so cold in body and heart. We shall save the victims lured to the Black Baroque and the Gates of Helheim, if we can. And then, as we watch for signs of the world beginning to shatter apart, we shall sweep wide and far through Equestria, gathering the last of the stragglers we can.”

“It’s a foolish idea, Brynhild… you would risk battling Fenrir and the forces of Helheim, and the chance of finding only souls that are already beginning to corrupt into demons themselves… or that perhaps were never worth saving in the first place.” Odin grimaced a bit and shook his head slowly, then he studied the two silently as Scrivener only closed his eyes and Luna gazed defiantly at the not-god. “But… I know I can’t stop you. Perhaps part of me even admires you and chastises me for still being such a surly old coward.”

He stopped, then glanced towards the Velite and the Pale of Pinkamena, the latter grinning, the former simply sitting and awkwardly staring. “I notice that you’ve added a new companion to your… little band. I do not think there is room in the next world for Velites.”

“Yes, yes, Odin, but if the creature is kind enough I shall simply grind it to dust and exorcise the soul trapped in those bones, and her Pale may come with us to the next world as well.” Luna said irritably, and Pollen glanced up, looking surprised before Luna grumbled and said flatly: “His, I mean. All Velites are male.”

Odin looked at her for a moment, then decided it was better to disregard this as he reached into his jacket and produced his flask, slowly unscrewing the top as he said quietly: “I have one last bit of business with you, though, Brynhild, before I can leave. Something that worries me… something concerning yourself and your husband.”

The not-god looked at them calmly as he sipped from his flask, and Luna gritted her teeth as she glared up at him challengingly, Scrivener wincing a bit before Odin said softly: “While I was heading towards the ruined village to the north, after getting no answer at the door here… I felt a very distinct ripple in reality. I must have just missed you after you had destroyed that Velite encampment and… taken a prisoner of war or freed an ally, whatever occurred with that Velite there. But you and Scrivener Blooms used the Black Verses again, didn’t you?”

Scrivener glanced awkwardly away as Luna looked up and replied quietly: “We did, Odin. ‘Twas necessary to destroy the monstrosity we faced, we had not the time nor energy to do it any other way.”

The not-god shook his head slowly in response to this, squatting down and looking at them imploringly as he said quietly: “Brynhild, forget the past. Forget… everything about me, and about yourself, just for a moment, just for this moment, and listen to me: the very best outcome of using the Black Verses is that you’ll shorten the spans of both your lives, or you will die. Valthrudnir wrote and designed them for his pets alone to be able to harness, creatures of destruction, violence, hatred, and corruption… and the worst possible outcome is that by using them, by continuing to open that… that box of evil… you will not shorten your lives, or die, you will become the very thing you have fought so hard to stop.”

Scrivy and Luna shared apprehensive looks… and then Odin sighed quietly, straightening and sipping at his flask again before he quietly screwed the lid back on and tucked it back beneath his jacket. “I know you don’t count me as a friend, much less a mentor, and I understand that. You were a Valkyrie, and I was Warrior King of the Aesir… but those days are past, and I was the author of my own ruin and the reason that now, you face me in the body of a pony and I face you in the disguise of a gaunt old falcon-man. But on this, please listen to me… I do not wish to see you die, Brynhild. I wish even less to see you make prideful mistakes as I did, and end up living out your own terrible tragedy.”

“The difference, Odin, is that whilst thou loathed and was never loyal to thine wife, I love Scrivener Blooms more than any words can express… and everything we face, everything we do, we do together.” Luna replied quietly, looking up at the not-god seriously and coldly, and then she closed her eyes as her mane sizzled and swayed behind her for a moment before her features smoothed slowly out as she softened visibly when her cyan eyes opened. “It is difficult for me to bow my head or acknowledge anyone, especially thee. It is difficult, but I do wish for thee to know I… appreciate thy concern, and I understand well of what thou speaks.

“But… Scrivener Blooms and I have been facing our worst fears together, in this accursed world. We have stood beneath a storm of corruption, and found purity in the most unexpected of places… we have washed away sin and evil with darkness, becoming like polished, black stone in heart and soul, if only for a fleeting moment of peace. We have faced down and slain many monsters… and we have even helped other beasts back up to their feet.” Luna smiled faintly despite herself, glancing towards where Pinkamena and the Velite both stood, before the winged unicorn nodded slowly and returned her gaze to Odin. “No matter what happens and what we face, once-god… we face it together. We face it without fear. And the Black Verses… I believe ourselves invincible to even their power. Because yes, they are destruction, and evil, and raw power… but we do not try to control it, we only channel it, and as with all things, we do it together…”

“You’re being romantic, Brynhild.” Odin said quietly, but it was difficult to tell if he spoke admiringly or in chastisement, as he shook his head slowly and rubbed at his face with a quiet sigh. “What do you think, Scrivener Blooms?”

Scrivy winced a bit at being addressed by the being, and on such a sensitive subject… but he squeezed Luna quietly when she looked at him with concern, giving her a reassuring glance before he looked up and met the falcon’s single eye, saying slowly: “I… I often am afraid of the Black Verses. Of myself… of what could happen. But I know that no matter what… Luna and I… nothing can stop us together. The same blood flows in our veins, our souls are mixed as one, in our bodies beat the same heart. Once upon a time, I was just a slave-hoof poet muddling his way through an unfulfilling life doing as little as possible. Now… I don’t know what I am. But I know I’m proud to be beside Luna. I’m proud of the things we’ve done and we continue to do. And I have hope for the future… and as long as I have her, those hopes, and these dreams… I know that not even Valthrudnir can corrupt me.”

Odin frowned a bit at this, and Scrivener grimaced at his choice of words… but then the not-god only nodded slowly and sighed quietly. “Alright. If you both are so firm in this belief, I won’t speak any further on it.” He stopped, then surveyed the two with a slight frown, rubbing at the underside of his beak slowly. “Is there… anything I should know, though, Brynhild, Scrivener Blooms?”

Scrivy grimaced a bit as he felt a stir of worry from Luna, even as she looked up and wrinkled her muzzle awkwardly as she lied: “No, not at all, Odin.”

Odin looked at her dourly as her nose twitched, a clear tell Luna was lying… but all the same, he only shook his head and dropped the subject, rubbing at his side and saying moodily: “Fine. I’ll be in Looking Glass World, waiting for you, if you do happen to need to speak to me… try and get there in the next few days. The deterioration of this layer of reality is growing worse with every passing week, and it could be within months that the collapse begins.”

“Terrifying.” Luna said flatly, and Odin sighed at her tone before the winged unicorn nodded with a grunt and grumbled a bit, looking up at him. “I suppose some measure of thanks are in order for telling us what will come to pass, then, old lecher. But be on thy way, then. Scrivy and I shall rest for a short period, then find a scrap wagon and begin the overdue process of pulling down what remains to be moved. But there are days yet before the Bifrost regenerates enough to be used again, even if only by us. Scrivener Blooms and I shall use that time to sweep to the north, and then make our way back here… I believe that we can cross such a great distance in a matter of less than a week.”

“I already gave you my suggestions, Brynhild, I know by now whatever plans we lay out, the moment I’m gone, you’ll bastardize them all into some grand scheme much to your own preference and leave me waiting for hours, days, or perhaps even longer.” Odin replied tiredly, gesturing grouchily at the sky, and Luna shrugged agreeably at this. “Very well, here is my new suggestion. You do as you please, and when you arrive in Looking Glass World, contact me through Celestia’s scrying mirror, a cast of the runes, or one of a thousand other possible ways. Is this acceptable?”

“Well, now thou art taking all the fun out of it.” Luna said grouchily, and Odin threw his arms in the air as he turned around and stormed away, the winged unicorn calling after him cheerfully: “I shall send a Nibelung to thee, how about this? Nibelung may go to Valhalla if pummeled to death, correct?”

Odin only ignored her as he muttered to himself and continued over the bridge, however, Luna and Scrivener both watching as the not-god made his way to wherever he had hidden the means by which he passed back and forth between Valhalla. That he had never shared with them, grouchily guarding the secret… and Luna grimaced at the falcon being’s back, muttering under her breath to Scrivener Blooms: “One day I shall discover where he has hidden the portal to paradise, Scrivy, or at least the means the old doddering relic passes back and forth between realms. ‘Tis a pity… he may not be any god any longer, but the lecher is as sly as he ever wert, and makes following him nearly impossible.”

She grumbled under her breath, then shook her head and glanced towards the Velite and the Pale, asking mildly: “Well, art thou two going to come inside or stay out and play like the mongrels thou often both remind me of?”

“I would definitely like to come inside, because I have absolutely no idea what’s going on.” Pollen replied quickly, and Pinkamena rolled her eyes before easily striding ahead of the skeleton, as the Velite nervously looked up. “I… I mean… you called that guy Odin. You said something about souls and Pales and… look at you, you’re not a monster-looking-thing anymore and… I mean...”

“Oh quiet, addled creature. Let us retire inside and then thou can make a nuisance of thyself with thy questions.” Luna said tiredly, rubbing at her face with a flat look at the skeleton, and Pollen grinned lamely in response before the winged unicorn turned around, Scrivener following her down the corridor as she murmured under her breath: “And on a serious note, Scrivy… there is no need to tell Odin of what has transpired, our worries or fears. It is better that he does not know, for I will not have him trying to ‘fix’ you himself, like as not by risking separating us… perhaps even imprisoning or outright attempting to kill thee.”

“You don’t really…” Scrivy frowned a bit, words falling away as Luna glanced at him apprehensively, and Scrivener closed his eyes, nodding slowly as emotions and thoughts twisted quietly between them. “Right. He might seem like a harmless old… well, whatever he is… but he’s also an ex-god… ex-warrior-god-king, at that.”

“Best not to take chances, Scrivy. I believe he has changed, perhaps, but… I do not wish to test how far his mercy and understanding now extend. Besides, ‘tis more fun not telling Odin everything.” Luna smiled a bit despite herself, glancing towards Scrivy as the male laughed a little and gave her a look that was half-entertained, half-exasperated. “I am trying to be positive, Scrivener Blooms, test me not.”

Luna flopped down on the bedding in the den, and Scrivener sat beside her as he glanced down the hall, watching as Pinkamena floated moodily over to inspect Discombobulation’s bottle. Pollen, finally, stared back and forth in awe, as if he had never seen the inside of a house before… and then he smiled embarrassedly as he dropped on his haunches at the end of the corridor, staring into the den room and murmuring: “I never thought… I’d see an actual home like this again. The Nibelung live in ruins and ugly tents, never fix anything up and just move on when something gets too damaged or broken… and Velites they… we… never sleep, never eat, never have homes. Just sheds to put our things in, and when we need to stop, we just… lay down on the ground…”

Pollen halted, looking down embarrassedly as Luna softened a bit, before the winged unicorn said quietly, as she tilted her head towards the fireplace and blue flames burst into being over the logs: “Come, creature. Be not afraid, rest thyself on one of the cushions and curl up closer to the fire. Warm thy bones.”

The Velite seemed to smile at them thankfully as it gazed at the two, then nodded and walked carefully past the large bedding to a rumpled cushion, pulling it closer and hesitantly sitting down on it… before sighing softly as it settled slowly onto its stomach, gazing towards the sapphire fire as it murmured: “Thank you, Princess Luna. You’re kinder and more generous than I ever expected.”

“Nay, I am neither of those things, and nor am I any princess.” Luna replied quietly, gazing towards the flames with a bit of a smile. “When I went into exile, that title was forgone forever… and even when I returned to mine sister’s side, I was made Champion. And to be honest? I was far more comfortable in that role, fighting on the battlefield rather than trying to serve as figurehead of a nation.”

She quieted, then studied the skeleton for a few moments as Pollen looked awkwardly back at her, before she asked curiously: “For how long did thou survive past Ragnarok, creature?”

The Velite laughed a bit at this, looking down and murmuring softly: “A few weeks, maybe a few months… it’s hard to say. When the Velites… when they make you into one of them, they try to erase your memories, make you forget who you were, who you are, remake you as one of them… but they’re sloppy about it. I think… a lot of the ponies… the Velites… I was working beside let themselves forget, because it’s easier just to give in, but… I never could forget. I couldn’t forget my family, or Equestria… I couldn’t forget who I was. It was like a cult, but what’s a cult without a goddess, without a figurehead, without a strong leader? There were just those fanatics… the original Velites, who dug up the bodies of dead unicorns so they could channel that unholy magic…”

The skeleton shivered a bit, then shook his head before he added awkwardly: “Also, am I really going to be referred to as a male for the rest of my… my… I guess it’s not a life.”

“Velites are male.” Luna said staunchly, and Scrivener sighed a bit before wincing when she smacked him firmly. “Silence, creature. ‘Tis true and thou knows it as well as I do. But worry not, Pollen… after we mash thee to pieces and turn thee from Velite to Pale, thou shall once more be a mare.”

Luna grinned as she ground her front hooves together, the Velite wincing a bit as she said nervously: “Not that… I doubt you or anything, but… I don’t exactly want to be mashed and don’t know if you’re… well… uh…”

“Sane, or telling the truth?” Luna leaned forwards curiously, and Pollen mumbled a bit to himself before the winged unicorn laughed and threw her head back. “Worry not. Besides, look at Pinkamena, she is but a Pale and…”

Luna’s words fell short as she glanced over her shoulder and saw the half-demon once more chewing at the top of Bob’s bottle, the Draconequus flailing his arms inside it as her ghostly hooves squeezed either side of the vial, and Luna sighed and snapped irritably: “Foul creature, thou already has tested the limits of my temper horribly today!”

Pinkamena grumbled silently as she floated away from the vial, holding up her front hooves irritably… and then she simply flickered out of sight, and Luna muttered under her breath as she turned her attention back to Pollen. “Very well, ignore Pinkamena, she is a foul example. When thou crosses the Bifrost with us, however, I think thou will better understand… and depending upon how trustworthy I determine thee to be, I may ask that thou remains in thy Velite body whilst thou stays in Looking Glass World, until final preparations are complete for the hopeful-rebirth of all that has been lost. We require a babysitter for our favorite pet, after all, and Pinkamena obviously would not be an entirely-intelligent choice upon our part.”

The Velite looked confused at this… and then Luna smiled slightly, tilting her horn forwards as it glowed blue, and the vial lifted off the countertop to float quietly towards the skeleton, Bob looking surly as he crossed his arms and glowered out at the Velite. “This is Discombobulation. He is in a weakened state right now, which is why he is kept secure in the bottle. Bob, do be so kind as to greet our guest.”

The Draconequus blew a silent raspberry at the skeleton as its jaw fell open in a gape, and then he winced when Luna rattled the bottle firmly before sighing dramatically and sketching an ironic curtsy. Scrivener snorted in amusement as the winged unicorn gazed into the bottle sourly, and then she flicked her eyes to the side, and the vial floated back over to rest on the countertop as she said distastefully: “Irksome beast. And thou should close thy mouth, Pollen, ‘lest thou wishes for me to remove thy lower jaw in its entirety.”

The Velite flinched as it quickly snapped its mouth back shut, and then the skeleton said awkwardly: “You know, I… I think I’m just getting more and more confused here about what’s going on. I was just an earth pony who liked to work in the gardens, that’s all… all these terms are going way over my head and I really don’t know what to believe. So maybe… if it’s not too much trouble, you could… start at the beginning.”

“The beginning was a very long time ago.” Luna said softly, glancing towards Scrivener Blooms… and the earth pony smiled a bit despite himself as he shrugged a little, the two trading thoughts and emotions before she said kindly: “Then go ahead, daydreamer. I enjoy thy voice and thy storytelling. I enjoy more when thou talks of me so highly.”

Scrivener laughed quietly despite himself, before he smiled when Luna leaned over and rested herself against him, closing her eyes… and the male gazed at Pollen, feeling a faint pain spark through his mind, seeing her for a moment as she had once been: short chestnut mane and long, streaming chestnut tail intertwined with flowers, green, almost-glowing body, and big hazel eyes curious… and then a moment later, she was a Velite skeleton again. “Alright, but on one condition. Let’s call her ‘her,’ alright Luna? No ‘all cats are female, all dogs are male’ thing going on.”

“’Tis true, and to get new puppies and kittens thou must use magic to make it rain cats and dogs. And then catch them so they do not splatter against the ground.” Luna retorted childishly, snuggling herself closer against Scrivener Blooms, and then she sighed and grumbled under her breath. “Very well. From this moment forth, I decree that there shall be one female Velite, and her name is Pollen.”

“Thank you.” Pollen said awkwardly, smiling back and forth from Luna to Scrivy… and Scrivy only shrugged a bit as Luna grumbled under her breath, half-shoving the male over so she could almost crawl on top of him and flop down. “I… I mean, if it’s too much trouble…”

“No, it’s alright, Luna’s just…” Scrivener glared over his shoulder at the female as she hugged him like a stuffed animal, but she pointedly ignored him with a grumble, making him roll his eyes before he returned his gaze to Pollen. “Luna just doesn’t understand certain social norms, so to speak. But the story begins a long time ago… back in Canterlot in fact, with the Princess of the Night and her humble assistant Scrivener Blooms…”

Scrivener told the story; he spoke from the very start, telling about how he and Luna had grown closer over a journey from Canterlot to the castle ruins in the depths of the Everfree Forest, to retrieve objects from the vault for Celestia. He talked of how they had returned, the battle that had erupted between a Celestia gone insane with power and the need to instill order and Luna, desperate to stop her sister from destroying the very country she had created. He spoke of how they had chosen to take the blame for Celestia’s actions, and how they had fled into exile, building this very cottage they now rested in.

He told her about how the Velites had come back to Equestria, and other forms of darkness with it, and about how they had rescued a filly who would become their adopted daughter. He told her about a unicorn who had never learned humility, who was not as great and powerful as she liked to believe but who had proven to be among the bravest of ponies, and who they had lost to the treachery of Veliuona… and who, at the last moment, had destroyed both herself and the dark goddess possessing her in a magnificent grand finale.

He spoke of Ignominious and the attack on Ponyville, and how the demon had possessed him during the battle, before Scrivener Blooms had guided Luna’s horn into piercing his heart. And he and Luna had gazed at each other silently for a moment, taking one another’s hoof as he said softly: “But Luna wouldn’t let me go that easy. She mixed our souls together to save my life… that was what that Velite kept yelling about. Not just a pact, though… we’re soul-bound. We’re soulmates.”

They smiled at each other as Pollen gazed on, enthralled… and then Scrivener continued with the story, becoming more solemn as he told of the ill-fated Starlit Knights: of how they had left Ponyville behind after dealing with a terrible, monstrous Pegasus that had been as wicked as many of the evils they had faced on the road, and of how in Canterlot, they had not only met Discombobulation through a communication ritual gone wrong, but Luna had also been confronted with the first of many memories. He described how as they had marched northwards, more and more memories had awakened… and to make matters worse, they had been chased the whole time by Ignominious, back from Helheim. His first attack against them had actually resulted in the creation of Pinkamena… but his final attack against them had stolen away the life of the pony Pinkamena had been shaped from, before the demon had finally been completely and utterly destroyed.

And North Neigh, the town they had journeyed to, had been Scrivener’s hometown. Where he had been called slave-hoof, seen as less than worthless in the eyes of the traditionalist unicorn elite. They had fought to save them… and it was in that ignoble village that everything had been taken away, as friends were killed, as the filly they had adored as daughter was kidnapped and they were faced with the menace of a Tyrant Wyrm that had been hidden away in the depths of the dark tunnels beneath Equestria. Scrivener had been courageous, reckless, and stupid enough to decipher its words as it had spoken, using both his natural grasp for language as well as his link with Luna to access her memories, her knowledge of the creatures and their terrible ways… and in retaliation, the Tyrant Wyrm had shoved every ounce of its terrible knowledge into the mind of Scrivener Blooms.

It had nearly killed him… but Celestia had saved them, helping them bring the terrible monstrosity crashing down amidst its own pawns and eradicating the parasite from the face of the planet. And Celestia had walked beside them, not as a leader, but as an equal, in that final march to the Black Baroque… where their friends had died one after the other until they stood before the Gates of Hell, and watched as their daughter was sacrificed so the Gates could be torn open… and the four Black Wolves of Hell awakened.

All the same, they had almost stopped Ragnarok… they had almost triumphed, when Luna had brought on the eclipse, and the Black Wolves had been frozen in their tracks, reduced to whimpering mutts… but then Valthrudnir had appeared. He had walked in as calmly and casually as if this had all been planned from the start; but then again, it had been. The Jötnar had orchestrated the events from the beginning, planning and adjusting for every last detail… and he had captured Luna and Scrivy with ease before setting the Black Wolves and Helheim itself loose on the world, bringing death to an entire planet as if their world was nothing more than a hive of harmless but disgusting bugs.

Scrivener explained quietly how Valthrudnir had challenged Scrivener to a duel of sorts: a battle in a destroyed layer of reality called Alfheim, where they had sat and played a sick, twisted game of cards. They had used the cards to illustrate stories to one-another… and despite Valthrudnir’s meddling and cheating, his arrogance had led to his own downfall, when Scrivener had twisted his own ‘perfect tragedy’ against him. Still, Valthrudnir had been determined to destroy the earth pony for what he had done… but Luna, freed from her imprisonment, had used the fatal moment of the Jötnar’s distraction to kill him and put an end to his scheming.

It had all been over, and they had been left with only one-another… but then they had been joined by Odin. He had explained the last of what needed to be explained, and offered them an escape… and a blank world, and a way to perhaps save everything that had been lost. Their prize for conquering Valthrudnir, after all, had been his powers sealed in three miracles, three cards… with the powers of the Jötnar in hand and Odin’s guidance, they had a chance to replenish and restore all that was lost.

Scrivy fell quiet, finally, then he sipped at a glass of cola Luna had brought for him, the winged unicorn laying beside him and massaging gently along his back as he smiled awkwardly over at Pollen. “And… that’s the story. Ever since then, Luna and I have been working as… soul-gatherers, bringing Pales across the Bifrost to the Looking Glass World, we call it. We don’t know how well this is all going to work, at the end of the day… we don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. All we know is that… we’re both determined to do everything we can to save what’s broken. What in a way, we feel… responsible for.”

“That’s an amazing story.” Pollen said quietly, looking from one to the other, and then the skeleton laughed faintly, Scrivener gazing at her, no longer flinching when he saw the mare’s shape overlaying undead frame. She studied them, and they gazed back at her… and then the skeleton only bowed her head silently forwards, the glow in her eyes faint but admiring as Luna and Scrivener both relaxed slowly in the presence of their strange new companion.

Plans And Schemes

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Chapter Eight: Plans And Schemes
~BlackRoseRaven

Dark clouds rolled gloomily through the violet sky above, and Luna grimaced a bit as a cold, chilling wind shot by, blowing a few loose boards down from a collapsed building nearby before she shouted irritably: “Scrivener Blooms, search faster!”

“Shut up, Luna!” Scrivener’s voice was strangled and frustrated as he struggled through the mostly-collapsed building that had once belonged to Kilby Kwolek and her team of engineers, the male cursing under his breath as a jagged piece of metal sticking out of the ceiling scratched along his shoulder: not deep, but more than enough to sting a bit as Luna winced and glanced at a faint scratch that appeared on her own shoulder. “Horses of Heaven, it’s not even the fact that everywhere I turn there’s another sharp object trying to stab me, it’s… the freaking reek! It’s like oil and rotten corpses and… can’t Pollen or Pinkamena do this?”

“Nay, I am still unsure as to how much I can trust Pollen, and to send Pinkamena into a den of inequity filled with knives and weapons and Odin knows what kind of nonsense is sealed away in Cowlick’s labs would be like giving a foal the keys to the candy shop. She would come back outside with everything apart from what we require.” Luna retorted, then she winced a bit as another strong wind burst by, and the entire warehouse creaked, a few panels of broken glass falling out of a shattered window.

The upper levels of the three storey building had both collapsed inwards, giving it a look like a deflated cake… a cake made of metal, steel, and large planks of rotten wood covered in peeling paint, that was. Luna grimaced a bit as she stepped back, looking quickly back and forth over the wreckage… but they had just barely been able to pry off the front door, revealing a narrow tunnel beyond… and after a quick argument, Luna had shrunk Scrivener down to about half his normal size and then firmly booted him into the passage.

Scrivy cursed under his breath as he scampered through the damaged hallways, muttering to himself irritably and not caring whether or not Luna could hear every word, roughly the size of a foal and carrying a satchel bag almost as large as he was. The ceiling above was covered in cracks and rumbled ominously now and then, as if it had been waiting for a victim to try and enter the catacombs of the strange building. It was half storage facility, half jumbled cluster of engineering laboratories, and the male cursed to himself as he ran into another blockade of rubble, the ceiling above half-collapsed and all manner of beams, chunks of metal, and what looked like several broken crates forming an unstable wall. “Luna, this isn’t worth it…”

“Scrivener Blooms, we have searched everywhere else, and found little we could use: in Rarity’s boutique, aye, there was a good supply of precisely-cut gemstones, and in searching the few storage warehouses that had not suffered demolition or arson, we discovered more of what we require.” Luna replied half-forcefully, half-pleadingly, and she pawed at the ground with a hoof as she grimaced a little. “A simple wooden wagon will not survive passing over the Bifrost, and even the Pegasus wagon we used to move some of other possessions barely made it through the buffeting energies… or does thou want all our things burning up to dust as we run across the rainbow?”

“And what makes you so sure that Cowlick’s crazy composite junk on a layer of gemstone armor is going to actually let a wagon survive?” Scrivener asked dryly, as he inspected the barricade before carefully beginning to wiggle his way through an open corner, adding in a mumble: “Your warrior instincts aren’t right about everything…”

“Thou shalt eat those words when thou finds the composite.” Luna replied flatly as she glared at the structure, huffing. “’Tis a jar of goo. How difficult is it to find a jar of goo?”

“It’s a jar of goo inside a demolished structure twice the size of a hoof-ball field that’s mostly collapsed in on itself.”Scrivener muttered, and Luna only grumbled in response as the male wormed his way down the corridor beyond with a curse, past large chunks of rock and metal debris that stuck out of the walls and ceiling like teeth as he tossed an apprehensive look at the sunken, cracked roof.

Then Scrivy winced as dust pattered down, something shifting above as Luna’s eyes sharpened outside the structure, leaning forwards nervously as she felt the twitch of emotion before she asked in a quiet voice, her words continuing to carry to Scrivener as if she stood right beside him instead of outside the building: “What is it?”

Scrivy only shook his head quietly, edging forwards before his eyes flicked to the side, where a doorway stood open… and he hurried into the room beyond with a quiet sigh of relief. The ceiling here was damaged but didn’t slump as low, and the shambles and debris scattered from the room were obviously from some battle that had once taken place here, not a destructive collapse. “Just need to be careful, that’s all… place is a wreck, talking too loud might be enough to bring some parts of it down.”

Luna nodded slowly outside, then she closed her eyes, asking in a clear thought: Should we communicate in this fashion then, my daydreamer?

“No, no, that actually creeps me out a little and I’m in a safe bubble for now…” Scrivener halted as he looked around the mostly-empty square room, heading towards a set of dust-covered cupboards and accidentally pulling one door off when he tried to open it, wincing and tossing it aside to peer inside. “Yeah, this must be an old lab.”

There were broken beakers, dusty glass objects, and instruments of every shape and size in the cupboards, much of it overgrown with ugly mosses and molds, and Scrivener took his time checking through the room before he sighed a bit as he glanced nervously back towards the doorway… before pausing and frowning as he looked over the room again. His eyes settled on a pile of debris in one corner, the wall behind this cracked and the paint peeled and broken… and Scrivener carefully brushed some of the rocks aside before he smiled a little as he found a hole that had been hammered in the wall, broken duct-work beyond leading into another room.

He carefully slid into this, making his way past dead wires and cables and wincing as he stepped carefully over broken metal before stepping out and into the room beyond… and he grimaced a bit, looking back and forth as his eyes watered from the smell that assaulted his nose. Half-collapsed and decayed shelves leaned against the wall, slumping and broken here and there, many long-having spilled their contents into a congealed mess on the floor, and unidentifiable molds crawled over much of the rest of the room as Scrivener grimaced before he glanced towards the doorway… but the door was laying in cracked pieces, and had been blocked off by a collapse of debris likely a long time ago.

The male studied the shelves… and then he winced as he stepped forwards and noted a large, broken glass jar, touching it and gazing down at the petrified gray sludge that had solidified over and around it. “Well, I think I just found the composite, Luna. Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s going to be of much help or use to us at this point.”

Luna grimaced at this, muttering: “And passing over the Bifrost will dispel any magic I cast… art thou sure?”

Scrivener made a face as he looked over the shelves, looking over the chemical mixes, large cans, and the other odds and ends that rested in various states of decay over the shelves before he sighed and glanced to the side… then frowned a bit as he realized there was a sign under the dust, muttering: “Wait.”

The male stood carefully up on his rear hooves, blowing the dust away… and he coughed a few times with a grumble as it burst back over his features, blinking a bit before he read quickly over it: a master list of the chemicals kept in the storage room, and which noted… “‘Additional supplies are available on request from the storage vault located in the basement.’ Great. How the hell am I supposed to get to the basement?”

“Get out of the facility, Scrivener Blooms, we shall find a way down to these vaults. I did not expect it to be so expansive.” Luna said quietly, and Scrivener nodded inside the storage room as the winged unicorn sighed and restlessly began to pace outside, grumbling: “Damn thy remaining squidgy eye, Odin, for being so all-seeing and yet leaving us to forage for ourselves in a dead world for a plight as simple as a wagon…”

Scrivener, meanwhile, was carefully making his way back through the duct… but when he emerged into the room beyond, he staggered dumbly and frowned a bit as he looked up, realizing it was darker… before he slowly gazed to the side and grit his teeth as he saw Valthrudnir standing nearby, one hand leaning on the countertop, the other flipping a coin as the Jötnar smiled at him disdainfully. “This is a bad time.”

“No time like the present, I would argue… besides, I’m just here to give you an offer.” Valthrudnir caught the coin in mid-fall with an easy flick of his wrist, then he tossed it towards Scrivy, and the earth pony winced back a bit… but the coin halted in midair, hovering slowly in front of him as the dragon said mockingly: “Do you know how pathetic it is that the rainbow bridge is giving you all this trouble? Why, I can pass through the world’s layers as I please… even as an echo, I’m more powerful than you can ever dream. And all that power… can be yours. You just have to give in… you just have to ask.”

Scrivener studied the coin silently: it rotated slowly in front of his eyes, Scrivy’s profile engraved on one side, and Luna’s on the other… and then he closed his eyes and shook his head briskly, and when he opened them, the dragon was gone. Instead, he could hear Luna’s worried voice, asking him what had happened, why she had felt a burst of unnatural static that had blocked out their connection for a moment… and then Scrivener shuddered a bit before he murmured: “Uninvited guest.”

Luna gritted her teeth outside the compound, saying quietly: “Then hurry thy way out, Scrivener Blooms.”

“Yes, hurry, Scrivener Blooms... hurry up and die.” Valthrudnir’s voice added eerily, and Scrivener flinched even as he headed towards the ruptured hall, turning and fighting shivers as he began to make his way carefully back towards the barricade, before he risked a glance over his shoulder… and then stared in horror at the sight of a wave of black goo slowly rising up behind him, making metal and debris stir as the rumbling wave of dark mud and muck hissed towards him like a living thing. “You’ll give in to me, cheater, one way or the other.”

Scrivener cursed as he spun around, panicking, and he yanked his way through the narrow tunnel in the barricade as Valthrudnir laughed, the earth pony crashing against walls of metal and fallen wooden rafters as he heard that horrible sound growing, dust pattering down as rotten boards and stone shifted and debris began to rumble unsteadily… and then the male yanked himself free of the tunnel and staggered to his hooves, looking over his shoulder with hard, anxious pants before he cursed as he saw nothing there.

It had all been in his head… and then his eyes slowly roved up as a rafter he had banged against during his terrified attempt to flee cracked loudly, as a few more large pieces of metal and debris fell… and the earth pony’s eyes widened before he spun around and sprinted down the hallway as one of the rafters gave away with an almost-agonized scream, cracking loudly down the middle as tears ripped through the ceiling, chunks of roof and building beginning to collapse inwards as Luna shouted desperately for Scrivener and Valthrudnir’s laughter ripped through his mind.

Scrivy couldn’t even keep track of where he was running, as dust and chunks of ceiling and wood hailed down around him, cursing as chunks of metal bit at him and the ceiling rumbled, throwing himself forwards into a low skid over his stomach beneath a broken pipe and hurling himself to his hooves as he shot through a doorway, twisting towards where he could see Luna leaning down in the exit, shouting for him… before the winged unicorn glanced up in shock as the front of the building shattered and a hail of wooden boards and several enormous rafters fell towards her, the female snarling as her horn flashed and her eyes glowed as she leapt backwards and anchored herself, catching the avalanche in midair with grit teeth.

Scrivener ducked as he scrambled through the narrow, broken passageway leading out before the foal sized male bolted through Luna’s legs with a wince, continuing to sprint away before the winged unicorn leapt backwards and gave a mighty flap of her wings, launching herself to safety as the glow faded out from around the floating debris and it fell with a rumbling crash. Dust and wreckage burst upwards from the warehouse as Scrivener half-fell over as he spun around, breathing hard, a multitude of small, shallow cuts and scours over his frame as Luna gritted her teeth, her eyes glowing slightly as the building rumbled and shuddered.

Finally, the collapse halted, leaving it looking more deformed and broken than it had been before as Scrivy breathed hard in and out, tasting dust and apocalypse air as Luna shivered a little and drew her eyes slowly along the front of the building… then she looked silently towards Scrivener Blooms as the male grimaced and rubbed at his face, murmuring: “Sorry, Luna.”

“There is no need to apologize, Scrivener Blooms… I am only thankful that thou art alright, and still in one piece after what happened.” Luna said quietly, looking down at him silently, and then she smiled faintly as she bowed her head towards him, the male wincing before he flexed as his size slowly returned to normal, breathing hard as he dropped his head forwards and a shudder ran through his frame: both from the pulse that went through his body as well as the shock of what had just occurred. “I could not… see what happened. I only sensed thy panic… it seems that the echoing corruption is capable of barring our link.”

“I don’t like this.” the male muttered, and Luna smiled at him faintly before they quietly nuzzled one-another, then stepped closer and embraced tightly, the earth pony sighing softly. “I’m sorry. It’s my fault that the place collapsed and my fault that we lost access to the composite. I panicked.”

“Fear not, Scrivener Blooms, we need only reach the bottom levels of the facility… and ‘twill be a much easier task, especially with my mood so soured.” Luna said mildly, and then her horn began to glow as she turned to look at the structure, saying distastefully: “I never much cared for such large and ominous structures, after all.”

And with that, Luna flicked her horn and sent a blue fireball rocketing into the front of the building, and it exploded in a sapphire burst that began to greedily spread flames over the collapsed structure, the winged unicorn looking pleased with herself as Scrivener stared before she huffed and waved a hoof grouchily. “Oh, think not so badly of me! It will burn quickly to the ground, and then we shall easily be able to find our way to the basements with that death-trap out of the way. Furthermore, it sits on the outskirts, with debris of metal wall to its back and nothing else nearby… and ‘tis not like it matters even should a wildfire occur, in this damaged world.”

“That’s… not the point, Luna, the point is more that you don’t just set buildings on fire because they’re in the way.” Scrivener said flatly, and Luna snorted at this and shoved at him, the earth pony grumbling before he shoved back at her before they both winced and looked up as a large section of the building collapsed beneath the inferno now surging hungrily over it, black smoke rising high into the air. “This better not attract Hellhounds.”

“Hellhounds fear fire. Besides, their kind hunts near the Gray Mountains, where the world is cold and warped.” Luna muttered, and she shook her head slowly before she said softly: “Come, Scrivener. By the time we dig up a serviceable wagon from Ponyville, these ruins should be nothing but ashes and cinders.”

Yet the two lingered for a few moments all the same, watching the building burn and black smoke rise into the air, leaning against each other as Scrivener closed his eyes and Luna silently wrapped a foreleg around him, the brilliant, destructive flames reflected in her dark cyan irises.

Scrivy and Luna were both covered with dirt and filth and sweat, a carriage filled with gemstones, salvaged wagon parts, and several large metal containers of sealed composite held up by several large sawhorses in their front yard. It was in an ugly state: the yellowed paint indicated it had probably once been an enclosed taxi carriage, but the walls had mostly rotted and would need to be replaced, and it had been a miserable pain dragging the carriage back as it had limped along on three wheels, one of which was cracked and misshapen.

They had removed the wheels from the carriage, replaced the axle completely, and were currently fitting large, studded steel wheels in place of the old wooden ones: these would likely melt as they passed over the Bifrost, since very few inorganic substances seemed capable of surviving the crazed pulses of energy that the rainbow bridge emitted. Living things seemed to be able to handle it without nearly as much trouble… and Pales were energized by the run, their strength restored, almost brought into physical being by the surges of power.

Scrivener wheezed a bit as he finished tightening the last wheel on his side, while Luna grimaced and shook her mane out, ashes floating up from her body: after enough of the facility had been burned down and destroyed, she had hit it with a hurricane-force gust that had sent rubble and ruin scattering backwards and snuffed out the remaining flames. They had wandered into the remains of the burnt-out building… and Luna had fallen through the weakened floor, making Scrivener grin and laugh at the fact that for once, he hadn’t been on the short end of the stick.

For obvious reasons, this had put Luna in a less-than-pleased mood, but the basements had been in surprisingly-good shape and it had been easy to find the storage safe. They had found plenty of the composite they needed… the composite that Luna was still for some reason so sure would provide the extra armor their wagon would require.

The winged unicorn smiled a bit as she stepped around the front of the wagon, asking mildly: “And precisely why art thou so convinced that mine warrior instincts cannot be correct in this regard, as they have been in all other things? Be not so foolish, poet, thou should know I am not without my reasons, ‘tis no simple fancy.”

“Then maybe I’m just being a grouchy fool.” Scrivener smiled a bit despite himself, looking quietly at her as she gazed back, before he added softly: “It was nice of you to send Pinkamena and Pollen out on that little scouting trip together. I think they both like being helpful. And maybe this is just my monster fetish talking but I do think we can trust Pollen.”

“I don’t think it’s just the fact that thou enjoys the presence of the freakish, ‘tis also the fact that Pollen is more harmless than Ross. Possibly much more foolish as well, whatever the appearances may have been.” Luna added meditatively, and Scrivy rolled his eyes but smiled despite himself before Luna glanced over the wagon, then grumbled and looked irritably down at herself. “Come, enough of this. We have much to do, anyway… an exploration to plan. We can leave much of the rest of the work of repairing this wagon to our ghostly pet and our awkward Velite… I-know-not-what whilst we go upon our trip, anyway. ‘Tis good that at least the creature will be able to take care of Bob, as well, for I fear what would happen were he left in Pinkamena’s hooves… doubtlessly, at some point, the abject creature would end up in Pinkamena’s teeth. Then where would I find another beast of chaos to torment so, I ask thee?”

“This is why I love you, Luna, you’re always thinking about others.” Scrivener said mildly, turning around, and the winged unicorn laughed before she quickly jogged around the wagon to fall into pace beside him as they both smiled and headed along the side of their home. “So you really… think…”

“I know, Scrivy. I know how it sounds. I know that all things considered, ‘tis also not the wisest course of action… but I have never been all that wise.” Luna smiled despite herself, nudging him gently with her shoulder, and Scrivener gave her an amused look as they stepped into the backyard and headed towards their natural hot-tub. “Yet all the same, beloved, I do not fear what may come of this, and I do not fear what we shall be faced with. Instead, I invite it, with open embrace. And although we will be heading into an area rife with danger…”

Luna halted, looking thoughtfully down into the water: today, the hot tub seemed placid and calm, but when the female leaned forwards, she could feel the heat emanating clearly out of it… and she smiled a bit before glancing towards Scrivy, saying quietly: “I do not enjoy the idea of heading back towards that accursed place that caused us so much misery and loss, that ended up being the great, dark root of evil, and I know it will hurt us both. But I have also learned that we must cease to flee not just from our darkness, but also from what we fear. We must face this with courage… and remember that there are souls there, being led astray by a false and cruel hope of finding escape from this apocalypse-riddled world.”

Scrivener nodded slowly, rubbing at his face gently before he asked distastefully: “But we don’t have to save Bramblethorn, right?”

“Nay, Scrivy, there are certain souls who gave up their second chance before they had even lost their first.” Luna replied grimly, then she stepped forwards and slipped into the water, sighing after a moment in relief as steam rose up quietly around her and she sank slowly downwards, water whispering up through the sparkling, starry mane. “But enough of that. Get in the water, Scrivener Blooms, ‘tis time for a refreshing bath after a long day.”

The male rolled his eyes, but he stepped carefully over the edge and into the tub, sinking down into the hot water and feeling the soothing heat relaxing his muscles, tingling against his scrapes and cuts as he and Luna rested against one another. They both smiled a bit, pressing their sides together, and then the winged unicorn turned towards him and grasped his head gently, shoving him lightly down and making him roll his eyes even as he allowed her to dunk him beneath the water.

He straightened after a moment with a grumble, but Luna only gave him an entertained look, her own soaked ephemeral mane glowing faintly as it twisted and swirled back behind her. “Thou art a mess, Scrivener Blooms.”

“You’ve still got some ashes on your face.” Scrivy replied mildly without looking around, and Luna scowled at him and dunked his head again, and he surfaced with a half-splutter, half-laugh before wincing as she began to vigorously work her hooves through his mane and over his scalp. “Luna, my head is not dough!”

“I would argue that.” Luna grumbled, and Scrivener huffed a bit, crossing his front limbs as the winged unicorn continued to roughly massage along his head and work through his faintly-glowing white locks. “Perhaps at some point we shall find some shampoo. Or soap. Or perhaps only some stones, treated with herbs or scented oils or crushed flower petals, they work just as well.”

“Luna, this isn’t the dark ages. Pun intended.” Scrivener replied dryly, and then he winced when Luna dunked him again before mumbling to himself beneath the hot water, eyes tightly shut as the winged unicorn held him under the surface while she continued to massage along his scalp and through his mane, before she finally let him raise his head out of the water with a cough after almost thirty seconds, wheezing: “You know if I drown, you’ll die too, right?”

“Oh silence, Scrivener Blooms, be not so insufferable. I shan’t let thee drown in a tub. Besides, if I do one day decide to kill thee, there are many far-more-appealing options, such as tossing thee into a volcano or perhaps feeding thee to one of the mutant dragons that lurk in the darker bogs of this fetid world.” Luna grumbled, and then she suddenly leaned away and turned around, raising her head imperiously. “Now, take pains in washing my mane, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Tis relatively self-cleaning but I must take pains to ensure I look my best whilst I terrorize and annihilate my enemies, after all.”

Scrivener rolled his eyes, but he began to lightly massage along her scalp and work his hooves gently through her mane all the same, gazing down at her with quiet entertainment as he felt her ephemeral locks humming gently against him as he murmured softly: “You’re such a princess sometimes, you know that?”

“Call me not that, Scrivener Blooms, or I shall shove my horn up thy nose.” Luna threatened grumpily, and Scrivy smiled despite himself. Luna relaxed beneath his ministrations, sinking backwards as he rubbed and massaged along her scalp, and her eyes slipped closed as she sank deeper into the water with a mumble of: “Some days, though, ‘tis nice to be treated as if I was not made of thorns and nightshade… I imagine this must be what little fillies enjoy and dream of. I wonder if Celestia ever partook of this… but she was always particularly-fussy over her appearance.”

“Luna, compared to you, Nibelung can be fussy about their appearance. Usually you won’t have a bath until you reek like the barrens and you’re covered in blood or some other horrible substance.” Scrivener grumbled, and Luna shrugged disdainfully with a huff. “Even I have better hygiene than you.”

The winged unicorn looked amused at this, saying dryly: “Only because thou has such effeminate habits. Sometimes I think thou should have been a mare.”

“And just as often, I think you should have probably been a stallion.” Scrivener replied dryly, but the winged unicorn only laughed at this, grinning amusedly up at him as her eyes half-lidded, and Scrivy winced despite himself as he leaned backwards. “Please stop purposefully twisting my words.”

“I twist nothing, thou says what thou says and thou means what thou means.” Luna replied comfortably, and then she took a breath before allowing Scrivener to push her head under the water… before she fidgeted beneath the liquid when one of the male’s hooves flicked her horn before rubbing along it lightly, and she surfaced a moment later with a glare over her shoulder. “Cease that.”

“Please, I don’t have to be an over-analytical poet to make snide remarks about the imagery of you plunging your horn into things.” Scrivener retorted, and then he winced when she threw an elbow hard back into his chest, making him cringe a bit even as the same faint twist of pain went through her own body. “You’re evil.”

“Yes.” Luna said simply, and then she turned around, pinning him back against the wall of the tub and leaning forwards to kiss him firmly for a few moments, and Scrivener kissed her slowly back before she grinned and half-lidded her eyes, drawing back slightly. “Shall I prove to thee that I am most assuredly a mare, and a mare whom is ample feminine enough at that?”

Scrivener couldn’t help but grin back as he grasped her sides gently, leaning towards her and remarking mildly: “Luna, I don’t know if we can act like teenagers forever. Especially not when we’re supposed to be responsible and-”

Luna simply pressed a hoof to his lips with a wink… and twenty minutes later, the two were climbing out of the tub, both looking much-more relaxed as Luna flicked her horn towards him and a warm, drying wind blew past, both ponies closing their eyes before the winged unicorn murmured softly, as the last of the breeze passed: “I want a foal, Scrivy. I badly, badly, badly desire a foal. And while the death of this world fills me with sadness, knowing that this pilgrimage we make now may be our last great harvest… knowing that soon, perhaps within months, we shall be moving to the Looking Glass World, to put together the last pieces of this great puzzle… it fills me with joy and hope.”

She glanced towards him with a blush, her mane sizzling quietly around her as she said quietly: “We are going to have a child, Scrivener Blooms. A foal. And while I worry about what will become of this… while sometimes I fear that we will not be good parents… it is all I think about. And think not I do not see into thy mind, both thy apprehensions as well as thine own eagerness…”

She stepped towards him as Scrivener smiled a little at her, meeting his eyes as she reached up and said firmly: “Thou shalt be an incredible father. And… I shall be a good mother, nay, an excellent mother. This is something to look forwards to, to take pride in. We will have it, Scrivener Blooms. We will achieve this.”

Scrivy nodded to her, gazing into her eyes as she looked back into his… and then Luna laughed a bit and shook her head, turning towards the back door and smiling to herself as she added easily over her shoulder: “And besides, even should I give birth to some awful monster of darkness, I am sure it will be as adorable as me and as implacable as thou art, making it a perfect fit for our strange little family.”

The earth pony sighed and rolled his eyes, following behind her as he shook his head and said dryly: “Only you would joke about that, Luna. I swear there’s something seriously wrong with your head.”

“Perhaps.” Luna only shrugged as she opened the door, however, still looking serene as she stepped sideways and let Scrivy stride past, kissing his cheek as he walked by. He laughed at this, and she shut the door loudly with a grin at him, adding quietly: “The future is bright, Scrivener Blooms. The near future is harsh, aye, and terrifying… but beyond that, the world is bright. And I intend to ensure we both push through to that beautiful world together, one way or another.”

Scrivener Blooms smiled over his shoulder at her, then he glanced towards Discombobulation’s vial… and he leaned forwards curiously as he saw the Draconequus was now sitting complacently at the bottom of the bottle, the Ambrosia completely gone. The Ginnungagap entity looked up as Scrivener leaned down, and then he gave a small wave before miming a drinking motion.

“Water?” Scrivy asked curiously, and Bob nodded almost solemnly before the male shrugged. Before he could turn, however, he heard the fridge open and then slam shut, and Luna walked over with a grin… and Scrivener winced at the loud crack of a can of cola popping open as it floated eerily above her head. “Luna, wait!”

“Oh shush, ‘tis watery enough!” Luna retorted, Bob’s vial glowing blue before the cork popped off the top of it, and Discombobulation looked dumbly up before he flailed wildly as Luna poured cola into the bottle, Scrivener grinding his teeth together loudly as he stared in horror as she filled the vial almost halfway up before firmly plugging the cork back into place, leaving Discombobulation flailing wildly around in the foaming cola.

“You probably never had a pet, did you? Or, I’m guessing, even a plant.” Scrivener said dryly, and Luna huffed and looked at him sourly. “So alright. Even if Bob doesn’t drown, develop diabetes, or worst of all go on the worst sugar rush in existence, we’re still going to have to sit down and have a little talk about taking care of things. Especially if you really do want to have a foal.”

“Scrivener Blooms! I am appalled, I know full well that if I were to give a foal a cola, ‘twould have to be delivered in a bottle, not drowning the child in it.” Luna retorted, and Scrivener dropped his face against a hoof as she huffed and added grouchily: “Bah, ponies are too concerned about ‘healthy this’ and ‘nutritious that.’ Our child shall be raised perfectly fine and grow up strong and happy without all these gimmicks and worries.”

The earth pony sighed a little, then he looked towards where Discombobulation had managed to shove an island of foam together and was now sitting on top of it, shivering and hugging himself. He glared pointedly out at them, but Scrivy only looked flatly at Luna, who huffed and sipped at the cola that remained in the can as she corked the vial closed and said pointedly: “I could have drowned the fool in far worse things, thou both knows. In any event, Bob, why art thou so eager to submerge thyself in liquid?”

Bob glared at them at this, and then he flicked a hand, and a message rapidly scrawled itself over the bottle, Scrivener reading dryly: “‘I was thirsty. I asked for water, not Waterworld.’ You know, we should probably find something better than a bottle, too…”

Luna grumbled a bit at this, and Bob made a face, raising a hand and tilting it back and forth before the Draconequus sighed as he sat moodily down on his island, the message erasing itself from the vial… but even the small strain on the chimerical creature seemed to leave him drained. He paused moodily, then reached out and scooped up a handful of cola, surveying it suspiciously before he took a drink of it… and then shrugged a bit and laid back on his island of foam, seeming a bit less resentful.

The two ponies glanced at each other, and then they both simply made their way to the den… but instead of taking their usual spot at the bedding, they instead headed towards Scrivy’s desk as the winged unicorn smiled a little, saying quietly: “If we travel by wing as well as hoof, we should be able to reach the bitter north in half the time, perhaps even less. And even if we travel only by hard march… we shall only have to break when we feel it necessary to rest, and we shan’t have to keep to a slow pace. Besides, ‘tis not like we have not journeyed northwards before…”

“Yeah, I remember. But we’ve never gone further than Snow Saddle, Luna…” Scrivy quieted, glancing down and shaking his head slowly as he said softly: “We were only lucky that… everypony was drawn back here. It’s like after they died… they all marched back together. Ponyville… that sense of home, it must have drawn them all back. And we were so lucky that they… they never blamed us.”

“We were. We are. Aye, maybe in ways we are cursed… but in others, we are blessed with miracles beyond comprehension.” Luna said softly, lowering her head and nodding slowly… and then she smiled faintly, glancing up and reaching up to touch Scrivener’s shoulder gently as her horn glowed, papers and scrolls and other messy contents over the desk taking on a soft sheen as they quickly and neatly arranged themselves before a large map laid itself out, and blank parchment, a jar of ink, and a beautiful white feather quill settled on top of this. “Come, Scrivener Blooms. Let us plan.”

Scrivener laughed a bit and nodded after a moment, quietly picking up the quill and studying it, smiling a little before he glanced towards Luna. “Do you think Celestia ever knew how much it meant to me that she gave me this, just like you gave me one of yours?”

“Nay, so speak not of it, for I shall become jealous.” Luna replied kindly, hitting him gently in the back of the head, and Scrivy laughed despite himself as he shook his own before dipping the quill into the jar of ink and leaning forwards, beginning to write a quick series of notes and plans, his thoughts mixing with the winged unicorn’s own as she leaned over him and kissed his temple gently.

Luna gazed down as he worked, studying both the notes and the map beside the parchment with a thoughtful look on her face, rubbing quietly against the underside of her muzzle… and then she murmured quietly: “We could perhaps take a different route, Scrivy. If we fly, we can go over the mountains and around Canterlot and the dangerous, imprisoning peaks. The only thing that makes me wary of long periods of flight, however, is should The Stampede put in an appearance, or other wicked entities that have made the broken skies their home. It would let us move with great speed, however… and more importantly, let us avoid the dangers posed by many places over the earth.”

“I hate flying. Hell, you hate flying, too.” Scrivener muttered, and Luna shrugged a bit, touching his shoulder softly, and he smiled a little. “I know, Luna, I know, it’s not just about our comfort… it’s also about what’s ‘tactically sound’ or in less-fancy terms, what’ll get us there fastest with as little danger as possible.”

“Well, perhaps not as little danger as possible. There must always be some risk and danger to any adventure, especially if they involve us.” Luna replied softly with a slight smile, and Scrivener laughed quietly and nodded despite himself, giving her an entertained look. “And I think it best that we fly over the Northedge Strait… Charger’s Crossing has long collapsed, after all, and the ice of that frozen river is treacherous and prone to shatter at any moment, no matter how solid it may seem.”

Scrivener Blooms grunted, rubbing absently at the underside of his muzzle before he asked quietly: “And what about the Black Wolves of Hell? Fenrir dens in the north, Luna… the alpha, the leader. We do everything we can to avoid those creatures, and so does almost everything else, living or dead… only the insane or those looking for oblivion go to those monsters. The only reason we’ve been able to avoid them for so long is because they destroyed the world already… and then settled down in their individual territories.”

The winged unicorn nodded, saying quietly: “Aye, I know what thou art getting at. We will be invading Fenrir’s territory…” Luna closed her eyes, and then she shook her head and muttered: “But I would almost welcome a battle with the wolf, Scrivener Bloom. The monster killed my siblings and my beloved Twilight… and even in this chaotic world, I can still raise the moon when I please… and the eclipse may yet still be the key to destroying those monstrosities.”

Scrivener nodded slowly, grimacing a bit as he rubbed slowly at his face. “I don’t know what bothers me more, Luna. What you’d make those monsters do to themselves if the eclipse really did permit you to control them completely, or the fact that you’d much prefer to rip them apart one-on-one without any ‘fancy tricks,’ as you phrase it.”

Luna snorted in bittersweet entertainment, grinning moodily at Scrivener as she rested against him. “And what, does thou not believe in my fighting prowess, supplied further by mine rage? Aye, Fenrir felled my brother, but we had no idea of what we faced back in those days… days long ago, before Celestia and I truly understand who we were, and what we were capable of, I must add. I do not fear barking beasts, not any longer, not with the other evils we have faced… I would welcome a chance to test my mettle against scarred and ugly Fenrir, and even more a chance to put the beast back into the grave he never should have been dug out of.”

Luna fell quiet, looking down and shaking her head slowly before she closed her eyes, leaning forwards and resting her head against Scrivener’s as the male smiled faintly, closing his own irises… and in the silence, thoughts spun back and forth between them before Luna sighed a bit as there was a banging at the door before it opened, giving Scrivener a quick, quiet kiss before she leaned into the corridor and looked meditatively down it.

Pollen and Pinkamena were back, the Velite with a saddlebag strapped over its body and Pinkamena possessing her marionette, the puppet saying distastefully: “Ran into some Haunts, and Pollen here decided to try and talk to them. Otherwise, it’s clear out there… puddles of corruption here and there, the usual weird flora and fauna that crops up randomly, and there’s a few more cracks and a little more snow, but that’s it. Not too many Pales around, even.”

Pinkamena shoved Pollen rudely ahead of her, the Velite wincing as she staggered forwards before the mare stumbled into the room and half-fell as she sat heavily on her haunches, wheezing a bit as Pinkamena shoved her face over the desk… then grumbled when Scrivener slowly pushed her backwards, saying mildly: “Personal space, Pinkamena.”

“Did thou find anything of interest?” Luna glanced towards Pollen, but the skeleton only mumbled embarrassedly as she yanked the saddlebag off, then opened it to reveal a collection of bones as well as few gemstones and two large knives, and Luna grimaced a little. “Disturbing, thou seems to be more into the lifestyle of the Velites than thou let on, Pollen. Unless of course those belong to Pinkamena, that is.”

“Well, any Velite can whittle some runes into some bones and then attach them to replace the ones that have broken off…” Pollen began embarrassedly, and then she gestured at herself, her bones damaged and yellowed. “It’s not like I can give life or trap souls or anything. But unfortunately, whether I like this or not, I kind of need to attach… new bones every now and then. These are mostly Velite leftovers, though… the knives are for the… Pinkamena.”

“Half-demon, piano. I’m a half-demon, but some days they swear I’m a lot more like a full demon.” Pinkamena grinned, and it wasn’t just the shape of her puppet jaw that made it look so dangerous, as the Velite shrank back a little. “And don’t you worry, Luna, the knives are mine, that’s true. I needed some new ones after I broke the last set I had off in that pesky basilisk that kept coming by.”

Luna sighed and rolled her eyes, and Scrivener glanced moodily from one to the other before he said finally: “We’re a very strange little family.”

Pollen glanced up at this with a dumb giggle, and Pinkamena sighed and rolled her eyes before she said in an irritable voice over her shoulder: “He didn’t include you, bones-for-brains. And if he did, it was in the position of pet rock. So shut your face before I rip your jawbone off, and sit nice and quiet-like in the corner. If I need you to bludgeon something with, I’ll whistle.”

“It seems to me, Scrivener Blooms, that our current undead child dislikes the idea of a new infant in the household.” Luna remarked, and Scrivener snorted in entertainment, glancing towards her with amusement as Pollen looked awkward and Pinkamena shot her an undoubtedly-sour look, the puppet’s body perhaps even hinting at a bit of embarrassment. “Well, worry not, Pinkamena, for even in Looking Glass World thou will be welcome at our side. ‘Tis only for now that we require Pollen to act as babysitter. In life reborn, she will be able to return to her own old life, after all.”

“The Gardens at Meadowmane. I miss that place.” Pollen rubbed quietly at her jaw, then she shook her head and laughed a bit as she rested back, before wincing a little at the glare Pinkamena gave her with her gemstone eyes. “What… what do you miss, Pinkamena?”

“Nothing. This is my kinda world.” Pinkamena said moodily, and then she turned and stormed off towards the bedroom, adding loudly: “I’m putting my goddamn body away and then having a snack. Scrivener, think nasty thoughts, I’m in the mood for something with a little spice.”

Scrivy sighed and rolled his eyes at this, rubbing slowly at a temple, but Luna only kissed the other side of his head gently, saying softly: “Worry not, Scrivener Blooms. Besides, I know not for how long we shall be gone… which brings me, Pollen, to a point I wish to discuss with thee. I am normally not so trusting of others, but I am unfortunately in an awkward position at this point and time, and Pinkamena and Discombobulation will both require… company, so to speak. Perhaps even a babysitter. And if thou wishes to stay here, thou must be ready to look after them and aid with certain chores.”

As she spoke, Pinkamena floated eerily through the wall and glared balefully down at them, and Scrivener winced a bit as the Velite looked awkwardly up, rubbing slowly at her face and mumbling: “I… really don’t have much of a choice, do I? But how am I supposed to… I mean… no offense…”

Pinkamena grinned like a shark, and the skeleton’s head shrunk back between its shoulders as Luna only rolled her eyes, giving the half-demon Pale a flat look before it sniffed disdainfully and burst apart into black smoke, rushing downwards and making Scrivy wince as he felt the half-demon slipping her way into his mind as her voice muttered: I’ll behave while you’re gone, don’t worry. You don’t need to leave a goddamn babysitter.

“It’s alright, Pollen, Pinkamena is kinder than she seems. Or at least, she listens more than she seems to.” Luna replied mildly, glancing towards Scrivy, and the male grunted and nodded after a moment as he felt the faint, tickling numbness of the half-demon feeding off his mind and memories, of her sampling and dredging through passions, desires, and dreams. He could feel her clearer than before, and knew she was delving deeper, digging with curiosity towards the darker depths of his psyche… and the male couldn’t help but wince a little as she gave a quiet laugh in his head and whispered: Oh, don’t hide the good stuff away. If you and Luna are going to be gone for a while, I need to make sure I’ve eaten plenty to stay strong and healthy… and like I said, I’m in the mood for the chili of the mental world, so gimme some passion, some anger, and burn me alive…

Scrivener mumbled something under his breath, and Pollen looked nervously towards him before Luna shook her head and said quietly: “Worry not. Pinkamena is a half-demon… and to keep her spiritual self alive, she must feed off emotion and memory. It is… uncomfortable… but so long as she keeps herself civilized, she does not warp or destroy as a full demon would. Nor can she possess thee, thou art in no danger there.”

Pollen nodded slowly, and then she sat back as Scrivener looked up, saying softly: “Luna and I are more than willing to let you stay here. This cottage is safe… Luna will charge the magic wards before we leave, and even if Nibelung raiders attack you’ll be able to safely hide out inside and Pinkamena can kill pretty much anything.”

Thank you, Scrivy. See, this is why I like you. You respect me and my talents. Pinkamena said mildly inside his brain, and the earth pony glowered moodily at the ceiling as Luna gave him a flat look, and then the charcoal equine winced as he caught a vision of Pinkamena lounging in her strange little hidey-hole in his mind, grinning as she pieced together a model of a snarling Tyrant Wyrm. I respect you, you know. I admire you even. And I don’t think you should be ashamed of what you have the potential to become, and the destruction you could unleash. Destruction and death are necessary, after all… sissy taught me that. Because if I had only been killing and slaughtering faster, she would have lived a little longer.

She fell moodily silent, and Scrivener’s vision returned to normal as Pollen nervously voiced a question… but both the other ponies only looked at her dumbly before Luna smiled awkwardly and said finally: “Apologies. We were both… distracted for the moment. What was it thou asked?”

“Just about the wagon… you said something before about us helping with it, fixing it up while you were gone?” the skeleton said tentatively, and when Luna nodded and grunted, the Velite rubbed awkwardly at her face. “I really… don’t know all that much about… fixing things…”

“If thou can fix thyself, thou can do this simple task. Once Scrivy and I have rested a little more and finished our planning, we shall return outside and finish the brunt of the work… most of what thou will have to do is paint the composite we have gathered over the gemstones, ‘twill not be a difficult work for thou or Pinkamena because neither of thee will have to take great caution to avoid splattering thyselves with the strange material. Cowlick truly was a genius to have created this…” Luna shook her head, smiling faintly as she murmured softly: “’Tis only too bad that for all the lives I am sure it saved, our enemies proved too great for any shield to deflect, any armor to stop.”

Then she looked up, shaking her head briskly and adding quietly: “But thou shan’t encounter great difficulties, Pollen, worry not. The gemstones are pre-cut, and we have plenty of the adhesive by which to attach them. Pinkamena can attend to the finer details with ease and thou need merely follow her lead, the creature is bizarrely-good with such endeavors.”

Pollen still looked unconvinced, but she sighed and nodded, saying apprehensively: “Alright. It’s not that I’m ungrateful, I just… don’t want to mess up or anything. And I’m kind of worried about this whole… Bifrost business. You keep saying you’re going to have to smash me to pieces…”

“To free thy soul, I must exorcise thy bones and burn the remains… but ‘twill not be for a while yet, worry not about it, and thou will be no less dead – or perhaps I should say alive – than thou art now, just lacking a vessel. Thou will be a Pale… but not for long, if things go as I hope they will.” Luna replied quietly, nodding slowly, and the Velite mumbled a bit as she looked quietly down into the bag of bones. “Rest for now, Pollen. Go about thy business and worry not for us, we have seen and done worse than healed our injuries.”

The skeleton glanced awkwardly up, then smiled a little before nodding silently and looking back down, looking embarrassed as she began to fiddle through the bag of bones, gemstones, and knives… but Scrivy and Luna turned their attention back to the map, the male beginning to work on the itinerary again as Luna traced out routes here and there over the map with her hoof, remarking quietly every now and then on locations they had visited before, or the types of creatures they knew nested or prowled in the area.

Canterlot, for example, had almost entirely collapsed: the city that was left behind was inhabited by Haunts and more hostile, zombie-like brethren, and throughout the Castle lurked worse abominations and miserable souls that cried out for justice, for daylight, for Celestia to save them from the darkness that had consumed the world. They were damned, wretched souls that desired salvation in one form, and one form alone: the coming of the radiant sun, of maternal Celestia, to tuck them in and give them back their precious, selfish, perfect lives.

Not that Luna could entirely blame them all… they didn’t know how perfect life had been at the castle, how easy and good things were until too late… and the worship and almost-servility that was bred into so many of these sycophantic ponies meant they looked up to Celestia as leader, as harbinger of dawn in metaphorical as well as literal ways, as the only thing that could save them… never believing, even now, that she could be dead and gone.

Scrivener Blooms smiled faintly as he tapped the quill quietly against the paper, leaving faint black dots along the margin as he studied the feather silently… then he shook his head and glanced towards Luna as her ephemeral locks swirled slowly backwards, her own cyan eyes sorrowful and a little distant as she murmured: “Aye, but to dwell on it… will serve us no good and no purpose. Let us instead remember that in the future, much of what we have lost will be given back, in one form or another. Let us strive to be thankful, Scrivy… difficult as I know that is for a pessimist such as thou art.”

Scrivy laughed a bit despite himself, shaking his head before he smiled a little. “Alright, alright, Luna, I’ll do my best to, anyway. I’ve just never been very good at that, as you well know yourself. But do you really…”

“There is no time like the present, Scrivy.” Luna replied softly, nodding to him firmly, and Scrivener looked at her thoughtfully as he leaned back in the chair, before the winged unicorn glanced towards Pollen as the skeleton looked embarrassedly up from where she was fitting a new rear leg into place, her old one laying discarded and cracked. “My husband and I have decided that we shall leave likely within twelve hours. More than ample time for he and I to regain what little strength we have spent, to calm ourselves, and to do the major work on the wagon. I am extending an immoderate amount of trust to thee, Pollen, does thou understand? Thou art a Velite and a stranger and all the same, I am leaving thee here in the care of my home, and to care for Pinkamena and Discombobulation. And worry not, ‘tis not betrayal I fear from thee, ‘tis some other terrible screwup.”

“Oh, that. That helps my self-esteem a lot, thank you.” Pollen mumbled, grabbing at her skull, and then she sighed a little and nodded, saying finally: “And I really do honestly appreciate it, Luna. I really honestly really do, you and Scrivy I know are… going out of your way for me, really. But I’m also really, really determined to do the very best I can, and even though I’m worried, I promise you guys I’m not going to mess this up.”

Luna looked moodily at the Velite for a few moments… but then she nodded slowly and said softly: “Then I shall give thee the benefit of the doubt, or at least as much as I can manage. We shall be several days, possibly longer, depending upon how fast we march and what we encounter… but as we make our way back to where the Bifrost can be summoned, with Pales in tow, we shall send a letter to thee giving thee an estimation of our arrival and where to meet us. Thou shalt bring Discombobulation and the loaded wagon… and aye, worry not, we shall load the wagon before we leave.”

Luna paused meditatively, then she looked at the skeleton and said softly: “Finally, not to worry thee… but I know not how a Velite will hold up through the energy surges of the Bifrost. Thou treads the thin line between ‘organic’ and ‘construct…’ and whilst the Pales are energized by these energies, thou art not… not a natural creature. Thou art held together much by ancient magic and ritual… it may be painful for thee to pass over the rainbow bridge. But rest assured, one way or another, thou wilt pass over it, I just do not wish to leave thee with the illusion that ‘twill be a merry path.”

Pollen winced a bit, but she nodded after a moment and rubbed at her head, mumbling to herself before Luna glanced at Scrivy with a small smile, saying quietly: “And now, daydreamer, let us be off to work a little on the wagon and permit the labor to relax us. We should have materials enough to replace the damaged sides of the wagon, and the rest we can scrounge… from here.”

Luna glanced quietly up at the ceiling of their home, and Scrivener smiled faintly: their little cottage, after all, was made mostly of cut and polished ironwood that had withstood the tests of time and the apocalypse itself, thanks not just to magic, but the care and effort they had put into making this place, building from the ground up what had been their home for so many years now. The winged unicorn smiled as well after a moment, however, glancing towards the male and murmuring softly: “Well, ‘tis only right that we bring a little of our home with us, is that not so? We shall tear up the deck, should be more than sufficient to give us the last of what we need and solidify the wagon’s floor… and this reminds me, Pollen, thou must not forget to layer the gemstones over the underbelly of the wagon as well. Every possible inch that can be covered must be covered… with Pinkamena’s help, it should be an easier task than it sounds.”

Pollen, however, only gazed at them softly for a few moments, before the Velite asked finally: “This may sound weird… but what do you two plan to do when you’re… when things are back to normal? I mean, won’t everypony remember… what happened? Won’t we bear memories of our time spent as… Pales and… other things? When you two talk, I dunno, it sounds like… you plan to stay in exile.”

Luna and Scrivener exchanged a quiet look… and then the winged unicorn smiled faintly, meeting the softly-burning eyes of the skeleton and saying gently: “Exile is not a place, Pollen. Exile is a state of being… but those are all questions that can only be answered in the future, although aye, Scrivener Blooms and I make no plans to… move out of the wilds. We have been building a home in Looking Glass Equestria with our own hooves, during our short visits to that world… and as always ‘twas for us, we shall be outside society. ‘Tis where we belong, Pollen. ‘Tis where we must be. And as the blocks fall where they will around us when the future comes, we shall find our place, whether it is to take the blame for Ragnarok, to serve as protectors of the world, or to allow the new lives of the ponies of Equestria to replace the old entirely.”

She fell silent, and Pollen looked quietly from Scrivener to Luna before the two ponies smiled at each other, silently taking one-another’s hoof for a moment as their eyes met, and Scrivener said softly: “But it's not so bad… because at the end of the day, Pollen, Luna and I always have each other. And no matter what, that makes even living the life of an exile, of the forsaken, even of the forgotten… it makes it okay.”

The Velite looked at them quietly as she rested back, obviously not knowing what to say… but Luna and Scrivy spared her the trouble, both smiling to her before they headed down the corridor and towards the front door, calm and peaceful despite the uncertainties of the future and the pilgrimage to the cold north they were about to embark upon.

Setting Out

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Chapter Nine: Setting Out
~BlackRoseRaven

“That’s the last of it.” Scrivener glanced over his shoulder towards Luna as he carefully fitted a painting wrapped in several layers of thick cloth into the back of the repaired wagon: they had simply gutted the interior and broken down much of the frame to replace it with the squat, rectangular body that now made it up. It was smaller and left them less room, but Luna and Scrivener had long ago figured out the short list of things they wanted to bring with them to Looking Glass World when the time came for it, and they had few possessions that were irreplaceable that hadn’t already been moved.

As it was, the ironwood-fortified wagon would likely make it across the Bifrost. The heavy-duty Pegasus Guard wagons they had found in the ruins of Canterlot, after all, usually lasted two, even three trips back and forth before the armored wagons became so brittle that a simple knock against them would cause their surfaces to crack apart like cheap porcelain. But neither of them wanted to take the chance that the ironwood could be eaten through, letting enough of the powerful energies of the Bifrost into the interior of the carriage that these few material possessions that held such meaning to them would be destroyed.

The paintings of Scrivener Blooms, Twilight Sparkle, Scarlet Sage and others, books and sketchbooks and notepads, an odd collection of quills and fancy ink jars and a few other odds and ends; these were all things that had been packed into the back of the wagon, all of it wrapped in thick cloth and often insulated further by pillows and cushions. Then Scrivener grimaced a bit as he stepped back, rolling his shoulders absently in his armor… and he smiled despite himself at the way it clung to his frame, at how natural it felt now over his body as he looked towards Luna and said softly: “I remember when I used to complain about this.”

“Thou still complains about it, Scrivy. Thou complains about everything, ‘tis what thou does.” Luna replied with a slight smile, drawing her eyes over him slowly, all the same proud of the way he moved so naturally now in his armor after so many years of learning to stand and fight alongside the winged unicorn. “But thou looks good… if I may say so with perhaps only a touch of pride and self-satisfaction.”

Scrivener smiled amusedly at her as he leaned back and posed for a moment: only the heavy helm protecting his head, engraved with the emblem of the ash tree, hadn’t been forged by Luna. The rest, from the silver pauldrons that armored his shoulders, engraved with the crescent moon, to the black breastplate over his body, silvery chain mesh along his hindquarters and legs, and the supple dark leather that acted as cushioning between metal and flesh, had all been shaped and pieced together by the powers of the winged unicorn. “You, immodest? Never.”

“Thou art a braggart and a fool.” Luna smiled amusedly all the same, however, and then she stepped back and rose to her full height, spreading her wings slightly as she rose her head imperiously. “And ‘tis done like this, Scrivener Blooms. Thou must be bold!”

Scrivy laughed as she posed, but he drew his eyes admiringly along her body all the same: she was clothed in armor just a tad lighter blue than her body, her helm designed to cradle her tall, spired horn, the layered plates of metal over the thick dragon-scale leather that tightly clothed her body spaced so that her wings could comfortably rest through the slots in the armor. She was beautiful, powerful, alluring… and Scrivener’s gaze was both adoring and tender as he drew his eyes along the front of her armor, where she had etched both lunar symbols and a tangle of dark roses, the engraving almost glowing black.

Then Luna leaned forwards with a soft smile as she relaxed, reaching a hoof up and quietly adjusting the new pair of glasses on Scrivener’s face, making the male snort in entertainment. “Don’t do that, Luna. It’s bad enough you insist on recreating them and shoving them on my face every time I lose a pair… I don’t need your hoof-prints all over them too. Also, you have a very bad habit of sticking things in my eye.”

“Thou has pretty eyes. Like a mare’s. ‘Tis only the natural course that something should end up being poked into them by their own gravid magnetism.” Luna retorted, and Scrivener looked at her blankly, not knowing how to take this statement even with the link they shared. Then Luna huffed and swung a hoof at him, and Scrivy winced as he blocked this with a foreleg before stepping quickly out of range when she attempted to swat him again. “Frustrating creature.”

“One day, Luna, you’ll be normal. And that will be both a very boring and very happy day, even if I’m sure that the day after you’ll be back to your usual insanity.” Scrivener said dryly, and Luna rolled her eyes before the two stepped forwards and headbutted one-another lightly, then the male reached up and gently stroked a hoof across her armored breast, the engraved patterning glowing faintly as he felt not only it, but secreted beneath the armor, the black pearl that Luna wore over her heart.

She softened as she drew her eyes over him… and then both winged unicorn and earth pony glanced towards the deconstructed patio, where Pollen and puppet-bodied Pinkamena were pulling up the last of the ironwood boards that made up the front of their cabin. They were working efficiently, Pollen covered in dirt and Pinkamena grumbling as she roughly yanked boards loose, but then piled them neatly and precisely, every now and then straightening out the stack she had formed off to one side.

Pollen, meanwhile, simply tossed the boards aside into a messy heap, and Pinkamena twitched slightly at the clank of every wooden slat against the others, making Scrivener smile despite himself as Luna said mildly: “Children, thine parents are about to leave. Will thou not take a moment from the fun and games to bid us farewell?”

“Fine, if you insist, mother.” Pinkamena rolled her head on her shoulders, sounding exasperated as she stood up and then glared over at them with her gemstone eyes, the look remarkably distinct even with her marionette features. “Gee, I sure will miss you and dad while you’re out destroying the world and reaping the souls of the dead. Don’t worry though, I’ll take care of the pet rock and the bottled-up bug, I won’t eat or kill either one of them… I’ll try and restrict myself to just maybe breaking a few bones here and there.”

She shot a look towards the Velite, who winced a bit and held a board up between them like a shield, and Luna sighed and rolled her eyes before her horn glowed blue as she irritably flicked it to the side, Pinkamena wincing as several screws and bolts loudly tore themselves out of her body before two of her limbs fell off and the puppet crumpled on its side with a grumbled curse. “Thou art not nearly as amusing as myself or Scrivener Blooms, Pinkamena. The color of jealousy does not lend itself in flattering ways to thy dead visage.”

“So I should just stick with the colors of blood and death, then?” Pinkamena asked sarcastically as she half-rolled onto her stomach with a grumble, reaching out to begin fitting one foreleg back into place as she muttered: “Stupid touchy Nightmare Moon…”

“I’ll touch thee back into the grave.” Luna grumbled in return, and then she sighed and turned her attention to the Velite, adding dryly: “Worry not, Pollen, Pinkamena will grow more amiable as time passes, I am certain. Thou should be thankful and wary of the fact the creature likes to stick to its word.”

The Velite mumbled a little in response to this, then awkwardly reached out as if to help, but Pinkamena only glared at her as she managed to yank a foreleg back into place, the possessed marionette grumbling as the fasteners that held her limb in place twisted themselves slowly back into their holes. “I want you to know you’re all worse than sissy ever was.”

“Worry not, Pinkamena, ‘tis exactly what I always intended.” Luna replied dryly, and then her horn glowed when the possessed puppet reached for a bolt that had torn loose, tossing it easily just out of reach, and the half-demon grumbled under her breath. “Well. This has been a rousing sendoff. Scrivener Blooms?”

Scrivy smiled a bit he headed over to the satchel bag they had prepared for the journey, filled with a few implements to aid with Luna’s more-complex magic, parchment and ink and a quill, a few good luck charms and several other odds and ends. The weight was almost comfortable as Scrivener slipped it on, and Luna smiled after a moment at him before she glanced towards Pinkamena and Pollen, the puppet sitting grudgingly up on its haunches, the Velite standing and leaning towards them half-anxiously. “Worry not, friends, we shall return as soon as we are able. Finish the fortifications of the wagon, listen to one another, and take care of Discombobulation.”

“Yeah, yeah, get going.” Pinkamena said rudely, and the two ponies rolled their eyes as the skeleton sitting beside the puppet mumbled awkwardly, but this only made the possessed marionette snort and glare at her. “Fine, pet rock, go ahead and spit it out.”

Pollen shuffled a bit, then rose a hoof and said lamely: “Good luck and… I hope things go well. We’ll… be here.”

“One of us will be, at least.” Pinkamena said grouchily, and Scrivener and Luna traded looks, then both sighed at the same time before favoring the puppet with the same flat glare, the possessed marionette grumbling a bit as it flopped backwards. “Whatever. I’m out.”

Despite her words, however, the puppet only moodily sat… and Scrivener rolled his eyes as Luna gave a sigh and turned around, saying irritably: “Come then, Scrivy. Before this grows any more theatrical, ‘tis time for the march ahead. Perhaps we shall encounter some stupid Nibelung on the way that shall alleviate my sorrows and frustrations.”

The two ponies turned as Pollen waved awkwardly at their back and Pinkamena grumbled to herself, and winged unicorn and earth pony both strode across the heavy planks they had laid over the ditch to pull the wagon across, stepping out onto the dusty path through the Empty Forest beyond. And as always, both glanced quietly back over their shoulders once, looking at their ramshackle cabin and the mostly-repaired wagon that stood in front of it, Velite and half-demon both gazing at them still from the ruins of the pulled-apart deck.

Then the two turned forwards again, and Luna smiled a little despite herself as she murmured softly: “We walked this very same path so long ago, Scrivy… I remember so clearly, daydreamer, how much hope we had. The tension, the excitement…”

Scrivener laughed a bit, lowering his head forwards as he said quietly: “Sounds like you remember a little differently than I remember, Luna… I remember a lot of whining and complaining. Mostly from me, of course, but you did a little yourself.”

“Aye, perhaps there was that too, but I also remember that in our depths, there was a gladness for the journey… and we did discover so much, didn’t we? We found my past, my origin… we made new allies, and new friends. We conquered old enemies and ourselves, and we clawed through the worst of evils that the universe could throw at us and still found a measure of success. Even if we failed too, aye… we all the same also found our shades of victory amidst the grimness and the gloom.” Luna hesitated, looking towards Scrivy and murmuring softly: “And I am excited for this journey, even if part of me is saddened that reality has become so damaged, that… our time here is almost over, and we have saved so few lives compared to all that was lost.”

“Yes, Luna, but we are saving everypony we can… all the same, we’re pushing forwards. We can’t let despair and the disappointment of… what happened, and in ourselves, overwhelm us.” Scrivener replied quietly, glancing towards Luna, and the female smiled faintly as she nodded slowly. “Now come on. Let’s go back to you trying vainly to be optimistic and me being pessimistic. Everything works a lot better that way.”

“I am attempting to be optimistic, does thou not listen to the words I so speak?” Luna asked grouchily, and Scrivener snorted in entertainment as he shook his head with an amused look to her. “Silence, knave. Wretched creature, thou art utterly insufferable. ‘Tis fortunate I am so fond of thee, ‘lest otherwise I would be tempted to leave thee in the middle of the forest for the Phooka to gorge on.”

“Now, you and I both know that the Phooka have better things to eat than us.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna grunted at this and nodded thoughtfully. They both studied each other for a few moments as silence fell between them, sharing thoughts and images and emotions that seemed almost random… and then they both faced ahead even as they slipped instinctively closer at the same time, sides almost pressing together as they strode quietly and calmly past dead, warped trees along rocky, barren earth.

For an hour, they walked in silence… and then both of them looked up as an unearthly shadow flitted across the path in front of them before it halted near the edge of the forest. They both halted, studying this with curiosity as it stared back at them… and despite the strangeness of it, neither of them felt malice or aggression.

It was like a Pale, but instead of white and surrounded by sparkling, incandescent frost, it was deep black, smoke humming softly around it. Its eyes glowed solid ivory, blank and bright and yet not without a sense of intelligence, of emotion that made their rhombus-like shape twist as the large, pony-shaped figure leaned towards them almost expectantly for a moment, pawing a hoof against the ground… and Luna growled at it as she leaned back irritably, asking sharply: “Is that a challenge, creature? Well, I am sorry to disappoint thee, but I have not the time to have another race through the wilderness. My husband and I are heading northwards… thou will have to find other playmates.”

The dark equine spirit looked almost disappointed as it shifted in place silently, then it half-turned and whinnied loudly, and a moment later several more dark spirits rushed across the road, seeming to form from thin air as the creature turned and shot into the woods alongside the rest of the group, and Luna shook her head as she muttered: “Strange creatures…”

The pack of dark equines vanished as quickly as they had appeared, and Scrivener and Luna traded a look before they started forwards again, the winged unicorn almost sulking as the male gave her a slight smile, saying mildly: “That was a very grown-up-”

“Shut up, Scrivy.” Luna grumbled, and the male couldn’t help but throw his head back and laugh, and Luna sighed before complaining loudly: “Well, ‘tis incredibly irksome, they are… I know not even what they are! Strange entities, not Nightmare, not Phooka, not demons despite their odd and peculiarly-similar appearances, but they are more physical than the Pales of ponies yet all the same seem perfectly capable of vanishing as they please and move like the fleeting wind! And did thou not see what the creature did? It taunted us! Taunted us! And plainly, we are in no shape for any challenge… ‘tis cowardly. That thing, whatever else, is a craven coward, asking for… another foolish race when… when we are obviously too busy for another foolish race. Foolishness.”

“I love you.” Scrivener said simply, and Luna huffed and headbutted him lightly, making the male snort in entertainment before he added mildly: “Also, you need to stop being so damned competitive about everything. We’re living the apocalypse, and your immediate concern every time we see those things goes from ‘we need to continue herding souls to Looking Glass World’ to ‘oh stupid ghosts I’m going to outrace the stupid ghosts and pummel them.’”

“I shall pummel thee if thou continues this.” Luna grumbled moodily, and Scrivener laughed and shook his head, then frowned a bit as he caught a glint in the corner of his glasses… and immediately Luna shot a look over her shoulder as the two halted, staring in surprise to see one of the dark specters calmly standing in the road behind them, surveying them curiously. “And what manner of nonsense is this?”

It only continued to calmly look at them, however, and Scrivener and Luna both frowned a bit as they turned slowly around, studying it. It was closer than any of them had ever stood before, watching them without fear, and without malign intent… and this close, they could see it closely resembled an earth pony. But the build was a little different somehow all the same, subtle details that they could see but could not define… and then the creature calmly stepped towards them before bringing a hoof forwards through the dirt and scratching out an image in rapid, easy movements.

The two frowned and stared at the picture it drew for them: two circles, with an arch drawn between them. Then it leaned to the side and drew a quick X through one of the circles, and Scrivener and Luna traded looks before the dark shape patted this circle, then drew its hoof along the archway to the next and tapped it firmly.

Luna and Scrivener looked up at the dark ghost… then they looked at one-another, trading thoughts, ideas, emotions and reasoning in a tumult and immediately settling on one distinct possibility before they both returned their gazes towards the creature, Luna asking slowly: “Thou… perhaps thy whole strange herd… wishes to travel across the Bifrost?”

The thing nodded solemnly… and then, surprisingly, it bowed deep to them… but before Luna or Scrivy could speak, the specter simply vanished from sight, and the two stared at the space it had once occupied before Luna gritted her teeth, then blew a loud raspberry in disgust. “I am not a… a butler, or a… chauffeur between worlds, creature! Thou cannot just order me to do this for thee and then… damnable creature!”

Luna stomped forwards and mashed her hooves violently against the drawing, bludgeoning it into an indecipherable mess, and then she sighed and turned around, saying moodily: “Come, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Lest the creature be foolish enough to show its face and we end up losing more time thanks to my need to pummel it roundly.”

Scrivy smiled awkwardly as he turned and followed her, even as he felt beneath the anger her swirl of apprehension, mixing with his own suspicious thoughts. After all, they still didn’t know what these entities were, nor what it meant that the creature had seemingly asked to cross the Bifrost to the Looking Glass World. It was more questions, more weight, added to the unpredictable future… and neither pony liked the thought of the possibilities that could be laying in wait.

Scrivener Blooms grumbled under his breath as Luna tinkered with his armor, sliding plates back and opening sleeves in the mesh, leaving two almond-shaped openings revealed on his upper back before she said kindly: “Now relax.”

“I hate flying.” Scrivy muttered… and then he winced as Luna flicked her horn with a grin, and the male arched his back slightly, his body glowing as dark skin pushed outwards, then expanded and spread into large, leathery bat-like wings that flapped once at either side of the male as he wheezed and leaned forwards, saying grouchily: “I really hate how much you enjoy giving me wings, by the way. Both the fact that it stings like hell, especially as my muscles have to limber up and my whole body has to get used to having them every freaking time, and even worse, how much you enjoy dragging me into the air with you.”

Luna only grinned, however, and she gestured calmly at the tundra around them, which was speckled with cold, icy frost, the jagged peaks that surrounded the ruins of Canterlot in the distance. “Well, what would thou prefer, Scrivener Blooms? An extended march through demon-infested territory, or a quick, sharp flight that shall hopefully permit us to avoid the worst of the atrocities and simply wing past those few monsters that den in the sky?”

“I also don’t like you.” Scrivener said finally, and Luna laughed as she shook her head, then watched with a warm smile as the male flapped his wings moodily a few times. “Tyrant Wyrms don’t have wings.”

“Oh, stop it, Scrivy. Now thou art just being miserable for the sake of misery.” Luna scoffed, and then she leaned over and kissed his cheek gently, adding softly: “Now come, handsome daydreamer. Let us take wing.”

Scrivener shuffled for a moment on his hooves, then he leaned forwards with a grimace as he flapped his wings again, taking an easy breath as he felt his body adjusting, muscles that were both new and old flexing slowly and limbering up before he nodded and glanced towards her with a dry smile. “Alright. Weird, though… I almost want to run into The Stampede now and let off some steam.”

“Thou art becoming far too much like me. Except thou always were a jerk, as thou likes to say.” Luna replied mildly, and Scrivener laughed despite himself as he shook his head slowly before the two turned forwards, flapping their wings once in synchronicity before they both broke into a short sprint, then leapt into the air, taking flight in graceful time before Luna pulled slightly ahead, smiling slightly as Scrivener fell back behind her.

They sped over the ground, keeping themselves moving low to avoid attracting the attention of any beasts that might lurk in the moody clouds of the crimson-stained sky. As they flew, Luna bowed her head forwards, smiling faintly as the air whistled past her and she breathed slowly in and out, bittersweet feelings rolling through her body. Flying reminded her all too much of being distant from the earth, of being up, locked away in the ivory sphere of the moon… and she shook her head silently to herself as her mane sparkled and twisted out behind her before she glanced over one shoulder with a small smile, watching as Scrivener Blooms flew behind her with much less grace, bobbing a bit in the air as he all the same worked to keep pace a few meters back.

The male smiled back at her supportively, his own dislike of heights and flying pushed aside to encourage her… and she faced back ahead with a faint blush kept hidden by the wind whipping against her face, murmuring softly to herself: “Foolish, obnoxious, ridiculous… loyal… poet…”

She laughed despite herself, then arched her body slightly to sail higher, and Scrivy followed as their thoughts swirled together, his body guided by her own movements. And as they flew together, the discomfort slowly peeled away… until finally, they were again only aware of the fact they were together, traveling, on a journey to the north as they shared thoughts and images and words, their minds working as one as they flew tirelessly for hours.

They only had one close call: a snarling dragon raged at them as they passed, feral and foaming at the mouth, lunging to the air and clumsily flying after them with a ripped, wounded wing as it clawed madly at the air and spat streams of fire in their direction… but Luna and Scrivener were too fast, easily outdistancing the beast as it limped through the broken sky, and it had dropped back down on top of another peak to roar angrily at them before turning around and trudging back to its aerie. Luna had blown a raspberry at it childishly, but thankfully she hadn’t gone back to kill the pathetic beast… dragons could survive in this hell-encrusted world, but from eating the gemstones that often became tainted with the poisons that seeped through the earth and appeasing the rest of their hunger by gobbling down Nibelung and demons, they rapidly degraded from intelligent creatures to rabid animals.

Scrivener Blooms and Luna pushed onwards, bypassing Canterlot, going over the wretched remains of Pegasus Point as sunken cloud houses that had once belonged to Pegasi floated listlessly in pieces that still hadn’t yet dissolved. They flew, not stopping as the hours passed, even as their muscles began to ache, passing next over the once-bustling metropolis of Hosston, remembering their short and uncomfortable journey through a city that was now nothing more than a necropolis covered by crystalline ice, a den of Haunts and monsters with hearts colder than the snow they lived in.

The two finally came to a halt at the edge of the Northedge Strait: an immense, frozen river that had once been crossed by the largest bridge in Equestria, but Charger’s Crossing had long collapsed into ruin, the ancient stonework of an unknown civilization lost forever. Scrivy and Luna quietly gazed towards where part of the pass rested, half-frozen over and covered in snow, like bones that were trying to defy winter’s grasp. For a few moments, the two studied these remains silently, their wings furling against their bodies… before Luna smiled a bit, saying quietly: “Our time thus far has been excellent. We have pushed hard and fast… let us break for a short while to recover our strength. Thou brought us a meal, yes?”

“Of course.” Scrivener smiled over at her as they both stood on icy tundra… and yet despite the snow and frost-covered rock beneath their hooves, all the same, the air wasn’t cold. There was even a hint of warmth… although it felt ominous as it often did, as the two cleared some of the snow away and then sat down to rest before the male dug out several wrapped pieces of fish.

Luna flicked her horn, and blue flames burst up in front of them, melting away snow and ice around them… and Scrivener gave her an amused look before he rolled his eyes as Luna grinned, lifting the pieces of fish from his hooves with telekinesis and passing them into the flames. The paper didn’t burn, however, even as steam began to rise up from the food, making Scrivy shake his head and remark dryly: “You need to stop abusing your powers.”

“I do not desire to eat cold fish, Scrivener Blooms. Besides, ‘tis what my powers are there for. To abuse, and to be abused.” Luna replied kindly, and then she flicked her horn, and the blue flames whiffed out before one wrapped packet floated to Scrivy and the other hovered its way to her own hooves, the female ripping the paper off the top and then taking a quick bite.

She chewed meditatively as Scrivener only looked down at his quietly… and Luna’s gaze softened as she looked over at him, inviting quietly: “Go ahead, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Tis good. There is no reason for thou to be so shy, none at all… merely eat and enjoy.”

“I’m not shy, I’m… worried.” Scrivener admittedly finally, even as he unwrapped his own fish. He had salted it and treated it with spices, and when he bit into it, it was warm and succulent, the male chewing slowly, relishing the taste… but grimacing all the same as he swallowed and said quietly: “It’s not natural, Luna. We’re supposed to eat apples, and hay, and green leafy things. And now? Now we eat meat, and fish, and other living things. We’re… predators, not just prey.”

“Thou art worrying too much again.” Luna said softly, and she slipped herself a little closer to him, her mane softly swaying outwards to tickle against his side as she leaned towards him and smiled a bit. “The food is good. And thou can handle it, at least in small amounts… too much, and even we get sick, after all. And is that not a good sign, Scrivener Blooms? That aye, we may eat of other living things… we may even enjoy it, when properly prepared. But Scrivy, all the same, to eat too much will make us ill, perhaps even kill us. Just as we may both enjoy battle on some deep dark level… but know that too much of it… will result in our demise.”

She quieted, looking down… then she took another bite of her fish, and the two ate for a little while in quiet before Scrivener glanced up and said finally: “Your metaphor was a lot better before you tried to tag on that comparison at the end of it.”

“Beetle.” Luna muttered, and she hit him firmly in the shoulder, the male smiling a bit as he swayed to the side before she sighed a little and rolled her eyes, adding moodily: “One day thou shalt push too far, Scrivener Blooms, and I shall turn thee into soup.”

“You’re soup.” Scrivener nudged her firmly, but Luna only laughed and shook her head at this, giving him an entertained and exasperated look. Scrivy smiled back as he tossed the last piece of his fish into his mouth, and then he laughed a bit and held up a hoof when Luna offered the last quarter of hers. “No, you need to keep up your strength too.”

“Aye, but thou art hungrier, and I am the tougher one here. ‘Tis my responsibility to take care of thee.” Luna retorted, and she shoved the fish at him, Scrivener wincing as he took it before she winked and leaned forwards, kissing his nose gently. “Eat up.”

Scrivener grumbled at her, but he smiled all the same as he ate, and Luna nodded firmly as she stood up and stretched her wings out, gazing northwards as she became more serious and said quietly: “The weather will grow more chaotic the further we push… and I think we had best rest for a time in North Neigh, much as I… dislike the idea.”

The earth pony grimaced a bit, his leathery wings twitching as he leaned back… but then only sighed and nodded slowly, muttering: “I suppose you’re right, it’s just… going to suck, though, yeah. But if you were serious about pushing as deep as the Black Baroque…”

“I have second thoughts about it, aye. Many second thoughts… but all the same, I was serious, Scrivener Blooms, and I believe that… it is the best course of action.” Luna hesitated all the same, however, grimacing visibly as she rubbed slowly at her face with a hoof and grumbled: “Terrible, awful place that it is, filled with… bad memories and worse designs and like-as-not monsters, but… there may be many souls there. We shall den in the very heart of inequity in North Neigh, to recover our strength when we reach that accursed place… then we push to the Black Baroque, and from there, drag free as many souls from the clutches of Helheim itself that we can.”

“You’re so poetic. And epic. You really missed your calling, Luna, all that exaggeration and pride would have made you a better poet than Buck Kiskaddon. Rancher, poet, interesting hard worker type.” Scrivener smiled slightly, glancing over at her as he tossed the empty wrapper of paper away and said softly: “But as I’ve learned, the best poets are the ones who just… do it.”

“Writers. Thou art all a strange breed of creature.” Luna replied dryly, and Scrivener nodded agreeably to her before he smiled a bit as the winged unicorn’s horn glowed, lifting the saddle bag back onto him and strapping it firmly into place. “In any event, Scrivener Blooms, let us be on our way again. We shall fly across the strait whilst the weather looks hospitable enough, then take another short break and judge the terrain ahead. Let us avoid Snow Saddle and as much of the Barrens as possible, however… those wastes were a terrible enough place in life, I cannot imagine what they must have crumbled and transformed into now that the world has plunged into such darkness.”

Scrivener nodded after a moment at this in agreement, and then he grimaced a bit and stretched, asking mildly: “Is it really such a good idea to fly on a full stomach?”

“Thy stomach is far from full, glutton, I have seen thee eat ten times as much as that and still complain that thou art hungry.” Luna retorted, and Scrivener rolled his eyes before she winked at him. “Fear not, Scrivy. I shan’t force thee to do too many barrel rolls.”

“Wonderful.” Scrivener muttered… and then he sighed as Luna ran forwards and leapt into the air, flapping his own wings a few times before leaping forwards to take off and fly after her, calling loudly to her back: “If I throw up, you’ll feel it too, remember!”

Luna only laughed at this, however, shaking her head as she flew onwards, grinning… but after only a few minutes, the two were flying with Luna in the lead and Scrivener following close enough behind that her starry tail kept brushing against his face, his eyes mostly-shut as they concentrated on one another and powerful winds whipped past, knocking both of them off course every so often even as Luna’s horn glowed and her mane sizzled around her, cursing as she guided them more by magic than sight as the wind painfully whipped against her body and face.

Beneath them, to make matters worse, the ice was surging and transforming, twisting like it was alive and sending sharp, jutting spears and blades of frost clawing upwards, like the river had become sentient and predatory, like it was trying to stretch upwards and bite hungrily at the ponies as they passed.

They cursed as they forced forwards, the bitter wind ripping and gouging past them as the two shoved fiercely through the onslaught of the gale… and after almost an hour, the windstorm finally ended as the other side of the strait finally came into sight, the two breathing hard and beginning to descend as the ice crackled and settled loudly over the surface of the river as if it too had given up on trying to snare the ponies above as prey.

Large pieces of enormous stone bridge lay here and there amidst the ice, including a pillar that had been shoved upwards and stood like a tower frozen forever in mid-plummet, leaning with strange malevolence towards the shoreline. And beyond, the land was veiled in frost, sharp black rocks jutting here and there like thorns pushing through a skin of pale, dead ivory, the only other color coming from dark smoke that rumbled slowly upwards towards the sky over the horizon.

Luna and Scrivener Blooms both flew in low and slow, settling hesitantly on the frosted plains: the snow beneath their hooves was packed and solid, a thin veil over frozen land. For a few moments, the two only stood, surveying the land slowly… and then Luna grimaced and set herself as they heard snarls in the distance, Scrivener looking up with a mutter of: “Well, wonderful.”

A howl rose up… and four dark shapes raced forwards over the tundra, their heads wolf-like skulls, their bodies semisolid, flowing and boiling like viscous liquid over bones of white ice. Terrible, sickening light burned out of their sockets as their clawed paws ripped against the ground, another one howling eagerly as the pack of four Hellhounds rushed towards the ponies: animalistic demons of Helheim, vicious and savage predators that possessed awful guile for all their bestial terror.

Blue, visible organs pulsed beneath the bony cages of their open chests, misty cold smoldering off the monsters as they shot eagerly towards them, moving with uncanny speed as the pack of monsters smoothly moved into a line formation to attempt to flank the ponies from either side… and then Luna snarled as she flicked her horn to the side, a wall of blue flames erupting from the earth between them, and the Hellhounds skidded to a halt with barks, snarls and yelps as Luna said disgustedly: “And to think, once upon a time I wanted a Hellhound for a pet.”

With that, Luna cracked her neck before she and Scrivener both stepped quickly backwards and anchored themselves into place as the Hellhounds roared, the four creatures breathing out a terrible pall of white and blue mist that froze the burning flames solid before two lunged eagerly forwards, shattering through the barrier of now-frost with snarls… but Luna only grinned widely, her eyes flashing as she leapt forwards to meet one with a fierce headbutt, knocking it flat into a stunned heap before she shattered its skull with a savage stomp of her hoof, and the now-headless demon squealed from its throat and skittered backwards.

The other attempted to leap at Luna’s exposed side, but Scrivener tackled it and slammed it down with a grunt before he smashed his hooves down, shattering its ribcage and crushing the bluish organs inside, the monster howling miserably as it clawed wildly at him before shoving itself backwards through the snow. Scrivy began to lean forwards, but then he caught a sharp warning that flashed into his mind from Luna before he instead leapt back, and a Hellhound crashed and skidded over the ground where he had been a moment before.

Luna snapped her horn downwards, sending a blast of blue flame rocketing into the Hellhound that had just missed Scrivener, and it was blown backwards in a torrent of sapphire fire before the creature shrieked, and then exploded into bony shrapnel in a gush of black smoke and icy fog. And, without a pause, the winged unicorn easily half-turned and lashed her horn across the chest of the last Hellhound when it tried to pounce on her, wincing as one of its claws ripped against her face in a lucky swipe that tore a deep enough wound for scratches to form over Scrivy’s own features, but the demon dog was thrown backwards, and it spasmed in the snow with a yelp before it flopped over and hurriedly scuttled away.

The other two Hellhounds turned to follow it, the headless beast staggering drunkenly as it tried to follow after the other two wounded creatures. Luna glared after them as they fled, ignoring the slashes on her face as she leaned forwards and shouted at their retreating hindquarters: “Foul cowards! Run away then, like the mangy curs thou art!”

“Yes, Luna, antagonize the pack of Hellhounds.” Scrivener said dryly, and Luna glared at him before the male stepped towards her and gently kissed her cut-open cheek, making her flush a bit as he tasted her blood, and ice, and the barest hint of sulfur. “Sit down and close your eyes, I’ll help you heal that.”

“I… thou art… fine.” Luna mumbled embarrassedly, and Scrivener smiled as she dropped back on her haunches with a huff, grumbling: “All the same, ‘tis ridiculous. Utterly, stupidly, grandly ridiculous. Stupid overgrown demon dogs…”

She closed her eyes as she continued to grumble, and Scrivy leaned forwards, concentrating on her wound and on their link, Luna’s eyes fluttering a bit as she bowed her head forwards… and then she smiled faintly as her horn glowed brighter, falling quiet as the wounds took on the same aura and slowly healed as Scrivener Blooms focused her powers for her using his own concentration and energy. Healing wounds that couldn’t be seen otherwise could be tricky… putting too much energy and effort into using magic to knit a wound back together could leave a large scar or other nasty side effect.

As the cuts on Luna’s face closed, the shallow scratches over Scrivener’s became smaller, not vanishing entirely but going from bleeding lines to shallow grooves, and he sat back after a moment with a grunt and a nod. Luna turned her gaze back towards him, smiling softly, and Scrivener Blooms smiled back after a moment, tilting his head curiously… but she only laughed a bit and shook her head, saying softly: “It always calms me, for some reason, when thou uses my magic. ‘Tis strange, is it not? But many things about us are strange, aye… and I would not change any of it for the world, not one bit. We are wonderful like that, Scrivy. Wonderful and weird and… I love thee.”

“I love you too, Luna.” Scrivener said softly, emotions passing back and forth in a soft swirl between the two, and then they pushed their foreheads together for a moment, eyes sliding closed as Luna’s mane swirled around her and her horn gave a faint pulse.

They relaxed as the last of the adrenaline brought on from the skirmish left their bodies… and then they both straightened and breathed deeply, Luna gazing over him affectionately before she said quietly: “The Hellhounds will not return. Furthermore, sent running injured as they were, they will attract the interest of any other predators in the area that may be looking for easy prey. Let us walk a little further inland, and then we shall stop to rest again… I do not wish to linger here. Charger’s Crossing… I can only ever see it now as a bad memory.”

Scrivener nodded after a moment, and the two quietly made their way forwards, striding over the hard snow and studying the tracks they came across every so often, the two quiet and contemplative as they shared memories and reassurances and worries. Luna’s mane swayed backwards, sizzling softly, and Scrivener rolled his head on his shoulders, adjusting his glasses absently as he murmured quietly: “I’m worried that the memories are only going to get worse as we push further in, Luna. For both of us. And we’ll need to be in good form for what’s ahead.”

Luna couldn’t help but smile faintly at this, nodding slowly as she studied him for a few moments. “’Tis true, Scrivy, but… I also believe that we will be kept too busy facing other fears for even the most powerful and terrible of memories to sink their claws too deeply into us. There is much to do, after all… much to see, much to concern ourselves with. And perhaps another good fight or two, to keep our spirits high.”

Scrivener smiled despite himself as they walked quietly onwards, striding northbound along a road that no longer existed, heading to the ruins of a town that they had saved from one evil, only for another to bring about Ragnarok. They had done good, for ponies who hadn’t all deserved it… but despite the childish part of him that wished they had done things differently, that wished they had ignored the letter and somehow made everything work out okay even if it meant North Neigh would have been razed to the ground… part of Scrivener felt proud of the fact that he and Luna together had overcome their own worries, their own rationalizations, and their own selfish urges to help out the ponies of the bitter hometown he had grown up in.

Even if Ragnarok had still come, after all… they had saved innocent lives, even if the delay had only been for a day. And Scrivener smiled a bit as he and Luna shared a look before she said softly: “Sometimes, thou art so pessimistic thou transforms into the most indulgent, frustrating, annoying optimist there is, beetle. ‘Tis difficult to keep up with at times, foul creature. Why must thou be so… wonderful and terrible, and in the same breath?”

“Beetles are often flesh-eating.” Scrivy remarked mildly, and Luna laughed and shook her head before she checked him firmly, and the male smiled, staggering a bit but then firmly checking her back, making Luna grin as she stumbled and her eyes glinted with mischief. “Besides, you know me. I like being predictably-unpredictable at times. Although mostly I blame the fact that we’re soul-bound so I get force-fed all your emotions, whether I like it or not. It’s really all your fault, Luna.”

“True, most things are, especially when it comes to thee.” Luna nodded agreeably, drawing her eyes over him with entertainment. “Foolish daydreamer.”

“Arrogant Nightmare Moon.” Scrivener replied, and they traded a smile before they both turned forwards, gazing over the barren tundra and continuing onwards. As they walked, a quiet snow began to fall as dark clouds swirled slowly in the skies above, moving in strange, spiraling patterns in spite of the fact they could feel no wind… and yet it was almost welcome, blocking out the marred red-and-violet sky, darkening the world… but their eyes were used to darkness, and it was comfortable as they marched onwards, unhurried.

The thought of stopping to rest was forgotten as they continued the quiet walk: suddenly, the world around them was peaceful, and the two reveled in it, feeling almost more as if they were out on a comfortable stroll than on a rapid march to the far north. Above, the skies were a turbulent sea of writhing silver and gray cloud, and around them was nothing but devastated tundra with the occasional mutant, blackened tree here or there amongst the rocks… but all the same, there was an eerie, indescribable beauty to the corrupted world that the two felt in their strange mixed soul more than they saw with their eyes.

They walked quietly, taking their time, enjoying the scenery and the rare, odd feeling of serenity, letting it last. It felt like a good omen, more than anything else, and the two relished the peace it brought… the idea that maybe, just maybe, everything really was going to work out alright, and it wasn’t just words they both mouthed to make themselves feel better but doubted in their heart of hearts. And then the two traded a soft look, feeling tingles running through their minds as they gazed at each other, catching the same thought at the same time: it wasn’t that they doubted things would work out… only that they could make things work out for all the ponies who deserved it more than they did themselves.

Scrivener and Luna smiled faintly at each other, halting in the snow amidst a small grove of twisted and charred trees, and the two studied one another before Luna said softly: “Incredible, Scrivy. ‘Tis incredible, what love is: but answer me a curiosity, will thou? We are soulmates and soul-bound… but after that, what am I to thee? Friend, beloved, or wife? Or, with thine chauvinistic attitude, should I say only ‘mare?’”

She nudged him playfully, and Scrivener laughed as he leaned in and kissed her cheek before replying amusedly: “Oh right. And there’s nothing wrong with the fact that you treat me like I’m only a stud at ranch half the time.”

“Well, my handsome stallion, I do not think most males would complain about being that to me. I never had complaints in the past, after all.” Luna retorted, giving him a teasing grin as she leaned towards him, and Scrivener cleared his throat awkwardly, trying to avoid the memories stirred up from the winged unicorn in their mixed soul before she threw her head back and laughed. “Oh, cease, ‘tis not as if thou has any cause to feel envy or jealousy… ‘tis not like thou did not have partners of thine own.”

“Yes, but. Not five hundred years of them. Five hundred rather busy years of them.” Scrivener pointed out, and Luna glared at him before headbutting him, knocking him back on his haunches in the snow with a grunt before he shook his head quickly, then winced and held up a hoof when she leaned forwards insistently. “Okay, okay! You’re… you’re my best friend, Luna. Soulmate and then… best friend. And wife is probably somewhere at the bottom of the list.”

“Why?” Luna cocked her head curiously, sitting attentively, and Scrivener smiled a bit as the female surveyed him with softness in her eyes. “I remember our marriage… Celestia performed the ceremony, with perhaps a little jealousy, perhaps a little pride… and Twilight Sparkle sat on and watched. ‘Twas in front of our home, and even before we were bound in soul… but all the same, thou wert so proud that day, Scrivy, I know thou wert. Thou gazed upon me with such adoration and happiness…” She grinned playfully, leaning forwards with a wink. “Does thou now regret thy decision and realize I am far too much mare for any single male to handle, even one as stubborn as thou art?”

Scrivy rolled his eyes at this with a sigh, and then he smiled as he leaned forwards, replying quietly: “Because while our marriage was a wonderful celebration of love, it was also a formal state of affairs. I didn’t marry you to make you my wife, Luna… I married you because I love you enough to give up everything and everypony else in the world for you, if I had to. I’m honored and proud to have you as my wife, but there’s something in those words, ‘wife’ and ‘husband,’ that makes them two different things, for two people that have chosen to go through life together on the same path. I don’t look at us like that. I look at us as one pony, one person, one… soul. And if I have to look at us apart, I want us to be friends first… because best friends don’t need to keep secrets from each other, but the wives and husbands of every community I’ve ever lived in always seem to be doing something behind one-another’s back.”

“Scrivener Blooms, thou grand and reckless and arrogant and stupid fool.” Luna smiled faintly at him, her eyes warm and tender as she leaned towards him, saying quietly: “I… refuse to admit thy words have touched me. ‘Tis only because thou art… so worked up over this and the soul-bond between us transfers thy emotions to me that I feel so… touched. So loved.”

“’Twas never the ring that bound them, ‘twas never the marriage that married their souls, they lived in one-another’s eyes from the very first day.” Scrivener recited softly, and when Luna turned beet-red, he grinned widely and leaned forwards despite the thrill of love and warmth and romance that spilled through him, saying teasingly: “Now who’s the wife in the relationship?”

“Oh, shut up, Scrivener Blooms!” Luna reached ahead and seized him by the back of the head, firmly shoving his face down into the snow, and Scrivy laughed despite himself before he reached up and grabbed her, yanking her down with her. They wrestled and rolled together, sending up puffs of white as they rolled over the frozen earth, laughing and smiling before Luna shoved him down and pinned him by the shoulders, grinning as she straddled the male and held him firmly on his back as he winced at the unfamiliar feeling of his leathery wings squeezed beneath him, and then the winged unicorn leaned down and kissed him firmly.

Their jaws worked together slowly, lovingly, her mane sparking as it stroked gently down over his features and sizzled through the air around her, her hooves grinding slowly against the pauldrons covering the earth pony’s body as his own rubbed up along her sides, feeling out the shape of her armor and the familiar adventure of the body that lay beneath steel and leather… and then the two pulled slowly apart, and Luna grinned widely down at the male as she kept him pinned in the middle of the snowy road, saying seriously: “We shall have to ensure our foal has better judgment and values than us, Scrivener Blooms. We find such romance in all the wrong places.”

Scrivener Blooms snorted in amusement at this, reaching up as he gently grasped her face and smiled slightly. “Luna, when we have a foal, he or she-”

“’Twill be a colt, of this I am sure.” Luna said pompously, and she slipped off Scrivener before half-helping and half-yanking him up to his hooves. “Mostly because I cannot imagine what it would be like to try and handle a filly whom is half-myself and half-thee. ‘Twould be the most miserable, violent little filly ever to be born. But all the same, I would love her and cuddle her and kiss her bruises better, even should she burn down a city or two.”

The male gave her an amused look, saying mildly: “And a colt could just as easily turn out the same way, Luna. Or even worse.”

“Yes, but if it were a colt, more would believe me when I blamed thou for not raising him properly.” Luna replied blandly, and Scrivy groaned and rolled his eyes. “’Tis true, thou knows. Ponies are always nattering on about sons taking after fathers and daughters taking after mothers. Even if there is no truth to the statement apart from the truth we choose to make, all the same, there is a comfort knowing that thou will be held more accountable if it is a boy, and a terror in the fact that they will hold me accountable should it be a girl.”

“Luna. I. Days like today, I really just have no idea what to do with you or say to you.” Scrivener said finally, and Luna nodded seriously to him, making the earth pony drop his head forwards with a grumble before he started forwards again, saying mildly: “Come on then, mother of the year. Let’s keep going on the way to North Neigh. Maybe if you work out all your violent urges before you give birth, the foal will be born as peaceful and calm as a lamb.”

“Wish not such cruelty upon our child, Scrivener Blooms! I will be thoroughly disappointed in both of us if the child is born tranquil and serene and loving and boring.” Luna replied firmly, stepping forwards and bumping firmly against Scrivy, and the male snorted in amusement as he stumbled a bit before smiling over at her as they continued forwards, Luna nodding and saying quietly: “Believe me when I say I want the best for our child, Scrivener Blooms. Oh, from the bottom of my heart, I want nothing but the absolute best. But the best things in life often come from first experiencing a little pain, or a little rain, and all the other unpleasantries that existence has to offer. Yet without them… ‘twould be no life at all, would it? I know that our experiences, for example, have shaped us both greatly… I know that we have been able to find serenity and true happiness in even the strangest and darkest moments because… of what we have lived through. Because we have lived those moments. And I would not change that, Scrivy. ‘Tis cruel to wish a life of tranquility upon another. It would be a life without passion, adventure, and likely without any-”

“Don’t finish that sentence, I know what you’re going to say.” Scrivener interrupted flatly, and Luna shot him a devious grin, making the earth pony sigh and then shake his head, giving her an entertained look. “But fine, Luna. What should I wish for our child-to-be, then? An interesting life, like the old oriental proverb and curse? Or a life full of storms, but with a few blissfully-sunny days here and there?”

Luna lowered her head thoughtfully at this, the two walking in silence for a few moments as the male looked at her curiously… and then she gazed up and smiled at him, saying quietly: “Wish for our child only to be, Scrivener Blooms, and that the foal will come into life, ready to stride upon his or her own path. Wish only for the foal, Scrivy. Let us not take away from the child’s future by already trying to shape it into what we think is best.”

Scrivener looked at her thoughtfully as they walked along… and then he smiled at her softly, lowering his head a bit as he said quietly: “You really will be a wonderful mother, Luna. I’m glad you’ll be there to make up for my mistakes with everything.”

The winged unicorn only laughed and blushed a bit, however, looking ahead as they walked down the snowy path together beneath the soft fall of ivory from above, and she replied quietly: “Nay, Scrivener Blooms, together we shall be good parents, and neither of us the greater or the lesser, as it is with all things between us however we might play at one-another. I am thine, thou art mine, the same blood runs through our veins, our heart beats as one and our connected soul swirls throughout our bodies. Where we may fail when apart, together there is no other possibility apart from success… and that is why I have faith that we will have a foal, we will love and cherish it, we shall make the best of parents. And why I feel that we can, we will, we must succeed in our given mission, my love… my friend.”

Scrivener Blooms smiled across at the winged unicorn and nodded, and as they strode ever northwards, he felt the warmth and love in their bodies rekindling their hope for the future.

Return To North Neigh

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Chapter Ten: Return To North Neigh
~BlackRoseRaven

They had taken wing once more to pass Snow Saddle, and more importantly, the barrens beyond: now, as Scrivener Blooms and Luna flew slowly onwards over this rotten and decrepit land, they were officially traveling further north than they had gone in almost ten years. It was a strange feeling… made stranger still by the speed with which they had moved, the passage of a journey that before had taken days now gone by in only some twenty hours of almost-steady travel.

Yet neither of them wanted to stop even now, as they flew silently through the dark, moody skies above the rotten and torpid earth. It wasn’t just because of the hostility of the barrens beneath them, it was because of the mix of anxiety and excitement racing through their bodies, as they pushed ever onwards with both hope and fear swirling in an endless dance through their linked soul.

They both breathed hard in the clogged atmosphere, the reek of steam and smoke and rot surrounding them as geysers vented up from shattered earth far below. The heat here was almost unbearable, as they passed over what had once been a blackened, rocky pass… and was now nothing more than a terrible, semisolid mass of shifting rock and slag. Rivers of magma flowed and rumbled here and there, and deep in the ripped gorges of stone and ravines of shale, terrible scarlet light glowed and pulsed, glaring upwards with terrible ill-omen. =

Luna grimaced in disgust as she flapped her wings, flying onwards as Scrivener followed closely in her wake, both covered in sweat from the scorching heat that burned up from below despite the wind and cold air whipping around them. Their armor didn’t help matters, leather doing too good a job of insulating now, and metal heating with unnatural fervor, as if the heat was somehow sentient, as if the terrible, corrupt environment was trying its hardest to sap them of all the life and strength it could.

The winged unicorn gave a curse under her breath as she scanned the ground below: the terrain was more than harsh, more than brutal, more than simply dangerous, it would be impassable on hoof. Even the strange and hungry monsters that they could see roaming here and there amidst the wasteland were less threatening than the death-trap the barrens had collapsed completely into… and would have been less of a barrier to the two than the blighted land as well.

Passing over it now was difficult enough… but on the way back they would be leading all the Pales they could find, and the Pales of ponies could only stride across the ground and blink short distances to cross gaps and rivers. If they strayed too far from the congregation they planned to gather, the spirits and souls would either stand and wait silently, or wander away from the others, drawn inexorably back to the place they had been found… the place where they had either died, or that had held the most meaning to them in life.

Then Luna cursed under her breath as there was an explosion below, magma and fire bursting into the air, hurtling jagged rocks and broken boulders almost to the great height they were at as wildfire spread in an insane spiderweb across the charred earth. It burned red and orange as ash and smog belched out of the vent, and Scrivy and Luna hovered apprehensively for a few moments, watching as wild shapes that looked as if they were made from obsidian and slag greedily crawled out of the molten rip in the earth.

Elementals: one of the rare few creatures that were actually excelling and adapting in the twisted world. The energies of Helheim were empowering them, and the brutality of the terrain made the perfect nests and homes for the chaotic entities of raw power-given-life. They thrived off the carnage and the chaos, and the only thing that stopped them from blanketing the world was the fact they couldn’t keep themselves stable and alive for long outside their homes of bitter cold or burning flame.

The Elementals ignored them as they cavorted across the fiery landscape: to them, after all, the magma and flame and burning-hot rock were all paradisiacal, the vents of steam like fountains of foam, the reeking smog like aromatic mist. Luna and Scrivener both traded looks, then forced themselves to continue on, only glad that at least the borders of the wasteland were in sight, past a collapsed and crumbled mountain… and that the Elementals were too happy in their ‘beautiful’ little world to pay any heed to the skies above.

There was no way they could pass through the barrens on the way back… they would have to plot a route around, no matter how much time it would add to their journey, and Luna cursed under her breath at this complication as they continued forwards. The Bifrost couldn’t be summoned just anywhere, after all… not only would the rainbow bridge would remain open and vulnerable for a short period of time after they crossed it, allowing the possibility of other things to claw their way into Looking Glass World, the immense amount of magic and energy it required to leap from one reality to the next meant they required a certain amount of preparation, and an area that was already designed as a ‘landing zone’ for the dimensional-hopping arch.

They flew onwards, heads heavy with growing anxieties, made worse by fatigue, and fatigue was made all the harsher a mistress by the weight of their armor and the heat that made their blood and bodies boil beneath warm metal and clutching leather. But ten minutes later, they passed over the border from terrible, fiery wastes to cold, desolate plains, and the two let themselves sink lower as they flew into a biting, chilling wind, wincing as they flew across the frozen, snow-splattered tundra and finally settled to their hooves in a place eerily familiar.

It was all too close to where Pinkie Pie had died: the only difference was that in the past, there had been a looming, dark forest to their front in which eyes had warily lurked, distracting them from the true threat that had been biting at their heels the entire journey. And for a moment, all was forgotten but memory, as Luna and Scrivener Blooms both stood silently, gazing northwards as a voice screamed in memory: P-please, I made a mistake!

“Thou did, Ignominious. Thou made the mistake of crossing us not once, not twice, but four times… and never did thou pay enough for what thou did. Ruining lives, killing and tormenting countless innocents, summoning a world-killer, and so many other sins lay at thy doorstep… and worst, most-disgusting of all, thou wert only a pawn of a far-superior mind, less than a cog in the penultimate machinations of a terrible force.” Luna murmured, lowering her head and closing her eyes tightly… and Scrivener slid a little closer to her, gazing at her silently, neither feeling the cold or heat even as they shivered at the memories that flashed through their linked mind and soul.

They sat quietly… and then Luna leaned against the earth pony, pushing her face against the side of his neck as she whispered: “And terribly, I still pity the fool, Scrivener Blooms. I still pity that broken and tarnished creature, whom I once thought I loved. Aye, I am glad he is dead, gladder still that he is gone and will never return, destroyed more by himself than outside forces… but all the same, I pity what he became and find that I myself am not without fault in what happened to him… in what he was transformed into.”

“But he made the choice, Luna. Never forget that… we all make choices and choose the path we walk down. And there were so many things he could have done apart from sacrificing and murdering innocent souls to find strength… starting with being brave, instead of staying a coward and only seeking worthless tyrannical might.” Scrivener replied softly, gazing towards Luna and kissing her forehead silently. “Don’t blame yourself for what he chose to do.”

“Still, Scrivy… I cannot shake the thought that I am in a way responsible, that some part of me…” Luna fell quiet, then she sighed and shook her head slowly, murmuring quietly: “I do not want to corrupt thee further than I have. I do not want to drag thee down into darkness deeper than we already are. No matter what, Scrivener Blooms, it is not other monsters that I fear at the end of the day… it is myself, and Nightmare Moon, and-”

“Now come on, Luna. We’ve talked about this, a lot.” Scrivener said gently, and Luna glanced up at him with a faint smile as their eyes met, thoughts, emotions, passions playing back and forth between them for a few long seconds before Scrivy leaned forwards and kissed her nose quietly. “Anyway, I’m sure we’ll shortly be beating things up. That’ll make you feel better.”

“Perhaps. ‘Tis true, pummeling things does always make me feel better. Like I am once more on the correct path in life.” Luna mumbled, and Scrivener gave her an entertained look before she sighed and stepped forwards, shivering a bit as she added quietly: “Let us not linger. My body is sore, but I wish to keep walking… the chill grows moment-by-moment and we are not all as freakishly-insulated as thou art.”

The earth pony laughed a bit as the winged unicorn strode forwards, and then he fell into pace beside her, looking northwards as they marched onwards. The movement helped keep their bodies warm as a bitter wind whistled around them and short flurries of snow passed, dotting their armored frames with speckles of white powder as their hooves plodded heavily over packed tundra.

They followed a highway that no longer was, past drifts and dunes of snow and freakish formations of rock and ice and gnarled, misshapen trees that seemed to stare at them with listless, bark-shaped faces. And Scrivener grimaced a bit as he felt a flicker through his skull and a faint buzzing in his eyes, staring too long at one of these trees… and then gritting his teeth as instead of wood, he saw terrible compositions of bodies of skinned ponies, muscle and flesh and bone and sinew all twisted and melted together, frozen in silent shapes…

He clenched his eyes shut and stopped, grabbing at his skull, and Luna glanced worriedly over her shoulder at him before the male murmured: “I’m fine. Just… visions. They’re not usually so intense, so… so awful. It might have something to do with being so close to Helheim, though…”

Luna nodded slowly, looking at him silently as Scrivy glanced up with a bit of a sigh, smiling faintly at her before he gazed back and forth… then shivered a bit. As long as he didn’t stare at the trees, he didn’t see what he hoped wasn’t actually under bark and wood… but now that his mind and the corruption inside it was acting up, he could see other shapes, other things… Pales that stood here and there silently amidst the forest, watching them, and hooded Grimm that lurked and slithered amongst the specters.

Scrivener shivered a bit, then he forced himself to look forwards, striding onwards as Luna fell automatically into pace at his side even as she gave him a concerned frown, before gritting her teeth when the male murmured: “Grimm. Here and there… amidst Pales.”

He shot a glance to the side, at one of the awful monsters: like an enormous raven, pony-sized and with not taloned feet, but instead thick legs and heavy hooves. Their wings were large and heavy and fat, and dark, black cowls covered their faces, mixing so subtly with their feathers bodies it seemed almost as if the hoods were as natural as the rest of their form. They were awful omens, feeding off despair, torment, death, and misery: they often appeared over those who were about to die, and clustered in places were events of great destruction were about to take place.

But that was in the past: now they were simply gleeful occupants of a destroyed world that fed their gluttony for destruction and suffering. More than demons, more than the living dead, more than even the Elementals, these creatures benefitted from the destruction that had ripped across the world… but they were only parasites, not schemers, a side-effect of the disease: maggots in the rotten flesh of the dying planet.

Luna glared back and forth, and then she muttered under her breath: “Wonderful. I cannot see them, though, Scrivener Blooms… but at least we know there are Pales here, even if they linger just beneath reality’s subtle folds. Would thou prefer to take to the air to finish this journey, so we can evade their presence?”

Scrivener hesitated, looking over his shoulder at his leathery wings, flapping them once as he flexed his body… and then he sighed a little and nodded glumly, mumbling: “Yeah, or… at least in a little while. Let’s walk a little longer, though, see if my eyes and the corruption settle down…”

Scrivener glanced down at the ground, then tossed a careful look back and forth as Luna stepped towards him, pushing their sides together as she said gently: “Be not so hard on thyself, Scrivener Blooms. This is not thy fault… and thou art handling thine curse and blessing with… much greater dignity and strength these days than in times’ past.”

“Oh, you mean like when I was first learning to adjust to this and I kept screaming at everything?” Scrivener asked dourly, and Luna sighed and rolled her eyes, giving him a flat look even as a faint smile quirked at her muzzle. “Well, seeing the shapes beneath shapes when you’re in a world being flooded by Hell… that’s not exactly pleasant, Luna. As it is, the fact that now I can look on these things and the only reason they bother me is… is because…”

He fell quiet, gazing ahead as a shiver rolled down his spine… and Luna softened, murmuring quietly: “Do not make me chastise thee with thine own words only minutes after thou gave thy pretty little speech to me about Ignominious, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Twould be annoying. It makes me think thou just enjoys having thy hypocrisies repeated back to thee.”

Scrivener smiled despite himself, looking ahead as he said softly: “I know. We talk about it a lot and I get… bothered by it a lot when by now, I should have adjusted to it. But some days… it’s still hard. I worry a lot, Luna. And I’m… going to be honest. I worry that one day I might… hurt you. Especially with this corruption doing what it does to my head… especially with the fact that… it’s not just desensitization. It’s… this…”

The charcoal pony fell silent, looking ahead… and Luna softened visibly, leaning towards him and saying quietly: “Scrivener Blooms, do not be silly. Why, thou art not nearly tough enough to injure me, for thou would hurt thyself did thou pummel me.”

Scrivy sighed and dropped his head forwards at this, and then he smiled despite himself over at Luna, saying dryly: “You know. I’m beginning to understand why ponies always got mad at me when I deflected serious questions and statements with my incorrigible wit.”

“Oh, wonderful, thy humility is rising back up to its proud peak.” Luna remarked, and Scrivener smiled despite himself at her as he leaned towards her, and they quietly butted their heads together before Luna added quietly: “Scrivy, I have full faith… thou will never injure me. I remember all too well thy selfishness in the battle against Ignominious, after all… making me perform such an awful act, trying to steal thyself away.”

She smiled faintly at him, and Scrivener laughed a little despite himself before he looked ahead even as a faint blush heated his cheeks, before Luna continued in a softer, gentler voice: “We are linked in body, mind, spirit and soul… I feel thy pleasures, thou feels mine own, we share everything. And look at me, Scrivy… a Valkyrie who enjoys the thrill of battle like few other things in life. ‘Tis not that I can deny I have some… instinct in me that perhaps even enjoys hurting others, not just proving my superiority over them or using my abilities to protect and defend those important to me, or the elegant dance, finesse, and skill that any true battle requires… aye, we are both damned, Scrivener Blooms. But like all things, we are damned together… think not that thou art more damned than I am, ‘lest I be the one pummeling thee instead of thou attempting to childishly flail at me with thy great big hooves.”

“Oh thank you, Luna, you’re so good at saying just the right thing to make me feel better.” Scrivener said flatly, and Luna threw her head back and laughed as they walked forwards, the sound unnatural, loud, echoing through this damned world… but so powerful and pure, it seemed to make the essence of Helheim trying to suffocate them recede, and Scrivener smiled despite himself. “But okay, warrior princess. So we’re both sadomasochists, considering how much you beat on me despite knowing it’s only going to hurt you, too. So we’re codependent, violent, unstable, darkness-tainted, corrupted, cynical, pessimistic, meat-eating sadomasochists living in a post-apocalyptic, near-complete-collapse world filled with demons from Hell. Did I miss anything?”

“Yes, Scrivener Blooms, thou forgot the fact thou art stupid, and worse yet, a poet.” Luna retorted imperiously, tilting her head upwards, and Scrivy gave an exasperated sigh as he dropped his head forwards. “And a poet is a far worse creature than anything I could ever hope to be myself, as I have come to learn. Than even Nightmare Moon could ever hope to be, as a matter of fact.”

“Don’t worry, Luna. As I recall, we decided a long time ago that you were probably worse than Nightmare Moon yourself.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna gave him a flat glare for a moment as the equine rose his head with a slight smile. “Also, as I plainly recall, Nightmare Moon is nicer to me than you are.”

The winged unicorn huffed at this, glaring at him for a few moments before she grumbled and looked ahead, replying in a surly voice: “Thou strikes low, foul beetle. Besides, Nightmare Moon is only nicer to thee because… she… she is manipulative. And evil. And… dumb.”

Scrivener gave Luna a mild look, and Luna grumbled and shook her head quickly, her mane twisting backwards as inside her, Nightmare Moon laughed quietly before she mumbled: “And now thou hast gone and stirred up the creature, Scrivy. Perhaps I should go away then, and leave thee with Nightmare Moon for the next few hours.” She stopped, then looked awkwardly at Scrivener as the male softened. “Thou… are not… I mean… oh shut up, Scrivy!”

“I… I didn’t say anything yet.” Scrivener said awkwardly, and Luna grumbled before he stepped closer to her and kissed her cheek gently, saying softly: “I said she was nicer to me, Luna. I didn’t say I was fonder of her than you.”

The winged unicorn smiled warmly at this, immediately brightening a little before she cleared her throat and firmly headbutted him, knocking Scrivener staggering with a grunt of dumb surprise. “Kiss not my flank, Scrivener Blooms, thy lying foul flattery shall get thee nowhere. I shall make thee apologize to me later, for I wish not to hear thy poetic nuances twisting thine apologies into cunning trickery… and the word ‘sorry’ holds much less meaning than other things I can make thee do.”

Luna grinned widely as she looked over at him, and the male sighed and gave her an exasperated look. Then their irises met, and they traded emotions, thoughts, feelings, and apologies… before Luna smiled softly, saying quietly: “We have walked enough then, haven’t we? And ‘tis the journey, I know, making us both tense and hinders us further. Let us take back to the air… perhaps the biting cold will at least serve to clear our heads.”

“For once, I hope you’re right.” Scrivener murmured, and the two halted for a moment as they studied each other, eyes meeting, more thoughts twisting their way back and forth before the two nodded slowly in synchronization and understanding. Then both turned, leaning forwards and running through the heavy snow before they both leapt into the air, wings flapping hard and propelling them sharply upwards into the wretched skies.

They flew northwards, keeping their course straight and fast as they breathed hard in and out. And, almost as if they were being lulled onwards, the winds died down even as the bitter cold deepened with the growing darkness, as clouds above became blacker and heavier and the very air of the world around them seemed to thicken with living shadows.

An hour and a half of hard flight later, the two slowly began to descend from the skies towards the ruined hulk of a town that had been half-buried beneath snow. It was surrounded by nothing but snowy plains that here and there were ruptured with deep, rotting gouges in the ground, and massive and alien ice formations that stood like silent, callous sentinels… it was a city of the dead, guarded by frozen souls colder than any reaper’s grim touch as a quiet, soft fall of snow that flittered through the air like icy ash swirled slowly down from the dark clouds.

Slowly, Scrivener Blooms and Luna strode over packed, frozen tundra towards the gates of North Neigh, shivers passing through them both not just from the blistering cold but the memories that being here awoke: memories of failures, and of victories that had been more costly than defeats. Of happy promises and moments of triumph that had been all lost, all destroyed, when everything had gone wrong.

They gazed silently into the town, and then Scrivener smiled faintly as he murmured: “Apart from the snow that’s covering half the buildings… it looks almost the same as it did before. Frozen in time… it feels like we’re going to walk in there, and Bramblethorn is going to charge out of the Unicorn District and start right in on the whole ‘slave hoof’ thing all over again…”

Luna glanced towards him softly, and then they both glanced sharply forwards at the sound of crackling behind the half-collapsed, rickety fencing that surrounded much of the town, and a shape plodded slowly into the empty roadway, then came to a halt as it seemed to sense their eyes on it. It was enormous, ten feet tall and made of blue ice that was speckled here and there with streaks and stains of ivory rock, its arms long and gangly, its legs ending in thick, webbed talons, its body rigid and geometric. It was an Ice Elemental… made all the clearer when it turned to face them with an expressionless, featureless lump of a head, frozen mist steaming up from its body.

Luna and Scrivener stared at it, and the Elemental looked back at them, leaning forwards slightly, studying them with its featureless face… and then both ponies readied themselves as the creature lumbered out of the city towards them. Luna gritted her teeth as her horn glowed and her mane sparked, and Scrivy winced as he stared up at the creature… but it halted a few feet away from them, making a strange chirring sound in its throat as it studied the ponies silently.

The two equines exchanged nervous looks as the creature regarded them… and then the beast straightened and turned its attention away from them, and both Luna and Scrivy slipped quickly to the side as the Elemental passed, apparently deciding they weren’t interesting enough to hold its attention. And both Scrivener Blooms and Luna gave sighs of relief as the Elemental plodded onwards, looking over their shoulders as the female muttered: “Thank Odin’s hideous visage. It must be because we are both so cold… our body heat is suppressed, so the blind beast does not know what to think of us. Or perhaps thinks we are too small quarry to concern it.”

Scrivener nodded slowly, and Luna shook her head with a grimace, tossing another nervous look at the Elemental as it wandered into the icy plains. “Let us hope our luck holds long enough to find a suitable place to rest… and hopefully, enough safety to permit us to prepare ourselves for what must be done.”

The earth pony nodded again with a grimace, feeling Luna’s instincts and thoughts as they slowly strode forwards and stepped once more into the town… and both ponies couldn’t help but shudder a bit as they strode down the snowy streets, pushing past dunes of powder and gazing silently at the half-collapsed, half-frozen wooden structures that creaked and rumbled beneath the weight of the frost that covered them.

In silence, they walked through the town, heading northwards and letting their hooves carry them where they would, Luna’s instincts guiding her as Pales flickered here and there, staring at them silently. And as they began to pass a dilapidated, wrecked shop with a shattered front window and a missing door, a Pale silently strode out onto the collapsed steps and looked miserably down at them.

Scrivener Blooms and Luna halted, gazing up at the broken storefront of the Allsorts Emporium, and the Pale of an old, aged unicorn looked down at them with sorrow and regret in his hollow eyes. Wisehorse, misguided Blood Bishop of Ekleíp, the insane cult that had worshiped and tried to control Nightmare Moon to achieve a maddened vision of the world’s rebirth. A cult of Blood Seers and unicorn mages, who had been more obsessed with themselves and power than anything else, even if Wisehorse himself had seemingly been honest in his wish to ‘save the world…’ who had been a victim himself.

“But it does not excuse what thou did, Wisehorse. Strange to see thee here… why not the Black Baroque? Or perhaps Helheim…” Luna grinned bitterly, looking coldly up at the Pale as it half-turned away, eyes closing. “No, Helheim would be mercy, would it not? Aye, it would be, a mercy thou doesn’t deserve. Wander this world forever, Wisehorse; wander this world, see what thou hast done, understand that thou wert manipulated the entire time. Understand that thou wert a victim, but also a sculptor and destroyer.”

“You were so smart, Wisehorse, William Isehorse… whatever your real name is.” Scrivener added quietly, looking silently up at him. “How could you miss the signs? How could you not understand that what you were doing was… wasn’t just wrong, wasn’t just foolishness, it was… you were so gullible, so obviously being led astray…”

Wisehorse looked at him silently, and Scrivener gazed back, the Pale flickering in his vision, becoming an old unicorn that stood in the shattered doorway with a sallow coat and features etched with pain and sorrow, as he whispered wordlessly: ‘I’m sorry.’

“Sorry isn’t enough. Cannot ever be enough.” Luna lowered her head silently, and Scrivener closed his eyes as he dropped his own after a moment, the winged unicorn whispering: “And yet for all my malice, and all the pain I wish to wish upon thee, know that I also hold myself accountable, for we should have been able to stop things anyway. Perhaps the reason I hate thee most is because thou outwitted and outmatched us so clearly. That thou had such good intentions… and mine own? Mine own were destructive and selfish from the very beginning.” She laughed dryly, looking up and saying quietly: “So does thou know the answer to the riddle, Isehorse? If good intentions pave a road that leads to the apocalypse, and my selfish intent to save my friends and family and pummel viciously that which seeks to harm me has led only to failure… what is left to do?”

She looked up, teeth grit, and the Pale only gazed back before the specter shook its head slowly… and Luna gave a soft sigh as she muttered: “Of course. What can we do? What is there to do but… push onwards, hoping bleakly for the best of outcomes, even when treachery and despair weigh us down in memory or reality. Wisehorse, now, heed my words: we are here to collect souls, and bring Pales across the Bifrost. But thou and thine brethren of Ekleíp… there shan’t be a place in the new world for thee. It is not my place to condemn thee… it is not my place to say thou art beyond redemption. Yet all the same, I must: I cannot allow the risk of what would happen if thou, in full strength, were restored upon the world. And I…”

She quieted… then clenched her eyes shut and whispered: “Thou hurt me. Thou betrayed me… myself and Scrivener Blooms. Thou ruined so much, so fast… thou awakened a monster that thou should have destroyed, that I think thou knew thou should have exterminated the moment Ekleíp came upon it sleeping in its cursed burrow! And thou killed Scarlet Sage… thou cannot imagine what it was like, to see her die. Thou cannot imagine what it felt like, to find her Pale and the Pales of all my beloved friends in the wreckage of Ponyville, so miserable, so lost… and to lead them across the Bifrost, full of hope and yet despairing all the same, knowing that nothing is certain, knowing that even if we drag all the Pales we can into Looking Glass World, there is no guarantee they can all be revived, that even if we bring them back for a fleeting moment, the very shock and trauma of what occurred may kill them, and leave them gone to us forever! To know that my daughter is an ephemeral phantom, lonely and scared in another alien world, another layer of reality, without her mother or father!”

Luna snarled at Wisehorse, tears leaking from her eyes and freezing immediately over her cheeks as she shouted, her eyes glowing white, her voice echoing through the frozen town: “Wander forever, William Isehorse, in this world that thou hast created, for I can think of no greater punishment! And when the world shatters, may thee be forced to sit forever outside of Helheim’s gates, never permitted in to allow the demons to offer their mercy of punishment, for I know that thou thyself will do a far better job of self-torture than the whips and chains and blades and bludgeons of the pit lords ever could!”

The Pale flinched backwards, and then Scrivener silently reached a hoof up, resting it quietly on Luna’s shoulder… and she shivered violently before turning and burying her face against the male’s neck, pushing her body closer against his. Slowly, Scrivy opened his eyes as he looked silently up… but the Pale was gone now, either fled or vanished into the folds between reality, and Luna whispered: “Damn the whole world wide, Scrivener Blooms. Damn everything that has happened… damn us for failing.”

“Come on, Luna. Let’s keep moving. Let’s get away from this place…” Scrivy hesitated, glancing up apprehensively at the front of the shop and remembering how before it had been the Allsorts Emporium… it had been the gardening shop that had been run by his unloving parents. “I don’t want to know what other ghosts might lurk inside. Bramblethorn is bad enough. But somehow I think… Tia Belle might be even worse.”

He shook his head a bit, and Luna sighed softly as she drew back a bit from the male, turning and silently falling into step beside him as she closed her eyes, letting the earth pony lead as they headed past decrepit, broken buildings down snowy streets, ice glinting here and there across both tundra and structure before Luna halted to rub obsessively at her eyes, and Scrivener smiled faintly as he turned around, kissing one of the trails of frozen tears away and making her mumble. “I… I am fine. ‘Tis only… the world in my eye. It hurts.”

“I know.” Scrivy said quietly, and she looked up at him for a moment before the two shared a tight, firm embrace, pressing against one another, cold armor grinding quietly together before they both stepped back. They took a moment to settle themselves, even as they both sensed and heard a rumble of movement not far away… and then Scrivener glanced up with a wince as another large Ice Elemental loomed out of an alley a block to the south and across the street, grasping the frozen edges of a wooden house.

It looked at them with the same curiosity the other had seemed to inspect the two with, and Luna snorted quietly as she tossed a glance towards it, murmuring: “Perhaps they simply do not know what to make of us, Scrivy. It has likely been many years since these wild entities saw living creatures… perhaps if they knew what we were, we would already be up to our necks in swarms of hostile and hungry beings of the primordial.”

“Gosh, and we couldn’t have that now, could we?” Scrivener asked dryly, and Luna smiled despite herself, looking at him with faint entertainment as she leaned towards him and once more pushed her face against the side of his neck. Then the male glanced towards the Elemental quietly, watching as it slowly receded back into the alley, and he added softly: “Maybe we just don’t interest them. Maybe they know all too well this world is already conquered, already theirs, for the little time that’s left. Maybe they even pity us.”

“If they pity us, Scrivener Blooms, I shall shatter them all like the blocks of ice they are. I shan’t be pitied, not even by embodiments of nature’s elements.” Luna grumbled under her breath, mashing her face firmer against his neck for a moment, and Scrivy shook his head with an entertained smile before she drew back and nodded firmly once, saying quietly: “Let us continue. These wooden homes are… in far better shape than I had thought they would be, and if we are fortunate, City Hall will make a serviceable place to stop and gather our wits.”

The earth pony nodded after a moment, and he and Luna traded faint smiles as they continue forwards… but they halted after only a few minutes and a single turn around a blind corner street to find themselves faced with a grim trail of destruction that could only have been caused by one of the Black Wolves of Hell.

It was like a gorge had been torn through the town, a cut that was so deep and painful to the planet that reality itself had been wounded. Scrivener and Luna silently gazed at the twenty foot wide and countless foot long trail, the snow falling almost as if to avoid touching the rotten trench of mud and mire and jagged rock. And up and down the trail, they could see only more of the same: a dark, terrible wound, that even the ruins of houses it tore through slumped away from, as if they had been blown backwards from the sheer force hitting them… as if even these decrepit remains feared contact with the burnt wound.

“One of the Black Wolves left this… but ‘twas not Fenrir. The trail is too small for that mighty pack-lord…” Luna grimaced and leaned forwards, kicking a spill of snow onto the dark path… and immediately, the white powder burst upwards into steam, the winged unicorn making a disgusted face. “This is truly foul, Scrivener Blooms. And worse yet, this seems fresh… but I do not understand. Did something disturb the rumbling rest of these terrible monsters? Have they been summoned by Fenrir for some accursed gathering? Or do they perhaps tire of this world, and instead return to Helheim like loyal dogs instead of savage destroyers?”

Luna shook her head slowly, and then she hesitantly began to step forwards as Scrivener Blooms winced, grasping her shoulder awkwardly… but she shrugged him off with a huff and carefully leaned down, stretching a hoof hesitantly towards the black trail. “Oh, stop it, Scrivy, I just wish to check if it will be safe to-”

Scrivener felt a sharp pain spark through his mind, and then he winced and seized Luna by the shoulders, yanking her backwards as she blinked in surprise… then stared in shock as skeletal and shadowy claws ripped out of the black mire, grabbing wildly at the air where her hoof had been a moment before as Scrivener breathed hard in and out, pain sparking through his mind as he heard Valthrudnir’s laughter and saw a cluster of Grimm on the other side of the black trail… of what no longer looked like rotten terrain to him, but instead a river of dark, flowing corruption, skeletons, skinned monstrosities, and silently-screaming victims of every shape and size flowing through it as they swam helplessly for the surface of the river of the damned. “Helheim… they… that’s a river of death leading straight to Helheim…”

“Scrivener Blooms…” Luna glanced up at him, leaning back at him as her mane fizzled quietly, breathing slowly as Scrivy gritted his teeth and clenched his eyes shut… and then she laughed faintly, looking at what to her seemed like only fetid and ugly earth… but in Scrivy’s memories, she saw now what she had almost touched, and almost been dragged down into. “Thou… saved my life, Scrivy. I hope thou knows this.”

“I saved you from having to pummel your way out of Helheim, that’s all. And you might have enjoyed that.” Scrivener replied dryly, his eyes still tightly closed, his leathery wings trembling where they were still on his back as he impulsively held tightly onto Luna’s shoulders, his breath rasping slowly in and out of his jaws. Faint pain still sparked through his head, and even with his eyes clenched shut, visions still assailed him, he still saw not only the river of the dead flowing, flowing, roiling, boiling… he saw Valthrudnir, standing with five cards fanned out in one hand, the Jötnar grinning as he reached slowly up and plucked one of these free-

“Scrivener Blooms.” Luna said quietly, and Scrivy’s eyes flickered open as he realized he was sitting back on his haunches, staring dumbly at her: now she rested over him, her hooves on his shoulders, her eyes gazing silently into his. “Scrivy, come back to me. Everything is alright. The creature cannot hurt thee… Valthrudnir’s echo is only proving that it is as stupid in arrogance as the real Valthrudnir was. Aye, blocking me out of thine mind using the corruption is a clever trick… but now that I know what it means when I sense that static, ‘tis like loudly announcing ‘excuse me, but I now aim to ambush and ransack thy sealed vaults.’”

“Just what I always wanted to be, Luna, a sealed vault.” Scrivener muttered to himself, and Luna gave both a sigh of exasperation and a look of relief as the male looked at her through his glasses, then smiled faintly as he reached up and adjusted them quietly. “Thank you. I guess… being here, and the visions, and… I hope I don’t have to live the rest of my life like this.”

“I don’t know, Scrivy, there’s something romantic about the notion that thou art now even more weak and helpless than thou wert before.” Luna replied kindly, and Scrivener sighed and gave her an exasperated look before the winged unicorn winked and added softly: “Or perhaps ‘tis only the warm fuzziness that can only come from thou saving me, and me saving thee… and both of us, furthermore, saving the other from our own wretched selves more than any outside interference.”

Scrivener looked down thoughtfully at this… and then he glanced back up and smiled faintly, studying her even as his vision flickered, seeing not just Luna, but Nightmare Moon… and then he closed his eyes and bowed his head forwards, murmuring softly: “But we’ve always been our own worst enemies, haven’t we? And I’m not even talking about… Nightmare Moon or… that evil part of me. I’m self-destructive and self-centered and you’re passionate and brash and… probably a little crazy.”

The winged unicorn smiled at this all the same, however, nodding slowly, and Scrivener Blooms stepped up to her side as she turned around. The two stood for a few silent moments on the bank of the black wound in reality, and Scrivener could see the Grimm on the other side hissing at them and flapping their wings as they scattered, as lost souls tried to swim to the surface of the river, staring out at them mournfully… and then both ponies tensed before leaping forwards, their wings flapping in tandem and carrying them across the dark ooze together in one mighty leap, even as claws and grasping hands stretched eagerly out of the mire and wound before receding with a near-silent gasp.

Scrivy and Luna landed easily together, trading smiles before the earth pony looked forwards… and then he winced, a flash going off in his mind as a bolt of pain tore through his head, Luna looking at him with concern before she snarled, hearing it as clearly in her own mind as Scrivener did in his thoughts: Good. Keep struggling, ponies. I almost want you to succeed now… there’s benefit in it for me if you do, after all. But either way, I want you to know that at the end of the day… you are going to lose this game we’re playing.

“Cowardly animal… slinking through the shadows in my husband’s mind, and now thou dares to mock us from thine so-thought ‘safe haven?’” Luna snarled, her eyes burning as she glared into Scrivener’s head as if she could somehow find Valthrudnir hiding in his ivory mane. “Think not that Nightmare Moon and I will hesitate to comb every last inch of my beloved’s mind and soul until we find thee, festering tapeworm!”

Oh, Brynhild, I don’t play children’s games like hide-and-seek… the Jötnar replied mockingly, and Scrivener could almost see him, grinning and lounging back in a heavy ash throne, the terrible bog-monster-wyrm drooling corruption nearby as the dragon fanned himself with the five cards… and then suddenly reached a hand up, drawing one and stepping forwards, becoming crystal-clear in a black world in Scrivener’s vision as the earth pony reared back and stared blindly not at the sky, but this horrible apparition and the card Valthrudnir spun around in his hand. The Hanged Man. A fitting card for you two and the start of our new game: prepare to have your whole world turned upside down.

Valthrudnir threw his head back and laughed… and Scrivener gargled weakly in his throat before he slowly keeled backwards and landed on his back, spasming once as he shuddered and stared at the sky, Luna immediately leaping forwards and looking down at him with fear… but then the male shook his head with a curse, holding up a hoof and catching her by the shoulder as he muttered: “N-No, I’m… fine. I just… my head feels…”

It was impossible to describe, the earth pony gritting his teeth as he clenched his eyes shut, letting Luna carefully help guide him up to his haunches and then onto his hooves… and a shudder ran through the pony as he dropped his head forwards, breathing hard in and out for a few moments before he nodded slowly and muttered: “Okay. Okay… I’m sorry, Luna. It was like my head was a balloon and there was so much pressure, such intensity, and… flowing water…”

He shook his head slowly, grimacing a bit as he realized he was only confusing himself further… but Luna only nodded, looking over him with concern as she said quietly: “I feel the ebb and flow of it, Scrivy, even if I wert fortunate enough to not be struck by the same pains… by the Horses of Heaven above, we… we may need to consult the old lecher on this, much as it pains me to say. The corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm, it keeps hurting thee, and… I cannot bear to see thee like this. Not when we’re so close…”

“But that’s why it’s acting up, Luna. This… echo of Valthrudnir’s will… it’s because we’re so close.” Scrivener said tiredly, rubbing slowly at his face as he murmured: “It’s tortured us for eight… no, nine years now. It’s worked its way through my mind and found the chinks in my armor and the flaws it can exploit. But now we’re almost done, and…”

He shook his head slowly, then stood up and smiled a little, saying quietly: “I’m okay. Once we’re able to rest, I know I’ll do better… all this exertion, being so tired, it’s probably making it easier for Valthrudnir to get inside my head one way or the other. Let’s… let’s just get to City Hall. I don’t want to slow us down further than I already have, warrior princess.”

“Some days I hate thee, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna retorted, and Scrivy gave her a wry, amused look over his shoulder. “And thou calls me bossy.”

“You are bossy, Luna.” The equine gave her a faintly-entertained look, and the winged unicorn grumbled as they fell into step beside one another, but concern for him still radiated from her body, and the two walked almost close enough for their sides to press together as they continued through the town. They hoped to find hope amidst the ruin and the decay... but the ponies remembered all too well that this place had been the grave of so many ponies' dreams... and the cradle only of the despair that had fed Ragnarok's birth.

That Which Was Desired

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Chapter Eleven: That Which Was Desired
~BlackRoseRaven

As they had both half-hoped, half-feared, City Hall was still standing… and furthermore, the ancient, massive stone building looked as if it had actually been further fortified by the enormous sheets of ice that surrounded much of it, even if the statue of Goddess Sol that had once stood on a platform between the set of steps leading up to the doors had been long shattered into pieces. Only a rear leg and the other hoof remained, along with a few random bits of stone, like it had been blown up by some tremendous, focused explosion.

Three Ice Elementals stood silently around the base of the huge stone building, one of them sitting calmly on the steps with its back to a frost-covered stone wall, the other two simply slouching and watching with strange curiosity as Luna and Scrivener hesitantly walked past, making their way apprehensively up the stone steps. The sitting Ice Elemental reached up slowly as they passed, but its movements were slow and less than hostile… even though the scrape of its fingers alone against Scrivener’s armor was enough to send a chill through him, leaving a faint sheen of frost over the black metal as the Elementals turned to watch them calmly.

The enormous double doors were blocked by a thick mound of snow, the ancient wood petrified from the extreme cold and warped shut… but Luna and Scrivener only traded a look, then the winged unicorn grinned and cracked her neck, saying mildly: “’Tis not as good as a living object perhaps, but all the same…”

Luna flicked her horn as it gave a sharp pulse, and a burst of blue flames wreathed upwards from the ground in front of her, reducing the bank of snow to steam and mist before they burst out of existence, and then she and Scrivener both lowered themselves before they leapt forwards, slamming their shoulders into either warped, frozen barrier and sending cracks ripping through the heavy wood as the doors were knocked ajar, a puff of snow bursting into the room beyond.

Scrivener Blooms and Luna both wheezed in relief… and then there was a loud crackling from behind them, and they both slowly glanced over their shoulders to stare at the sight of an Ice Elemental now standing at the top of the stairs. Its body radiated cold, mist spilling off and frost crystals glimmering around the creature as it gave a low growl in its throat… and Scrivener and Luna traded awkward looks as the other two Elementals slowly lumbered up the steps behind it, the air growing colder and distinctly more hostile.

“They apparently didn’t like what we just did.” Scrivener muttered, and the two ponies turned around, backing slowly up… before both of them winced when the center Elemental leaned forwards with a roar that made the air around them shake, several icicles falling from the ceiling above to shatter like glass missiles as both winged unicorn and earth pony leapt backwards through the doorway, Luna cursing and snapping her horn hard upwards to smash the ruined entranceway with telekinesis, half-shattering the wooden doors even as they slammed shut.

Blue mist and white smoke burst out of the holes and cracks in the doorway, hissing upwards and outwards as ice rapidly began to spread along the structure. As the ice grew, snow spilled inwards through other cracks, and Scrivener and Luna traded surprised looks as they both realized that the Elementals weren’t trying to force their way in… they were instead freezing the doors of the building shut, leaving the two ponies trapped inside as Luna winced and gritted her teeth, pawing at the ground with a hoof as she said disgustedly: “I know not whether to be glad or furious. We shall have to find another way out after this, Scrivener Blooms… wretched Elementals!”

“Can you get rid of my wings? They’re starting to hurt a little. Plus I don’t want to permanently be stuck with them.” Scrivener said mildly, and Luna gave him a horrible look before the male rolled his eyes and sighed, adding tiredly: “Yes, yes, of course. Damn you silly Elementals. I’m going to write angry poetry about this later. Boo. Happy?”

He rose a hoof and shook it grouchily at the frozen barrier, and Luna gave a sour grumble before she muttered: “’Tis a little better, I suppose, but thou still frustrates me endlessly and I shall pummel thee for it later if I do not get the chance to pummel the Elementals.” Luna turned towards him… and then she quieted, instead turning slowly to face the inside of City Hall, and Scrivener softened as he turned himself. “To stand here…”

She fell silent, and Scrivy only nodded slowly, looking over the rotting carpet, the dusty surfaces, the snow that speckled the area here and there and fell in through cracks in the ceiling high above. The enormous staircase at the back of the spacious lobby was half-collapsed, supported more by pillars of frost now than its own stones, and Scrivener and Luna both lowered their heads as the male heard his own voice shouting with raw anger: I’ll kill you, Bramblethorn, I’ll kill you!

“And that was even before I had the corruption in my head.” Scrivy murmured, and Luna laughed a little despite herself at the irony in the male’s words, the thoughts that she could sense swirling through his mind. “I guess… I always have had some part of me that just…”

“Aye, Scrivy, perhaps thou did. But… thou art also connected to me, in body, mind, and soul…” Luna bowed her head forwards with a faint smile, gazing towards him as she said quietly: “Besides, poet. ‘Twas nice to see thee so passionate instead of just sitting back and letting thyself be booted around.”

Scrivener Blooms laughed a bit despite himself at this, looking with a faint smile towards Luna before he nodded slowly, then leaned towards her and gave her a quiet kiss on the cheek, and she looked at him tenderly before winking as her horn glowed, the male wincing and then cursing as the wings on his back burst apart into smoke and ashes, before his modular armor clicked and shifted, plates locking firmly over the now-empty slots in the body armor. “Now, beetle. First of all, let us secure this area, and locate what supplies there are to be found here before we figure out where it shall be best to settle ourselves. We must rest and strategize, after all… especially now that the Elementals have become hostile.”

“Probably because you used that fire spell.” Scrivener remarked, and Luna gave him a flat, moody look even as she grumpily agreed with him in a grunt. The earth pony only smiled amusedly, however, winking at her before he turned and headed towards the stairs, saying easily over his shoulder: “I’ll take the second floor, you can check around down here. Try not to kill anything while I’m gone, okay?”

“Silence, Scrivener Blooms, ‘lest I toss thee outside to be pummeled by the Elementals.” Luna retorted, and Scrivener cleared his throat awkwardly as he hurried towards the stairs and up them, absently rolling his sore shoulders. He paused halfway up to glance back towards Luna, but she was already on her way across the room, and the earth pony smiled a little at her back before he turned and strode the rest of the way up to the second floor.

He glanced to the side at a door that listed on broken hinges, and he quietly approached this to gently push it open… and grimace at the ugly interior. The bright colors had long since faded, but the clash of once-neon yellow and orange and other awkward hues was no less painful as he gazed back and forth, then grimaced as a crying unicorn Pale looked up from where it was sitting back at the desk.

The ghost of Caprice stared at him with a remarkable amount of terror as she shrank backwards and passed through the broken chair, her translucent head sticking through the back almost like some comical mounted trophy as Scrivener sighed softly at the sight of her, then he said quietly: “Caprice, this was not… I mean… Luna and I aren’t here to hurt you, whatever happened in the past. You’re a cringing coward but… we… you weren’t the worst pony here. You were just another annoying politician and not much better or worse than we dealt with in other places at the end of the day, even if you were married for some godforsaken reason to Bramblethorn.”

The Pale of Caprice leaned nervously forwards at this, flickering a bit, and Scrivener rubbed slowly at his face before he said finally: “Look. I’m going to turn and leave now, okay? It’s your choice what you want to do, stay in here or run away or… anything else, we’re not going to hurt you. And when you hear the call… we won’t deny you crossing the Bifrost. I know that doesn’t make sense to you now, but it will in the future; just… when you get to the other side, try not to be such a wimp, okay?”

Caprice winced at him, and Scrivener wondered if she was trying to grimace before he only sighed and left, grumbling a bit to himself as he yanked the door mostly closed behind him. Then he glanced down the long second floor walkway towards another door, feeling moody and irritable as he walked slowly forwards.

He glanced absently to the side, looking at the faded and tattered paintings and tapestries on the walls, the broken doorways that he didn’t bother to check yet, the snow and frost that dotted the brick here and there… and then, as he faced forwards, something glinted in the corner of his eye as he passed it. He returned his eyes to the wall, and then blinked in surprise as he found himself facing an enormous, cracked mirror, staggering backwards and bumping against the heavy stone railing as he stared at the sight of himself.

Reflected in the mirror, he saw his twisted, darker self: half-Wyrm, half-pony, staring back at him as Scrivener walked slowly towards the cracked reflector and studied himself silently. He looked at the detail of every scale as he rose what was a hoof to him but reflected as a claw in the mirror, stroking it slowly over his cheek, chestnut eyes gazing into mismatched brown and unholy, glowing blue… and then he gritted his teeth, closing his eyes tightly before opening them… and cursing under his breath as the sight of his reflection didn’t change.

Then, as he watched, the Wyrm half of his form began to spread, scales spreading over the rest of his features and frame, highlighting the scarring around one eye and making it glisten ivory as hooves cracked apart and became gnarled talons, as piston-like bone spikes shoved up from his shoulders and a second wing sprouted and flapped… and Scrivener stared, his reflection still moving in time with him even as it transformed. He stared into the eyes of the Tyrant Wyrm the mirror reflected him as… then he slowly, hesitantly reached a hoof up, touching it silently to the surface.

Hoof pressed against reflected claw, and Scrivener sighed quietly, studying the shape as he tilted his head back and forth. The Tyrant Wyrm possessed no mane and no ears, but large, gnarled horns… and Scrivy looked over it thoughtfully before he muttered: “You know, I don’t look half-bad for a world destroying parasite, really. Scars look better on scales than they do on my coat… still kind of ugly though. But claws… claws are cool. Hooves are a pain in the flank…”

He paused, then thoughtfully leaned back before grunting as he stood carefully on his hind hooves: unlike him, his reflection bore no armor, and Scrivener looked curiously over his grayer underbelly as he balanced on his back legs, front limbs stretched out to either side. “I wonder if there’s a giant eyeball in there. Do they have entire worlds inside their shells? Are we not all just worlds, though, each and every one of us a universe of incoherent thoughts?”

The earth pony grimaced after a moment, muttering: “Actually, no, Discombobulation is a better thief than me. Guess that means he’s probably a better writer, too.” Scrivy paused, then he threw a few easy punches with his front hooves at the mirror, watching as his reflection mimicked the motion, and then the earth pony swayed his tail back and forth and smiled amusedly as the Wyrm’s tail twisted in the same movements. “Tyrant Wyrms are supposed to be big, though. I look more like the puppy-sized version. I’m a Tyrant Puppy. Or a Tyrant punt-dog depending on your view of purse-sized animals.”

Scrivener Blooms leaned backwards slightly, then carefully attempted to stand on one hoof, holding his front legs out wide as his reflection did the same, grinning a bit despite himself as he rocked back and forth. “Not so bad, really. Hey, I wonder if I can make my individual claws flex or if-”

“Will you stop that?” Valthrudnir appeared in a flash in the mirror, the draconic Jötnar snarling and smashing Scrivener’s Wyrm reflection savagely out of the way with a sweep of one huge arm, and Scrivy shouted a flurry of surprised curses as he toppled backwards and rolled into the railing with a loud thud, wincing as his head smacked against the stone column and he stared dumbly at the mirror. “Idiotic little miscreant, are you too stupid to appreciate what you’re becoming?”

Scrivener grimaced a bit as Valthrudnir snarled in the cracked mirror, enormous and imposing, taking up all dozen or so feet of the mirror’s height and most of its width, and then the earth pony grumbled to himself as he slowly climbed to his hooves, saying distastefully: “Look. We’re in Hell. We’re in North Neigh, which honestly? It’s probably worse than Hell for me. I’m a monster, we’ve gone over this a thousand times, and you’re in my head, whatever the hell you are, and I keep having psycho visions and I’m very tired and sore and nothing is working the way it’s supposed to. If after all this time, you think that making my reflection look like what we all already know I’m turning into on the inside is the worst you can come up with, then I seriously have to begin questioning just how smart you ever were, and how lucky you must have been that you managed to cause all the chaos you did.”

Valthrudnir snarled at this, looking infuriated as he pointed at him through the glass, saying darkly: “You listen to me, cheating mortal. I am in control here. I am going to win this game and-”

“Oh, so ‘tis as I feared.” Scrivy glanced over the railing, and Valthrudnir snorted in the mirror, crossing his arms and looking disgusted as the winged unicorn gracefully flew upwards and sailed over the edge of the walkway, dropping to land easily on it as she glared at the tall, cracked reflective glass. “I cannot see thee with mine own eyes, Valthrudnir, but I can hear thy loud, rude voice in my mind, and through my husband’s senses I detect thy trickery. And yes, my beloved beetle may be an idiot at times, but his magnificent idiocy is very much part of the reason why I love him and am so proud of him, especially since the magnificent idiot so spectacularly outwitted the great and wicked genius of a mighty Jötnar like thyself.”

The draconic entity narrowed his eyes dangerously at this, leaning forwards as he said coldly: “You talk a big game, Brynhild, for such a filthy little animal. For all your cherishing of him, Valkyrie, you’re also the one who made it so easy to corrupt him… who skewered his values and twisted his morals and taught him indulgence in depravity… and killed the little conscience the filthy sewer rat had.”

“Hi. I’m right here.” Scrivener said dryly, holding up a hoof, and Valthrudnir’s eye visibly twitched as Luna shot an exasperated look at the earth pony, but she was grinning slightly all the same, recognizing the surly, frustrated look all too well. It was the look the earth pony always got when he had finally been pushed too far, to the point where the self-destructive and stubborn parts of his personality commingled together and he started pushing back. “Also, I was plenty indulgent before Luna came along. I almost ruined myself drinking, for one thing. For another, I know that a lot of stuff Luna does, she does because she can see inside of me and knows it’s something I’ll enjoy. Even if she is such a dirty, dirty girl.”

He gave her a pointed look, and Luna glared at him even as she snorted in entertainment, saying seriously in response: “Scrivener Blooms, be not so naughty, ‘lest I bend thee over my knee and spank thee, heinous little creature.”

“Is that a promise?” Scrivener replied glibly, and Luna threw her head back and laughed as Valthrudnir’s jaw dropped… and then the dragon let out a snarling roar, leaning forwards as his eyes blazed with fury and frustration, his face alone filling up the entire mirror as both of the ponies winced away from the reflective surface.

“Cease this immediately and show me some respect, pathetic mortal animals! I am Jötnar, you are under my control, and I am the one who destroyed this world!” Valthrudnir shouted furiously, his voice echoing violently through Luna and Scrivy’s mind and making them both wince and snarl. “You are nothing more than puppets dancing on my strings, alive because I have chosen to bide my time, because I want to watch you struggle and suffer and dance, because-”

“Because you’re the one who’s trapped in my mind!” Scrivener shouted back, storming towards the mirror as his eyes blazed, and Luna stepped up beside him, her mane sparking, her own eyes glowing as she and the earth pony both glared at the surprised draconic entity as its face drew slightly away from the strange window of the mirror. “You’re the one who’s all talk, who plays with illusions, who keeps dragging me into these long-winded verbal battles that are never anything more than a thin veil for you declaring ‘look at me, guys, I’m the best, guys!’ Well enough, Valthrudnir! Go back to your tumor in my mind, get the hell out of here until you have something useful to say, and then we’ll talk!”

And with that, Scrivener leapt up and shoved his front hooves against either side of the mirror, then slammed his forehead into the glass hard enough to send a spiderweb of cracks through the reflective surface, the illusion of the draconic Jötnar fizzling out completely with a look of dumb surprise before Scrivener fell backwards on his haunches, wincing a bit and with several large shards of broken mirror clinging to his scalp as Luna winced, faint scratches forming over her own head.

But the earth pony only sulked as he sat back on his haunches, a single bead of blood rolling down his forehead and along his muzzle as he muttered: “Well. I feel distinctly stupid now but at least he went away. I’m starting to understand why Pinkamena is always biting things.”

“Scrivener Blooms, thou loud, boisterous, foolish wretch.” Luna smiled at him faintly, and then she strode quietly over to him and leaned down to brush the broken pieces of mirror from the earth pony’s forehead, before she kissed his cuts softly. The faint droplets of blood smeared against her lower lip like lipstick as her horn glowed quietly, and then the earth pony laughed despite himself as he closed his eyes, feeling the wounds healing closed as Luna’s magic washed over him before she drew back and gazed silently down into his eyes. “What am I to do with thee, foolish beetle? Worse yet, if thou continues to act like this, thou may no longer have need of me to pummel things. Thou art starting to actually act a little like the hero I have always felt thou could be.”

This made Scrivener blush a bit and mumbled, shifting before he smiled awkwardly up at her, and Luna grinned slightly as she looked down at him, saying thoughtfully: “Or perhaps thou art still the same silly mare I married all those years ago.”

“I guess I am. I’m so lucky you’re a lesbian.” Scrivener replied dryly, looking up at her mildly, and Luna rolled her eyes in amusement at this before she headbutted him lightly, making him wince as their scratched foreheads firmly bumped together. “Ouch. But okay, I’m happy you’re bisexual. Better?”

“Thou art one to talk, poet.” Luna retorted, and Scrivy glowered at her before he headbutted her firmly, and she winced and leaned back a bit before they both smiled at one another, eyes locking, trading images and memories and thoughts before she jerked her head towards the railing and said softly: “Come, let us return down to the lobby. I discovered an old storage closet, where various robes and coats were kept. They shall make sufficient bedding.”

Scrivener laughed quietly and glanced past her hesitantly, then he met her eyes, saying softly: “I’ll join you in a minute then, Luna. Let me take a quick look around here… the Pale of Caprice is lingering in her office, and I was just… I mean…”

Luna softened a bit, studying the earth pony… and then she nodded slowly, leaning forwards and kissing his cheek gently. “Fair enough then, my sweet daydreamer. But if thou needs my help… do not hesitate to ask. Even if it is just for support. Thou does not have to face anything alone… I am always there for thee, Scrivy.”

“I know, Luna. And I appreciate it.” He paused, looking down for a moment, before he looked back up and added quietly: “I love you.”

Luna blushed a bit, but then she smiled softly, leaning forwards and murmuring softly: “I love thee too. But every time thou says such a thing so suddenly I always fear thou art plunging into some self-destructive spiral of rage and vexation. Especially when I feel thy mood… darkening. I worry for thee, fragile poet. Thy shell is tough, beetle, but thy insides are soft as a mare’s fine skin.”

“And you’re such a good example of that.” Scrivener replied with a slight smile as he turned away, and Luna opened her mouth, then huffed at his back as he strode down the walkway towards a broken doorway, adding easily over his shoulder: “Don’t worry, Luna. I’ll break down and cry later. How does that sound?”

“Just do not do it in the middle of battle, ‘twill be awkward to explain to the Elementals.” Luna replied quickly, and Scrivener grumbled as the winged unicorn snorted in entertainment before she turned and leapt over the railing, spreading her proud wings and gliding easily down towards the ground as she added softly to herself: “I only wish thou did not feel such unnecessary shame, beloved husband.”

Scrivener halted at the broken door at the end of the hall, sighing a bit as he dropped his head forwards and clunked his forehead quietly against it, half-hearing Luna’s words and catching her thoughts… and then he smiled a little, straightening and saying softly: “You hear that, Scrivener Blooms? Making your wife and best friend worry about you. Why do you have to be such a damn jerk sometimes?”

He laughed a little, then reached up and shoved the door open… and stared in surprise as beyond, he found that the ceiling had collapsed over a desk and several shattered shelves. Snow was scattered here and there, but the hole in the roof had been patched by ice and frost that had spread over it in sheets almost a full foot thick, several large icicles and thick roots of frost spread down the walls and offering both support and a death trap should the former decide to fall.

But most notable of all was the Haunt that stood, rasping silently in the corner of the room, the unicorn slowly turning its staring, blackened features towards him. It was ghastly, coat stretched and blackened with both rot and frostbite as it gazed at him for a few moments from its sunken sockets… and then Scrivener winced as a sharp pain went through his eyes before he found himself staring at a red unicorn mare, who leaned towards him and whispered: “Please help me… I’m so cold, and my hoof is stuck…”

Scrivener looked pityingly at the Haunt for a few moments as reality flickered in his vision and it became only the dead shape again… and his eyes traveled slowly downwards, to not a lodged hoof… but a missing leg. He looked at this silently, then finally gazed up and met its eyes as the unicorn mare flickered in his vision again, saying softly: “Close your eyes for me.”

The Haunt looked at him worriedly, but then she did so apprehensively… and Scrivener walked slowly forwards, gently reaching his hoof up to its shoulder, carefully pushing against the dead thing’s side to test the strength of its body before he wrapped a foreleg around it, supporting it against him as he instructed quietly: “Now carefully, we’re going to walk forwards a few paces, okay? Keep your eyes closed.”

“Are you sure? Am I free? Why can’t I look?” The mare flickered in his vision, and then it was only a rasping, dead corpse again, and Scrivener closed his own eyes tightly as he carefully supported the corpse, walking a few slow paces with it before the creature’s haunches buckled and it fell to a sitting position… but when he opened his eyes, he saw the shape of the red mare gazing up at him with relief, the unicorn smiling as tears rolled down her cheeks and she whispered: “You’re not… not nearly as bad as the other unicorns said… I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry for what the unicorns did. I’m so sorry for everything I did. I’m so… so sorry…”

“It’s okay.” Scrivener smiled faintly at her, gently settling her down… and the mare gazed up at him before the illusion flickered again, becoming the shape of the blackened Haunt once more, but Scrivener reached forwards all the same, touching its frostbitten cheek as he said quietly: “Now rest here. Lay your head down and sleep.”

The Haunt rasped something to him wordlessly… and then slowly, it lowered its head and fell still and silent, its body giving a single pulse before it lost the sense of awful, clinging sadness and vitality that had clung to it. Scrivener looked down at it silently, glad that it had been set free… and then he closed his eyes, turning around and sighing softly as he let himself through the door and muttered: “Guess all unicorns… weren’t so bad, anyway…”

He checked several other doors on the second floor, and found only a heavy cloak in remarkably good condition in one room, resting over a trunk. Otherwise, there was nothing of interest… marks where something had been burned, a few scars of battle, a few frozen and dead unicorn bodies that thankfully didn’t move. He also thought he caught a glimpse of a Pale, but wandering ghosts were far from uncommon in this world… and for all he knew, it could be Caprice, spying furtively on them and trying to decide whether or not he was a sorcerer still.

He snorted in amusement at this thought as he headed down the steps to find Luna laying on several coats and cloaks she had gathered in front of a burning pile of debris, sapphire flames dancing greedily over the shattered remnants of desk and chairs and yet consuming very little of the wood as she glanced over her shoulder and smiled a bit. “Thou art either too kind or trying thy hardest to irritate me, Scrivener Blooms.”

“Can’t it be both?” Scrivy smiled back, tossing her the heavy black cloak, and Luna caught it before curiously inspecting the coat of arms on the back, of two unicorns standing on either side of three tall golden horns. “Unicorn monarchy symbol. Traditional, they call it, dates back some seventeen hundred years or so.”

Luna nodded thoughtfully, then she shrugged a bit before carefully slipping the cloak on, saying quietly: “Well, ‘tis not like I shall need this for very long, anyway. What about thou, Scrivener Blooms? Surely thou cannot seriously be fine in this accursed weather.”

“I dunno. It just doesn’t bother me, Luna… the cold, that is.” Scrivener shrugged a bit, leaning over and resting against her, and Luna pressed her side back against the male’s as she turned her face to bury it quietly into his mane, eyes closed. “Everything else about North Neigh bothers me but… the cold never does. It’s like the darkness… the cold embraces me.”

“Oh, compare not my pleasant and beautiful night that we both so miss to this damnable cold. Maybe thou art meant to go to Helheim.” Luna said moodily, and Scrivener laughed despite himself as he gave her an amused look. “Silence, wretched creature.”

Scrivener nudged her gently, and she grumbled and nudged him firmly back with her shoulder, grumbling: “Thou should pummel me for this idea. Wretched, damnable, silly idea that it is. I would rather be back in stuffy Canterlot, locked away in my room under motherly Celestia than here, now that we have arrived… and ‘twill be a long few hours while we heal and regenerate, Scrivener Blooms. A long few hours I wish we could pass in… greater delights, but… this place makes me uncomfortable.”

She quieted, then leaned away with a soft sigh, the two studying one another for a few moments before she lowered her head and murmured: “I keep remembering… what happened here. How much we suffered… how much we lost. And that this terrible place… this is what thou gave up thy mind for, Scrivy.” She laughed faintly, glancing towards him, looking over him slowly as she whispered: “It humbles me that thou can be so generous of heart.”

The male only smiled faintly, however, lowering his head and murmured quietly: “Not really, Luna… I mean, how often have we both regretted what we did here? But while I know that given the chance, you’d do it all over again, you’d save these ponies… I… I don’t know if I would, if I could, knowing what… what it would cost. What it would just lead to…

“Every day, I wonder. If we had known what we were up against, and that the Tyrant Wyrm itself was only another distraction… would I have preferred to let it feed off of and destroy the city, innocents and all amidst the guilty unicorns? Would we have ignored the problem it posed, gone straight to the Black Baroque if we had known that was where all this evil was coming from, and… could we have made everything different, at the cost of…” Scrivener closed his eyes and laughed a bit, dropping his head forwards as he muttered: “I’m sorry, Luna. I’m not making sense, I know. I’m just… look at what I’ve become. Forget what I’m becoming, what I’ve already become is…”

He quieted, glancing away, and Luna hugged him tightly around the neck, pushing herself closer to him and murmuring: “And look at whom and what I am, Scrivener Blooms. Nightmare Moon, and yet still thou wert my friend from the very beginning, and worked to understand me… to care for me, and help me, and teach me. And I have learned much from being with thee, and nothing more important than that it is we who shape ourselves and our destinies… and that even the greatest of darkness can be used for good. But we have a promise, do we not, Scrivy? Come. Out of these dreary thoughts, on to better things, ‘lest I pummel thee.”

“I just hate feeling like I’m your greatest vulnerability… like I could become a threat to you. Like I might hurt you.” Scrivener paused meditatively, then he smiled a bit at her, bowing his head towards the winged unicorn and adding with soft entertainment: “Although there is something darkly and delightfully romantic about the whole thing too, isn’t there? Me and you, the Tyrant Pony and the Valkyrie. Our kid is going to be so messed up.”

“Thou art not a Tyrant Pony, thou art a Jerk Pony.” Luna retorted grouchily, and then she headbutted him and mumbled: “Besides, what is most awkward of all is that I almost enjoy said analogy. We would rule the battlefield with greater ease than perhaps even Celestia ever did… but ‘twould likely be awkward in bed, though.”

“I love how that’s where your mind goes to, Luna. The battlefield and the bedroom… although to you, they’re both battlegrounds, aren’t they?” Scrivener asked mildly, glancing up towards the blue flame… and then he winced when Luna firmly bopped him with her horn, giving him a sour look. “Well, you said it, not me. I’m merely remarking on it.”

“Oh, shut up, poet.” Luna grumbled, and then she buried her face against the side of his neck with a sigh, saying sullenly: “We are strange, strange creatures, Scrivener Blooms. We have made each other better and worse over the years, just as Helheim has made us better and worse. I dislike this.”

“I know Luna. I know.” Scrivener wrapped a foreleg around her, and the two pressed close in front of the sapphire fire, curling their bodies tighter together. It was a long time before the two could relax, however… but eventually, they both began to settle and relax even in the shells of their armor, nuzzling each other softly and trading gentle affections as they clung to each other for comfort more than heat.

Luna slowly closed her eyes as Scrivener sat up a bit, gazing at her quietly as the winged unicorn yawned a little before smiling up at him as she settled over the cloaks, and then she murmured softly: “Only an hour, daydreamer, then waken me and I shall return the favor and watch over thee as thou sleeps. A little sleep may do a world of good for us both.”

Scrivener nodded, rubbing a hoof gently along her back as he replied quietly: “Of course, Luna. Get some sleep now, and I’ll wake you when it’s time to switch.”

The winged unicorn nodded, then she leaned up towards him and glared at him insistently, and Scrivener rolled his eyes in entertainment before he leaned down and turned his head to the side, allowing her to kiss his cheek before she flopped back on the cloaks and mumbled: “Wretched beetle. Wretched world. I shall pummel Odin for seeding Midgard like this in the first place. God of Wisdom my flank…”

Scrivener only gazed at her with entertainment as he reached up to adjust his glasses, and Luna huffed a bit as she curled up beneath the thick cloak over her body amidst the musty but comfortable cloth she had found… but the feeling of the black pearl against her chest and the knowledge her husband was watching out for her helped her steadily relax, falling steadily into sleep.

Luna’s eyes opened in a dream world, gazing back and forth with a soft smile as she stood up and studied her surroundings. The floor was marble, the walls were obsidian, and beautiful tapestries and paintings hung over them; it was a magnificent entrance hall, with an enormous staircase at the back of the room leading up to an enormous open archway. Luna was drawn towards this, the oak steps murmuring beneath her hooves as she climbed the stairs and passed through the arch onto a wide balcony, and she climbed to her hind hooves to lean with a look of awe over the white marble railing, gazing down at a magnificent, wild valley lit by the moon and stars high above.

Enormous trees and strange fauna and flora played all throughout the sprawled vale, and she could hear the songs of night-birds mixing with the chuckling of a flowing, tranquil river. But it was not merely the beauty that compelled her… it was the strange knowledge that all this was hers, and yet was not: it was her kingdom, but it was wild, it was free, it did not require her to rule over it as Celestia had always ruled over Equestria… and she closed her eyes, tilting her head upwards and basking beneath the light of the moon as she whispered: “Wonderful.”

“And it is all yours.” Nightmare Moon’s voice spoke kindly, and Luna turned around with surprise to gaze at the enormous obsidian equine was she strode out of the archway, smiling tenderly. Her eyes gleamed, and the wreath of black roses around her neck swayed slowly as she leaned down and said quietly: “This can and will be the fruit of our achievements together, my dear child Luna. Especially working alongside beloved Scrivener Blooms… that is what will make it all worthwhile, isn’t it? Now look into the forest.”

Luna frowned a bit, but then she slowly turned around when Nightmare Moon gave her a softly-imploring gaze, and the winged unicorn leaned up and over the railing to gaze once more through the forest veil… before her eyes widened as she caught sight of something enormous slithering amongst the trees, and a flash of strange, eldritch light. It rumbled… and yet it sent a thrill through her, before she gritted her teeth as Nightmare Moon stepped up beside her and whispered in her ear: “It excites me too. But remember… that he must choose for himself. Yes, we have both tampered with Scrivener Blooms over the years, let us both admit our faults in this… I have allowed myself too often to be blinded by my desire to make him strong, by forgetting that… my ideals, my thoughts of love, are tainted by my own darkness, and perhaps my own ego.

“But do not forget that I love him too. That he is most precious to me…” Nightmare Moon smiled as Luna gazed at her, the tall, black equine saying in a voice that was tender, that was somehow soothing: “He is more important to me than you, perhaps, Luna. And this comforts you and scares you, but not for the reasons many would expect… but he is more important to you than you are to yourself as well, isn’t he? He makes you forget the instinct of self-preservation… but as you are both so tightly bound and bonded, perhaps he also inclines you to always remember your priorities… perhaps striving so hard to make him happy and please him and save him is merely selfishness. Did you not once believe it would be better to die than to serve as a thrall to evil?”

“Aye, I did, but Scrivener Blooms will conquer the corruption. Will conquer Valthrudnir, too…” Luna hesitated, looking silently up at Nightmare Moon as she whispered: “And I believe he will conquer us as well, and these terrible things we do to him, have pushed upon him. I do not know… why I do, Nightmare Moon. And I know ‘tis not just thou, ‘tis me. I wish to see him strong, I wish to see him happy, and I influence him and do… wicked things to him without meaning to. Encourage him in things I know, I know I should help mend instead of further test and pressure… what do I do, Nightmare Moon? What is it inside me that compels me towards… towards evil…”

“Shh, little one, it is alright.” Nightmare Moon stepped forwards, gently embracing Luna and pulling her closer, and the smaller winged unicorn went willingly, resting her head against the enormous ebony equine’s chest, smelling the perfume of the black roses as she closed her eyes tightly and shivered a bit against this being of darkness manifested inside her. “You are a Valkyrie. You are a warrior, with a warrior’s instincts… but more than that, we have always been different, have we not? We are willing to do what is necessary, and to fight darkness with darkness, and to do anything to ensure the protection of our loved ones. We do not bend to the laws of others, but rather follow our own code… especially true now that we have lived here in Helheim for so long.

“It is in your nature, Luna, to… change… what you contact.” Nightmare Moon continued delicately, and the sapphire winged unicorn winced and looked up apprehensively at this as Nightmare Moon gazed back down with a sympathetic smile. “And Scrivener Blooms has much that has left him… easier to compel into our dark world. The corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm only added to this… and is it so wrong we want to make him powerful? That we want him to be able to stride onto the battlefield with the same great strength as us? That we want him to be the most miraculous of treasures, the treasure that protects itself?”

She smiled encouragingly, then gazed outwards again towards the vale, saying softly: “I believe, beloved Luna… that Scrivener Blooms will maintain himself no matter what occurs. But to be honest? I also do not have the same… cares and worries that you do. Because I always remember that no matter what occurs… what path we choose… we always walk the path together. Scrivener Blooms will never leave and betray us, and we shall never leave and betray him.” Nightmare Moon closed her eyes, smiling as she tilted her head back with an expression that was almost blissful. “Even if he did somehow transform into a terrible Tyrant Wyrm, we know he would not hurt us. And we would still stand beside him even if he had their awful hungers as well as their awful powers…”

“And that is what scares me, creature.” Luna murmured, bowing her head forwards as she laughed weakly. “I do not believe that… Scrivener Blooms will magically transform into a giant, death-breathing lizard. That would be a vast and stupid overestimation of the echo of Valthrudnir’s powers… I fear rather that he will be twisted inside, but I do not… I do not wish to imagine what that would do to him.

“But I know that whether or not I dove first into the shadows, or Scrivener Blooms strode fearlessly into the darkness himself… I would follow him, and he would follow me with no hesitation, no fear, only love. Terrible, dark love…” Luna laughed faintly, shaking her head slowly as she whispered: “We would save the world to make each other happy… and yet, we would destroy it, too, and gladly, if only to make the other smile. Is this truly love, Nightmare Moon? Is love truly such a dangerous, evil, and powerful thing? For even had I not this connection in soul to Scrivener Blooms… I still think that… that without him, I would wither and die. Just as he thinks so often that without me, he would lose all purpose… love is a killer, Nightmare Moon. Love is dangerous. Love is darker than thou and I put together. Love is a worse manipulator than Valthrudnir.”

The darkness-touched equine only laughed quietly, however, looking down at her and saying tenderly: “Which is why it is perfect for us, and for you, and for our beloved treasure. We are not good ponies, after all… perhaps, we are no longer even ponies, whatever our shapes may belie.”

“Say it not!” Luna snapped, looking up at her with teeth grit, but Nightmare Moon only slid her hooves soothingly along Luna’s shoulders, gazing down at her kindly, and the winged unicorn gave a shiver as she dropped her head forwards against the broad chest of the creature and whispered: “Say it not. I fear every day what we are, Nightmare Moon… thou does not need to further remind me of the fact that I am a monster.”

The larger winged unicorn only gave a tender smile, leaning down and whispering softly in her ear: “What would you rather be, precious Luna? A monster… or unable to protect and save these loved ones, these treasures? The abyss holds many secrets, if only you are willing to plumb its depths… a monster’s eyes may be the windows to a soul more real and alive than that of many so-called heroes. I do not fear being a monster… and I do not think Scrivener Blooms does, either.”

Luna fidgeted apprehensively, and Nightmare Moon finally drew back, gazing out towards the forest as there was a flash of blue light from the vale, as something rumbled through the trees as she said thoughtfully: “Still, there are many considerations to take into account yet, and much to be done before we allow other petty concerns to overwhelm our mind and spirit. Darling Luna, do not despair… only do what must be done. Embrace who you are… do not push Scrivener Blooms, but aid his own decision with empathy and compassion, things that I am not as familiar with as you are. Let us all work together, in our loving companionship… I am sure the future holds many wonders, no matter what path we take.”

Then Nightmare Moon turned, striding back through the archway, leaving Luna sitting alone on the balcony as she breathed slowly in and out, trembling a bit before she clenched her eyes shut and murmured: “I do not understand what thou means to achieve, Nightmare Moon… but at the same time, I know that I must take thy advice. I only hope that thou speaks the truth of the future… that… things will work out.”

She sighed a little, then shook her head and turned around, moodily throwing her front limbs over the railing and dropping her chin over them as she grumbled: “’Tis all nonsense. I wish that I could pummel it all into place… and here I am, dreaming of my husband becoming a world-eater. ‘Tis worse than when he dreams of me permitting him to take care of me, although at least this is far more possible.” She paused reflectively, adding musingly: “And at least Scrivener’s goals are noble: he would never steal from me the thrill of the battle, and never fight for me did I not make it clear I wished him to… but sometimes, only sometimes, ‘tis nice to know that should I somehow ever have all four of my legs cut off and my wings removed, then I could take a day off now and then to permit Scrivener Blooms to do more than the housework and cookery.”

She smiled despite herself at this, then leaned out as there was another ripple through the forest, hoping to catch a clearer glimpse of the shape… but then the vale fell still and silent, and she sighed a little, saying grouchily: “There is something so very, very wrong with me. No wonder Celestia always mothered me, I am damaged and unwell. I am almost a poet. Not quite, but almost.”

She leaned forwards a bit further, musing to herself as she looked back and forth over the beautiful night forest… and then Luna reared back in surprise as the head of an enormous, black-scaled, ivory-scarred Tyrant Wyrm rose slowly up in front of her, unnatural blue light shining from its eyes as it released a plume of foggy blue breath that hissed softly through the air: it smelled of spices and cooked meat, impossible to identify as the winged unicorn stared, drawing her eyes along features she recognized in spite of how changed they were, how enormous it was, as the creature’s head leaned forwards before it grinned widely, ivory teeth glinting as it spoke in a soft rumble: “Dreams are powerful, aren’t they? You can have anything you want in a dream world. Sometimes… I wish we could sleep forever, together…”

“Scrivy.” Luna smiled faintly, stepping forwards and reaching up to touch the end of his enormous muzzle, and the creature’s gaze was soft and tender as it gazed down at her, an expression she had never expected to see on the face of any Tyrant Wyrm… an expression that made her smile wider, almost brought tears to her eyes as she saw in it her husband, her beloved… as it reminded her that no matter what the shape, it was not a monster: he was not a monster, and to her, he never would be. “Did thou fall asleep, great foolish lout?”

Scrivener Blooms only laughed quietly, however, and he drew back slightly for a moment before he rose up on his hind legs, enormous, gnarled claws grasping either side of the castle as his head leaned down over her, and Luna gazed up at him with exhilaration and a wide grin, licking her lips and both loving and hating the thrill the sight gave her. “No, but you told me to wake you up after an hour. Well, it’s been two hours, and I decided the easiest way to get your attention would be to slip into your mind. But with you thinking of me in this shape, and me… admittedly poking a lot through thoughts I shouldn’t… this form seemed most natural to appear to you in.” He paused meditatively, eyes giving a faint flash. “Funny, this form being the most natural. Yet… all the same… it helps somehow.”

“Thou let me sleep for an extra hour? Foul beetle.” Luna grumbled, and then she flicked her horn towards him, sending a small blue flare shooting upwards to strike Scrivener’s breast, the fireball bursting over his scales and making him wince back slightly… but then only grin down at her, and she snorted in amusement at this. “Do not make me crack thee open to discover if thou really are the same as the other Wyrms, with a blackened and ashen world inside thee and a great and grinning eye.”

“Eyes can’t really grin, they don’t have teeth.” Scrivener retorted, and he leaned down with a flash of his enormous ivory fangs. “I have teeth.”

“I have teeth as well, Scrivener Blooms. The difference is that mine are like this in reality, so thou should shut thy foolish gaping mouth.” Luna grinned back widely, her own jaws like a trap filled with deadly, polished blades, and Scrivy laughed before the winged unicorn shook her head and said amusedly: “Retreat from my dreamworld, beetle. I shall be out shortly, and then thou can parade around however thy pleases in thine own mind.”

Scrivener smiled… and then he leaned suddenly, impulsively down, kissing the side of her face quietly, and Luna turned almost beet-red at the contact before the Tyrant Wyrm-shaped poet winked and burst apart into blue smog. The winged unicorn grumbled in frustration under her breath as she closed her eyes tightly, willing herself towards wakefulness as she muttered: “Idiot stupid damnable beloved Scrivener Blooms…”

Slowly, Luna felt herself dropping downwards, breathing a little harder as her eyes flickered… and then finally opened, and she yawned quietly as she stretched her limbs out, once more feeling soft cloaks beneath her body before she sat up with surprise as she realized that not only had her helm had been removed, there was a pillow under her head and a blanket thrown over her body. She looked up with surprise at Scrivy, who was sitting nearby, calmly writing… and he gave her a soft smile, shrugging a bit and saying quietly: “It just took a few minutes of digging around. You know, you spent another half an hour flailing your way to wakefulness.”

“Shut up, Scrivy, ‘tis… tiresome.” Luna mumbled, and she absently rolled her head on her shoulders before finally climbing to her hooves and shaking herself out briskly, ephemeral mane and tail sizzling softly around her before she smiled over at him quietly. “Thou… has my thanks, though. And… Scrivener Blooms, listen-”

“No.” Scrivener smiled over at her, and Luna looked surprised before the male quietly put his quill and inkwell aside, then glanced over the sheet of parchment before he said softly: “We have a job to do that takes precedence over everything else right now. We have ponies to try and save, and I’ve… written my thoughts down, and don’t think I need to mope about it anymore, now that all my worries are trapped in paper. So I’m going to have a nap now, and when you wake me up, we’ll go out there, kick some flank, and then figure a way out to march those Pales all the way back home. Sound good?”

Luna looked at him for a few moments… then she stepped forwards and embraced him fiercely, and Scrivener leaned back in surprise before she kissed his cheek and murmured in his ear: “It sounds as if thou has finally decided to join the living instead of the moping dead, Scrivener Blooms. I’m proud of thee.”

Scrivener laughed a little at this, reaching up and rubbing his front hooves along her sides as they leaned together… and then they pulled apart and smiled, studying one another before trading a short, soft kiss, and Luna gazed warmly after him as the male approached the cloaks and dropped over them. He pulled Sleipnir’s helm off his head, putting it aside and tossing his glasses off, and the winged unicorn drew her eyes over his scarred features as he pulled the blanket up over his body and lowered himself to the pillow, yawning and saying quietly: “Don’t let me sleep for too long. I’m not a magical unicorn like you and my body’s already pretty well-rested.”

“Unlike thou, I am not kind enough to modify my schedules for thee in any event. Rest for an hour, Scrivy, and then I shall awaken thee and we shall be on our way.” Luna replied gently, and the earth pony smiled to her before he closed his eyes with a nod, and the winged unicorn gazed over him lovingly before she turned her head to curiously glance at the parchment, her horn glowing blue as she lifted it and smiled at Scrivener’s messy writing.

Her eyes drew over the words: it was more like prose than poetry, but most of all it was a recording of the male’s thoughts. They rambled, jumbled together, almost incoherent… and yet to Luna it all made perfect sense, knowing the male as she did, and she gazed over at him softly before putting the parchment down and quietly leaning over the earth pony, leaning down to kiss his temple… and the male smiled a bit, murmuring: “I’m not even asleep yet, mother Luna.”

“Quiet, beetle, and accept the little gifts in life with grace.” Luna replied tenderly, and she reached a hoof up to stroke along his back quietly before she gazed towards the sapphire flames, laughing softly and adding in a murmur: “Beloved Scrivener Blooms, my poet, my beetle, my daydreamer. Forget not that the quill is mightier than the blade. A sword may take a life, but a poem may take a nation.”

“Only if you’re good at it, and I’m not.” Scrivener replied, eyes still closed as he dozed, and Luna sighed and rolled her eyes before she firmly smacked him, making him wince and start. “Should I just not sleep, then?”

“Nay, go on, rest now.” Luna replied with a roll of her eyes, looking down at him with entertainment as she slowly shook her head. “We have time yet… even if the world is close to collapse, we still have much time left.”

Scrivener smiled a bit at this thought, nodding slowly… and Luna sat over him protectively, watching as the male settled down into sleep, gazing over him with affection and love as the blue flames of the bonfire crackled quietly and cast warmth through the hollow room of the broken town that was trapped in Helheim’s eternal frost.

Ragnarok's Dark Cradle

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Chapter Twelve: Ragnarok's Dark Cradle
~BlackRoseRaven

Luna sketched while Scrivener slept until she got bored and kicked him awake, after giving him some fifty minutes of rest. The earth pony had been surly, blinking sleep tiredly from his eyes and mumbling grouchily as Luna went about the task of cooking the last of their fish. They took their time with the meal, eating slowly as Scrivener finally came around to full wakefulness, his body a little sore, muscles tired but loosening up as he and Luna rested side-by-side, backs heated by the sapphire flames behind them as they looked at the frozen-shut doors and passed thoughts of planning and strategy back and forth.

Not that there was a whole lot of strategy about what they planned to do: get to the Black Baroque, perhaps dare to delve into its haunted depths, and then begin summoning and leading on the Pales. Of course, calling the spirits to them would also have the nasty side effect of possibly getting the attention of demons and other wicked things… but as long as they didn’t attract anything that could injure the ghosts as well, Luna and Scrivener were confident in their ability to fight off whatever dared to try and attack them.

The two traded looks, trading thoughts… and then the winged unicorn nodded slowly, saying quietly: “Alright Scrivener Blooms. Thou may wear it this time, but only because we do not know what lays ahead. And if something begins to happen… do not worry for the relic. We can lead the Pales on with my horn, we have done it before even though it is… tiring, and will make the journey back rougher on us both. But our comforts and luxury can be sacrificed if it means protecting our, and the spirits within our care.”

“I know, Luna. But if something does happen, I’m going to try and protect both.” The male replied softly, glancing towards where the open satchel sat, and Luna sighed but nodded grudgingly as she turned her own gaze towards the saddlebag with a grumble as her horn glowed quiet blue.

A moment later, a cloth-wrapped object rose quietly out of the bag, and Scrivener smiled a bit as the blanket padding it carefully extracted itself from around the strange, long shape, revealing a thick collar made of segmented plates of pale-green painted bone: runes gleamed over it, etchings that were painted with the bright crimson of supernatural blood, and a single, tiny bell hung from the bottom of the collar, ringing softly as it floated towards Scrivener before he bowed his head forwards.

It slipped around his neck and locked tightly into place, a complex, cold iron buckle fastening and holding it tight as the male rolled his shoulders with a wince, the runes that covered the strange choker glinting brightly. The bell jingled softly, and Scrivener gave another grimace as he looked up… and was unsurprised to see several Pales standing and looking silently down at them, drawn by the quiet chime of the bell alone. The Khlōros: a collar said to belong to Grim Steed himself, and which even without being activated tended to draw out Pales… but once empowered with Luna’s magic, would emit a phantasmal call that soothed and drew out the spirits of the dead, letting them form a vast herd of souls who would follow them anywhere they went for as long as the collar stayed active.

But it was also fragile: a single good blow to it would crack the collar or halt its spectral song, and then the Pales would quickly lose their focus and become disoriented, wandering away unless Luna replicated the collar’s effects with a spell… a spell that was particularly draining and required both Scrivener and Luna to pour their concentration into it, severely weakening them both over the course of even a short march. It also left them almost defenseless… and worse, if they did get in a fight, Luna would have to drop the enchantment, and after the battle most likely rest… which in other words, would mean losing most, if not all, of the herd of Pales they would have gathered up to that point on top of everything else.

The collar had been broken more than once over the last decade, and then they had to give it to Odin for him to take it to be repaired. Whether he was a god or not, he still had a long line of discreet contacts he often put to use… but was also always careful to never mention any of them by name. They were likely other gods or entities from who knew where… and despite her past life, not even Luna was able to put forwards many guesses as to how and why and where and when Odin had befriended these other entities: Valkyries, after all, had essentially been soldiers and bodyguards, spending much of their time keeping the Warrior’s Heaven in order and the rest running errands for the Aesir. They had only ever done what they had been told to do, and not asked questions or made judgments… although that was probably part of the reason why Odin had been so furious when his advances upon then-Brynhild had been refused.

Luna smiled a bit as Scrivener reached up and absently rubbed along the segmented collar, and then she leaned forwards and said quietly: “We shall activate it once we reach the Black Baroque… after perhaps scouting the accursed area. But for now, wear it proudly as the warrior poet thou hast become, Scrivener Blooms. Only remember… thine life comes first. Even should this break, we shall find another way to gather these lost and sad souls… it is important to save them, but we cannot save anypony if we ourselves die.”

“No self-destructing, I understand.” Scrivener replied with a bit of a smile, and Luna laughed quietly and gave him an entertained look before her horn glowed as she winked at him, lifting Sleipnir’s helm and firmly shoving it down over the equine’s head, making him snort in entertainment as his glasses half-fell down his face before he pushed them quickly back up. “But first we need to get past those Elementals and out of North Neigh, if you’re so eager to go.”

“I am not eager to travel into the Gray Mountains, and less eager to reach the Black Baroque… but I am admittedly very eager to be out of this awful frozen city of bad memories.” Luna replied with a grimace, shaking her head slowly before she glanced moodily towards the door, even as her horn glowed and a similar aura surrounded the satchel bag sitting on the ground. She tilted her head to the side, and it lifted off the ground, floating over and firmly dropping into place over Scrivener as she shook her head briskly out, her own helm floating up from the ground a moment later and slipping carefully into place over her skull as she muttered: “Let us go the direct route. If the Elementals still wish for a battle, then a battle they shall receive.”

“Oh wonderful.” Scrivener remarked dryly, as he glanced around the area, and then paused as his eyes settled on the burning wreckage… but then only smiled a little. Even if the fires spread… what was there to lose here any longer? He shook his head slowly at this thought, then turned and hurried after Luna as she strode imperiously forwards in her cloak, her horn still glowing… but not with telekinesis this time, as he felt her focusing and concentrating her magic. “Uh, Luna, you know-”

The winged unicorn ignored him as she suddenly flicked her head forwards, however, sending a blue fireball rocketing towards the frozen barrier of the once-doors, and it exploded in an echoing bang that sent icy shrapnel and chunks of wood flying in all directions as blue flames obscured the doorway for a moment before whiffing out of existence, revealing three Ice Elementals that seemed to be staring at them from their featureless faces as Scrivener gaped and Luna strode nonchalantly forwards and out of the doorway, cracking her neck with a grin as she said calmly: “Hast thou been waiting for us this entire time? My most sincere apologies.”

Slowly, one of the Ice Elementals creaked as it climbed slowly to a standing position from where it had been sitting on the stairs, turning around and lumbering forwards as the other two flanked the imposing creature, and then it leaned forwards and roared, vibrating as cold wind and snow burst forwards and blew past Luna and Scrivy, icy flecks dotting Luna’s cheeks and frost spreading through her ephemeral mane as it sailed backwards and she leaned away with a grimace of distaste.

Then it halted, still leaning forwards aggressively, clawed, frozen hands twitching as it growled low in its throat… and Luna looked slowly over her shoulder at Scrivener Blooms, who winced and dropped flat on his stomach, covering his head with his forelegs before Luna’s glare snapped back forwards and she cleared her throat loudly.

Then she leaned forwards and roared in return, her voice booming and rough, the very stone around them cracking as the Ice Elemental was sent skidding backwards several feet from the raw waves of sound alone, the creature directly in front of her vibrating violently from the terrible reverberations before it simply exploded backwards in a hail of frost and snow, fragments of Ice Elemental flying in all directions as the arm of one of the flanking Elementals burst apart and cracks ripped through the body of the second creature, the living ice falling dumbly backwards on its rear as Luna’s voice finally sharply cut off.

She spat to the side, then glared balefully back and forth… and then the one-armed Elemental slowly tottered over and fell on its side with what sounded almost like a groan. The other Elemental only sat dazedly back against the wall as Scrivener winced and stood up, adjusting his glasses and rubbing awkwardly at one ear as Luna glanced over her shoulder, saying imperiously: “I believe the Royal Canterlot Voice has finally found its true purpose, Scrivener Blooms. Shall we move on?”

“I really don’t like you sometimes.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna threw her head back and laughed as she walked through the archway, the earth pony wincing as he followed after her, glancing nervously at the Elementals… but both of the creatures still seemed stunned as they made their way down the steps of City Hall, the male adding mildly: “I also really hope that didn’t get the attention of any dragons or anything. You’re really going to have to learn the art of subtlety at some point, Luna.”

“I can be plenty subtle when I choose to be, Scrivener Blooms, but there is little fun and point in it.” Luna retorted, glaring over her shoulder at him with a huff, and Scrivy smiled amusedly at her as they paused on the road, the winged unicorn opening her mouth… but then instead softening, glancing down the snow-covered street and saying softly: “Come. It occurs to me that we should follow… an old route.”

Scrivener softened himself as he caught her thoughts, as memories of his own rose up and mixed with them… memories of a chase of awful horrors through the frosty streets, and of the trap they had been lured to… and the male bowed his head forwards as a flash of later memory caught in his mind like a fishhook, a snarling, grinning, demonic face rasping: We shall show you the true meaning of the Black Verses.

And then the visions he had seen, the memories forced into his mind, the eons of evil that had torn through him… but Luna reached up and shook his shoulder gently, and the male smiled awkwardly as he glanced up at her, murmuring: “Sorry, Luna. I’m ready, let’s go.”

“Assertive and bold, yet. Perhaps the closer we come to Helheim, the more masculine thou becomes.” Luna replied ironically, and Scrivener looked at her for a moment… then a smile twitched at his muzzle before he threw his head back and laughed, and Luna looked at him oddly for a few moments before she couldn’t help but join in his strange merriment.

Finally, the two quieted awkwardly and gazed at one another with small smiles, husband and wife studying each other as they traded thoughts back and forth. Then Luna tilted her head to the side, saying softly, a small smile playing around her features. “Come then, husband. Let us continue to move forwards… we shall see if thou becomes a hulking mass of machismo muscle as we near the Black Baroque. ‘Twill be fun.”

“Only if it doesn’t affect you too, Luna. Heaven’s Horses know the last thing I need is a mighty Valkyrie such as yourself turning into an Amazonian hulk on top of everything else.” Scrivener quipped, and when Luna gave him a flat look, he added seriously: “That’s what Nightmare Moon is there for.”

“Oh I hate thee so much sometimes, Scrivy. Go back to being miserable. Wallow in it. Thou deserves it.” Luna retorted, leaning towards him and glaring at him as they paced slowly down the snowy road, the winged unicorn drawing her eyes grouchily along him. “Mare.”

“You’re a mare.” Scrivener grumbled, and the two firmly bumped their sides together as they continued through the snowy streets, trying to keep themselves as relaxed as possible despite the unease and tenseness traveling through their bodies, and the flickers of memory that kept threatening to spill through their minds.

Yet Luna and Scrivener both felt determined to see this through, to push forwards and to ensure that everything that had gone wrong was righted, that they saved as much as they possibly could… and around them, Pales lingered and watched silently, emerging here and there from shattered buildings and thin air as the two turned down a street that ended at a ripped gap in the mostly-collapsed wall surrounding the city.

Two Ice Elementals looked up from where they calmly sat on one side of the road as they walked towards this, but neither of the strange, slow-to-anger creatures moved: it was becoming more and more apparent that as long as there were no major bursts of heat or energy nearby, they were more than content to leave them well enough alone, even if they seemed exceptionally-curious about the living creatures in their midst. Luna and Scrivener only gave the two a passing glance, however, and neither of the Elementals seemed inclined to get to their feet, only watching with their featureless, jagged faces.

But as they looked ahead, a Pale flickered into existence in front of them… and Scrivener staggered to a halt as Luna frowned… then caught Scrivener’s memories, saw through Scrivener’s eyes, and she shot a sharp, surprised look at him before gazing at the Pale ahead, as it glimmered with frost… but in Scrivy’s vision, looked at him with a mix of almost impossible-to-define emotions, chief amongst which seemed to be… sorrow.

The unicorn mare had a charcoal coat and gray mane, features vainly-beautiful, her eyes sharp, blue-tinged silver. Upon her flank was a vine of grapes, and she and Scrivener studied each other for a long, silent time before a second unicorn Pale appeared, striding up beside her but staying a few feet away, the distance between them like a tangible wall.

The newcomer had a paler coat and a black mane and tail both streaked with gray, his features disbelieving and angry and pleading all at once. His dark eyes stared almost stupidly at Scrivener Blooms as the symbol of brambles upon his flank seemed to writhe, the Pale shaking his head before he yelled silently, out of fear more than anger… but Scrivener only smiled faintly, shaking his own head slowly and saying quietly: “Bramblethorn. Tia Belle. I’d like to ask you both to get out of my way, okay? You’re ghosts. You’re less dangerous to me than my own memories now. I’m…”

He fell silent, looking down quietly at the snowy street and pawing a hoof at the ground as Luna gazed towards him quietly, and then the earth pony looked up, closing his eyes as he murmured: “Mom, Dad. I can’t say that I love you. I also can’t say that I never… tried to love you, that despite everything… once I was your son, once… I was… I always thought that you were right. I was a failure for not being a unicorn, and… well… anyway. What I’m trying to say is that after everything that happened, I have to move forwards. And you two are going to have to move out of my way.”

He stopped, opening his eyes as Bramblethorn stepped forwards, yelling silently, his features terrified as the Pale stomped his hooves madly, but he was barely able to affect the snow and the temper tantrum only made Scrivener shake his head. Tia Belle, meanwhile, looked at him silently, and Scrivener felt his heart wrench in his chest as he hesitated, then looked at Luna.

Luna looked back… and then she smiled faintly, whispering: “Thou art too kind, daydreamer. It will be the death of thee one day… but… I do not see why not. We never discussed… this occurrence. Pales usually fade away after so long, but the rules of the world are… changed here, in this toxic place. Your memories of her are not good… but I suppose that while Bramblethorn made a nuisance of himself, the mare was dead. If thou… art sure…”

“Tia Belle.” Scrivener Blooms looked towards the unicorn mare, and she glanced up silently, the male stepping forwards towards her decisively as Luna watched quietly, respectfully. “You mostly ignored me… you always went along with Bramblethorn, and you were elitist and nasty but… it was always Bramblethorn who threw me around, who used me in the shop, who spent his time taking his moods out on me.” He stopped, then laughed a little, glancing down and adding quietly: “But at least now… I see you looking at me a little differently, while Bramblethorn…”

He paused, then winced when the Pale of his father strode suddenly forwards, reaching up to slam his icy but almost-incorporeal hooves into Scrivener’s shoulders, making him wince back as he leaned forwards and shouted silently, desperately into his face… but Scrivener only responded by bringing his own front hooves up and grasping the semisolid Pale, a shiver running through him as he held Bramblethorn’s shoulders almost gently, the ghost flickering as it looked surprised at the fact that Scrivener could make contact with it. But what Bramblethorn likely didn’t know was that any Pale that worked itself up enough to touch something in the physical world… could be grasped back in return.

Scrivener leaned forwards, closing his eyes, and Luna clenched her own shut, her horn giving a faint glow before the earth pony whispered in his father’s ear, in words that made terrible images twist through his mind for all the gentleness he spoke the awful language with: “Your bed awaits; return to sleep.”

Luna’s horn glowed, her magic fueling Scrivener’s short quote, and black lines ripped through Bramblethorn’s Pale body as he shoved himself violently backwards, gasping as the sparkling frost around the ghost faded. The unicorn specter shook his head wildly, his eyes turning ivory in his sockets as shocks of darkness writhed back and forth through his body, and Scrivener Blooms smiled faintly, sadly, as Bramblethorn stiffened… then slowly slumped, the Pale falling forwards and sparking out of existence as Scrivy lowered his head and closed his eyes.

The Pale of his mother stared at him with shock, with fear, but Scrivener only sighed softly as he murmured: “I’m sorry I had to resort to that, but I know Bramblethorn would have haunted us the whole way otherwise… he’s not… destroyed. He’s just gone for now… the Black Verses target the soul, but usually they’re diluted by the mind, by the body. But a Pale is pure soul…”

Scrivener paused, reaching up to absently wipe a trail of bloody tears from one cheek, and he looked quietly down at this for a moment before returning his eyes to Tia Belle, saying quietly: “You can cross the Bifrost, Tia Belle. But then I don’t want to ever see you again. I don’t know why you’re still here, why you’re a Pale, what unfinished business you could have possibly had on this world, but… you can cross the Bifrost and get a second chance. Just stay away from me.”

The mare looked at him silently… then she walked forwards, sitting on her haunches in front of Scrivener , and Scrivy gazed curiously back as he rose up a bit before the Pale awkwardly rose her front limb, hesitating, and Scrivener winced, leaning slightly away… but then the unicorn leaned forwards and hugged him carefully, slowly, and the male looked shocked as he leaned back before a voice whispered in his ear: “I’m sorry.”

Then, slowly, Tia Belle drew away, and gave him a faint smile… before the ghost quietly began to fade from existence, white motes floating up from it as she looked suddenly peaceful and relieved, and Scrivener felt tears forming in his eyes as a shudder ran through him, watching silently as the ghost of his mother vanished bit-by-bit from sight. He could only stare, even as Luna stepped forwards and wrapped a foreleg around him, as tears fell from his eyes and rolled down his cheeks, before the winged unicorn said quietly: “Perhaps she never loved thee, Scrivener Blooms… but all the same, it seems she knew on some level… what she did was not right. It seems her unfinished business… it had been thee. Perhaps she did die because thou left North Neigh… perhaps she died of regret, for never speaking in life…”

Luna trailed off, lowering her head, but the words strangely seemed to help as Scrivy bowed his head forwards with a faint smile, more tears leaking from his eyes as a shudder ran through him before he whispered: “Life is so much goddamn easier when you can just… pretend there’s good, and evil, and that bad ponies are bad and irredeemable and have no reasons for what they do and… oh, Luna…”

He clenched his eyes shut, grinding his teeth together painfully before the winged unicorn hugged him fiercely, and he sighed quietly as he let himself rest against her for a few moments before they both looked up with a wince and over their shoulders to stare at the sight of an Ice Elemental standing only a few feet away, leaning curiously over them. It studied the two, then slowly opened its arms, as if inviting them in for a hug… and Scrivy and Luna both awkwardly cleared her throats before the male hurriedly wiped at his eyes and adjusted his glasses, mumbling: “Thank you, but we. We have to be somewhere.”

With that, Scrivener turned and hurried embarrassedly towards the broken fencing as Luna sat for a moment longer, staring at the still-standing, still-open-armed Ice Elemental before she gave a short, embarrassed giggle, then turned around and hurried after Scrivy, darting through the hole in the fencing and following the earth pony into the snowy fields beyond as they headed towards the Gray Mountains and hurried away from the strange ice-city of North Neigh.

Several hours later found the two ponies striding slowly down a valley between looming, shadowy cliffs and grim, blade-like peaks that stretched towards the mangled purple sky above, dark clouds ominously slowly across the violated ceiling of the Hell-invaded world like looming, malformed dragons. The weather here was strange and alien, the rubble-strewn earth beneath their feet blackened and burnt with frost as geysers of icy mist vented up every now and then from deep cracks in the fetid earth.

Worse were the visions, as Scrivener and Luna stuck side-by-side: the visions of flesh and death and chains as they walked forwards, the sights and sounds that invaded Scrivy’s mind as he gritted his teeth, but forced onwards. Beside them walked Pales and ghosts of every shape and size… and here and there slithered Grimm, watching eagerly as they made their way forwards. And worst of all, the visions of Valthrudnir, sometimes whispering poison into Scrivener’s mind, other times walking beside him as he played with his coins or cards or other tokens from games of strategy and fortune.

The echo seemed to have more power here… but that was understandable. The Gray Mountains had always been a place where reality was thin, in which terrible things lurked and were made all the worse by the way shadows were given a substance and reality all their own here. And now that it was further warped with Helheim’s energies inundating the air so thickly… it was no surprise that even the echo of Valthrudnir was able to reach out of his mind and into the folds of reality as the Jötnar said pleasantly: “I think it’s time for me to unveil the second card of this tarot reading I’ve done for you and pretty Brynhild, Scrivener Blooms.”

“There is no such thing as prophecy.” Luna muttered, glancing in the direction the voice seemed to come from… but while she could see Scrivener glaring at something, to her it only looked like a formless, twisted mist, and the voice spoke more inside her mind than in reality… yet it was disturbing all the same. For the echo to be able to enter reality even as much as it did without her concentrating on using Scrivener’s senses to see what he saw, hear what he heard… “Such cards are meant for games and carnivals, and in rare case to seek guidance not from forces without but within. Thou art a fool.”

“Oh Brynhild, so critical and pushy.” Valthrudnir mocked, the enormous, bipedal dragon leaning over them with a teasing grin, and Scrivener grunted but refused to take the bait as he and Luna only looked ahead down the path leading through the rocky mountains. The Jötnar echo glowered at this, and then he held up a fan of four tarot cards before plucking one up and looking at it meditatively as the other cards vanished. “Oh my, though. I wonder if this is good for you… or bad for me.”

Scrivener frowned a bit at this, even as Luna looked over her shoulder at him… but the earth pony finally sighed and turned towards Valthrudnir as the dragon looked at him seriously… yet there was a dark gleam of gleeful malice in his eye all the same, and Scrivener stood for a moment, hesitant. Luna was ahead, looking back at him almost pleadingly, and Valthrudnir stood behind him with that single card in hand a few feet away… before, just as Scrivener began to force himself to turn forwards, to avoid the dragon’s trap despite all his curiosity and hesitance, the Jötnar spun the card around, the illustration showing Luna and Scrivener both snarling in fury, pressed back-to-back and with three enormous, terrible black swords ripped through their bodies. “The Third Card of the Suit of Swords… known in some circles as the Lord of Sorrow. War and arguments, violence and strife… but I have to wonder. Is it going to be between you and your precious? Because it’s no divination to say that you two and myself are already at war… or is there someone else, lurking on the horizons, sniffing the air?”

Valthrudnir grinned at them as he tipped them a wink, and Scrivener shook his head in disgust as he turned away, Luna nodding firmly in approval to the earth pony as they two began to walk on… but even as the echo of the Jötnar faded away to nothing behind them, he threw his head back and laughed. “After all… Odin’s always been a warmonger, hasn’t he, and you’re a mortal with his worst enemy inside him and the Valkyrie who betrayed him!”

Scrivy and Luna both only forced themselves to continue to walk forwards, however, as the last of the Jötnar’s laughter and awful presence faded out… and then the winged unicorn gritted her teeth, muttering in disgust: “Foul, manipulative, endlessly-prattling monster. Worry not, Scrivy… one way or another, we shall pummel it out of thy mind and back into the grave.”

Scrivener only grimaced in response, however, and Luna smiled faintly as she glanced towards him, but she could feel his anxiety… and knew that he could feel her own, the worries that the echo of Valthrudnir had stirred up through her soul. After all, it was hard to say when Odin was watching… a single eye or not, that eye could and did gaze far and wide over a myriad of events, and Luna knew all too well how fortunate it was that the once-god no longer had the reserves of energy and powers he once did… otherwise, by now he would have known all their secrets, and taken events into his own hands.

As it was, the winged unicorn knew that part of why Odin was hesitant to bring up certain subjects with them wasn’t just because he had mellowed over the years spent with his pride broken and his powers lost… it was because he knew that trying to control or push them too much would result in a nasty backlash, and once-god or not, Luna would likely pummel him until he was nothing more than a blotch of broken bruise.

It was one of the things that made their alliance uncomfortable: Luna still didn’t trust the old once-god, and thought that he was still too immersed in the old ways, likely only respecting them because of power. Not that Scrivy could blame her, or even was entirely sure himself what to think of Odin… and after his experiences with Valthrudnir, who was supposed to have been ‘beyond godlike,’ he had developed a distinct wariness for anything that thought it was from ‘a higher plane of existence.’

“I just realized that I really don’t want to go to Valhalla when I die.” Scrivener muttered, and Luna shot him a look… then grinned a little despite herself as the male gave her a moody glance. “Seriously. The choices sound pretty crappy to me now… I can go to once-burnt-out paradise and hang out with a bunch of smelly hulking warriors and possibly the handful of ‘friends’ Odin’s enlisted to help him out. Or, I can go down to frozen Helheim and Niflheim, where there’s demons, torture, and worst of all, a possible Jötnar or two, unless Valthrudnir and Odin were both telling the truth and all the Frost Giants really did die.”

“Aye, Scrivener Blooms, the choice is a foul one. Whilst I do not mind the presence of ‘smelly warriors,’ to be around Odin and his cohorts again ‘twould be less than pleasant. Valhalla… no longer holds many pleasant memories.” Luna quieted, glancing thoughtfully towards the sky as they paused for a moment at a steep incline down into a deep gorge: they would have to carefully journey down the slope to reach the bottom, then make their way through the stony vale to a northern pass and once more find their path ahead.

Before Scrivy could begin to move down the path, however, Luna reached out and gently grasped his shoulder, halting him as she said quietly: “Bide thy time a moment, Scrivener Blooms, we have made good progress. This is a safe enough place to rest… the cliffs flanking us are sheer and the path behind us straight and visible, and there are few things that could ambush us from up this wall. Let us take this rare moment of safety.”

“Good, because I have something for you, anyway.” Scrivener smiled a bit, and Luna cocked her head curiously as the male turned and reached into the saddlebag, mumbling to himself as he unzipped an inner pocket and added dryly: “You know how hard it was to not think about this the whole way here?”

Luna brightened as Scrivener pulled out two chocolate bars, tossing one to her, and she caught it and greedily pushed the still-wrapped candy bar against her nose with a laugh. “Exquisite! Such sweets are a fine way to lighten any mood… Scrivener Blooms, wretched beetle, thou went into our candy stash?”

“Well, I figured you’d need something to perk you up once we got here. Besides, what’s the point of having a hoard of candy when you never eat any of it? You’re not a chocolate dragon, Luna, and I’m sure even dragons sample some of their treasure every now and then.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna huffed at him as the candy bar glowed faintly, floating upwards before the wrapper shredded itself from around the chocolate. Then a large piece broke off and floated into the winged unicorn’s mouth, and she chewed slowly as she smiled and closed her eyes, Scrivener rolling his own in entertainment.

They ate and relaxed in comfort on the top of the slope, doing their best to push back against the oppressive atmosphere of the Gray Mountains as Scrivy kept his gaze focused down into the rocky valley, grimacing a bit every now and then at the visions of spirits and other things that lurked and skulked through the dark trench. Luna, meanwhile, watched both her husband and gazed every so often skywards to survey the mountain peaks, knowing how fortunate they were to have not encountered anything… wondering, in some cynical part of her psyche, whether or not it was only because the Black Wolves of Hell had already torn through this place and likely made even the mightiest destroyers nothing more than their prey.

Scrivy offered Luna the last of his chocolate after she had finished hers, and the winged unicorn smiled at him and took it gladly, tossing it into her mouth and chewing slowly as she gazed over him affectionately. Luna favored sweets and baked good, and Scrivener’s favorites were salty foods… but like everything else, they still managed to find a way to get along all the same. They still indulged each other’s habits and eccentricities and preferences… and the two gazed at each other as they stood up before the winged unicorn bowed her head forwards and said softly: “Foolish beetle. And think not I do not know about thou sneaking other candies from my stash.”

“Oh come on, I take the ones you never eat anyway.” Scrivener replied flatly, and Luna huffed a bit before she stepped forwards, bringing her head back as the male winced… but then she only smiled, and instead leaned towards him and kissed his lips chastely, and the earth pony blinked in surprise. “Well, that was a nice change of pace.”

“Aye, but I cannot be predictable now, can I?” Luna asked kindly, and then she smacked him lightly with her horn, making him wince and stumble backwards as his glasses fell askew before she grinned and winked as he glared up at her. “Now, onwards, Scrivy. And let us hope that fortune continues to favor our boldness and we are able to push to the Black Baroque with little trouble on the way.”

Scrivener nodded after a moment with a grimace, and Luna gave him a softer look before she took the lead down the slope, the male focusing on her more than on the incline and mimicking her movements and instincts. Still, he skidded awkwardly near the bottom when some shale broke loose due to his heavier weight, but he managed to leap down to safety with a wince, crumbled stone bouncing down the ridge behind and around his hooves as Luna gave him an amused look over one shoulder.

They pushed onwards into the mountains, as the dark clouds continued to swirl through the sky and lightning flashed silently here and there behind the wall of shadowy vapors. A faint black-tinged rain began to fall, and Scrivener grimaced a bit and lowered his head as Luna frowned curiously at him… and it was only after a few minutes of confusion that Scrivy realized it was a rain only he and the Pales could see and feel, making him shiver as the ethereal downpour spilled through his very soul and Luna murmured: “Hold fast, daydreamer… that which is not there cannot harm thee.”

“I know, Luna. I wish it was that simple, though…” Scrivener murmured, looking back and forth and watching the way the Pales reacted to the dark rain, before he laughed faintly and shook his head slowly, closing his eyes tightly. “Horses of Heaven…”

Luna slipped a bit closer to him, and for a while, they strode onwards with their sides almost pressing together as Scrivy did his best to keep his eyes down… but even that helped little as the ground beneath them flickered on occasion, becoming fleshy, dark, pulsating… but as the dark rain finally halted, the visions lost some of their strength as well.

Only a few hours later, they finally emerged in an enormous valley, black, cracked ice covering the floor of the rocky waste, the bent and looming mountains to either side made of desolate, lonely rock. And all throughout this valley of the dead, bones that were polished to an ivory gleam here and laid in blackened ruin there were scattered, like countless people had died here… and the terrible truth was that countless had.

Even if Luna felt no pity for the bones of the Nibelung and other soldiers of Niflheim… she mourned the terrible losses that had occurred here. Where the heart and soul of the Starlit Knights had died… where countless friends had fallen into shadow, as Ragnarok had come to pass with the shattering of the Gates of Helheim and the awakening of the Black Wolves. Luna and Scrivener traded looks as they made their way slowly forwards, and the winged unicorn laughed faintly as she whispered: “Aleksandr… hardy, noble minotaur. I shall miss him, but hope that he at least found peace in wherever the minotaurs go once their spiritual pilgrimage is complete… Scrivy, how… how bad is it?”

“I don’t know if I should answer that question, Luna…” Scrivener looked silently back and forth: for every skeleton – no, it seemed almost that for every bone that laid over the floor of the enormous valley – there was a Pale, staring and lost and confused, and among them slithered Grimm and other spirits of the ether, drawn by the congregation of ghosts. “How long have the Pales been unable to move on? How many of them clung to this… not-life for all those years? The answer’s right here and it’s not a pretty one…”

Luna gritted her teeth and nodded, muttering: “Aye, of course. Pales drawn towards this place, this twisted fold of reality that is not higher, but lower towards that which lurks both inside and beyond the bowels of our broken world… all they knew was that they were being drawn towards flickering light. And worse, Pales, countless souls were released from Helheim, those who survived one way or another in Niflheim… and the rest? The rest have perhaps faded away to nothingness… now sitting silently in ghostly limbo, beyond our far-grasping reach, or wandering the other empty worlds with the Vale of Valhalla burnt and destroyed.

“Does thou see any demons? And if so, what kind are they?” Luna asked quietly, as they halted halfway through the valley, and Scrivener smiled a bit at the calmness of her inquiry before he began to look up… but found his eyes drawn to the Black Baroque for a moment as the visions flickered out, only staring silently at the monolithic front of the awful fortress as Luna opened her mouth… then slowly closed it and only followed his gaze as they surveyed the terrible place in silence.

It was built into the face of a massive mountain that had once been shaped like a wolf, but now was only a deluded crumble of shattered and broken rock. Yet all the same both Luna and Scrivy knew only by looking at it that the fortress itself was intact… the ancient, scarred black stone that made up the windowless walls of its faceless front were ashen and dark, but they looked the exact same as when they had first blown the doors of the fortress open… just as the shattered archway was rougher around the edges, but all the same held as fast and gaped as unwelcomingly as it had in the past.

Then Scrivener shook his head before he moodily looked over at Luna, asking dryly: “Do you think if I shout the Black Verses in the ear of one of the Black Wolves, it’ll make it explode? Or would it have the opposite effect? And why is it again that while you and Celestia and Sleipnir could all speak them to bar out the Tyrant Wyrms, when I say them they can actually do damage?”

Luna looked back at him cynical entertainment in her eyes as she retorted: “Be not so obnoxious, poet. There is a time and place for making such awful jokes and ‘twas very rude of thee not to permit me to make the first.” She paused, then added in a softer voice: “But it is because of the corruption of the Tyrant Wyrm inside thee… because of what the Wyrm filled thy empty skull with.”

She smiled faintly, reaching up and knocking quietly on Scrivener’s helmed head, and the male laughed a bit despite himself before they looked silently ahead as she said quietly: “The Black Wolves are terrible creatures, Scrivener Blooms. They warp and bend reality… but thou remembers Fenrir bore the scars of battle with my brother. The wolves shall bleed when cut, and I believe the wolves shall die, too, once they have bled enough… I only hope that we do not have to test thy theory.”

She fell silent, and Scrivener glanced slowly back and forth before he finally replied quietly: “There’s… three or four demon spirits, but they’re not hostile. They look like scavengers… probably feeding off the despair of the Pales.”

“Aye, the air is so rife with it even I can feel it.” Luna muttered in agreement, nodding after a moment as she surveyed the valley slowly, and then she started ahead and Scrivener grimaced as he fell in step behind her, the winged unicorn’s eyes narrowing as they flicked back and forth and she caught the occasional tremble in reality as the lost souls milled silently around them, Scrivener wincing whenever he and Luna accidentally passed through the shades here and there.

They halted in front of the Black Baroque… and then Scrivener’s head snapped to the side at the sound of a dry chuckle, and Luna looked over at him with surprise as the earth pony gritted his teeth, staring at what looked only like a pile of broken rubble with horror… but when Luna concentrated, when she gazed through Scrivener’s eyes, felt with Scrivener’s senses, she saw not a jumble of rocks… but a misshapen pile of warped and broken metal, a single arm and an ugly, flexing claw reaching up out of this and a broken half of head laying and grinning insanely, one horrible insect-eye glittering in a socket of half-ant, half-dragon features. “Oh look… the little ponies are… back…”

“Do you hear it?” Scrivy asked quietly, and Luna nodded, gritting her teeth. The voice was clearer, closer to reality, the rocks trembling when the voice spoke… the petrified remains of the destroyed demigod, as it giggled with terrible glee despite the fact it lay in countless broken, dying pieces. “How the hell is it still alive?”

“You can’t… destroy destruction… silly pony…” rasped the monster that had barred the way into the Black Baroque, that was responsible for the first of the many deaths that had taken place in this awful dungeon. “Silly, silly, silly ponies… oh, my magic ring doesn’t matter anymore… no-no-no, not no more… now the whole world’s magic. Now I’m happy. The whole world is destroyed, and me too, and it’s so beautiful, more beautiful than Asgard ever was…”

“Sick and depraved wretch, then stay here alone and enjoy thy sufferance.” Luna muttered, shaking her head in disgust and storming forwards into the Black Baroque, and Scrivener shuddered a bit as the head of the demigod tried to roll towards him, the rocks stirring visibly as its torn-asunder remains weakly shuddered.

“Oh don’t worry, Valkyrie… there’s plenty of pain for you to enjoy too… because no matter where you go, there you are, and you always carry that hatred, that rage, that suffering with you!” the creature crowed after them, and then it laughed insanely, voice reaching new levels of glee and echoing into the fortress behind them as it shrieked: “Goodbye, little ponies!”

“To think, the likes of Fafnir still exist…” Luna muttered moodily, as they strode over the scarred, broken tiles of the floor and through a shattered portcullis to enter into a hall with a gaping pit halfway down it… and both Scrivy and Luna closed their eyes, shudders rolling through their bodies as Celestia’s voice shouted in memory: We have no time!

“We were fools.” Luna whispered, lowering her head… and Scrivener gazed at her silently before he slowly looked up, over the black, dark stone walls and through the empty halls of the Black Baroque… the fortress between worlds they had striven boldly into, and which seemed emptier than either of them had expected.

They looked awkwardly at each other after a moment, knowing they shouldn’t’ve allowed the mockery of the insane, in-pieces demigod to drive them forwards like it had… but then they both only smiled hesitantly before Luna carefully took the lead, her eyes flicking apprehensively down into the pit as they made their way around the shallow hole and she muttered: “We must be careful, Scrivener Blooms. This place… even were there nothing here but us, it is still… dangerous to us. It is a place of… wrongness.”

Scrivener nodded slowly as he followed the winged unicorn closely, and they passed into what had once been an enormous library… but now, was merely an enormous, circular room that was splattered with wreckage and broken husks, and the two ponies both forced themselves to look away from the broken bones that lay here and there and instead towards a shattered stone archway, a twisted hulk of a ruined metal gate laying in pieces near this as Scrivener whispered: “Rainbow Dash would have been proud of you, Spike… and you too, AJ…”

“And Pinkamena… aye, she showed that she truly was among the worthiest of friends.” Luna murmured quietly, as they carefully strode around a shattered bookcase that had fallen upon a splintered table… before the winged unicorn winced and stepped backwards, swinging her foreleg up and catching Scrivener Blooms as a shape stirred and creaked loudly on the other side of the shelf, before metal screamed against concrete as it slowly began to lift itself up.

It was made of blackened steel, its eyes cracked gemstones and warped and broken plates jittering against its frame as it tried to pull itself forwards on its one remaining limb. It had been mangled and torn apart, but yet the clockwork golem still moved as gears clanked inside it and sparks of electricity fizzled over its metallic frame, and Scrivener shook his head in disgust before Luna stepped forwards and stomped a hoof down, crushing in the weakened metal plating over its skull and knocking the creature flat as it spasmed, before a second hard stomp stilled the golem completely. “Damned, soulless machines…”

Scrivener muttered in agreement as he looked back and forth with a nod, his eyes settling on the hulk of another golem… but this one was clearly no longer functional, its mangled head connected only by a thin sheet of black metal to its shoulders, but the rest of its metal body laid in ripped-apart tatters, chunks of metal and crystal forming a scattered, dusty trail through the wreckage of the torn-apart room. “We were here for… literally minutes. And this already has brought back…”

He shook his head slowly, and Luna laughed faintly before she and Scrivener both turned ahead… then winced and snarled, setting themselves as they saw Valthrudnir standing there, the dragon smiling mockingly at them as he riffled a deck of cards in his hands, leaning forwards with a wink towards Luna as he said kindly: “Just a head’s up, Brynhild… it’s almost time for a new game. One that I think is much more suited to you than it is Scrivener Blooms, cheater and so-called ‘writer’ that he is… then again, I suppose between the two of you someone has to put the ‘hack’ in hack-and-slash, yes?”

Valthrudnir laughed at his own joke, grinning widely as he tucked the deck of cards back into his suit jacket as his eyes flashed, and Scrivy and Luna both glared at him before the dragon flicked his wrist and three tarot cards appeared. The Jötnar continued to grin, amber eyes all-but-glowing before he made the cards dance through his fingers, giving them flashes of what was on the other side of each as they spun dexterously in his grip before he halted one in mid-turn and leaned his head to the side with a slow lick of his lips.

The image was of a simple but magnificent battle horn of bone, surrounded by the nine runes for the nine worlds, and beneath the horn roared terrible, scarred Fenrir, as Valthrudnir pronounced softly: “Judgment. Which has already come to pass in the literal sense… but do keep in mind this is metaphor, both of you. I don’t know if it’s a very good sign though, Brynhild… the cards are forming such a strange and sordid tale, and these last two, well, if they’re right… we’re only just getting started.”

The Jötnar’s eyes flashed as he grinned wider, but then he vanished from existence as suddenly as he’d appeared, flickering out of reality as his voice whispered mockingly around them and Scrivener shuddered as he swore he felt something brush against his side: “This is proving so much fun… yes, I don’t think I’m going to kill either of you after all. This is just far too delightful, far too entertaining… and soon, so soon, you’ll be nothing more than puppets at my mercy… sooner perhaps than you can even imagine…”

“We overcame thy plans, we defeated thee in thine own wretched games, and we shall not back down to an echoing illusion, creature!” Luna snapped, looking back and forth with a snarl before she shook her head, saying fiercely: “If thou art so powerful and determined to make toys of us, pray tell, why continue to slither and hide?”

But there was no answer… and Luna cursed under her breath as Scrivener closed his eyes and bowed his head forwards… before wincing when the winged unicorn punched him firmly in the shoulder, knocking him stumbling dumbly to the side before she looked at him and said quietly: “And do not even think it, Scrivener Blooms. Thou does not need to apologize… this is not thy fault. If anything, I am only glad that… the creature seems incapable of actually doing harm to us, for all the rage his blustering words provoke. So do not ever apologize, or ever think thyself weak, or I shall smite thee with all the fierceness I wish to smite Valthrudnir.”

“Remember that time you hit me so hard you knocked us both out?” Scrivener asked mildly, and Luna cleared her throat as she glanced embarrassedly away as the male rubbed absently at his shoulder. “After you did that, I realized that it was definitely in my best interests to keep from making you angry. Especially since it seems like ever since we became soul-bound you’ve been far less concerned about the effects of bashing me to make me listen to you.”

Luna grunted a bit at this, but then she became a bit more serious as she turned towards the portcullis, responding quietly: “Aye, but for now, I feel we should save our energy for whatever lay ahead. For Valthrudnir seems to be spelling out an ominous prophecy to us, Scrivener Blooms… and whilst I do not believe in divination, a self-fulfilling prophecy that the Jötnar perhaps somehow works to see through to completion… now that is a different matter.”

Scrivener grimaced and nodded as he followed after the winged unicorn, shuddering a bit as a vision sparked in front of his eyes for a moment, the floor like bones, the walls burning with unholy flames that were terribly, awfully cold, and screams echoed in his ears before they cut out the moment the vision faded from his face… and Luna shivered a bit, catching the tail end of the vision as it fled from their minds and she murmured: “And below us waits Hell’s gaping jaws…”

“And here we are, ready to walk down into that maw even though we could probably just turn around and leave.” Scrivener said quietly, and Luna gave him a wry smile and a nod before the two silently strode side-by-side towards the shattered portcullis, entering the archway and making their way calmly, quietly down a sloping, dark corridor. Scrivener winced a bit as he looked back and forth at the dark stone walls, the way they seemed to writhe unnaturally, thick roots and what could almost be bones jutting through here and there. It reminded him all too well of his own nightmares… and worse yet, he knew this was no mere vision. This was reality, as Luna winced away from a drip of black ooze from the ceiling, then shook her head in disgust as they continued forwards.

They were living the nightmare now, as they descended through this dark passage, towards the borders of where corrupted world met even-worse reality, and what truly filled Scrivener Blooms with terror was the fact that he was almost excited,, in some twisted and tortured part of him. Just as he could feel Luna’s anticipation mixed into her apprehension: it was not that they were eager to see the dead and the damned, it was not that they thought Hell was some tourist trap for them to drool over… it was a cold acknowledgment of the power of the place they were striding towards. It was awe for the fact that for the second time, they were walking towards the very jaws of Hell, to stand before the realm of demons and monsters, to rest in the portal between worlds to wrestle as many souls as they could from the grips of the darkest of worlds and bring them to a new life.

Neither of them could describe it, both of them could understand it… and as the two ponies walked side-by-side down the corridor that seemed grotesquely, unfathomably alive around them, neither could deny the fact they were almost looking forwards to seeing what waited for them below, no matter how eager they both were in the same breath to escape the Black Baroque and even more, all the terrible memories that made this unwholesome place all the more unwelcoming to their hearts, minds and souls.

They were excited, though, oh yes… and they traded grim smiles before they looked forwards again down the dank passage, as they walked towards the birthing chamber of Ragnarok and the place where everything had gone wrong, together, ready to ensure that this time they would not only leave alive… they would leave triumphant.

The Cost Of Revenge

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Chapter Thirteen: The Cost Of Revenge
~BlackRoseRaven

A cold wind whispered past them, but the ground beneath their hooves felt terribly warm, terribly alive, and vile heat pulsed steadily up around them. They did their best to ignore the strange and awful climate as they pushed forwards, finally stepping past a pair of shattered double doors and entering the crumbling ruins of a once-magnificent hall that now looked more like an underground burrow; heavy stone tile and brick had collapsed here and there from the ceiling and walls, and broken pillars laid in desolate despair… and these were the most pleasant sights of the room.

The floor had been warped into half-ice, half-flesh, both pulsing with terrible, unholy vigor even as Scrivener and Luna forced themselves to walk slowly forwards, shivering as blasts of cold wind shot from the other end of the hall over their bodies and frost sparkled with unnatural maliciousness around them. The winged unicorn drew her eyes upwards, over the bone fragments that lay here and there, past the ruins of a shattered pedestal and a battle horn that had been cracked in half… and then she and Scrivener gazed upon the far end of the hall, and they halted as shivers ran through their bodies, and this time, not from the cold.

Broken chains and shattered pieces of stone were all that was left of the Gates of Helheim… and beyond, a wall of awful, living flesh pulsated and rumbled slowly, tumor-like growths and staring, malevolent eyes glaring out towards them warningly as cold, reeking wind burst out of the tunnel like the breath of a frozen corpse. For a few moments, Luna and Scrivener could only stare in disgust and horror… and then Luna stepped forwards before her hoof touched something, and she looked sharply down in surprise to see her hoof gingerly resting on top of a cracked skull, a tall, still-beautiful horn standing out of this…

“Celestia…” Luna whispered quietly… and Scrivener looked down in shock before the winged unicorn closed her eyes, sitting back and carefully scooping the broken skull up, lifting it so their horns crossed, forehead touched cracked crown as she murmured: “I shall not fail thee, sister. I shan’t. We shall gather the souls here, bring them across to the Looking Glass World, and… everything shall work out. Worry not, sister, all shall be well…”

She shook her head slowly… then sighed before looking moodily at the skull, and Scrivener winced before Luna’s horn glowed brightly and she flicked it upwards, the same aura surrounding the horn on Celestia’s skull before it was torn free from the crumbling bone. The rest of the skull fell apart in her hooves, and Scrivener looked at her pointedly as Luna carefully guided her sister’s horn over to the saddlebag the male was wearing, gently slipping it inside as she said quietly: “’Twould be ruder still to leave it behind, Scrivy. Our horns were like our weapons, and our weapons were like our souls. Celestia had not fought with her swords for more than a millennia and half… and thou saw the way she handled the blades when they were summoned. ‘Twas like they had never left her side. I would not leave this, even more sacred than those weapons, to rot here on Helheim’s borders. We shall either make use of it and the powerful magic contained within, or enshrine it… whatever sister would have wanted more.”

Scrivener smiled a bit at this and nodded slowly, glancing over at her quietly before he frowned a bit as his eyes caught on something else, walking slowly towards the edge of the hall. He grimaced a bit as he carefully stepped around broken pieces of ancient, rusting metal, then he leaned down and carefully picked up a cylindrical object, frowning curiously… before smiling a bit as he suddenly half-turned and lobbed it towards Luna.

The winged unicorn glanced up from her reverie as it spun through the air, her horn glowing and her eyes giving a short flash, and the object immediately glowed. In a split second, it lengthened rapidly from a collapsed baton into a full, nine-foot long pole tipped with a simple, diamond-shaped spearhead, the weapon spinning violently around Luna before it dropped over one shoulder, still glowing faintly even as the aura almost completely faded from Luna’s horn, seeming more like it was part of her body than something she had to exert any will, any thought over.

The spear glinted, dust and grime fading from it in a burst of steam as Luna looked up at this with a slight grin despite herself, the simple but dangerous tip all-but-glowing as she murmured: “Aye, Scrivener Blooms. It feels as natural as the first day I lifted this weapon… it feels as natural as wielding my own horn.”

She smiled a bit as the earth pony strode towards her quietly, smiling faintly in return even as his eyes roved towards the pedestal… and then both he and Luna halted, their eyes locking on the remains of another skeleton. A small skeleton, that had been shattered into pieces… but when Scrivener looked at it, for a moment he saw Scarlet Sage’s silent body laying there, the foal still as ice, her red eyes empty, her mane swirling backwards in the cold wind… but then once more it was only a broken skeleton, and Luna swallowed thickly before she whispered: “I am only so thankful… that her Pale came straight to us, Scrivener Blooms. It is the only thing that keeps me from feeling that I would fail as a mother… the fact that my beautiful little girl had gone past even Ponyville, even Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy, and come to us…”

She closed her eyes, then shook her head slowly before glancing at the earth pony as he forced himself to look up towards the ceiling, breathing a little hard despite himself as his emotions mixed with Luna’s, memories twisting through both their minds. She opened her mouth, but fell silent as she followed his gaze upwards, to where roots of fleshy tendril and frost had twined themselves around the complex network of metal bars and celestial symbols that formed an alien spiderweb over the roof.

There was a hole in the very center of this strange network, directly over the pedestal, and ice had formed a crystalline window here that glittered and gleamed from the radiance of the strange sun that shone through the wisps of poisonous cloud outside. There was so much here, and it had all been dedicated to what had ended up being a sick joke by a self-obsessed monster… and Luna gritted her teeth before she flicked her horn firmly, and the icy window shattered, letting a greater pall of light shine in as chunks of frost pattered down around the pedestal and she muttered: “Come, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Tis time to activate the Khlōros, and begin to draw these Pales back towards the Bifrost. The journey shall be longer with us being forced to route around the Barrens, but-”

Then Luna halted as a rumble passed through the ground and the chilling wind of Helheim died down completely, as if the throat of Hell were holding its breath. Scrivener and Luna both looked sharply up as the earth pony hurried to the winged unicorn’s side, his hooves making the only sound as a shiver ran through Luna’s body at the terrible feeling that spilled through her heart and along her spine, her eyes widening as the two looked towards the fleshy tunnel.

Ice spread over the awful layers of the gaping jaws of Hell, the hideous eyes clenching shut as they were layered by frost and the living walls shivering before they froze as solid as stone. Then snow burst upwards from the throat in a great, blinding mist, obscuring their vision for a few long moments as Scrivener and Luna stared down the long, shattered hall… and then watched with horror as a massive, monstrous creature emerged from the snow, drooling and hungry, its grotesque, enormous body covered not with fur but instead burning black flames and smoke. It rumbled as it strode through the haze of snow, its slavering jaws falling open to reveal a mouth full of ivory fangs, and its eyes glowed with hellish, animal light as it looked back and forth before throwing its head back and howling fiercely to the sky.

Ice shattered beneath their hooves and the snow was blown away as the terrible sound echoed around them, Scrivener and Luna both wincing backwards as reality flickered violently, before the Black Wolf of Hell leaned forwards with a snarl… and from the awful scars that glowed eerily over its body, from the way black-fire-fur had been torn in wide patches from its frame to reveal blue and red, bulging and flexing flesh and sinew, it was clear what they were dealing with. It was Fenrir, Alpha of the Black Wolves of Hell.

Luna’s eyes blazed as she stepped forwards, her spear spinning once before it locked into a ready position hovering at her side, snapping to Scrivener Blooms: “Stay at the edge of the battlefield, Scrivy, do not draw its attention and survey its movements! Fenrir, I am thy opponent, and in the names of my brother and sister, in the name of Twilight Sparkle, in the name of this entire world, I shall destroy thee!”

Fenrir roared in response as it stalked forwards: a terrible, wolf-shaped mass of muscle and burning shadow, its presence dominated the corridor as it strode forwards, seeming to fill the entire hall as its eyes locked on Luna. It growled at her hungrily, the incarnation of destruction seem to recognize her with the little mind that it had, and its huge claws scraped eagerly against the ground as it stalked slowly towards her.

Luna glared up in response, refusing to move, refusing to show fear as Scrivener Blooms carefully slid sideways, breathing hard as he looked over the monstrosity, a quake of terror passing through his body as well as awe at Luna’s bravery: and while it was partly fueled by rage, he knew all the same that Luna also wanted nothing more than to turn and flee herself, than to escape this abomination… but she wouldn’t. Her warrior’s instincts, her Valkyrie soul would not permit it… and moreover, her need to strike back at this monster that had destroyed the world and taken her family away drove her onwards, as she leaned forwards, the spear quivering in the air beside her, her cyan irises locking with the glowing, soulless, hateful eyes of Fenrir.

It leaned down, and they pressed almost nose-to-nose, the monster’s rot-reeking breath washing over her as they glared at each other, warrior and predator, fiend-slayer and abomination… and then Fenrir roared furiously before his jaws opened, gaping and terrible and enough to swallow Luna in a single bite-

The winged unicorn’s wings flapped as she leapt upwards with a snarl, and the beast’s jaws smashed into the ground, tearing up snow and transmogrified flesh before Luna slammed all four hooves down and crashed onto its muzzle as she dug her heels in against it, leaning forwards with a snarl as her spear lashed out and viciously stabbed into its features. Fenrir howled in shock and agony, lurching backwards and shaking its head, but Luna dug her hooves in even the burning darkness that covered its body lashed against her legs like fiery whips, snarling as her spear thrusted again and again, ripping gouges through its features before she leapt forwards when it clawed one forepaw at her madly, diving over its slash to slam her rear hooves into its forehead as her spear plunged downwards and tore through one of the monster’s eyes.

Fenrir shrieked, yanking its head back as it lunged away, ducking itself low to the ground as Luna’s spear tore free from its now-empty socket and she hovered in the air, wings flapping powerfully as she glared down at it furiously, her eyes glowing ivory as she shouted in rage: “I am no tender morsel, cur! I am Luna Brynhild! I am Nightmare Moon! I am the one who will crush thee like the whelp thou art!”

Fenrir snarled as it rose its head, and Luna’s eyes widened in surprise as the monster clawed into the ground, anchoring itself with a fearsome growl: the wounds over its features had already healed to ugly scars, and although corruption and blood leaked down its cheek from its socket, the socket itself had already filled with some awful, gelatinous black mass… and then Luna cursed when the monster pounced towards her, realizing she didn’t have the room to fly up and evade, or the speed to drop down and get beneath it… leaving her with one option.

The monster’s claws stretched towards her as its jaws opened wide… and Luna darted directly forwards as she thrusted her spear out in front of her, diving into its open jaws and kicking off its fleshy tongue even as its teeth snapped down around her like a bear trap, before her spear ripped into the back of its throat. The monster gagged immediately, eyes bulging before Luna slammed a hoof into the spear and sent it rocketing all the way through the back of its neck in a splatter of black fire and corruption, and Fenrir staggered forwards with another gag before Luna’s horn glowed like a beacon as she shoved herself upwards, tearing into the back of its neck as electricity sparked along her body before she ripped straight through, the narrow hole becoming a wide, terrible tunnel as the winged unicorn cursed in disgust, body stained with blood, bile, and darkness as she flapped her wings and propelled herself away.

Fenrir arched its back with a breathy howl of misery… but in front of Luna’s eyes, black, red, and blue tendrils slid smoothly into place over the wound, knotting themselves together in an ugly, fleshy barrier, and Luna snarled in disgust before she flicked her horn and sent a blue fireball rocketing into the back of the creature’s head, knocking it staggering forwards before it growled over its shoulder at her, pain quickly fading away to fury. “Foul monster!”

The enormous, awful wolf spun around and bit at her savagely, but Luna elegantly flew backwards before her eyes flicked to the side, catching sight of her spear imbedded in the ceiling, and she shot immediately towards this before seizing the bottom of the weapon in her hooves. As Fenrir leapt upwards, Luna shoved hard up on the bottom of the spear, bending the body until it became almost a U-shape before the head of the weapon finally tore free from the ceiling and lashed viciously downwards to smack into Fenrir’s muzzle, the huge beast flinching backwards in pained surprise before the winged unicorn released the weapon to let it float easily beside her as her horn began to glow. “Then if not by blade alone…”

Luna’s eyes blazed with white light as she arched her back with a snarl, and Scrivener winced as several powerful blasts of lightning hammered across the monstrous wolf’s features, making it snarl and back up several paces before the earth pony cursed and lowered his head, pushing his own energy and emotions towards Luna, fueling her further as she lashed her horn downwards and released a sapphire blast of flames from her horn that smashed into the black wolf like a battering ram, knocking it back another pace to stumble into the wall with a shriek as azure flames greedily spread along its body. They charred its features and flesh, mixing with and suffocating the black fire that made up its outer layers… but then Fenrir shook his head rapidly out before he stepped forwards and roared furiously, the hall vibrating violently enough to send rocks and chunks of ice pattering down from the ceiling as the last of the blue flames whiffed out over its body.

She had burnt away much of its outer layer… yet all it had done was make the creature more hideous, its lipless jaws peeled back from a sharkish grin of savage teeth, its white eye glowing, its naked flesh steaming faintly over more than a quarter of its enormous form. It lurched towards Luna, then leapt upwards in a sudden burst of speed and viciousness, and the winged unicorn’s eyes widened before a paw batted her backwards and sent her rocketing to the ground, bouncing once with a curse of pain as Scrivener’s eyes clenched shut and he arched his back with his own gasp, feeling his ribs creaking and knowing that at least one of Luna’s had likely snapped.

The winged unicorn rolled quickly to her hooves as the wolf lunged towards her, her spear lashing out almost on its own and catching Fenrir across the face, barely distracting it for a moment as it bit angrily at the weapon. Both Luna and the floating spear quickly distanced themselves, however, the winged unicorn breathing hard and growing desperate, not knowing what to do before Nightmare Moon whispered in her mind: Eclipse the sun. At the very least, it will disorient the beast… you have no choice.

“Damnation…” Luna muttered under her breath, gritting her teeth… and then she winced when Fenrir lunged at her, diving forwards between its legs as she flicked her horn upwards and sent her spear rocketing into its vulnerable throat, and the wolf gagged and spasmed as it clawed madly at the ground and tried to skitter backwards. The result was that Luna was forced to sprint forwards beneath it, leaping back and forth with curses of frustration as rocks flew up around her from huge paws smashing the frost-speckled ground , the winged unicorn wincing before she lunged to the side and free from beneath the monster, rolling heavily once and gritting her teeth as she gazed up towards the opening in the ceiling.

Fenrir hissed, clawing at its own throat, still distracted by the spear buried in its neck, and Luna took the chance to leap into the air and fly directly beneath the window, gazing up at the sky above and only hoping this would still work as her horn began to glow, Scrivener Blooms clenching his eyes shut at the side of the room and dropping his head low, pouring his concentration, his energy, his strength Luna as she lowered her own head, the power building through her body before she arched her back and snapped her horn upwards as it gave a flash of bright blue light.

The black wolf looked up at this with a snarl, finally managing to knock the spear loose from its throat as a rumble rolled through reality around them, and the monster prepared to lunge as Luna floated, staring upwards desperately as the dark clouds above roiled and rumbled and blocked out the sky. Fenrir roared as Scrivener looked up in shock, watching as the creature began to pounce, throwing its front legs upwards… but even as it began to sail towards Luna, a strange darkness filled the air and the quality of light changed.

Fenrir half-fell to the ground, just missing Luna, landing shakily on its paws as the huge, dark wolf whimpered like a terrified puppy. It staggered backwards as Luna stared down at it with amazement, shooting a look towards the sky, red light spilling through the corridor as the throat of Helheim seemed to sigh and whisper, a soft breeze licking through the air around them as the winged unicorn slowly lowered herself towards the shivering beast.

The mighty Alpha of the Black Wolves of Hell had been reduced to nothing more than a trembling mess that now lay on its stomach, whimpering and helpless, and Luna descended slowly towards it as Scrivener hesitantly stepped forwards, then stopped when the winged unicorn gave him a wince and a quick shake of her head. She wanted to make sure first… and she quietly touched down in front of the monstrous wolf’s head, standing less than a foot away from its huge, world-eating jaws… but the creature only whimpered, its ivory eye rolling in its head, body quaking horribly as its claws rattled against the ground. Even more, its recently-healed wounds had reopened, as if its fear of the eclipse had literally stolen its powers… and Luna gritted her teeth before she brought a hoof up and slammed it into the end of its muzzle, but the monstrosity only whimpered and cowered, flexing weakly against the ground but unable to even pull itself away as a faint stream of blood dripped down from one nostril.

“Crying, whimpering mess… can’t even defend thyself… this is not the battle I wanted, nor the way I wished to destroy such a blight upon the land as thee.” Luna muttered disgustedly, and then she slammed her hoof against its nostril again before she snarled, leaning forwards and pressing her hoof firmly into its muzzle, but it only whimpered, unmoving, unable to even focus its remaining eye on her as it trembled weakly. “But fear not, monster, I shall at least make thy death quick… wretched and terrible thing, thou can serve no purpose but death…”

Are you sure about that? whispered a voice, and Luna frowned a bit as she looked up at Nightmare Moon’s scintillating tones, hearing them echoing through her mind, almost feeling the equine’s hoof stroking gently beneath her muzzle. Perhaps it can… give me but a moment of your time, Luna, listen to me…

Luna hesitated, glancing towards Scrivener Blooms as the male frowned at her, stepping forwards another pace… but then the winged unicorn shook her head briskly, muttering: “’Tis fine, Scrivy, ‘tis just a mind game of Nightmare Moon, and this beast is rendered harmless for the moment. I shall… be quick. But thou must stay here and be my eyes, understood? If the light begins to change or the beast to move, awaken me from Nightmare Moon’s treachery.”

“Of course.” Scrivener said quietly, walking slowly forwards as Luna stepped away from Fenrir, and the winged unicorn sighed as she lowered her head forwards and let her eyes closed, hesitant and yet compelled all the same to hear what her shadowy other-self had to say.

A moment later, she was standing in a spotlight of white amidst darkness, Nightmare Moon smiling benevolently across at her on the other side of the ivory circle as Luna snapped: “Thy timing is awful, Nightmare Moon, now what folly does thou have for me to refuse before I can return and crush in this monster’s skull?”

“Why would you waste such power, Luna?” Nightmare Moon chastened kindly, and Luna rolled her eyes in disgust before the dark equine slid forwards, whispering gently in the winged unicorn’s ear: “No, I do not speak of binding the monster to our will, we are not like Ekleíp… we prefer to do the work ourselves. Fenrir is a magical entity, pure power focused into an unstable shell… but we could take his power. The monster is prone and vulnerable and its will broken by our glorious eclipsing of the blinding sun-”

“I am not a vampire! Whether it has a soul or not, whether it is truly alive or an organic machine of unstoppable destruction, I will not steal its powers for strength… down that road lays nothing but failure and destruction.” Luna shouted, stepping forwards with a snarl as her eyes blazed and her starry mane swirled backwards, but Nightmare Moon only continued to smile kindly, patronizingly down at her, even as the smaller winged unicorn snarled: “If I knew not better, I would think thou wants us to once more become nothing but a mindless, self-indulgent, childish beast once more, to lose our treasured lucidity and all those precious to us!”

“Luna, I never said we should put Fenrir’s powers into you. We can defend ourselves fine, we are strong enough that in open territory, where Fenrir’s sheer size does not give it the advantage and we can better put our own talents to use, I am sure that together we could annihilate the dog-beast.” Nightmare Moon responded kindly, and Luna looked up at her with surprise before her eyes widened and she staggered backwards as the equine whispered: “But there’s another pony we love very dearly… who cannot defend himself nearly as well as we can…”

“Scrivener Blooms… oh sick and diseased traitor… thou wishes… thou wishes to turn him into a monster? Thou… thou wishes to perhaps accelerate the Tyrant Wyrm’s corruption, and force more, more destruction into his already-wounded mind?” Luna whispered, staring in horror at Nightmare Moon… and feeling revulsion and self-loathing at the way part of her actually considered the proposition, shuddering and gritting her teeth before she snarled: “I shall not betray-”

“Such strong words you use!” Nightmare Moon laughed, however, looking down at Luna compassionately as she stepped forwards… and Luna trembled, stepping backwards despite herself, beginning to breathe harder as the ebony equine reasoned in a voice that was terribly alluring, terribly compassionate: “After Valthrudnir… after what we have experienced in our broken world, too… we cannot always be there to save Scrivener Blooms. We have an opportunity now to give him more power… to fill him with strength. And perhaps, Fenrir’s raw strength will be enough to cancel out the compelling allure of the Tyrant Wyrm’s corruption. You and I both know that part of the reason our beloved treasure is drawn by the very thing that poisons him so is because he feel so powerless, so helpless, next to our magnificence. He undervalues himself… what better way to give him confidence than to give him this gift? And do you not trust him to do what is right with this? Do you not love him? Will you not be there to guide him and aid him, Luna?

“No, we will be there, beside him, to love and nurture him every step of the way…” Nightmare Moon closed her eyes with a smile, tilting her head to the side as her ephemeral mane blew gently upwards as if in a breeze, as she stepped forwards… and Luna trembled as she bowed her head and took another fleeting step back, shivering a bit as she tried to pull her gaze away… but no matter how she turned her head, her eyes stayed locked on Nightmare Moon as the creature continued softly: “And he will become strong. Perhaps as strong as Sleipnir was, and no longer will he need to rely upon the Black Verses if he is forced to defend himself. For mighty as they are, they hurt our beloved when he uses them. Yet he is becoming less-and-less hesitant in their use as well, do you not see that?

“It would be different, my beloved Luna, if Scrivener Blooms wanted to give in. I will not lie about that… did he want to truly become whatever the corruption has a chance of making him into, I would gladly encourage and indulge this.” Nightmare Moon smiled lovingly, opening her eyes, locking gazes with Luna. “And do not lie and say you would not. It is not weakness, Luna, to stand alongside our beloved no matter what choices he makes, even if those choices delve into darker realms. It is strength and loyalty. It is love.”

Luna shivered and shook her head, whispering: “Cease this, Nightmare Moon, you… you do not understand… that is not all love is about…”

Nightmare Moon only laughed quietly, however, responding gently: “But don’t I? Please, Luna. There is no need to complicate things, there is no need for… ‘moral boundaries’ for creatures such as us. We are the darkness… we shall always be the darkness. We love, and embrace, and care for others… but we are not without our appetites and desires. And what we desire most of all is to be able to keep our beloved Scrivener Blooms safe… and by making him strong, we shall ensure that he will always be safe, even if we are led away from him, even if our enemies seek to separate us. He is cunning and adept at analysis, but these things will only take him so far. We must supplement him with power.”

“Stop it. Get out of my head… leave me alone…” Luna whispered in denial, shaking her head fiercely… and when she looked up with a tremble, Nightmare Moon gazed at her with tenderness and compassion, leaning down with what seemed almost like concern as the smaller winged unicorn weakly said to her darker alter ego: “I am afraid. I am afraid because you make sense, and I cannot deny that you… that I am you, and you are me, and together we love Scrivener Blooms more than… than…”

“He is more important to us than the night, than anything else in this world and beyond, yes. We depend on his guidance and affection… he bows to us, but really, we are his to command, are we not?” Nightmare Moon accented this with a low bow towards Luna, and then she looked up from her position almost laying against the ground, smiling tenderly as she murmured quietly: “We are a willing servant to him. Let us bring him the greatest gift of all, my little Luna… because unlike you… I have faith that he will not abandon us.”

The accusation stung, and Luna reared back, gritting her teeth with a snarl as Nightmare Moon only looked up at her half-consolingly, half-pitying, and the winged unicorn shook her head fiercely, forcing herself away from Nightmare Moon and back into reality as she looked sharply over at Scrivener Blooms, who frowned in response… and then paled slightly as he staggered away from her, Luna’s eyes glowing a faint ivory as she leaned towards him and whispered: “I love thee, Scrivener Blooms, and I do not fear what thou will do… it is not as Nightmare Moon says, I am not afraid of losing thee, I do not keep thee weak for my own gain as she implies…”

“L-Luna…” Scrivener staggered another step backwards as the winged unicorn gritted her teeth, taking another step towards him as their eyes met… and wild memories flashed back and forth between them, thoughts, passions, instincts, feelings, before opposed emotions clashed, and Luna hissed as electricity sparked through her mane and Scrivener dropped his head forwards with a gasp, trying to take in too many emotions and memories and sights at once as he grabbed at his head, then shook it in denial. “Wait, stop!”

“Scrivener Blooms, listen to me!” Luna shouted, her eyes glowing brighter as behind her, Fenrir whimpered and shivered on the ground… and Scrivy looked up, meeting her glowing eyes with shock as she stepped forwards, gritting her teeth. “Do not be afraid. Look at me. Do not fear, this will hurt only a moment, and then thou will be-”

“Luna, you can’t put… put that thing’s essence inside me, I’ll die or it’ll do worse to me… I don’t think you’re weak, and I know you love me, and I don’t hold against you that you’re stronger than me, I… I only wish I could do more for you but not like this, Luna, this power will… will poison me, I can’t… it’s not being physically weaker than you I fear, it’s because I’m so much… my will…” Scrivener clenched his eyes shut, dropping his head forwards as Luna hesitated, the earth pony shivering a bit before he whispered: “I’m not afraid of turning into a monster, Luna. I’m scared that I’m already a monster, and more power will just make it worse.”

“Scrivy…” Luna whispered, the glow fading from her eyes… and then she shivered a bit as she shook her head briskly, and a mist seemed to clear from her mind before she shuddered violently as she realized what she had almost done. What that dark part of her that didn’t understand empathy, that didn’t understand why limits had to exist or why blind hedonism couldn’t be chased, had almost made her do… and she cursed under her breath before stepping forwards.

Scrivener flinched back: it was small, and he caught himself, but the flinch was there… and Luna halted in front of him, tears filling her eyes before he looked silently up and she gazed back, whispering: “It is alright, I… I merely… it was so much emotion at once. It was the power that flooded me, too, when I was able to drive the creature into my control… it is alright, Scrivener Blooms, I… I will not ever, ever force anything upon thee, it…”

She fell silent, looking at him quietly as Scrivy looked back for a few moments in quiet… and then he nodded slowly as emotions traded back and forth between them, swirling with much less conflict now as inside her, Nightmare Moon shifted and writhed. But immediately, Luna clamped down on that part of herself, blocking it out of her mind as she ground her teeth together before swallowing thickly, and then she looked up in surprise as Scrivener whispered: “But if… you… truly believe… I don’t doubt in you, Luna. I was just… scared. I’m sorry.”

“Idiot poet, why does thou apologize to me?” Luna laughed weakly, looking over him with a faint, sad smile as the two studied each other… before she sighed softly and shivered a bit, hearing once more the charm and allure of Nightmare Moon, feeling the tremble that went down her spine at the thought of the strength she could drain from the monstrous wolf-beast, and now tasting Scrivener’s apprehension… and beneath it… “Oh Scrivy…”

“Forget I said anything, I… let’s just get the hell out of here.” Scrivener shook his head quickly, a shudder passing through his form, and Luna gave a quick nod to him as she looked worriedly over the earth pony. He only gave her a faint smile, however, then glanced nervously towards Fenrir, asking quietly: “Do we…”

“I know what to do, Scrivener Blooms. ‘Tis what we should have done from the start.” Luna replied quietly, her horn beginning to glow as she gritted her teeth, her mane sparking as it swirled backwards and her body flexing as she leaned forwards, beginning to open her mouth… but then she looked upwards in shocked surprise as three loud, mournful howls cut through the air, and Fenrir threw his own head back, giving a shrieking, echoing howl in response.

Cracks ripped through the ceiling as another pillar near the back of the hall toppled… and with it, a large portion of the roof shattered and collapsed inwards, shale and frost bursting in all directions as reality around them fluctuated before there was an awful, terrible, indescribable shriek as a wrenching feeling ripped through Luna’s chest… and her eyes turned with shock to look at Fenrir as the light in the room transformed and the lumbering wolf slowly began to pick itself up, still disoriented but rapidly regaining its strength as a growl began to rise in its throat.

Luna cursed, then flicked her horn towards Scrivener Blooms, and the male arched his back with a gasp of pain as several plates of armor over his back tore loose and crumpled outwards as a pair of leathery wings ripped free from his back, before the winged unicorn half-turned and threw herself into the air, shouting desperately as barks and snarls sounded from the corridor: “Scrivy, upwards, upwards!”

Scrivener cursed as he leapt into the air and his wings flapped sloppily, leaving him half-hovering off balance for a moment as Fenrir turned towards them and then snarled, his jaws opening wide… before Luna smashed bodily into his head, knocking the giant wolf staggering back a step with a grunt of surprise. A moment later, the winged unicorn leaned forwards as her horn flashed and released a blast of blue flame over the features of the behemoth, and it yelped and shook its head wildly as it half-fell backwards, pawing madly at its face as Luna began to spin around before her eyes alit on her fallen spear… and with only a flick of her horn, she sent this rocketing up from the ground to shoot into the hole in the ceiling before it spun violently, smashing apart decorative metal bars and lunar symbols and sending down a hail of metal that Scrivener weaved awkwardly back and forth around with a curse.

Luna shot back towards the sky just as Fenrir lunged and bit at her, managing only to rip his teeth through the end of her ethereal tail and making her wince in surprise more than pain as she flew upwards, her spear falling into place beside her automatically. Scrivener flew behind her into the tight tunnel as the mountain around them cracked, and Fenrir roared, leaping up after them and shoving one enormous paw into the tight passage, huge claws ripping against Scrivener’s armor and knocking him into the wall as he gargled in pain, but he managed to save himself from falling by scrabbling wildly at the jagged surface with all four hooves, propelling himself onwards as his wings flapped hard.

Below them, Fenrir fell backwards with a snarl, the scarred goliath landing heavily on its back and not noticing as massive rips spread through the ceiling and the walls, howling furiously and gnashing his teeth at the tunnel as he swept one claw viciously upwards against the entrance and ripped away a large, gnarled piece of metal. It tore free, bouncing loudly against the ground with a bang that drew the monster’s animal attention for a moment before it looked back up as a thunderous crack tore through the air, snarling and glaring upwards as it sensed movement… and then its ears flattened back, and the wolf almost screamed as it tried to skitter backwards too little, too late, as the entire ceiling finally gave away and the countless layers of stone, fortress and mountain collapsed on top of the awful, terrible beast.

Luna and Scrivener cursed as the passage around them shattered and began to draw even narrower, the winged unicorn snarling before her horn glowed, electricity sparking along her frame and a blue aura glowing around her before she rammed out of the top of the tunnel like a bullet, sending chunks of stone flying in all directions as Scrivener managed to scramble out after her a moment later, the two shooting up into the air above as Luna grinned for a moment… then stared in horror at the sight of the moon in the sky above, coming to a halt some fifty feet above the collapsing Black Baroque as she threw her head back with a cry of disbelief.

The howls of the Black Wolves had cracked the moon into pieces like an egg, and massive chunks of stone were now slowly floating through the sky, some of them vanishing beyond the horizon, others seeming to fall steadily and slowly towards the earth as Luna snarled and leaned forwards… but then she only hissed in pain, magical recoil ripping over her body as she lurched backwards and fell slightly before Scrivener’s hooves caught her shoulders before she could tip over, the male flying silently behind her as he stared up weakly and whispered: “It’s going to be okay, Luna… this isn’t…”

“This is proof that this world is dead and damned and doomed, Scrivener Blooms…” Luna whispered, and when Scrivener began to draw back, she reached a front hoof up and fiercely held one of Scrivy’s down against her shoulder, trembles rolling through her body as the terrible, blinding, poisoned sun shone arrogantly down through the shattered pieces of the moon, and then she gritted her teeth and muttered: “And to think… I wanted to drain the creature’s strength and put it to thee without thinking of the consequences… damn me, Scrivener Blooms, for what is worse? A lust for power, or a lust to make another powerful, for all the right reasons that led us in the first place right to Helheim’s gates!”

Luna slammed her free hoof down against her own armored body, and Scrivener closed his eyes as he slipped forwards, wrapping his forelegs around her neck and embracing her fiercely, and Luna shivered a bit as they hovered in midair, bodies aching, wings flapping slowly. Then, finally, they parted and slowly began to sail downwards… and as the two gazed silently at one another, Luna couldn’t help but smile and whisper: “And idiot poet… that knickknack around thy neck, thou protected it with thine supple hindquarters.”

Scrivener laughed despite himself, reaching up and touching the still-intact bone collar before he glanced awkwardly over his shoulder: the chain mesh and plates that had protected his rear were shredded ,and he felt a faint, flaring pain from the large, ugly gashes that had been torn from only the glancing blow of Fenrir’s claws… but he knew he was lucky. He paused, then returned his eyes to Luna… and smiled faintly at the fact that the spear was still floating on her other side, saying quietly: “Well, Valkyrie, it looks to me like you’re just as guilty as I am of putting material objects over one’s own life.”

The winged unicorn glanced towards her spear with surprise… and then she smiled faintly despite herself, replying quietly: “Only if thou already forgot my lecture, foolish poet.”

Scrivener looked at her for a few moments, and then he nodded slowly and smiled a little in return as the two slowly descended through the haze of snow and dust that was settling silently through the Gray Mountains around the fallen Black Baroque, and Luna grimaced a bit as they finally touched down to the frozen, rotten ground. Slowly, she and Scrivener Blooms turned around as her telescopic spear collapsed and floated quietly to the side to slip into the satchel bag, and the earth pony shook his head slowly as they gazed upon the wreckage of the once-mighty fortress.

It had completely collapsed in on itself, leaving only half of the front walls of the Black Baroque standing, while the mountain was nothing more than a slumped heap of debris barely as high as their heads. Chunks of broken rock, blades of ice, and ugly, mottled roots stuck out of the ruin here and there like feebly-grasping claws, steam and icy mist hissing softly up from the pile of shattered stony wreckage.

“May this accursed place rot.” Luna muttered, shaking her head slowly, and then she glanced towards Scrivener Blooms as the earth pony nodded with a quiet grunt, and Luna hesitated only for a few moments before she asked quietly: “Art thou ready to activate the collar and leave, then?”

“Yeah, more than ready, Luna.” Scrivener looked back at her with a faint smile, hesitating only a moment before he bowed his head towards her with a swirl of thoughts and images, and Luna blushed a bit as she heard whispered apologies and gentle promises kiss through her mind before she shook her head firmly, then stepped forwards and hugged him tightly.

The male lowered his head, leaning against her as she squeezed him slowly around the neck, and then her horn began to glow, summoning up the reserves of energy she had left as Scrivy winced a bit and his leathery, aching wings flapped once as electricity sizzled slowly over his body and Luna’s ephemeral mane stroked along his armored frame and features, the winged unicorn murmuring: “Then may we walk with the favor of the Norns, my beloved.”

Slowly, Luna drew back as her horn gave a faint pulse… and then the collar around Scrivener’s neck slowly began to glow, taking on an eerie, sickly emerald glow as the male leaned back and clenched his eyes shut, wincing as it burned for a moment against his coat before rapidly cooling as steam hissed up from it as he muttered: “Always manage… to forget that part…”

“Aye, but magic is about more than pretty incantations and concentration when it comes to this. The Khlōros tests the wearer… and ‘tis only my relief that neither of us have ever failed it so far.” Luna replied softly, gazing over him with a faint smile, and Scrivener laughed a little despite himself. “Stand proud, Scrivener Blooms. Today, we save souls from the claws of shadow, and perhaps lives that were unfairly stolen away.”

Scrivener nodded a bit as he rolled his shoulders, before twitching slightly as the collar began to emit a low, haunting hum… and all around them, Pales flickered into existence, their eyes staring towards the collar and the earth pony. Scrivener Blooms licked his lips nervously as he looked slowly back and forth, but Luna gave him a supportive smile as she said quietly: “Remember, thou art only the figurehead… or more aptly, the beast of burden that draws the plow.”

“Well thanks, Luna. I’m glad I’m now allowed to pull a plow.” Scrivener replied softly, and he felt himself relaxing a bit despite himself as they looked at one another amidst the congregation of ghosts, meeting each other’s eyes for a moment before the male added quietly: “It’s okay.”

“Good.” Luna said softly, smiling awkwardly at him with a faint blush tingeing her cheeks, and then she shook her head briskly before turning around and trying not to focus on the Pales even as she walked forwards and strode through the staring mass of spirits, saying quietly: “Let us now only focus on the hard march ahead of us. It will be a long and tiresome one, to be sure, Scrivener Blooms… but it will be most worthwhile too.”

Scrivy glanced back and forth, at the mass of Pales that had already appeared… and more were clustering in now as well, standing in a rough circle around him, drawn by the phantasmal, almost-inaudible melody that echoed up from the glowing collar around his neck. There were already so many he couldn’t count, pressing so close that they were mixing with one another’s translucent, ethereal spirits… and Scrivener nodded slowly as he began to follow Luna, the Pales parting the way for him and naturally falling into large, uneven lines as they slowly followed, drawn onwards from perhaps miles around by the strange melody.

Luna and Scrivener approached the other end of the valley… and then something crashed loudly in the distance, the two ponies whirling around and the Pales flickering as they froze in place: and even through the misty ghosts, the two ponies were able to watch as rock and ice exploded into the air in bursts of snow and dust before a terrible, hulking form ripped itself free of the wreckage, barking and snarling as reality around it trembled and distorted, dark flames rippling over its awful frame.

The winged unicorn snarled as her entire body tensed… before her eyes widened in horror as a second Black Wolf of Hell pulled itself out of the tunnel the first had ripped. They were smaller than Fenrir, even from this distance… and Luna cursed under her breath in surprise, wondering how the monsters had managed to cross such distances so quickly, and yet all the same knowing that however they acted, whatever they were… the Black Wolves defied reality, defied logic, and would allow themselves to be enslaved by nothing: be it a law of physics, or a leash of steel, or a scepter of magic, they would refute it, fight against it… and more and more, Luna questioned if they could even be killed.

The Black Wolves snarled at them, and Luna cursed under her breath, torn between fleeing and engaging the monsters. But a moment later, instead of trying to pursue or attack, the two wolves only half-turned and began to claw at the wreckage of the Black Baroque and the mountain, ripping up thick chunks of stone and ice. It was clear what they wanted to do: dig out their Alpha, Fenrir, whom the Black Wolves seemed to hold some alien loyalty to in spite of living in their own territories… and Luna cursed under her breath, but then frowned a bit as her gaze sharpened, leaping upwards and taking to the air to get a better vantage for a moment.

She hovered and watched as they dug… and while one was using both forepaws and shoveling its way rapidly into the debris, the other was favoring a front leg, holding it up against its body and scraping almost gingerly at the surface as it shivered. It seemed pained… and Luna gave a sour grin despite herself, muttering: “So perhaps the vicious mongrels are not invulnerable… aye, they bleed, they wound… and their bones break. And whether or not Fenrir showed such freakish powers of regeneration, his weaker brothers may not possess the same vitality… this is good.”

Luna hesitated, watching as the wolves continued their digging for a few more moments… and then she turned and sailed back down to the ground, landing neatly on her hooves and casting a grim glance over her shoulder towards Scrivener Blooms. “Let us make haste, and only hope that the last of the Black Wolves is still buried in the wreckage alongside Fenrir. We shall push hard, and distance ourselves from the beasts before they can hunt us in revenge… I do not wish to attempt to embattle the entire pack at once; even I am not foolhardy enough to think it ending in victory.”

Scrivener nodded with a grunt, and the winged unicorn gazed at him for a moment, at the trust, the love, the compassion in his eyes, that radiated from him… and she smiled faintly before turning and breaking into a quick run, the earth pony chasing after her as she closed her eyes and whispered to the recesses of her own mind: And we almost damaged that, Nightmare Moon… does thou understand now why thou cannot meddle in such things, that even thy honestly-good intentions can have evil repercussions?

But Nightmare Moon was silent, wherever she was… and so instead, Luna only led onwards, Scrivener following as the Khlōros sang its spectral melody. And behind them, the Pales followed, their hooves making no noise over the frozen and blackened wastes, their bodies shimmering with frost and ethereal light. The last living ponies across the broken world of Equestria guided the souls of the dead ever onwards, as the Gray Mountains echoed with the voiceless melody of the reaper’s collar.

Shepherds Of The Dead

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Chapter Fourteen: Shepherds Of The Dead
~BlackRoseRaven

Luna and Scrivener Blooms pushed onwards through the Gray Mountains, joined by more spirits as they roved through deep valleys and along steep, rocky passes. The spirits behind them kept in time, following loyally and never hesitating: the Pales didn’t stumble over rocks or cracks, were unfettered by venting steam or rasping, chilling wind, and small gaps and short walls they could simply blink over, vanishing from sight to reappear some twenty feet away in a single moment’s time.

The Khlōros garnered the attention of other things as well, however, which only made them push harder to travel quick even while Luna kept a sharp watch, sometimes running in front of the earth pony, at other times flying above. Grimm hissed and lurked around the edges of the convoy of spirits, hating the silent melody because it hinted at giving peace to suffering souls and stealing away their prizes, and while the insubstantial beasts of shadow couldn’t directly attack them, they were all too glad to cause distractions by stirring up nearby beasts, attempting to cause avalanches of snow, ice, and stone by shoving rocks down the mountainside, and screaming from high vantage points awful, hideous shrieks that ripped through the veil of reality and made both Luna and Scrivener wince.

The effect of the Khlōros, however, also made the creatures visible to Luna’s eyes… and with a single well-placed blast of her blue fire, the ghastly crow-specters would be sent squealing. Normal fire might hold no threat to them, but Luna’s night-tinged magic was more than sufficient to char the very spirits of the foul entities. After a few of the monsters had been incinerated, the Grimm had finally made themselves scarce and relented in their attacks… Luna had only been glad that the foul beasts had never managed to provoke anything larger than a Velite Drake out of hiding and into attacking them.

After six hours of hard travel, Scrivener’s muscles aching and Luna gritting her teeth as she paced beside him and ignored her own flagging stamina, they finally reached the pass that would lead them out of the Gray Mountains and back into the snowy fields. It was a greater relief than either could say: even if they couldn’t afford to take a break yet, they would be able to slow their pace all the same, and it was like a weight had been lifted from their bodies as they made their way down to the frost-speckled tundra with the ominous peaks left at their back.

Luna and Scrivener both glanced back, past the pack of ghosts following behind them… and both stared in horror at what they saw. Standing there, at the very border of the Gray Mountain, was some indescribable monstrosity that had likely been tailing them the entire time, perhaps the very source of that weight and pressure they had both felt. A torpedo-shaped head, multiple arms, a handful of eyes that looked as if they had been shoved by an angry child into its clay-like features… and yet it only stood there, as if there was some invisible barrier that kept it trapped inside the surreal world of the mountains.

It leaned forwards, tentacles writhing around its face as jaws hidden beneath the flexing appendages clacked as it reached a hand towards them… and Scrivener winced as Luna shook her head, whispering: “Such things lurk in the Mountains that were never meant to see the light of day… things of nature’s scorn, mockeries made by pedantic gods… sad and twisted creature, return to thy hovel. We are neither prey nor enemy… take relief that soon, this world and thy sufferance shall end.”

The terrible monstrosity stared after them… and then it simply faded slowly out of existence as if it had only been a trick of the light, and a chill ran down Scrivy’s spine before he glanced towards Luna and muttered: “Let’s get out of here. I have a bad feeling that there’s worse creatures than that on the move… and that whether the Gray Mountains are beyond normal reality or some kind of terrible prison and pit for… for failures of creation and evolution alike, that cage is going to break open before this world ends.”

“Let us hope not, Scrivener Blooms. I wish for the last days of this planet to be peaceful, even for the demons and accursed of Helheim that lurk throughout it… if the gaol of the Gray Mountains shatters wide, then we may have no choice but to flee across the Bifrost and wish a quick death to this world.” Luna muttered in response, even as she turned and began to run… and Scrivener ran beside her, no longer feeling his aches or pains as adrenaline pulsed through his veins and his chilled blood, doing his best not to glance back for fear that somehow, that thing would be lurking behind them, waiting eagerly to strike.

Instead of passing into North Neigh, the two went through the tundra, moving alongside the fencing and through the dunes of ice and snow. Elementals leaned curiously over broken defenses and watched past half-collapsed walls as they passed, and as they ran, more Pales flickered quietly into being around them, Scrivener looking back and forth despite himself for any sign of Tia Belle… but he knew she wasn’t there. He knew that she was gone… and for some reason, it left a splinter in his heart to think that somewhere inside of her had been regret for how she had treated him, remorse, perhaps even something more…

He lowered his head forwards, swallowing a bit as they pushed onwards, and Luna gazed at him silently… but she knew better than to speak. She could feel him pushing through the emotions, and they were like a jumble of blocks that needed to be carefully pulled apart… and the winged unicorn knew by now when not to rush her husband on certain subjects. All the same, her emotions traveled to him, kissed his thoughts, shielded him in her mental embrace… and the earth pony smiled faintly as he whispered: “I don’t know where she’s gone now, Luna. But I do honestly hope… it’s not Helheim. Bramblethorn I hope ends up somewhere… somewhere nasty, but I… I was never hugged by either of my parents before. Maybe in death it was a little late… but better late than never at all, right?”

Luna nodded to him, leaning towards the male as her ethereal mane flickered backwards, and she murmured quietly: “Whether she loved thee or not, Scrivener Blooms… at the end, she recognized thee. Saw some value in thee… and the way she looked at thee…”

“I’m gonna start crying again if we talk about it too much, Luna.” Scrivener smiled faintly all the same, however, closing his eyes tightly as a shudder passed through him before he shook his head firmly and looked ahead, pretending it was the chilling wind and the sheer cold that was making his eyes ache. “Let’s just keep pushing forwards. We have a long way to go.”

Luna nodded firmly at this as she looked ahead herself… and pushed onwards by love and sorrow, hope and determination, they continued forwards. Their hooves beat against the frosted earth as they charged onwards, ignoring curious Ice Elementals as they finally reached the highway beyond North Neigh and pushed steadily south, into the tattered forest, both knowing they should slow down, both aching in body and heart, but neither wanting to stop as they kept themselves moving at a steady, firm beat, their hearts pulsing in time, their breath rasping in and out as they pushed themselves beyond their limits.

The result was that when the two reached the snowy desert beyond the road through the gnarled and tattered forest, the two staggered to a halt and half-collapsed against one another, wheezing for breath as their armor clanked together, throats dry and painful, eyes clenched shut as tears from the exertion, the cold wind, and the wild emotions that had driven them onwards for hours they couldn’t even count froze over their cheeks. Scrivener Blooms cursed under his breath weakly as Luna arched her back with a grimace, her ephemeral mane and tail both sparking, flickering for a few moments before she leaned forwards and shoved her quaking front hooves against the ground, their bodies rippling with aches and soreness as the Pales silently formed a thick circle around them and the Khlōros collar continued to hum its ghostly resonance.

“We need to rest, Scrivy. I do not understand how thou art even still on thy hooves, wretched stubborn beetle, when my body aches as badly as it does and thou should ache all the worse…” Luna muttered, leaning forwards with a grimace before she snorted as Scrivener slowly laid down on his stomach, shivering as he coughed a few times and lowered his head forwards into the snow. “And thus my point is proven true.”

“Shut up, Luna.” Scrivener mumbled from the snow, and then he twitched a bit, his leathery wings giving an awkward flap before he groaned and mumbled: “Oh hell, you left my wings on…”

Luna only grumbled in response to this, replying flatly: “And thou shalt keep them for the entire journey. I am too tired to dispel them… either the polymorph will fade naturally or the Bifrost will do the job for me.”

Scrivener mumbled to himself, and then he winced as he slowly forced himself up to a sitting position, breathing hard as the Khlōros burned quietly around its neck, still emanating its phantasmal harmony, still drawing the eyes and attention of the Pales. “Twenty minutes?”

“Thirty. It has been a long time since we have done such a march… and even if we slow our pace, even if we have the advantage of needing neither food nor rest, neither of us are invincible.” Luna hesitated, and then she added quietly: “And I believe that… we are safe from the Black Wolves of Hell. We would have felt their presence and movement… I only hope that they have not succeeded yet in digging their Alpha free from the ruin.”

Scrivener nodded slowly, and he and Luna leaned against one another as the winged unicorn dropped her head against the side of his neck, her horn gently brushing through his mane as she murmured in a quieter voice: “Thou does not need to push so hard, Scrivy. Nor does thou need to feel such guilt… we are both… we have both made mistakes.”

“Yeah. I know, Luna, I do, I just…” Scrivener laughed a bit, looking down awkwardly as he slid a foreleg around her, pulling her closer and both used to the staring Pales by now, that watched them silently… but were more interested in the melody of the Khlōros than they were in the two ponies. Perhaps they weren’t even truly aware of them… only that they were being led onwards by the enchanting song of the collar of the dead. “I trust you. I love you. I… understand you.”

“And that last… that is the most precious gift of all.” Luna smiled faintly, burying her face deeper against the side of his neck before she sighed softly and straightened slightly, gazing at him silently as he turned towards her, their eyes locking before she reached up and adjusted his glasses for him. “Oh, look at thee, thou art a mess. A jumble, in fact, Scrivener Blooms. Honestly, what would thou do without me?”

“Well, I’d be dead, for one thing.” Scrivener said blandly, and Luna rolled her eyes before she headbutted him, making the earth pony wince back a bit before the winged unicorn simply grumbled and rested with her head firmly pushed against his. “You’d probably have somepony more handsome, too. Well, knowing you, Twilight, and you’d probably corrupt her into having some menagerie of armored ‘bodyguards’ at your beck and call…”

Luna snorted at this, leaning back and saying indignantly: “Oh, so this is what thou thinks of me? Rude and ungrateful creature!” She paused meditatively, looking up and muttering musingly as she rubbed a hoof under her jaw: “Still, ‘tis a fun idea all the same. I only wish I had the power by which to make the Moon Blessed real, or at least there were loyal ponies still around whom we could enlist as so-called ‘bodyguards…’”

Scrivener glowered at her, and Luna grinned back, winking at him as she leaned forwards and replied kindly: “Two stallions and two mares, would it not be perfect? Amazonians for thee and handsome Adonis-like figures for myself. Unless thou wanted to trade, of course.”

The earth pony only replied with a sigh, rubbing slowly at his face and muttering disconsolately: “This is why ponies got so weirded out around us, Luna. On the one hoof, you’re hyper-protective and we’re both obviously codependent. On the other, you gleefully take any and all chances to come up with new ‘adventurous fantasies,’ as you put it. I’m going to make you sit in the corner of shame at this rate.”

“’Tis no such thing, and thou cannot, anyway. I am older, wiser, and most importantly, far bigger and stronger than thee.” Luna retorted, and Scrivener opened his mouth, but couldn’t find a decent response before he winced when the winged unicorn added mildly: “Furthermore, if thou art so resistant to the idea, then I can just take all the bodyguards for my own self and my own ‘protection…’”

“Okay, okay, you win.” Scrivener rolled his eyes, and then he flailed a bit when Luna kicked some snow at him, grumbling and muttering: “You’re evil though, Luna, so we’re clear on that. You and Nightmare Moon both, and I don’t know which is worse.”

Luna smiled at this, then she leaned forwards and kissed his cheek quietly, and Scrivener sighed but relaxed visibly as they looked at each other… and there was a strange, visible lightening between them, as they studied one another and traded emotions back and forth, the weight of the world seeming to shift off their shoulders.

They rested together for another twenty minutes, sipping a bit of water from a canteen before refilling it by straining snow through a simple sieve, and then the two were once more on their way. Instead of heading towards the barrens, however, they instead set course to go around them… and after some three hours of travel, they reached the far eastern edge of the burning wastes, stepping from snow to gravel and mire and rock, entering into a wasteland that all the same was far-less-hostile than the magma floes and hellish hinterland to the west.

The two ponies had to pick their course carefully all the same, however, with Luna taking the lead and her spear floating ready at her side as Scrivener Blooms kept looking nervously back and forth. Every so often, some hideous centipede or serpentine, mutated worm would slither its way out of one of the holes in the rocks, eager to try and prey upon the few living things that dared the stony gorge, and the winged unicorn had to be fast to drive the beasts back down into their burrows. A few vicious stabs of her spear would deter the worms, who would retreat with shrieks… but the centipedes had to be slain and torn almost into pieces in order to get them to cease the attack, and they liked to try and pincer in pairs, the size of anacondas and covered in carapaces as hard as metal.

It made for slow going: with both the wildlife and the terrain against them and dark clouds beginning to brew in the sky, even their slow march was proving draining. Finally, Scrivener Blooms took to the air, flying slowly and low over the rocky barren with Luna coasting beside him, and the Pales thankfully continued to follow the pull of the Khlōros without any event. It was awkward and a little painful for the earth pony, but all the same it was safer and better than trying to pick his way over a seemingly-endless stretch of sharpened rock, and now they didn’t have to worry nearly as much about the predatory insects that somehow managed to live out here in these barrens.

They had to pass through a narrow gorge, shepherding the Pales down an ugly slope that looked as if it was made of jutting spikes and blades, passing a massive, crumbled skeleton of a dragon that was covered in silken webs and had become a nest of enormous arachnids that glared balefully at them as they passed, but thankfully, there was little of event: at the bottom of the gorge, there was a narrow river of slag and magma, but it was narrow enough that the Pales simply blinked over it… or strode over the surface, bothered by neither heat nor the semi-liquidity of the lava that was so hot it made both living ponies sweat just to be within twenty feet of it, and had ached unbelievably to pass low over.

They had set down on the other side to let their wings rest as they guided the Pales up a long, dusty rock ramp… and as if the broken world had taken pity on them, when they emerged from the rocky gorge they found themselves standing on a straight, ghostly stretch of empty land, a frosty border visible in the distance and a faint snowfall beyond this. They had almost reached the edge of the barrens, and Scrivener Blooms sighed in relief before he grimaced as the Khlōros hissed quietly against his neck, charring him for a moment as he muttered: “Damned thing…”

“Is it draining thy energy? Strange… usually we are much further along before it replenishes its magic through vital force.” Luna said quietly… and then she and Scrivener both paused before looking over their shoulders at the vast congregation of Pales, some stragglers even all the way on the other side of the gorge still… yet all the same, still following the call of the collar, still wandering silently after them, enraptured by the melancholic song of the strange supernatural device. “Although… today, we draw more souls than I had ever expected to find as well…”

“Yeah.” Scrivener murmured quietly, then he shook his head slowly and glanced ahead over the stained tundra, saying softly: “Let’s keep moving then, Luna. But we should probably rest once we manage to reach the Northedge Strait.”

“Aye, I agree with thee for once, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna gave him a bit of a smile, nodding slowly, and the male nodded back before the two resumed their journey forwards, calmly striding side-by-side over the tundra with the mass of Pales following silently behind them after the call of the Khlōros.

Luna guided them through the corrupted wilderness, and although they ran into a band of Nibelung, the wolf-pigs fled with yelps of terror: understandable, since it wasn’t simply Luna and Scrivener Blooms they were faced with, but the two were leading an army of ghostly Pales that flickered in and out of reality, passing through rocks and gnarled trees as they marched silently onwards, and all while that strange, near-silent music thrummed through the air.

They reached the banks of the Northedge Strait after hours of travel, slowed by slush and heavy snow and the tiredness beginning to set into their muscles from their marathon march, and they halted for an hour to rest and recuperate together. The next part of the journey would likely be the hardest point: Luna would harden the ice with magic as they crossed the river, but it was a long trek, and the winged unicorn knew it would be draining… and made all the more difficult by the fact the river itself might attempt to claim them as prey.

Malicious things lived in these frozen waters, made the strait itself vicious and almost sentient… but by hardening the ice as they moved, it would hopefully give them a narrow area of safety and make their presence less-detectable to the things that lurked below. One way or the other, however, they needed to cross… and from there, they still had to make the journey all the way back to the tundra outside of Ponyville, where they could summon the Bifrost.

“Assuming the Bifrost has regenerated… ‘twill be a great joke indeed to try and call upon the rainbow bridge, only to find that it not yet in serviceable condition.” Luna muttered, shaking her head slowly before she glanced towards Scrivy as the male snorted in entertainment and carefully stood up, cracking his back loudly as Luna stretched her wings and flapped them once before they settled against her sides. “To think, I used to regularly journey across entire countries with Sleipnir and Celestia. ‘Twas… different, though. We were better prepared, our marches not so fast, and most of all the world was beautiful, not in this state of decay and ruin… it saps our strength, I know.”

Scrivener smiled a bit at this, nodding slowly in agreement before he absently rubbed at his chest, saying vindictively: “I’m almost hoping that nasty weather is a corruption storm. Might do us some good.”

“Depraved beetle. But what does that make me, when I hope that thou art right?” Luna gave him an entertained look, and the male grunted in response with a shrug, which earned him a roll of her eyes as she nudged him with her shoulder. “Foolish fool.”

The earth pony snorted in entertainment at this, nudging her back and replying mildly: “That sounds like one of my lines, Luna, so let me use one of yours, thou undignified and most maleficent strumpet.”

Luna huffed at this, rearing her head back indignantly. “Awful creature, how dare thee! Did I not fear for the Khlōros I would bash thee roundly and rudely upside thy upstart head!” She paused, then huffed and started forwards, flicking her horn and making the ice crackle as it darkened visibly where it hardened, becoming more akin to rock than ice as she added grudgingly: “’Tis not fair. Thou can insult me in a multitude of dialects and I still struggle with the accursed slang of the accursed ‘modern’ tongue. In Looking Glass World, we should fill the heads of all these Pales with the language of mine own time, and then thou can be the odd pony out.”

“Aren’t I usually the odd pony out anyway?” Scrivener pointed out as he followed behind her with a smile, trying to ignore the fact for the moment that a congregation of spirits were following silently behind them, and Luna laughed quietly as she shook her head, gazing over her shoulder at him with entertainment.

“Aye, perhaps that is true, but thou knows what I mean. Wretched cur. Besides, that I speak like this is the fault of Celestia, and to a lesser extent, Sleipnir. Except that Sleipnir spoke mainly in exclamations and boorish remarks that would frustrate sister endlessly.” She smiled a little as she turned her eyes back ahead, flicking her horn again as they neared the end of the path of darkened ice, and the lane immediately spread further forwards, forming another stretch of thick, rock-solid frost. “It… saddens me some days that we cannot disrupt the cycle of life and death completely, selfish and… childish… as I know that must sound, Scrivy. Some days even now I want my brother back, or to be able to visit him freely… ‘tis no wonder Odin keeps Valhalla’s entrance so secret and so hidden.”

“Well, one day we’ll die and we’ll all get to hang out together then.” Scrivener said mildly, and Luna snorted laughter as she shook her head with a wide grin as the earth pony added dryly: “This is me being positive, by the way. Or comforting. Or at least trying to be both. Do I get points for trying or does my blatant disregard for the sanctity of anything cost me all those?”

Luna only rolled her eyes in entertainment, however, giving her head another shake before she glanced up towards the sky as there was a crackle of thunder in the distance, the clouds roiling through the violet sea overhead seeming to almost glow as she murmured: “It looks like thou may be right after all, Scrivy… let us only hope the storm does not stir up whatever lurks in these foul depths beneath our hooves.”

The weather, however, held off as they crossed the Northedge Strait: although the ruins of Charger’s Crossing were barely visible to the west, and it was perhaps even a little narrower here than it had been at the bridge, a fierce wind kicked up that made moving difficult, and it was worsened by the fact that around them, the ice rose up in vicious blades and spikes. The Pales paid this no heed, walking calmly through these piercing stalagmites of frost as if they didn’t exist as they followed after the two ponies, and they disregarded the ice shattering beneath their ethereal hooves and the clawed hands that grabbed wildly at pony and Pale alike with the same calm disconnection.

Luna and Scrivy weren’t so lucky: thankfully, the ice pillars and spikes couldn’t rip out of the ice that Luna solidified with her magic, but soon enough whatever forces wanted them dead began to angle the blades of ice whenever they emerged from the river, and the two had to move quickly to avoid being speared or sliced by the twisting frost. Worse yet were the claws: they were able to tear through the less-solid ice like it was only paper in a great burst of water and snow, snatching viciously at them whenever they drew too close to the edge of their solid bridge of dark blue rock-ice.

They only stopped when Luna managed to stab her spear down through the mottled, fish-scaled hand of one of the creatures, shrieks rising up from the ice as it had jerked wildly and blue blood spread over the ice, rapidly hardening into frost… and then Scrivener had stepped forwards with his teeth grit, half-driven by Luna’s battle experience and half by his own anger and stomped savagely down on the elbow, cracking the joint with an awful crunch. The pain for the creature had been excruciating enough it had leapt upwards, and a hideous fish-beast had surfaced through the softer ice, ugly, pickerel-like features contorted with pain and fury as it grabbed wildly at them with its other arm, gills flexing in its neck as it screamed at them in a piercing, garbled language.

Scrivener staggered back, and Luna met its other webbed claw with her horn, slicing into its soft flesh and knocking its limb wide as it squealed before Luna flicked her horn upwards and sent a blast of lightning shocking into the creature, and it had fallen still and silent, gills twitching once as it shivered against the ice before Luna tore her spear free and gently used the weapon to shovel it backwards. The fish-beast had sunk into the water, and Scrivener had shivered a bit as mournful howls had sounded around them, the ice contorting into strange bumps and ridges and alien shapes, but no longer attacking them as the winged unicorn muttered: “Merfolk. They are not beautiful as the modern legends once described them… they are hideous, greedy, and cruel. But they are also cowards… ‘tis Helheim’s influence that must drive them to hunt so ferociously instead of remaining in their deep lairs and undersea kingdoms. Or perhaps there is simply no other food left to hunt, and they suffer as much beneath the waves as the world does above the tide…”

It was a grueling two hours, crossing the water: at some point, the Merfolk attempted another attack against them with the ice, but it was halfhearted and lasted for only a few minutes before they simply stopped, realizing their ploy wouldn’t work against the two: whenever Luna or Scrivener couldn’t avoid one of the ice spikes, after all, Luna simply used magic to either warp the ice in a different direction or shatter it before it could reach them. Every now and then, a silhouette of the creatures would pass near the thinner ice, but that was all until they finally reached the other bank… and once there, Luna called a halt to rest and dropped on her haunches as her spear buried into the ground beside her, her horn sparking faintly as her mane shivered around her body. Scrivener took the moment to slide behind her, quietly rubbing at her shoulders and along the bases of her wings to help her relax as she murmured: “We are… perhaps halfway there, Scrivener Blooms. But I must recharge a little after using so much magic… and thou should take the break we have to compose a letter to Pinkamena. It has been… I know not. Twelve, fifteen hours of relentless travel? Perhaps more, perhaps less. And we have at least twenty or thirty more ahead of us.”

She stopped, then glanced quietly towards the earth pony, hesitating for a moment before she asked tentatively as she met his eyes: “Thy mind… how holds it?”

“In my skull, unless you’re talking about the other one.” Scrivener replied with a bit of a smile, and Luna sighed in exasperation… but at the same time, there was a faint glimmer of relief in her eyes, too, as the male laughed a little and held his hooves up before she could hit him. “It’s… I’m okay, Luna, I can say that honestly, and… it’s nice to be able to be honest about it, too. I think… I’m actually too tired to see things right now.”

He stopped, hesitated… and when Luna cocked her head and leaned towards him, the male shook his head quickly before murmuring embarrassedly as he rubbed at his face: “Something… else feels different, too, though, to be honest. It’s been a while since we pushed ourselves so hard… and I feel strange. My body hurts, I can feel our heartbeat pounding away, my throat feels like sandpaper and a lot of me is whining for a nap, even though I know I don’t really need to sleep anymore. But beneath it, I feel…”

He looked down, then shook his head slowly and beat a hoof quietly against his breast, looking thoughtfully up at Luna. “I feel strong. I feel like… I’m growing and adapting. And on the one hand I’m worried, on the other, I wonder if maybe my body is naturally adjusting to the corruption, maybe all this… everything… is helping in some weird way to work that poison through my system. Wouldn’t that be a laugh, though? Lazy poet saves himself from becoming a monster by getting off his flank and exercising instead of sitting around all day moping and writing whiny poetry.”

Luna gave the earth pony a faint smile at this, shaking her head slowly and saying softly: “Oft, Scrivener Blooms, the way thou behaves makes me think that no matter how fiercely I can beat thee, ‘tis nothing compared to the damage thou art willing to lay upon thyself.” She paused as Scrivener blushed a bit, then added finally: “But… if it is true, and thou art gaining strength for one reason or another… I do not think it is something that we must worry on if the visions are not bothering thee, especially as we are amidst such a congregation of spirits.”

She stopped, glancing moodily back and forth at the countless Pales that surrounded them, staring at them, enchanted by the whispering melody of the collar… and then Scrivener and Luna traded a look before the winged unicorn muttered: “I only wish that we could speak to them, Scrivy. It saddens me that they can only see and hear those whom they… connected with, so to speak, over their lives. And while some of them see us as well as the collar, I know most of them… do not. Most of them would not understand us if we tried to explain to them what we were doing… they are not like Fluttershy’s poor father, seeking help from every source he could, whom Sol Seraph could not see only because of her own… monstrousness.”

Scrivener nodded a bit, and then he shook his head and reached up to touch the glowing collar of eldritch-green bone. “I know, Luna. I think a lot about… how strange things are. Our country, our whole world, though, has become merely an extension of Helheim…” He hesitated, shaking his head slowly as he murmured: “I try not to let the thoughts overwhelm me, though, or I’ll start… trying to make friends with Phooka and demons, and that won’t turn out well.”

“I do not know, Scrivy, I would rather have a Phooka for a friend than the ponies of the Royal Courts, any day of the week. I do not hope they are suffering in Helheim, for I did not hate them that much… but all the same, I also do not hope they end up with their old, snobbish lives back in full order once we reach Looking Glass World.” Luna said meditatively, and Scrivener Blooms smiled despite himself as he turned, and he and Luna rested back to back, leathery wings and feathered, stronger, larger ailerons pushing gently against one-another’s as their metal-covered spines grind together quietly. “Monsters make for fine friends, daydreamer. Thou and I both should testify to that.”

“If I say you’re less of a monster than I am, you’ll hit me. If I say you’re more of a monster than I am, you’ll hit me. Why is it, Luna, that you always say things that we both know will end up with me being hit in response?” Scrivener asked mildly, leaning his head back to gently knock the back of his helmed skull against hers, and Luna snorted in amusement as she bumped her head firmly back against his own. “I’m just glad we haven’t attracted any demons.”

“Only because thou has developed a sick fascination with them. Not like Ignominious, thankfully, but thou studies them as I would study…” Luna paused thoughtfully, looking up and rubbing absently at her haunch before she grinned a bit at the dark sky overhead. “As I would study a particularly-handsome soldier of an army we were at odds with in the past. Warily, but with hope and curiosity, wanting to pull it apart and find out what makes it tick and more importantly bring it-”

“Okay, enough.” Scrivener grumbled, and Luna laughed and bumped back against him teasingly before he added flatly: “Also, I don’t really want to sleep with a demon, thank you. I am curious, though, to learn more about how Helheim works… and Pinkamena doesn’t exactly answer most questions all that willingly. Plus you get really irritable when I start talking too much to her and paying more attention to her than you.”

Luna grumbled at this, flicking some snow absently upwards with a front hoof before she grumbled: “’Tis not my fault thou has developed a fetish for the praying mantis. And think not I will save thee when she decides to eat thy head, Scrivener Blooms, ungrateful beetle.”

The male smiled despite himself as he reached back and gently touched her hoof with his own, and she closed her eyes, tangling their forelimbs together and squeezing his hoof gently as he said softly: “But it just interests me. I mean, yes, plenty of them have tried to eat us when we come across them, or get into our heads… but others just kind of look at us, or even try to engage us in very awkward conversation, or just plain ignore us. Besides, I’m a poet. What’s more poetic than Hell?”

“Oh, quiet, Scrivy, thou art not a poet. Thou art a word-murderer, sick and sadistic, and I think sometimes thou feasts upon the tears of ponies and their tattered psyches as hungrily as any demon does. Perhaps that is why thou art so fascinated, thou feels a kinship with them.” Luna retorted, and Scrivener grinned… then it faded slightly as he looked upwards in surprised thought, as if struck by an epiphany, and behind him, Luna frowned at the feeling of the male’s mind descending into deep thought as she said moodily: “I was not serious, Scrivener Bloom. Even if the idea that thou feeds upon misery explains so much about thy disposition.”

“Oh, shut up, Luna, you know that’s not what I’m thinking about.” Scrivener replied grouchily, and the winged unicorn snorted in entertainment as their hooves squeezed absently together and they pressed a bit firmer back-to-back, before the male said softly: “But maybe I do see a kinship with them. Transformed souls, most of whom were once mortal, serving awful purposes and often darker masters, yet perhaps not beyond… reason, redemption. And the ones not insane or animal or broken… perhaps they too serve some ultimate purpose…”

“Oh, Scrivener Blooms, thou art putting too much thought into things again.” Luna smiled a bit, leaning back against him as she said softly: “Things are merely what they are, ‘tis all, and ‘tis truly that simple. Besides, we shan’t relax at this rate if thou keeps speaking of such wicked things. Not unless some demon of sloth wanders along and puts us both to sleep.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll try not to even think too loudly about it then, Luna. I’ll just… close my eyes, and be with you.” Scrivener replied quietly, and the winged unicorn gave a soft smile as they pressed firmer back to back, both leaning their heads back so the rears of their skulls touched, tangled forelimbs squeezing gently together as they both thought of the other in the darkness of their closed lids.

And in the darkness, an image formed, of the two locked together in tight embrace, leaning against each other front-to-front, forelimbs intertwined around one another’s unarmored bodies. Their foreheads pressed together, unicorn and earth pony, and they breathed softly in time before Luna kissed his forehead gingerly.

A flicker, and a moment later, it was Nightmare Moon with enormous, half-wyrm Scrivener, bodies pressing together in an ivory spotlight amidst the shadows as they curled themselves closer to one-another, the rose-laced, black pearl necklace sandwiched gently between bodies painted with darkness before Nightmare Moon looked up… and Scrivener was surprised as he gazed into her eyes, the slit-like, dark pupils that gazed sorrowfully at him telling him that this wasn’t just Luna… this was truly her Nightmare Moon side.

Silently, they studied one another… and then she reached up and slid her hooves against his shoulders, whispering softly: “It is difficult and painful for us to admit… but we made a mistake, beloved. We enraptured guiltless Luna into almost forcing a change upon you, because we desire you to be strong… we desire to prove our affection and our love to you, through gifts that we thought you were too shy to ever ask for yourself.

“But we understand now that you must not be rushed. We shall not goad Luna, we shall not force anything upon you… but know that we are here for you. The path you choose is the path we will walk together with you.” Nightmare Moon leaned forwards, kissing the pony side of his face tenderly, and then the Wyrm side with just as much affection as she leaned back, smiling softly. “There is no you or I… there is only us, there has only ever been ‘us’ since our souls were bound together. Do not forget it. Do not feel embarrassment, or the need to try and hide away. We are together in this, and all things.”

And then Nightmare Moon slipped backwards, eyes half-lidding before she burst apart into blue mist, and Scrivener grimaced a bit as he rubbed slowly at his face for a moment… then he winced as something shook him firmly by the shoulder before Luna’s voice said quietly in his ear: “Daydreamer, awaken now. Thou hast gone and dozed off… and something strange has happened.”

“Oh, wonderful. I slept and things got weird, that’s nice.” Scrivener mumbled tiredly as he shifted awkwardly… and realized he was laying on the ground on his stomach, yawning a bit as he carefully looked up and rubbed absently at his face… then winced a bit with a curse under his breath as he looked up and saw the horde of Pales around them. “I forgot what we were doing… why-”

“Because I also fell asleep for some twenty minutes.” Luna admitted grouchily after a moment, and Scrivener snorted in amusement as he carefully stood up and stretched with a wince, his sore muscles complaining as they flexed and ached beneath his armor before he looked tiredly over at the winged unicorn as she added softly: “But once I saw what was happening… I figured it was better to let thee rest and observe.”

Scrivener cocked his head, and Luna only smiled at him before she leaned towards him insistently, and the male sighed before meeting her eyes, trading memories with her… and then rearing back in surprise at what he saw and heard.

While he’d slept, the Khlōros had become stronger, the glow brighter and the melody clearer, voices singing a melancholy hymn of the dead that made the Pales sway slowly on the spot and had attracted more spirits into the immense herd. And when Scrivener opened his eyes as these memories flashed out, he looked slowly back and forth, realizing that there were so many Pales clustered around them now it was almost as if they had merged into one massive, flowing white entity… and Scrivener shook his head in slow amazement as he muttered: “Holy hell. So when I slept…”

“Aye, but we do not know how the Khlōros truly works. Perhaps we should have dragged Pollen along on this endeavor… the Velite, closest to death and yet not at all without life, may be able to make the Khlōros sing at its loudest.” Luna replied quietly, and then she shook her head slowly before glancing awkwardly at the male. “And I… Nightmare Moon…”

“It’s okay, Luna. Don’t worry about it.” Scrivener shook his head as he grimaced a bit, rubbing slowly at one front leg and muttering: “I feel stiff, though… and the weather…”

“Still holds. There has been some thunder, but…” Luna glanced warily up at the dark clouds overhead before she muttered: “’Tis impossible to predict anything in this world, though, Scrivener Blooms. Every time we attempt to do so it leads only to folly and frustration.”

Scrivy smiled a bit despite himself at this… and then he looked up in surprise as Luna shook her head and added quietly: “But let us push onwards, and we shall rest again in another few hours, perhaps for a longer hiatus if we can find a safe lair. We can put off writing that letter to Pinkamena until we are closer, as the march is perhaps taking a harsher toll on us than I had expected at first.”

“I can feel how eager you are to get across the Bifrost, Luna, I know we’re not going to be having any big periods of rest in the near future.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna snorted in entertainment as she rolled her shoulders absently before starting forwards, and the male smiled a little as he turned to follow her, the cloud of Pales parting silently for them and the enormous herd of spirits falling into step after the two.

The earth pony couldn’t help but look quietly over his shoulder at the enormous congregation as they continued onwards, silent as he tried to estimate how many there must be for them to form a crowd so thick… and he laughed a little, shaking his head slowly as he murmured: “How many there must be… oh ye countless shades that follow in my wake, hear me but speak not to my lost and sorrow-filled mind…”

“Quote not poetry at the ghosts, Scrivy, ‘tis rude.” Luna chastised gently over her shoulder, and Scrivener smiled despite himself as he looked up after her, the female’s ethereal mane whispering backwards as he laughed a little. “Come, let us set the pace a little faster. Thou should be able to handle an easy canter, with all the hot air that fills thy lungs and head.”

Scrivy smiled a bit despite himself at her heckling, shaking his head as the strange green collar thrummed around his neck, and for the next few hours the two traveled in quiet, trading thoughts more than they did words. And as they strode onwards, a black rain began to fall, and this wasn’t just in Scrivener’s head as lightning cracked in strange shapes through the sky above and dark droplets fell around and over their bodies.

But they weren’t afraid this time… if anything, they welcomed the corruption storm, as Luna’s mane sizzled quietly with energy, the stars pulsing brighter as Scrivener’s body flexed and he felt himself relaxing, felt new strength bursting through his being. And behind them, the Pales became almost solid, colors flickering through their bodies as life and vitality sparked in their eyes, drawn ever onwards by the Khlōros and yet at the same time, able to better recognize and understand what was going on as they pushed through the storm.

The black rain drove them onwards, and they only stopped to rest once for fifteen minutes when they came across a band of Velite and Nibelung hurrying through the melted snow through the dark rain, the dwarves yelling angrily as they covered their heads and the Velites all-but-sparking with electricity as they sought cover.

Luna and Scrivy went ignored, half-concealed by the black rain, while the enormous flock of Pales the Nibelung panicked at the sight of and the Velites hissed at in fear and anger for these souls that were one step closer to finding peace than the skeletons would ever be. The war band was large, but disoriented and panicked beneath the corruption rain as they sought shelter, and it wasn’t long before the wolf-pigs and Velites finally passed… and after a few minutes of waiting for a straggler or two chasing after the band to go by, the two ponies continued onwards, barely noticing the rain anymore even as visions danced through Scrivener’s head and Luna felt like her body had been electrified, like her Valkyrie spirit was rising up and giving her new strength from the days of old.

They traveled until the storm ended… and as the clouds finally dissipated above and the last of the droplets fell through the air, Scrivener and Luna slowed their pace along the desolate tundra, striding slowly through puddles of dark liquid. They had managed to find their way back to the main road at some point… but that was less interesting than the fact that above, the aging sun had set and given away to a beautiful, starry night, the two ponies gazing upwards at this rare show of miraculous radiance as bright lights twinkled in the velvety curtain and twists of beautiful light stretched back and forth through the skies.

The rare sight of the aurora grew brighter, and it was enough to make both Luna and Scrivener halt as a single large piece of the broken moon floated through the sky, vaguely crescent-shaped, surrounded by glittering ivory shards of the moon’s shattered porcelain surface. They stared up at this, and behind them, the Pales massed, seeming to relax, seeming to gaze upwards as well as if the corruption storm had granted them a little more sanity, a little more recognizance of the world around themselves.

The aurora shimmered and glowed through the skies, and Scrivener Blooms and Luna both stared with fascination at this, the trail of multicolored lights snaking back and forth along the moon and throughout the stars as Luna murmured softly: “We’re being called home, my beloved. The Vale of Valhalla… it urges us on, it beckons to us.”

“Warriors, called home to rest…” Scrivener closed his eyes and smiled a bit, and the two leaned together quietly, armor gleaming faintly, polished by the rainstorm of corruption that had ended only so recently. “But we have to be gracious hosts before we can go home, right?”

“Aye, Scrivy, thou speaks far too true.” Luna grinned wryly, looking over at him for a moment as the male smiled back at her… and for a moment, reality seemed to flicker in both their eyes, Luna gazing at the distorted self cloistered in Scrivener’s subconscious, and Scrivener Blooms seeing the glowing eyes and black coat of Luna’s passionate darkness.

Then they only saw one-another once more… but both smiled hesitantly, charcoal earth pony and deep sapphire winged unicorn leaning together, cyan and chestnut irises locking before they traded a quiet, gentle kiss for a short moment… then pulled slowly back and nodded to one-another, the female saying quietly: “Then as we are both feeling well… let us push onwards. Beneath the blessing of the lunar lights…”

Scrivener laughed quietly and nodded firmly, and Luna smiled encouragingly before she turned, striding through the darkness that covered their apocalypse-ravaged world, safer here in the deep den of night than beneath the blinding, murderous sun of the almost-endless days that ravaged the dead planet for months at a time.

The Khlōros continued to hum its ghostly resonance as they ran onwards, both able to see easily in the shadows even as Luna gave the occasional faint smile up towards the shattered moon in the sky. It was a ghastly omen, especially for her… but all the same, the moon had not been completely destroyed. Pieces of it still remained… and she wondered if that made it more of a symbol of what she had survived rather than some wicked portent of what was to come.

Scrivener Blooms, meanwhile, found his attention staying mostly to the ground as he caught wisps of movement here and there in the darkness. In the shadows around them, drawn perhaps by the collar – or maybe it was only because they were alive, perhaps the only two living ponies left in all of Equestria, if not the mangled world – were the shapes of equines with glowing eyes, running and staring at them with envy and curiosity, black horses with smoky manes that flickered out of reality when they caught Scrivener Blooms looking at them.

Nightmares: Horses of Helheim, somewhere between living dead and demon, feeding off fear and emotion and just as easily slain by both. They looked similar to Phooka and the strange shades that they saw prowling here and there, but Nightmares were tied to the darkness and could only make themselves known in the safety of shadows… and these strange entities had gone from feared haunts of Equestria to the prey of much-more-vicious demons. They could defend themselves with magic to a point, but their powers were next-to-useless against demons and even Velites.

And now they ran alongside them… and Scrivener thought that he caught flickers of other creatures as well that all the same looked to them with sorrow and curiosity and jealousy more than they did outright hatred. Their enormous herd of Pales was flanked on either side by a convoy of demons… but Luna only shook her head, eyes still studying the stars and the broken moon as she murmured: “It is of no importance. Demons can hurt the Pales, but even the most aggressive demon would hesitate with so many spirits in such close proximity, and the Khlōros ringing through the air with us at the herd’s head. Certainly, a Pale is much like an ant compared to a snarling demon… but no matter how fierce and large the predator, a swarm of countless ants will all the same devour the single creature that opposes them.”

Scrivener Blooms nodded slowly as Luna shook her head again, and the two journeyed in silence for several hours, even as more shadowy creatures flocked to either side of their group… until finally, the winged unicorn called for a halt, and the two slowed gradually before coming to a stop near a copse of warped and gnarled trees, Luna sitting down on her haunches and closing her eyes as Scrivener looked towards her, then smiled a bit at what she was doing.

As the Pales gathered behind them into one formless, enormous group, the creatures that had been stalking them – or escorting them, in their strange way – hesitantly slithered through the tundra past weeds and rocks and around patches of ice and frost and trees… before a great series of cries went up as Luna snapped her horn suddenly upwards and a burst of blue light bathed the area, revealing the shapes of cowering, shadowy entities as the winged unicorn leapt to her hooves and shouted in an echoing, powerful voice that rang through the cold, still night for miles around: “And what dares to cling to our coattails so, what sniveling creatures have barnacled themselves to our caravan in this, dark and glorious night, the bringer of beauty to even this collapsed world?”

Yells and babbling went up, and then Luna snapped her horn briskly upwards, and there was a sharp crack of thunder and a single powerful flash through the air, several of the creatures shrieking and fleeing as others simply dropped low… and for a moment, silence prevailed before hesitantly, a Nightmare almost slithered forwards towards them, leaning up as its eyes glowed red and its smoky mane swirled backwards, dark, polished body flexing as it whispered: “Sister, we are your humble servants…”

“Oh, sister, is it? I recall that thy kind tried to manipulate me into freeing Nightmare Moon, in the thought that she would bring darkness over Equestria… well, look upon the works of true monsters, foolish knave.” Luna retorted disgustedly, leaning back and shaking her head slowly. “Prattle and flattery will do naught but anger me, creature. I have had more than one run-in with thy kind and never does it end pleasantly.”

“This is different!” the Nightmare pleaded, leaning up and wincing as it looked back and forth, and other creatures hesitantly walked forwards as Scrivener gazed back and forth: not with fear, but with fascination for these entities of darkness and the way they seemed to be looking at them… for help, of all things. “The fools, the fools destroyed everything! They were like a virus, but we were not like them… oh yes, my kind, all of us here, prey upon mortals as well as beasts and anything else, but never did we try to destroy or hunt them all towards extinction… what meaning is there in this ultimate victory Helheim was tricked into taking now that it means all of us will die, that this realm will collapse? Helheim has no more victims and thus must cannibalize itself… but we’ve heard rumors there’s another layer of reality. We’ve felt the energies… seen such sights… please take us with you. We will be your loyal servants… we will prey only upon those you permit us to…”

“Please.” murmured another creature as it slipped forwards: a demon, with large ram’s horns twisting out of its skull, its amber eyes glowing, its features skull like… yet terribly afraid as it flexed large claws against the ground, thin and dog-like body trembling. “Not all of us are only stupid, raging animals. Our emotions may be different, but not so alien that you cannot empathize with me and I with you…”

Luna snorted at this, looking at the strange demon as Scrivener frowned a bit and tilted his head, and then the earth pony asked before he could stop himself: “And just what are you, anyway?”

“I am an Esurience.” the creature replied quietly, looking hesitantly towards Scrivener Blooms, backing up slightly almost as if afraid… but when the earth pony gestured for the creature to go on, it swallowed before explaining nervously: “I bring hunger and greed to those I bond myself to, however long or short that lasts. It is parasitic and symbiotic: the more of my hunger I push into a mortal, the less I feel myself… but the strong are able to turn that greed into a drive for self-improvement, not validation through selfishness. And whether positive or negative… their emotions, their psyche, their actions feed my spirit and strengthen me.”

“The creature is honest, at least, and that is a start… even if it seeks to defend its own actions far too quickly. But why would I bring demons into a world that I am already sure has its share?” Luna asked distastefully, returning her eyes to the Nightmare, and the darkness-touched creature dropped low, groveling before her as the winged unicorn leaned back in disgust. “Oh cease. Hateful entities, I would almost rather thy lot of craven cowards brought battle to my doorstep than this pathetic whimpering and whining.”

The creatures of darkness looked back and forth as Scrivy winced a bit despite himself, before he felt a chill run down his spine as another Nightmare slipped up beside him, stroking a hoof along his back and whispering into his ear: “Do not think we come blindly to you both… our kind cannot move freely around in the long and awful days of this apocalypse-riddled world, but we still watch with interest in the shadows and the silence what our beloved sister and her handsome consort are up to…”

“Step away from Scrivener Blooms, Nightmare, or I will bludgeon thee to death with thine own limbs.” Luna growled, her eyes glowing faint ivory as she glared towards the creature that had slipped up by Scrivy, and the Nightmare immediately quailed back into the shadows before Luna shook her head in disgust as Scrivener winced a bit, feeling the hell-horse’s words echoing through his mind with unnatural charisma. “Traitorous curs. Attempt to influence us again and I will destroy the entire lot of thee. Furthermore, I have no time for pleasant and extended conversation, and while I would delight in handsome servants, most of thee fall rather short on the ‘handsome’ half of that category.”

There were mumbles back and forth between the cluster of shadowy creatures as they writhed uncertainly, forming an awkward semicircle before the Nightmare that had first addressed them finally stood and wheedled: “We’ll pledge ourselves to you, please! Anything to escape this world, anything not to suffer and die at the hands of the demons that are so far bent and deluded they have decided that if the world must burn and break, they will rip and tear apart everyone else in it first!”

“I make no promises.” Luna said coldly, and the winged unicorn started forwards, Scrivener looking at her with surprise even as he fell into pace beside her, and the dark entities scattered to either side to avoid being stampeded by the ponies and the horde of Pales. It wasn’t the sudden start that had surprised him, however, or even the veiled sympathy Luna felt for these creatures she held as strange kindred to herself however she might treat them… it was the way she was wrestling with herself over what to do with them, and the fact that already, she was leaning towards trying to save even these creatures of shadow if they could.

Not that he had decided anything himself… and he couldn’t help but smile as the sprinted forwards, and Luna glowered at him moodily, muttering: “Do not get used to it, poet… perhaps thou art… rubbing off on me more than I had thought at first. Besides, if this night does not last, then these demons will have to flee back beneath the ground and will not accompany us. They may never accompany us across the Bifrost… but if they are certain and serious…”

“I think what gets me is the fact that… you don’t even want more than their word of honor. That you know…” Scrivener hesitated, looking across at her as he quieted, and the two traded an awkward laugh before he asked finally: “Are we going to bring evil as well as good into the world?”

“Have we not already, Scrivener Blooms? I was fairly certain we more and more qualify as evil creatures, after all.” Luna replied with a faint smile… and Scrivener was unable to stop himself from smiling back in return even as strange thoughts rattled through his mind, as unidentifiable emotions twisted through his heart and soul as he wrestled with what they were doing… and wondered if good intentions would pave the road to Hell all over again, or if the presence of darkness was all that gave the world balance and worth.

Crossing The Bifrost

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Chapter Fifteen: Crossing The Bifrost
~BlackRoseRaven

They were on their way through the mountainous region near Canterlot’s ruins when the sun began to rise, and the Nightmares and other creatures made themselves scarce… but over the long, long journey – and with the few breaks they had taken – Scrivener had been able to analyze the shadowy creatures. It held a deep fascination for him: evil and good, after all, described flawed concepts he could no longer put stock or belief into, and darkness seemed like it was all too necessary after witnessing what could happen in the absence of it.

Furthermore, some of the creatures had proven useful: desperate, furious Velites had staged an attack against them, likely only seeing Luna and Scrivener with how well the other entities cloaked themselves in shadows… and fearless of the Pales behind them, the skeletons had sent down a Velite Drake. Luna had blown this to pieces, but it had been enough of a distraction for the rest of the Velites to draw in close, attempting to pincer them… only to be torn apart by shadows that lashed back and forth through their brittle bodies, driving the rest of the group into a panic and sending the undead scurrying away in terror as shadowy Nightmares flickered into visibility around the two surprised ponies.

Four Nightmares and three demons: that was what had decided to follow them, and Luna was having particular trouble getting over the fact that of all the strange and thought-mythical creatures they had encountered, it was the horses of hell that were now eagerly trying to align themselves with them. Nightmares, after all, were capricious, envious, manipulative and cowardly; they preferred to operate by grouping together and hiding beneath a strong leader, making willing servants… but usually only so long as they were given generous pay for their services and didn’t have to perform any tasks that were too daunting.

And Scrivy knew that the idea of Nightmare servants tickled Luna’s sense of irony: Nightmare Moon, with Nightmare thralls… it would be just like in the nastier legends about her. Such creatures would be useful in mapping out the Looking Glass World and working towards discovering its secrets as well, and as even Celestia had once said, even demons could be compelled to serve a purpose or ideal… but what concerned both of the ponies was the cost and consequences of agreeing to such actions when they were already dark creatures paying a heavy price for the powers they handled.

But when daybreak suddenly came on, without a word, the shadowy entities had made themselves scarce, fleeing the coming light… and Luna grumbled under her breath as they walked onwards through the cracked and rocky path cutting through the mountains, the vast parade of Pales behind them gleaming beneath the light of poisoned, unnatural dawn. “I am frustrated, Scrivener Blooms. The world is too complicated. Make the world less complicated, do it now.”

“Okay, how about this, then? We’ve been traveling for fifteen hours since we picked up the convoy of Nightmares, and with the corruption rain rejuvenating us, the night seeming to calm and strengthen us, and the fact that both of us pushed hard simply so we wouldn’t look bad in front of half a dozen demon rejects, we’re have maybe three hours to go before we reach our destination.” Scrivener said mildly, and Luna perked her head up at this in half-surprise, looking back and forth as she judged their position… then grinned slightly as her eyes flicked back to Scrivener, sparkling with delight.

“See! Thou can speak and bring about happiness. ‘Tis a rare occasion, but a most worthy and wonderful one too.” Luna said warmly, and Scrivener laughed as he shook his head, the winged unicorn smiling a bit as she glanced upwards and along the sheer walls of the jagged cliffs to either side of them, murmuring quietly: “Aye, perhaps… there is still hope indeed, one way or the other. In any event, we had best stop for a moment and compose a letter to Pinkamena and Pollen, letting them know to meet us shortly at the bridge site.”

Scrivener smiled a little despite himself as he nodded slowly, and they halted for a few minutes: just long enough for him to write a few sentences onto the parchment, then toss it to Luna, and she had caught it with telekinesis before the aura around the letter had built up… then burst into blue flames that had whisked off into the sky as she murmured: “Yes, it is sent and done… and I grow eager now, Scrivy, for what lays ahead. I have more than hope… I have faith in our future.”

They pressed onwards after that; and the hike through the canyons and half-collapsed gorges, even at their brisk march, felt strangely comfortable. The weather was calm, the sky above was clear and dawn was seeming to last forever, painting the sky beautiful, brilliant gold instead of weathered purple or bloody crimson. It was almost enough to make them forget that the apocalypse had come and gone, that they were perhaps the only two survivors of its awful monstrosity.

Nothing attacked them in the mountains, despite it being Velite and Nibelung territory: the worst event was passing carefully by the body of a dead dragon, several crushed Nibelung warriors nearby, and a single wounded dwarf gasping quietly as he sat shivering and holding his wounded side, resting with his back against the stomach of the corrupted, scarred dragon, an axe buried in the hideous reptile’s chest beside him. He looked up tiredly as Luna and Scrivener paused, his vision blurring as he shivered and whispered: “Death is… fancy-corn?”

“Not today, dwarf.” Luna muttered, and then she rose her hoof and slammed it firmly into the wolf-pig’s skull, knocking it unconscious with a gargle before she leaned down with a mutter, her horn glowing faintly before the Nibelung’s wound resonated with the same light, and slowly stitched itself closed beneath his russet leather, the creature’s shivers dying down as it relaxed visibly. “Tell me I am too kind, Scrivener Blooms.”

“Or perhaps too cruel.” Scrivy remarked gently, and Luna looked up thoughtfully over her shoulder at this as the glow faded out from around her horn… then she smiled faintly and nodded firmly once in agreement before the two continued onwards, past the battle site and continuing on their journey through the rocky, frost-speckled mountain wastes.

They emerged from the mountains unscathed… and with their goal in sight, hurried onwards with the Pales cantering behind them, the mass of spirits seeming to pick up on the excitement of the two as the Khlōros continued to hum its haunting melody. Scrivener and Luna barely paid attention to the snowy tundra around them as they ran across the barren land, the glowing golden sky seeming to pulse overhead with anticipation as they headed towards the long-prepared zone where the Bifrost could be summoned.

And they were both delighted to see that not only had puppet-bodied Pinkamena and Pollen arrived with the armored wagon, which was glinting with composite-painted gemstone armor and looked like it was even better prepared than either pony had expected it to be, Pinkamena was already sweeping away the snow and frost from the ground to reveal an immense stone platform covered with a circle of complex runes, left here for them by Odin eight or so years ago.

It was a channeling altar for the Bifrost Bridge, which, once charged by Luna’s magic, would allow them to summon the rainbow road and travel to Looking Glass World… or, ever since Luna had learned to meddle with the coordinates of the path once used by gods, to several other layers of reality. Scrivener found it ridiculous and entertaining all at once… Luna, on the other hand, merely accepted it as part of things in her inimitable way and delighted in using it for her own selfish ends… and the only reason Odin put up with it, the earth pony was sure, was because between ‘vacations’ Luna was damned dedicated to her work.

Pinkamena glanced moodily up from the platform, striding over the imbedded gemstones that filled the center of the runic circle with the shapes of constellations and coordinates, as she said grouchily: “Turn that goddamn thing off. I might only be half-Pale but it still sounds like a whole opera of angels is howling their stupid praises in my ears.”

“I like how that upsets you so much.” Scrivener remarked dryly to the half-demon, and Pinkamena growled at him before the earth pony rose a hoof to Pollen as the Velite nervously stepped forwards. “Did you two bring Discombobulation along?”

“I ain’t an idiot.” Pinkamena said moodily as she stormed towards the carriage, and then she leaned up and knocked grouchily on the gemstone-armored wall of it, adding grumpily: “This thing should be plenty sturdy, I modified your crappy designs a little to make sure it would hold together while we cross. I guess I’m abandoning my body, though, aren’t I?”

“Yes, Pinkamena. Thy company was very welcome, and it was wonderful to have thee at our side… but now thou must join thy other friends and sister in Looking Glass World.” Luna said softly, and the half-demon shifted awkwardly before the puppet dropped onto its haunches, gemstone eyes glowing as the wooden frame rattled a bit, and the winged unicorn smiled despite herself as she said softly: “We won’t forget thee, Pinkamena. And worry not, ‘twill not be long before we are all reunited in any event… this world is not going to last much longer, one way or the other.”

“Shut up.” Pinkamena said sourly, and then she sighed and grumbled under her breath before she reached up and grasped her marionette head, twisting it firmly to the side. It clicked loudly, and Luna smiled as Pollen gaped in shock, watching as the half-demon easily unscrewed her own puppet head from her shoulders before tossing it towards Scrivener, who caught it with a grunt before the rest of the puppet simply collapsed as the half-demon Pale rose up from the vessel, then grimaced and wrapped her forelegs around her head as she glared pointedly at the Khlōros.

Scrivener only laughed, however, then he easily held the head out to Luna, and the winged unicorn smiled as she tilted her horn towards it: a moment later, the marionette head clicked several times as it glowed softly, the gemstone eyes spinning and several hidden panels moving and shifting before the top of the skull sprung open. It was a complex puzzle box… and Scrivener gazed quietly in at the three slowly-pulsing, ivory cards that sat inside of it before he nodded firmly once, glancing towards Luna and murmuring: “That’s everything.”

He reached up and hurriedly closed the box: looking at the cards made him feel… strange right now. After all, they had come from Valthrudnir, and all the Jötnar’s essence existed inside those three glowing rectangles… and with them, the ability to make three wishes, grant three miracles, and they could be anything, anything…

Scrivener was snapped out of his reverie by Luna gently lifting the box-head from his grips with telekinesis, and he looked dumbly up at her as she passed this over to Pollen, instructing kindly: “Please place this in the back of the wagon, preferably near the center. ‘Tis very important that it is not damaged, is this understood?”

“I got it!” Pollen replied with an awkward smile, nodding as she caught the box, then hurried awkwardly with it around the wagon’s rear… and Scrivener blushed a bit as he looked towards Luna, but she only gave her head a quick shake as the two studied one another, emotions and reassurances swirling between them before the winged unicorn finally nodded with a grunt.

“Then we are ready, as well. I shall charge the base, and prepare the Bifrost.” Luna strode forwards, then paused and glanced over her shoulder with a bit of a smile, saying quietly: “But I could use thy help, Scrivener Blooms, as always. Do not be so shy, I prefer thee rude and obnoxious, poet.”

“You’re… rude and obnoxious.” Scrivener mumbled, and Luna only gave him an amused look before she sat down and turned to face the stone platform, and Scrivener rolled his eyes as he sat beside her, the two lowering their heads forwards as blue light began to spill along Luna’s horn, as he felt their hearts beginning to beat in time as her mane swirled backwards and his muscles tensed and flexed, both leaning down and clenching their eyelids tight in the same expression of effort…

It was like lifting a physical weight, as their backs arched and they rose their heads in time, as their hearts thudded in their chests and they breathed roughly for air, limbs trembling as hooves dug firmly into the ground. The glow over Luna’s horn built and built, lightning crackling not only through her mane, but energy sparking in arcs around Scrivy’s body as he added his concentration and strength to hers and felt the recoil of the ancient magic twisting along his frame, helping to absorb some of the strain of the complex spell as he and Luna both began to murmur not magic, but meditation, trying to boost their focus further as bodies flexed and around them, dust and powder burst upwards as electricity crackled along the ground around the two.

And then their eyes snapped open, both arching their backs and raising themselves in a movement that could only be described as sinuous, forelegs half-lifting off the earth as Luna’s eyes glowed white and the aura around her horn built higher, and Scrivener’s irises darkened as his pupils expanded, jaw falling open as he stared at a fantastic vision above, as he saw space beyond space, stars beyond stars…

The stony platform crackled with energy, the runes lighting up one after the other before a maelstrom of multicolored light twisted in a circle over it, and lights of blue fire shot back and forth between the gemstones and made the constellations glow brightly. Waves of force burst of the platform, knocking both Luna and Scrivener sprawling, and the Khlōros sparked violently around the earth pony’s neck… not breaking, but instead absorbing the energy, growing stronger, louder, even as there was a massive, crackling peal of thunder before a tornado of white fire erupted upwards from the stone platform.

Pollen shrieked as she staggered backwards, and even Pinkamena winced away from the cylinder of ivory flames before it twisted violently, arching forwards and across the sky as the air rippled around it before reality shattered like nothing more than cheap glass, shards of the sky falling through thin air and dissipating into dust.

The rip in reality widened, becoming almost perfectly circular as the tornado of flames spun into this, whirling violently before it burst suddenly apart… and in the wake of the ivory fire, left behind a rainbow that looked like it was made from solid crystal, sparkling and burning with clear flames that licked along the edges of the arched bridge. It was an incredible sight… and Scrivener Blooms and Luna both stared in relief at it before slowly pushing themselves up to their hooves as the winged unicorn breathed hard and the Velite gaped, whispering: “I’ve… I never imagined magic could… I…”

“Thou gazes upon the Bifrost… and I have just enough magic left to guide the lost souls onto and across this bridge.” Luna said quietly, grinning a bit as she pushed herself carefully back to her hooves as Scrivener climbed to his own, head thudding and looking at her with relief as a faint white light began to shimmer over the tip of Luna’s horn, coalescing into a sphere of ivory. The winged unicorn gazed warmly towards Scrivener as the male looked back at her with relief, while Pinkamena floated moodily and Pollen only spluttered and stared from the ponies to the Bifrost and back again. “Come, daydreamer, turn off thy collar. ‘Tis time to go.”

Scrivener smiled a bit and nodded slowly, reaching up hesitantly to touch the Khlōros, stroking over it gently before he shook his head and carefully reached back to the clasp, popping it open and pulling it carefully from his neck. The moment the clasp was opened, the collar hissed softly, the melody dying out as steam rose up from it… but still, the Pales lingered, staring towards the Bifrost. The energy in the air, the sense of being able to move on, pulled at the instincts of every nearby spirit… even Pinkamena, who kept shooting nervous looks towards the rainbow bridge. But unless guided, few would dare to cross it, which was where Luna came in.

With her horn glowing with what she called the ‘torch of souls,’ the Pales would obey her, following her… and once enough Pales began to follow her onto the bridge, others would naturally fall in behind the rest of the herd. And once they passed through the rip in reality above, there was no turning back: only charging forwards and hoping for the best as they ran through a vortex of light and sound and emotion to the world that waited beyond…

The earth pony smiled a bit as he slipped the Khlōros carefully back into his satchel pack: it wouldn’t be damaged by passing over the Bifrost, but it wouldn’t work either, and the Pales responded better, more intuitively, when they could feel Luna’s presence leading them up the Bifrost. Perhaps it was because with her magic, they felt they were being led by someone who was alive, and they could feel her emotions, her hopes, her positivity.

She began to turn, perhaps to begin leading them forwards, perhaps to shout at Pollen, Scrivener feeling the order forming in her mind for him to go and get the wagon… but then she caught sight of a Pale in the corner of her eye, cocking her head curiously as it began to stride towards the Bifrost, passing calmly by the gnarled wreckage of a wagon that had failed to survive more than a trip to Looking Glass World and back. It was rare, but some Pales decided to try and cross the Bifrost on their own before the others, perhaps drawn by the lure of a new world, a new adventure, or hope that they were going to anywhere apart from the ruinous wasteland they had all been trapped in… but as Scrivener turned to look himself, his eyes widened and a chill shot through his system as he recognized the shape of the Pegasus all too well, and Luna snarled as she caught Scrivener’s emotions, shouting immediately: “Thou art not welcome in the next world, return to Helheim where thou belongs, Sol Seraph!”

And slowly, the Pale halted before turning towards them, the Pale’s eyes terrible and malevolent as she faced them as coldly as she ever had in life. As Scrivener stared at her, colors filtered in over the ghost: her coat was blonde, her mane and tail blood-red, the former stylized into a single large bang that fell over one side of her face and a waterfall that swept to the side and spilled down over one shoulder. Her features were cruel, attractive perhaps, but less than beautiful… and her scarlet eyes calculating, looking down at them with disdain even now, even long after she had died.

She surveyed them calmly: while the other Pales still only stared at Luna and at the Bifrost, entranced to a point by both her spell and the strange bridge, Sol Seraph seemed to be able to ignore both these things clearer than Pinkamena. But the focused mind of the cruel Pegasus had always been what had made her so difficult and dangerous an opponent: as the mark of Tyr upon her flank testified to, she was not just a predator and hunter, but a strategist who knew there was more to the dance of battle than raw power… and Scrivener stepped forwards, teeth grit, as Luna bowed her head and shouted: “Leave now, wander this hell of predators thou deserves, or be destroyed!”

Sol Seraph, however, only grinned coldly in response, and then she slowly reached her right, scarred foreleg up and drew it slowly across her throat in obvious threat and challenge before pointing her hoof at them… and Scrivener winced before he glanced with surprise at Luna as the winged unicorn said quietly: “Thou can defeat her alone, Scrivener Blooms. She is only a shadow of her former self… her blows will lack strength. I must maintain this spell, and cannot risk her disrupting it… then Pales will begin to wander away. And the Bifrost holds gamely… but thou has a window of perhaps ten minutes to drive the abomination away or kill her.”

“Great.” Scrivener grimaced, glancing at Luna with a wince… and then he sighed as he felt an additional mental warning, and he closed his eyes. While Luna couldn’t concentrate enough to focus her magic into a second spell as she maintained the draw over the Pales, Scrivener was still able to use his own focus and concentration and draw on her magic… and he leaned towards her as he felt Luna’s magic twist through his body, sparking in his chest and then making his hooves hum as they burst into blue flames. “How’s this?”

“Excellent.” Luna smiled slightly as Scrivener stepped slowly forwards, and the winged unicorn slid backwards as Pollen nervously strode over to stand by the winged unicorn and Pinkamena snarled, baring her sharp teeth towards the Pegasus as Luna added aside to her in a low voice: “Should things become difficult, half-demon…”

“Thanks, Luna.” Scrivy said sourly over his shoulder as he stepped towards Sol Seraph, but he grimaced, knowing it was better to be safe than sorry all the same… especially since using even such a relatively-small spell as he had to let him make contact with a spirit form like a Pale was enough to make his body ache. Not to mention the march we did, and the drain from activating the Bifrost… can’t let Sol Seraph cross, and can’t let her slow us down… “Back off, Sol Seraph. Last warning.”

The Pegasus, however, only narrowed her eyes, licking her lips slowly… and Scrivener winced a bit: in life, Sol Seraph had taken a beating that would have killed a minotaur before kicking his flank like he was a child, and even if Pales were so ephemeral their hardest blows didn’t usually hurt a whole lot, the Pegasus was-

Gone. She had vanished from the spot, and Scrivener stared stupidly into blank space as his hooves burned with eldritch flames… before his head snapped to the side, saliva flying from his stupefied jaws as Sol Seraph blinked into existence beside him, her hoof already smashing across his jaw before an elbow caught the top of his muzzle, sending him half-bowing forwards. Then a vicious salvo of blows rattled down into his face, her hooves striking back and forth against his eyes and cheeks in savage jabs and hooks as Scrivener yelled wordlessly and scurried hurriedly backwards as his glasses were knocked flying from his features.

He gasped hard, straightening and glaring in shock more than pain despite the faint bruising over his features: her blows were definitely muffled, but they still were contacting with enough force to hurt. Either Sol Seraph was concentrating so hard she was making herself more physical somehow, or the Pegasus was simply that good at what she did and that savagely-determined to kill him that it was lending extra strength to every hit, the earth pony rubbing a hoof across his face and ignoring the ethereal flames that licked harmlessly at his features as he snarled: “Alright, come and get me, volk!”

The Pegasus Pale lunged forwards at this, flickering in Scrivener’s vision as he concentrated on her, part of him wanting to shout the Black Verses at her and obliterate her but the other part wanting to beat her fair-and-square as possible: to prove that he wasn’t just prey to this ghost of a predator, to show Sol Seraph that even a monster like her could be defeated by a poet like him… and he lunged forwards at the last moment, slamming his hoof into her face and knocking her skidding backwards in shock as the Pale’s features flashed solid before Scrivy pounced towards her and slammed both hooves onto her skull, knocking her head lashing downwards before he attempted to ram a straight punch into her muzzle.

She slipped elegantly to the side, however, adjusting with supernatural speed to the fact that he could strike her as she brought up her front legs, twining them with Scrivener’s before twisting hard and throwing the earth pony to the ground, and he gargled in surprise before she spun around, yanking his foreleg with her as she slammed a rear hoof down into his kidney, making him twitch and curse in pain as she twisted his upper limb around, likely meaning to snap it. Before she could, however, he half-rolled… and ethereal as she was, Sol Seraph was yanked through the air and slammed into the ground herself, but the spirit only passed uselessly into the earth even as Scrivener leapt up to his hooves… before cursing in pain and frustration as Sol Seraph half-tore out of the ground and slammed a volley of blows into his stomach before twisting upwards, yanking her ghostly form completely out of the earth and kicking both rear hooves into the male’s crotch.

He staggered backwards as Luna groaned and dropped her head forwards, grinding her teeth loudly as her eyes bulged… and Scrivener, meanwhile, wheezed slowly as Sol Seraph blinked out of existence beneath him… only to reappear above him, dropping onto his back and slamming her hooves down to knock him flat before she grabbed him by the neck, likely meaning to snap it.

Scrivy automatically rolled again, and Sol Seraph threw herself off him, the Pale snarling as she aggressively lunged… and this time, the earth pony leapt up and met her, knocking her forelegs wide and attempting to strike her with his shoulder: it wouldn’t hurt her as much as being struck by his hooves, but if she was physical enough to hit him, he could still physically knock her back. The Pegasus, however, had apparently long learned the abilities that came with being a ghost, and flickered out of existence before reappearing at Scrivener’s side a second later and slamming her hoof into his kidney, only to vanish again and slam another into his face.

She blinked back and forth around him, laying vicious blows into the earth pony that made him stagger back and forth, the pony unable to do anything but take the hail of savage attacks before she appeared directly in front of him, seizing him by the head with both hooves and bringing her head back… and Scrivener slammed both his flaming hooves upwards as she began to swing her head down, catching her under the jaw in a lucky blow that sent the Pale flopping onto her back as cracks of light spread through the phantom’s skull before she crashed to the ground, form flickering violently for a few moments as Scrivy half-fell back onto his haunches, breathing hard. A bit of blood was dripping from one nostril and his split lip, and his eye was swollen from the repeated blows against it… but Sol Seraph, even as she slowly sat up, was far worse off from the cracks that had radiated through her jawline and up the side of her skull.

She snarled in fury, even as a single piece of her face fell off like broken glass, misty essence pouring up out of the wound like smoke for a moment… and then she slowly cracked her neck, and Scrivener grimaced as he began to haul himself to his hooves, saying disgustedly: “Just get out of here, Sol Seraph. Because if there’s a death beyond death, I can assure you you’re going to a hell beyond hell.”

Sol Seraph’s eyes flashed, and then she lunged towards him as Scrivener leaned forwards… before blinking out of existence and instead reappearing in front of Luna, the winged unicorn looking surprised before a hoof slammed into her stomach. She leaned forwards, gargling in shock, her horn flickering before she snarled and threw herself backwards, struggling to maintain the link even as rage burned in her eyes… and Scrivener cursed under his breath, charging towards them even as he felt Luna’s pain ripping through his body, making him panic.

And, expecting this, Sol Seraph vanished again even as Pinkamena lunged for her and Pollen only stared in aghast horror, and the Pegasus reappeared beside Scrivener, reaching a front limb calmly out and clotheslining him as he tried to run towards Luna, the male’s momentum making him rear back and the vicious Pale using that to almost lift him off his hooves as his body skidded forwards but his head snapped back before she slammed him viciously down onto his spine. The blow hurt a lot worse than when her hooves had been pummeling him from the solidity of the rocky ground, and Scrivener snarled as he swung wildly out at her, but she danced away even as he began to haul himself to his hooves, anger starting to take over-

Sol Seraph shoved one foreleg into the ground, using it as an axle as she twisted her body and scissored her hind legs towards the earth pony before snapping them tightly around his neck, and Scrivener gargled in shock before Sol Seraph shoved hard off the earth and corkscrewed her body elegantly, yanking Scrivener off his own hooves and once more slamming him down onto his back as she landed on her own. The shock made him gasp… before Scrivy wheezed as Sol Seraph’s rear limbs tightened around his throat, beginning to throttle him as she sat up on her haunches and slammed her front hooves in a steady, hard rhythm down into Scrivener’s features as if she was working with a training dummy.

Scrivy grabbed helplessly at her hind legs, but they were locked too tightly around his throat, letting him wheeze the faintest gasps of air into his lungs solely because the Pale was still only semisolid, even with her unmatched viciousness and skill and the psychopathic desire to kill and destroy that powered her blows. And worse, his pain was affecting Luna, making her hiss as she half-staggered towards them, her horn flickering as she fought to concentrate and Pinkamena snarled, lunging into the fray… but even though she offered a momentary distraction, Sol simply leaned backwards and slammed a hoof into the half-demon’s features as she shot past, knocking her spiraling off-course.

The Pegasus Pale leaned back forwards as she brought a hoof down in a hammer blow… and Scrivener managed to block this with one of his front limbs, grunting in pain at the surprising strength of the attack before he shoved his rear hooves against the ground and launched himself backwards… and as he’d hoped, Sol Seraph was carried back a foot or so by the shove with him before she simply blinked out of existence again. Scrivener crashed onto his back, skidding painfully over a decayed wheel of a broken wagon and cursing in pain as one of his hooves hit what felt like an axle, before Sol Seraph reappeared and landed on his stomach, straddling him with a snarl as she brought a hoof back.

Scrivener winced, then reached up and barely managed to catch her hoof against one of his own as his other scraped against something… and then the earth pony managed to grasp it enough to swing it wildly upwards in a single vicious lash, catching the other side of Sol Seraph’s face, and the look of shock on the Pegasus’s features as she was knocked flying backwards almost made the whole beating worthwhile as Scrivener scrambled up to his hooves and glanced down at the iron bar he had managed to seize from amidst the wreckage.

The Pegasus Pale snarled, not realizing how badly she had been injured as she leapt forwards despite the cracks that now radiated through both sides of her face… and Scrivy slammed the iron bar down between her ears, shattering the ghostly crown of her skull and knocking Sol Seraph flat on her stomach. She twitched once, and the earth pony glared down at her as the ghost looked stupidly up even as steam and mist began to rise from her body before he spat to the side, shaking his head in disgust as Luna gave a sigh of relief from across the battlefield.

“Know your prey, right?” Scrivener asked distastefully as he held up the iron bar, and the Pale snarled up at him… but then only shivered, unable to pull itself up to its hooves even as the glow died out from around Scrivy’s own. “Demons, ghosts, and a few other supernatural entities seem to have a little problem with iron. Iron chains bind them, iron weapons… even improvised… can hit them as hard as if they were still physical. Now get out of here, Sol Seraph. Don’t make me kill you.”

Sol Seraph stared up at him… and then she slowly, sickeningly grinned as she half-rose herself, glaring up at him with a challenge in her eyes as he glared back down at her. She flickered, and a moment later, he was looking at her as if she was still a physical Pegasus, still alive but her features dripping with blood, as her eyes burned with contempt for him… and when her mouth moved, he could hear her speaking, could hear the disgust in her voice as she whispered: “You worthless prey-pony slave-hoof. Offering me mercy? Offering me a chance to leave? You can’t stand the thought of staining your precious hooves with my already-dead blood, is that it? You coward. You weakling. I have failed myself today worse than any member of my family ever has, including my useless, worthless daughter Fluttershy, by losing to such a pathetic excuse for a stallion in combat, but you? You bring new meaning to the word ‘failure…’”

Scrivener snarled, clenching his jaws, his eyes almost glowing as a shiver ran through his body… and then Sol Seraph looked up at him and licked her lips slowly, grinning wider, not speaking but challenging him with his eyes as she flickered from Pale to Pegasus she had once been. They looked at one another in the awful silence… and then she snorted in disgust and began to look away, and Scrivener yelled wordlessly before he slammed the iron bar savagely down in her skull, crushing her down into the ground before he lashed it into the Pale again and again even as she burst upwards into nothing but a swirl of fog.

The iron bar cracked the rocky earth as it slammed against it, and Scrivener half-fell forwards as it vibrated free from his grip, catching himself on one hoof with a curse under his breath as the last of the essence of the shattered Pegasus Pale floated up around him… and a shiver tore through his spine as he looked up with tears in his eyes, half-horrified… and half-wishing he could have hurt her more before her spirit had shattered. It made him feel sick to his stomach, but part of him even wished she was still alive so he could rip, tear, kill her all over again… and then he clenched his eyes shut as a presence stroked down his spine, shivering as Pinkamena looked at him with strange compassion in her glowing eyes and Luna hurriedly approached, embracing him fiercely around the neck and whispering: “Cease, daydreamer, cease. ‘Tis… alright. Come now, we have more urgent matters to attend to, in any event…”

Scrivener nodded, breathing hard as he pushed against her for a moment… and then he drew back and shook his head quickly, muttering: “Alright, alright… I know you’re right Luna. Let’s… let’s get out of here, then.”

He stopped, then looked nervously over his shoulder towards the Pales, feeling suddenly self-conscious… but the ghosts were still either staring at the Bifrost, or gazing towards Luna and her glowing horn, and she smiled faintly as she said quietly: “Hurry to the wagon. Pinkamena, please assist him, thou may not be able to pull it but I know thou can manipulate physical objects all the same.”

The half-demon gave her a sour look, but nodded all the same as she floated towards the carriage… and Scrivener hesitated only a moment longer as Luna gave him a quietly-imploring look. “Go on now, Scrivener Blooms. We must hurry; self-loathing can wait until later.”

The earth pony nodded, knowing she was right as he gave an awkward smile to her before hurrying towards the carriage, even as a shiver ran down his spine. But her support meant worlds to him, and it helped him focus as he approached the armored wagon and smiled a bit as Pinkamena lifted the straps and attached the harness, before he winced as the thick cabling squeezed painfully into his body. “Hey! Tight!”

Pinkamena only rolled her eyes at this, however, and the earth pony glanced towards Luna as she surveyed the gathered Pales. Then he winced again when something nudged him firmly in his sore side, and he half-turned to glower at Pinkamena as she gestured for him to move forwards.

The earth pony grumbled before he did so, and the carriage rumbled behind him as he pulled it several paces before halting and glancing absently over his shoulder as Pinkamena flitted around him and then nodded firmly once to indicate all the straps were in place and the harness was fine. Scrivener rolled his shoulders slowly, glancing at this with a grimace: not rope, not vines, but insulated and jacketed steel cable, painful to pull – and more painful if the rubber-cloth jackets around the metal rope was eaten through – but also necessary. Normal rope would quickly snap, and vines would deteriorate away to ash from the frenetic energies: the thick cabling was all that could be counted on to hold for at least one trip over the Bifrost.

Pollen nervously strode up beside Scrivy, looking at him anxiously, and the male gave an awkward smile to the Velite before he said softly: “Just keep moving, okay? Even if it starts to hurt like hell, it’s like running over hot coals. Keep your hooves moving forwards, and when you come out the other side, you’ll be fine… but if you stop, you’re going to get burned.”

“Okay, I’ll… okay. Are you okay?” Pollen glanced at him apprehensively, and Scrivener nodded awkwardly even as he reached up… then grimaced a bit as he glanced towards the broken, twisted wreck of his glasses on the ground. That was another pair lost… and then he shook his head and instead smiled a bit when Pollen glanced at his satchel bag. “Will that be okay?”

“Probably, yeah. It’s weird… if I was carrying my armor in a wagon, it would probably be eaten up by the Bifrost, but when Luna and I are actually wearing our armor across the rainbow bridge, it doesn’t take nearly as much damage. Luna says it’s because… our natural energies bar the Bifrost’s or something, I don’t really… know or remember.” Scrivener finally said, shrugging a bit, and the skeleton nodded a few times as she reached up and rubbed nervously at her skull. “Alright. Luna’s ready.”

The winged unicorn was striding towards them, now that she had managed to give the horde of Pales a quick look-over and assessed there were no other visible threats or unwelcome guests. She smiled a little to Scrivener as she walked to the foot of the rainbow bridge, the winged unicorn leaning forwards as she glanced over it before leaning forwards and resting a hoof against the ramp… and immediately, energy sparked up along her body, making her grit her teeth even as her horn glowed brighter, a distinct tingling filling her form as she turned her head and shouted clearly: “And now, to a new home, a new chance at life, a new rebirth! Fear not what is to come… only look ahead, and keep thy heads high and proud!”

With that, Luna turned, leaning forwards with her teeth grit before she charged up the ramp… and behind her, Scrivener grunted as he almost lunged into his own run, Pollen stumbling to the side in surprise as Pinkamena dropped to the ground to run alongside him, looking both scared and exhilarated all at once as the half-demon Pale grinned. The arched ramp looked almost impossible to climb, especially with a wagon dragging behind him… but the moment Scrivy’s hooves touched the rainbow road, it was like he was magnetized to it and energized by it, running up the rainbow as easily as if he was a train that was smoothly sliding along the rails, Pinkamena wincing beside him as her body became more physical and the Velite that followed awkwardly along the wide rainbow road beside the carriage shivering in surprise as an outline of a mare sparked into being around her own body.

Luna had paused at the top of the Bifrost, near where reality had shattered… and she couldn’t help but smile over her shoulder as she watched with pride as Scrivener Blooms hauled the wagon along the rainbow bridge, and behind him, the Pales had begun to follow, striding towards the base of the bridge. And as their ethereal hooves made contact with the fiery rainbow, their bodies seemed to solidify, a sense of self seemed to return to them, and they were compelled to push forwards as other Pales were drawn forwards not just by Luna’s glowing horn, but by the strange magnificence and the growing draw of the Bifrost bridge.

Finally, the winged unicorn turned as Scrivener drew close, her hooves grinding against the crystalline surface of the Bifrost before she lunged headlong into the glowing light, and the earth pony followed after her only a moment later, his body filling with indescribable sensations as energy burned and sparked around his frame, as they ran through a rip in reality along a bridge of multicolored light and into a tunnel of swirling, impossible-to-describe dimensions, shapes and wild twists of color bursting into being around them as the clear flames over the bridge burned high around them. Luna ran ahead, Scrivener only a few feet behind as the wagon he was pulling felt as light as a feather now, even as it became to steam and smolder from the arcs of electricity and raw energy bursting along the silver-painted gemstone armor that encased it.

On one side, Pinkamena breathed hard, her eyes wide and her mane blowing back as if in a fierce wind, almost physical but with streaks of back twisting through her body as her hooves beat against the surface of the bridge… and on the other, Pollen winced as shocks of energy burned over her rune-covered bones, the ivory composition of her body beginning to char as steam rose up from her, but the distinct image of the mare she had once been flickering violently in and out of sight over her Velite frame every few seconds as she cried out wordlessly in disbelief and amazement more than actual pain.

Behind them, the Pales thundered over the Bifrost, all of their shapes made almost real, almost physical, as Scrivener threw his head back with a raw shout of what felt almost like elation, the energy thrumming through his body, the feeling of running not over, but literally through some kind of line of pure power, of pure energy, enough to drive even the lurking corruption in his mind back as Luna grinned widely ahead of him. The winged unicorn’s eyes were glowing bright and her mane was sparking with electricity and blue fire, the starry constellations throughout it glowing and pulsing with a life of their own as her horn glowed brightly: not with any distinct magic any longer, but instead only with the raw, potent energies of the rainbow road.

Scrivener could feel his leathery wings stretching and flapping behind him before he arched his back, yet managed to keep his pace without staggering as a sharp pain ran through his body… and a moment later, the wings burst apart into ashes as the Bifrost’s powerful energy current dispelled the polymorph effect. Several more plates of his armor popped off at the same time, and ahead of him, one of Luna’s shoulder pauldrons steamed before snapping loose, but Scrivener only ducked as it flew back through the air, looking ahead almost eagerly, feeling a rush of daredevil adrenaline as he wondered not with fear, but with excitement if they would be able to make the other end of the Bifrost before the energies took a further toll on their equipment.

Pollen squeaked as several of her ribs snapped suddenly off, looking down in shock as steam burst up from her body before she half-staggered… but then gamely threw herself forwards, continuing to run with a shrill giggle. And on the other side, Pinkamena was almost crying even as her teeth gleamed in a wide, bright grin, her red-rimmed eyes glowing as the half-demon flickered violently, appearing as a Pale, her mortal mare self, and a strange and almost-shapeless entity with severed wings in a wild roil.

And then Luna looked up as golden light shone over them, gazing at a gaping, spiraling vortex of gold and white light that the bridge fed into, and she grinned in relief as she shouted: “Onwards, onwards, onwards and through, without fear!”

Scrivener roared in agreement, wordless, voice strong, energy surging along his frame as Pinkamena gave her own fierce yell and Pollen laughed, light glowing brightly out of the sockets of the skeleton as the Pales behind them stampeded with equal eagerness… and the four ahead of the herd plunged through the vortex, Luna laughing even as the world seemed to spin for a moment before they were crashing down the other side of the rainbow arch, light glowing around them and blinding them for a moment as they sped down the ramping bridge to the green grasses below, the winged unicorn not slowing her pace as she sped from overpass of fiery multicolored light to soft and warm field, throwing her head back with another wordless shout of victory that startled a flock of birds scattering into the blameless, cloudless blue sky above.

Scrivener Blooms followed her with less grace, several of the cables on the harness snapping and steel cabling screaming against his armor as he staggered off the ramp and lunged forwards to keep his balance, making it halfway across the field before half-falling forwards and skidding forwards with a wince as the wagon lurched threateningly behind him before one of the wheels caught in a rut, a few gemstones flying loose to patter against his back… but it was much better than the entire wagon rolling over him, as he wheezed in relief. And then Pollen flopped down beside him, the skeleton smoldering faintly as the light flickered in her sockets, wheezing for air as if she still had lungs before finally mumbling: “If I had skin, it would likely be on fire right now.”

Pinkamena flickered a few times as she skidded to a halt herself, the half-demon staring back and forth in surprise as Luna turned around with a grin, the winged unicorn panting a bit from both exertion and exhilaration as her muscles trembled and her body flexed, before she winked at the shape of the half-demon Pale as it settled back into misty ethereality, saying easily: “What did thou expect, wicked creature? More Helheim, more darkness, more depravity? Nay, not so… ‘tis Equestria. ‘Tis a reflection, aye, but ‘tis also Equestria.”

And Luna smiled as she closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of the sun on face: not hostile like the sun of their ravaged home, but comforting and gentle. The sky above was a sea of azure clarity and the ground beneath their feet was soft and fertile and a mix of verdant, rich soil and lush green grasses. Trees grew here and there, and to the east rose the mighty and gorgeous version of this world’s Everfree Forest, filled with beautiful and fascinating fauna and flora. It was a world that was next to paradise… and as Luna’s eyes opened, she gazed with affection towards the Pales that stepped off the Bifrost and wandered slowly through the field, watching as the mass congregation of spirits continued to pour down the rainbow bridge.

The specters of ponies looked back and forth as if in awe, still energized from passing through the Bifrost as they seemed to study where they were: it was impossible to know what they thought, however, and many of them were already wandering slowly off, drawn by some supernatural instinct to find a place that would remind them most of their former home. It was amazing the way the Pales seemed to eventually recognize they were in a version of Equestria, and the way they would make a beeline for the places that most-resembled what had been important to them in their original layer of the worlds… and Scrivener Blooms smiled faintly as he slowly picked himself up, wincing a bit as he loosened the harness against his scratched and slightly-charred armor as he said quietly: “But is it really so incredible, so hard to believe? Maybe a lot of them think this is paradise… and they automatically assume there must be a place here that reminds them of where they were happiest, or what held the most value to them. And a tireless Pale can probably travel across this country in a single day, since it never has to rest, never has to slow down, and they don’t seem to notice the journey… only when they reach the journey’s end.”

Luna looked thoughtfully at Scrivener Blooms at this, and then she returned her eyes to the Bifrost, watching the waterfall of ghosts pouring along the rainbow bridge, murmuring quietly as the earth pony approached her slowly: “Perhaps thou art correct, my beloved Scrivener Blooms… just as the Pales seem to naturally find one-another when they can, they group together as if to avoid loneliness. They even interact with things around them when their focus sharpens… aye, Scrivy. But it does not matter. What matters is that… look. We have done it. We have brought them across the Bifrost… and now, we can rest for a time before returning to the crumbling world and gathering the last Pales we can find and attending to the last tasks we must, but… finally, I feel as if we have made a difference.”

“We have, Luna. We have.” Scrivener said gently, gazing towards her with a smile… and Luna looked warmly back at him, leaning over and nuzzling the side of the male’s neck affectionately before she impulsively hugged him, and the earth pony laughed as their scoured armor ground together and a few pieces of brittle metal fell off their forms. “We’re going to have to leave our homes here, though, miss snail.”

“Oh shush, Scrivener Blooms. Besides, as comfortable and fulfilling as mine armor is, thou art my true home.” Luna smiled at him warmly, meeting his eyes as they drew back a bit… and then she shook her head before gazing towards Pollen as the Velite managed to push herself up to her hooves, then winced when one of her forelegs fell off, sitting back on bony haunches to awkwardly rub at this joint. “Art thou alright? Thy bones look scorched.”

Pollen nodded after a moment, smiling embarrassedly as she picked up her foreleg and attempted to lock it back into place, but it only resulted in several parts of the bone crumbling and breaking away, and she sighed a bit before saying awkwardly: “I just… am going to need… a few new pieces and stuff.”

“I am sure the Nibelung will be able to assist thee in one form or another, they regularly hunt and capture wild animals in the area. We shall take thee to them shortly, I only wish to ensure the rest of the congregation makes it across the Bifrost before it shatters.” Luna replied quietly, and the Velite rubbed awkwardly at the underside of her jaw… then flinched when this fell loose, hurriedly snapping it back into place as the winged unicorn snorted in entertainment. “I am glad thou art still… I suppose ‘twould be rude to say alive, but still… not-dead.”

“Thanks.” Pollen mumbled, seeming a little embarrassed as Scrivener gave Luna a curious look, and she nodded firmly before the earth pony made his way to the wagon, Pollen turning to watch curiously as the male walked around to the rear and carefully levered open the tightly-shut door, wincing a bit as a few more gemstones fell off… but the carriage had held up incredibly well, all things considered, and even the heavy wheels seemed to have only melted slightly from passing over the Bifrost.

Scrivener Blooms dug in the back of the wagon for a few moments, then gently lifted a bottle free from where it was sandwiched between a nest of cloaks and pillows… and inside, Discombobulation looked a little less than thrilled, the Draconequus laying flat on his back in an empty bottle, a bit pale and ragged. Scrivener winced a bit, but as he sat back, Discombobulation moodily looked up… then sat up in surprise, gazing back and forth through the glass walls of his safe prison as the earth pony smiled a bit. “Welcome to Looking Glass Equestria, Bob. It looks a little nicer than the wasteland we just left.”

He paused, then carefully picked the bottle up with his mouth and gave a cursory glance over the contents inside the wagon: here and there, it looked almost as if some of the cloth cushioning had been charred, but that seemed to be the worst of the damage, and Scrivener was relieved. Furthermore, he could feel Luna’s own relief as the winged unicorn strode through the field, half-ignoring the herd of Pales as they walked past and she gazed warmly over the Bifrost’s arch, calling easily: “The last of the wayward souls seem to be making their way down, Scrivy… ‘tis difficult, with the way they pass through one-another so easily, but this eager mob of ghosts has spread far and wide already and ‘tis like being in a sea of living lost clouds.”

Scrivener grunted at this comparison: he was trying not to look at the horde of spirits around them as they wandered and stared through the field. His gaze roved towards the Bifrost as he carefully set Discombobulation’s vial down on the grass, the Draconequus continuing to stare around in amazement as the male smiled a bit at what Luna had said. “I hate how good your instincts are.”

“I know, I know, but thou art jealous of me for many reasons, Scrivener Blooms, and while ‘tis understandable, thou should not feel the need to compete with me. Thou art a plenty pretty mare as it is.” Luna replied kindly, and Scrivy laughed a bit despite himself as Luna smiled as well, looking warmly over at him for a moment; here, in this beautiful Eden, after running through the invigorating Bifrost, even the cynical earth pony found it difficult to be anything but positive and hopeful. “Aye, but I feel the Bifrost beginning to weaken now as well, ‘twill not be long before-”

And then Luna’s words caught in her throat as she looked up and watched as the black shapes of the strange, dark specters burst through the vortex, nimbly darting back and forth between the Pales still charging down the bridge, moving with much greater speed and precision as they leapt down onto the field. There were more than a dozen of them, a herd of shadowy shapes all their own, and Luna and Scrivener both set themselves as the winged unicorn snarled: “How dare thee invade Looking Glass World! Creatures of speed and shadow or not, do not think I will permit thee to invade this place!”

The dark equines only surveyed them readily, however, leaning forwards almost eagerly before one stepped out ahead of the others… and then it reared back and whinnied loudly as it gestured firmly with a hoof to one side, and the herd of dark specters followed the clear instruction, turning and breaking into a run in indicated direction. And before Luna could even leap in front of the shadows, their bodies faded out of existence, turning invisible even if the beats of their hooves could still be heard… before the remaining specter, the seeming-leader, beckoned slowly at them before it turned and shot suddenly off through the field in the opposite direction, and Luna’s eyes blazed with fury at the challenge.

She immediately leapt after it, and Scrivener cursed as he immediately ran after her, leaving the Pales, gaping Pollen, and snarling Pinkamena alone in the field with Discombobulation as he stared dumbly out of his vial. And even though Scrivy was fast, and Luna was faster, the shadowy specter moved with not only incredible speed but as if it was somehow familiar with the Looking Glass World’s wild terrain, twisting around trees, springing over fallen logs, jumping past rocks and bushes as Luna shouted indignant curses and Scrivener scrambled after her, mimicking the winged unicorn’s movements through instinct and luck more than anything else.

The dark shape led them on a chase towards the Everfree Forest, and Luna snarled as it leapt onto a natural path it seemed to somehow recognize, the creature shooting along this before the winged unicorn snapped her horn upwards, and brambles and nettles exploded upwards in a wall between two trees, the dark shape skidding violently and seeming surprised before it plowed into this, the creature physical enough to be stopped by the netting of thorny vines. It whinnied in frustration… then yelped in pain when Luna crashed into it, tackling the back of the black shade through the thick plant netting and crashing to the ground, skidding firmly for several more feet into an ugly, weedy clearing, the winged unicorn pinning the dark equine down on its stomach as she shouted furiously at its back: “Now reveal thyself and thine goals, specter! And thou had best hope thine pack of fools has not gone far if thou cannot give me a good reason for this intrusion!”

The dark shape wheezed beneath her, and then it flickered suddenly out of existence, Luna grunting in surprise as she fell flat on her stomach, and Scrivener Blooms winced before he hurried forwards beside her as the winged unicorn glared ahead as the dark specter reappeared at the other side of the field, facing towards them. It looked at them moodily, then reached a hoof up as if imploring them to wait a moment… and Luna’s eyes narrowed darkly as it turned around and half-dragged itself into the cover of the thick bushes for a moment.

They rustled loudly before there was a crackle and a burst of smoke… and then the bushes rustled again before a figure pushed through them: with her distinctive black stripes through her otherwise ivory coat, tall, two-tone Mohawk, and the golden bangles around one foreleg and matching hoops that surrounded her neck and hung from her ears, it was clear who they were facing… and Luna and Scrivener could only gape as Zecora glared at them with her blue-green eyes, saying flatly: “I hope you know you almost broke my back, did I ever give you the reason to make such an attack?”

Luna spluttered for a moment as Scrivener leaned dumbly forwards, looking over the zebra: from the swirling spiral mark on her flank to her sharp, pretty features and aged, wise eyes, it was clearly her… and then Scrivy winced as Luna’s eye twitched and her teeth ground together, head jerking slightly as he felt her confusion, frustration, and fury, and then she leaned forwards and shouted in a raw burst of sound: “And exactly why were thou parading around as a dark specter, foul and evil and mischievous… manipulator!”

“I manipulated no one, this much is true, I never got the chance to reveal myself to you.” Zecora argued… then winced a bit at the horrible look Luna gave her as Scrivener carefully rubbed down the winged unicorn’s spine, feeling her fury and frustration bubbling higher: it was only relief and dumb surprise that was currently keeping Luna from attacking the zebra, friend or not, and pummeling her into the ground, and Zecora seemed to recognize this as she cleared her throat and added hurriedly: “It was old magic from my tribe that let me take this disguise, along with those others from home who were talented and wise; in order to survive in that world we had to play make-believe, cloaking ourselves in darkness deeper than Nightmare Night’s eve.”

“And what, thou can… transform into that at will? And that pack, those are others like thee, shamans, magicians, zebras of thine tribe?” Luna asked in a stunned voice, and Zecora hesitated before the winged unicorn leaned forwards and gritted teeth that looked unnaturally sharp. “I do not understand!”

“Then I shall explain in a hurry, Luna of the Night, with you I certainly do not wish to fight.” Zecora replied with a wince, holding up a hoof, and the winged unicorn ground her teeth together as Scrivener only leaned dumbly back. “They are the survivors of what has laid our world to rest, who came from my homeland – far away – when it was put to Hell’s rigged test. They mixed up a potion as the shadows began to spread, and I performed the same ceremony as my heart ached with dread. I could feel the Black Wolves coming after the red sky’s eclipse, I knew from the mourning of nature something had gone terribly amiss.

“Drinking down the potion let my form become that of a ghost’s, now it was the intangible that hid the physical beneath smoky host’s.” Zecora hesitated for a moment, looking apprehensively at Luna as the winged unicorn leaned backwards, and then the zebra sighed and rubbed at her face, muttering: “And I suppose that since I’ve come this far I might as well say, I and the shamans have been doing the same job as you two, okay? It was supposed to be secret but I see that will not do, as I have no wish to be pummeled by you.

“As a shadow I was able to flit back and forth as I pleased, but in returning to my homeland I was far from relieved. Equestria fell first, but my country was far from last: we knew that to save our people we had to act fast. We hurried to our temples and other safe places, mixed potions, prayed for luck, and put on our best faces; we knew the world would fall from the visions the spirits said, and I only hoped that my instincts were right and you two wouldn’t be left dead.”

“So thou… what, prophesied this? Thou speaks with spirits and ghosts and gods, as well as performs such alchemy and magic as to veil thyself in the form of a spirit?” Luna looked incredulous, and then her eyes narrowed dangerously as she leaned forwards, asking coldly: “Then why did thou not tell us, or warn us?”

“How can I warn you of bad feelings I only feared might occur? Luna and Scrivener Blooms, I did not know about that fearsome wolf cur!” Zecora argued, looking almost hurt as she shook her head quickly. “I may be able to divine the near future’s events, but always it must be taken with a grain of salt and common sense; had I know that the world was truly on the path to death, I assure you I would have done far more than wait with baited breath!”

She halted, then leaned forwards and added quietly: “Will it help if I give you my heartfelt apology? I know you and Scrivener both have suffered enough to fill an anthology. Maybe the rest of my story will help you understand, I at least have tried hard to do the best for our united land.”

She stopped, then shook her head and murmured softly: “I could not save the ponies of Equestria at all… panic set in and they were all looking for a brawl. Any stranger who was different they lashed out at, not understand that if anything would weaken us it was exactly that. That is why I began mixing my potions and using the shadow-body brew, and I think you understand at least that this is true: I had to go where I could be of most use, and back to my home was obvious to deduce.

“Yes, like I said before, we had a similar thought: we would save all the souls we could and bring them to a sanctified spot. We did not think the world would suffer such devastation, that we would come to depend on the spirit potion to keep us from annihilation.” Zecora shook her head slowly, and then she glanced up apprehensively over Luna and Scrivener Blooms. “We only started to hope that our work had not been in vain, when you two returned to our world via the rainbow lane.”

“Then why did thou and thy kind not help us? In fact, thou even challenged us, to… stupid races that thou… cheating…” Luna ground her teeth together, but Scrivener relaxed a little as the winged unicorn dropped her head forwards and sulked, her rage dying down as suddenly as it had come as sparks traveled through her ephemeral mane and she muttered: “And souls. I saw a dozen, perhaps, of those shadowy specters. Thy country must be tiny.”

Zecora, however, only sighed at this, but she looked a little relieved all the same at the fact that Luna’s rage had faded as she responded gently: “When we understood what was coming, Luna of the Night, my people responded with courage despite their fright. While the warriors of the tribe fought against the hellish invaders, it gave us the time to place many of our people’s souls to sleep in containers. These vessels are carried by several of the other spirit-forms you saw, and now are being carried to where they can be freed without being swallowed up by evil’s maw. They will be spirits without bodies, Pales much like these here… I only hope you have a means to restore all we hold dear.”

Luna smiled wryly at this, and Scrivener Blooms shrugged a bit before he replied quietly: “We hope so. And ponies and zebras, well… we’re all the same really, right? But I have to admit I still wonder why you didn’t try and contact us…”

The zebra fidgeted a bit at this, but when Luna picked herself moodily up with a glower, she answered finally: “In order to keep in my ghostly form I had to drink the potion every few days or more… I was worried letting my body return would be a choice most poor. Every now and then my overzealous friends tried to give you a sign, but every time it only led into a game of mischief more by accident than design. One of the downsides to becoming a spirit’s shape and body, is that the inner self becomes outer and our judgment tends to be rocky.”

“So… you were afraid that losing your spirit form in that world would lead to you getting preyed on by either the corruption or demons or something… and yet in spirit form, you and your friends apparently put competition above telling us clearly what was going on.” Scrivener said finally, and Zecora looked at him awkwardly as Luna gave her a flat look. “We survived for nine years without being ghosts, you know…”

“When you put it like that it admittedly sounds bad, and there’s a difference between you and Luna and everypony else I might add.” Zecora said quietly, leaning towards them and looking pointedly at the two. “You two have become warriors who are fueled by the dark, and even though I know living in Helheim was no walk in the park, you could not be poisoned as severely by the corrupt world’s essence… I, on the other hand, may not have been able to resist its putrescence. I was… afraid that if I gave it a chance, it would get inside… and everything I am, that poison would deride.”

She quieted, glancing down… and Scrivener softened a bit as he lowered his head and even Luna seemed to loosen a little as the male closed his eyes and said softly: “I understand. I’m sorry, Zecora, I was just surprised. But if anypony can understand the fear of… losing yourself, well. It’s me and Luna. But that’s why your hut was always stocked then, isn’t it?”

Zecora nodded at this, smiling a bit as she said quietly: “My kin and I spent much of our time searching near and far, high and low, always gathering more ingredients to keep our bodies gone and our shadow-forms on show. We wanted to cross into this world once we understood what you were doing with the Pales… but keeping up to you two was more difficult than sleeping upon a bed of nails.”

“The trick is to spread yourself out evenly.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Zecora gave him a sour look as Luna muttered and leaned against the male, the earth pony wrapping a foreleg around her as an awkward silence spilled out around them. Finally, Luna looked up at him and he gazed back into her eyes, the two trading thoughts and emotions before they both looked towards Zecora as the earth pony said softly: “Well, I guess we’re both a little peeved, but… it’s good to see you all the same.”

“As I am relieved to see you both alive and breathing, and I understand if you are both seething.” Zecora bowed her head forwards courteously, adding kindly: “Please know that I want to offer all the help I am able, and I would enjoy very much to hear your side of this fable.”

Scrivener smiled despite himself, but Luna only huffed, replying grouchily: “Well, then that can wait. First, thou shalt come along with us to meet the Nibelung and other denizens of this place… aye, Odin thought it wise to bring Nibelung here to do these tasks for us, while I still think the God of Wisdom is mad for hiring such creatures as laborers.” Luna grumbled under her breath as the zebra frowned, but nodded a bit as Luna turned around and added distastefully: “And thou should not have fled from us, or sent thy pack upon its merry way without telling us what was going on, shaman or… prophetess or… whatever thou art.”

Zecora shrugged awkwardly at this, saying finally: “I recognized this world from the moment I set my hoof upon the field, my instincts told me that it was like a copy of our home before to Hell it did yield. Of course I understand that this cannot be entirely correct, but it is close enough to the truth of this realm, I suspect… it is no wonder that this place you were so eager to protect.”

“That answers not my question.” Luna grumbled, and Scrivy smiled a bit despite himself as electricity sparked through the winged unicorn’s mane, Zecora grimacing a little as they worked their way through the wilderness back towards the field. “Speak not in riddles. Thy rhymes are vexing enough.”

“Now, Luna, I think you’re just being mean… I think even Scrivener Blooms would agree you’re being a bit obscene.” Zecora began, and when Luna shot her a curdling glare, the zebra sighed a little and added embarrassedly: “And I suppose that I forget you are even older than I… no matter how much you may act young and wry.

“And that has much to do with why I chose the path I tried… I figured you would tire out your rage if I exhausted you with a game of seek-and-hide.” She paused, then added moodily: “It always seemed to work for my brethren when you gave them chase, but I did not think to take into account your protectiveness of this place.”

“Aye, the shadows were annoying to chase but they seemed to be no great threat. On the other hand, when thou and thy kind invaded our world here, it seemed like less a game or distraction.” Luna muttered, and she sighed a bit, saying grouchily: “And the creature yet seeks to make me the villain, Scrivener Blooms, can you believe her?”

“You do make a good villain, Luna, you have to admit that.” Scrivener replied mildly as Zecora gave another sigh, and the winged unicorn mumbled a little as she glared moodily back and forth as they emerged into the field: it was now empty except for the wagon and Pollen, who was awkwardly sitting on bony haunches and examining the bottle with Discombobulation inside it, and the Velite looked up with relief… then flinched in surprise and accidentally kicked the bottle over when she saw the zebra, Discombobulation flailing wildly as he was knocked flying inside the vial.

Luna, however, only sniffed disdainfully before she flicked her horn upwards, and Pollen winced a bit as the bottle floated into the air and over to Luna, hovering silently beside her as Bob visibly grumbled to himself as he brushed himself off and sat moodily up. “Bob, Pollen, this is Zecora. I do not know her plans for this world, but in case thou sees her around, I wished to introduce all thee to one-another so there are no misunderstandings. Zecora, this is Discombobulation, and Pollen. He prefers to be referred to as a female even though I have told them all repeatedly that Velites are all male.”

“I. I was a mare when I was alive. Why are you being mean again?” Pollen asked awkwardly, and Luna glared at her, the skeleton wincing a bit before she grabbed at her broken shoulder joint with a mumble. “Please don’t look at me so hard. I’m already falling apart enough as it is.”

Luna gave an exasperated sigh at this, while Zecora leaned forwards with interest as Discombobulation sulked and leaned back against the bottle, looking grouchily out at the zebra. “I did not expect you to have such exotic friends… a Velite and a Draconequus, both of whom you seem ready to defend.”

“Aye, I am, if necessary.” Luna replied quietly, nodding firmly as she leaned back a bit and smiled a little as the vial floated beside her head, Discombobulation tilting his head towards her curiously. “Pollen was merely a victim… and Discombobulation fought as ally beside us, and gave his life for us. He was a friend to us. I do not abandon my friends, ever.”

The zebra smiled a bit at this, and there was silence for a moment as Discombobulation pretended to wipe a tear away, which made Luna sigh and then briskly shake the bottle, the Draconequus clawing at the glass as she added flatly: “But I shall not hesitate to smite thee either, Bob, think not that thou art safe from a pummeling if thou brings it upon thyself. I still beat Scrivener Blooms on a regular basis, and he is of more importance to me than my own self these days.”

“She’s mean.” Scrivener added supportively, and Luna gave him a half-tired, half-entertained look before the earth pony shrugged and smiled a bit. “Would you rather I tried to tell them you were all bark and no bite?”

“Nay, my teeth speak plenty for themselves in that regard.” Luna retorted, and then she grinned widely, her teeth a deathtrap of sharp, inwards-curving fangs. “Would thou like to test it?”

“If I may interrupt you two and your lover’s quarrel, I’ll be glad to tell you my future plans upon this world.” Zecora said quickly, and both the ponies look at her before the winged unicorn grumbled a bit and nodded, and the zebra said quietly: “I intend to rebuild my home in the forest that seems to resemble Everfree, and once that is done I will be glad to lend all the help I can to thee. My brethren will let me know when they have found a safe place for the souls of the tribe… but I find that I like the pony-folk, and by them I wish to abide. So I am glad to offer the help I can in any way, shape or form… assuming your allies take kindly to my presence here becoming a norm.”

Luna looked meditatively at the zebra for a few moments, and then she nodded slowly and glanced at Scrivener Blooms as the earth pony shrugged a bit. Then the winged unicorn looked at Discombobulation as he calmly rested back in his floating vial, and the Draconequus simply gave her a shrug as if in response, mimicking Scrivener almost perfectly. “Very well then. Perhaps thou can help take care of Pollen and Discombobulation, and aid in keeping Pinkamena entertained… although somehow I think the half-demon will find plenty to feed upon in the weak minds of the laboring Nibelung.”

She grumbled under her breath, then shook her head before turning and saying briskly: “Come then. Scrivener Blooms, attend to the wagon… Pollen, can thou walk, or would thou prefer to ride in the crowded innards with Bob?”

Pollen looked surprised at this consideration, but before she could speak, Zecora said kindly: “Don’t worry about being a nuisance, poor once-was-a-mare… even with you resting in the back, Scrivener Blooms and I can pull that wagon as if it weighed only a hair.”

“I… thanks.” Pollen said finally, smiling faintly as she nodded slowly, and then she flinched a bit as the bottle holding Discombobulation floated over to her before jamming itself lightly into her eye socket, the Velite looking a little less-than-thrilled before he sighed and mumbled: “I guess I’ll just. Go ahead and take this then too.”

She twitched her head a bit to the side as the Draconequus winced and rattled a bit inside the bottle, then he dropped grumpily to his hindquarters as Pollen carefully made her way around the back of the wagon, Luna calling easily: “If thou must, break thyself into pieces! We can always put thee back together later!”

Pollen mumbled a bit in response as she reached the rear of the wagon and awkwardly hoisted herself in, and Scrivener gave the winged unicorn a flat look as she shrugged absently, then glanced towards Zecora with a nod of approval as the zebra and earth pony both walked towards the damaged harness. “But this is good, at least. Shall I mend the lines?”

“No, these cables shall be fine. They are not damaged overly much, and will hold if we move with a gentle touch.” Zecora replied, and Luna looked almost offended at the fact that the zebra had managed to rhyme off her as Scrivener only grinned and shook his head. Then Luna grumbled under her breath as she strode towards them, flicking her horn as the two began to fiddle with the lines and harness, and the thick cables snapped upwards and wrapped around the two as they glowed sapphire, knotting together here and there as Zecora winced and Scrivener let out a wheeze as steel wire ground loudly against his armor. “Luna, please be careful dear! You’re going to constrict us like a python I fear!”

“Oh, silly me. Well, blame it all on… glee.” Luna retorted grumpily, and Scrivener looked away as Zecora shot her a dry look. “Touchy, I see? ‘Tis not thine… uh… tree.”

Scrivener slowly reached up and dropped his head against a hoof as Zecora now only stared at the winged unicorn, and then Luna grumbled again before she strode forwards, calling irritably: “In any event, let us make haste to Ponyville. I wish to consult the Nibelung and possibly to pummel them and anything else that upsets me.”

“Your wife is of a dangerous sort, and seems to prefer using violence to answer a retort.” Zecora remarked to Scrivy, and the earth pony shrugged a bit as the two started forwards, the carriage rumbling behind them as a few more loose gemstones fell away from it, but thankfully it otherwise moved well as the zebra smiled a bit towards the earth pony. “I have to admit it feels good to be back in my body, as after a time being a spirit felt quite gaudy.”

“How the hell do you do that? I hate rhyming. I can barely manage a single couplet and yet here you are, talking in them, and so far I’ve only heard you resort to a half-rhyme once or twice.” Scrivener said finally, and the zebra laughed as she grinned at him with entertainment. “At least my poems would sound happier if they rhymed.”

“Yes, but they would still be about death and fire. Making them bouncy would not change their ire.” Zecora pointed out, and Scrivy grunted in agreement as they continued onwards. And as they followed behind the winged unicorn through the beautiful, luscious world, it felt for a little while like despite all that had happened, there was more than hope for the future now… there was almost a promise that everything was going to work out okay.

The Reflected World

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Chapter Sixteen: The Reflected World
~BlackRoseRaven

The Looking Glass Ponyville was almost a perfect replica of the Ponyville that had once been: thatch-roof cottages and homes, a friendly atmosphere, all of it built around the wide center square in which rested the enormous, ironwood tree that housed the library among other landmark buildings. Most of the construction here was finished, and while Luna had been glad to let the laborers attend to every other city as they saw fit, she had personally overseen every last detail of the construction of her little utopia, wanting it to be as close to the original version as possible.

A few Nibelung were still present, however, dressed in simple clothing instead of battle armor, grouchily wielding hammers and carrying supplies as they pieced together furniture, carved charms, and did other odds and ends, mostly staying away from the buildings. Zecora gazed back and forth in amazement as Luna smiled over her shoulder, visibly loosening up as Pollen’s voice exclaimed from where she was staring out the ajar door at the back of the wagon: “This is incredible! It’s… it’s Equestria!”

“Ooh, sounds like you managed to save someone really smart to have made that leap of genius, fancy-corn.” deadpanned a flat voice, and Luna grumbled as she halted in the square in front of the enormous tree. Zecora and Scrivener brought the wagon to a stop as well as they looked towards a Nibelung… but unlike the other dwarves, it was slightly taller, with grayer fur and its tusks cut down to only stubs, cleaner-looking than its greasy-furred, laboring brethren as well and with more of a distinct, cultured tone to its voice. “I saw the Bifrost and the Pales, fancy-corn. I have to admit, you’ve exceeded my admittedly-low expectations.”

“Pollen, come and meet a wretched intellectual.” Luna said grumpily over her shoulder, as Scrivener began to pull off the harnesses and Zecora automatically did the same. The Nibelung snorted in entertainment at this term, and then looked with surprise as Pollen awkwardly clambered out of the wagon, carrying the vial holding Discombobulation in her mouth. “Illyria, this is Pollen, the sole mare Velite. In the vial is a Draconequus, known as Discombobulation. And finally, the zebra is Zecora… she and her kinfolk have been working to save their people in a manner similar to the job given to me and mine by Odin. Finally, friends, this is Illyria. He is a Nibelung Architect, who follows the dwarves’ ancient codes and principles. But he is as rude, ungrateful, and nasty as any axe-wielding thug, be not fooled by his ability to speak without growls and grunts.”

“Hey! We speak fine, fancy-corn!” argued a Nibelung standing near the library with a hammer, the shirtless wolf-pig grouchily waving this back and forth and almost smacking another dwarf standing nearby with an armload of boards. Illyria, meanwhile, groaned and dropped his face in his hands as the dwarf laborer behind him continued haughtily: “We smart and talk good, not like Diamond Doggy dumb-dumbs!”

“Shut up and get back to work!” Illyria shouted over his shoulder, and the group of Nibelung squealed, half of them dropping their tools as the other half flailed around like children, and then the Architect grumpily returned his eyes to Luna before they flitted up to the wagon, and he frowned a bit, holding a hand out to her when she began to open her mouth to silence her.

She glared in frustration at him as the Architect stepped past her, examining the carriage curiously as he muttered: “Well, what have we here? A carriage built to travel the Bifrost, I assume, but it’s held up spectacularly well… this composite looks fascinating, and from the state of the gemstones I’d say… yes, yes, I think that-”

Then he winced as a blue aura surrounded his body before Luna snapped her horn to the side, the wolf-pig thrown firmly backwards by a telekinetic lash to bounce once on his rear and end up half-sprawled on the ground as he barely managed to catch himself with his arms, cursing under his breath and glaring at the winged unicorn as she said moodily: “Thou can investigate it later, vile cur. For now, it requires minor repairs, and then I desire it to be sent out to our cottage in the wilderness. Furthermore, Pollen is in need of repairs herself… she is a Velite, so all thou needs to do is give her the bones and a carving instrument and I am sure she will do the rest.”

“Ridiculous, she is merely a Velite pawn. I shall consult an engraver and have them prepare a set of cattle and deer bones for her within the hour.” Illyria said dismissively, flicking his wrist as he stood up, and Pollen looked up at him, obviously unsure whether she should thank him or be insulted. The Architect only went back to ignoring her, however, returning his eyes to Luna and asking distastefully: “Will the fancy-corn and her maid finally be moving permanently to this layer of reality?”

“Nibelung, Scrivener Blooms could break thee like a twig, so I demand thee cease referring to him as that.” Luna said flatly, and Illyria only sniffed disdainfully before the winged unicorn groaned in disgust, then added grouchily: “And nay. Whatever Odin or his lackeys have told thee, we plan upon returning to our poisoned homeland as soon as possible.”

“It is not your homeland, Valkyrie, Asgard is your homeland.” Illyria pointed out, and Luna’s lips pursed and her eyes narrowed slowly as Zecora frowned and cocked her head. “Oh, fine, be that way then, fancy-corn. I certainly have no reason to attempt to dissuade you from a suicidal course of action. I dislike enough working beneath Odin and his foot-fellows… I dislike even more working with the dregs of my society, and even more than that, being forced to put up with your presence and bullying. I know my job. I do not tell you how to do your job, why must you insist on telling me how to do mine?”

“Thou may understand thy job well, but thou forgets that it is not for thee that thou art building this Equestria… it is for us. And furthermore, thou agreed to the terms years ago, did thou not? Thou and thy few remaining scholarly brethren were saved from Niflheim and brought up here, with a cadre of… less-intelligent Nibelung…” Luna grimaced a bit as she looked past at the workers, who were grumbling even as they efficiently went about their tasks for all their slovenliness. “And all of thee will be granted freedom and refuge here in Looking Glass Equestria to pursue thine hearts’ desire. Unless thou wishes to return to Niflheim, the eternal ice, and dodging demons and mercenary bands and all the other horrors that exist in that sallow place.”

Illyria sighed as he held up his hands, looking moody as he mumbled: “Very well, fancy-corn, you win, you win. I shall attend to your requests… but may I at least ask exactly what you plan on doing while here? Especially with that… striped-pony in tow, and for some reason dragging along these other entities like some freakish entourage.”

Luna rolled her eyes at this, then she retorted rudely: “At least I have friends, lonely dwarf intellectual.” She paused, then glanced at the vial, her horn glowing before the bottle was hefted into the air, and Discombobulation winced as he fell on his rear as Luna guided it quickly over to Scrivener Blooms and slipped it into the burnt-looking satchel he was still wearing over his damaged armor. “Pollen, Zecora, please feel free to familiarize thyselves with Ponyville and the surrounding area. Scrivener and I are going to wander Ponyville, ensure that our specifications have been met, and perhaps talk with another Nibelung of more pleasantness and use than Illyria could ever be.”

“Greece is not here at the moment, the artificer is busy in Canterlot, aiding other Architects.” Illyria retorted, and Luna groaned and threw her head back in disgust before the dwarf added moodily as he crossed his arms: “I am currently the only Architect here. Unless you wish to speak to the Strange Ones, but they do not count.”

“Alas, the poor dwarf is jealous.” Luna said drolly, and the Nibelung glowered at her almost angrily even as a faint blush tinged his cheeks. Zecora and Pollen both looked curiously towards her, but the winged unicorn only gave a slight smile, saying mildly: “Oh believe me well. Thou shalt know the Strange Ones when thou sees them. Worry not, they are far less hostile than these wicked, greasy dwarves.”

Illyria grumbled under his breath, reaching up and moodily rubbing at one of his cut-down tusks before he said distastefully: “If that is all, I believe I have errands to run. Velite, wait here. Fancy-corn… pleasant as always to have seen you.”

“Oh aye, the feeling is as mutual as can be, I am sure.” Luna responded dourly, and she and the dwarf glared at each other for a moment before the Architect turned and stormed off, and the winged unicorn rolled her eyes before glancing towards Pollen, saying mildly: “Worry not, he is competent. ‘Tis the sole reason I have not pummeled him into mush. These Nibelung who remember their past are nefariously good at their jobs.”

“All the same, they seem like an unpleasant bunch… I am surprised you managed to restrain your punch.” Zecora commented, and Luna grumbled a little in answer before she added thoughtfully: “I think that I will take a look around, and see what there is to see in this new stomping ground. Of course, Luna, that’s as long as you don’t object… after all, from your wrath, I wish to myself protect.”

“Yes, of course, Zecora, thou may look around as thou wishes… ‘tis not my Equestria, after all.” Luna smiled a bit, glancing up towards the calm blue sky overhead as she said softly: “’Tis a new world, for all of those that we can save… ‘tis an Equestria that will belong to all of us.”

For a few moments, the zebra studied the winged unicorn curiously… then she smiled and nodded before turning away, saying thoughtfully: “It’s all the more fortuitous it was you who weathered the storm… I know of few others who would be so generous and warm. It’s refreshing to see the night is not so cold as most think, and that should light fail, darkness will bring us back from Hell’s brink.”

Luna smiled amusedly at the zebra’s back as she strode away, and then she glanced over at Scrivener Blooms as the earth pony shook his head, saying mildly: “If I could rhyme like that, I would have actually made money off my books.”

“If thou spoke in rhyme such as that I would likely beat thee all the more often.” Luna replied dryly, then she glanced towards Pollen, saying kindly: “Once thou art repaired, thou too can wander as thou likes… or meet us back at our cabin, the path is fairly marked or a Nibelung can take thee. We shall see thee shortly either way, Pollen.”

The Velite awkwardly waved with her remaining front hoof to the two as Scrivener Blooms and Luna turned away, and the two ponies headed past the library and into the streets of Ponyville, beneath the calm blue sky and the shining warmth of the golden sun above.

More out of impulse than anything else, when the sun was lowered at nightfall, Luna herself rose the ivory moon… and smiled in delight at the sight of the whole, beautiful orb in the sky, gleaming softly as the stars twinkled quietly around it through the darkness of the velvet, black sky. It was calm and peaceful, and Scrivy and Luna traded warm looks with one another as they rested on comfortable, plush black bedding in their beautiful cabin in the wilderness.

They had found a deeper spot in this world’s version of the Everfree Forest: it didn’t provide the same perfect cliff, but it had a small slope that Luna had been gradually shaping and expanding into a larger hill, giving them a slight vantage point almost at level with the tops of the enormous trees. With the aid of Nibelung workers, they had also hollowed it out and then shored it up with ironwood pillars, effectively turning the landscaped hill into a half-bunker, half-storage shed.

The cottage itself was roughly three quarters finished: one front corner was still skeletal, the walls unfinished, the ceiling there covered by tarps instead of shingles. It had been a last-minute addition due to the fact that Luna enjoyed adding things in on impulse while Scrivener tried to get her to step-by-step. The result was the cottage had several complete, furnished and decorated rooms, a painted and varnished – and gorgeous, if Scrivener did say so himself – front deck and back patio, and the rest of it was incomplete.

If they had the time, they would at least finish the walls and roof this week, however… and Luna was determined to make the time one way or another. She also wanted to work on their bedroom – it needed to be painted and the flooring needed to be finished – and finish setting up the garden out back, which currently was just a weedy, fenced-in lot next to a pretty, scenic pond in which a few bullfrogs could be heard singing in the clear night air outside, as a soft breeze blew and added its whispers to the melody of the night.

In the front yard, the wagon rested, and Pollen had actually set up a small home of her own inside of this: it made for a cramped living space, but the Velite seemed content and thrilled in the night air, and it helped that the gemstone-armored wagon was likely even sturdier than the black-polished, ironbark cottage. Luna had also provided some old bedding, blankets, and pillows for the Velite as a courtesy, and finally grouchily added that she was free to come and go as she pleased: she was welcome in their home.

But Pollen didn’t want to intrude, saying embarrassedly she would feel awkward enough moving in while Luna and Scrivener returned to the corrupted Equestria. Luna had appreciated this thought, and now rested comfortably, side-by-side with Scrivener Blooms, their armor discarded and stored in their room as they gazed up at the mantel of their fireplace and the painting that now hung over it, of the male charging through the shadowy forest… and both of them smiled a bit as she said quietly: “Yes. This is good. This is right.”

She drew her eyes down to the blue flames burning in the fireplace as Scrivener looked at her warmly, unable to do anything but agree: the room around them was beautiful and pristine, after all, with the large and comfortable bedding, pillows strewn here and there over the floor and the lamp in the ceiling above casting a soft glow over everything. Other paintings hung over the varnished walls and behind them, as in their old home, an archway and countertop was all that separated large and spacious den from a kitchen that was almost a perfect replica of their old one… apart from the fact everything was in much-better shape, and instead of a fridge they only had a box kept cold by magic.

Then they both looked up in surprise as Discombobulation calmly strode forwards and sat down on Luna’s other side, the tall Draconequus grimacing a bit as he rested back on the bedding and blinking owlishly at them when Luna snapped: “Creature! Return to thy bottle, ‘tis dangerous for thee to be out!”

“Oh shut up, Scrivener Blooms, no one likes you.” Discombobulation replied tiredly, and Luna glowered before Scrivener winced and grabbed her before she could attack the Draconequus as the chaos entity rolled his shoulders, then picked up one of their blankets and half-wrapped it around himself as he gazed into the fire, muttering: “Time rushes toward us with its hospital tray of infinitely-varied narcotics, even while it is preparing us for the inevitably fatal operation. I would rather take my chances out here in the open air than live forevermore as a caged bird in a gilded prison.”

Luna softened a bit at this, and Scrivener Blooms smiled a bit as he looked over the Draconequus slowly before saying softly: “Back to stealing quotes, are we?”

“Well, you know. Can’t teach an old Draconequus new tricks and all that. Besides, Luna, I can’t let you be the only scavenger of the dead around here, can I? Better to be ghouls of words together than grave-robbers apart.” Discombobulation paused meditatively, and then he added dryly: “As long as you’re not a necrophiliac. Several famous authors loved the dead a little too much, you know.”

“Writers are a sick breed.” Luna muttered in agreement, and Scrivener rolled his eyes in entertainment before the winged unicorn nudged him gently, saying softly: “Tea, I think, would be better tonight, poet. And perhaps something to eat, if the food is not stale.”

Scrivener nodded with a smile, climbing to his hooves and heading into the kitchen to prepare the kettle and tea before Luna stood up as well, heading down the hall to a small closet. She returned a few minutes later with a thick blanket floating beside her, and this comforter gently draped itself around Discombobulation as he looked at her with surprise, but then quickly glanced back towards the fire as Luna flopped down beside him. “You ponies are a strange lot. Not as bad as everyone says, though.”

“Thanks, Bob, thou art not so bad thyself, once one gets past the layers of… thee.” Luna gestured at him widely, and Discombobulation rolled his eyes with a grumble. For a little while, they sat in quiet together… and then the Draconequus was once more surprised when Scrivener returned with a tray of three mugs of tea, some jam, and a loaf of sweetened bread as Luna invited: “Well, hurry up, Bob. We have to take care of thee, after all, do we not?”

“As long as this isn’t my last supper and one of you don’t betray me before the night ends.” Discombobulation finally said, and Scrivener had laughed as Luna only sighed and rolled her eyes, giving him a flat look as the Draconequus moodily picked up his mug of tea… then shrugged a bit and added quietly: “Here’s lookin’ at you, kid.”

He sipped at it slowly… then grimaced a bit as he leaned back and shook his head firmly out, looking moodily down at the tea. “I would give all my fame for a pot of ale and safety.”

“Well, Discombobulation, if I was actually pretending to take you literally, I’d tell you the only ale around here is made by the Nibelung. And I’m pretty sure it would kill you. In fact, I’m pretty sure it would kill Luna.” Scrivener replied mildly, and the Draconequus snorted in amusement at this as the winged unicorn gave the earth pony a challenging look. “No dear, that isn’t an invitation to go and get drunk with the dwarves.”

Luna grumbled a bit at this, and then she picked up her own mug and sipped at it slowly, saying finally: “To be honest, Scrivener Blooms, I do not miss drinking anymore as much as I did at first. Now that I have spent so long without even a glass of wine, it feels more like a challenge to live up to…” The winged unicorn gave him an entertained look. “Strange, the way we adjust to things, no?”

“Well, strange the way you adjust to things, Luna, but I understand all the same. You’re a very strange winged unicorn.” Scrivener replied blandly, and the female laughed despite herself as she swatted at him, making Scrivy smile as he swayed out of the way before glancing towards Discombobulation as the Draconequus studied them thoughtfully. “What?”

“To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the whole world.” Discombobulation answered after a moment, and Scrivener and Luna both looked at him curiously as he sniffed a bit and leaned back, curling the comforter tighter around himself. “Your concept of ‘love’ is strange and confusing. I like it and yet it gives me chills, much like horror movies about evil little girls. It makes me wonder what you would do for one another out of impulse, or wanting to see the other smile… it makes me wonder what you would do to the world, for the sake of one-another. Not that the old world is in much danger, mind you… the milk has long been spilled and the eggs have long since cracked.

“But what about this world? Oh, it’s going to be so full of lies and confusion and mayhem… I think I’ll like it here, since I’m sure that Ginnungagap must be all in a flurry over what’s happened. My fellow friends and friendly fellows probably don’t even know I exist anymore, to be certain: even though we’re chaos, and we all should know so much better than to believe everything we see and read – especially on the internet – all the same we seem to be easily taken in by flashy sights and loud sounds and articles written by important-sounding names that come in the format first name, middle initial, last name.” Discombobulation poked his eagle claw out of the blankets, gesturing at the air as he spoke. “I’m sure my magnificent kamikaze was rewarded with applause, a few crocodile tears, and then some more applause back home. Not that I was never not liked, you must understand, only that they would have liked what happened to me more, and the party and the funeral and the funeral-party that would have followed as they lied about fond memories of me.”

The Draconequus quieted, looking down with a frown as he shifted the blanket a bit around himself… then he picked up his tea and sipped slowly at it again, gazing down into the liquid meditatively. “I wonder what it must have been like for Discord. Coming to Equestria, of his own accord, looking to meddle… but what gears turned in his mind beneath the dazzling lights and spackle of paint and chaos of the jumble? He was a true trickster, after all: designing grand schemes, thinking who knows how deeply, and hiding it with a grinning smile and a delight in anarchic madness. I, at least, like to think I’m a little more straightforward, even if I seem to go straight along the curves and curve along the straights.”

He shook his head with a dry chuckle, then carefully put his mug of tea down and picked up the breadknife, studying this moodily. “It’s the carpenter, not the tools, you know. But then again, a workhorse the size of Scrivener Blooms’ ego helps get the job done much faster than a shovel.”

“Thou truly missed talking to others, didn’t thee?” Luna said dryly, and Discombobulation mumbled a little under his breath before he winced when the knife glowed blue, yanking itself out of his hand before swinging down and swiftly slicing several pieces of bread from the loaf, before swirling over to the jam jar. Scrivy winced a bit as the raspberry substance was splattered everywhere by Luna’s forceful guidance of the knife, before she finally dropped the utensil on the tray and instead lifted one of the pieces of cut bread with telekinesis.

Discombobulation stared… then gargled when the jam-covered bread was shoved almost completely into his mouth, splattering him with a bit of jam as Luna said grumpily: “There, wretched, obnoxious, boorish creature. Eat. ‘Twill help.”

Discombobulation muttered grouchily around the bread in his muzzle, then he slurped it loudly back into his jaws before swallowing it almost whole, wincing and coughing once afterwards… then cursing and rearing back when Luna picked up another piece of bread with telekinesis. “What do I look like to you, a turtle?”

“If thou wert a turtle, Bob, I would not feed thee bread. I would feed thee mulched-up bugs.” Luna retorted, then she thrusted the piece of bread towards his face, and Discombobulation half-fell over attempting to avoid it before the winged unicorn added flatly: “Think that I shall not shove this food into thy nose if I must, Discombobulation. Thou must eat. ‘Tis good for thee.”

“I’m not a pony, I’m a chaos entity of-” Discombobulation began to complain, and then the piece of bread was shoved firmly into his mouth, silencing him as he sat moodily with crumbs spilling from his stuffed jaws as Luna sniffed disdainfully. The Draconequus glowered at her, the piece of bread flopping a bit in his jaws, but the winged unicorn only gave him a half-kind, half-mocking smile as Scrivy rolled his eyes and sipped slowly at his tea.

Discombobulation mumbled to himself and curled the blankets tighter around his body as he chewed slowly on the bread, and Luna grunted and nodded as she returned her gaze towards the fire, saying softly: “Aye, and we are not so different, you and I. Thou art a swirl of manic energy and I am a Valkyrie, reincarnated in this body. I have no more need to eat than thou does, but… it feels good, does it not? And ‘tis a fine enough way to keep up one’s strength. Worry not, Bob, I am not just practicing my motherhood skills upon thee. I am also concerned for thy well-being.”

The Draconequus grumbled a bit as he managed to swallow the piece of bread, before wincing when the last slice lifted into the air… but thankfully, instead it floated over to Scrivener, who took a bite out of it with a smile to Luna before Discombobulation said grouchily: “You’re as beautiful and traitorous as the sea, you know. Likely about as comforting, too… one moment, we’ll all be readying for the final battle, the next we’ll all be covered in crabs and brine.”

“Flirt with me not, Discombobulation. I may take thee up on thy offer and sadly, the end result is that I shall likely wear thy poor, sickly self out and kill thee.” Luna replied kindly, and Discombobulation snorted in entertainment as Luna gave him a sweet smile. “But perhaps after thou feels better we can discuss it again.”

“Luna, please stop trying to cheat on me while I’m right here.” Scrivener said mildly, nudging her gently with his shoulder, and then he winced when the bread floating in the air in front of him shoved itself into his mouth, silencing him as Luna gave him an entertained look.

“Oh, as if I could actually cheat on thee, Scrivener Blooms. Thou feels the same pleasures and pains and everything else I do, and thou seems to appreciate my adventurousness, wherever it tends to lead.” Luna nudged him playfully, then she grinned teasingly over at Discombobulation as he leaned away from them with a wince. “Great cowardly chaos entity. I thought thy kind was all about chasing pleasure.”

“No, we’re all about chaos, and each of us has his or her or it or their own particular preferred poison. As I know I’ve said before, I enjoy confusion most of all… not… touchy-feely nonsense. Especially not with ponies.” Discombobulation looked moodily at them, grimacing a little as he added grouchily: “Besides, what is marriage but the prostitution to one stallion instead of many?”

“Oh, I sense thou art trying to anger me!” Luna, however, only grinned wider in response to this, leaning forwards and half-lidding her eyes. “But this is a topic I am fond of debating. Shall we debate, Discombobulation, upon concubines and prostitutes and sexuality? Thou can play the untouched activist fighting for so-called ‘rights’ I do not desire, and I shall be the mare who revels in her own power, not the power that comes from laws and essays and moralistic viewpoints ironically written mostly by males, and we’ll get in a greater quarrel than the angriest of feminists could with the most grabby and grouchy of chauvinists!”

“Please don’t encourage her. I made the mistake of trying to argue with her once or twice on this topic and it never, ever turns out well.” Scrivener said dryly, and Luna huffed before she punched him lightly in the side, making him wince. “Well it’s all fine and well for you, dear, but you’re a Valkyrie. Most mares can’t shoot lightning, kill dragons with one hoof tied behind their back, and transform into any shape they desire at will.”

“Sleipnir was far more fun than thou. He liked prostitutes.” Luna retorted, and Discombobulation snorted laughter as Scrivener glared sourly at the winged unicorn, who looked absurdly pleased with herself for getting a laugh from the chaos entity. “There, see! Thou should be more like Bob, appreciating the joy and wisdom I have to bring!”

Scrivener only rolled his eyes in amusement… and for the next little while, they sat together in quiet and comfort before Luna and Scrivener excused themselves to go out for a short walk through the night air. Discombobulation had only nodded, then flopped himself down on the bedding, and they had left the Draconequus to doze in front of the fire as they exited through the back door and over the square, furnished patio into their half-completed rear yard.

For a moment, Scrivener’s eyes lingered on the garden, smiling despite himself: a few black roses had bloomed here and there, along with several white moon lilies, thriving despite the weeds and the wildness of the lot… and then Luna nudged him gently, her black pearl swaying quietly around her neck as she said softly: “Flight or hoof, Scrivener Blooms?”

“As if you have to ask.” Scrivy smiled a bit to her, and Luna laughed despite herself before they stepped towards one another and traded a short, gentle kiss for a few moments, eyes closing before they parted and pressed their foreheads together, and thoughts and ideas and images swirled between them before the male began softly: “Luna…”

“It’s alright, Scrivy. ‘Tis only a pang. Besides, this world heals us, does it not? I haven’t heard thee complaining much today, and thou has had a lot to complain about. Problems here are pushed aside and do not vex us… I like that. I wish to keep things that way, and not frustrate us needlessly. I have needs and wants and desires, aye, but I can wait.” Luna smiled a bit, their eyes opening, irises glowing as they studied one another before she said softly: “We have a job to do, and I shan’t forget that, Scrivy. We shall have a foal of our own in time, but we have no reason to rush… we have countless years yet to spend together. I have lived for… who knows how long? Even a decade should be nothing more than a drop in the sea to me.”

“Yes, but you are remarkably impatient.” Scrivener pointed out, and Luna rolled her eyes even as she snorted in amusement and turned to stride the path leading towards the forest, the earth pony smiling as he followed after her. “You know, you can’t treat the kid the same way you treat Bob, too.”

Luna grumbled under her breath at this as she stepped onto a natural, grassy path cutting through the trees, but she was smiling all the same, her mood and spirits feeling lighter and higher than they had in weeks now as she replied mildly: “As I have said before, I do not believe in all these… parenting gimmicks. Our child will grow up fine and strong, Scrivener Blooms… and he will do it without being force-fed disgusting and unnecessary supplements and living inside a ridiculous plastic bubble.”

“You’re referring to the baby-to-be as a he again, Luna. You are aware you can’t just will it into being a colt, especially since your reasoning behind why you want it to be a colt is rather ridiculous?” Scrivener asked mildly, and Luna snorted at this as the male hurried to catch up to her, even as he gazed back and forth with a strange, bubbling warmth in his chest at the sight of the dark forest around them, his natural night vision slowly filtering in as Luna’s ephemeral mane glowed softly and lit the way all the clearer for them.

For a moment, however, she was silent as they only enjoyed the embrace of the night together, slipping smoothly past enormous pines as the soft grasses kissed their hooves, trees rumbling quietly around them as the earth seemed to shift subtly, as if the forest was awakening to peek at who was visiting its depths… before there was a soft gust that rattled the branches of the trees above, like an exhale of welcome and relief. And then Luna smiled a bit as she paused in the middle of the well-walked, winding path through the thick trees, saying kindly: “Now, Scrivener Blooms. Just for what thou has said, I have firmly decided I shall give birth to a colt. I believe that we shall find my womb to be in accordance with this.”

“Horses of Heaven.” Scrivener could only look at her for a moment, and then he shook his head and laughed, asking in an amused voice: “Alright then, Luna, if you’re so sure it’s going to be a colt, what are you going to name him?”

“Thou art the poet, ‘tis thine duty to figure it out.” Luna retorted huffily, turning quickly away and trotting through the forest, and Scrivy smiled as he followed the phantasmal wisp of her glowing mane. “But it must be a mighty name. A name with great meaning to it, that will stay in the memories of those whom hear it for an eternity and a day, a name that is neither too short nor too long and holds a vast depth to it, Scrivener Blooms. Not a name like thine, thy name is boring. Almost as boring as thou art.”

Scrivener snorted in entertainment at this, replying easily: “Something majestic, powerful, and more than a few letters long, Luna?”

Luna ground suddenly to a halt, and Scrivener winced as he ran into her backside, flopping forwards and half-resting over her rear as she shot him a mischievous grin over her shoulder. “Scrivy! We are discussing a serious topic at the moment, I am sure thou can wait five more minutes for that.” She paused, then arched her back imperiously before firmly rocking her hips backwards, knocking Scrivener off to fall back on his haunches with a flick of her rear, and the male glared at her hindquarters as she added mildly: “And my name is plenty majestic, even if it is rather… short. What would thou have named me?”

“Oh, no, Luna works fine, and it’s very pretty.” Scrivener replied blandly, climbing back to his hooves as the winged unicorn started forwards again, and then she halted with a glare over her shoulder as Scrivener added mildly: “It can also be short for ‘lunatic,’ which suits you very well.”

“Cur.” Luna finally pronounced, and then she grumbled as she started forwards again, Scrivener smiling as he followed, then strode up and fell into pace beside her as the trees began to thin out, starlight shining down through the thinning canopy above as she continued moodily: “Besides, even before I earned the title of Lightblade, I was powerful enough to clearly demonstrate I was no force to be trifled with and soon my name became synonymous with ‘respect.’ Also ‘miscreant,’ ‘rogue,’ and for some strange reason, ‘a masculine mare.’ I do not know why they attributed to me the last. Am I not more effeminate than Celestia was, at least?”

“Oh please don’t make me answer that question.” Scrivener mumbled, and Luna huffed and checked him firmly, making him wince and stumble before he nudged her back, adding mildly: “I’m sure you were at least less masculine than Sleipnir.”

“Oh, yes, how comforting a thought that is. I was less-masculine than my titanic older brother who could hoof-wrestle a dragon into submission and more than once put Celestia in a headlock and cheerfully mussed up her entire mane, with her helpless to do a thing about it for all her strength.” Luna replied dryly, and Scrivener couldn’t help but laugh at the images and memories that swirled through his mind at this, of a frustrated and yet resigned Celestia with ethereal mane in a sparking tangle as a burly, laughing equine affectionately and playfully ground his hoof against her scalp. “I shall have thee know I look very pretty in a dress.”

Scrivener looked at her mildly, and Luna snorted at him before she muttered: “Well, I did not say that I enjoyed wearing it, only that I cut an attractive enough figure. In thanks mainly, I do believe, to my fine and supple flank.”

“You’re such a butt-pony.” Scrivener said finally, and Luna gave him a look for a few moments, then she threw her head back and laughed as they strode into a circular field in the middle of the forest, Scrivener smiling at her warmly before he gazed towards two enormous, gnarled trees at the far side of this, reflected in a placid pool of water that stretched out before their hooves, the glassy water parted only by a tall, sweeping quartz monolith that stretched into the center of the crescent-shaped pond from a grassy hill behind it. It like a paradise inside paradise, and one of their favorite spots in the forest… and the two traded warm smiles before Luna slipped forwards and buried her face against the side of his neck with a soft sigh of relief.

The enormous trees creaked quietly, seeming to move despite the lack of wind: one stretched high to the sky above, its branches reaching up around it like countless limbs raised in exaltation despite the bends and twists throughout its tall body. The other, meanwhile, was bent and twisted, bowing forwards and looking more like an immense serpent, its branches lurching outwards in every direction: twin enormous ash trees, with a spiderweb of deep roots that were thought to spill almost throughout the entire forest. Hu and Ỏðr, thought to have sprung from Yggdrasil itself, the eternal protectors of this world’s Everfree Forest.

The two ponies quietly circled around the pool, striding up the hillside and onto the natural, smooth quartz balcony that extended over the still and silent water. They laid down side-by-side on top of the strangely-warm stone beneath the light of the moon and the stars, under the somehow-comforting shadow of the enormous trees, gazing at one another before they looked up towards the constellations overhead, Luna saying quietly: “Some of these stars…so strange, so foreign to me even now, but in a way, I enjoy it. The stars shine during the day and night, but ‘tis only beside the moon that they may be seen… pretty, vainglorious sun makes herself the center of attention all day long, after all, and not a thing may stand beside her in the sky.”

Scrivener gazed affectionately at Luna… and then both ponies looked in surprise to the side at the sound of a rusty chuckle before a figure pushed itself carefully into the field, and Luna’s features puckered as if she’d bitten into a lemon as she said sourly: “Wretched lecher, will thou not give us a moment’s peace?”

Odin replied to this with a sigh as he brushed a few leaves off his fur-lined jacket, replying tiredly: “Brynhild, I remember asking you to contact me once you arrived in Looking Glass World. Do you not remember this as well? If anyone should be angry here it’s me, but I am not because that would not only serve no purpose, we all knew ahead of time you were going to avoid contacting me as long as possible. Illyria sent a messenger to me earlier informing me you had arrived… and I figured that it would be easiest to catch you out here. You always visit this place in this vast forest the night of your return, without fail… and often around the same time, as well.”

“Some traditions should not be forgotten or forgone. Unlike certain others, which should be torn to tatters and used as confetti to celebrate the dawning of a new age of reason and sanity.” Luna retorted moodily, and Odin rubbed slowly at the scarred side of his face as he gave an exasperated sigh. “But yes, Odin, very well, we are here, thou has seen us, now go away.”

“Brynhild, please.” The once-god gave her a frustrated look, and Luna grumbled a bit before she half-turned and buried her face childishly against the side of Scrivener’s neck, the earth pony giving an awkward smile as Odin looked at them for a few moments, then muttered under his breath as he turned. He reached a hand out, stroking slowly over one of the enormous trees, and it seemed to react to his touch, the tree rumbling and shifting as the branches swayed despite the fact the wind had long died down.

Then he turned back around, striding to the edge of the pool and looking pointedly up at the two ponies, and Luna groaned as she felt his eyes on him before she flicked her head firmly, her mane twisting and spiraling outwards to form into a starry, ethereal wall that hid her and Scrivener from view behind a wall of glowing translucence. Odin, however, only crossed his arms calmly, saying dryly: “Even a goblin would see through that ruse, Luna. And goblins are less intelligent than the most idiotic Nibelung.”

“Oh, fine.” Luna grumbled, and she flicked her head again, her mane twisting backwards and settling over her back as she glared down at him, but the once-god only smiled wryly as Scrivener awkwardly half-hid behind the winged unicorn. “Very well, I shall give thee the report thou so craves, annoying old dog. I do not know the count of Pales we saved… but it was many, perhaps even more vast than the first droves we led across the Bifrost, and I do not exaggerate. There was little else of note.”

“So running across Fenrir and bringing the Black Baroque crashing down is not of note?” Odin asked dryly, gesturing towards her with one hand, and Luna huffed even as a faint blush tinged her cheeks. “Furthermore, I believe you found your old spear. To a Valkyrie like yourself, that must have felt like finding your heart after years of living without it.”

“I understand not why thou asks for a report when thou clearly knows the answers already.” Luna grumbled, and then she raised her head a bit, adding distastefully: “Aye, we dropped the Black Baroque on Fenrir’s wretched head, but the Black Wolves shattered the moon and were digging their Alpha out of the wreckage when we left. I know not what his state is… but at least one of the other Black Wolves seemed to be injured, perhaps even crippled. I only hope fortune favors us and its wound does not heal.”

Odin nodded slowly, rubbing at the underside of his beak as the falcon-headed male looked moodily down. “It’s difficult to say. Skoll, Hati, Garm and Fenrir… they are forces of desolation and destruction. The fact they cowered under the eclipse was unexpected and I do not know why they did… perhaps it was Valthrudnir’s tampering. Perhaps he had some ultimate goal for these creatures… they do not exist in the other layers of reality, after all, and I am unsure of who or what designed them. I do not believe it was even Valthrudnir… you have seen his machinations, his monstrosities. The Tyrant Wyrms and the Black Wolves seem to share much in common, but the Black Wolves seem only animals, driven by warped instinct to destroy… Valthrudnir’s pets are intelligent, machine-like, and incredibly cruel.”

He halted, looking slowly from Luna to Scrivener Blooms, and his eye seemed to focus in on the earth pony as he said in a soft, pointed voice: “After all, there is no evil in an animal hunting the most harmless of prey for food… but can willingly, knowingly inflicting pain upon another for the sake of pleasure or sport ever be justified?”

A shiver rolled along the earth pony’s spine, and then Luna leaned forwards, cutting off the eye contact as she said sharply: “Perhaps there is no wrong in taking pleasure in pummeling another when they continuously beg for it, lecher.”

Odin winced a bit even as he studied the sudden anger of the winged unicorn, and then he held up his hands in a gesture of surrender, saying quietly: “It is only an old man’s rambles, Brynhild, I do not mean to offend. But let me ask… is there anything else… anything at all… you have to tell me?”

“No.” Luna said curtly, despite the way her muzzle wrinkled up, and Scrivener grimaced a bit at what an awful liar the winged unicorn could be… and inside him, he wondered silently if this was the right course of action. Then Luna frowned as she looked over her shoulder at him, eyes imploring even as Odin studied them silently, before he sighed a bit and nodded at the look she gave him, trusting her decision, knowing that she would never willingly put him in harm’s way. If she felt they could handle Valthrudnir without Odin’s help… if she was still worried to a point that telling Odin would only result in more trouble… he would gladly follow in her lead.

They both looked towards the old once-god, and he gazed back from one to the other… then only shook his head slowly, crossing his arms and looking moodily down into the pool. “Very well. I am not your enemy though, Brynhild… let me make that perfectly clear. I know that in the past I destroyed the Aesir and did many things that have forever scarred my honor, and I know that you have much reason to distrust me. But Brynhild… you and Thor are really all I have left. I cannot face Freya’s spirit with the shame I hold in my heart and the righteousness in her eyes, and all the other Aesir are gone, torn apart by Valthrudnir’s machinations and scheming and my own damned failings.”

He grimaced and shook his head, then finally looked up and nodded once, saying quietly: “But you have done well, Brynhild. I do not… entirely approve of the fact you carried a half-demon, Draconequus, and of all the things in these many layers of reality, a cursed undead skeleton. A Velite or some nonsense, was that the name for it?”

“Aye, ‘tis. But be kind to her. And be kind as well to the zebra folk… they have suffered as much as the ponies, and are no different. Four hooves, a mind and a heart and a soul, and a will to survive that matches that of any other living creature.” Luna paused reflectively, then added grouchily: “But if they all speak in rhyme such as Zecora does I may set the lot of them on fire, and drag them back across the Bifrost. ‘Twould be too much of an insult on top of the indignity that such creatures outwitted and outmatched me.”

Odin looked curiously up at the winged unicorn at this, tilting his head slightly. “So you did not bring those specters into this world by choice? I thought they were the results of another of your… odd moments of mercy, Brynhild.”

“Will thou cease calling me that? My name is Luna.” the winged unicorn said waspishly, and Scrivener smiled a bit despite himself as he rubbed a hoof slowly along her spine as Odin only looked at her patiently. “But aye, they slipped across the bridge after I had led the Pales through, but fortunately were not hostile. Only crafty and irksome, but… they seek to save their people. I cannot deny them that. I only wish I could save more souls…”

She quieted, looking down, and Odin smiled a bit as he spread his arms, saying softly: “As I learned myself too late, you cannot save everyone, and sometimes letting go… letting things pass on, letting the torch be handed down, or watching even those close to you fade away… it’s the better choice, in the long run. I was God of Wisdom, but I do not claim to know all the intricate secrets of this universe… I came into existence long after its creation, after all. I multiplied these layers, but I did not create the world… I merely planted the first seeds across Midgard and watched what grew, and tended to it as I could.”

He paused, then rubbed at the back of his head slowly as Luna looked at him quietly, seeming to soften a little as he gazed up at her with his single eye and smiled a little. “Listen to me, rambling again. An old, doddering relic, trying to remember his glory days, but they’re so far gone in the past the memories have become all too faded… or perhaps all too clear.”

“Yes, yes, old lecher, thou speaks of it often. Will thou not go away now, and return to thy rocking chair in Asgard or wherever it is thou finds thy scrawny self at home? “Luna asked irritably, and Odin grumbled a little under his breath as he looked at her irritably, and the winged unicorn gave a mutter of her own before she said grudgingly: “We shall be here at least for the week, Odin, we have time to… arrange a meeting later. Thou seems to little mind showing up as thou pleases at the door of mine home, after all.”

“One more question then, Brynhild, and I shall go.” Odin replied calmly, raising his hands, and Luna rolled her eyes… but then sighed and slumped, nodding a little as she looked moodily down towards the once-god. “On the subject of the Pales, and more specifically, bringing the Pales back their bodies… have you settled upon a course of action?”

Now Luna looked more hesitant than frustrated, leaning back a bit and exchanging a look with Scrivener Blooms as the male shrugged, their eyes meeting, thoughts and snips of discussion and other memories flowing back and forth before the winged unicorn sighed and looked back towards the falcon-headed once-god almost apprehensively. “Nay, we… we have not. I wish to consult with Greece upon this subject, or perhaps Roma. It… it is difficult, Odin. There is so much to consider… so much to measure, to calculate, to design with infernal preciseness, like we are doing complex science instead of utilizing instinctive powers that surge upwards from within.”

“True magic is a mix of both, Luna. Powered by the self, theorized by the mind and soul, but ultimately at its peak only when combined with strategy and intellect.” Odin replied quietly, gesturing towards them with a faint smile. “That’s why Freya was always so powerful. For all her ruthless passion, it was her sharp mind that made her the deadliest of opponents.”

“Oh, yes, Celestia’s always the better.” Luna grumbled under her breath, and then she sighed a little and shook her head quickly. “But if thou desires a guess all the same, I do not think one of Valthrudnir’s cards alone will do the trick. I hope it shall require only two, and not all three… for the Jötnar was incredibly powerful, whether or not he was also a… what is the word, Scrivener Blooms?”

“A douchebag.” Scrivener said mildly, and Luna nodded agreeably as Odin looked at the two with wry entertainment in his eyes. The earth pony hesitated for a moment, and then he glanced towards Odin, asking quietly: “Forgive me if I’m out of line, but… when you battled Valthrudnir…”

“A game of wits and wisdom, yes. Valthrudnir was always fond of his sick games.” Odin rubbed at the underside of his beak, looking down moodily into the reflective pool… yet it seemed to be not with anger, but with self-loathing, as he said quietly: “I should have been more careful, but I was arrogant. After all, I had outmatched even Ymir, hadn’t I? And this foolish Frost Giant wanted to play a game of wits with all our powers on the line. I was greedy… and I was prideful. And for the first few rounds, I was beating him, winning without any difficulty. It should have been obvious it was a trick but Valthrudnir… I never realized that he was not like the other Jötnar until too late. Despite the way he talked, the way he dressed, the way he acted, I thought he was just… a monkey in a suit, a barbarian only pretending to be civilized. No… no, I think we both know he really was the last, but all the same, that does not detract from his sharp and terrible intellect.

“Then everything turned. I do not know if he rigged his magic tokens somehow, but I fear that all he did was ensure the easy categories would come first… and then the questions became more pointed, sharper, and so much more dangerous. And I should have known from the start that it was a fool’s gambit to play against him: he was the designer of this game, after all, he was the one who wrote the questions, but I did not think he would know every answer. And he was cruel…” Odin closed his eye, turning his head away slightly as he murmured: “He could have killed me with ease, when the game was said and done. I was at his mercy, all my strength sapped. Oh, believe me, back then my first instinct when things began to go wrong was to grab my axe to cut the Jötnar’s grinning head off, but he couldn’t be intimidated. Before the duel, he honor-bound us to the game, and too late I saw why. If I refused to play his game, it would be surrendering, and too late I realized that surrendering in defeat, or defeated through his wits, it would have the same result: I would be drained and helpless. He had me at his mercy, and I knew the moment I lunged for him, he would be able to declare his victory, and I… I was not brave enough to risk it. If only I had taken the chance… to rend axe into his skull, to plunge spear through his chest, to rip sword through his neck, to have throttled him with bare hands alone. Everything could have turned out differently…”

Odin fell silent, and then he chuckled wryly, looking tiredly up. “But maybe not. Here I stand now, thinking that in the past an act of dishonor would have cleansed the future. It makes no sense, does it? But I have talked long enough now. You see the results of the battle before you, Scrivener Blooms and Brynhild. We have all tasted the results of Valthrudnir’s scheming. And I am terrified that even now, his machinations still move. Perhaps I am overestimating what he was capable of out of… out of an old man’s fear, but… I have uneasy feelings some nights…”

He fell quiet again as Scrivener Blooms and Luna traded a worried look, and then the once-god cleared his throat and slipped his hands in his pockets, turning around to gaze over the two ash trees: dissimilar twins, one standing as a pillar towards the sky, the other a great and gnarled snake. “Do not hesitate to ask for my help if you need it, either of you. Brynhild… you and Thor are really all that I have left anymore. And despite Thor… or as you prefer, your brother, Sleipnir… living in Valhalla… I do not see him as often as I like, with how busy everything has kept me as of late. You have my promise that if I can help you… I will.”

“I appreciate this, Odin, even coming from thee.” Luna said quietly, and Odin gave a small smile over his shoulder before the once-god simply shrugged a bit, then strode without another word towards the woods. As he passed the ash trees, one of his hands reached out and up, stroking over the bark absently as he walked by… and the gnarled tree creaked as it visibly swayed in response, twisting as if trying to follow the old once-god as Luna and Scrivener watched him vanish into the forest.

For a little while, the two ponies were quiet… and then Scrivener closed his eyes and dropped his face against the side of Luna’s neck, and she wrapped a foreleg around him, squeezing him quietly closer to her body as they curled together, comforting one another in the silence of the beautiful night, in a beautiful world, where all the same it seemed like their troubles were determined to pursue them.

Wicked Words In A Wicked World

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Chapter Seventeen: Wicked Words In A Wicked World
~BlackRoseRaven

Scrivener Blooms was back in the nightmare world, his sharp teeth grit as his half-wyrm, half-pony features contorted with frustration, claw scraping against the boggy earth as he stood in the middle of a blackened, thick forest. Overhead, stars gleamed callously like distant and ruthless angels watching mortals and demons struggling below as if they were only bugs, content and apart in the comfortable but icy heavens.

He could barely remember falling asleep: only that he and Luna had been curled together beneath the stars, their bodies close and comfortable and so warm, her mane spilling over them both… and then next thing he knew, he was here. He couldn’t sense Luna’s presence as he hurried forwards, cursing under his breath as he tore through a patch of brambles along the ugly, ashen floor of the forest, grimacing as he ground against the rough-hewn side of a tree with a wince of pain as he felt the sharp bark digging against both scale and charcoal coat.

Scrivy gazed back and forth as he shoved his way through the warped, dead forest, half-stumbling down a steep embankment and a boggier patch where the trees were sparser, rotten bones laying here and there across the earth as he hurried towards what looked like a clearing in the distance, shouting: “Luna? Can you hear me? Luna! I… even Nightmare Moon I’d welcome right about now!”

“Oh, in truth though, you welcome Nightmare Moon even more than Luna sometimes, isn’t that right?” mocked a familiar voice, and Scrivener skidded to a halt before he slowly stared to the side, looking with horror to see Valthrudnir leaning against a particularly large, gnarled tree. The dragon grinned and straightened, then he knocked firmly twice against the wooden trunk… and in Scrivener’s eyes, the vision flashed, the trees becoming mangled bodies of ponies that had been flayed and crudely pasted together, bones and limbs jutting in terrible jumbles in place of branches here and there, mishmashes of screaming faces standing out amongst the horrible pillars of the dead. “Welcome to the Forest of the Damned. But you already knew that, didn’t you?”

“Leave me alone!” Scrivener shouted desperately, but it came out childish, weak, as he staggered backwards… and then the mud on either side of him rose upwards violently, seizing him in thick, bog-dripping claws of rock and clay that made him feel as if his ribs were being crushed, gasping for air as a terrible, grinning face rose up behind him. Corruption and ooze dripped off it as its eyes glowed with unholy blue light, and its growls mixed with Valthrudnir’s laughter as Scrivy struggled weakly, then snarled and snapped: “This is pointless, this is just another bad dream!”

“You can be hurt in a dream though, can’t you? So calm down, Scrivener Blooms… before I show you how bad the nightmares can really get.” Valthrudnir replied smoothly, and then he reached out and knocked once against the awful ‘tree’ of tortured corpses, and they once more became nothing but rotten wood. A moment later, a polished black throne tore out of the ground behind the dragon, and he calmly sat back in this as he pulled two tarot cards out of his breast pocket, holding them up with their backs towards the pony as he said softly: “Besides, you should be thanking me. I’m giving you a glimpse of the future to be… not near, perhaps, but not as far away as you’d like, either. The future always comes without warning, after all… and claims its victims with the element of surprise and unstoppable, ruthless aggression.”

Scrivener gritted his teeth… and then he stumbled forwards in surprise, falling on his face with a grunt when the monstrosity behind him released its hold on him. He shook his head out with a curse, then began to push himself to his hooves… only to look up in surprise as Valthrudnir held a card down towards him with an icy smile, his amber eyes glinting malevolently. “The World. And believe me, you don’t have any idea just yet how scary and dangerous a place the most benign of worlds can be, even with everything you’ve experienced, pathetic little insect.

“But all the same, it’s a very fitting card for you. The Great One of the Night of Time…” Valthrudnir smiled, raising the card slightly as he leaned his head down, and Scrivener grimaced at the image: a black circle, with the profile of a winged unicorn that was clearly Luna in deep blue over it, and four different heads all in each corner of the card; he saw the faces of himself, Twilight Sparkle, Celestia, and Sleipnir, all looking towards that center world. “Brynhild has become a very important gear in the workings of these worlds and layers… it’s really too bad she has you slowing her down, giving her such an immense and easy-to-see vulnerability.”

Scrivener Blooms gritted his teeth, but he forced himself to calm down even as Valthrudnir laughed and tucked the tarot cards away before the dragon smiled and tented his fingers as the half-wyrm, half-pony slowly sat up on his haunches, the terrible bog-monster looming and rasping breaths in and out behind him. “Oh, I feel how much you hate me, little so-called ‘poet.’ I feel how much you want to hurt me, and the thought is really quite entertaining. But in a way, I’m responsible for giving you all those powers, and I’ve been thinking this last while… thinking that maybe, we started off on the wrong foot. We could be friends. Would you like to be friends? Or at least pretend-friends, so long as you acknowledge my superiority to you and more importantly, your absolute inferiority compared to me.”

“Why the sudden change of heart? I didn’t think egomaniacal megalomaniacs usually tried to extend the hand of friendship.” Scrivy said sourly, and Valthrudnir gave him a moody look as the half-pony, half-wyrm added flatly: “Furthermore, you’ll pardon me if I think you have some obvious ulterior motive. You’re only a world-destroying tyrant seemingly bent on annihilating all creation and replacing it with your own sick world.”

Valthrudnir looked insulted at this, leaning back and snapping immediately: “And what do you know about my plans, philistine? Did it never occur to you that perhaps the reason Odin’s worlds and ideals disgust me so is because they are the stuff of barbarianism and idiocy? Furthermore, look around you, Scrivener Blooms… this world is not my doing. This world is your doing… and yet you and Brynhild are supposed to be made the guardians of your pretty pony land? I have taken countless lives, and taken pleasure in that fact, oh yes… but I do not adulate myself with it like you do, and nor do I strive to relive the experiences again and again and again… and their deaths were always quick, only used to prove my superiority over lesser beings, who were my enemies. You? You would take friend and foe alike, creatures lesser, equal and greater than yourself, if you could, and do unspeakable things to them… and for all your hesitance and arguing and rationalizing and moralizing, you enjoy this depravity more than I enjoyed Ymir’s death, and I at least had reason to enjoy watching Odin slaughter that ignorant bully!”

“You did this to me, Valthrudnir, your Tyrant Wyrm was the one who stuffed countless millennia of suffering and evil and corruption into my head!” Scrivener shouted in response, but the Jötnar only grinned cruelly, and even in Scrivy’s own ears it sounded false and weak… and he gritted his teeth, clenching his eyes shut as he dropped his head low and whispered: “I’m not like you. I don’t glory in death. I don’t… I don’t want to hurt anyone…”

“More and more, I understand why you survived my pet’s corruption. Why if anything, it made you stronger… why you can utilize the Black Verses, and not die from them.” Valthrudnir said softly, leaning slowly back and looking triumphantly down at Scrivener Blooms as he tented his fingers, his rings glinting almost as brightly as his smiling, sharp teeth. “Just like I think I’ve come to understand why you and Brynhild became so close, so fast, and in such a mockery of romantic ‘love.’ It’s because, had you any power or prestige at all, you would never have even needed the aid of demonic influence to become just like Nightmare Moon, would you? And what a pretty, pathetic name that is… why not something with a bit more class?”

“Well gee, if I ever need to come up with a super-villain name for myself, I’ll make sure to run it by you so I know whether or not it appeals to the refined tastes of calculating masterminds like yourself.” Scrivener said dryly, and Valthrudnir gave him a disgusted look before the half-wyrm, half-pony began to turn away… then winced as the bog-monster slid quickly in front of him, the ground it extended up from rippling and rotting into sludge as roots and small rocks jutted hungrily up towards Scrivener Blooms, making him wince backwards a bit.

“Oh, we’re not done yet, Scrivener Blooms. I desire a conversation… and I shall get what I desire, one way or another.” Valthrudnir said softly, and Scrivener glared at him before the Jötnar smiled coldly as he spread his arms calmly. “There’s no need to make this unpleasant though, is there? That would be foolish on either of our parts: you may be confident that I cannot harm you directly in your mind, but how willing are you to test that theory? Likewise, I do not wish to antagonize you to the point where you become overly-hostile… I would far rather take this moment to talk. The intelligent, the cultured, the noble all converse… we are not barbarians like the Aesir, savages like the Vanir, or crude as the other Jötnar, are we? Nor did I think you were as judgmental and unsophisticated as the other brutish earth ponies were… but maybe I was wrong in that respect.”

Valthrudnir smiled mockingly, spreading his arms as he leaned down towards him, and Scrivener gritted his teeth in disgust before he glanced towards the corruption-monster, then returned his eyes to the dragon and said disgustedly: “You must be really goddamn lonely and pathetic to try and force me into a dialogue with you inside my own head.”

“Oh please, mortal, as if I didn’t expect you to try and insult my dignity. If anything, I’m a little disappointed that’s the best such a mighty and creative ‘writer’ like yourself can do.” The Jötnar retorted moodily, and Scrivener made a face before the dragon leaned back in his chair with a contrite smile. “Would you like a seat? Although in this world you should be more than capable of making one yourself, I am nonetheless gracious and glad enough to give your vulgar self a bit of a helping hand. I can be generous. I can be kind. And that is what this conversation is all about.”

“Ooh, look at me, I’m Valthrudnir and I’m talking about how great I am again.” Scrivener retorted, and the dragon fixed him with a dark look before the half-pony, half-wyrm snorted in derision. “I’ll stand, thanks. On my own four…” He halted, then awkwardly looked down at his claw, raising it and flexing it slowly. “Or… three… hooves, thank you. By the way, where’s Luna?”

“You should stop worrying about her. Since she would interfere, I have merely taken the precaution of disrupting the link between your minds for a short time.” Valthrudnir flicked his wrist absently, shaking his head in distaste. “Incredible how you can feel such concern for Brynhild when you’re the weak link, and you’re the one face-to-face with me at this moment and time… but you know, it’s not like you always have to be the weaker one.”

Scrivener growled at this, and Valthrudnir laughed in response, looking entertained as he reached into his suit jacket and produced a deck of cards, beginning to easily shuffle these as he continued in a falsely-sympathetic voice: “It must be terrible, after all. She does so much for you, and you’re so weak, so fallible, your only power stemming from the corruption that you constantly moan and whine about ‘poisoning’ you and your psyche, between the bouts of lucidity and courage where you acknowledge that you were damaged to begin with. I don’t envy either of you, putting up with all this nonsense between one-another… but tell me, and be honest, Scrivener Blooms. If you were offered a chance to be strong, would you take it, even if it meant becoming a monster on a leash?”

“I guess that depends who’s holding the leash, doesn’t it?” Scrivener replied sharply, and Valthrudnir almost looked impressed at this as the half-pony, half-wyrm glared at him challengingly. “Maybe in some ways, regulation and control is better than freedom, especially when you know it could easily lead you into doing things you’d only regret.”

“And this is why I wanted to talk to you, Scrivener Blooms. You and I may be dissimilar in many aspects, but there are points of fact we can agree upon… and when you’re not trying to test my patience by being as insulting as possible, I dare say there may even be the vestiges of a mind inside that thought-hollow skull.” Valthrudnir replied mockingly, and then he reached out and placed the deck of cards onto thin air, smiling coldly as it floated eerily before he quickly began to separate it into a straight line of different hovering piles. After a few moments, Scrivener recognized the formation as the dragon began to calmly play a game of solitaire as he continued with relish: “For you see, in my idea of a perfect world, there would not be all this… this wildness, this senselessness, this unnecessary… everything. Everything would have a purpose, a reason behind it… everything would follow the dictum of reason and order instead of irrational fluxes of nature, everything would be in symbiosis instead of driven by selfish primal instincts. My pets, the Tyrant Wyrms, are exemplars of this, are they not? Oh yes, they are destroyers, pure and simple… but that is exactly what they are programmed to do, and they do not permit anything to get in the way of this duty.”

Scrivener only made a face, looking with disgust at Valthrudnir, and the dragon gazed calmly back with a slight, patronizing smile as he arranged floating cards slowly into lines, air rippling eerily around the hovering cards as he said quietly: “Wouldn’t that be beautiful and right and good? Everything would work in perfect cadence with one another, maintaining an endless rhythm. The sun would circle at regular intervals, plants would grow and feed drones who would eat twice a day like clockwork, spending the rest of their time working for me or for the betterment of their species. They would have specific mating seasons and mating periods to propagate the species in the most effective manner, and any flaws of mutation or evolution would be weeded out. There would be no illness or disease, but they would all be programmed with specific expiration dates, and when they died, their corpses would be used as mulch and fertilizer for the flora. But there would be no flowers… I dislike flowers. They serve little purpose as it is, and in the world I envision there are no emotions to get in the way of my Drone’s subservience or serenity.”

“They wouldn’t be serene, they’d be numb, soulless… all you’re talking about is a world filled with gears and cogs, of clockwork and machinery. No choice, no freedom, no risk, no danger… no real life. Only you, likely sitting above it all and admiring what a beautiful little machine you’ve put together, with all its moving parts and different pieces… but it would still be nothing more than… than those perpetual motion toys where the beads click back and forth!” Scrivener argued, and Valthrudnir snorted in distaste as the male rose his claw with a snarl. “It would be hollow and pointless, even a control freak like you should be able to see that!”

“Really, Scrivener Blooms? And what about the opposite, a world like Ginnungagap without laws or rules, are you really saying that is a better alternative?” Valthrudnir snapped, looking down at him darkly. “You have a choice, a world of chaos, where barbarians will eventually take root and rule, or a world of law and order, which while premeditated, where every event is scheduled and predesigned, can at least be set in motion by a genius such as myself who will not leave the putrid animals to fend for themselves in wild worlds where they will ultimately destroy one another and themselves!”

Scrivener shook his head slowly, looking up at him coldly and replying quietly: “You were the one who destroyed and corrupted most of the layers, Valthrudnir. You were the one who did and caused all that. Echo or not, you should still know that… it was your fault.”

“I only hastened the inevitable, and for the greater good cause. Look at what you and Luna dream of, you ‘heroes’ of Equestria…” Valthrudnir snorted in disgust, leaning forwards over his floating cards and resting one arm against the air as it rippled as if he were leaning over a solid tabletop. “Not to mention the gods, disgusting filth that they were, too! Delighting in depravity, passion, and pointless brutality… please. You are all supposed to be above that, but you all prefer to mingle your disgusting bodies together and speak with violence instead of articulating yourself through poignant speech, which is so much the more effective and evolved course of action. But you all have primitive minds, that cannot grasp such concepts… and gods, monsters, and mortals below all seemed to think themselves somehow worthy of making their own decisions no matter what I decided or said. I am Jötnar: I am a superior being, with a superior mind. And if I must show it, far superior power as well… and in my world, beauty is not determined by physical perfection, strength is not determined by raw power, intellect is not determined by the sharpness of the mind: from birth, everything only is, all things are equal, and no gear in my divine system is greater or lesser than any other gear or cog or piece of puzzle, and how dare you think that there is something wrong with that, selfish, evil little tapeworm.”

Scrivener lowered his head, closing his eyes and shaking it slowly… and then his irises opened and he said softly: “You’re pathetic and pedantic, Valthrudnir. You sound just like an arrogant child who never got his way, but now that mommy and daddy are gone, is determined to do all the things they always told him not to.”

“As if you know anything about me. Do not psychoanalyze me, Scrivener Blooms. We’re done talking about me. Now, I want to talk about you.” Valthrudnir replied shortly as an eye twitched in visible frustration before he snapped his fingers, and Scrivy winced in surprise as a chair ripped out of the ground beneath him, knocking him flopping painfully back in the seat with a curse as he scrambled to sit up before the Jötnar looked down at his cards. He flipped over the top few cards of the deck… then picked all three cards up, showing the aces of hearts, diamonds, and spades. “Pick one.”

“Fine, I’ll be predictable and pick the ace of spades.” Scrivener retorted rudely, but Valthrudnir only smiled icily, quickly regaining his composure as he smoothly dropped all three aces to float by the other cards as he continued to play his game of solitaire, even as the half-wyrm, half-pony leaned forwards. “Do you even know how to play this game? All I see is you jumbling the cards up in one big mess. Also I’d like to go, this is getting boring.”

“Keep trying, mortal, but I know the way you work by now, and I will not allow your pathetic attempts to get on my nerves to work this time around.” the dragon said distastefully, and then he rose a hand and snapped his fingers as Scrivener began to open his mouth, and the earth pony winced as the snarling bog-beast slid in closer beside him, sending a gush of hot, rot-reeking breath racing over his body as brambles and fetid, ugly roots twisted and stretched slowly up along the chair. “I do not intend to get angry. Bear in mind that there will be consequences if I do, however.”

“For someone who claims to be trying to build a peaceful world, you sure seem to enjoy threatening to kill or maim me as often as possible.” Scrivener replied dryly, even as he grimaced a bit at the sight of the looming draconic bog-beast, not exactly eager to find out what would happen if the monster did actually attack him. “So what do I win, anyway?”

“A chance at insight.” Valthrudnir replied irritably, as he flipped another few cards over from the deck, continuing his calm game of solitaire even as his eyes focused in on Scrivener Blooms. “You have an obsession with death and destruction. With darkness, and monsters, and all the things that go bump in the night. You are enraptured by them... by their power, by their prestige, finding beauty in their ugliness just as you see ugliness in the beauty of daylight and all the things that cavort beneath the sun. You bitterly apply all the pains and frustrations you have lived through to the entire world, even though you know it's unfair: just as you know it's foolish of you to think so highly of most of the monsters you come across, just because you're married to a monster yourself... because you yourself became a monster long before you were marred by the Tyrant Wyrm.”

Scrivener made a face, looking away even as the dragon's gaze drilled into him, and then the Jötnar gave a cold smile as he leaned back against his chair, putting several more cards into place before he moved an entire row of alternating red-and-black cards to an empty space in the air, flipping over the top card on the deck beneath as he said softly: “It amuses me that you will sympathize with the lower class and the monstrous, Scrivener Blooms. I find it interesting that now that he is dead and gone, you sympathize even with Ignominious, and that you recognize both a sort of alien value in him as well as the fact that much of his insane actions were compelled by love... but it begs the question: why do you hate me so much?”

“Well, I don't know. It could have to do with the fact that you murdered everyone and seem to revel in genocide... and what sickens me even more is that 'genocide,' 'holocaust,' 'Armageddon,' these words can't nearly come close to describing what you did.” Scrivener replied coldly, looking across at the ivory entity as Valthrudnir only smiled almost mockingly at him. “Ignominious at least was insane, and came from a direction I could recognize... that I'm all too scared that I'm almost going down myself. You? You have... or rather, had ultimate power. And you squandered it all away trying to prove you were better than everyone, so you could build a clockwork world in place of Odin's. Here's a wild thought, Valthrudnir... why didn't you just make a layer or realm of your own, if you're so almighty? Why didn't you at least minimize the damage after you butchered the Aesir, and build your clockwork empire somewhere else? Why the hell did we pathetic little mortals become such a thorn in your side?”

Valthrudnir was silent as he arranged cards slowly out... and then he scooped up a row of alternating red-black cards in either hand before fanning them out with a cold smile: spades and hearts, arranged from black king to red two in the grip of one hand, and red king to black two in his other set of dexterous fingers. “Because to me, you mortals were an offense. Your creation, your existence... disgusts me. Do you see these cards? The arrangement is perfect, black and red, spades and hearts, highest ranking to lowliest single digit. You mortals are like a rainbow of colors, marked not with intelligent letters and symbols, but childish picture-drawings and bad imitations of alphabetical arrangements, not real A's and B's but ampersands and other forgotten, misused no-longer-letters. And if there is one thing I despise, it is lack of necessity.”

“Then you must hate yourself most of all.” Scrivener retorted, leaning back with a grimace as he looked down at the floating cards: Valthrudnir had most of the deck depleted, and diamonds and clubs arranged neatly in two rows, with a single remaining six of clubs sitting on top of a card that was still flipped over. “You're missing the last ace.”

“Please, this is only a small exercise to pass the time.” Valthrudnir looked at him irritably, snorting in disgust. “I never lose. The only reason I lost to you was because you cheated, filthy little animal. And furthermore, if we're going to talk about people who hate themselves, that list begins with you, slave pony.”

Scrivener looked up with disgust at the dragon, and the Jötnar grinned coldly. “Oh please, I don't have to be as erudite as I am to discern your mix of self-repugnance and self-hate that tinges everything you are, mixed with that lust and longing to have power... all so that you can feel as if you're worth something, not merely to dominate. And more than worth something to yourself... you wish to have value to Brynhild. In spite of her link to you, her thoughts and emotions, you still feel as if you are worthless to her, an anchor, a flaw, a weakness, a failing – and rest assured, Scrivener Blooms, you are all these things and worse to the Valkyrie bitch – and I look at you, and understand that this mortal concept of romance is a flaw that should be among the first things weeded out of the new, sentient races. I always knew that compassion, love, empathy, that these things were only weaknesses... unnecessary, breeding contempt, egoism, and imperfection among the mortal races.”

Scrivener snarled, leaning forwards as Valthrudnir looked at him with a cold smile, flipping over the two remaining cards in his deck... and then he made a face at the fact the ace was trapped beneath the seven of clubs. The eight of hearts was nowhere in sight... and the earth pony grinned sourly despite his anger as he said quietly: “Never lose, huh?”

Valthrudnir swept a hand out with a snarl, and the cards exploded upwards in a snow of paper through the air before Scrivy winced as the Jötnar seized him by the throat with both hands and hauled him into the air, glaring down into his eyes... but then he clenched his jaw and flicked his wrists in disgust, throwing Scrivener to the ground, the half-wyrm, half-pony gagging and clutching at his neck with horror at how real it had felt as Valthrudnir said contemptibly: “You chose the ace of spades earlier. The card commonly used to represent death, which is no great surprise. But does it represent death to others, or death to you?”

“I wish it could mean death for you.” Scrivener muttered, but Valthrudnir only grinned slightly in response to this, crossing his arms and giving him a contemptible look.

“Oh really? I'm not so sure about that, little pony. I think you're beginning to come around to the idea that maybe we can benefit one-another.” Valthrudnir replied softly, holding a hand out towards him as his eyes glowed, and Scrivener grimaced at the charisma in his tone... at the allure hidden beneath his words, as he looked slowly up towards the Jötnar. “After all, I would rather not die, and you want things that perhaps I can provide...”

“Leave me alone. Let me out of here.” Scrivener whispered, beginning to turn away... and he cursed under his breath as he found himself face-to-face with the bog-monster, the beast looming over him with a rumbling growl. “We've talked enough! Let me out!”

Surprisingly, Valthrudnir laughed behind him and replied, false kindness poisoning his agreeable tone: “Yes, perhaps we have. Brynhild is worried about you, anyway... she's been searching high and low for you throughout your nexus of thought and soul. Your nightmare world awaits... go have fun in your dark little den of inequity.”

Scrivener gritted his teeth as he began to turn... and then the bog-monster lunged towards him, the earth pony yelling in shock as its jaws descended and picked him up, then snapped him backwards, roots and vines twisting over his body and corrupt gunk splattering along the half-pony, half-wyrm's side as he howled in fear and pain as he felt himself crushed, swallowed whole, descending into terribly-warm darkness-

“Scrivener Blooms!” Luna's voice shouted, and Scrivy winced, looking dazedly back and forth as he shoved himself roughly up to his hooves, breathing hard and gazing around for the source of the sound as muck dripped off his distorted form... and then he grunted as the sapphire winged unicorn crashed into him and knocked him sprawling on his back, half-pinning him by the shoulders as she looked over him with concern, her luminous, ethereal mane swaying backwards as she drew her eyes worriedly over him. “Daydreamer, what hap-”

Scrivy impulsively reached up with his front claw, twisting it into her mane and grasping the back of her scalp, pulling her down into a firm, sudden kiss, and Luna's eyes fluttered in surprise before she kissed him roughly, passionately back for a few long moments, grinding her body down against his... and then a moment later, their mouths parted, eyes opening and meeting as a soft wind whistled past beneath the starry night sky, Luna framed in the sphere of the beautiful ivory orb of the moon above.

Then she grinned down at him with both relief and surprise, leaning over him and looking entertained as she pressed her hooves down against his shoulders, their noses almost brushing together as she said kindly: “Scrivener Blooms. Well, what has gotten into thee? I must say that either way I am very fond of it.”

“Well thanks, Luna.” Scrivener replied dryly, looking up at her with a bit of a smile even through the faint blush that tinged his features, claw slowly stroking down through her mane. Her ephemeral locks sparked against his gnarled digits as he closed his eyes and bowed his head, and Luna gently kissed his forehead as he murmured softly: “I just... I'm really glad to see you, that's all. Really... really glad.”

“And I am glad to find thee, Scrivener Blooms, and fairing better than I had worried...” Luna halted, gazing over him quietly as she studied him silently, then trailed gentle kisses along his face, making him smile and laugh a bit as her lips brushed against both charcoal coat and darker, rougher scales, until he finally pushed her gently back.

She slipped off him, the male climbing to his hooves and gazing down at her with entertainment as she looked back up, studying him with a slight smile before she reached out and brushed a bit of muck from his features, saying quietly: “It has never failed to amaze me, beetle, how thou can even discover trouble inside thine own mind. I swear that I take my eyes off from thee for a single moment and away thou art on some adventure and likely as not already in the claws of some misshapen monster.”

Scrivener snorted in amusement despite himself, and then he blushed a bit when Luna leaned forwards, feeling her reading into his thoughts and brushing gently through his memories as she murmured softly: “So thou did encounter a terrible foe once again. Art thou sure thou art... alright, Scrivy? I would not blame thee if thou wanted to awaken immediately, or needed a moment of respite, especially since thou art... well...”

“I'm okay, Luna.” Scrivener replied quietly after a moment, and he gave an awkward smile to her before he glanced down at his claw, raising it and flexing it slowly. “I think the egotistical bastard just wanted to hear himself talk for a little while... and well, try to burrow himself deeper into my brain.”

Luna nodded, then she glanced over him again before she shuffled a hoof against the ground, asking finally: “Would thou like me to assume the form of Nightmare Moon? I know it may be more comfortable for thee if both of us appear to be... well...”

“No, no, it's fine, Luna, this is... you don't have to ever change yourself for me.” Scrivener replied quietly, smiling a little as he gazed into her eyes softly, and the winged unicorn smiled back at him tenderly. “I know by now that... it's not what's on the outside that matters. It's what's inside... and whether you look like Nightmare Moon or not, you're still the same rude, frustrating, obnoxious, and slightly-sadistic mare I know and love.”

“I am glad thou knows me so well.” Luna replied dryly, and then she stepped forwards and headbutted him lightly, making the half-pony, half-wyrm wince back awkwardly before he bared his teeth at her, but she only growled playfully, showing off a mouthful of sharp fangs in return as her eyes flashed with mischief. “Shall we spar, Scrivener Blooms? 'Tis one of the truly delightful advantages of being able to meet in the dream world like this, after all: the ability to mangle and maim one another horribly without any actual damage done to the physical self.”

“Yeah, apart from the trauma done to my fragile psyche and the fact my ego still hasn't recovered from the last trouncing you gave me.” Scrivener retorted, but Luna only looked pleased with herself as she sat back on her haunches, and the male rolled his eyes before he groaned when she looked at him pointedly. “So. Despite the fact that we're in the nightmare together, laying in the middle of a dark forest in reality, asleep and helpless, and I just got dragged into a one-sided debate with an echo of a Jötnar in my mind... you think that you beating me up will help.”

“'Twill be good for thee.” Luna replied cheerfully, and Scrivener gave her a flat look before she added with a grin, leaning forwards: “I shan't use magic. Nor shall I lord the advantage of flight over thee.”

“Oh, yes, that evens things.” Scrivener rolled his eyes, but he could feel his resolve weakening all the same... and then Luna huffed and stamped her front hooves, glaring at him challengingly, and the male groaned and grabbed at his face with his claw before he pointed at her, saying clearly: “No mangling, pummeling me after you've clearly won, or breaking bones. We still both feel some degree of pain in the dream world and the sensation of my limbs being snapped like twigs is not cool.”

“Done, done, and I shall only break the smaller bones, then, and will do my best to avoid breaking the others... on purpose.” Luna grinned, leaning forwards as her mane sparked and her eyes glowed challengingly, and Scrivener reflected for a moment on what a physical creature the winged unicorn was. “Acceptable?”

“Only if I can reserve the right to cry like a little filly when you beat me up, and you aren't allowed to make fun of me for it.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna looked at him thoughtfully before nodding with a grunt. They faced each other for a few moments, and Scrivy couldn't deny the thrill rising in his body as he licked his lips, feeling a surge of anticipation, of excitement, of adrenaline in his body as Luna's eyes glowed and her horn shone faintly, their breathing roughening as they readied themselves, slowly backing away from one another to put a short ten feet of distance between them... and then Scrivener half-grinned, half-grit his teeth as he said sharply: “Go!”

Luna lunged upwards, her wings flapping once and launching her forwards before throwing a shoulder towards him, and the male immediately brought his foreleg up, catching her charge against it before he leaned forwards against her, applying a pinning pressure to stop her from knocking him backwards. In the real world, Luna's raw strength might have been enough to let her barrel forwards anyway and knock him off balance so she could start slicing her way through him, but in this mental world, where they both perceived him at least at the moment as larger, heavier, warped...

Scrivy gritted his teeth and shoved hard back against her, and Luna staggered backwards with a grunt of surprise before he lashed his claw towards her, knowing by now not to hesitate despite his instincts to the contrary... but Luna easily swept her horn out, cutting across his foreleg and making him wince as he cursed in pain, limb swinging back before she leapt forwards and smashed her skull into his, and Scrivener staggered backwards with a grunt before he felt Luna's forelegs seize him around the neck, then twist hard and throw him to the ground. He hit hard on his side, but rolled on instinct to carry himself quickly back up to his hooves, breathing hard as Luna flicked her head to the side with a wide grin and drew her eyes along his body with a lick of her lips. “Excellent. Now if only thou could be half as graceful in reality. These sessions of sparring in our dreams may be useful theory and helpful practice, but all the same... thou art nimbler and stronger here than there. It says something about thine ego, daydreamer.”

“Oh, yes, I'm the one with the ego problem here, Luna. Need I point out the fact that we're once more doing what you want in a dream world shared between us... of your design?” Scrivener leaned forwards, and Luna laughed before the male added meditatively: “In some ways, even I'm part of your ego, really. I mean, would I look like this if you didn't see me this way, too?”

He looked thoughtfully down at his claw... and then winced when Luna lunged towards him suddenly. On instinct, he did the only thing he could think of, reaching forwards and catching her by the horn... and Luna grunted in surprise before the male twisted firmly to the side and sent her staggering with a half-throw, half-shove, the winged unicorn barely keeping her balance before she lowered herself to a ready position with a grumble of: “Luck. Thou aren't smart enough to play like thou art off-guard, only to better ready thine attack. And even if thou did think of it, thou would only end up shortly flummoxing thyself.”

“Says the mare who just got caught by the horn.” Scrivener retorted dryly, and then he winced when she pawed a hoof against the ground and glared at him. “Just please don't hit me in the groin.”

“Now why would I damage the only valuable part of thine anatomy?” Luna asked dryly, and Scrivener glared at her, leaning towards her as she rolled her shoulders and tossed him a teasing wink. “How about thou takes the initiative for once instead of just letting thy mouth run, beetle? Show me thou art a stag and not a ladybug.”

Scrivener grumbled under his breath, knowing he was making a mistake even as he lowered his head and readied himself, body flexing, single wing stretching outwards... and then he looked dumbly over his shoulder at this, flapping the draconic wing slowly and easily as the bone, piston-like spikes standing out alongside his spine thrummed and pulsed, before he looked at Luna... and she looked just as surprised as him, even though a moment later she cleared her throat and said pompously: “Well of course thy subconscious took hold of my earlier suggestion and made it permanent to thee, I am the guiding force in thine life, as it-”

The male broke into a sudden charge towards her, and Luna winced before she dropped herself low, Scrivener looking at her with surprise before shot forwards and rammed herself upwards, smashing into his breast and knocking him back on his hind legs with a grunt of shock, forelimbs flailing at the air before the winged unicorn lashed a smooth cut across his body with her horn, and the male cursed as he was sent crashing onto his back. He rolled several times with a wheeze of pain, then managed to catch himself and glare at her as Luna laughed and clapped her front hooves together before dropping back to all fours, grinning widely at him as she leaned forwards and teased: “A less-than-noble try, Scrivy, but I applaud it all the same. Thou almost utilized the moment of distraction. But I fear such parlor tricks shan't work upon a mighty Valkyrie such as I.”

“I miss the days when you refused to believe you were a Valkyrie.” Scrivener muttered, and then he carefully pushed himself up to his hooves, cracking his neck with a grimace before he lunged suddenly forwards, stomping his front hoof towards her... but Luna quickly leapt backwards before she swung her horn in towards his face.

Scrivy tilted his head to the side, wincing as the tip of her horn scratched over his features as he swung his claw up and seized her by the throat, and Luna gagged in surprise before the half-pony lunged forwards, yanking her into the air before he slammed her down onto her back, then dropped his foreleg down against her throat, pinning her and choking her in the same instant. Luna didn't panic, however, swinging both rear legs up and slamming them into his stomach, and Scrivener wheezed as he barely managed to keep applying pressure from the first kick... but the second hard slam of her back hooves knocked him backwards and loose.

He grabbed at his stomach with one hoof, wheezing under his breath, knowing that even if it was muted in the dream world, Luna was still feeling some degree of his pain, as he felt hers... but the winged unicorn only panted laughter as she rolled to her hooves, her eyes sparking as she rasped: “Better! But all the same, Scrivener Blooms, thou needs to learn to draw on my knowledge during battle, not just at the beginning of it.”

“What I need is to learn how to fight myself, without constantly relying on mimicking you. If our mental link goes down or I can't get the time I need to concentrate and draw on your memories, then what am I going to do then?” Scrivener replied mildly, grimacing a bit at the thought all the same... and Luna softened visibly as she tilted her head towards him, their eyes meeting, memories and thoughts rolling between them and making the dream world shudder.

The black night trembled around them as the stars glimmered in the sky overhead, moon shining its ivory kisses over the two as they stood over rough-hewn, dark ground for a few moments, only surveying each other... and then Luna grunted and nodded, and she set herself as she said quietly: “Then learn, Scrivener Blooms. Thou has trained beside me for more than a decade now. What thou lacks most is confidence in thyself.”

Scrivener smiled a bit as he set himself, long tail flicking to the side as they readied themselves... and then Luna dropped into a charge, and the male gritted his teeth as he watched her, sensed her movements, before leaping suddenly upwards as she half-dropped herself... and Luna looked up in surprise... then grinned and launched herself upwards, tackling his stomach and using her wings to gyrate their bodies before she flung him hard down into the ground, shouting: “Do not dance, fight!”

Scrivener winced as he bounced backwards and Luna dropped over him... and immediately, he reached up and seized her horn with his claw, Luna wincing in surprise before she gargled when the male slammed a rear hoof once, twice, thrice into her stomach, then twisted and rolled on top of her, pinning her firmly beneath him with the full weight of his body, his claw firmly holding her by the underside of the muzzle. He breathed hard over her face as she panted quietly beneath him, their eyes meeting and locking together as he mumbled: “I knew you'd just have to land on me if you did counterattack. You're too aggressive sometimes, Luna.”

“I would much prefer to be too aggressive than too defensive like thou art, Scrivy.” Luna retorted, and she struggled a bit beneath him before adding meditatively: “I can strike thee firmly in the softest part of thine body right now if I wish, thou should understand. Get thee off me.”

“Not yet. This is the only way I can guarantee for five minutes you won't beat the crap out of me.” Scrivener muttered... and then he winced when Luna suddenly brought her hind legs up, shoving them into his stomach before kicking off as she twisted his body and forced him to roll, slamming him down onto his back and reversing the pin as he lay sprawled with a wheeze, staring stupidly up at her as she grinned down at him and held him in place by the shoulders.

“'Tis not the only way.” Luna replied mildly, and then she leaned down and kissed him for a gentle moment, and Scrivener couldn't help but kiss her slowly in return despite the circumstances, feeling an awkward flutter through his body before Luna drew back and sat up on him, looking pompously down at him. “And I am the victor, Scrivener Blooms.”

“What a surprise. I honestly hope you take all the pride in that you should.” Scrivener grumbled, but Luna only laughed, still seated on his broad body and looking down at him with a smile as the male awkwardly gazed up at her. “Can. Can you get off me?”

“No.” Luna paused meditatively, then leaned down, visibly softening as she added quietly: “And thou feels better, does thou not? Sometimes, the physical can outweigh the mental... concentrating on something else, exhausting the body, leaves more room for the mind to cope.”

“Yeah, but... this is all a dreamworld. Or a nightmare, depending on how you look at it... we're not really physical entities right now, this isn't physical damage, and neither of us bear wounds despite your damned horn and my claw.” Scrivener paused, then he reached up and stroked slowly over Luna's face, running his claws back into her ephemeral mane, feeling it tingling quietly against his digits and along his scales as she blushed a bit but tilted her head to the side as he added in a quieter voice: “Sometimes I wish I did have claws. Just because of the sensation of running your hair through them...”

“Shut up, poet!” Luna blushed deeply, and Scrivener laughed before she rose a hoof and stomped firmly down on his chest, making him wince and arch his back as his laughter was abruptly cut off. Then she grumbled a bit before flicking her mane, looking ruffled as she said moodily: “So, Scrivener Blooms. Shall we awaken ourselves from the nightmare, then? Or do we descend deeper into our dark imaginings for the moment?”

Scrivy began to open his mouth... and then he frowned a bit, looking quietly away as Luna looked down at him, and she sighed a little, reaching a hoof out and brushing gently through his messy white mane. “Oh, do not worry so deeply, poet. The nights in this world are comfortable and long, and nothing would dare attack us in the shadow of the soul of the forest that, like our old home, has already embraced us as its own. And thou... should not be afraid of who we are. Of what we are.”

“Valthrudnir... talked a lot about that, though. I'm scared he's right, that I am your greatest weakness... but not because when I'm hurt, you're hurt. Because... of this corruption spreading through me, exacerbating that... that darkness that may have been there from the start.” Scrivener replied quietly, glancing down... and Luna gazed at him silently as he shook his head a bit and smiled faintly, bringing his claw between them, his half-wyrm, half-pony features almost seeming to glow beneath the light of the moon as he whispered: “Look at me, Luna. At what I've become. You worry that you're the one who's pushing me towards evil... but what if really, I'm the one pushing you deeper into darkness?”

Luna shook her head slowly at this, and then she leaned down and said quietly but firmly: “Enough, Scrivener Blooms. Thou art letting thy mind run away with itself again, and 'twill not help either of us. I think thou even knows it... thou has that hangdog expression that thou always gets when thou knows thou art doing something wrong and yet cannot cease thyself.” She smiled a little despite herself and Scrivener looked up at her with a bit of a smile, and then she sighed a bit as she sat back and studied him quietly. “I shall say this now, and hope that I do not have to repeat myself again, though... even if we walk a path into darkness... I do not care. So long as we walk together, so long as we have one-another. I shall not abandon thee, thou shalt not abandon me... and even if we are destined for evil, we will always have one-another. And with one another, we will always be satisfied and glad... and why would we be bothered to hurt anypony, anything, when we have all that we desire between ourselves?”

Scrivener smiled a bit despite himself at this, looking up at her thoughtfully... and then Luna grinned widely, leaning down and half-lidding her eyes. “Not that I am against pursuing further pleasures, mind you... only that I would not be so inclined to take the pleasures of others away, or force them to adore me. Only thou shall be forced to adore me, handsome little poet. And possibly a few pretty thralls.”

“I hate you.” Scrivener said mildly, and Luna threw her head back and laughed before he shoved her lightly, and she stumbled off him with a snort of entertainment as the male picked himself up before the two glanced towards the distance, as the horizon seemed to glow and a black, enormous castle-city was silhouetted against the sky, made of gleaming, polished dark stone, towers looming high and battlements standing mighty and indomitable. They traded a look... and then Scrivener Blooms smiled a bit, saying quietly: “Let's look again then... at the world inside ourselves. Where the night has blessed this country, where the deep forest offers as much shelter as the towering stone city, and where even pain becomes pleasure.”

“And what could be wrong with any of these things?” Luna asked softly, and Scrivener Blooms smiled a bit as she arched her back, closing her eyes as her mane sparked quietly and twisted backwards, before the two glanced curiously to the side as they felt something, felt a twist in reality... and their gazes settled upon Nightmare Moon, smiling benevolently at them, her head bowed as her black pearl swayed slowly upon the regal necklace of dark roses.

“Beloved children... would you mind some additional company? I wish only to spend time with you... perhaps to make up, if I can, for my honest mistake with Scrivener Blooms.” Nightmare Moon said in her soft, gentle voice, and Scrivy and Luna shared a look... but then smiled despite themselves as the black-coated, enormous equine stepped forwards, looking affectionately over them both, standing a touch taller than Scrivener even in his distorted shape. “You hold no malice in your hearts. I admire this... I do not know if I could be so kind, even in this beautiful paradise, even knowing that I am sleeping in a world of safety and glory, beneath my ivory moon in my beautiful night.”

She paused for a moment, then strode forwards, and Luna closed her eyes as Nightmare moon leaned down and nuzzled her gently, before the tall, darkness-tinged creature slid smoothly past to share a gentle, chaste kiss with Scrivener Blooms. Then she smiled tenderly from male to female as she said lovingly: “Yes. I shall always be beside you both, sharing my wealth of knowledge and strength with you both, my delightful and honored children. But I shall not overstep my bounds... I shall not impose, for I know that would merely be an act of self-destruction, and I am dedicated to preserving all of what is between us... and all things in this world that acknowledge the glory of our night. But come. Let us act, not speak. Let us know each other through what we do... not merely what we say.”

Luna and Scrivener Blooms bowed their heads in silent agreement, and Nightmare Moon smiled as she turned, leading them towards the black city in the distance, Scrivener on one side, Luna on the other. They were three beings polished by darkness in a world of shadows and desire, mixed together for forever and a day, content in the world of night... and only wishing they could share the beauty of their shadowy realm with the rest of the wide, daylit world.

Friendships New And Old

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Chapter Eighteen: Friendships New And Old
~BlackRoseRaven

The newly-risen sun shone softly down over the black cottage, making it seem to all-but-glow as a soft wind blew gently past. It was the image of serenity, and inside, Discombobulation snored soundly, curled up in front of the still-crackling fireplace beneath a pile of blankets, several more pillows gathered around the Draconequus as he absently hugged one against his chest, drooling a little as Luna stood musingly over the chimerical creature.

Scrivener Blooms, meanwhile, was in the kitchen fixing coffee... and then he winced as there was a loud sizzling sound before Discombobulation hurriedly sat up, then groaned and grabbed at his chest as the blankets fell from around his shoulders before he glared at her, a short arc of electricity twisting along his body as the winged unicorn said kindly, her horn still glowing faintly: “Be not so angry, Bob. I easily could have simply set thee aflame, too. I assure thee, a little jolt is far less painful than fire or hoof.” She paused, then flopped down in the spot where Discombobulation had been laying, adding with a wink: “Thou hast my thanks for keeping this spot warm, though, 'tis my favorite.”

“Six in the morning and already the mare ain't right.” Discombobulation mumbled, and he rubbed slowly at his face as Luna gave him a wry grin. “Did you two come back before curfew last night? Or am I supposed to pretend I'm the stern parental figure and give one of you a spanking?”

“It depends on whom thou wants to spank, Bob. I may be a little more open to the notion than Scrivener Blooms, but if thou really wants to lay thy mighty hands upon the hindquarters of another male, I am sure we can work something out.” Luna replied seriously, and Discombobulation's jaw dropped as he visibly fought to come up with a retort before the winged unicorn leaned towards him with a wink. “Is that why thou art always so stuffy even when I flirt with thee?”

The Draconequus glared at her, and then he reached out and flicked the winged unicorn's nose with his eagle talon, saying grouchily: “As I recall, you were the one constantly trying to make a mare sandwich with Twilight Sparkle.”

“A mare sandwich! Delightful!” Luna threw her head back and laughed, and Discombobulation only looked all the grouchier at the joyful mood the winged unicorn was obviously in, grinning wider as her eyes gleamed in amusement. “Oh, take it not so personally, Bob, I feel very refreshed after my nap. Thou cannot begin to imagine what it was like sleeping out under the watchful eyes of the stars, dreaming lucid dreams with my beloved in the safe shadows of the forest's soul, without having to worry about being eaten alive by monsters or possessed by demons or the world being shorn asunder. I have awoken with renewed health and hope. Can thou not simply be happy for me, insufferable beast?”

“No.” Discombobulation replied in a surly voice, and then he leaned back as Luna only laughed again. Then he rubbed moodily at the back of his neck, adding tiredly: “Although... I suppose I do understand what you mean, Scrivener Blooms. I know that sooner or later I shall have to return to the sanctuary of my glass prison, but for now, I feel... hopeful. And whether or not I also feel nauseated and sore, I suppose the laughing fool was right. Treat the patient, not the disease, and you win every time.”

Luna smiled a bit at this, and the Draconequus fell into almost-brooding quiet for a moment before he looked up as Scrivener Blooms approached carrying a tray. Luna gazed warmly at her husband as her horn glowed, lifting it gently from his jaws, and the male smiled at her with relief as the tray floated slowly past the bedding and settled in front of the fireplace, loaded with three mugs of coffee, a bowl of sugar cubes, and a small pitcher of cream as well as assorted baked goods, jams and butter. “Excellent, daydreamer, thou has my thanks... oh, this is the most wonderful thing about this world. Being able to sit down and gorge ourselves upon sweet treats that otherwise are far too difficult to get our greedy hooves on... incredible that some of the Nibelung have actually learned to bake well enough to replicate the most delicious of baked goods once available in Ponyville, is it not?”

Scrivener gave he an amused look as he laid himself down beside her... then rolled his eyes in entertainment as her horn glowed and she tossed two cubes of sugar into two of the mugs, before adding a dollop of cream to one, then the other. Discombobulation watched the two thoughtfully as Luna fussed a bit over the food, and then the Draconequus said dryly: “A good wife is one who serves her husband in the morning like a mother does, loves him in the day like a sister does, and pleases him like a prostitute at night. It seems you have all three of those bases covered well, Scrivener Blooms.”

Luna paused in mid-spread of some jam over a muffin half, and Scrivener cleared his throat as Bob only calmly leaned forwards, picking up a cube of sugar before he popped this into his mouth. He rolled this back and forth loudly along his teeth before he sipped at his black coffee, and then Luna held up a hoof and said firmly: “Nay, thou may attempt all thee wants, but thou shan't spoil my mood today, Discombobulation. I shall merely thank thee for the insinuation that I am a good wife to my husband, even if thy chosen words are less than complementary.”

“And here I thought you were a fan of prostitutes.” Discombobulation remarked dryly, and Luna looked up at this with surprise... but then snorted in amusement and nodded a few times. “So, as I am curious and a little confused, and I enjoy knowing things that I really don't need to know since I'll be spending all my time here asleep, ignoring annoying ponies and pony-spirits, or trying to carry on intellectual conversations with volleyballs... what is it that you actually do here in this world that seems to need your presence as much as I need to have heard that the bird is the word?”

Luna shrugged as she sipped at her coffee, her horn glowing as she lifted two muffin halves with telekinesis, and Scrivener rolled his eyes as she nudged him firmly with a shoulder before he turned his eyes to the Draconequus and answered: “Not a lot, to be entirely honest. The Nibelung Architects are very detail-oriented and keep to a fast and tight schedule... originally, we used to help oversee Ponyville's construction, but now Ponyville's been completely rebuilt – along with the surrounding area and settlements – we mostly... concentrate on helping out if we're needed for some special construction somewhere, do little jobs for Odin, and spend the rest of our time fixing up our cottage here and getting everything in order. And I guess we talk with the Architects every now and then, too, but mostly our time is spent with the Chief Artificer, Greece... he's been working with us on ways to reconstitute the Pales.”

“Aye, 'tis a daunting task... I have seen incredible feats done with far less magic than Valthrudnir's so-called 'miracles' will provide, however, so I do not worry overmuch. And neither should either of thee.” Luna said firmly, then she ate the rest of a muffin half in one large bite.

Discombobulation looked at her as she chewed slowly... then he nodded and sipped calmly at his coffee before remarking mildly: “Interesting how it took the apocalypse for you two to be able to pursue the vestiges of a normal life. What a grand farce this has all been, however... and I still can't help but worry that the future holds even worse dangers within or without. For is that not the way of things? Time moves on, no matter what we do or say or want. Time moves on, endings trigger beginnings and beginnings trigger endings, and whose to say which is worse when so often, life lacks a middle? It's all well and fine and admirable even to think that the point is in the journey, not the destination... but can you deny that if every checkpoint along that journey leads only to destruction, depravity, death, or – if you'll forgive me the ironic pun – further discombobulation, then can you say that journey has been a good one?”

“Perhaps 'tis the hardest, most painful journeys that have the truest worth, Bob. Aye, the cost is high, the pain is great, but the experience for it? Even intangible as such things are, the experiences brought upon by sufferance are a thousand times more worthy than the experiences that come solely in pleasure, for joy teaches little.” Luna replied softly, glancing towards Scrivy and smiling a bit as she silently took one of his hooves in her own. “Happiness is a good and well goal, do not get me wrong... but I only know that when we are happy, we tend to forget how others suffer. We often become self-focused... we often begin to take things for granted when we are happy, and ironically, look for reasons to become unhappy, see the bad in things when they are far more right than they are wrong.

“And I have come to believe, like my daydreamer, that there must be a balance in all things, one way or another. I do not pretend to entirely know what this means, because I do not think Scrivener even knows what it means.” She smiled a bit at the earth pony, and he shrugged agreeably as Discombobulation sipped at his coffee and studied them thoughtfully. “It does not mean neutrality, that all things should be black-and-white, or live in eternal gray. Perhaps rather, only that everything will work out, one way or another.”

Discombobulation nodded slowly, then he reached down and picked up another sugar cube, tossing it into his mouth. He rolled it between his teeth again, then rose his coffee and said kindly: “I want you both to know that no matter what happens, it's always sunny in Phillydelphia. Cheers.”

With that, he took a deep drink of his coffee, then sighed a bit as he lowered the mug and added mildly: “Now if only I could find myself a goose to lay a few golden eggs. I'd like to skip the part about climbing a beanstalk and toppling a giant, mind you. Although maybe later we'll listen to the story of Snow White and the seven Nibelung... except I heard that Freya was always too good with dwarves, but they were never quite good enough for her.”

“Oh, the sick jokes thou tells. Except I shall be striving hard to remember that one for later use on my sister.” Luna replied thoughtfully, and Discombobulation gave a short, brisk nod before he shifted a bit and rested back against a pillow, sipping at his coffee again as the three sat in comfortable quiet together.

It was a nice breakfast: one of the most pleasant Scrivener could remember, as a matter of fact, and he knew Luna felt the same as she glanced towards the Draconequus every now and then with an awkward sort of pride in her eyes, her smiles relaxed and companionable as the chimerical creature every now and then gave some quip or easy remark he'd stolen from somewhere. To Luna, Discombobulation was like living proof that maybe all that had been stolen could be restored... and even though the Draconequus was tired, a little pale, and quite weak, he all the same seemed determined to survive and like he, too, had been infected by the hope that always spread through both of the ponies whenever they were in this Looking Glass World.

When breakfast was done, the mugs and tray taken away, most of the food eaten, Discombobulation shrank down and allowed Luna to guide him back to his bottle, promising that she would look for 'better lodgings' for the Draconequus while they were in town. Then, before anyone could argue with her, she removed a can of cola from the cold box, cracked it open, and filled the bottle most of the way up with the liquid, leaving Discombobulation moodily floating amidst the foam as Scrivener sighed and finished wrapping up the leftovers as Luna grinned and cheerfully guzzled the rest of the cola from the can.

They spent the next few hours working on the cottage, first concentrating their efforts on finishing off the roof, then doing a bit of work around the far-from-finished bedroom. Once Luna felt satisfied that they had done enough – or more accurately, she lost interest in what they were doing – they headed into Ponyville to find out whether or not Greece had returned, and to see if they could find any traces of Zecora or Pollen, since the Velite seemed to have left the wagon some time ago.

They came across the Velite at the edge of Ponyville, however: her new bones glinted, stark and polished white compared the marred and damaged older bones that made up the rest of her body, and she smiled at them awkwardly as they approached and sat down beside her, looking past the low, but well-constructed fencing surrounding the village: not enough to stop intelligent invaders, but higher than the average pony stood and more than ample enough to keep most wild beasts and most of the lurking creatures that slunk through the night out. “Hi... I didn't see either of you around last night. I hope you don't mind I decided to... wander a little.”

“Not at all, 'tis what I hoped thou would do.” Luna paused, then glanced up towards Ponyville, at the open gates, hearing the faint sounds of construction, but the loudest noises came from the wildlife in the Everfree Forest at their backs, from the wind in the trees, from the thrum of nature as birds flitted overhead and the sun warmed their bodies. “The Nibelung won't hurt thee, thou should know. And if they so much as mock thee I shall pummel them. 'Tis not their job to mock thee, 'tis mine.”

“Thanks Luna.” Pollen smiled awkwardly at her, then she shook her head and glanced towards the fencing, saying softly: “No, I've been sitting out here, watching, because... there, see?”

Luna glanced up... and softened as a group of Pales flickered into existence: three foals that ran by, ghosts that seemed to laugh all the same as they ran through the grass, like they weren't aware they had passed on... but Luna and Scrivener knew they were. The Pales were happy here, though... taken from a nightmare world into a paradise that was slowly becoming a replica of their old home, where what they had known as enemies now worked as allies, and perhaps sought penance in their labors... and Luna knew that somehow, the spirits even knew the hints of rebirth were in the air.

Scrivener smiled faintly despite himself, reaching a hoof up and rubbing it slowly along Luna's spine, and she took a slow breath before gazing up and saying softly: “The Pales are not usually visible here, Pollen, because they... they 'settle.' Oh, I could jar them all out of the ether if I wished, perhaps, with a well-placed spell... but why not let them sleep and rest and relax in this place for now? And admittedly, it can be very hard at times when they do make themselves known... I have seen my beloved sister Celestia, and I have seen my beloved... friend... Twilight Sparkle... and many others all here, too. They do not look at me with blame in their eyes for what happened, but... in some ways that hurts the worse. For I do blame myself over the things that have occurred, Pollen. I cannot forgive myself for allowing my friends, my family, to have died as they did... while I and Scrivener Blooms survived, all because we piqued the curiosity of a wretched Jötnar, and for no greater reason than that. Just as all was almost destroyed solely for the sake of that same foul Frost Giant's wretched ego.”

She stopped, moodily looking towards the grasses for a moment before glancing up and smiling a little as the Velite looked at her and fidgeted a bit. “But 'tis alright, worry not, my friend. When everything is put right, then the guilt, the pain, and the self-loathing will all vanish as well, for none can hold themselves or another accountable for a mistake that is rightly-mended. Or perhaps I am only becoming an idealist, and hoping that all sins can be forgiven, all crimes paid for, and even the darkest of souls redeemed... I think the problem always has and always will be time, more than anything else. Too few of us have the time to make up for what we have done, have the time to repair what must be fixed, have the time to wait out anger, sorrow, and hatred's toil. But we have time in plentiful supply here, Pollen.”

Pollen nodded a few times, rubbing absently at her glistening-white foreleg... and then she looked back up towards Ponyville, asking curiously: “What about that zebra? Did you guys see her at all, or...”

“Zecora can more than take care of herself, from what she has shown... and it sounded as if she had plans of her own to attend to.” Luna paused, glancing meditatively towards Scrivener Blooms as she asked curiously: “What does thou think, daydreamer? Should we leave her be, or seek her out and perhaps help ourselves to her potion supply? All as a means of welcoming her to Looking Glass World, of course. Nothing is more welcoming than a delightful prank.”

“I think you're just mad about the whole shadow-thing.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna grumbled a bit under her breath before he smiled towards Pollen. “Don't worry, Pollen. She won't judge you or anything. Anyway, let's head into Ponyville together, maybe we'll even run into her... have you seen any of the Strange Ones yet?”

The Velite shook her head quickly, then added hurriedly, as the three started towards the open gates: “At least, I don't think so. Just Nibelung, Pales, and some wild animals... and I thought last night I saw something like a Phooka. We saw lots of Phooka where I come from... when... when I was alive, I mean, before... before everything that happened. They used to move in big packs, and there were all kinds of stories about them even before everything got so... so...”

“Dark.” Scrivener supplied, and Pollen nodded with a bit of a laugh as they walked into Ponyville, the trio gazing back and forth before the earth pony said softly: “Well, things are still going to be a little... dark... in this world, a little wilder, a little more dangerous... but all the same, we're hoping for a... a middle ground between peaceful, placid Equestria and the wildness and darkness that everything descended into. Not because we want to see ponies suffer... but because we want to see ponies prosper without having to rely on everything being all-but-handed to them.”

Pollen nodded a bit, and then she glanced curiously at the two, asking: “But then, does that mean you brought Phooka and all those things across too, so there's always going to be... monsters in the world?”

“Oh Pollen, no matter what world you go to, sadly, monsters shall always already exist there.” Luna replied with a slight, cryptic smile, and then she shook her head and and continued in a more serious voice: “Nay, there are already shapes of shadow here even in this world. No ponies, perhaps... but dragons, Phooka, hydra, manticore, and countless other things all exist. The same magic works here that worked across our Equestria... if anything, it seems to resonate all the louder in this place, for reasons I cannot begin to guess at.”

“And yet you'll try, anyway, won't you?” asked a mild voice, and the three looked up as they stepped into the center square of town in front of the now-completed library to see the Architect from yesterday in his flowing robes standing moodily next to another Nibelung with cut-down tusks that grinned at them as they approached, a thick jacket of heavy rawhide loose and open over his chest and a kilt of the same rough material around his waist as he leaned forwards with a wink. “I heard you were looking for me.”

“Aye, Greece, and 'tis a pleasure to see thee. 'Tis not a pleasure to see thee, though, Illyria, why art thou not supervising the work crews?” Luna glared at the other Nibelung, but the Architect only rolled his eyes and grumbled under his breath. “Oh, fine, I shall permit thy presence if thou does not be a pain. Greece, does thou have time to discuss some business?”

Greece smiled, reaching up and rubbing at the nub of one tusk absently, his dark blue eyes warm and his reddish-black fur almost glowing beneath the light of the sun. “Of course I do, fancy-corn. About contacting Odin, your home, or the Pales?”

“All three, but hopefully we shall avoid the subject of Odin as long as possible.” Luna grimaced a bit, then she shook her head and explained: “I am still uncertain as to how to proceed with the Pales, and it is admittedly wearing on my patience that all courses of action seem to rely heavily upon the favor of fortune. Furthermore, with so many Pales of pony, zebra, and a few others... I wonder if Valthrudnir's miracles will contain enough power alone to grant all of them physical shells. Furthermore, I wonder as to the implications... if the soul is made physical, what will happen? Will they become as they see themselves, or always imagined themselves to be? Will they remember all that happened, and wear the scars of the journey upon their bodies, or will they instead forget, and be as newborn children whom will have to be raised anew all over again?”

She shook her head slowly, Scrivener giving her a soft look, and Greece nodded before he quickly reached a hand up and held Illyria's muzzle shut before the Nibelung could speak, the Architect glaring at the fellow Nibelung as the Artificer said kindly: “Worry not, Valkyrie fancy-corn... or Luna, as you prefer. Myself, Roma, and Illyria here should be more than enough to figure out the calculations, and we have other Architects we can contact if necessary, too. It would help if we could get a measurement of the energy emitted from what you call the 'miracles,' though... they come in the shape of cards, yes? Perhaps Roma could do this... his specialty is enchantment, after all.”

“Perhaps, but I would honestly prefer thee to do it, Greece. Thou art less swindling than Roma and less obnoxious than Illyria.” Luna shot the last mentioned a glare, and Illyria looked back at her with irritation as he finally shoved Greece's hand away from his muzzle. “Besides, Greece, thou art excellent with magic and relics. These cards are more like artifacts that contain vast quantities of unshaped power, and that is more in thine range of specialty, is it not?”

Greece nodded thoughtfully, looking a bit embarrassed all the same as Illyria muttered under his breath, and then he nervously picked at one cut-down tusk before saying slowly: “Well, would you agree to Roma and I taking a look at the cards together, then? And under your supervision of course, fancy-corn. I am not confident that alone, I can assess such powerful artifacts accurately.”

Luna smiled a bit, trading a look with Scrivener Blooms... and when the male nodded, she returned her eyes to the dwarf and said kindly: “Of course then, Greece. 'Tis more than fair enough, and take the time thou needs to prepare... we will be here at least a week, waiting for the Bifrost to stabilize. Perhaps whilst thou art out at my cottage thou will also indulge me and aid me with setting up a few unnecessary luxuries for my home.”

“Of course, it would be my pleasure, Luna.” Greece bowed to the winged unicorn with a smile, then he straightened and gave Illyria an amused look when the Architect glared at him with exasperation. “It's not a problem to be nice, friend Illyria.”

“Yes, yes it is. In our society, the Valkyrie would have been nothing greater than a Guardian, or perhaps a metallurgist with her abilities, but we pride ourselves upon our minds, not weapons and warfare. That is why we remain superior to the barbarian Nibelung.” Illyria retorted, tapping his temple a few times, looking torn between frustration and a strange sort of meekness, raising his hands and then cursing under his breath as he suddenly deflated. “I just wish you would take your position seriously.”

“I know, I know.” Greece smiled consolingly, reaching up and patting Illyria on the head, and the wolf-pig almost snorted steam through his nose as he gave a glare of horrible frustration to the much-more-relaxed dwarf. “Still, if you didn't take these traditions so seriously, I'm sure even fancy-corn Luna would be kinder to you.”

“Nay, I would not, for the foul creature would still be obnoxious and lacking a sense of humor.” Luna remarked mildly, and Illyria crossed his arms grouchily as Greece gave her a half-pleading look. Luna, however, only sniffed disdainfully, arching her back and adding imperiously: “Furthermore, thou art wrong and thou knows it, Illyria. Thee and thine fellow Architects, whatever their specialty – engineering, enchantment, and all that like – would all bow to me before the end of the day 'twere I interested in gaining some sort of rank in thine great pig-pack. Oh sure, all of thee can think and 'tis a nice change from the usual Nibelung, who think only with their mallets and axes, but I can do magic without the aid of tools or supplements. Go ahead and lord thine ability to build and design and decorate, pretty prancing dwarf. I can set everything thou builds aflame and mash it all into the rotten earth with my hooves should I so desire.”

“Oh because there is so much nobility in that.” the Architect retorted, and Greece sighed and dropped his face in a hand as the two glared at one another, before Illyria grumpily crossed his arms and added moodily: “What if we built signal amplifiers? Echo-boards to boost the powers of... whatever magic you settle on to give these Pales physical bodies? Not that I care... but I look forwards to the day when I do not have to wake up in the morning to find ghosts wandering through my room, and when I don't have to worry about superstitious lesser Nibelung bringing my construction sites grinding to a halt because several Pales pass through it and they all have to do some silly little ritual to stop the bad omens from coming true or we'll all be gobbled up by the Black Wolves of Helheim.”

Luna snorted in amusement at this, but then she looked thoughtfully over Illyria before sighing and saying grudgingly: “Well... as little as I like to admit thou has had a good idea.... thou has had a good idea, dwarf. Aye, I shall speak to Odin myself upon this subject, as a matter of fact, and see what he thinks. Perhaps he also has designs from Asgard that he can share with thee... but I do not claim to remember much of that far-flung past.”

Illyria grunted, but he looked pacified and pleased all the same as he nodded once before Greece smiled and gestured at them, saying kindly: “See now? When we put our heads together, fancy-corn and Architect alike, we all do much better.”

“Shut up, Greece, I no longer like thee.” Luna said flatly, but Greece only laughed before the winged unicorn shook her head and asked curiously: “What about Canterlot? How does it stand?”

“The deterioration there is worse than I'd imagined... I was going over it with Illyria just before you arrived, as a matter of fact, to get his opinion on the subject.” The wolf-pig gestured towards the robed Nibelung, and he grunted and nodded, but looked more serious than smug. “It will require years of effort to reconstruct... much of the labyrinth of tunnels running throughout the mountain structure has collapsed, turning the castle and surrounding area into a deathtrap. And while you know much of the city itself had long since fallen apart, we lost another section of it yesterday to landslides and... the simple fact that our attempts to repair the ancient stone are doing more harm than good right now. It may be a shorter – and safer – process to simply demolish and rebuild from scratch, fancy-corn.”

“Aye, it may be, but as much as I loathe Canterlot I do not wish to destroy it, either. We are here to save and salvage, Greece... it may be easier to rip the whole thing down, but... somehow, I do not like the idea.” Luna shook her head after a moment, then she smiled as she met the Nibelung's eyes. “Besides, we have time. 'Tis well and fine if the Pales awaken and Canterlot still lays in ruins, too... 'twill make it all the more convincing that they have all narrowly escaped some dreadful fate, however they may come to awaken.”

Greece rubbed absently at the underside of his muzzle, then he traded a look with Illyria, who sighed and shrugged. “Don't look at me, Artificer, you're the higher rank here.”

“Oh, I wish you would stop thinking like that.” Greece grumbled, then he sighed and nodded, returning his eyes to Luna. “But as you wish, Luna. Odin told us to obey the flying fancy-corn as we would him, after all. Furthermore, after seeing what you're capable of, none of us are exactly willing to go against your orders. Right, Illyria?”

“Yes, yes, yes, right.” Illyria said disgustedly, waving a hand and muttering moodily: “Barbarian Valkyrie. Physical might alone will only lead to death in this world.”

“All roads lead to death eventually, Architect, 'tis only that some paths are shorter than others. Thou can live all thine life in a safe and guarded bubble, and Death will still find thee when the time has come for thou to be taken away... the only difference is that cowards who hide from life are thrown down to Helheim, and the Reaper treats them with haste and disdain, while the brave and the bold are granted prosperity in the Vale of Valhalla, and Death will walk with them as friend to the next life. He may even allow them to linger a moment of their passing depending upon how they died, granting them one last act before they pass on.” She paused, then leaned forwards and grinned as her horn glowed, her ephemeral mane sparking slightly. “Furthermore, I do not have just my hooves and my horn. I also have lightning, fire, and a plethora of far-nastier magic at my disposal.”

Illyria leaned away at this with a grouchy look as Luna glared at him, then she sniffed and sat back, returning her eyes to Greece. “Finally, on the subject I am least fond of, I must contact the old lecherous cyclops as well. Does thou know where he abides?”

“I spoke with him a few hours ago, and he mentioned heading out to check the traps in the wilderness.” Greece shrugged a bit as he glanced over the two ponies and the Velite thoughtfully. “You can probably catch him out there, if you hurry... but then again, I know you're rarely in a hurry to see Odin.”

“Aye, but dealing with him is often like ripping off a bandage. 'Tis best to do it quickly and get it over and done with.” Luna replied in a grumble, and Greece smiled despite himself at this before the winged unicorn sighed and dropped her head forwards moodily with a grunt. “Come, Scrivy, let us go and find the lecher, then, playing with his big-boy toys. Greece, would thou mind looking after Pollen for a little while? She is nervous despite the fact most of the Nibelung are far too dumb to be a threat to her.”

Scrivener was sure that Pollen would have blushed if she could, fidgeting awkwardly, and the dwarf smiled before he nodded, saying kindly: “It is no difficulty at all... Pollen, yes? Perhaps you can help me with some engraving work.”

Pollen mumbled a little, shifting a bit, but then she nodded and said nervously: “If it's not any trouble, I mean, I'm sure I'll be fine either way... it's... it's not like anyone's going to burn me or anything.”

“Not until we must.” Luna replied agreeably, and Pollen looked at her and shifted awkwardly again before the winged unicorn nodded briskly. “Then our business is finished for now, Greece. I shall find thee at some point again, and if I do not, then simply head out to my cottage in a day or so when thou art ready and I am sure we will meet there. 'Tis not as if there stands much to be done, after all.”

The Nibelung nodded, and Luna and Scrivener both gave Pollen a smile before the winged unicorn turned to leave and the male fell into step behind her. The Velite waved awkwardly at their backs as Illyria grumbled under his breath and Greece gave a cheerful 'farewell!' and sketched a salute to them.

The two ponies walked quietly and calmly through mostly-empty Ponyville, side-by-side, bodies almost touching as they traded looks and emotions in a swirl between them... and then Scrivener winced and arched his back as something ground firmly along his spine, skidding to a halt as he shivered before glaring over his shoulder as Luna shot a sour look at the floating Pale of Pinkamena, the half-demon grinning widely as she licked her sharp teeth slowly and looked down at them with entertainment. “What, has thou already succeeded in alienating thyself from the other Pales?”

Pinkamena only laughed silently as she floated backwards, rolling once in midair before she gestured easily outwards with a hoof, the two ponies glancing forwards and then both staring as nine Pales flickered silently into being in a line in front of them, hazy and indistinct, shimmering with frost... but memory filled in the details, memory was enough to make them almost real as Luna whispered: “Oh, most honored friends... darling Twilight Sparkle... beloved sister and cherished daughter...”

The smallest Pale stepped forwards first, smiling faintly, gazing up at them tenderly, without sorrow, without malice, without blame... and without forgiveness, because in her eyes, there was no wrong to forgive, no matter how both Scrivener Blooms and Luna faulted themselves for what had happened. She was beautiful, her eyes so red they almost glowed, and she mouthed the words 'I love you, Mom and Dad' before she flickered out of existence.

“We love thee as well, Scarlet Sage. Always and forever, our daughter... always.” Luna whispered in reply, and then she laughed faintly and shook her head quickly to clear it, looking up with a faint grin despite her over-bright eyes as two more Pales stepped forwards. “And what an embarrassment to allow thee to see this side of me, Rainbow Dash. Although thou could always seem quite the mare still thyself, for all the evidence to the contrary.”

The Pale of Rainbow Dash laughed silently, tossing his rugged mane as he grinned widely: proud and tall and strong, he stood side-by-side with another pony who shook her head with a quiet laugh and nudged the fellow Pale gently. The two traded a quick look, smiles on the faces of the shades before they gazed forwards, and Scrivener and Luna gazed back before the earth pony said softly: “I'm glad you're still there to take care of him, Applejack. You two look happy together even now. I think it's almost enough to make Luna jealous.”

Luna laughed at this as she grinned with entertainment at her husband, and AJ and Rainbow gazed at them with warmth before the two Pales faded out and allowed another two to step forwards. One was a unicorn... the other, however, was a young dragon, his ghost a little more solid, tinged faintly with grayer hues and not emitting the same frosty cold that the pony Pales did.

The unicorn Pale flicked her corkscrewed mane, smiling at them softly as the dragon rose a hand and waved awkwardly at them, shuffling a bit on the spot before Scrivener said softly: “Another couple to make you jealous, Luna. They look good. And they're about as odd a pair as us, huh?”

“Aye, jealous... but happy, all the same. Happier than I can say, to see proven again that nothing can stand in the way of love.” Luna replied softly, not taking her eyes off the two as they both smiled, then bowed their heads to her... but the winged unicorn only laughed before she silently bowed herself low in return, saying quietly: “Nay, bow to me not, friends. If we are not equals, then truly thou art the greater... thou has given more to me than I could ever pay thee back, and done more for Equestria, and more importantly, for thine friends and loved ones, than I ever have been able to give myself.”

Scrivener bowed down as well after a moment, and the Pales of Rarity and Spike looked honored and touched before their eyes roved to one another, and the two shades smiled before flickering out of existence. And when Scrivy and Luna rose, they faced another Pale who gazed at them almost shyly as the ghost fidgeted a bit, then rose her head, studying the two tenderly.

They looked back at the Pale of the Pegasus as she slipped a little closer towards them, and Luna and Scrivener both softened before the winged unicorn said in a tender voice: “Fluttershy, of all the ponies I have known, thou wert always the most gentle, the most kind. And in that, that matchless grace and compassion... such strength thou had. Such resolve, in spite of thine awful upbringing. Such grace, that could tame the most savage beast.”

The Pale shifted with a faint smile to them, humble, beautiful, before Scrivener added quietly: “I'm glad to see you safe. We're not going to let anything interfere with that this time... now, we promise to look after our friends, to be as kind and generous, as you have always been yourself.”

Fluttershy smiled again... then she flickered out of existence, Scrivener feeling both warmth and the faintest twinge of guilt as memories of Sol Seraph twisted through his mind; before Luna could even look towards him, though, a pony Pale sprung forwards and skidded to a halt in front of them, beaming with such radiance it seemed to make the air around her shimmer with more than simply frost, as Pinkamena floated grumpily over and dropped to her hooves beside the Pale, a dark reflection of the bright and happy pony. Parallels, in some ways opposites, but in so many more ways so much the same... and Pinkie Pie laughed as Pinkamena sighed and threw her head back as if in exasperation, trying vainly to hide the smile that lit the half-demon's features all the same.

Then the twinned ponies both looked forwards, and Luna shook her head and said affectionately: “I still believe thou art both insane, so we are clear upon the subject. But thou art good for each other, too... and even with thine endless enthusiasm, I do not remember thee being nearly as cheerful as this before, Pinkie Pie. But I am thrilled to see it... and Pinkamena, lie not to me, I know thou art happy to be here thyself.”

Pinkamena shifted with a grumble as Pinkie Pie looked towards her twin warmly, then leaned over and nudged the dark-tinged Pale lightly with her shoulder. Pinkamena blew a silent raspberry in return, but then she sighed and nodded grudgingly, and Luna nodded firmly as she looked from one to the other before saying softly: “Treasure thy sister. For there is truly nothing more valuable than loyal and loving kin.”

Pinkie Pie nodded firmly as Pinkamena glanced awkwardly away, before wincing when the happier pony Pale threw a foreleg around her neck... but then the half-demon sighed and dropped her head forwards with an almost-embarrassed smile before the twins faded from sight, leaving only two last Pales standing and facing them. Luna gazed at these spirits quietly, then she and Scrivener Blooms both rested back on their haunches as the last Pales looked at one another, seemed to trade some silent dialogue between them... and then the smaller of the two smiled faintly and stepped forwards.

A winged unicorn, her horn tall, her form as large as Luna's, her eyes so alive even now... and the two living ponies smiled faintly before the Pale sat quietly across from them. She was beautiful even now... but more than that, she had always been driven, compassionate, sagacious; Luna had admired her, loved her, applauded her triumphs and helped to catch her when she fell.

But it was Scrivener who spoke first, the earth pony leaning forwards and saying in a gently-teasing voice: “Not driving you too crazy to be unable to control every little thing now, right? We'll clean up the Nibelung hair out of the library before we bring you back, don't worry.”

Twilight laughed silently, then gave him an amused look, and the earth pony only shrugged a bit before he said softly: “Hey, I'd be a hypocrite if I let a little thing like death come between us, right? Don't worry, Twilight... one day you'll be back and able to hit me and shoot magic at me again, just like the old days.”

The Pale nodded firmly at this in agreement, and Luna gazed warmly from her husband to the ghost before she said softly: “Aye. That is right... and 'tis amazing that it is thee of all ponies managed to find the positive note instead of harping upon the cynical.”

“I can always do that later, Luna... besides, it's much more fun to crush hope after building it up as high as you can. Like knocking down a tower of building blocks.” Scrivener smiled despite himself as he rose a hoof, and the Pale of Twilight gave him an exasperated look as Luna laughed and shook her head in wry entertainment.

Then the two looked back towards Twilight, and Luna's smile toned down to a softer, affectionate expression as she leaned forwards, saying quietly: “As always, I want to renew my promise to thee, though, Twilight Sparkle. I want to once more say that I am going to make things right... that everything will we okay in the end. And I want to apologize again for all that thou suffered, everything thou wert put through, even if I know well thy response by now. A shake of thine head, concern for me I do not deserve, never-wavering trust and loyalty and kindness. But let me speak these words, and nod for me: if not because thou believes them to be true, than as reassurance for me, for even a Valkyrie such as myself must need be reassured from time-to-time.”

Twilight Sparkle sighed silently, looking at her almost imploringly, but Luna gazed back, half-pleading, half-glaring... and finally, the Pale nodded, looking a little sullen as Scrivener smiled despite himself before he winced a bit as pain shot through his eyes, and for a moment it was like he was looking at a real, physical pony, with a violet coat and a dark, straight mane, paired lines of brighter purple and pink running through her locks and tail. Her eyes still seemed to almost glow with their amethyst beauty as she looked at him, and when she spoke, he heard her voice... soft and echoing, as if it came from a distance: “Don't push yourself so hard, Scrivener. She chose you for a reason.”

Scrivy closed his eyes with a blush at this, as Luna looked curiously from Twilight to her husband, then leaned towards him as he felt her paging gently into his mind, stroking through his thoughts, sensing the still-fresh memories before she blushed a bit as she glanced towards the winged unicorn... but Twilight only smiled softly as both of the living ponies rose their heads to look at her, then the Pale nodded to them before she faded slowly from existence, and Luna whispered: “Too kind, too sweet, too good for this world, let alone dark creatures such as ourselves, Scrivener Blooms. Her death and Scarlet Sage's remain my greatest sins...”

She shook her head slowly, then glanced up towards the final Pale that remained as it approached them, mane and tail still seeming to flicker with a multitude of colors as the enormous equine's shade towered over them. She was far from intimidating despite her size, however, radiating calm, tenderness, and a strange serenity. “Do not worry, though, sister. I mourn thine own death. At least most of the time, if not all. Sometimes I attempt to make light of it and other times I wonder how thou could permit thyself to be slain by four oversized vermin. 'Tis a most disappointing way for a mighty Valkyrie to fall, Celestia.”

The Pale sighed silently, but it seemed in a strange way to appreciate this all the same as Luna smiled a little, looking lovingly up at her sister before Celestia turned her gaze towards Scrivy. She studied the earth pony, and Scrivener awkwardly looked back at her before she rose a hoof, and the male winced but then bowed his head forwards as a faint golden light twisted through the Pale's body, before he distinctly felt the large hoof settle against his head and he heard the whispered words of a blessing pass through his mind.

“Celestia, thou art no longer Queen of Equestria. Nor art thou Queen Freya of the Valkyries. I demand thou cease abusing thy... no.” Luna halted, glaring at her sister as Celestia drew her hoof back and held it pointedly towards Luna. “Nay, I am a Valkyrie. I was Champion. I am thy little sister, aye, but that does not mean... oh, fine. But thou art overstepping thy bounds.”

Luna grumbled, lowering her head forwards and closing her eyes... and Scrivener smiled despite himself, feeling the flurry of emotions through Luna's body, beneath all of which was humility and adoration and thankfulness as Celestia's hoof settled on her forehead, and the Pale gave a faint golden shimmer as she imparted the blessing of the sun on her younger sibling. Then Luna hurriedly rose her head and slipped back a bit on her haunches with a grumble even as her ethereal locks shimmered faintly for a moment with rosy luminescence as she mumbled: “Thy blessing is nothing more than pretty words, in any event. But the kind gesture... I suppose it is still deeply appreciated, sister. And that thou at least had the courtesy to do Scrivener Blooms first.”

Celestia stepped back, the Pale looking slowly from one to the other with a kind smile lingering over her features before she returned her eyes to Luna, tilting her head... and Luna grimaced a bit, fidgeting on the spot before she finally admitted in a grumble: “We are... doing our best to behave for the cyclops, but... 'tis difficult. And... complications... have arisen with Scrivener Blooms...”

She softened, gazing towards the earth pony, and Scrivy blushed a bit as he glanced awkwardly around them... but the street around them was empty, and the library to their back a good distance away. And when Scrivener returned his eyes to Celestia, she looked at them without judgment, without reservations: only tenderness and concern for them both. It made both ponies feel awkward for their hesitance... for even though Celestia had been the one to give Scrivener Blooms the scar that marred half his features, she had found true balance in herself at the end of her long life, and begun to live up to the repute ponies across Equestria had always seen her with.

“Valthrudnir somehow has... found lodgings in my husband's mind, Celestia. He is... invisible to me, moving slyly, using the Tyrant Wyrm's corruption to hide and poison his thoughts.” Luna said finally, lowering her head silently, and the Pale of Celestia looked startled as she leaned back, then turned her eyes to Scrivener: eyes filled with concern as the outline of the Pale seemed to crystallize and sharpen, and Scrivy blushed a bit as he dropped his own eyes, half-embarrassed and half-touched. “I am... we are both afraid.”

Celestia nodded slowly, then leaned silently down, studying Scrivener quietly... and the male brought his eyes hesitantly up, looking back at the Pale as Luna said softly: “Thou art... wise and strong, sister, even now. And thou will always be my big sister... no matter who thou were in the past, no matter what happens between us, no matter what the future holds. Does thou... can thou offer any advice at all?”

Celestia shifted silently on the spot, looking slowly from Luna to Scrivy... and after a moment of consideration, she only shook her head silently. For a moment, the dark sapphire pony looked downcast... but then the Pale reached up and gently rested a hoof on her shoulder, gazing at her with silent encouragement and a faint smile, and Luna sighed a little and forced a smile in return, but her body loosened slightly as she said quietly: “Of course, thou art right. 'Twill only worsen the situation to worry upon it. Perhaps the echo will fade in time, perhaps it will only live for as long as the corruption wends its way inside Scrivener's mind... aye, let us hope the latter is the case, then. There is no fault, no wrong, in hope, correct? As long as we remember that while hope is a good start, we must continue to strive forwards to follow through with actions as well.”

The Pale smiled softly in agreement, then turned towards Scrivener Blooms, and Scrivy looked back at her before Celestia reached both hooves up to gently rest them on his shoulders, leaning down beside his ear as he closed his eyes before he clearly heard Celestia whisper gently: “You are stronger than you think, Scrivener Blooms. You are not my sister's weakness. You proved that many years ago, when you earned...”

Her voice faded out, and Scrivener blushed a bit as the specter leaned back and drew a hoof silently across the scarred side of his face. He understood, and he looked up at her quietly as Luna smiled faintly, not needing to have heard what her sister had said to murmur quietly: “Wicked Celestia, thou now acts as if thou gave him a badge of honor. Self-justifying, rationalizing creature... 'tis almost as bad as Scrivener himself.”

Scrivy laughed a little despite himself, smiling wider as he glanced towards Luna, then returned his eyes to the ivory Pale as she shook her head slowly before slipping backwards. The tall spirit hesitated, but Luna only gave a short shake of her head and gestured at her gently with a hoof, saying softly: “Go, get thee hence then, big sister. Scrivener Blooms and I have no more need for thee, does thou understand? Return to thy slumber, or find thy friends in the folds of reality... for thou does have friends now, does thou not?”

Celestia laughed silently at this, then she nodded once with a warm smile to the two before bowing her head low, gently touching the tip of her ephemeral horn to the ground. Luna and Scrivener bowed deeply in return, and when the two rose, Celestia had vanished from sight... and the two traded faint smiles before the winged unicorn slipped towards Scrivy and dropped her face against the side of his neck, closing her eyes as he gazed towards her quietly.

She rested like that in silence for a few long minutes, the only sound their soft breathing, the faint ringing of construction in the distance, and the hum of nature around them: the whispering breeze, chirping insects, singing birds. Clouds floated by overhead in the broad blue sky, and the sun shone down around them, warming their bodies, almost making the two glow even as their shadows seemed unnaturally deep, unnaturally dark.

Then, finally, Luna sat back and took a long breath before she nodded firmly once, saying softly: “Onwards ho, Scrivener Blooms. We still have the wretched cyclops to attend to, do we not? Aye, let us get this business with Odin over and done with as quick as possible, so we may spend the rest of this time in respite... I only fear what little tasks he may have for us to do, wretched, lazy old lecher that he is.”

Luna grumbled a bit as she began forwards, and Scrivener fell into step beside her as he gave her a smile of entertainment, tilting his head towards the winged unicorn as he said mildly: “You mean, tasks we'll put off until the very last minute as always? Not to mention the fact he'll probably lecture you about abusing the Bifrost again... or well, maybe he's given up on that, since he didn't mention it last night.”

“Aye, but I was in a rotten mood for his company last night, not crawling through the dirt towards him to beg an audience to the great and mighty Warrior King of the Aesir.” Luna said moodily, and Scrivener fought hard to repress a snort of entertainment as the winged unicorn rolled her eyes and flapped her wings once, looking ruffled and grouchy. “I swear that is the reason he permits me to put off our meetings, Scrivy. For when I have to go and find him, 'tis like I am his handmaiden once more, reporting for duty.”

“Yes, yes, Luna, I know. Odin bad.” Scrivener said mildly, and then he winced when she checked him firmly, knocking him stumbling before he fell back into step beside her and snorted in entertainment. “I think you're just trying to cling to absolutely any vestige of hatred you can for him, to be honest. Maybe this is even his way of doing you a favor and giving you another reason to hate him.”

“Oh, do not speak that way, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna said disgustedly, throwing her head back with a grumble. “Thou fills my brain with paranoid thoughts, and thy spill over not just from thine own addled mind now but begin to twist themselves out of the depths of my own brain. Like tentacles. Wretched tentacles.”

Scrivener gave her an amused look as they followed the path to an open gate at the edge of town, following the dirt road through a short field and into the edge of the Everfree Forest. Eventually, the dirt road became nothing but a grass path that broke apart into half a dozen different, barely-visible trails deeper into the woods and towards a deep ravine, but it ran a good distance on a curving, comfortable trail before it did so, making it a pleasant path to walk.

The twenty minute walk down the wide dirt trail relaxed both Scrivener and Luna, until they reached the end: here, the Nibelung had built a small storage yard surrounded by iron fencing. Inside it, they kept rope, oil, explosive supplies, and other odds and ends... most of which were dangerous and volatile, hence why they were stored out here. Luna, as always, was tempted to set the storage lot on fire just to see what would happen, and Scrivener gave her a flat look before the winged unicorn glanced up at a rustling in the trees on the other side of the lot. “Old lecher?”

“Yes, Brynhild.” Odin said tiredly, and Luna grunted as she strode quickly around the fenced-in lot, Scrivener following awkwardly as they stepped onto a grassy, well-trodden trail. After only a few feet, however, Odin stepped carefully backwards into the path, a thick green rope in his hands as he glanced towards them with a bit of a smile. “Mind your hooves, friends. Some of the traps set here are more dangerous than just rope and vine.”

Scrivener winced a bit as Luna only grunted, then the winged unicorn watched grouchily as the once-god knelt creakily to carefully set the snare in the middle of the path. He worked calmly, ignoring everything around him as Luna fidgeted... then finally asked as her curiosity overwhelmed her: “Raiders or beasts?”

“Thieves, mostly... and a few goblins, which I do not know whether to refer to as animal or troublemaker.” Odin replied after a moment, then he shook his head slowly as he stood up and turned around, cracking his back with a grimace. “I don't know if it amuses or irritates me that no matter how many times I set the same trap in the same place, they always fall for it. I'll be glad when we can move most of these supplies to Canterlot.”

He paused, then gestured gently at them, and the ponies both turned, heading back towards the road as Odin followed them with his hands behind his back, saying moodily: “At the same time, though, I cannot really complain... it's nice that even an old fool like me can be of some use these days, with or without my powers. I only wish the Nibelung were able to catch on to not setting off their own traps as fast as they are in learning to make them.”

“Enough stalling. We are here Odin, what does thou want?” Luna said grumpily as she suddenly spun around the moment they stepped back in front of the fenced-in storage lot, and Scrivy winced as he staggered quickly to the side to avoid running into her, then half-fell to a seated position beside her as Odin only looked mildly down at the winged unicorn. He stopped a few feet away, single eye meeting Luna's dark cyan irises, and then the female asked insistently: “Well? What is it then, sing, old lecher. Thy face is bird-like, 'tis what birds do.”

“Please don't bring up this failed disguise.” Odin muttered, rubbing slowly at the scarred side of his features with a grimace. “One polymorph run afoul for lack of power and here we are. But if you must be so insistent, Brynhild, and you must continue to pretend that I dragged you out here and you did not arrive only seconds ago of your own volition, I do have a few tasks for you and your husband. Nothing strenuous or serious, I assure you. But tasks that you will be able to complete with much greater ease than myself or a Nibelung, and that I also do attribute no little weight to.”

“Oh wonderful, I am an important errand girl.” Luna grumbled flatly, and Odin reached up and touched one of his temples, closing his eye with a grimace. “And just what tasks does thou have for me, then?”

“As soon as possible, I need you to take a message of some importance to the Strange Ones in their village to the west.” Odin began, and he winced a bit at the horrible glare Luna favored him with, but managed to continue calmly all the same: “The trip is difficult by foot. For you, it's three hours' flight. Furthermore, we need certain materials replenished: engraving tools, crystals, rune-stones chief among the list.”

“Wonderful. I am a messenger as well as an errand-girl.” Luna muttered, but she sighed and nodded before looking grouchily up at Odin. “Very well then. I shall go about this task. But listen to me, cyclops: on the subject of restoring the Pales, Illyria – and I do not lie, even though I question the sanity of the world around me that I am here, pushing forwards the Architect's ideas – has come up with the subject of building amplifiers of some sort around Equestria. I dislike enough as it is that I agree with the idea. Do not make me argue against thee that it is a good one.”

“Very well, I will speak to Illyria on the subject, then.” Odin replied after a moment, rubbing at the underside of his beak slowly, and then he frowned slightly as he leaned against the iron fencing, asking quietly: “Are you really so nervous about bringing back the Pales?”

“In this case, it's far better to be safe than sorry, and I do not wish to brashly charge in as I usually do. I cannot bear the thought of failing them... even more, I cannot bear the thought of hurting them.” Luna replied quietly, looking up at Odin and losing some of her aggression as Scrivener gave the female a soft look. “I wish to take every precaution I can with this, so that when we reach that final, crucial juncture... we are able to pass it without hindrance. Then I may look back upon it and laugh, and resume using my horn to solve all my problems, but... until that point and day comes...”

Odin nodded slowly at this, and then he drew his eyes over the two ponies, hesitating... and then only giving a second short nod as he reached into his rawhide jacket to pull loose a thick vellum envelope, sealed with a wax crest. “Alright. If there's no other business, that is all I have for you for now. I would like for you to leave immediately if you're ready: the letter must be hand-delivered to the chieftain of the Strange One's tribe, understood?”

“Then permit me slice off one of thy hands to take it with me, as I only have hooves.” Luna retorted dryly, and Odin sighed before he grimaced when the letter was yanked out of his hand by telekinesis, floating quietly in the air beside Luna as it pulsed with faint sapphire light. “But very well, then I shall go about this task. Come, Scrivy, let us first return to Ponyville and fetch some packs and a few supplies, and perhaps something or other we can trade to the Strange Ones for our own purposes.”

“Thank you, Brynhild, I appreciate this.” Odin said quietly, and Luna grumbled as she turned around, but then sighed and looked over her shoulder when the once-god added: “Do not hesitate if you need anything. I am here to aid you however I can.”

“Of course, of course. As I am here to be thy errand girl.” Luna muttered, and then she turned with a grumble as the letter tucked itself neatly into her ethereal mane, seeming to vanish as her glowing locks rippled over it. “Come, Scrivy, before he attempts to dress us in pretty saddle and vestments.”

Scrivener smiled awkwardly over his shoulder at Odin, bowing his head quickly before he turned and hurried after the winged unicorn as she stormed off, and the once-god made a face at their backs before he shook his head tiredly, turning to head back into the complex catacombs of forest trails. The ponies, meanwhile, strode on in silence for several minutes, even as emotions and thoughts whispered back and forth between them, before Luna finally dropped her head forwards with a sigh and a grumble, saying moodily: “Aye, Scrivener Blooms. It's vexing. On the one hand, I am very glad our task is a simple one. On the other, I am frustrated at being used as a delivery pony. And I have thought upon the words thou has spoken before and further dislike the fact that perhaps thou art much more right than I like to admit, and I... perhaps cling unnecessarily so my distaste of Odin.”

She halted, then shook her head as she murmured quietly: “Still, 'tis hard to think of him as anything but an ally I must be warier of than most enemies. Odin was God of Wisdom... but he was cunning, ruthless, and in a way he killed me not once, but twice, for placing me into eternal slumber for my 'disobedience' to him was a fate far worse than slaughter on the battlefield for a Valkyrie.” She stopped, then grimaced a bit. “And the alternative was no fairer, either. Lecherous Odin. I may not be pure in many senses of the word but nor does that make me a toy for others to use as they please. I am proud of myself, and feel no shame for my desires, for who I am, I never have and never will, but nor does that make me a harlot.”

“Believe me, I know that.” Scrivener smiled a bit over at her, and Luna laughed as she grinned at him, the male adding meditatively: “But what do I really know, anyway? I'm rarely the one coming on to you, after all.”

“Aye, thou would have been risked being considered most effeminate in the old days past, which would have been a terrible dishonor to the macho warriors of Valhalla.” She paused thoughtfully. “'Tis amazing how they all could overlook the fact that while they sat around getting drunk, 'twas us, the Valkyrie females, that did all the work protecting them, and all of us could beat any of these so-called 'masters of battle' into the ground like they were spoiled children. Which, I might add, they were. But worry not. I would have pummeled anyone that dared speak out against thee, beloved wife.”

“I'm so glad I'll always have you to hide behind, my big brutish Luna.” Scrivener replied dryly, and Luna laughed, grinning over at him as the male smiled despite himself. “But tell me more. I like listening to you talk about the old days.”

And Luna smiled softly despite herself, looking strangely delighted with the request as she nodded once and continued to speak as the two ponies made their way back along the dusty road, filling in the time between adventures with stories of the once-forgotten past.

Strange Sentiments

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Chapter Nineteen: Strange Sentiments
~BlackRoseRaven

Luna's wings flapped powerfully, propelling her easily through the bright blue sky as Scrivener followed behind her with a grimace, barely able to keep up to her as the saddle-bags on either side of his body twisted slightly in the wind, their contents rattling quietly. The winged unicorn grinned over her shoulder at him, her mane fanning out around her as she half-rolled easily, shouting cheerfully: “Come, Scrivener Blooms, do not dawdle!”

“You have natural wings, mine are not natural! Do you know how sore I am from all this excessive flying lately?” Scrivener yelled back irritably, and Luna threw her head back and laughed as she rolled easily through the air before diving down over the treetops below, and Scrivener groaned as he followed her on a gentler incline, unable to stop himself from marveling all the same as they passed over a green network of treetops that spread all the way out to the edge of a cliff, then dropped into a deep box canyon surrounded by greenery, a natural river flowing through it. It was several hundred feet wide and maybe fifty deep, and wild fruits and vegetables grew in natural rows and abundance, spiced here and there with flora that looked exotic and almost alien.

Luna shot down towards this, then dropped suddenly, Scrivener wincing as a burst of leaves flew up from the treetop she rammed into... and then a moment later, she arched her back and gracefully flew back towards the skies, grinning as several large yellow fruits followed her before she flicked her horn, and one of these flew back towards the earth pony before he could react.

It struck him squarely in the face and exploded in a burst of pink juice, and Scrivener gave a shout of surprise as he veered wildly back and forth, wincing and blinking his stinging eyes. He flailed his hooves uselessly at the air as he came to a halt, hovering as Luna laughed loudly and quickly spun around, two fruits still floating beside her. “Scrivener Blooms, thou wert supposed to catch it!”

“I hate you.” Scrivy mumbled disconsolately, but Luna only snorted in entertainment before she leaned forwards, kissing one closed eye, then the other, and Scrivener's eyelids fluttered open after a moment as he looked at her with dry amusement despite the juice dripping down his face and the bits of exploded fruit still clinging to his features. “Will you please just clean me off? Sunfruit is smelly.”

“Thou art a Sunfruit.” Luna declared, and Scrivener sighed before he winced as one of the fruits shot by, but thankfully only slipped itself quickly into a satchel as the second glowing fruit twisted, then tore in half with a burst of juices, Luna turning her attention to this as the thick golden rind peeled itself quickly off the fruit halves. “Eat! Then I shall clean thee off.”

Scrivener rolled his eyes in amusement, then he winced a bit as the large half of fruit shoved itself towards him before he opened his jaws... then cursed when Luna firmly shoved the entire bowl-sized fruit into his mouth, and he winced and chewed slowly as Luna cheerfully took several large bites out of her own half before gobbling the rest down greedily.

The glow around her horn faded only for a moment before she winked, still chewing loudly as she flicked it upwards, and Scrivy wheezed as he arched his back with a wince of a pain, steam hissing up his features as the goo from the fruit rapidly dissolved. Then she swallowed loudly, and released a sigh of pleasure as she said comfortably: “There. We are fed, and thou art clean. Come, Scrivy, I can see the smoke from the Strange One's encampment, let us make all haste to get this accursed business over and done with.”

Scrivener grumbled under his breath, but he nodded quickly after a moment, still chewing what remained of his own fruit as Luna turned and flew onwards, past the canyon and towards where trees thinned into open plains and rough, dust-stained hillocks and heaps of stone. After only a few moments of surveying the area, Scrivener's eyes caught on the faint trails of smoke stretching up into the open sky above.

Luna gradually allowed herself to drop towards the ground, and the earth pony followed her example, wincing a bit as pain twisted through his back from sore, overused muscles. The winged unicorn gave him a sympathetic look over her shoulder, but then only winked at him when he caught her looking before she turned her attention forwards, steepening her movement towards the plains as she called easily: “Worry not, Scrivy, if all my poking and prodding at thee hasn't caused thee to permanently retain thy wings, fangs, or other additional body parts, I am sure these wings shan't become a new fixture upon thy body unless I were to leave them for at least another day or so yet.”

“Wonderful.” Scrivener Blooms grumbled, and Luna snorted in entertainment before she finally touched down in a weedy field, Scrivener awkwardly landing beside her and stumbling once before he managed to catch himself with a grimace, glancing awkwardly up towards the source of the smoke in the distance. “So are you doing the talking or am I?”

“I am the messenger, I shall handle most of it.” Luna made a face and gave an exaggerated shiver all the same, her mane flicking backwards as glowered moodily at the large, wide huts and odd stone dwellings in the distance, several burning bonfires here and there throughout what was undoubtedly a strange village. “But thou can handle any additional conversation. I dislike trying to communicate with these creatures. They have a horrible invulnerability to taunts, insults, provocation, and threats. Truly I am powerless against them.”

“Luna, you're the Valkyrie, I'm the writer, remember?” Scrivener pointed out, and Luna grumbled before she headbutted him, then strode quickly forwards, the earth pony falling into step beside her as he drew his eyes slowly again along the empty-looking village: when studied, it seemed to be nothing but chaos and a jumble, the huts and houses made of large sheets of stone and carved into the rocky hillside with no real order, no strategy to them... but both Luna and Scrivener always thought that there was some hidden pattern, visible only when you weren't looking at it, like a mirage, a reflection in a glass. “You could always attack them.”

“Nay, I do not attack things until I have understood them. And I do not understand these creatures, and perhaps never shall. At least, not until I meet one in combat, but again... we have only managed to run in the vicious circle.” Luna grumbled, and Scrivener gave her an amused look despite himself before the two ponies glanced up as figures began to emerge from the homes, looking towards them silently, with an impartial curiosity that made them both grimace a bit as the village filled with odd life. “At least we always receive quite a grand welcome.”

The earth pony grunted quietly as they walked to the edge of the village, halting near a crackling bonfire as they looked over the Strange Ones, creatures that truly lived up to their names: many were hunched forwards and yet still loomed to at least six feet high, and all of them wore loose cloaks or robes and cowls, made of thick cloth material that hid limbs and bodies from view. The sleeves of these hung down past their hands and the hems dragged along the earth, the cloaks secured loosely around their waists by simple rope or vine; the same material was used to hold their cowls and hoods in place, looped loosely around necks and hanging down like ties, making them look – as Luna had cynically observed once – like zombies that had escaped the gallows.

Then one of the Strange Ones walked forwards, its raspy breathing louder than the sound its feet made against the gravelly ground as it strode in front of them, and creakily bowed. Luna and Scrivener bowed deeply in return, and then the winged unicorn straightened, saying seriously: “We come bearing a message from Odin for the Chieftain of thine settlement.”

“Yes, Brynhild, Maiden of the Night. He is home.” the Strange One replied calmly, and its sleeve fell back from its hand as it pointed towards a hut near the base of the mountain, revealing ivory, rubbery skin and a single finger tipped with an almond-shaped claw. “Go ahead. You and Scrivener Blooms are welcomed here. You are always welcomed here.”

Luna smiled awkwardly at the creature as it bowed its hidden head forwards respectfully and stepped slowly out of the way, and she led the earth pony carefully around the bonfire and past several huts: with the arrangement in an awkward line that sprawled along the bottom of the hills and rocks, they didn't have far to go... but the sensation of all the Strange One's eyes upon them made the distance seem endless, as Luna muttered: “'Tis worse than when I attended that charity ball at the Royal Courts. Does thou remember that?”

“Too well, Luna.” Scrivener smiled a little despite himself, glancing towards her. “But I don't think that this time all our problems can be solved by you setting the punchbowl on fire.”

“'Twas an accident. I let my temper get the better of me. I am much better about setting liquids ablaze these days, am I not?” Luna argued reasonably, and Scrivener laughed a bit before the two glanced up as the door to the hut they were approaching opened, and a Strange One emerged, the ponies quickly becoming more serious as they halted and bowed their heads forwards politely. “Chieftain?”

“The term is not one we use, but it is close enough.” the Strange One said softly, as it bowed its head slightly in return: unlike the others, it wore no cowl, and when Luna and Scrivener looked up they were able to study its strange features. They were rhombus-shaped, with that pale ivory skin, large jaws and no noses, only slits for nostrils. The eyes were large and slightly sunken back, its head bald and only a little more oblate than its rounded chin.

For a few moments, they studied each other, and then Luna quickly cleared her throat and turned to glare pointedly at Scrivener, who winced before he sat back and hurriedly dug in his satchel. A few moments later, he yanked the letter free, and a sapphire aura surrounded it as Luna grabbed it quickly with telekinesis and guided it to the Strange One. “We are here to deliver this to thee from Odin.”

“The God of Wisdom, the decayed Aesir, yes.” the Strange One said calmly, and he reached up and gently took the envelope, his movements slow but deft as he opened it and extracted a sheet of paper from inside. The creature's black eyes slid back and forth over this, and then it nodded slowly and seriously before folding the paper closed and tucking it back into the envelope, saying quietly: “We are glad to assist. I shall have the supplies prepared immediately. Do you have other business while here?”

“We have a few objects for trade.” Luna said after a moment, looking almost hesitant, but the Strange One only nodded seriously before striding slowly past them and gesturing for them to follow, and the two hurried after the long strides of the strange creature as Luna grimaced a bit, then muttered: “Thou and thine kind truly earn the monicker of 'Strange Ones,' I must say.”

“We are what we are, as you are what you are. We are no different.” the creature replied gently, and Scrivener smiled a bit as Luna only looked torn between open frustration and attempting politeness.

They were silent as they made their way down the row of huts and stone homes, Strange Ones milling here and there, watching them through windows cut through the rock, standing off at the sides of the path... and then the leader of the tribe gestured slowly towards a large hut that stood slightly apart from the others, resting deeper into the fields than at the foot of the mountains as he said calmly: “You may trade there. Others will return shortly with your supplies.”

“Thou hast my thanks.” Luna nodded quickly, and the Strange One studied her silently for a few moments before it turned and left, the winged unicorn grimacing at its back... then glaring back and forth challengingly at several other cloaked figures standing nearby and studying them before she snapped: “'Tis rude to stare!”

With that, she huffed and spun around, storming towards the large hut, and Scrivy winced before he hurriedly followed her towards the building: the walls looked almost like they were made simply from thick cloth and stitched rawhide, supported by pillars of wood to make it more like an immobile tent than a solid home... but somehow, the Strange Ones lived in these huts through storms and the changing of the seasons without complaint, and it wasn't as if the homes made from large sheets of stone were much better, lacking solid windows and even doors as most of them did.

A Strange One emerged from inside the hut as they approached, slipping its hands into the sleeves of its heavy cloak, but like the chieftain, its hood was at least pushed back: its skin was the same rubbery consistency, with the same tautness to them, although the hue of its body was a deeper slate color. It studied them for a few moments, then bowed its head as Luna glanced back and forth distastefully, saying finally: “We wish to trade, Strange One. We have a few small items, and I was hoping to acquire a few pleasant trinkets for my home. What will thou give me in return for say... a Sunfruit, twenty ropes of Bitterweaver silk all at least ten feet long, and two jars of assorted teeth?”

The Strange One looked at them silently, and Luna grinned widely, showing off brightly-glinting fangs as she informed seriously: “They are not my teeth. But I know thou and thine kind have a fixation on such odd objects and I do not like to waste any portion of what I kill. They are manticore, Nibelung, and other assorted creatures.”

For a few moments, the creature remained silent... then it turned and headed back into the hut, and Luna grunted and nodded as she looked over her shoulder at Scrivener, the earth pony sitting down to begin to fish the contents out of the bag. A moment later, the Strange One returned, this time carrying a wide, rectangular wooden chest, and it set this carefully down before pulling the lid slowly back. An inner shelf clicked as it lifted with the lid, popping back into place, and the two gazed over the countless metallic charms and objects that filled the different square compartments and littered the bottom of the box, the creature saying placidly: “Choose what you like, and I shall tell you the fair trade.”

“Fair trade, aye, but since when is trading ever truly fair?” Luna asked ironically, and then she shook her head with a slight smile before gazing down through the box of jewels and charms, her horn glowing as she carefully lifted objects to eye level and studied them meticulously. Many of them were not just trinkets, after all, but infused with the alien magic of the Strange Ones... an effect she couldn't replicate no matter how she copied the runes, or what lengths she went to do dig out the same materials they used. “And what if I asked, pray tell, for the plans to make these?”

“You may ask, but you may not pay for them: knowledge belongs to all, and I would tell you for free as I have many times before.” the Strange One said quietly, looking at her with its odd indifference: not entirely detached, the vestiges of emotions in their eyes and voices, but they were buried, and both ponies thought the emotions they felt were not the same emotions the Strange Ones experienced. “As your magic comes from your horn, what you call our magic runs in our bodies, our blood, our spirit. You may do half the work in the shaping... but you lack that which is necessary to do the other half in the giving-it-life.”

“Thou creatures know well what it is to lack something, that is for certain.” Luna muttered irritably, and Scrivy winced a bit, but the Strange One only continued to look at her as calmly as ever, unfettered. The winged unicorn grumbled under her breath, throwing the charms down and scattering the objects as she began to open her mouth... and then her eyes caught on something at the bottom of the box, and she flicked her horn to the side, yanking it free as she asked sharply: “May I trade for this?”

“You do not have enough to barter for that, Valkyrie.” the Strange One said gently, its black eyes roving down to the floating object, taking in the distinct etching of silver ivy along the dark, thin metal collar. It was gorgeous, and Luna could feel the calming energies that ran through it even through her growing frustration as she ground her teeth together, the Strange One reaching a hand out to gently pluck it from the air and out of the grips of her telekinesis. “Even though I have not yet chosen a gemstone for it, it is not meant for you.”

“I know this, 'tis not a gift for me, I have something far more beautiful than thy sordid collar. 'Tis a gift for my husband, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna retorted, and Scrivy looked up in dumb surprise before Luna smiled a bit over her shoulder, softening as she said quietly: “Well, beloved... I wear this necklace. I wish to adorn thee with a symbol of my love for thee.”

Scrivener smiled softly at this, and then he shook his head and said softly: “So you want to put a collar on me, huh? A collar without a gemstone? Besides, you've given me a lot of different pairs of glasses over the years.”

“The gemstone will come in time. And the glasses were not... my original idea. Oh, shut up, Scrivener Blooms. Accept the gift.” Luna paused and then glared at the Strange One as she yanked the collar out of its hand with telekinesis before glancing towards where the contents of the saddlebags lay in a large pile beside Scrivy, saying firmly: “All of that, and I shall bring thee more later if it is required, but give me the collar.”

“It is not made for you.” the Strange One said slowly, and Luna gnashed her teeth together in frustration before the creature looked slowly, thoughtfully towards Scrivener Blooms, and it gave a unhurried nod after a moment. “It may have been made for him. Time will tell. You may take the collar.”

“Splendid!” Luna laughed cheerfully, leaping backwards in delight and swinging her horn around, and Scrivener had a moment to stare at her before the thin metal collar collided with his neck firmly enough to knock him staggering back a step, gargling as it quickly tightened around his throat and locked into place, almost sizzling against his body as he winced in surprise. The clasp at the back of the collar clicked loudly as it snapped shut and locked into place, the pony looking dumbly down at it and the enlarged hollow in the thicker, black metal front of the collar where a gemstone had yet to be fitted. “Perhaps thou and thine kind are not such awful creatures after all!”

“Wonderful way to do business, Luna.” Scrivy said flatly, then he reached up and embarrassedly rubbed at the collar with one hoof, saying finally: “Also, not that... I'm complaining or anything, but-”

“Shush and wear it for now, it looks good on thee!” Luna said firmly, and then she leaned forwards and kissed his cheek firmly, Scrivener blushing a bit as she sat back on her haunches and smiled at him, her black pearl swaying quietly around her neck on its seemingly-unbreakable band of ivy. “'Tis a very late wedding gift, that is all. If thou likes, we shall find a matching collar for me one day as well, but... this ivy has worn over the years, ripped here and there, torn more and less... but it has never broken, and it has always been easy to mend. Perhaps it is a sign, and it does not do well to tamper with such things, I think.”

Scrivener smiled a bit at this thought, nodding slowly before he awkwardly rubbed at the collar, adding dryly: “But couldn't you have gotten me... I dunno. Vambraces are cool. Or perhaps a hat. A marriage-hat, who would ever think of that?”

“Thou art lucky I find thy complaining about everything adorable or thou would be in the midst of a severe pummeling right now.” Luna said grouchily, and then she glanced towards the Strange One as it silently stepped forwards to begin gathering up the pile of objects that Scrivener had dug out of the satchel bag. “Tell me, artisan. Did thou have any particular gemstone in mind to set inside this collar? And what charms rest upon it?”

Scrivener stared at Luna at this, and the winged unicorn shrugged cheerfully as she glanced towards him, saying kindly: “Well, obviously 'tis magical in nature, Scrivener Blooms, I am sure thou can feel it even with thine thick-skin when it comes to the arcane. I am sure 'tis nothing dangerous though, Scrivy, thou hast not exploded into flames or anything.”

“Luna, this is why I'm always complaining about how whenever you try and do something nice for me, I end up on the thin line between 'enjoyable risk' and 'serious injury.' And why you're supposed to ask before attaching possibly-hazardous objects to my body.” Scrivener said finally, and Luna shrugged amiably before she turned her insistent eyes towards the Strange One as it slowly stood up with an armload of spider-silk ropes.

It looked from one pony to the other, then nodded slowly and said calmly: “The Night Maiden is correct. We weave charms into all our adornments, as is natural for our kind... the collar will soothe the restless spirit, aid in concentration, and improve the mind's eye. It is a good choice for the uneasy. The gemstone used should be one that will be designed to work with and amplify these qualities... I will get to work immediately.”

“What? I did not ask thee to make it.” Luna frowned a bit at this as the Strange One turned to walk away, but it halted as Luna called sharply: “And what payment will this 'generosity' require?”

“None. The collar is incomplete, but I did not know who I was making it for until now. All works should be carried out from beginning-to-end, and this is no different.” The Strange One looked over its shoulder at them for a moment, then it simply nodded and headed towards its hut, and Scrivy and Luna traded a surprised look at this. “I shall have the finished product sent to you in a few days.”

It returned, but almost ignored them as it silently gathered up the rest of the materials from the ground before turning and leaving as Scrivener and Luna watched... and this time, the Strange One stayed inside its hut, apparently content with their completed business. Luna grumbled a bit as she pawed at the ground, but Scrivy reached up and gently touched her shoulder, saying quietly: “Thank you, Luna. It means a lot to me that you still haven't... let that go after all these years. That you still...”

He quieted and smiled a bit, and Luna blushed a little as she glanced towards him, saying softly: “Oh, thank me not... 'tis not kindness or altruism, 'tis... a purely-egotistical drive to show the world that we are a couple. And always, when... on the rare occasions we are separated, I can always still feel thy presence in this, this rare black pearl... and to have a physical memento of thee always here, strengthens the bond of our minds, bodies, and souls. 'Tis not the materials... 'tis what they represent. 'Tis all... very silly, really, but... bah, words fail me. Just know that I love thee. And that thou looks good with this regal choker around thine neck. Effeminate, aye. But good all the same.”

Scrivener smiled despite himself at this, glancing towards her with amusement as he added softly, nudging her with a shoulder: “But of course we couldn't have me looking masculine now, could we? That would ruin the balance of the relationship.”

Luna laughed, then stepped forwards and buried her face against the side of his neck... and she smiled softly as her muzzle slid down and nudged the top of the collar quietly, feeling a strange warmth emanating the black metal as the silver etchings of ivy over it all-but-gleamed, and she murmured softly: “Not even the Norns will separate us, my beloved. Not now, not ever. Aye, damned be everything: we shall always be together.”

“We're so codependent. It's a little sickening when you think about it.” Scrivener remarked mildly, and Luna laughed and headbutted the side of his neck firmly, making him wince and stagger as his sore, leathery wings flapped once before he gave her an entertained look. “Well, it's true. I'm pretty sure not everypony would look at us and go 'it's so cute how they need each other to survive and would sacrifice the world for one-another.' Particularly since you probably could ravage the world if you wanted.”

“Aye, I could. Furthermore, I do not think we are cute. We are the greatest romance story ever told, and thou cannot be 'cute' and 'great' at the same time.” Luna retorted, tilting her head upwards imperiously as she sat back on her haunches. “Regal, godlike Valkyries are not cute.”

“Oh Luna. Every time I think your ego can't get any bigger, there it goes again. At this rate, the weight's going to grow so heavy you'll implode into a singularity that will drag the entire universe into it and gobble it all up.” Scrivener said dryly, and Luna gave him an amused look before he leaned forwards and added kindly: “But I want you to know that you'll always be my crushing, universe-gobbling singularity.”

“Thou says such sweet and wonderful things.” Luna swung her horn at him playfully, and Scrivener smiled despite himself as he leaned quickly out of the way before he glanced curiously upwards, and Luna followed the earth pony's eyes to watch as two Strange Ones approached, carrying three large sacks between them. “Well, that was fast. Is this all the supplies for Odin?”

One of the Strange Ones nodded with its odd solemnity, Scrivener awkwardly stepping forwards so one of them could pack two of the bags into his satchel packs while the other calmly went about the business of strapping the last bag to Luna, who looked less-than-thrilled with the contact. “It is what we were instructed to bring you. We wish you luck and speed. We are here should anything further be required.”

“Then thou has my thanks. Away with us now, Scrivener, to return to Ponyville and then back home to our cottage, unless the old lecher has a further task for us.” Luna said quickly, and Scrivy nodded as the Strange Ones stepped calmly back and away from them, watching with their curious dark eyes beneath their shadowy cowls as the winged unicorn grimaced a bit over her shoulder, mumbling under her breath: “Odd souls. I do not mean they are wicked or unwelcome... but odd. I only wish what motivated the creatures so...”

Scrivener remained quiet as he followed Luna away from the village and into the field, until they both looked over their shoulders and saw the the huts and stone homes once more looked vacant and empty, the only sign of life coming from the crackling flames. The creatures had once more retreated deep into their dwellings or gone about their secret tasks... and the two ponies traded an awkward look before Luna glanced apprehensively towards the dwellings and said finally: “And once, these oddities lived across this Looking Glass Equestria... but at Odin's request, tore up their homes, moved their huts, and built new and alien villages like this one. They willingly made room for us, for our ponies, and they trade with us for such easily-attained goods: they barter with us with rare charms, strange magic, potions and supplies and such other exotic things, for food, and cloaks, and cloth and rope and raw materials, and it maddens me, Scrivy. I have met no other race so alien... not because of how they look, or act, or what they do... but because of how they so generously have given to us with little expectations in return.”

Scrivener smiled a bit at this, the two studying one another... and then Luna shook her head and laughed quietly, saying finally: “Come, though, Scrivy. Time to take wing. Let us fly.”

“I hate flying.” Scrivener muttered, and Luna gave him an amused look before she turned and ran forwards a few paces, then spread her wings and flew into the air, and the earth pony sighed as he stretched his own leathery wings with a wince of pain before running forwards and following her quickly, resigning himself to another long flight that would likely be without rest but sure to include plenty of Luna's special form of motivation.

Luna and Scrivener had halted only for a late lunch when the winged unicorn had spotted a few berry bushes: at first, a large and grouchy bear hadn't wanted to share, but a roar from Luna and a likely-unnecessary follow-up blast of lightning had quickly taken care of that problem, and the two had enjoyed the meal together even as Scrivener half-lectured her on being nicer to the world at large and Luna had nodded along while stuffing her face with blueberries.

Then they had taken back to the air, veering towards Ponyville, the sun still shining overhead, still warm and comforting and resplendent; and even though both ponies far preferred the comfort of night to the light of day, it was still wonderful to feel the sun's warmth on their bodies, to see beautiful, fertile light spilling over the land instead of the poisonous, blinding vileness of the red sun from the corrupted layer of reality they came from.

It was something they cherished... but while they enjoyed it, had to ensure they didn't let themselves grow too used to it. Because when they did, returning to the Ragnarok-shrouded world was all the more painful, took all the longer to adjust back to from the comforting days and luxurious, utopian nights of this hallowed Looking Glass Equestria. Instead, it was better to treat this world like a dream, enjoying the slice of Heaven... but remembering, too, that they would have to wake up, and return to reality, and it always came too soon for both ponies.

Scrivener smiled as they flew along, letting himself be enraptured with the colors, the sights, the sounds, the feelings, as Luna arched her back ahead of him, her ephemeral mane and tail blowing back through the windy air as she sighed in relief, emotions and instincts and random feelings twisting back and forth between the two. The engraved black pearl swayed around her neck, lightly bouncing against her breast as Scrivener's new collar glinted around his, warm and comfortable and oddly soft despite being made of metal as his leathery wings flapped.

He could a building rumble in the distance, and he glanced up at the blue sky above, studying the white clouds that were both close and far before he frowned as the rumbling grew louder, absently glancing to the side... and then his eyes widened in surprise as he spotted an enormous dragon only a few hundred feet away, covered in armor-like blue scales and snarling as an icy mist poured out from the sides of its jaws, eyes glinting like diamonds as the earth pony let out a raw shout.

Luna's head snapped to the side immediately as electricity surged through her mane, her eyes widening before she snarled as she dropped into a dive, sending a mental command to Scrivener Blooms, and the earth pony lunged after her, letting her instincts drive him. The world was beautiful here, yes, but they had both relaxed too much, both forgotten that unlike the Equestria they had come from, that elegant beauty often went side-by-side with wild danger.

The dragon shot towards them, hungry and eager: the difference between them and the dragons of old Equestria wasn't a lack of intelligence, or the sharpened hunting instincts... but the fact that most of them had only known ponies as tasty snacks from over a thousand years ago. To this dragon, they were likely just flying meat, and there was only one way to convince the beast otherwise.

It twisted with surprising grace to dive after them as Luna and Scrivener skidded along the treetops, and then Luna flicked her horn as it glowed brightly, as the beast flapped its wings and shot after them, gaining rapidly... then yelped in surprise as vines and thorny brambles burst upwards from the canopy just below, seizing around its enormous body and lashing across its wings. It was more shocked than hurt, but the thick vines and tapers refused to tear and the dragon's wings were quickly bound, stopped in mid-flap as it hissed and half-lunged forwards before collapsing with another yelp into the thick forest below.

“Scrivener, encircle!” Luna shouted, and Scrivy winced but nodded at the order, twisting away from her and flying back up into the air as the winged unicorn spun around and hovered easily, making herself a clear target as the dragon roared in frustration before cold mist burst up in a wave from the hole in the canopy. Snow and frost settled over the trees around it as Luna grimaced in distaste, leaning forwards as her eyes narrowed balefully: they couldn't simply outrun a dragon this large, and she refused to hide quivering in the forest.

A moment later, the icy fog burst apart as the dragon lunged back into the skies, wings flapping as chunks of broken vine and ice fell from its body, and it seemed surprised to see Luna waiting calmly for it, halting its flight and hovering warily before the winged unicorn leaned forwards and shouted: “Listen to me, oversized lizard! If thou values thine existence, fleeing or parlay would be the commendable choice of action: but if thou does not, feel free to attack me with all thy worth.”

The dragon frowned at her, then it barked something back in an unintelligible language, and Luna grumbled under her breath at this and rolled her eyes... then winced when the dragon suddenly snapped its head forwards with a rough hacking sound, and a volley of icy slugs of frozen saliva shot at the winged unicorn, the equine wincing and flicking her horn to the side as a barrier of blue energy formed in front of her.

The ice pellets bounced off this, but the dragon was quick to shoot forwards itself, greedily opening jaws that could swallow her whole in one bite... but Luna only snarled as her barrier vanished and she lunged to meet the enormous reptile, and the beast had a moment to blink at the unexpected maneuver before Luna's front hooves slammed down on the end of its nose, snapping its jaws loudly, painfully shut before she charged along its features, digging her hooves viciously against its face as it squawked and arched its back before leaping down onto the back of its neck and slamming both hooves firmly into the back of its skull.

The dragon lurched forwards, eyes bulging as it gave a roar of mixed fury, pain, and humiliation, and Luna grinned as she leapt off the creature's back, looking over her shoulder a moment before Scrivener's instincts called to her sharply, and she looked hurriedly frontwards just in time to see the creature's tail twisting upwards, striking her with a glancing blow that knocked her off balance. She cursed in pain as she was sent hurtling through the air, one of her wings bending slightly and refusing to catch the wind as the dragon spun around and then lunged at her with a snarl, batting her savagely down into the trees... and in the distance, Scrivener arched his back in pain, dropping towards the trees as he grabbed at his ribs and muttered: “Yep. I recognize that feeling by now.”

Luna groaned and shook her head from where she had crashed amidst the boughs of a large tree, cursing under her breath as the shadow of the dragon passed over her as it looked back and forth, and then the huge reptile twisted around before taking a deep breath and leaning down as it vomited out a gout of icy mist, tracing the freezing cloud back and forth over the trees as it passed them and covering everything beneath it in frost and snow.

The winged unicorn winced and cursed, shoving herself out of the tree with enough force the snap the large branches she had landed in, and she grimaced as she skidded over the ground below before dropping low and bowing her horn to the earth, concentrating as her mane and tail swirled, then twisted and transformed, the stars throughout it glowing brighter and pulsing in rhythm as it became an effervescent sapphire dome around her. She hissed in frustration as she felt the icy breath passing over her all the same, feeling frost crawling along her body as a dome of ice formed rapidly over the barrier she had created... and then her eyes flashed the moment she felt the terrible mist pass, and she lunged to her hooves before shooting upwards, ice dome shattering around her and ephemeral locks bursting back apart as she tore through the frozen roof of the trees and rammed herself into the stomach of the dragon.

It gagged loudly, eyes bulging in shock as it began to lean forwards before Luna whistled loudly, then shot beneath it and twisted up in front of the beast. The dragon's eyes followed her as it snarled, opening its jaws as its head stretched upwards after her, Luna flying just out of reach of its claws and teeth before she winked... and for a moment, the beast looked confused before Scrivener Blooms simply rammed himself into the back of its skull, and the dragon's head was knocked forwards with another yelp and the earth pony winced as he flailed madly at the air to try and regain flight.

Before the dragon could recover, Luna quickly shot in, twisting herself elegantly and landing one final, traumatizing kick to the softened-up spot at the back of the dragon's head just as it began to raise itself back up... and the dragon gave one last, dumb wheeze before it fell forwards and crashed into the half-frozen forest below, sending up a burst of snow and broken chunks of wood and plant as Luna huffed and glared down at the fallen, prone giant, the dragon not unconscious but laying in a stupefied daze as a bit of drool leaked down its chin, bleeding profusely from several large, hoof-shaped indents in the back of its head as the winged unicorn snapped: “Irksome beast! I should break every bone in thy body!”

“Luna, seriously. You just beat the dragon up, that should be enough for one day. Please leave it alone.” Scrivener said tiredly as he managed to fly up beside her, then he winced and rubbed absently at his shoulder. “Also, I wish you'd stop ordering me to act like a living cannonball.”

“Thou art large, ponderous, and weighty with both thine body and thine thoughts. I can think of no better living ammunition.” Luna replied calmly, and Scrivy sighed a bit, then winced when the female easily glided down and dropped in front of the dragon, turning to face it with a glare that made the much-larger reptile quail a little as Scrivener awkwardly followed the female to the ground. “I shall speak in a language thou understands, ugly beast.”

The dragon looked at her dumbly, then watched as Luna's horn glowed and ice formed across the ground in front of her, before rising up in two crude sculptures: one of the dragon, and one of a winged unicorn, both roughly the same size. Luna flicked her horn, and the dragon and the unicorn reached out, hoof calmly shaking claw in obvious companionship, and the dragon snorted at this, glowering at her moodily.

Luna looked up with a smile in response to this, however, then flicked her horn again, and the dragon sculpture roared silently at the winged unicorn of ice, which reared back a bit... and then the sculpture of the winged unicorn lunged forwards and smashed the dragon sculpture into bits and pieces, stomping it savagely into the ground, and the living dragon now paled slightly as Luna leaned forwards with a sharp grin. “I see thou better understands my offer. Now, cur, make thy choice.”

Luna flicked her horn, and the ice sculpture melted back into the ground before she stepped forwards and rose a hoof... and the dragon glowered at her, beginning to open its jaws, but the winged unicorn glared in response as her eyes took on a faint ivory glow, electricity sparking through her mane, and the dragon winced a bit at the malevolence that radiated off her before it finally awkwardly rose one enormous claw and gently, carefully grasped her foreleg. Luna nodded firmly... and then the dragon suddenly yanked forwards as it opened its jaws, and Scrivener winced in shock as Luna was tossed into the creature's mouth before its teeth slammed shut around her.

The dragon leaned forwards, hissing through its teeth with a grimace, and icy fog blasted out between the cage of its ivory fangs as Scrivener cursed in shock and staggered backwards, feeling frostbite spreading over his own body as he felt Luna's pain and surprise from inside the creature's maw... and then he winced and turned, sprinting hurriedly away from the dragon as it began to clamber to its claws as the emotions in his mind roiled from agony into rage.

The enormous reptile began to growl... and then its eyes bulged before it leaned forwards with a shriek as Luna ripped through the front of its mouth, teeth shattering apart into white confetti as she spun around with a snarl, her body marred with frostbite, bruises, shallow wounds and crawling tapers of ice as she shouted furiously, mane rumbling blue flames and eyes glowing ivory: “Oversized coward!”

The dragon stared at her stupidly, drooling and bleeding, its front teeth missing before Luna spun around and rammed into its head with enough force to drive its skull to the ground, and it yelped as Scrivy spun around and winced at the sight that followed, as lightning crackled through the air and Luna's hooves, horn, and body smashed against the enormous beast's. The thrashing of the creature would have been comic if not for the sheer anger radiating from Luna, and yet Scrivener couldn't help but laugh a little all the same, part-admiring, part-horrified, part-worried as he sat and then winced a bit as the dragon attempted to take flight, only for Luna to lift a fallen log with telekinesis and smash it firmly into the dragon's wing, making it flop awkwardly back to the ground so she could resume beating on it.

Finally, the dragon lay mangled but alive, wheezing loudly and twitching a little, barely-conscious as Luna grouchily stood beside its head, slamming her hoof into its skull with every word she grumbled. “And that is why we do not betray our betters when they offer us a deal. Is this understood?”

She accented the last with an extra-hard swing, and the dragon's head twitched as it wheezed in response, eyes rolling madly before it trembled violently when Luna stepped away and then spat to the side, looking disgusted and frustrated as Scrivener awkwardly strode up beside her, glancing over her carefully. Luna looked moodily back at him, and then she huffed and asked shortly: “And why did thou not help?”

“Because I did not want to get caught in the middle of the fight between the dragon and the Valkyrie. Not when there's lightning and ice shooting everywhere and you're in blind-pummel mode.” Scrivener said delicately, and Luna grumbled a bit before the earth pony sighed, then awkwardly stepped forwards and firmly booted the dragon in the head, making it twitch more out of fear than pain. “Better?”

“A little.” Luna mumbled, and then she sighed a bit and winced, glancing carefully down over herself, at her bruised and aching form. “Look at me, Scrivener Blooms, I am a mess. Thou too art a mess. We must return home and heal. Worse still, I believe I have lost some of the supplies for Odin, and I fear he will lecture me. I do not like to be lectured.”

“I know, Luna, I know. We'll run out to the Strange Ones again tomorrow if we have to.” Scrivener paused, then he glanced awkwardly towards the beaten dragon, slowly drawing his eyes along it with a bit of a smile. “I'm glad you're going to let it live.”

“'Tis no point in killing him after such a severe pummeling, and he will serve now as a good example to the other dragons not to cross me. Assuming they are not as unfathomably stupid as this creature.” Luna grumbled, then she kicked it one last time before nodding and turning with a mutter, looking at her torn satchel and shaking her head briefly. “Come, Scrivy. To Ponyville. Then to rest. Damnable creature.”

Luna ran forwards a few paces, then leapt to the air with a wince, her wings sore, her body aching, the wind like a knife grinding against her bruised and wounded form as Scrivener followed quickly, flying side-by-side with her as he gazed at her with concern, apology, and gentle recrimination, and Luna smiled faintly as she looked back with much the same in her eyes, thoughts, emotions, images swirling between them as her mane sparked faintly. The dark and raw splotches of frostbite and bruising stood out all the clearer over her frame as they flew together, and Scrivener wished silently that he could have done more... but Luna only shook her head, replying in silence that she should have been more cautious.

The two faced forwards, and Scrivy wondered again quietly on the nature of things, of their relationship, as he reached up and touched the warm, calming collar around his neck, and Luna looked over at him with embarrassment. She could feel his worries, his concerns, and knew they had to play themselves out... just as she felt stupid, most of all, for taking a mighty foe for granted and almost getting them both maimed, if not killed. The wounds she bore were painful, but it was her pride and heart that ached worst of all.

The two ponies flew onwards in quiet through the air until they reached Ponyville and touched down in the square in front of the library, Luna grimacing a bit and shaking her head as she muttered: “And now to find either the old lecher or a place where we can drop... oh, I am too tired for this.”

Luna looked moodily towards the library, then flicked her horn to send the door flying open, and there was a grunt of surprise from inside before Illyria strode into the doorway, the Nibelung looking moodily out at them with a book dangling from one hand. He glared distastefully at the two, drawing his eyes over their bruised bodies, and then he shook his head slowly before saying grouchily: “Well, Brynhild, so much for your grand physical superiority, it would seem.”

“Oh shut up, dwarf, and be thankful that I am too exhausted to beat thee right now, for my mood is foul enough I would risk the lecture from Odin to pummel thee.” Luna replied tiredly, and Illyria winced a bit at this before Luna's horn glowed as she glanced towards Scrivener, and the satchels on his body lifted themselves free and then floated over to the dwarf, thrusting themselves towards him. He barely caught them in his arms, then wheezed and staggered a little under the weight with a curse. “This is what Odin requested. As I am also too tired to lie, tell him that I will retrieve the rest tomorrow if there is a problem. There was an incident with a large dragon that had to be put back in its place.”

Illyria looked at them moodily, but then he sighed as he carefully hefted the satchels, cursing again under his breath and muttering: “Very well, very well. Please do not think I am some lackey, however, I do this only as a gesture of... amiability.”

“Thou art about as amiable as a porcupine with herpes.” Luna said grouchily, and Illyria looked stunned by this response before the winged unicorn grumbled and turned, jerking her head to Scrivener Blooms. “Come, let us be off. I require relaxation, Scrivener Blooms. And to finally heal these accursed aches on my body.”

Scrivener gave her a soft look, but the winged unicorn only grimaced and shook her head, plainly telling him she wanted to be back at home before she took care of her injuries... and he only nodded after a moment, then turned to follow as she left, both of them ignoring Illyria as he shouted some irritated half-goodbye, half-profanity at their backs.

They took to the air again after a few moments to shorten their trip across the Everfree Forest, and when they touched down almost an hour later, Luna staggered with a curse of pain... then smiled faintly when Scrivener gently caught her against his body, looking towards him and saying softly: “Wretched creature. I do not know why thou was so worried about the dragon... it's breath would have been nothing more than a taste of home to thee.”

“Not if home is where the heart is. My heart was never exactly in North Neigh, after all.” Scrivener replied softly, and Luna laughed despite herself before she straightened and gently shoved him away, then glanced at him awkwardly as he added quietly: “Come on, let's get your wounds healed up. You can't keep walking around like that, Luna. Frostbite is nasty.”

“Aye, it hurts more than I expected it to.” Luna grimaced a bit, then turned her eyes to Scrivy, flicking her horn upwards... and the male winced and arched his back as his wings dissolved, and the sapphire winged unicorn gave a bit of a smile to him as she said quietly: “Come then, Scrivener Blooms. Back inside.”

Luna turned around, flicking her horn, and the door to their cottage swung open. Luna made her way to the den to flop down in her usual spot on the bedding with a grimace, and Scrivener instead headed to the kitchen first, putting on coffee before he returned to Luna's side as she fidgeted a bit and mumbled: “Life can be wicked, Scrivener Blooms. It truly frustrates me so at times like this.”

“It's okay, Luna. We can be wicked too.” Scrivener said gently, leaning down and kissing her forehead, then the side of her horn, and Luna smiled softly before she made a face when the male said mildly: “Now come on. You might heal pretty fast but you're in rough shape. I'll help you heal yourself.”

“Oh, thou should do it all.” Luna mumbled, burying her face against the bedding, and Scrivener rolled his eyes before he concentrated as he looked at her... and Luna twitched as a distinct mental image of the earth pony glaring at her filled her mind, cursing under her breath and childishly wrapping her forelegs around her head. “There is nothing thou can do or say to motivate me to move, I am too sore and too tired to do anything but assume thine role for a little while and whine and complain pointlessly about every little thing.”

“If you don't at least sit up I'm not going to get you coffee. In fact, I'll sit here, just out of range, and drink my coffee in front of you.” Scrivener said dryly, and Luna gave him a horrified look as she dropped her forelegs away from her face, but the earth pony only grinned a bit at this, saying kindly: “I learned from the best, dearest.”

Luna grumbled under her breath, then she finally sighed in resignation as she carefully shoved herself up to her hooves, grumbling: “And thou learned far too well at that, it seems. Wicked and evil and monstrous Scrivener Blooms. Very well, I am sitting up, but thou can do the rest of the work.”

“Alright Luna, but I'm tired too, so concentrate just a little.” Scrivener replied softly, and the winged unicorn grumbled but then nodded, her horn beginning to glow... and Scrivener concentrated, drawing his eyes over her wounds as he sifted slowly through her thoughts and memories, gently guiding her magic as he powered her arcane talents with his own strength and concentration.

Luna closed her eyes, and her head slowly moved in synchronization with Scrivener's as he leaned back and forth, studying her form and her wounds, healing her frostbite and her scrapes first as he passed over the bruises. She winced a bit, flinching now and then as magic and injury burned at each other before the pain was numbed out, and Scrivener smiled awkwardly before he carefully reached forwards and guided her to lay down on her stomach so he could look over her back and flank, healing the icy scouring here and there as well as the winged unicorn moved pliantly for him. She only smiled faintly, concentrating on the link shared with her husband, feeling like they were one entity for the moment with the flow of their souls... and then finally, she settled with a sigh, and her eyes fluttered open as Scrivener grunted and flopped down beside her on his side, the two looking quietly at one-another before she said softly: “Thou didst not heal any of thine own injuries.”

“They're just reflection wounds, Luna... they'll fade faster than yours will, and healing you has fixed the worst of the damage.” Scrivener replied softly, and he smiled a bit as he absently tested his own ribs, saying quietly: “I just wish that our bones didn't fracture at the same time.”

“Aye, 'tis annoying.” Luna smiled back despite herself, then she reached a hoof up, the two quietly pressing hoof-to-hoof as they studied one another silently, their gazes locking and their minds trading a swirl of thoughts and images and affections.

Slowly, they leaned in closer, and then their mouths met for a moment in a gentle, slow kiss... before Luna's eyes opened and glared to the side at a loud tapping, and their mouths parted as Scrivener winced and flopped back against the bedding while Luna sat up and shouted at Discombobulation's bottle: “Do not ruin my romantic moments, foul creature, for I have just been eaten by a dragon!”

Discombobulation stared at this from where he was waist-deep in cola, a single hand raised... and then slowly he lowered himself to hide mostly in the liquid, only his head sticking free as Luna glared at him, one of her eyes twitching before she sat back and muttered grouchily: “I suppose that while I am up I shall fetch the coffee, Scrivener Blooms. Do me a favor, and attend to whatever the Draconequus desires.”

She stormed into the kitchen, firmly checking the counter as she passed it with enough force to make the bottle rattle a bit, and Discombobulation winced before he straightened as Scrivener sighed and strode over to the bottle, looking awkwardly down at it as he said lamely: “Sorry. But we did actually encounter a dragon, and. It did attempt to eat her. Hence the... yes. What is it, Bob?”

The chimerical creature looked up at them moodily, and then he rubbed absently at his face before raising two fingers. Scrivy tilted his head, and Bob pushed them insistently towards him, and the male sighed a little, saying finally: “Let me guess, charades? Two words?”

Discombobulation nodded seriously, then he snapped his fingers, turning a purplish color before gesturing at himself as Scrivener stared... then he said lamely: “Twilight Sparkle was here?”

Discombobulation held up a finger as his mouth fell open, then he glared balefully at him before hitting the glass... and pausing at this. Then he nodded suddenly, rubbing his hand firmly over the wall of the blue tinted bottle, and the glass became crystal clear instead of sapphire as Scrivener realized that Discombobulation wasn't purple, he was- “Red. Red, right?”

Discombobulation made a seesawing gesture, and Scrivy tilted his head before the Draconequus held up two fingers as both he and the glass returned to their normal coloration, and Scrivener grunted, figuring it was better to play along before he resisted the urge to look up when Luna cursed over something. Instead, he kept his eyes focused on Bob as he put his hands together and bowed, looking very serious and solemn, and Scrivener said slowly: “You're... I don't know what you're doing.”

The creature slapped its forehead, then leaned forwards and scrawled a flurry of short images over the glass: what looked roughly like a brain, an owl, a one-eyed face... and Scrivener settled on the last, saying dumbly: “Odin, but... oh, wisdom?”

“Red wisdom. What folly does the creature speak?” Luna said irritably, and Scrivener glanced at her as she suckled absently at her foreleg, and the male looked down at his own to see the skin had faintly reddened, but it wasn't serious enough to have been carried between their bodies. Then he gave her a flat look, and she cleared her throat and mumbled: “The coffee-glass was inhospitable.”

“That's why I always tell you to use the handle on the carafe, Luna.” Scrivener said gently, and Luna glared at him moodily before he returned his eyes to the bottle, and he frowned a bit as he saw Discombobulation had etched an editing symbol on the side of his bottle. “Cycle, you mean? Horses of Heaven, Bob, if you knew useful information you'd be a genius.”

The Draconequus crossed his arms moodily as he sat back on top of the cola, and Scrivener smiled despite himself... and then he clicked his tongue as he understood, looking down with a wider smile. “I think I get it. He saw Scarlet Sage.”

“Good.” Luna's own mood immediately brightened, and both she and Scrivy shared a look before they gazed down at the Draconequus, who looked pleased even as he quirked an eyebrow curiously towards them. “Aye, Bob, Scarlet Sage tends to appear here often when Scrivener Blooms and I are present in this world... otherwise, she seems to spend her time with friends and kin in Ponyville, but whenever we are here, her spirit... it tries to find us. Tries to spend time with us... and... her presence comforts me in ways that are hard to describe. She makes me feel like... less of a failure.”

Scrivener smiled a bit at this, and then Luna shook her head and glanced awkwardly towards the two mugs of coffee, and they floated into the air before she headed into the den room. “Come, Scrivener Blooms, and relax with me, if Discombobulation has nothing further to note. Nothing further that I would care about, I mean.”

The earth pony rolled his eyes in entertainment, and then he shrugged a bit as Bob looked up at him mildly. “Well, at least she's honest, right? Anyway, don't worry about it. You may see other Pales here from time-to-time too, but they mean no harm. Do you remember when you saw Scarlet Sage, though?”

Bob shrugged at this, then he held both arms straight up before lowering one slightly to the side, and Scrivener realized after a moment he was miming a clock before the earth pony smiled a bit and nodded. “Thanks, Bob. Let us know if you need anything.”

Discombobulation nodded, then he flopped back down on the cola, making it ripple like a waterbed as he laid on the surface of the liquid, and Scrivener turned to join Luna on the bedding. Blue flames danced in the fireplace as she lay with her mug of coffee between her hooves, sipping at it thoughtfully as she murmured quietly: “Scrivener Blooms, I feel... I do not know. A little tired, but I wish to do things I have not the energy for. A little lonely, but at the same time, I know that I am never alone, and never feel the same solitude and loneliness that I once did thanks to thee. Still, I look forwards to when we can see our friends in body again... they are more fun than thou art.”

“I agree.” Scrivener gave her an amused look, and Luna rolled her eyes and huffed, headbutting him lightly and making him flinch back a bit before he sipped slowly at his coffee and added mildly: “You know, it's perfectly okay that you want to spend time with ponies other than me. I like spending time with ponies apart from you, too.”

“Thou art a liar.” Luna said pompously, and Scrivener rolled his eyes before he nudged her firmly with his shoulder, and the winged unicorn grumbled a bit and nodded as she said moodily: “And perhaps, aye, but still. We are one, the same blood flows within our veins, the same heart inside our chest, the same soul fills us both. It seems strange to me, to do something without thyself along for the ride.”

Scrivener Blooms smiled despite himself at this, tilting his head towards her and saying softly: “Well, long before I met you, Luna, I wanted to do stuff without me all the time. Even now, I still wish I could do stuff without me along for the ride. By me I mean me, not you, so we're clear and you can't hit me too hard.”

Luna rolled her eyes in entertainment at this, sipping slowly at her coffee and giving a slight smile as she shook her head. “I figured such, worry not, daydreamer. There will be much to adjust to in this Looking Glass Equestria, won't there? Perhaps even ourselves will require... certain adjustments.”

She halted, then turned and drew her eyes down to the thin collar decorating Scrivener's neck, and smiled a little as she reached her hoof out to stroke slowly along this, saying quietly: “Aye. A world to adjust to indeed, but adjust to it we shall. No matter what happens, no matter who we face, no matter what we must do, Scrivener Blooms... we shall rebuild all that was lost. I promise this, to thee, to myself, and most of all, to those souls we have managed to pull across the gap...”

She closed her eyes, then lowered her head for a moment against his neck, and Scrivener tilted his own towards her, feeling her mane swaying gently against him, ephemeral locks kissing up along his features as she murmured: “There is much work still to be done, but we have much time to do it in, and I feel only like lazing for the rest of today and tonight. Perhaps we shall even be fortunate and catch a glimpse of our daughter, here or there... perhaps others will visit us, or perhaps we will simply relax in our quiet solitude, comfortable together in this deep place with little on our agenda for the time ahead.”

“Just no more dragon fighting, right?” Scrivener smiled a bit, and Luna grunted as she buried her face deeper against the side of his neck, and he wrapped a foreleg around her quietly, squeezing her a bit closer as he glanced up towards the sapphire flames rollicking in the fireplace. As he watched the fire, as Luna pressed closer, he felt the strangely-warm collar around his neck seem to pulse with life as the black pearl that hung from the winged unicorn's gently burned lightly against her breast, helping drive everything from the minds of the two except for thoughts of the other, assuring them that no matter what the future held, they would always have one another and their love.

Wolf Hunt

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Chapter Twenty: Wolf Hunt
~BlackRoseRaven

A week passed in relative peace and quiet: the most exciting event that occurred was returning to the Strange One village to fetch more supplies. Odin had taken the loss of the other materials in stride, and had given them an extra day to rest so that he could take another look through what they had available and append a few more supplies to the new list.

It had gone as creepily and smoothly as the first time: the only difference was that the Strange One artisan had found them just as they were about to leave, and presented them with a gemstone. It was a white pearl that had been carefully cut into a crescent, then layered on either side with black onyx so the layered gemstone formed a large oval. When inserted into the hollow in Scrivener's collar, however, the symbol was all the clearer: the crescent moon, the slice of white pearl seeming to glow as it was framed by the black onyx on either side of it.

It locked into place so tightly that it didn't wiggle around even when jarred... and Scrivener wondered dumbly how the artisan had managed such a snug fit as Luna had stared, but before either of them could thank the Strange One, he had vanished. And more than ever, the collar had felt comforting, natural, warm, resting low on Scrivener's neck, and more than once he caught Luna admiring it on him... which made him grin at her mix of egoism, love, and appreciation.

Apart from that, however, there was little of note: they spent their time working on their cottage, entertaining rare guests, and discussing with Roma, Greece, Illyria and Odin how best to use Valthrudnir's cards. Roma and Greece, after inspecting the cards, studying the enchantments, and recording several pages of findings, both concluded that two of the cards in conjunction with Illyria's magnification devices would be more than enough to achieve their goal of restoring the souls to flesh, especially when backed by Luna's magic power.

It was a surprisingly-bland week... but considering that most weeks they spent were made up of battling monsters across a Hell-ravaged world, bland was a nice change of pace even for the battle-lusting Valkyrie, who was able to indulge her nicer side and enjoy what for the two ponies had become a rare treat: the chores of normal life spent side-by-side. Things like Luna demanding to be taught to bake cookies and the resulting, horribly-burned unnameable things that they had to pry off the melted tray, and Scrivy spending his nights reading to her, and Luna painting as her husband transcribed stories new and old.

They saw the occasional Pale here and there, including the shade of Scarlet Sage, who sat with them for several nights... and it was strangely comforting to have her presence nearby, the filly smiling at her parents and watching them quietly as they looked back at her, talked to her, comforted her and each other. She would silently encourage them, urging them forwards, giving them more hope for the future, and it did a world for her adopted parents that the child was remaining here with them, even if both wondered from time-to-time if the girl's real parents were out there, Pales aimlessly searching for their daughter across this new and beautiful and strange Equestria.

Now, Scrivener Blooms and Luna were both standing in Ponyville's open square, revitalized and strong. Luna had a thick rawhide sheath on her back, the butt of her telescopic spear sticking out of this, and Scrivener wore a new pair of glasses. Around their necks, collar rested and black pearl swayed, and Odin looked meditatively back and forth between the two as he rubbed at the side of his face before saying finally: “I still believe this is folly, Brynhild. The world you came from approaches collapse... that layer of reality is dying, and you have already saved many souls. I will not stop you if this is what you truly desire, to return to that broken layer and continue business as usual, but I must implore you to be careful... to watch for signs and dangers, to be wary of any possible breaches in reality, and to not delay in retreating immediately to this world if the symptoms of collapse are even hinted at. You do not want to be trapped in nothingness for the rest of eternity, which not even I can save you from.”

“Thou cannot save me from many things, Odin. Worry not, if I fall into nothingness, Scrivener Blooms and I shall merely build a new home there, at least safe from thy endless badgering.” Luna replied mildly, and Odin rubbed at his temples but didn't respond to this obvious attempt on his patience. It made the winged unicorn look almost disappointed, and then she huffed and turned, saying easily: “Come, Scrivener. This place wears on me. Let us go.”

“Wait, I'm not quite done yet.” Odin said irritably, holding up a hand, and Luna groaned before she glared over her shoulder at him as the once-god asked seriously: “Have you tended to the Velite? What about the zebra, have you spoken with her?”

“Oh, as if I would go about ignoring them. Well, Pollen, perhaps, but either way I have seen that she knows her way around my home and how to take care of Discombobulation, and she will stay mostly out of the way. If she wanders into Ponyville, though, do be kind, lecher. Thou of all people should know what 'tis like to be trapped in a shape less-amicable than one desires.” Luna said pointedly, but Odin only crossed his arms, continuing to look at her mildly. “As to Zecora, I kicked down the door of her hut earlier. She was not home, so I wrote her a message. I wrote it on the floor, in the most expensive-looking ink I could find. I reflect now that considering the speed with which she built this hut and apparently organized it into a replica of her old home, I should have simply burned it all down. The mess I made will be far too easy for her to remedy.”

“I see you take losing as well as you ever did.” Odin remarked, and Luna huffed at him grouchily. The once-god gave a wry smile, however, then he nodded and said quietly: “Do not worry, I will not interfere with either of them. I have learned to trust your instincts on these matters... and that if you need help, you will ask.”

Luna quickly looked away at this, but then she smiled a little as she met Scrivener's eyes, and the two nodded to each other: the rest had done them both good, after all, and while they had still had more than one 'nightmare 'over the past week, Scrivener felt more in control of himself than he had in a long time, and his mind felt settled, with fewer visions taking sudden hold. Perhaps it was because of the charms in the collar and the unknown magic in the gemstone, or perhaps it was just because they had been able to relax and calm down after spending so much time being soaked in corruption and violence. “Yes, Odin. We shall... if it is necessary.”

Odin looked thoughtfully from one to the other... then he finally nodded and gestured outwards with one hand, and Luna grumbled as she turned around and began to stride through the square, Scrivener falling into step beside her and the once-god following behind them as he said thoughtfully: “Very well, then. But permit me to accompany you and help you open the Bifrost, then. You can allow a little bit of aid there at least, Brynhild, I know it is a more-complex process than it is in your corrupted Equestria.”

“Only because thou refuses to provide another channeling altar.” Luna complained loudly, but Odin only smiled indulgently at her, which vexed the winged unicorn all the more as she glowered over her shoulder at him. “Do not look at me so. And do not stare at my flank. It is not for thee, it is for my husband. And possibly others if I say so, but never thee.”

Scrivener sighed and dropped his head forwards as Odin rolled his eyes, muttering: “By Mimir's head, can we not walk in peace for one lonely time, Brynhild? I wish only for peace between us, or at least a semblance of it-”

“And thou art getting a semblance of it, old cyclops. Forget not that if the urge took me I could and gladly would pummel thee into oblivion.” Luna retorted over her shoulder, and then she grinned when Odin made a face at her. “Oh, thou may want to doubt it, but look at thee, an old lecher sustaining himself off of a dwindling supply of ambrosia, whilst I am a winged unicorn with a Valkyrie's soul. Are thou sure thou would once again let thy pride speak before thy mind thinks, and wager thyself against me? I promise not to kill thee either way, Odin... I am not that kind.”

“Oh, believe me, Brynhild, I would never accuse you of kindness. Arrogance, breeding hostility, and many other things, but never kindness.” Odin replied moodily, and then he sighed and lowered his head, nodding with a grumble. “And I... acknowledge that I am not the warrior I once was. And one day all too soon I really will be nothing but a doddering old man, lingering in Valhalla... I hope I die before that day. I can think of nothing more shameful than dying comfortably in my own bed.”

Luna looked awkwardly over her shoulder for a moment, seeming torn... and then she sighed and said finally: “Well, worry not, old lecher. I am sure that with so much still in chaos and thou refusing to retire quietly to thy rocking chair, thou will die horribly in battle. Perhaps the Norns will even favor us both, and I shall slaughter thee for making some rude remark or for thee allowing thy lecherous hands to wander where they don't belong.”

“Brynhild, you are not attractive to me as a pony, you do understand this, correct?” Odin said mildly, and then he winced when Luna skidded to a halt and gave him a horrible look over her shoulder, Scrivener clearing his throat awkwardly as he winced and stepped carefully to the side.

Silence spiraled out for a few moments, and then Luna huffed and tilted her head imperiously upwards before storming forwards, and Scrivener sighed in relief as he fell back into pace beside her even as her mane and tail sparked, the female muttering: “Perhaps thou will die sooner rather than later if thou keeps this up, so-called 'God of Wisdom.' Truly, it is as if thou wants me to slaughter thee. Thou should keep thine foolish beak shut.”

Odin looked tiredly up to the skies for patience, then simply shrugged at the sun overhead, muttering: “I am learning this, Brynhild, at least when it comes to you, worry not. Perhaps we should just enjoy the day's fine air.”

“Perhaps we should.” Luna said grumpily, and she shot a look at Scrivener, who sighed and looked back pleadingly, but she only gave him a sulky huff, and the male grumbled under his breath before he strode forwards and closer to her so she could drop her head firmly down against the side of his neck, mumbling irritably to herself as Odin looked moodily at the two, then back up at the sky as he walked with his gloved hands behind his back.

They continued in relative quiet to the field where they had first entered this layer of reality, and Luna loosened up a bit, gazing back and forth as Scrivener checked over himself automatically and then sat back on his haunches, adjusting his glasses. Odin, lastly, seemed preoccupied with his own thoughts as he stayed back on the trail, still looking towards the sky, and then Luna cleared her throat loudly, and the once god blinked before he coughed a few times and smiled awkwardly as he shook his head quickly. “I... apologize. My mind is not what it used to be... and once, I was vain enough to think I would never suffer the negatives of 'growing old...'”

“Aye, Odin, we have heard this story before. Perhaps thou should sit back under a tree, then, and watch whilst Scrivener Blooms and I open the Bifrost.” the winged unicorn said moodily, but Odin only shook his head again as he reached into his coat, producing his flask and opening it to sip slowly at the contents with a grimace, and Luna looked at him for a few moments before she asked in a voice that was curious and surprisingly-polite: “Tell me, Odin. What effect would drinking ambrosia have upon a normal pony? Or say on a pony such as myself or my husband?”

“For a normal pony, it would grant them speed, strength and vitality. Perhaps permanent, but the ambrosia's effects upon a mortal are difficult to predict... some handle it better than others, a rare few die from their exposure to it. For you and Scrivener, it would likely be the same sort of effect it has on me... a temporary boost to strength of mind and body. Again, though, it is hard to say... and I would rather you two not help yourselves to my ambrosia to find out.” Odin replied meditatively, then he carefully screwed the lid back on the flask and slipped it back into his vest. “In larger quantities, ambrosia carries more permanent effects... but it loses its ability to extend one's life. Instead, it often shortens the lifespan instead from so much energy being infused into a being at once. At least, that is the rumor.”

“Thou should gorge thyself upon thy stash and discover if this is true or not, then.” Luna grumbled, and Odin rolled his eyes before the winged unicorn turned around and said finally: “Very well, then. Scrivener Blooms, let us begin tracing the runes while the old cyclops prepares himself for a strain.”

Scrivy smiled awkwardly as Odin only rolled his eye, rubbing his hands together slowly, and the two ponies approached a section of the field that seemed as if it had been seared by flames, the grass blackened and the ground splattered with what looked almost like a permanent layering of soot and charcoal. The two ponies traded looks, and then both dipped a hoof into this before they began to trace a rough diagram of runic symbols outwards, forming into a wide double-circle: the area where the base of the Bifrost would be anchored.

Odin watched them curiously, studying the way they moved in near synchronization even as they traced different symbols, and then he nodded slowly when the two stepped away and both lowered their heads forwards in visible concentration. He didn't have to ask what they were doing as he stepped forwards, closing his eyes and putting his own hands together as if to pray as he stood between them, murmuring an incantation in a language forgotten by time as the runes traced in ashes burst into flames and reality around them rippled violently.

The ground inside the circle began to glow, then burst upwards in a wild swirl of flames that twisted forwards and drilled into reality itself, forming a tunnel in the sky as the cyclone of fire burst apart and left behind the multicolored rainbow bridge of the Bifrost. Energy twisted over the earth as recoil shocked over the bodies of the two ponies and the once-god, Odin grimacing and grasping at his chest as Luna and Scrivener grit their teeth and arched their backs, faces contorted in that same expression of pleasure-pain as electricity burst through Luna's locks before they dropped their head forwards with gasps of exertion.

But it had been far easier on them with the help of Odin, as he straightened slowly and cracked his back with a grimace, looking moodily over the burning bridge of rainbow light as he muttered: “Rainbows mean many things, you know. And while you ponies have chosen to apply new meanings to them, I think for me they'll always mean bad luck, even if the Bifrost was once a symbol of the Aesir's power.”

Luna smiled wryly at this, glancing over Odin measuringly before she turned her eyes back towards the bridge, beginning to stride forwards... and then the once-god stepped suddenly forwards and grasped her shoulder, and Luna glared at him before the falcon-headed being pointed with his free hand, saying sharply: “Wait, look!”

The winged unicorn frowned as she looked back towards the Bifrost, beginning to open her mouth to snap some bad one-liner out at the falcon-headed being... and then her eyes widened as she realized what Odin was pointing at. The colors of the Bifrost were fading and the flames burned gray instead of clear and white... and as she and Scrivener Blooms watched in shock, the flames turned dead black as the multicolored bridge began to twist and writhe like it was a living thing in tremendous pain.

Then Odin grabbed them both, hauling them firmly backwards, and the two ponies were surprised at his strength as they staggered and he said roughly: “Leave. Something is coming across the Bifrost, it could be anything, and I-”

“Will be a snack to it.” Luna shrugged him off with a snort of disgust, then she glanced towards Scrivener Blooms, and the pony nodded quickly before the two turned and ran to either corner of the field before spinning around and anchoring themselves, leaving Odin standing in surprise by himself before Luna shouted irritably: “Get out of the middle of the battleground, old idiot, and let us do our job!”

“I am not leaving, Brynhild. I still have some strength left in these old bones.” Odin replied calmly even as he spun around and walked to the foot of the road, then turned with a grimace, rubbing his hands together before he looked up with disgust as the Bifrost wrenched itself upwards, the different strings of color twisting apart as an awful hissing rose up from the bridge, black flames bursting over it before cracks spread through the now-colorless gray rainbow. “Not even enough time for one last drink...”

Luna grinned despite herself as she flicked her horn, her spear flying out of the sheath to extend quickly beside her to its full length, and Scrivener Blooms set himself with a curse under his breath before his eyes widened as the Bifrost gave an awful, almost-alive groan... and then it simply exploded in a blast of shadow and pallid radiance, the three wincing back as the tunnel in reality became an awful, cracked rip in the fabric of space and time.

The groaning rose into a scream as a cold, icy wind burst from the shattered hole in reality, terrible white light shining out of it for a moment before something huge and awful and bulky became silhouetted by the radiance... and then a shape smashed into the too-small hole, a head ripping through like the air was trying to birth a monster, like the corrupt Equestria had been but the womb for a beast that now sought a new world to feast upon and destroy... and Fenrir roared and snarled as the Black Wolf of Hell began to rip and gouge at reality itself, scars pulsing over its terrible dark-flame body, black and soulless white eye burning with what seemed like only hatred and hunger as Luna yelled in disbelief and Odin cursed under his breath before cracks spread through the air around the broken hole in the sky.

The tunnel ripped wider, chunks of reality falling like glass shards as the massive monstrosity tore its way into their world with a greedy snarl, dropping out of the sky to crash to the ground and rip its claws into the grasses, leaping forwards so it was only a few feet away from Odin, who staggered backwards at the raw waves of vileness that radiated off the scarred and misshapen beast. It was even more hideous than when Luna had fought it now, black fire burning in thin lines over a body that was covered in that warped blue-red flesh, lipless maw nothing but ivory fangs and broken, jagged teeth that made it somehow all the more fearsome, its missing ears making the monstrosity's features all the more skull-like.

It began to lean down... then looked sharply up instead, gazing at the blue sky, drool dripping from its maw as it dragged its claws against the ground... and beneath it, grass began to rot, bursting into short-lived flame that, the moment it died, left behind not ashes but thick ice... and Luna's eyes blazed with both fury and fear as she began to move forwards... before her eyes widened in horror as another Black Wolf ripped through reality, landing next to Fenrir. This one, too, was missing an ear, covered in red and blue lines of flesh bared through the black-flame fur as it staggered over the ground and strode to Fenrir's right side.

The hole in reality pulsed as another Black Wolf followed, Luna and Scrivener's horror growing as Odin only readied himself calmly, looking disgusted now more than anything else even as the final fourth Black Wolf half-fell out of the rip in reality, landing with a yelp but ignored by the other three that stood forwards, sniffing at the air, the field around them rotting and trembling as the wound in reality quaked and shivered, then finally, slowly began to close... but the worst of the infection of corrupt Equestria had now traveled, in the form of these awful, abhorrent abominations, into their Looking Glass reality. They were living destruction and corruption, greedily sampling the air, unconcerned with the defiance they faced as they slavered and drooled before Fenrir threw his head back and howled, and reality shivered, the clouds in the sky above darkening and lightning crackling through the air before it dropped its head forwards with an eager growl.

Odin faced it, not flinching even as Fenrir barked several times before it lunged towards him... and then leapt easily over the once-god, the falcon-headed being cursing in disgust as the second-largest, scarred Black Wolf roared as it shot past him as well, onto the road heading for Ponyville, and Luna's eyes widened in horror and rage as the last two Black Wolves split up, one running to the right and the other to the left, both barking gleefully as they tore into the trees and left trails of rot where their paws ripped against the earth. Before Luna could lunge for the nearest to her, however, Odin roared in a surprisingly powerful voice of command: “Brynhild, take down Fenrir! I shall deal with Hati, Scrivener Blooms, distract Skoll! The Nibelung will be able to delay Garm at Ponyville!”

There was no time for argument, and no point, as Odin ran with surprising grace to the side, and Luna cursed as she shot towards the road and gave chase to the two wolves now racing towards Ponyville, wings propelling her as fast as she could fly as Scrivener Blooms turned and ran after the last wolf: the omega, the smallest, and thankfully still limping from the wounds it had sustained in the collapse of the Black Baroque as it stagger-ran through the trees... but wounded or not, it was still large and solid enough to crash its way through the forest as if the pines and oaks and ash trees were nothing more than loose building blocks in the way of an angry toddler.

Luna snarled as she shot along the road as the ground shifted and rumbled ominously, cracks ripping here and there through the earth as rocks tore out of the ground and vents of steam burst up, frost rapidly spreading over soil that writhed as if nature itself was trying to scream. Her mane sizzled with electricity as her eyes caught on the two Black Wolves lunging ahead, running side-by-side: Alpha and Beta, gaining, gaining, gaining on Ponyville, and she knew that she couldn't stop them both from reaching the village... just as she knew that if Odin was right about one thing, it was that Garm was dangerous... but Fenrir was the true destroyer, the true living weapon.

As they began to pass into the plains outside the village, Luna put on an extra burst of speed as she angled her spear downwards and then shoved it savagely into the back of Fenrir's neck, and the Black Wolf of Helheim howled in shock more than pain as it reared back, staggering stupidly as Garm skidded to a halt ahead, looking back over its shoulder with a snarl... but even as Luna slammed her hooves into the back of Fenrir's head and quickly tore her spear back and free, the Alpha looked forwards, then barked and snarled at Garm, and the Beta seemed to take it as a command as it growled back before half-turning and continuing on its way.

Fenrir shook its mighty head, the black flames flaring up over its body for a moment before it slowly looked over its shoulder as Luna hovered, and its glaring, now-mismatched eyes seemed to recognize her somehow, the monster snarling as drool dripped from its jaws, and Luna glared back, fearless, enraged, and most of all, determined to destroy these monsters that had invaded her territory, that had come to ravage the paradise she had helped rebuild as her eyes glowed with ivory light and her mane and tail sizzled with blue flame. They stared at one another, bodies flexing and trembling, and then Fenrir began to turn away... and Luna immediately swept her horn to the side as it gave a sharp pulse, and a blast of blue flame erupted over the Black Wolf's side and haunch with enough force to knock it staggering to the side with a yelp of surprise before the winged unicorn shouted: “We have unfinished business, monster! And this time, there is no retreat for either of us!”

Slowly, Fenrir turned towards her as rot and frost spread over the ground beneath its feet... and then the Black Wolf threw its head back and howled, and a wave of awful malevolence ripped through the air, knocking Luna backwards with a wince before she looked down in horror as trees twisted and distorted into gnarled, blackened hulks around them, as the land rotted and frost spilled over the ground, as the simple presence of this abomination ravaged the earth around it with rot and ice... and then the winged unicorn snarled as she flexed and roared: “It will take more than a show of force to make me submit, creature!”

Fenrir snarled at her, running forwards and lunging upwards... and immediately, Luna flew gracefully skywards, avoiding a wild swipe of one of the beast's paws as her eyes flicked over the monster. It bore awful scars and deformities, but no real wounds, no real vulnerabilities she could see, as she quickly dropped to the black eye and shot in towards its cheek... but its jaws immediately snapped at her, making her curse and propel herself quickly backwards, just avoiding the deathtrap of its fangs with a wince before she stabbed her spear fiercely forwards into its nose, and it yelped and staggered backwards, shaking its head wildly back and forth.

It healed fast, too fast, and Luna gritted her teeth before she dropped to the ground, ignoring the ice and shale that crunched beneath her hooves before she ran forwards and smoothly sidestepped when the monster clawed at her, the wolf attempting to backpedal to try and keep up, but Luna was faster as she ran beneath its body, stabbing her spear fiercely upwards in a straight line through the underside of its chest and sending down a hail of black blood. It shrieked and lunged to the side, but again, the wounds healed unnaturally fast, and Luna cursed as she aimed to run beneath it again... only for it to stagger slightly in circle and slam a rear paw backwards into her, knocking her flying.

She crashed and rolled several times on her back as her spear flew to the side, rattled out of her telekinetic grip, and Fenrir spun around before lunging towards her with a roar... but Luna's eyes flashed as she lay on her back, snarling in return as she lashed out wildly with a blast of both telekinetic force and blue flames: it struck the monster directly in its open jaws, searing the inside of its mouth and shattering its ivory fangs, sending chunks of white shrapnel ripping through its throat and muzzle.

It shrieked as it staggered backwards, smoke rising from its maw, the damage catastrophic as it clawed wildly at its own destroyed, gaunt features for a moment, and Luna leapt to her hooves before her eyes widened as Fenrir lashed its claws down, wincing back and expecting some supernatural attack... but instead, it only tore both front paws into the earth, and Luna frowned in surprise before the beast arched its back and hissed as its body rippled, and the winged unicorn looked back and forth as cracks spread through the earth and the circle of destruction widened as the monster's tattered features rapidly regenerated themselves, new teeth ripping into place as it spat out a stream of bile before looking up with a snarl... and Luna's eyes widened in horror as she realized that the beast was drawing strength from the ground itself. It could feed off the life of the planet itself... and the winged unicorn gritted her teeth before Nightmare Moon said coldly in her head: Then perhaps it will not survive catastrophic damage if you take away its source of strength.

“Aye, then thou had best lend me thine powers, Nightmare Moon.” Luna said grimly, and inside her, Nightmare Moon gave a strange, dark smile as the winged unicorn grimaced, then winced and lunged backwards as Fenrir went on the attack, its claws ripping down, its jaws snapping and biting savagely after her as she cursed under her breath but concentrated on avoiding the Black Wolf's fury.

She could feel the darkness inside of her pulsing and growing, could feel new energy pushing into muscles that were already strong, could feel a strange and wild plan being injected into her mind, laced with Nightmare Moon's ruthlessness... and Luna grinned, her eyes glowing as her mane and tail boiled, concentrating as her horn began to glow before her eyes flicked to the side as she leapt out of the way and landed by her fallen spear. With merely a thought, the weapon immediately threw itself off the ground and spun once beside her before shooting forwards like a guided missile when Fenrir's head lunged down... and then it shrieked in misery, staggering backwards, as its ivory eye was pierced by the spear, shaking its head wildly back and forth as it clawed wildly at the weapon with one large paw.

Luna immediately leapt into the air, shooting straight upwards, flapping her wings powerfully as the Black Wolf managed to tear the spear free as a new eye began to form in its socket, the creature looking back and forth, temporarily blinded as it trembled with fury and hate and confusion... and high above, Luna let her body gracefully drop backwards into a steep fall, her horn beginning to glow brightly as her mane and tail sizzled, her body sparking with energy and electricity as Fenrir looked up with a snarl to see the winged unicorn plummeting quickly towards the ground, the beast lunging forwards and raising both front paws high as if to crush her... and Luna's wings flapped once, giving her a final, extra boost of speed as she corkscrewed her body as her form burst apart into swirling blue mist, becoming a tornado of blue flame that twisted upwards just before it hit the ground and smashed the enormous Black Wolf into the air, the creature howling in misery and terror as its massive frame was shoved fiercely upwards, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty feet into cloudy sky.

The swirling storm of blue mist condensed and narrowed, then tore suddenly forwards, ripping straight through the creature's chest as it glowed brightly, Fenrir's body spasming as it shrieked... and Luna tore out the monster's back, reformed, snarling as steam and dark blood burst around her body and her wings flapped hard as she flew to the side, snapping her horn downwards, ignoring the pain in her body as Nightmare Moon laughed inside her.

The frozen ground shuddered as the ice thickened, then rapidly began to twist upwards, lengthening and shaping, glinting as it hardened even as it transformed... and knowing she had little time, little chance, not wanting to lose a precious second, Luna shot forwards as Fenrir began to fall with flailing limbs, fighting to twist itself over as its jaws shrieked. And in that crucial moment before it could, as its eyes rolled in its head, a force of destruction on the verge of panic, Luna slammed her hooves against the front of its skull, knocking its head back before she leapt forwards with a furious shout of: “For all thou stole from me, monster!”

She crashed into its already-torn ribs, throwing her whole body into the full-body ram above the awful wound she had ripped through it, and Fenrir was launched straight downwards... and then screamed as it was impaled on a single jutting spike of ice, the thick stake cracking at the force and weight of the monster that crashed onto it, but the almost-pillar long and thick enough that it only trembled... then stilled as the Black Wolf foamed at the jaws, shrieking beneath the sun as Luna half-fell to the ground beside it, crashing down hard and rolling several times as she gasped in exertion, then fell on her side... and grinned savagely at the sight of the monster as it convulsed once helplessly, even as tears rolled down her cheeks and blood flowed from her lips and nose, whispering: “I shall never permit anything... to threaten those I love.”

Fenrir threw its head back with a scream that was too-sentient, too-alive, filled with fear and sorrow and pain as it arched its back... and Luna watched, breathing hard, body quivering as the black flames over the living force of destruction whiffed out as its body began to stiffen, its movements slowly before it began to freeze into place, graying and petrifying in death. Finally, all that was left was a statue splattered with black bile, impaled on a spike of jutting ice, Fenrir's last expression somewhere between senseless, animal hatred and sentient terror... and Luna could only grin as she breathed hard where she lay, exhausted from the battle as she closed her eyes and felt Scrivener Blooms locked in his own seemingly-impossible struggle. But thou can do it, Scrivy... if I can face my greatest fear... thou can defeat a wounded pack-wolf.

The ponies were not the only ones engaging the beasts, however, as Odin cursed under his breath, grimacing as he ran quickly down a narrow path through the forest as behind him, Hati roared, the Black Wolf clawing its way madly through the trees. The once-god was leading it through one of the networks of traps that had been set up around Ponyville, but it was doing little to slow the creature down, and to make the situation even more difficult all he had in terms of weapons was a simple longbow he'd made by transfiguring a branch.

The once-god coughed hard as he grabbed at his chest, shooting a quick glance over his shoulder... and grimacing as Hati lunged into the clearing. He quickly looked ahead, eyes locking on a nearby boulder, and Odin ran towards this as the Black Wolf snarled, eyes locking on him and following his movements before it lunged forwards as the falcon-headed being staggered to a halt in front of the rock.

Odin glanced up and leapt to the side, gritting his beak as its jaws lunged down and mashed painfully into the boulder, and it howled and staggered backwards... and a back paw slipped onto a thin covering, crunching through the expertly-camouflaged trap to land in a pitfall filled with spikes. The Black Wolf howled in pain, distracted for the moment, and Odin quickly ran around the boulder, snapping a branch off a tree as he passed, and with a flick of his wrist it became a simple wooden arrow that he quickly nocked into the bow, half-turning to fire it into the wolf's face.

It had little effect but to upset it further as its head snapped back, and it snarled as it dragged its rear paw upwards, shaking its head briskly before roaring and batting the boulder aside, sending it crashing through the trees as Odin hurried along the path with a grimace as he finally reached the trap he had been looking for. He leapt past it as Hati began to charge down the path, only to hit a tripwire, and a heavy log swung down from above to smash into the flank of the enormous creature, knocking it staggering. It did little to injure it, but the monster barked wildly as it looked back and forth before clawing savagely at the dangling log, ripping it down before it snarled as its eyes refocused on Odin as he reached the other end of the path, where several barrels had been stored by a small hutch.

The once-god wheezed hard as he knocked one of these over, then rested his foot on it with a grimace, cursing under his breath as he yanked a branch free from a tree... then clenched his beak shut, eye tightly shutting as a shiver of pain wracked his body, grabbing at his chest as Hati glared down the path at him, the Black Wolf snarling as it bristled visibly. But Odin was breathing hard, almost fumbling the loose branch as he leaned forwards, pained and weakened... and the monster roared before it broke into an eager sprint, smelling weakness as Odin looked tiredly up-

Its front paws landed in two large snares set up on either side of the path, and there was a loud snap as these tightened violently around its ankles before they were dragged taut on hidden pulleys, yanking its front paws backwards beneath it as its heavy body and rapid momentum tried to continue to carry it forwards. It yelped in surprise as it flopped forwards, hindquarters high in the air and face skidding against the grassy path as Odin straightened with a grimace, then kicked the barrel hard, the contents inside sloshing before it crashed into the creature's head and it twitched, then snarled and bit aggressively forwards, seizing into this as if to crush it as Odin took aim with the bow and nocked the branch as it became an arrow before the tip burst into golden flame, the once-god saying wryly: “Even better.”

He fired the arrow just as the beast's teeth began to crush the barrel, clear oil splattering in all directions... and then the flaming missile struck, and the barrel exploded in a torrent of golden flames, Hati throwing itself backwards with a howl of misery as its entire head was engulfed in a torrent of fire, shaking itself wildly as Odin tossed his bow aside and moodily reached into his rawhide jacket to pull out his flask. The Black Wolf shrieked as it burned, then staggered forwards even as the holy flames ravaged its body, the monster's features rapidly petrifying as it began to throw itself towards the once-god... and yet only managed to come with in a few feet as its upper body petrified completely, its lower body shivering violently as its rear paws clawed weakly against the ground before gray spread through it and the entire beast was frozen from head-to-tail in stone, smoke and golden embers slowly rising up off the beast.

Slowly, Odin sipped at his ambrosia, looking fearlessly into the snarling, petrified face of the creature, and then he shook his head and muttered: “Reduced to using blessed oil and holy fire to neutralize a force of destruction. A moment of rest... and then I shall check on the others.”

He closed his eyes, rubbing slowly at his chest as the petrified Black Wolf steamed quietly, forcing himself to calm down as he leaned against the now-statue... and then glanced up with a grimace at a tremendous crash, muttering: “I direly hope that was Brynhild, for once.”

Scrivener Blooms cursed under his breath as he sprinted along the side of a jagged cliff wall, Skoll loping behind him and half-dragging its twisted front leg as it snarled and barked savagely: getting its attention hadn't been difficult, but now all the earth pony could do was distract it while waiting for Luna or Odin to show up, cursing his inability to do anything before he looked up and gritted his teeth as he realized he was heading straight into a narrow corner, beginning to turn... and Skoll lunged immediately to the side, cutting him off before it slapped him savagely with its gnarled paw, the earth pony cursing in surprise and pain as he was knocked flying backwards to crash against the stone wall and then fall to the ground with a wheeze.

The monster had chased him all the way to Horseshoe Pass, a rocky, gorge-torn region of tundra-like waste that cut through the forests and plains for miles, splitting the land with the natural barrier it formed. There were several ragged, difficult-to-pass cuts like this between Ponyville and the village of the Strange Ones several long hours away... and the terrain was only becoming all the more hostile as the ground rotted and froze over from the presence of Skoll, the monster snarling towards Scrivener Blooms even as it listed for a moment, growling and rasping for breath as Scrivy slowly picked himself up despite the aches rollicking through his system.

His body hurt, and he could feel Luna's tiredness and emotions seeping into him: she had put her all into fighting Fenrir, and even as her confidence in him lent him strength, and her victory over Fenrir made him feel like triumph was possible, it did nothing to combat the soreness twisting through his form as he breathed hard in and out as Skoll glared at him, then charged brashly forwards, barking furiously as Scrivener winced, then gritted his teeth as he drew on Luna's memories and his own training, spinning around to face the wall and leaping towards it, all four hooves pressing firmly against the surface before he shoved off and hurled himself higher.

Skoll began to look up, trying to slide to a halt, but its bad foreleg gave out beneath it and instead it bucked forwards, yelping before howling in misery as it crashed face-first into the looming cliff with enough force to send several loose rocks pattering down the side of it. Scrivener, however, yelled in pain as his lower body was pinched between forehead of the black wolf and the jagged wall, mashed into the stony surface as he tried to grasp at it with his hooves, back arching slightly before Skoll drew back with a snarl, shaking his head... and Scrivy winced as he began to turn as he fell, before his eyes widened in horror as the creature's muzzle shot towards him, throwing all four hooves out to shove into its nose as its teeth snapped wildly and it ground viciously forwards, biting madly at the earth pony's lower legs and tail.

Scrivener cursed in pain, feeling sharp stones digging against his back like claws as he brought his front hooves up to dig into its muzzle, yanking himself upwards as Skoll continued to grind forwards even as one of the equine's rear hooves shoved into its nostril, the Black Wolf growling... and then Scrivener winced as he fell forwards and skidded down its broad muzzle towards its eyes, and the immense monstrosity blinked stupidly before it snarled and flicked its head hard backwards, sending the earth pony flying in a wide, low arc over its skull and the entire backside of the Black Wolf to crash to the ground and roll painfully several times through the dust with a groan of frustration and pain.

Skoll shook its head wildly as if to make sure the pony was dislodged, and then its crippled foreleg twitched beneath it again and it snapped its head forwards, smashing its skull against the cliff face hard enough to stun itself and send cracks ripping through the stone with a yelp, falling to one side in a stupefied heap. The ground around it trembled at the heavy fall of the creature, and Scrivener's eyes flicked open from the dazed state he had fallen into... but when he tried to lift himself up, something was wrong.

He couldn't move: his body felt numb, and he realized with shock that he couldn't even blink... in fact, for all the clearness of his thoughts, his mind was filled with a strange buzzing. For a moment, he wondered stupidly if he had been paralyzed, as he stared ahead at a puff of dust that hovered still in the silent air... and a moment later, shock wrenched through his system as he realized that not only could he not move... it was as if all of time was frozen around him, still and silent, and he was trapped in this limbo, somehow conscious and able to think.

Panic surged through his body... and it only grew as he heard a quiet, mocking laugh before Valthrudnir slowly strode into his line of vision, smiling mockingly as he shuffled his cards slowly, his eyes ablaze with arrogance and delight as he turned towards Scrivener and said softly: “What's wrong, cheater? Feeling a little... trapped?”

The Jötnar threw his head back and laughed again, then he grinned as he riffled the cards between his dexterous fingers before continuing in a cocky voice: “Yes, yes, I know, 'what's going on?' It's all very simple, really... I did not freeze time, no. Time does not exist, after all... it is merely a system of measurement, using indefinite figures we all pretend define things that aren't actually there. Nor can you reverse time, because that would mean reversing the passage of molecules, the life of elements that have already whiffed out of existence, twisting the very world back upon its axis, and why would you do that, anyway? If something breaks, then it was no good anyway.”

The dragon shook his head slowly, then he looked down at the cards he was calmly shuffling, his smile toning down to something alluring and threatening with its alien kindness as he said softly: “I have merely sped up your synapses temporarily, accelerated your ability to think and the way you perceive reality for an indefinite period while I give you a helping hand with your little problem here. Oh, sure, it will probably result in some... minor trauma and a little bit of hemorrhaging here and there, but what's a little bit of brain damage between friends? Besides. I'm saving your life.”

Scrivener tried to speak, but he couldn't make his mouth move, couldn't force out the words, but Valthrudnir only gave him a look that was both entertained and patronizing. “Did I not just explain this? Do not make me repeat myself, little slave hoof, at least not so soon. It does not reflect well on you, only concerns me as to your mental status.

“Yes, yes, I understand all the same though, I can hear your thoughts.” Valthrudnir reached up and tapped his temple, looking at him with a cold grin. “Why would I help you? What a foolish question to ask, that I have already answered several times before. Because it amuses me... and because, the more I help you, the more indebted you become to me, the more you suffer. You hate it, don't you? Me, of all the creatures in this wide, wide universe, saving your pathetic hide. It delights me, how you'd almost rather die than take my advice, and kill both of us... but on the other hand, where would that leave your precious Brynhild?”

Valthrudnir leaned forwards as he clasped the deck of cards between both hands, taunting, grinning, and Scrivener glared at him, the dragon throwing his head back and laughing loudly. “Yes! How delightful! Oh, insult me all you want but that only increases my enjoyment of proving my superiority, especially my superiority over a cheater like you, now reduced to crying and begging for my aid... who will have to thank me after we deal with this pathetic monstrosity.” The dragon chuckled a bit, crossing his arms, looking at the earth pony with malicious glee in his eyes. “Some hero you are, Scrivener Blooms. This only proves that you defeated me through foul cheating: faced with a crippled animal, and you're already broken and beaten.”

Scrivener tried to keep his thoughts, his anger, from bubbling up, but Valthrudnir sensed it all the same, the echo of the Jötnar shaking his head with a cruel smile. “Oh, worry not. I have eternity to gloat... besides, as I said before, whether or not I decide you live or die at the end of the day... the decision will be mine and mine alone, and due to my glorious plans and masterwork. It is still more fun – and obviously more profitable – for me to keep you alive, even if that means that Brynhild also continues to exist. But maybe one day I'll make you kill her. Would that not be poetic justice, mocking poet?”

Valthrudnir smiled again, and Scrivener snarled mentally, but the dragon only sniffed disdainfully and flicked a wrist. “Yes, you're right for once. Enough of this gloating, I can feel your brain beginning to bleed even if you can't. All you have to do is listen to me precisely, do you understand? And I could certainly be leading you to death and doom, yes... but again, why would I, when I have so much more to gain – and be entertained by – in keeping you alive? Furthermore, Skoll is the Omega of the Black Wolves. I will not permit myself to be slaughtered by the lowest tier of any pack of stupid animals, no matter whether or not they are engines of destruction, even though all I can do is plant directions in your mind. Now get ready, poet. We're going to begin playing the game.”

Valthrudnir paused, glanced down at his cards, then he tucked these quickly into his suit jacket before he squatted in front of Scrivener Blooms, leaning down with a wide grin as Scrivener could only helplessly stare, snarling inside and yet knowing at the same time he had no choice, which only seemed to make the dragon grin wider. For once, however, the Jötnar didn't make any mocking remarks, instead saying kindly: “When reality returns to normal, your body and your mind will give you a pulse of pain that will disorient you. Ignore it: when you begin moving, you'll feel nauseated, but the act of moving will in and of itself be enough to begin restoring your mental facilities... helped along, of course, by a temporary boost of endorphins in your system.

“You have three minutes of running ahead of you. At first it won't seem like you can do it, but as you run, it will become easier. Do not look behind you: Skoll will follow eagerly, and it is important that you maintain the... I would say, seven second head start you'll get from the creature's disorientation.” Valthrudnir nodded thoughtfully at this, and Scrivener could barely believe what he was hearing... the simple analysis made all the worse by the dragon's derisive enjoyment with what was going on. “I will inform you of your next move as things develop.”

Scrivener's mind went blank as he stared stupidly at the Jötnar, barely able to believe what he had just heard... and then the dragon stood up and held up three fingers before he began to slow drop them one after the other. “Three... two... one... run.”

A surge of agony ripped through Scrivener's skull, and he howled in pain as he grabbed at his head, something wet and warm leaking from one ear as he flinched and convulsed once against the ground... then he snarled as he dragged himself forwards, his vision hazy, his eyes watering, his mouth dry as he hauled himself into a weak stagger, gargling weakly as his stomach lurched. It was impossible to see, everything a blur of color as he staggered stupidly back and forth, but as he forced himself forwards, his steps began to even out and color and shape returned to the world even as pain pulsed through his system, rasping hard as he forced himself into a shambling semblance of a run.

Behind him, Skoll was picking itself up, snarling as it twisted around and glared over its shoulder... and its eyes locked on the staggering, fleeing back of Scrivener, immediately locking on to this prey, and the Black Wolf barked, then threw its head back and howled, the raw force of the sound making the walls of the jagged cliff tremble. Scrivy winced in pain at this, but the sound helped bring him back to reality, helped him tune out the pain and exhaustion with the reminder of what it was he was fleeing and why he was listening to Valthrudnir's madness in the first place.

Scrivener felt his body limbering up as he ran, breathing hard in and out as behind him, Skoll half-staggered, half-sprinted, the wolf moving in an awkward three-legged gait that sent it swaying firmly into the side of the cliffs every now and then, as Scrivy cursed under his breath, hearing the monster closing despite its injuries. He looked sharply back and forth, gritting his teeth: to one side, there was the cliff wall, to his front, dust and dirt and rock, and to the other, the dubious safety of a thin, ugly forest... but as Scrivener turned his eyes forwards again, he realized he was heading straight for a narrow, thin canyon between the seemingly-endless cliff and a small, square-topped mountain.

He thought about breaking for the forest... and in his mind, Valthrudnir's irritated voice snapped: Listen to what I instructed, idiot! It should be no great task to kill this wretched dog... it already is crippled and severely weakened from crossing between layers.

“How do you know all this?” Scrivener gritted his teeth, shaking his head quickly as he ran onwards, breathing hard, but he was greeted only by a snort of contempt from Valthrudnir in his own mind. Then the equine winced as Skoll yelped behind him as it ground against a particularly-rough portion of the cliff-side, then tripped over a rock, crashing heavily enough to the earth to send cracks through the ugly terrain and make Scrivener stumble as he risked a glance over his shoulder.

The Black Wolf picked itself up with a snarl, shaking its head out as it rasped for breath, and Valthrudnir gave a short laugh in the earth pony's mind as he said disgustedly: Easier than I thought. There is a pass ahead leading up to a narrow path along the side of the rock wall. Take it.

“It's a dead end!” Scrivener retorted, but Valthrudnir only laughed mockingly in his head, and the earth pony gritted his teeth and cursed under his breath as he ran forwards, trying to shove away the foreboding feelings in his mind as he ran into the dusty corridor formed between mountain and rock wall, breathing hard as he looked back and forth before his eyes settled on a natural, steep ramp.

Scrivener glanced over his shoulder and winced at the sight of the Black Wolf staggering into the gorge, the monster snarling after him before it put on a burst of speed in an awkward, drooping gait as it tried to haul itself along on its broken front limb, and then the earth pony winced as Valthrudnir ordered in a voice that was sickeningly amused: Stop here, wait three seconds, then continue to run.

The earth pony was tempted to keep running anyway, but curiosity – and wanting to know if the creature could actually be trusted – halted him, and he skidded to a stop partway up the ramp, standing beside the rocky wall, counting in his head as he watched Skoll getting closer, closer... and then he cursed and quickly sprinted upwards as he hit zero, the Black Wolf snarling as it lunged after him... and with its wounded leg, fell short of the goal, stumbling and swaying hard to the side to painfully smash its maw into the ramp and the side of its face against the stony wall, the monster yelping as Scrivener stared over his shoulder in shock... then watched in something like amazement and horror as several chunks of loose stone peeled away from the rock wall, dislodged from the force of the creature's impact to fall down one after the other on top of it, the heavy boulders knocking the beast flat and others crashing to the ground in the place Scrivener had been only moments before to roll down and strike into its features, adding insult to injury.

Scrivener Blooms halted at the top of the ramp, staring in amazement as the Black Wolf roared and swatted the boulders aside before it snarled up at him and began to awkwardly claw its way up the narrow, steep slope, and the earth pony winced as he turned and hurried down the path, breathing hard, his lungs and limbs aching before he cursed as he glanced over his shoulder, wincing at the sight of Skoll yanking its way up onto the narrow path. The huge wolf dominated the way as it slowly lumbered forwards, growling furiously as its crippled leg scraped against the side of the cliff and its other front paw gouged and tore along the stone at the very edge of the only ten foot wide lane, and Scrivy winced as he stumbled past a bush and then skidded to a halt as he reached the dead end of the pass, looking down at a jumble of shale, sharp rock, and broken stone at least fifty feet below him before he turned around and gritted his teeth as he saw the monster only twenty feet away now.

Skoll seemed to grin, its eyes blazing, covered in ugly wounds that pulsed through the dark fire covering its body as it breathed hungrily. The ground beneath it rotted and cracked as its maw opened wide with an eager growl, seeming to understand its victory as Scrivener cursed the Jötnar under his breath... and then snarled as Valthrudnir said patronizingly in his mind: Please, pawn. Apparent vulnerability is everything, don't you know how to play chess? But a true grandmaster never sacrifices any necessary pieces... that would be surrendering to a lesser mind, permitting the plebeians to have a victory when all they deserve is the ashes of defeat.

Scrivener gritted his teeth... and then his eyes widened in shock as the rotten ground under Skoll groaned loudly before stone and shale and ice collapsed, and the earth pony staggered backwards as the Black Wolf yelped in surprise as it was half-thrown, half-dragged off the cliff path, scrambling wildly for any purchase it could... but the mad attempt to stay on the path only ripped more stone and earth free and let the sharpened rocks and blades of ice strike the already-ugly ground below before the monster followed them down with a shriek.

It fell heavily and landed on its back with an ugly crunch and a howling scream... and then another section of the cliff cracked from the partial collapse of the path, and several enormous, jagged boulders twisted and fell out of place from the side of the rocky wall, crashing down and making Scrivener wince at their passage... and flinch again at the sound of them smashing into the Black Wolf as it gave one final, strangled shriek beneath the cloud of dust and rock. For a few moments, the short-lived avalanche continued, and Scrivener cursed as the path beneath him listed slightly... but then slowly, everything began to settle, and finally the earth pony was able to stare with horror over the side of the path to the bottom of the narrow gorge below.

The Black Wolf had become nothing more than a cracked statue, its features frozen in stupid horror, its body laying amidst rubble and ruin and a thick pile of rock and stone. It looked as if several ugly spikes of rock had ripped through it, and Valthrudnir snorted inside Scrivener's mind before the earth pony looked to the side with a shudder as reality rippled... and a moment later, the Jötnar was there, sitting beside him on the cliff path and calmly surveying the damage as he said thoughtfully: “I wonder what it would have been like to match wits with this creature at full strength. Oh, yes, you see... they were much weaker than when first released... like any fire, it burns highest when it has the most fuel. When your world collapsed, those flames began to gutter out, weakening more and more... I almost imagine that the pack came here knowing they were dying, seeking one last wild attempt at replenishing their strength. But I do not wish to attribute too much intelligence to these animals. They are interesting specimens, delightful in their own way... but they are not as perfect as my Tyrant Wyrms were. They felt too much, I see now... they had flaws and vulnerabilities that were very easy for us to take advantage of.”

Scrivener didn't even know what to say, as he stared silently down at the wreckage of the monster... and Valthrudnir smiled coldly at him, stroking thoughtfully under his own muzzle as the dragon said softly: “Disappointed? I suppose I understand. You wanted to hurt it. You wanted to kill it, with your own hooves... or your own claws, if you had them. Such savagery lurks in the minds of mortals...”

“Shut up.” Scrivy whispered, and Valthrudnir laughed before the earth pony snarled and rounded on the dragon, shouting in a haggard voice: “What do you want from me? An admission, for me to surrender, for... what? Why are you playing these games?”

“I want you to suffer.” Valthrudnir replied kindly, and he smiled before he reached up and patted Scrivener's cheek mockingly, the earth pony trembling as he felt the touch as if it was really there, in spite of knowing this echo was only in his mind. Then the dragon slowly stood up and stretched absently, grinning as he looked up towards the sky before reaching into his suit jacket, saying in a gentle voice: “Here. I have a last gift for you.”

He turned and leaned down towards him, towering over the earth pony, both merciless and amiable as he pulled a single tarot card free from an inner pocket and held it down in front of Scrivener... and he trembled as he stared at the image on the front of it. It was of himself, in his half-wyrm, half-pony distorted self-image, with a black crown that looked strangely like a fool's cap upon his head and his collar glinting around his neck, a bottle of whiskey sitting on one side of him, a sword buried into the ground on the other, and five overturned goblets laying around him. “The Five of Cups. The Lord of Loss in Pleasure. This is your last card, Scrivener Blooms... and it's very specifically about you. It's an ill omen but I'm sure I don't have to explain that even to a simpleton like you... the imagery should speak well enough for itself.”

Scrivener cursed as he swept a hoof at the card, but his limb only passed uselessly through it, and Valthrudnir laughed as he said mockingly: “Striking at apparitions now, are we? Don't delude yourself any worse than you've already been deluded, fool... but it seems like I'm wearing you down piece-by-piece now, and soon enough we'll be watching the events of this fortune unfold. But until then, Scrivener Blooms... I'll be eagerly anticipating our next little meeting...”

With that, the Jötnar threw his head back and laughed again, even as he faded from reality, and Scrivy cursed as he turned his head away, covering his ears, trying to block the sound out and the thoughts. Then he shivered as he pulled his hooves away, looking down at some sticky substance on it and realizing that it looked like one of his ears was bleeding... and then he glanced up with a curse as he further realized his link to Luna was riddled with static, meaning they were at either a great distance, or something else was interfering with it.

Slowly, Scrivener checked himself over, seeing only a few nasty-looking wounds that were likely reflected from Luna's form... and then he looked down in surprise as a coarse voice called his name, the pony leaning carefully forwards to look over the edge and blink in surprise as he saw Odin standing by the petrified corpse of Skoll, the one-eyed once-god looking up at him with crossed arms. “There you are. Can you get down?”

“I... I think so. Where's Luna?” Scrivy asked apprehensively, looking back and forth as he hesitated... and then he sighed a bit as he received no answer, carefully making his way to the shattered edge of the path and testing a stone that jutted from the side of the cliff wall. He hopped carefully down onto it... winced when it shifted slightly... and then hopped down to another broken portion of cliff and scrambled quickly to a thicker spot on the half-formed ledge when part of it crumbled away to gravel.

“I do not know.” Odin said finally, and Scrivener looked down at the once-god with more worry now as the falcon-headed being grimaced in the distance. “If your link to Brynhild isn't clear, it may mean she went to Ponyville to engage Garm. Come, we shall head there now.”

Scrivy nodded awkwardly after a moment, and he leapt down to a steep slope, wincing and half-falling down it before he jumped to another ledge, and down a final rough slope made by the avalanche of rock to land in front of Odin. Then he winced as Odin grasped the back of his collar and held him in place for moment, and the once-god looked moodily down at him as Scrivy nervously looked back.

Silence spun out between them... and then Odin sighed and released the collar, and Scrivener's front hooves landed on the ground as he realized dumbly that old or not, Odin had still been strong enough to half-lift him into the air with one hand by the collar alone. It made him wince a bit as he looked apprehensively towards the once-god, but the falcon-headed being only started forwards at a loose jog, muttering: “We have no time for discussion now, but you and Brynhild are going to explain things to me one way or the other later on. Come, to Ponyville, before something happens.”

Scrivener nodded, and he tried to swallow the foreboding in his chest as he ran alongside Odin, fighting back worries for the future... and fears for what may have happened in the present at the village they had tried so hard to restore.

Spilled Blood

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Chapter Twenty One: Spilled Blood
~BlackRoseRaven

Garm, the last remaining Black Wolf, snarled as it paced back and forth: it had torn through one of the walls of Ponyville and smashed down two houses, terrifying the handful of Nibelung workers... but Illyria and Greece had hurriedly distributed weapons and sounded the alarm, and other armed and armored dwarves had joined the fray, fighting the monster back before it could do more than smash another home to pieces even as its rot spread like contagion through the ground and presence alone sent frost spilling along the earth.

Half a dozen Nibelung had died and others were wounded, but they had fought on... and when Luna had joined them, her support had permitted them to drive back the monster further and force it into the fields outside Ponyville. The winged unicorn was exhausted, her mind torn between her duty to protect Looking Glass Equestria and her desire to find Scrivener Blooms after she had felt... an indescribable, hostile strangeness, and the link between them had become riddled with static. It distracted her from the battle, but thankfully, there was little danger: all she had to do was fly around at a taunting level as the Nibelung hauled barrels of oil into the field.

Garm lunged at her as her mind wandered again despite her best efforts to concentrate, and Luna looked up too little, too late before the paw smashed into her, knocking her flying and crashing through a barrel of oil before she howled in pain, rolling rapidly as her body steamed at the contact with it and Nightmare Moon flinched inside her. It was blessed oil, possibly all the way from Valhalla, and Luna cursed under her breath as she shoved herself to her hooves and then leapt backwards when Garm bit down at her, the Black Wolf biting only into the field and the puddle of oil before Luna began to rear back, shouting: “Foul monster!”

Then she winced as Nightmare Moon and her instincts both shouted at her, and instead she shoved herself up into the air, taking quick flight with a curse of frustration. If she blasted the monster with magic, it could set the oil on her own body alight as well... and it burned enough as it was without the addition of purifying flame as she muttered: “Accursed oil. Accursed Valhalla... what are the Nibelung even doing?”

Garm barked at her and lunged, clawing at her, and Luna threw herself backwards out of the way before she looked up and saw Greece gesturing wildly at her... and the winged unicorn grunted as she shot towards the Nibelung in the distance as he yelled something. Immediately, another Nibelung ran forwards and threw a torch as Luna sped towards where Greece was waving at her and Garm turned to give chase... and then Luna winced and hastily twisted herself higher into the air as the torch landed in a puddle of oil from a barrel that had been knocked over.

The Black Wolf, still fixated on her, missed the sight of the torch falling into the pond of holy oil... and it looked down too little, too late, as it staggered right into the wall of fire that burst into life in front of it, shrieking before several barrels to either side of this exploded in blasts that rocked the monster back and forth. It was saturated with holy fire as Luna shot towards the sky, watching from a safe distance with incredulity as Garm howled in misery... then snarled savagely even as it burned, a monster wreathed with an aura of golden flame that dragged itself through the growing inferno towards a now-fleeing group of Nibelung as Greece winced and staggered backwards.

He fell over with a grunt and a curse as Garm loomed forwards, growling even through the golden flames rapidly consuming it, as seemingly-unstoppable as Fenrir... and then Luna shot down with a snarl, picking up an unused barrel of oil with telekinesis and snapping it in a hard throw towards the monstrous wolf, and it collided firmly with the side of the creature's face before exploding in a blast powerful enough to send Greece flying backwards with a strangled yelp, crashing to the ground and rolling painfully several times before he came to a smoldering halt. Garm, meanwhile, was knocked staggering, its jaw shattered and hanging stupidly open as it trembled violently, gasping several times before it attempted to lunge and froze solid halfway, rapidly petrifying and tottering weakly before it collapsed forwards, and the golden flames covering its body went out with one great gasp of smoke and ash.

Luna touched down to the ground beside Greece, and she gave him a flat look as the Nibelung grinned back at her awkwardly before he rubbed slowly at his singed features. Then the winged unicorn sighed and rolled her eyes, wrinkling her muzzle at the stench of burning hair and the bittersweet oil she had been splattered with as it continued to steam faintly against her body, muttering: “Please do not die, dwarf. Thou art perhaps the single entity in this accursed place I actually like.”

“Thank you, Luna. We all owe you tremendously.” Greece said quietly, and Luna sighed, then gently helped him stand up, the Nibelung wheezing in pain as he forced himself to his hooves and then grabbed at his face with a mumble. “My ears are ringing from that last blast, though, and my retinas feel burnt... that... that thing was one of the Black Wolves, wasn't it?”

“Aye, but worry not. I feel with a strange confidence they are all dead... and 'tis not merely because I took down Fenrir myself.” Luna halted, then moodily looked over the petrified remains of the monstrosity in front of them, the statue silently resting forwards on its face and half-extended paws. “It is dead, correct? The fire did not just neutralize it?”

Greece shook his head tiredly, then glanced over his shoulder as Illyria and other Nibelung began to approach, and he smiled awkwardly at them with a raised hand to indicate he was okay before Illyria began furiously: “That oversized rat has set back weeks' worth of work! The damaged houses are bad enough but the ground and terrain has been poisoned and devastated, and-”

Luna rose a hoof and shot him a dark look, and Illyria petered slowly to a halt before the winged unicorn asked quietly: “What of the dead?”

Illyria glanced towards Greece, who looked quietly back... and then a Nibelung rose a hand and said nervously: “Seven die dead. More wounded.”

The winged unicorn nodded, then glanced towards Greece... but the artificer was now hesitantly examining the petrified Black Wolf, apprehensively touching the surface of the statue and looking slowly over it. So instead, Luna returned her eyes towards Illyria, asking quietly: “Thou art supposedly smart, even in the ways of thine kin. Tell me,what funeral preparations shall be made?”

Illyria looked dumbstruck at this, rubbing awkwardly at his head before he finally looked at the dwarves, and they simply glared at the Architect before Luna sighed and shook her head, muttering: “What use is thine intellect if it alienates thee from everyone around thee, dwarf? Very well, Nibelung. Tell me what thou does to honor the dead.”

“Burn the bodies of the warriors.” A Nibelung said quickly, raising a hand. “Send them with hope to better-life, not in Niflheim.”

“Not in Niflheim, aye, that is a better life, is it not?” Luna smiled a bit at this even as tiredness flickered through her body, and then she said softly: “I shall honor thine dead side-by-side with thee, if thou will permit it. Aye, most days I may beat and bludgeon and abuse thee all, but here thou have all fought and died for Equestria. Thou hast earned the right to call it our Equestria. I respect that.”

The Nibelung looked awkwardly at one another, but Luna didn't wait for an answer, instead striding towards Greece as she glanced towards the burning field... but the golden flames were rapidly dying down on their own now, even though more normal-looking fires had ignited here and there throughout the grasses... but they were slow-moving, the flames dark and heavy, the rot and frost that had spread from the destructive influence of the black wolf suppressing the worst of the damage and stopping the fire from becoming dangerous. It was one force of destruction canceling out another... and yet Luna didn't know why she still felt such foreboding as she asked quietly: “Well, what is it?”

“It's... hollow.” the Nibelung said finally, and Luna frowned at this before Greece turned and struck the shell of stone firmly, and cracks spread through the petrified rock before he gritted his teeth and slammed his fist firmly against the side of the statue's body again, and it shattered inwards, Luna staring in shock as she saw that indeed, there was nothing inside anymore. “Obviously these things are dead... but whatever those Black Wolves were, they... well, I don't even want to guess at it.”

“Aye.” Luna murmured, looking silently at the shell and feeling a chill of foreboding... and then she shook her head slowly, muttering: “Very well, we shall save the deadly guessing games for later... but only because I sense that my husband draws near, and with him walks Odin. Our link is...”

She shook her head a bit, and Greece looked at her with concern before she smiled faintly, saying quietly: “I am fine. It is merely... stress and exhaustion. I have defeated two Black Wolves of Hell today, after all, Greece, and am soaking in holy oil. Do a tremendous favor for a Valkyrie in a state of vulnerability: go to the spa building in Ponyville and run the hottest bath in the largest tub you can.”

Greece smiled a bit at this, and then he looked up in surprise as Illyria added quietly: “I shall take over cleanup operations for the moment, artificer. It is under my obligations, anyway, I am the Architect here. Nibelung... fellows... let us return to the village. And fancy-corn... I suppose a thank you is in order.”

“Yes, but do not strain thyself, Illyria, it is not expected.” Luna retorted, and Illyria gave her a sour look, but then the two nodded slowly to one another before the group of Nibelung headed into the village, leaving Luna alone with the hollowed-out statue.

She glanced at it silently, reaching a hoof up to rub over it, remembering how Fenrir too had turned to stone when killed... and she wondered silently if these terrible abominations were creations of some wicked but skillful hand, hands that had shaped the hollow shells, then poured so much evil, so much malice, so much destruction and corruption into them that they had taken on life as the Black Wolves. She shook her head slowly, shuddering a little at what it implied... and then sighed a bit as she walked quietly around the statue, and smiled faintly over the burnt and charred battlefield, damaged Ponyville at her back.

All the same, they had triumphed. They had wreaked a horrible vengeance upon the monsters that had destroyed their entire world... even though by now, Luna was well-aware the beasts had also been significantly weaker. She had not even needed to move the moon... not that she would have dared to bring another eclipse about anyway, with the chance that the monsters would shatter the ivory bauble in the sky... or worse, she would lose herself again to the temptations of power. She shook her head quickly at this thought as memories and emotions and terrible feelings twisted through her, from disgust to enticement... and then she closed her eyes and lowered her head forwards, muttering: “Scrivener has faced more than a battle with a Black Wolf, it seems... the closer he comes, the clearer I taste his thoughts and see his memories...”

She sat in silence for ten minutes, head bowed, half-brooding despite the tremendous victory they had accomplished... and then she finally looked up as Odin and Scrivy approached, the winged unicorn smiling faintly, eyes locked on her husband. She stepped forwards, and they nuzzled each other slowly before embracing tightly, pressing their bodies close together as ivy necklace and glinting metal collar rubbed together... and then they slowly drew apart as Odin said quietly: “I saw most of the battle, Scrivener Blooms. And I do not merely mean the fact that you showed remarkable strategy under pressure that I do not recall witnessing in you before... I mean also the shouting match with the invisible entity.”

Scrivener twitched awkwardly, and Luna grimaced a bit as she looked up at Odin, asking in a voice more imploring than frustrated: “Can we not put this aside until later, old lecher? Please. My husband is tired and beaten. In honesty, I am tired and beaten. And thou does not look very well thyself, although I express it less out of concern for thee and more because I do not wish to have this conversation now. Can thou not let the subject rest, permit sleeping dragons to lie, and us to revive ourselves before we speak of this?”

Odin began to open his beak... and then he glanced towards the hollow statue of Garm, grimaced a bit, and instead reached into his jacket for his ambrosia. He took a deep sip of it, swirling it back and forth, then swallowed with a grimace before looking down at the flask... and offering it towards the ponies. “Don't be shy. I've shared my canteen with a horse before in times long passed now. I imagine this is no less hygienic.”

“Please do not compare us to riding horses ever again.” Luna said moodily, and then she hesitated before shaking her head quickly, adding finally: “Nay, Scrivy and I will relax in Ponyville and that will be enough to revive us. We need not thy drugs and magical concoctions, cyclops. Go peddle thy miracles to fools who cannot make their own fortune.”

Odin chuckled dryly at this, then he glanced towards Scrivener Blooms, but the earth pony bit his lower lip and shook his head as he forcibly drew his eyes away... and for a few moments, the one-eyed once-god looked at him measuringly before he nodded slowly and corked the flask, saying quietly: “There is more strength in someone who feels and resists temptation than a pure-of-heart oaf who will never understand what it's like to face down longing and desire. Very well, Brynhild, I will... let this topic pass for the moment. But we will speak of it.”

“Aye, but in due time. There is no rush, Odin, the Bifrost has shattered... 'twill be more than a week this time before it repairs itself in the ether for us to use.” Luna replied quietly, and Odin nodded gravely at this, the winged unicorn looking up at him with an awkward smile. “But... thou hast my thanks, at least for this.”

Odin nodded... then he sighed a bit and turned, sitting awkwardly down beside the statue with a grimace and looking moodily up at the sky overhead as he leaned back against the petrified shell of Garm. “It's fine, Brynhild. When I think for a moment, it becomes clear that for now, I may be better off not knowing anyway. We will talk in time then... for now, let us instead focus on the good.”

“Aye. There is much good, no matter how much bad also exists.” Luna said quietly, trading a soft look with Scrivener... and then the two ponies bowed their heads politely to the once-god, and he gave a small smile, raising a hand to them as they turned and headed towards Ponyville.

A group of Nibelung were already hard at work cleaning up some of the wreckage, Illyria supervising and looking over one of the destroyed homes, and the ponies carefully and quietly made their way through the damaged zone and deeper into Ponyville. They walked in silence, Scrivy's eyes on the ground and Luna looking at him with soft concern, walking closely enough that their sides almost touched.

They halted outside the spa, standing awkwardly for a moment before Scrivener finally gave her an awkward smile, and Luna gazed back as her mane and tail sizzled softly and settled back behind her, leaning down as she said quietly: “Thou art such a mess, Scrivener Blooms. A horrid, awful mess.”

“I know, I know. I'm sorry, I am.” Scrivener replied softly, and then he winced when Luna headbutted him gently, then pushed their skulls together, the male closing his eyes as their foreheads pressed tightly against one-another's before their muzzles slowly, quietly rubbed together side-by-side.

Thoughts and emotions traded back and forth, and then Luna smiled faintly and leaned back, nodding once and saying quietly: “Alright, Scrivy. Come, to the bubble bath. We shall relax, discuss ill thoughts if we must... but only if we must. 'Tis difficult to be frustrated in a bubble bath, is it not?”

“I dunno. We're both very good at being frustrated, aren't we?” Scrivener replied with a bit of a smile, and Luna laughed a little as she nodded slowly. Then the two turned towards the spa doors, walking side-by-side as their thoughts and memories and emotions swirled slowly together, both of them feeling such a wild mix of emotions that it left them all but numb to what had happened and with only concern for one-another bubbling through their mixed soul.

Luna and Scrivener spent the day resting in Ponyville, most of which was spent hiding in the hot tubs together in the spa, resting their aching bodies. Scrivener had soaped Luna down heavily to get the holy oil off of her, remarking on the fact that it didn't surprise him all that much blessed oil apparently burned her... and Luna had replied to this by dunking him under the water and then grouchily making him wash her mane.

Eventually, Zecora had found them, concerned for them and what had happened, and Luna had tried to splash her a few times before grumpily telling the story and complaining that she was interrupting their relaxation. Zecora had sighed at this, then left... and when she'd returned with a tray of cookies, Luna had become far more agreeable, cheerfully sitting back and munching away even as Scrivener Blooms glared at her as she dripped crumbs everywhere.

After a few more questions, Zecora left them alone, satisfied that they were alright and her curiosities sated. It was a gesture Scrivener knew that even Luna appreciated, even if the winged unicorn didn't show it and was still somewhat grouchy over the zebra's shadow-trick. After a few more hours of lounging around and using the various spa facilities, Luna had finally decided it was time to go, and they had cleaned up, cleaned off, and made their way outside.

The Nibelung were setting up a funeral stage in the village square, and Luna and Scrivener had sat quietly, watching respectfully as the sun had slowly set, and other forces that helped govern the passage of the day rose the moon. Odin was there as well, sitting beside the library now, nodding every now and then as Illyria spoke with him. Greece, meanwhile, was with the other Nibelung as they began to lay their dead out over the extended stage as they packed straw beneath it and spilled oil over it, and Luna murmured softly: “I have never seen a dwarf funeral before. I always assumed the Nibelung just left their dead where they laid. 'Tis strange... to see them with culture and etiquette all their own. It lessens them in my mind as beasts. I think that the next time I find myself embattled with their kind... I will be more hesitant to kill them.”

Scrivener smiled a bit, nodding slowly as Luna dropped her head on his shoulder, and he rested his own skull against hers, closing his eyes as her mane swept gently to the side, half-encircling him as a front hoof of each slid towards one-another's, then quietly locked together. They both watched quietly as the Nibelung gave little ceremony, but there was ceremony all the same: the dwarves shouted their hopes more than prayed to any god or divine presence as they all raised pitchers of ale and alcohol, then drank deeply as one Nibelung tossed a torch onto the pyre and it burst into flames. It seemed strangely like a celebration more than it did a funeral, even as Pales flickered into being here and there, to watch quietly as the corpses were burned... and when Luna glanced to the side, she was unsurprised to see both Celestia and Twilight sitting beside her, Scrivener looking up himself as the two Pales regarded them softly.

They both smiled faintly, and then Luna looked ahead towards the flames as she said quietly: “Aye, sister. Finally, the Black Wolves have been destroyed. Whatever they were, they will never plague us again... but I worry. It seemed like they were things that were made, and things made once can be made anew... and perhaps made better. For whatever else, they were weaker in this world, perhaps because it had been infused with Helheim's corruption, perhaps because it is a different layer, perhaps because instead of passing through that energy-soaked place-between-places upon the Bifrost... they must have swam, or bitten, or ripped their way through, shattering the bridge in the process. And they must have been waiting on the other side for who knows how long... or perhaps 'twas only some immense stroke of misfortune, the gates opening right as the awful creatures began to pass.

“All I know is that I do not savor this victory as I thought I would. Aye, I am proud, and I am glad that I have defeated these monsters... oh, fine, Scrivener Blooms, we defeated them, with a little aid from Odin.” Luna smiled a bit, glancing quietly towards him, and the earth pony laughed despite himself before the living ponies looked towards the Pales of Celestia and Twilight as they both looked at them with tenderness radiating from their spectral shapes. “And I know that their death removes many obstacles from the path. Their death symbolizes new hopes... but I wonder, again, what made these creatures, and whereupon they first came hence. 'Tis a mystery better left unsolved, I fear, however... I would rather their creator never find our Looking Glass Equestria, and I never have to gaze upon the sallow facade that would engineer such calamity.”

Celestia nodded slowly, and Twilight smiled encouragingly as Luna looked over the two... then Scrivener Blooms added softly: “And it's not as if... we don't feel a sense of accomplishment or anything. It's not as if... you know. But I think to be honest, Luna's feeding off my emotions a lot. Luna's feeling my concerns, because... Valthrudnir saved me, guided me through taking down Skoll. And I'm pretty sure I don't have to explain to two ponies like yourselves why that's worrisome.”

Celestia nodded again, looking unsurprised as Twilight reared back silently, the two flickering quietly in Scrivy's vision, becoming almost real as he winced a bit before they were once more only Pales in his eyes... and then Celestia quietly reached up and gently touched Luna's shoulder before she looked towards where Odin was seated, then back to her little sister, and the sapphire winged unicorn smiled faintly. “Oh, as if thou truly has to ask, Celestia, thou knows I was bad enough for keeping secrets from thee. Nay, we have not told Odin... but this of course is not to say he does not suspect something. He knows that Scrivener Blooms... something lurks in the recesses of his mind. I do not believe he knows it is an echo of Valthrudnir, however, for I suspect he would not be nearly so calm upon the subject.”

The two Pales both nodded and glanced towards Odin, then Twilight looked at Celestia as the shade of the enormous equine looked silently up at the radiant moon high above. Luna glanced up after her, and then she laughed a little, adding softly: “Look, Celestia, the silly fools have again placed the moon upon the wrong side of the sky... I should fix it, but I do not feel like being responsible. I have already killed two apocalypse-bringing beasts of Hell, after all. I believe that means I have been responsible enough for one day as it is, does it not? I would far rather just sit back and not mind the details for now.”

Celestia shook her head a bit at this, but the ghost seemed to be smiling all the same as Twilight gazed up towards the ivory orb overhead in silence for a few moments... then, finally, Celestia looked down at Luna, the sisters gazing quietly at one-another before the winged unicorn gave the smallest of nods. Then she flickered out of existence, and Twilight smiled faintly at them, stepping forwards and embracing Luna gently around the neck, and Luna laughed a bit as she bowed her head towards her and whispered: “I wish I was worthy of this kindness, Twilight Sparkle. Worthy of thee.”

Twilight, however, only laughed silently, shaking her head slowly as she drew her eyes over Luna before slipping past her to embrace Scrivener quietly. He reached up, resting his hooves against the Pale's shoulders, and the ghost of the winged unicorn pulled back and studied him silently as he gazed over her, her form flickering between translucent and solid in his vision before she patted his cheek gently with one hoof and then faded slowly from sight, and the earth pony shook his head slowly as Luna gazed at him quietly before he murmured: “Sometimes I feel like I've failed you both, you know. You and Twilight Sparkle are very different in some ways... but in plenty, I think I see how you're the same, too. Makes me wonder what you must have been like when you were actually young.”

Luna reached up and punched his shoulder gently, saying kindly: “I know not whether thou art attempting to call me a narcissist, compliment me, or merely frustrate me anew with the knowledge that for all the arguing that went on between thou and her, the two of thee were always such good friends.”

“Yes, Luna, but you're the one who brought us all together, don't forget. Without you in my life, I'd have... well.” Scrivener rested back moodily, rubbing at his cheek thoughtfully before he grimaced a bit as he realized he'd lost his glasses again. Luna only gave him an amused look at this thought, and he mumbled: “Well it happens so often now it's hard to keep track of anymore. But I was just thinking that without you, I'd probably be dead... or even worse, alive, now older and grouchier, still working in the Royal Courts assuming I didn't get myself thrown out or killed at some point.”

“Aye, and the chances of the last are higher than most would have given thee credit for.” Luna remarked pointedly, and Scrivener shrugged agreeably before the winged unicorn closed her eyes and dropped her head against his shoulder, the stallion looking towards the still-burning pyre surrounded by the crowd of singing dwarves, and Scrivener smiled a bit as she murmured quietly: “But I am glad for the way things worked out, all the same. Aye, I can be greedy, and we both are not without flaw, and sometimes it seems that the path not taken may be brighter... but all the same... I know in my heart, my soul... all that matters is that we are together.”

Scrivener nodded slowly, closing his eyes as he bowed his head forwards and slipped his foreleg around her, pulling her a little closer, and Luna smiled a bit as she slipped herself tighter against his side as the two watched the Nibelung honor their dead in a world that awaited the rebirth of the living.

Luna and Scrivener returned to their cottage that night, surprising Pollen. The Velite fretted awkwardly for a little while, but the two ponies had only wanted to head to bed and get some sleep after the ordeals of the day, promising to explain everything afterward. Pollen had offered to go back outside to the wagon, but Luna had looked almost insulted at this and all-but-ordered the Velite to stay where she'd set up in the den.

The two living ponies had finally headed into their room: it still needed another coat of paint, and Luna wanted to detail the stars and moon and other celestial symbols over the ceiling as well. But other than those details, it was mostly a matter of arranging their furniture properly and getting rid of the extra boxes piled everywhere to get it into a finished state.

But the large, circular bed was more than comfortable, and it didn't take long for the two to fall asleep once they were curled up together under the blankets. As always these days, however, Scrivener soon found himself slowly climbing to his hooves in darkness, alone, not even needing to look at himself to know his form had warped and distorted as his claw dug slowly against the warm, bog-like earth.

Reality filtered in bit-by-bit around him, and the half-pony, half-wyrm shook his head slowly before he sighed quietly, lowering his head and murmuring: “Why does it always come back to this? Why the nightmare, every time I try to sleep... but I know. I know... what I... what I am. I know it's due to the infection of corruption, and the way I've been warped and changed over the years. And I know you have something to do with it, too, don't you?”

“Yes, I do.” Nightmare Moon's voice said softly, sounding unsurprised as she strode slowly out of the darkness, and Scrivener gazed up at her silently as she walked towards him. She was smiling softly, however, even as blue and black armor gleamed over her body, the thick plates and tight dragonhide leather tight against her supple frame. And no longer did she wear the ivy necklace: instead, she wore an intricate collar that looked as if it was made of obsidian roses turned to metal, laced and held together with steel ivy, with the black pearl inset tightly into the front.

She wore no helm, letting her starry mane sway and flow freely back, the ethereal locks seeming to hum softly as she stepped forwards and gazed down into his eyes with her own dark, intelligent, and yet somehow animal irises, studying him calmly before she said softly: “You are not angry. You want to be; you know that you should be; you know that Luna will be... but all the same, you are not angry. You understand, do you not?”

“A little. Enough that... I don't...” Scrivener Blooms closed his eyes, looking down silently, and Nightmare Moon reached up and gently touched his chest. The half-wyrm, half-pony didn't even have to look down as he felt reality twist around him and a comforting weight settle around his neck, before he reached his claw quietly up and drew his claws gently over the engraved collar now resting there. He halted... then opened his eyes, looking up at her with his mismatched features as he said quietly: “This wasn't the right way to go about it, though.”

“Yes, but do not forget what I am or who I am. I am Nightmare Moon: I am Luna's passion, strength, and her darker side. I am both the shadow beneath her, and the whisper inside her... I am evolution, and the primal: I am the reflection, the sinister conscience, and epitome of what lays within her very soul. Our very soul.” Nightmare Moon said softly, and Scrivener knew she wasn't just talking about herself and Luna, but him as well. “I do not care about good or evil, right or wrong. What I care about is you, and Luna, and our blessed, beautiful night. I care about those within our domicile, and those whom we call friend and family and ally.

“I desire to be understood better by you, Scrivener Blooms. Perhaps I even aim to try and make myself more-loved than little Luna, but I can say with honesty that was never my first goal.” Nightmare Moon tilted her head back moodily, looking towards the dark ceiling above, and then she flicked her horn absently as it gave a soft pulse, and the night sky filtered in bit-by-bit above them. Scrivener gazed up at this as stars twinkled to life through the darkness, as the moon shimmered into being and clouds formed, rolling slowly through the air amidst the glowing constellations. “It is funny, to be in competition with yourself. Even lucid as I am... some days I feel almost as separate and hostile an entity as what gave me life, as what once drove Luna into her dark dreams...”

She quieted, then looked slowly back at the male as he looked back at her, leaning forwards and explaining softly: “It was Pinkamena that gave me this idea, you see. At first, the half-demon's elation at your state of being struck as strange. Perhaps even disloyal... I almost wished to punish her for it. But then I came to understand why she felt such gladness... why she said that only now, and only you, could truly understand her, even if Luna and I could come close. It was because of the homogeneity between you two: the sameness, if I may borrow your artistic use of simpler words for such complex things, handsome scribe.”

Their eyes met, and Nightmare Moon smiled softly, leaning forwards and murmuring quietly: “And it worked, did it not? Furthermore, I have never influenced you directly... I have only helped shaped the world you stepped into each and every night. Perhaps I have not even stepped outside my bounds: after all, are dreams not meant to be shaped and designed by the deeper, darker self?”

“You rationalize things worse than me and justify yourself more than Celestia does.” Scrivener said quietly, but Nightmare Moon only gave him an entertained look, rearing her head back slightly. “But I understand. Like I was seeing the same things Pinkamena was... you wanted me to see the same way you did. You wanted me to experience things from you perspective... you used this world to shape me into something more like you.”

“Yes, and no. What I have truly done here is merely... added a slant.” Nightmare Moon said softly, gazing into his eyes from her only-slight height advantage over the half-pony, half-wyrm. “I merely ensured that when you slept, you stepped into this world... your enjoyments were your own, however, just as together, you and Luna designed the dark city and the black castle of desires within. Not even the Moon Blessed were my creation... they came into being as a result of a mixing of the desires of yourself and little Luna.”

“And where is Luna?” Scrivener asked curiously, but Nightmare Moon only smiled at him softly, shaking her head slowly before she gestured gently with a hoof to the side, and Scrivener followed the motion to gaze past her, towards the outline of some dark, majestic shape near the horizon; a castle, a temple, a catacombs of shadows and desire. “She's distracted there, looking for me, isn't she?”

Nightmare Moon nodded, replying quietly: “You know how things work with Luna, beloved. She is always... hesitant... to take my advice. It is better to give her something else to distract her with when I want a moment to speak to you alone, even if later on I am sure I will suffer the consequences... but at the same time, I do not mind. I am satisfied with what I have accomplished and will pay whatever price is necessary for my actions if I must.”

Scrivener lowered his head, and then he shook it slowly and murmured softly: “But your plan was flawed from the start, Nightmare Moon. Maybe you've made us more similar, but you... you lack empathy, and understanding. I've never lost that, no matter what I... what I've come to enjoy, or this desire for power and strength. And our motives are still different, tinging the world different colors... you seek pleasure and benefit for yourself first of all. Yes, I might seek both of those things, but Luna is always first. Luna has always come first... always will come first.”

“Do not judge me so harshly, Scrivener Blooms, for do I not put you above myself?” Nightmare Moon sounded almost hurt, dropping her head to him humbly even as her eyes flashed with what seemed more like cunning than compassion. “Surely if I do lack sympathy, among other things, the fact that I treat you with such affection must prove my love and loyalty to you far more effectively than it would a gentler pony's.”

“You love me because I'm want you want, Nightmare Moon. At least, that's what I feel sometimes.” Scrivener replied softly, glancing down at his claw hand as he rose and flexed it... and then he glanced up in surprise as the armored, black-coated equine slid forwards and tenderly nuzzled him, smiling as she half-lidded her eyes, her mane swaying slowly backwards with a pulse of starlight that reverberated through both ephemeral locks and the constellations high above.

“No, I love you because you are what I need.” Nightmare Moon responded gently, and the half-wyrm, half-pony shifted awkwardly at this, a hard-to-describe feeling twisting its way through his soul as she smiled at him lovingly. “Good. You like that. And you know it is true... that is why I seek to empower you. Why I have pushed you so hard to understand me and that even my deepest darkness can represent great happiness. Why I have purified you in these nightmares, helping you work your true desires and innermost self to the surface, even though so many ponies fearfully keep themselves beneath so many different masks for the endless, pointless masquerade they all partake in, knowing that to show themselves is to risk rejection and exile. But maybe our new world will be different.”

Scrivener smiled a bit at this, glancing down and saying quietly: “Ponies wear those so-called masks for a reason, Nightmare Moon... obey those social norms and try to fit the status quo out of more than just cowardice-”

“But even that is an admission that at least part of it is indeed cowardice.” Nightmare Moon interrupted pointedly, looking almost excited as she began to pace in a slow, predatory circle around Scrivener as the male followed her with his eyes, wincing a bit despite himself. “I do not believe anypony should have to feel they must hide who they are, or anything else about themselves. Order through conformity makes a mockery of freedom: it's just another system of constraint and subtle enslavement. It is a cruel manipulation, as well... thinking you are free to do as you choose so long as you do what is considered normal, and that any strangeness must be met with hostility and crushed out.”

The earth pony made a bit of a face, then he cocked his head and asked mildly: “So bad ponies like us should be allowed to be bad even in public? What about Pinkamena, you really want her running her mouth off all the time?”

“Now darling, you know I enjoy Pinkamena greatly! She seeks to fit in, but does so without mutilating herself to fit the standards of others. In fact, she could be used to represent the ultimate end I would like to see all ponies reach... not madness, of course, but able to differentiate which rules are pointless and which rules must be followed.” Nightmare Moon responded easily, continuing to pace in a slow circle around him as she studied him intently. “I do not believe in or promote complete anarchy... for freedom to have meaning, it must be structured, it must be monitored, and it must be policed. What I am saying is that there are much better reasons to persecute and punish ponies than for what they like, do not like, and what they enjoy in the privacy and sanctity of their homes.”

“So what you're saying is that every pony should be free to do anything they want, as long as it doesn't interfere with what you think is best for them.” the earth pony said flatly, and Nightmare Moon halted in front of him but smiled in an almost sultry way as she leaned forwards until their noses almost touched.

“The only difference between myself and anyone else is that I admit it freely.” she answered coyly, then laughed as she drew back and gazed off towards the distance, looking almost longing as she said softly: “But I have taken up enough time, and had my fun for now, Scrivener Blooms. You understand my aim, and I understand a little more about you, and relish the fact that in our glorious night we remain together. Yes... you compliment me wonderfully. You seek to understand before you seek to destroy; you extend empathy, and relish pain... both as the giver and the receiver. And given the power you long for, you would strive to protect little Luna, not because she needs it, but to try and return to her everything she does for you, to find value and self-worth in being worthy to her...”

She paused meditatively, saying softly: “In this, I must confess, I find a flaw, a vulnerability, a weakness in you, my beloved, and I say this not for my benefit, but for yours. I speak out of love, not hatred or envy; you fail to understand how you may not protect from monsters outside of us, but you are the solid pillar that defends us against internal mayhem, and unites myself and my sweet and treacherous little Luna. Physical might is like a pretty thing, ornamental and good for the occasional show, but it is not as great and glorious as so many assume. Ponies never feared me because I was a titan, with dark magic that not even my sister could imitate: they feared me because I was ruthless, and merciless, and did anything that was required to achieve my ends. Likewise, Luna is not a good leader simply because of her horn and hooves, howsoever she exaggerates these qualities... it is because she analyzes the battle and pours both passion and experience into the fray.”

The half-pony, half-wyrm studied her silently as she looked over him slowly, then said quietly: “But of course it is alluring for us, and perhaps we influence your lust for strength in its most vulgar form as well... both myself and Luna. We wish for you to be happy... we would do anything to see you smile, and you already have learned to mix the mental and the physical together well on even the roughest battlefield. And pretty things, of course, are always nice to have in surplus. But go now, husband. Luna awaits.”

And with that, Nightmare Moon gestured gently again towards the distance as she gave one last, cryptic smile, bursting apart into blue mist that wafted backwards through the dark night air, and Scrivener watched the azure fog fade quickly out of sight before he shook his head slowly and muttered: “I can't tell if I'm more or less confused now than before... but I guess part of me is glad that it's not just me that's responsible for all this... everything.”

He paused, glancing down, and then he closed his eyes and added quietly: “Not that I can pretend it's all her fault either, though... not with what she implied and said. I wish that I could... I wish that none of this was me, but I made so many choices here, I walked this path myself so willingly, I... I know it's like a drug but...”

Scrivener glanced up quietly, then he shook his head slowly as he began to stride towards the distance, a shiver tearing through him as he lowered his head and stared at the dark ground beneath his feet: mire-like, and yet so different from the rotten putridity that Fenrir had brought with it: this dark soil was fertile and suppliant, just waiting to be seeded for new and exotic life to blossom, only needing a little push in the right direction to perhaps become some wonderland forest of living trees and prehistoric ferns... or perhaps tapers and ivy and nettles and giant mushrooms and toadstools the size of houses.

He smiled wryly at this thought despite himself, shaking his head slowly as he gazed upwards, unsurprised to see that the shape in the distance was much closer than it should have been, distinct and almost glowing against the night sky. It was their ebony castle, towers and battlements standing almost in salute and the doors at the top of the twisting flight of steps gaping invitingly, as if it awaited his return as eagerly as a loyal pet.

The obsidian stairs were warm beneath his hooves and claw as he began to climb them, gazing over the fortress, feeling both enticed and hollow, desirous and fearful. It was a dark lure, and an aphotic treasure-trove: it was his nicotine, his needle, his siren and her song. But inside the Stygian disease awaited his compassionate cure... the one thing that gave meaning to his life, and soothed his savaged soul.

He passed through the gates above, and strode through the darkened courtyard, barely aware of what was around him; it was all just a blur, mixed with the strangest feeling of coming home. Doors opened before him, and he walked through them, until he found himself in the innermost sanctum, the heart of the dark citadel... and at the back of this, Luna awaited him with a smile and a gleam in her eyes.

She lay on the plush bedding, the engraved black pearl swaying slowly around her neck, mane glowing in faint pulses. Around her, the four Moon Blessed rested in their jewelry and golden adornments with heads respectfully bowed, eyes closed and wings furled against their ivory bodies, and Scrivener couldn't help but smile faintly himself as he approached, asking quietly: “You know, huh?”

“I am not an idiot, Scrivener Blooms, and Nightmare Moon underestimates my own guile. Mazes are less difficult when one knocks down walls.” Luna replied quietly, and she stood up as the male approached before the two nuzzled one-another quietly as Scrivener stepped onto the bedding, then shared a tight embrace.

Luna buried her face against the side of his neck, breathing softly, and then she murmured quietly: “I am sorry, Scrivener Blooms. That part of me... that Nightmare Moon part of me... I know what it has done. The darkness inside me grows and grows, given endless sustenance from the carnage of our waking and sleeping hours... and it fuels my desires, my selfishness, my wanting. I was upset at Nightmare Moon for what she did... but I was more upset with myself, Scrivy, because part of me was glad for it. Because I think sometimes that between that manifestation of passion and ego and mine own conscious self, I am the one who comes out the worse.”

Scrivener Blooms squeezed her quietly, tilting his head back and gazing up towards the ceiling as he laughed a bit, murmuring: “Internal struggles and warring with ourselves... the negative side-effect of this soul link. But maybe it's a hidden blessing, Luna... our darkness is mixed together but it only makes that light you shine with so much purer, my Valkyrie princess...”

Luna laughed at this, blushing a bit as she buried her face deeper against his neck, her muzzle brushing against his collar as she stayed tight and close against him... then she smiled a bit as she brought a hoof up to rest against his shoulder, asking quietly: “Then tell me, Scrivener Blooms. Do you fear the nightmares, or wish for dreams of sunlit day or tranquil dusk?”

“I am afraid of them. Of what we do here...” Scrivener glanced up quietly, gazing slowly over the four Moon Blessed as they rose their heads with calm smiles towards him. “Of what it looks like when you dig inside two ponies and force all their secreted and locked-down desires to the surface. I guess life in Hell, living without rules, has just amplified these things too... but yeah. I might be afraid, but I don't... I don't want them to end, either. Not anymore.”

Luna looked up at him, studying him quietly, and then she kissed the side of his neck before gently pulling him backwards, guiding him to lay down before she slid overtop, lightly pinning him by the shoulders as she said softly: “They never have to, my beloved...”

And Scrivener smiled faintly despite himself, reaching up his gnarled claw to gently stroke over her face and bury into her locks as she leaned down and kissed him softly, both ponies loving and regretting, hating and delighting in the decision they silently made as they embraced the shadows in themselves and one-another.

Deepening Shadows

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Chapter Twenty Two: Deepening Shadows
~BlackRoseRaven

Luna sniffed disdainfully as they strode into Ponyville: only a few days had passed since the attack of the Black Wolves of Hell, but reconstruction efforts were well under way and another work crew of Nibelung had been sent in to help with the rebuilding efforts. Frames had been set back up for the destroyed houses and the wreckage sorted and salvaged as much as possible, and other dwarves were digging up the rotted and corrupted terrain, shoveling it into wheelbarrows to be taken to a dump site to the west.

Scrivener couldn't help but give the winged unicorn an amused look as they walked side-by-side, the earth pony absently flicking his head to adjust his glasses as he said finally: “You know, this probably won't be that bad-”

“Oh shut up, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna said grouchily, and the earth pony snorted in entertainment as he grinned a bit despite himself. “Thou hast no reason to be so cheerful about this. We are going to meet Odin to speak to him on matters of grave importance. Matters concerning thee, as a matter of fact, and that which lurks inside thy mind, and I am sure a grand and awful lecture will follow. Why is it that thou art so cheerful in spite of all this?”

“I dunno, to be honest, I've just been... feeling better these last few days. I thought you'd be happy about that.” Scrivener replied mildly, glancing towards her as he shrugged a bit, and they bumped their sides together lightly as they strode down the road towards dome-shaped city hall in the distance. “Maybe it's because we've been able to talk so much and... work through things together, I'm not sure. Maybe I'm just having a random happy bout. But either way... I feel good.”

“'Tis a sickness.” Luna announced, leaning forwards and inspecting him through narrowed eyes. “Wert thou eating poison joke while I wasn't looking? Licking strange mushrooms? Buying so-called 'miracle tonics' from the Strange Ones or Nibelung?”

Scrivener rolled his eyes at this, but he was smiling all the same as he gave her an entertained look, replying dryly: “No more drugs than usual, dearest. Besides, you know me. I'm a drunky, not a junkie.” He paused meditatively as they halted in front of the narrow steps leading up to the doors of city hall, Luna giving him a flat look. “I could probably write a poem about that, as a matter of fact. I'm sure it would only be three-quarters as offensive as most of the poems I wrote while working at Canterlot.”

The winged unicorn opened her mouth to reply, but she was interrupted as the double doors swung open, both ponies glancing up to see Odin standing and looking down at them calmly, crossing his arms and saying quietly: “I'm glad to see you both here. We have a few subjects to talk about.”

Luna grimaced as Scrivener became more serious, the two nodding slowly, and the once-god turned and strode inside. The ponies shared a look, emotions and thoughts twisting between them in a flurry before they turned and strode quickly up the steps and into the building, Luna flicking her horn absently to close the doors behind them.

They joined Odin at a long wooden table he had set up in the center of the spacious front lobby, which otherwise was empty... or perhaps hollow was a better word, considering how ghostly and strange it felt in the echoing, destitute room. The ponies sat in the uncomfortable wooden chairs to one side, not too near or too far from where Odin was standing at the cluttered head, looking moodily down at books, maps, and other scattered papers and trinkets.

Finally, he sighed quietly and sat down himself, resting against the high-backed chair with a grimace as he fumbled his flask out of his jacket and sipped deeply from it, then looked over at the two ponies, studying them as they looked back at the once-god. For a few moments, that was all they did, surveying each other in silence... and then finally, Odin corked his flask and put it down.

Luna began to open her mouth, and the once-god held up his hand, shaking his head and saying firmly: “Brynhild, wait. As I said, we have several things to discuss, and in due time we'll work up to the subjects that perhaps hold the greatest importance. But haste is a fool's folly, and there are other matters I wish to attend to first.”

The winged unicorn threw her head back with a groan as Scrivener reached up and adjusted his glasses nervously, and Odin surveyed the two before he asked quietly: “First of all, for example... I was recently in corrupted Equestria-”

“Either thou art nowhere near as infirm as thou acts at times or thou possesses a truly miraculous and easy way to move back and forth between the layers, Odin... especially as the Bifrost is currently regenerating, and in no fit state to work as a bridge between worlds.” Luna replied dryly, leaning forwards moodily and glowering at him. “Would it really cause so much harm to permit me a safer and easier method to travel than the accursed burning rainbow bridge?”

“Yes.” Odin said sourly, and Luna grumbled under her breath as the once-god continued irritably: “Unlike you, Brynhild, I use Valhalla as a stepping stone. If you brought dead souls into Valhalla, what do you think would happen? Furthermore, if I permitted you into Valhalla, what would you do?”

The winged unicorn grumbled as she slid back against the chair, muttering under her breath and crossing her forelegs, and Odin nodded after a moment before he continued quietly: “I encountered, among other things, a Nightmare that pleaded for salvation and redemption. It knew about you, and about what your task was... it said that you considered bringing monsters of that world into this one. I wish to hear your reasoning for this.”

Now Luna shifted awkwardly, clearing her throat a bit and looking almost embarrassed before she said finally: “I am a firm believer in second chances, Odin. And I believe as well that there are few things in all these realms that are beyond redemption, beyond... serving a purpose of some sort. I have been cast in the role of both hero and villain, and come to understand that the only thing that truly makes them different is the perception of others... for a hero may hurt and kill countless people, while a villain may disrupt and destroy but never murder a single soul. It is... difficult to wrap one's mind around.”

Odin continued to look at her, as if expecting her to continue, and Luna grimaced a bit before she said quietly, bowing her head forwards: “I... do not wish to see them perish. Demons, Nightmares, so-called 'monsters...' I often feel that I am a monster myself, after all.”

“You're not a monster, Brynhild. You are a Valkyrie. Form and shape of a pony or not, you always have been and always will be a Valkyrie.” Odin replied quietly, and then he smiled wryly when the winged unicorn glared at him. “I do not mean that you will always be my handmaiden by that, either. You know what I speak of.”

“Yes, yes, I suppose that I do. But now thou art the one dancing around the question and not me, and no one likes to see old fools dance, 'tis unsettling.” Luna replied drolly, and Odin reached up and rubbed slowly at his forehead before she added mildly: “Besides, this world requires a little evil to balance out the good. I think a few things to go bump in the night will not be remiss, especially if they are not killers, only fear-mongers.”

“It may seem strange, but I do agree with you.” Odin said softly, and the winged unicorn looked up in surprise, tilting her head curiously as the once-god gave a dry smile. “Not for the same reasons, admittedly. But assuming the creatures are oath-bound and keep their word, they will act as an additional layer of protection: it will be like introducing a new species of insect to the environment of a rival sibling. A Nightmare of this world and a Nightmare of your world will not interact with the same amiability as two creatures of the same plane. They will be distrustful, and may even work to weed one another out.”

“You wish to use the monsters of our world against the monsters of this one... since they will likely be drawn to same territory, will have to claim places in the dark corners as their own by conquest of other beasts and creatures. And this first line of monsters will be honor-bound to serve us, and these creatures of darkness cannot break a solemn vow without dire consequence.” Luna said slowly, and Odin nodded before he seemed to soften a bit... and Luna smiled faintly as she understood, closing her eyes and adding quietly: “And aye, I know. They also see kinship in me. They look up to me, as smaller, weaker creatures look up to a pack lord. For even though I walk in daylight... darkness is my true home.”

“It is nothing to be ashamed of, Brynhild. It is something, furthermore, that we can use to our advantage, if you will permit me to speak in such strategic and remorseless terms.” Odin replied quietly, leaning forwards and looking at her quietly, and Luna nodded awkwardly after a moment as Scrivener gazed at her softly. “I would like for you to be careful in your selection, however... many creatures of the night will bend to a strong master or can be convinced to serve a purpose, but there are still plenty that exist solely to cause disruption and chaos. There will be chaos enough in this world as it is.”

Luna smiled a bit, and Odin looked at her thoughtfully for a few moments before he leaned back and said softly: “On a positive note, I wish to add that Illyria had worked out the schematics for the amplifiers with Roma's assistance... late tonight or early tomorrow, another Architect should arrive with several Nibelung specialists to figure out where the amplifiers should be positioned. But I am glad to say we are another step closer to revival.”

“I am glad as well then, Odin. Thou has my thanks... but I am curious. Why art thou so invested in this?” Luna asked curiously, and the once-god gave her a smile in return, which only made her frown moodily. “Well, 'tis a good question, I think! Thou, as a warrior god, urged on the genocide of the Vanir. Thou replicated the layers, and many layers have already fallen and I have not seen thee shed a tear for the departed nor struggle to revive what may remain in them, and yet thou works tirelessly to revive these ponies who barely know thy name and offer thee no worship nor gratitude. The only reason I work so hard to save them is because among them are friends and family, because they are all ponies of my land, my home, because so much of what happened... was my fault.”

“And do you think my reasons are so different? After all, everything that has happened here is my fault.” Odin replied quietly, shaking his head slowly. “When I replicated the layers... I did not expect the results to be so... so tangible. I thought they would be more akin to illusions, enough to confuse and slow Valthrudnir down while I figured out how to put a halt to his machinations. But they were all real, all full of living lives... lives I have seen perish again and again, countless lives Valthrudnir killed over and over... countless deaths that were all my fault. Weeping over them is pointless, Brynhild, and serves no purpose but to make me seem even weaker and more self-pitying than I already am. I created these worlds, aye: but why should me worship or gratitude? I created them to be used as living shields and distractions for a monster I feared would kill them all, even after I dropped the scattered remnants that I could save from Valhalla across the layers to further slow the Jötnar down. That is not the act of a being that deserves worship. That was the act of a coward who must make amends to the poor people he shoved in front of the knife meant for him.”

Luna looked quietly at Odin, and Odin gazed silently back, then he shook his head slowly and tiredly picked up his flask with a sigh, slowly opening it and sipping at the ambrosia quietly before looking down at the shiny silver canister, muttering: “There are fine lines between cowardice and caution, bravery and stupidity. I am somehow certain that over the course of my life I have often crossed back and forth over these lines countless times.”

He carefully screwed the lid back on the flask, shaking his head slowly, then he continued quietly: “But we all make mistakes, I suppose. The longer you live, the more mistakes you make... just as the more victories you strive for, the more failures you're bound to accrue as well, and at the end of life who knows which is worth more? The point is in the journey and the trials, and how we rise to meet them, not in the defeats we give or take. I have learned that now... and that humility and mercy are the strongest of all vessels. Any brute can swing a fist in anger, few can offer an open hand.”

Odin paused and looked down quietly, shaking his head slowly as he murmured: “How I wish to take back all I have wronged, how many regrets I have about the victories I achieved, the peoples I pushed down, everyone and everything that I brought ruin to. There were many enemies we had we could have made peace with instead of destroying outright... oh, at the time, total conquest seemed like the most strategically-sound solution. But if I had left those enemies alive, we would have had someone to turn to when Helheim moved against us, when Valthrudnir put his grand machinations into play. Now all my victories look sallow and sour... so much of what I have done seems only like bullying and childishness... my pushing the Aesir to be better and hardier nothing more than the pedantic 'knowing-better' of an old goat shoving his dreams onto others to live vicariously through them, because it is the easier path, because he can't let go of the past, because he refuses to move on and acknowledge that maybe, just maybe, there is value in things other than himself.”

There was silence for a few moments, and then the once-god smiled again and lowered his head, saying softly: “I apologize, friends. I am old, I am tired, I have much weighing on my mind. Sometimes my mouth simply runs away from me before I can catch it.”

“Well, get thyself in check, old lecher. I do not have the patience for thy speeches, when so much else hangs in the balance.” Luna replied quietly, and Odin glanced up with a quiet chuckle before the winged unicorn hesitated, then asked softly: “But was everything we did so wrong? Does thou not have some achievements thou can be proud of, or is it the fate of all things to one day wind up old and regretful and miserable?”

“Nay, Brynhild, there are always things to be proud of. I am proud of my son, Thor, and if I am permitted, I am proud of thee and Freya as well.” Odin replied quietly, and Luna gave a small smile before the one-eyed entity looked slowly up at the ceiling. “I am proud of the worlds I have helped to build. I am proud of the forces of evil we stopped. And, selfishly, I am proud of myself for living a little up to my namesake after so many years of foolishness. Mimir hang me, though, I wish I had done better.”

He paused, then shook his head briefly before looking up, speaking in a drier voice: “However, enough meandering around the path, for I believe that the two of you are doing something that you will not be so proud of in the future. I do not wish you two to end up regretful and lost... Brynhild, my Valkyrie, you know that nothing grants invulnerability, and nothing grants eternal joy. Not even your love.”

Luna bristled a bit, and Scrivener reached up and touched her shoulder as he rested against the table, looking quietly towards Odin as the once-god continued softly: “I do not say this out of spite, but only concern. I understand why you would be hesitant to speak of this to me, after the past, after the things that have happened. But Brynhild, I vowed to never again harm you as I have in the past, and that means I cannot harm Scrivener Blooms either, if that is what you fear. Not with you connected as you are.”

“And would thou try and sever the connection between us, Odin?” Luna asked sharply, and the once-god frowned a bit at her as she leaned forwards over the table, but Scrivener could feel concern and fear beneath the anger. “For that would do worse to me than any blade or bludgeon ever could, and I know thou has many awful tricks up thy sleeve.”

“That would be harming you then, Brynhild. As I said, I won't harm you.” Odin replied tiredly, and he looked slowly over the two before saying quietly: “It's something from the Tyrant Wyrm, isn't it? It's a corruption that hasn't faded, a darkening that has only become deeper with the passage of time.”

“Yes.” Scrivener Blooms looked up and smiled a bit, and Luna glanced towards him with surprise, frowning deeply... but when they met one-another's eyes, as their thoughts and emotions swirled back and forth between them, she only sighed softly before grumbling and burying her face against the side of his neck moodily, and Scrivener wrapped a foreleg around her quietly as he closed his own. “I don't know how to explain it. I don't know what to say, Odin, and I am... I am nervous. You're... well... I'm not honestly entirely sure what you are, still...”

Odin chuckled a bit at this, and when Scrivener looked up in surprise, the falcon-headed being said softly: “Don't worry, I'm not sure what I am either. Would it be easier if I asked you a few questions about certain specific worries I have?”

Scrivener nodded hesitantly after a moment, and Odin nodded back after a moment, questioning gently: “Does this force compel you to do things? I do not mean whether or not it influences you to make choices... I mean, does it make certain choices for you?”

“No, it's never... taken control of me or anything like that. Sometimes it guides me towards this or that but... the choices are mine. I take responsibility for everything I've done.” Scrivener said softly, and he smiled a bit despite himself: he sounded like a pony confessing to some horrible crime. “I see things sometimes. Not just... what you already know about, but other images, other... things. I guess you knew that too already, though, didn't you?”

“Finding you arguing with what looked to me only as thin air did give me a clue towards that, yes.” he replied calmly, and Luna mumbled a bit as she buried her face deeper against the male's neck. For a moment, the once-god looked thoughtfully at Scrivener, and then he asked quietly: “I saw that Luna had polymorphed you before into something between the pony that you are and the Tyrant Wyrm you could become. Why did you assume that shape?”

“Luna and I discussed it and thought it would help if... wait, what did you say?” Scrivener frowned a bit and Luna looked up quickly, the two looking intently at Odin as he only calmly looked back. “Tyrant Wyrm that... that I could become? What did you mean by that?”

Odin rose a hand, and the two ponies leaned back a bit, still looking worriedly towards the once-god as he closed his eyes and explained slowly: “That response answers several other questions I had, in ways that both refresh me and concern me. But you have seen them for yourself, witnessed their nature: the Tyrant Wyrms are shells, living embodiments of reality twisted into sentient destruction and suffering. The outside only looks as it does because of Valthrudnir's ego.

“No, like anything else, it is what is inside that matters... but in the case of the Tyrant Wyrms, this is more literal.” Odin continued quietly, sitting back with a grimace. “They are given power and existence by their organic souls, made up of energy and spirits and once-living things all polymorphed together into one engine of agony. They are a plague, figuratively and literally, and it seems that you have been infected, Scrivener Blooms.”

Scrivy looked silently at Odin as Luna swallowed slowly, then she gritted her teeth and shook her head firmly, saying quietly: “But we can overcome this, Odin. Do not think that-”

“Brynhild, stop.” the once-god said gently but firmly, and for once, Luna quieted and only looked at him silently as he slowly stood up, leaning towards them, but he was smiling faintly, and his eyes were not angry, not vengeful, but concerned. “If I wanted to take extreme measures, by now I would have, alright? But I'm not going to act with haste on this issue. Brynhild, the fact that only Scrivener is being affected by this is a calming sign. It may even mean that the infection can be contained.”

Scrivener Blooms smiled a bit at this as Luna looked surprised... then she bowed her head humbly, and Odin continued quietly: “The worst case scenario is that you could begin to... change. In mind, more than in body. I know you already see things differently than most mortals can, but this is only a side effect, an... enhancement more than a danger, even if I know it must have its drawbacks. I know that you must see yourself as something dark and damned but you are far from that still, Scrivener Blooms.”

Scrivy smiled awkwardly at this, and Odin looked moodily between the two before he asked slowly: “But what were you arguing with before? What drove you to such anger, to such a state of excitement? You looked like Helheim itself was biting at your heels.”

Scrivener and Luna traded a nervous look before they both looked towards Odin, and the once-god looked steadily back at them as the silence spiraled out. Then, finally, Scrivener swallowed thickly and lowered his head, feeling another worm of fear through his gut before he mumbled: “I saw... myself.”

He shivered a bit at this lie, feeling a twist in his guts as he thought about everything that statement could imply... and Odin looked moodily at them before he shook his head and sat slowly back in his chair, saying quietly: “Very well. But you should know, Scrivener, you're a worse liar than Brynhild.”

Scrivener mumbled a little to himself as he shrank back a bit, and the winged unicorn grumbled under her breath, glaring towards the once-god. “Are we done here then, Odin? Or can we at least move on to whatever other tasks thou has for us?”

Odin looked at them for a few moments, then he sighed and nodded. “Yes, yes, enough is enough for now. Go ahead and return home, or stay and help out if you like: I have no tasks for you at this moment in time.”

The two nodded, slipping away from the table and heading for the doors. Luna flicked her horn to open them, and then she and Scrivener paused as Odin called after them: “Be wary, friends. The worst enemy is always within.”

“As if we didn't already know this.” Luna muttered, and Scrivener smiled faintly despite himself as the winged unicorn stormed past him, the earth pony hurrying after her as he felt the turmoil and worries spinning through both of their minds and souls.

Two weeks passed without much of note: Luna and Scrivener felt almost as if Odin was purposefully avoiding them, the once-god not even giving them any tasks as the two ponies divided their time between working around their cottage and working around Ponyville, fixing the buildings that had been destroyed and laying new sod, soil, and sand where the corrupted ground had been removed. In those productive two weeks, they successfully restored the landscape and did most of the repairs to the destroyed homes with the help of the surprisingly-competent Nibelung.

They also finished off their own cottage, decorating and detailing their bedroom, setting up the furniture, and cleaning it from top-to-bottom as Pollen puttered around in the backyard and helped them by setting up their garden. Discombobulation often watched this from the safety of the small, covered aquarium Luna took out of a pet store in Ponyville for him: while still too weak to spend a lot of time outside his sealed sanctuary, he was now much healthier and starting to gain more of his old powers back as his body healed from its ordeal.

The aquarium was like a little safe room for the Draconequus, and Luna seemed to enjoy the task of taking care of the creature like a very strange pet: every now and then she would toss some candy in for him, refill his water dish with cola or coffee depending on what was at hoof, and shove her face against the glass as she peered in at him while Discombobulation pointedly ignored her. Scrivener often wondered how this boded for the foal they planned to have one day: she would either be an excellent mother, or she would accidentally kill the child with sugar and smothering affection.

All the same, time passed in welcomed peace: Pollen was friendly and quiet and liked working in the garden and helping out around the house, Discombobulation only made a nuisance out of himself on rare occasion, and Scrivener and Luna were able to feel like their home was left in good hooves while they returned to corrupted Equestria. Discombobulation and Pollen had seen them off that morning and wished them well.

They were both surprised when they found not only Odin, but Zecora in the field, awaiting them with a smile, and the once-god turned his eyes to them as they approached. “Your friend here is very interesting, Brynhild. Her knowledge of potions is most impressive, and her generosity a welcome sight.”

“Your friend flatters me, I must admit, and my help I gladly submit. You've all done much for the world after all, helping to bring so much back from death's pall.” Zecora said kindly, bowing her head humbly, and Odin chuckled and clapped his hands slowly.

“I think that will never cease to impress me.” He gave her an entertained look, then turned his eyes towards Luna and Scrivener, glancing over them both before he asked curiously: “Brynhild, where is your spear?”

“Hanging in my home, hopefully out of Discombobulation's reach. I do not need it, Odin, my worst foes are vanquished... let that piece of my soul rest healthy at home.” Luna answered, and the once-god crossed his arms as he gave her a moody look. “Oh, be silent, cyclops. I am not being arrogant, I am being cautious. I would be loathe to lose it.”

“I... suppose.” Odin rubbed slowly at the scarred side of his face, and then he nodded finally before holding up one finger as Luna began to step forwards. “I want to remind you to come across the Bifrost the moment you begin to sense reality heading for total collapse. I will attempt to send you a warning if I see signs of it beginning, but much of my time will be spent outside of Valhalla these coming months. Either way, be wary.”

“Worry not, old lecher. Besides, it is not like thou shan't see us again, or we shan't be returning to this layer of reality. We have other entities to escort now.” Luna smiled slightly, and Zecora cocked her head curiously before the winged unicorn grinned and tipped her a wink. “Worry not, Zecora, 'twill be nothing that I cannot handle. But we have brought the light to this world, now we must add a little darkness, for the sake of balance.”

“For some reason that does not soothe my fears, it rather makes me nervous for whatever nears.” the zebra said moodily, and Scrivener nodded agreeably as Luna continued to grin. The black-and-white equine sighed, then shook her head before saying moodily: “I suppose the choice is yours to make, just please take care for your own sake.”

“Aye, that we shall.” Luna nodded once, and then she glanced towards Odin as the once god reached into his jacket, producing his flask. “Oh, hurry up, old lecher. I am anxious to return and to begin making deals with devils. It should prove a far simpler task than saving souls.”

Odin only rolled his good eye as he sipped ambrosia, then corked the container and put it back in his jacket. He laced his fingers together in front of his chest as he closed his eyes and muttered: “Please try not to enjoy this too much, Brynhild. It comes across as a bit evil.”

“Only a bit? I shall strive to try harder, then.” Luna replied mildly, and she and Scrivener lowered their own heads in tandem as her horn began to slowly glow, her mane and tail sparking and sizzling backwards as they took a long, synchronized breath, feeling the power building in the air as the ponies moved in time and Odin murmured under his breath, the sound helping Luna time her own magic as Zecora stepped slowly backwards in amazement.

The whirlwind of flames erupted from the ground, spinning forwards and ripping through reality before forming into the rainbow bridge... and while it looked pale and the white flames flickered low, it was still there, still tangible, and Odin grimaced as he stumbled back a step with a curse and Scrivener and Luna both arched their backs with pained winces, electricity sizzling over them both before they dropped their heads forwards with matching gasps. Then Luna cursed and shook her head quickly as Scrivener gritted his teeth and straightened, before the winged unicorn glanced towards Odin and said finally: “Old cyclops... thanks.”

With that, Luna ran forwards towards the bridge, and Scrivener called an awkward goodbye to the two as Zecora waved a hoof and Odin looked up with a smile after the ponies as they charged up the arching, sizzling bridge and into the hole in reality. Energy surged along their frames as they passed through the tunnel beyond, making them both laugh despite themselves... and within what felt like seconds, they were out the other side, charging down the ramping rainbow bridge to the ground below, both leaping off into the rotted wasteland and skidding to a halt as they gazed over their shoulders.

The burning bridge of multicolored light sizzled and twisted... then shattered into pieces, bit-by-bit, as the hole in reality sparked closed. In only seconds, it had dissolved completely, leaving no trace behind except for a faint shimmering in the air that soon faded as well, and Scrivener Blooms and Luna traded a look and a smile before the two ponies stepped towards one another and nuzzled affectionately beneath the lowered, burning sun in the red sky.

They both breathed a little hard, still feeling a faint euphoria from the run as always... but it was quickly fading now, both ponies becoming more serious as they gazed back and forth at the reality they had stepped into. After only a few weeks in Looking Glass Equestria, they had both almost forgotten what this world was like, what they would be returning to... and it hurt them both to gaze at the world around them before Luna frowned and murmured: “Wait. Something has changed.”

Scrivener looked towards the winged unicorn curiously as she strode slowly forwards, over rotted earth and icy tundra... and then she grimaced as she glanced up and muttered: “What wickedness is this?”

The earth pony allowed his eyes to draw upwards... and he shivered a bit as he saw the red sky had turned black in places, as if it had been torn like thin skin. Even stranger, here and there enormous, shattered pieces of stone floated, but they were not just from the demolished moon... there were too many pieces, of too many different sizes. And when his eyes traveled on instinct towards where the ruins of Canterlot were and the surrounding mountains, he realized that some of the peaks now looked as if they were floating, rocks and crags hovering silently, senselessly, and Luna shook her head as her own eyes gazed towards this. “Reality is losing cohesion. The beasts of Ginnungagap would not den here, after all... this layer of reality is too broken, too twisted with Helheim's perverse presence.”

Scrivener nodded slowly as he looked towards Luna, and she shook her head as her mane twisted slowly backwards, murmuring: “I had doubted in Odin's knowledge before, to be honest... but this means that he is right, whether I desire him to be or not. 'Tis awful to see, and more worrisome than I can say... it is like reality is beginning to slowly lose its laws and sense.”

“But we're not going to back down, are we?” Scrivener asked softly, and Luna gave him an amused look over her shoulder, which made the earth pony smile in spite of everything before he turned in the direction of their cottage, beginning to walk as he murmured: “I dunno why... but that strangely relieves me.”

“Maybe thou art anxious to have some Nightmare servants to order around.” Luna remarked airily, and Scrivener groaned and dropped his head forwards before the winged unicorn laughed as she strode quickly up beside him with a grin. “Or maybe thou art taking on some of my positive qualities. 'Tis about time, Scrivy, we have only been soul-bound for more than a dozen years now.”

“Well, you know, you had all those negative qualities I had to learn first.” Scrivener replied reasonably, and Luna gave him an amused look as they headed slowly over the barren tundra together, the male grimacing a bit. “I think there's more ice here, too.”

Luna grunted in agreement after a moment, and she hesitated a bit before looking towards him... but the earth pony only shook his head, saying softly: “I know I've been quiet this last while, I know. I guess I've just been thinking a lot about things. But I'm... ready to keep pressing forwards now, and we've discussed this into the ground. And I haven't heard a whisper from Valthrudnir's echo... I think if I keep in mind that it's not really him, it's just some... some godawful memory-thing of him, some illusion brought on from the corruption eating its way through my brain... it helps a lot.”

He quieted, then looked up and smiled a bit, glancing over at her. “And I think I am... trying to be more like you. Or well, I'm trying to learn how to do that thing where you just... finally laugh or break something and everything's okay for a little while. I want to learn to do that.”

“Aye, it would be nice if thou didn't brood and sulk constantly.” Luna replied gently, and Scrivener checked her lightly even as he laughed a bit before the winged unicorn bumped firmly back against him. “But worry not, Scrivy. Thou may take forever to get over the silliest of things, but at the same time thou compartmentalizes everything else and leaves me in awe – or perhaps just frustration – that thou can simply... move forwards even at the worst of times.”

“Stubbornness issues.” Scrivener responded mildly, shrugging a bit as he looked ahead. “What's important is important to me, what isn't... isn't. And what has to be done... has to be done. Should I say a few other repetitive, senseless sentences to sound even sager?”

“Nay, the point is clear. Thou art an idiot.” Luna shoved him lightly, and Scrivener snorted in amusement before the winged unicorn's eyes flicked towards the low sun moodily. “'Tis like walking beneath a guttering lamp. We shall have to be alert when passing through the Empty Forest, Scrivy... long shadows invite wicked creatures to come out and play, and I am sure not all of them will be interested in our offering of peace.”

“That's what I love about you, Luna, how positive you are.” Scrivener said after a moment, and Luna rolled her eyes but smiled all the same as the male added in a more-serious voice: “How will we know what to save and what not to?”

“The same way we knew what Pales should remain behind; we trust in our instincts, and our knowledge of these creatures. I am a good judge of character and thou possesses a ridiculous repertoire of mostly-true stories about all sorts of creatures of the night in thy mind.” Luna gave him an entertained look. “We shall mix generalization and astute observation, and this way, figure out what is worthy to cross and join our new world.”

Scrivener nodded slowly, and they were both quiet for a while as they made their way towards their home. Their attention was soon drawn by the state of the world around them instead of thoughts of taming darkness, however, as they approached the Empty Forest and found it had become a sea of gnarled and twisting trees, the blackened hulks moving slowly but visibly in tandem, like ripples spreading through the surface of some forsaken pool.

Here and there, other trees had merged together and grown into freakish sentinels with branches ending in what seemed almost like grasping fingers that clawed at the air of their own volition, towering over the forest and seeming to peer down at it from their naked, headless trunks, and Luna and Scrivener avoided these on instinct; their worries were confirmed when they watched a Velite Drake snatched up by one of these strange tree-beasts when it drew too close before the skeleton was torn into ivory confetti like it was nothing more than wax paper, and the two ponies hurried onwards through the miserable forest.

In the distance, the Frozen Reef had slipped closer towards their home, and now leaned ominously forwards like an immense tidal wave, rivulets of water running off the melting ice. As the two equines made their way towards the cottage, they both wondered what had brought the world from a state of death to undead mutation, and if the Black Wolves of Hell no longer being present in this layer had something to do with it.

They pushed these thoughts aside as the sun fell lower in the sky, resting in a state of endless sunset that cast gloomy shadows across the world. As they traveled through the swaying, gnarled trees, stepping over roots that twisted like snakes along the ground, they were both aware of things following them in the darkness, of eyes watching them intently, and then shapes sweeping hurriedly ahead... and so neither were surprised when they reached their cottage and found five Nightmares waiting for them, half-hiding in the shadows cast by the looming trees and their damaged home.

Their bodies were steaming faintly in the red light cast by the lowering sun, looking apprehensively back and forth before one of them rose its head, whispering: “Look, our... our big sister approaches...”

“I am not thy sibling, and nor is Nightmare Moon, for the last time.” Luna replied irritably, and the Nightmares looked back and forth nervously before the winged unicorn sighed and lowered her head, then grimaced up towards the stained and broken sky as she muttered: “But speak quickly, creatures. What business does thou have with me?”

“Our siblings found you before... sought to strike a deal with you. You seemed to consider, and we will do anything to escape this wretched world...” the Nightmare that had already spoken answered hurriedly, shivering a bit in the dark shadows beside the cottage, its eyes gleaming as the smoky black hell-horse looked back and forth nervously. The other Nightmares seemed content to allow it to talk for them, however, and the demonic horse continued nervously: “We are few now... so many of us have returned to the graves and the darkness and the ether... we need your help.”

“A plainspoken plea for mercy. I do not know whether to be moved or sickeningly-amused, considering the trouble thy kind has given me in the past.” Luna muttered musingly, looking down thoughtfully, and then she shook her head slowly. “If I am to save thy kind, the terms of the deal will not be fair to thee. And first off, I desire to know what is happening in this world... it looks as if in the time I have been gone Equestria has transformed from corrupted and dead into a falsely-living mockery of Helheim itself.”

The Nightmare nodded rapidly, bowing itself low as it whispered: “The world sinks deeper and lower into Helheim, the place we all sought to escape. The demons smell the end approaching, and they have given themselves up to infighting and destruction. They no longer seek a method of escape... they only seek to kill as many as possible before they fall into destruction themselves.

“We are not a threat to you. If we threatened you, we lose our chance to escape. There are so few of our siblings left... thirty, maybe fewer if the demons have found our brethren, maybe more if others hide still. We cannot travel during the day like the more-powerful entities of shadow can... even with the sunlight's faintest rays, look at us, we burn. To demons, we are tender morsels... made up of broken souls and living emotions, they capture us and serve us as bribes to their betters to buy themselves more time to survive.” The Nightmare looked up, whispering: “But in a world where there is deep night as well as endless day, we would stand a chance for survival. We'll be your spies, your whisperers, your conspirators. We'll swear loyalty to you. Honor is a concept older and more sacred than any mortal pony could ever appreciate.”

Luna muttered a bit, looking down, pretending to consider, and Scrivener glanced towards her quietly, knowing why she was drawing this out. The Nightmares were conniving and would exploit any vulnerability they could find, from their experiences: they had to be handled with great caution. “I shall... accept the offer only on the condition that I have thine loyalty, without question, without consequence. Thou must do as I say, without argument, without seeking thine own ends. This is not a negotiable deal to bend to thy favor and I do not trust thee. All of thee will be kept on a short leash.”

“Anything, anything you desire... but we do not wish to die. We have lived for centuries and you already know that we fear death and all it takes.” the Nightmare murmured, shaking its head quickly. “You shall set the terms. You shall give us the contract. We will obey you, indefinitely and without question, but please just save our lives...”

“Then go for now, dark specters. Gather the other Nightmares and other servants of the darkness that I can trust, and in a week's time or so I shall bring about night to this poisoned layer of reality. Then thou shalt return here, and we shall seal a deal between us.” Luna ordered calmly, gazing slowly at the Nightmares around her, and they whispered eagerly in the shadows. “Consider this thy first task, and 'twill set the tone for our future working relationship. I would therefore recommend doing thy best work.”

“You shall not be disappointed then, mistress. Siblings... let us take our leave.” The Nightmare by the house glanced quickly back and forth, looking strangely eager before it flickered out of sight, and one-by-one, the other shadowy equines vanished as well, until Scrivener Blooms and Luna were standing alone in front of their damaged cottage.

The sensation of their presence faded, and Luna shook her head with a quiet laugh before she glanced towards Scrivener Blooms, and the earth pony met her gaze as he murmured: “Well, I guess that could have gone worse, huh?”

“Aye, but we'll see what the creatures have to say when they return... and there could still be trickery and traps ahead, so we must remain wary.” Luna hesitated, then she looked quietly towards their cottage, saying softly: “I hope we are doing the right thing. It is not that I have never worked with such ilk in the past, only that... I hope I am not starting down a path that will lead to frustration and pain in the future. Still, if the keep their word... I believe that it will benefit our Equestria in the long run.”

She halted, then looked slowly over the damaged cabin and continued softly: “But we will need to be careful. This Equestria has become even more dangerous now... we will continue to live and fight here, to try and find any surviving Pales we can, but we must be wary. If the demons have begun destroying one another as well as everything around them, they will surely seek to challenge us as well, should the chance arrive.”

Scrivener Blooms nodded slowly, then he strode carefully forwards towards the door of their home, pushing it open... and grimacing as he gazed inside to find the walls cracked and the floor torn-up, muttering: “It looks as if we've already had a few unwelcome visitors... the wards might be broken, too. Are we going to stay here?”

“Aye, Scrivy. I shan't let anything chase us from our home.” Luna said firmly, and then she paused meditatively and added after a moment: “But thou should go in first. Thou art blocking the doorway anyway, and... thou makes a good scout, and a better shield. Just in case.”

“Oh, thank you, brave and legendary Luna Lightblade.” Scrivener muttered, and Luna huffed and poked at his flank with her horn, making the male wince a bit and kick lightly at her before he strode inside and down the corridor, grimacing a bit as he looked back and forth. Luna followed after a moment, and while Scrivy checked the den and the kitchen, she hunted through their bedroom and then checked on the magical wards both inside and outside.

Much of their home had been wrecked, and Scrivener grumbled under his breath as he squashed several ugly, gelatinous, but apparently-alive masses of bubbling slime, and when Luna returned from outside she said disgustedly: “The magical battery has been drained in its entirety. 'Twas likely wraiths, which attacked the wards and drained every bit of energy they could from our home.”

“What about the living goo? I've never seen anything like that before.” Scrivener said grouchily as he carefully wiped up the last of the mucky once-alive substance from the cracked kitchen floor, but Luna only shrugged a bit in response. It made the male sigh and grumble as Luna lit the fireplace, and he dropped his head forwards as he muttered: “And here, betwixt the first phase of life and the last phase of death, I enter now into metamorphosis, to become the unbecoming.”

Luna smiled wryly from where she laid on the ripped bedding at this, the winged unicorn looking over her shoulder towards the kitchen as she felt a strange twist run through herself at the quoted poetry, as she wondered how much Scrivener's words applied not just to the world around them but themselves as well. She only hoped that while this world fell into shadow, its death would signal the beginning of their new life in Looking Glass Equestria, and not their own fall into the deep darkness of death... or worse.

Metamorphosis

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Chapter Twenty Three: Metamorphosis
~BlackRoseRaven

The warped, corrupted Equestria grew worse with each and every day that passed, and even fighting as hard as they could, victories were few and far between for Luna and Scrivener. The world had reached a new level of hostility while they had been away, gone from laying brackish and dead to actively hunting anything and everything that so much as moved, much less possessed even a speck of life.

It was like even nature herself had been murdered, and some ghastly phantasm had set itself up as pedantic god in her place, striving to do anything and everything that would incite further chaos and destruction. The sun moved jaggedly through the broken sky, impossible to predict, and corruption regularly rained from the clouds, poisoning the land and further warping the undead forests and the world itself.

Within the first few days, Luna was forced to set up new wards to help combat the wraiths that were attracted to magic and vital force, seeking to feed their endless hungers and create more mindless, vampiric specters like themselves, and to also work to keep out the pesky slimes that were much more nuisance than threat. They tried to attach themselves to the ponies like ticks to drain the nutrients out of their bodies, leaving ugly bruises whenever they managed to get a good hold on one of the two equines.

At the end of the long first week, Luna had forced the sun to lower from the sky: it had taken a surprising amount of energy, however, and it felt like something had fought them every step of the way until it had finally passed beneath the horizon. The period of 'night' had only lasted two hours... but in that time, no less than thirty-two creatures of shadow showed up at their home as Scrivy and Luna stood carefully just inside the protective wards they had traced around their run-down cottage.

A dozen Nightmares, a handful of Velites, low-level demons, and a few Phooka and other creatures that rested in that awkward zone that was halfway between intelligent beast and cunning monster. Out of the group, the Velites would be the least troublesome: in the Looking Glass World, their spirits could be extracted, and then revived alongside the other Pales when the time came for that.

All the same, Luna had ordered them all to pledge their loyalty to her, one after the other: for many of the creatures, it was a solemn task done with surprising calm and straightforwardness. Their word was their bond, even though they were thought of as liars and betrayers, but they were neither: their victims were first victims of themselves before they became the prey of these manipulators who twisted the words of those that asked these dark entities to grant their desires.

Luna listened carefully to their words, and was pleased when at the end of it all, she had only been forced to sharply ask a few of the creatures of the night to be more specific, or to change their oaths slightly. Little as she liked it sometimes, she was experienced in these dealings and the gathered monsters all-but-revered her. To them, she was still Nightmare Moon: and inside her, the darker part of her personality delighted in the new servants she had gained.

Once the oaths were sworn and the ritual of sorts completed, Luna made a promise of her own: in a few weeks, she would open the Bifrost and bring them over it into Looking Glass Equestria beneath the cover of darkness. Until then, their only job was to survive the threats of the corrupted world around them. What was unexpected, however, was the hesitance of some of the creatures of darkness to leave: the Velites claimed strength in numbers, the Phooka dawdled, and one of the Nightmares was eager to stay behind so it could send messages back and forth if necessary between Luna and its 'siblings.'

Most of the creatures had gone back into hiding, but Luna had ended up permitting the others to stay... and within a week, the Velites had built up some small but stable structures around their cottage, including a stables and slop-trough for the Phooka, and the Nightmare spent a lot of its time buzzing around the inside of their home, studying both Scrivener and Luna almost hungrily. It was never hostile... only creepy, and perhaps even more awkward than Pinkamena had ever been. Luna took to calling it their 'pet,' and the Nightmare seemed to consider this a term of endearment rather than mockery and deprecation.

It was now like they lived in a creepy little camp... a camp that grew a little bigger every few weeks, as even a few desperate Nibelung tried to join up with them, among other Velites, surviving beasts that slunk through the shadows, and strangest of all, Pales that were attracted for one reason or another to the congregation of the supernatural. But nor was it all positive: nastier demons bent on feeding or destruction sometimes attacked now, along with other creatures drawn in by the sensations of magic in the air or whatever other lures their twisted senses detected.

But something that truly interested Luna was when she declared she was ready to take the first wave of dark creatures cross the Bifrost, and several Velites and the eager-to-serve Nightmare had asked if they could stay behind for now. Luna and Scrivy had both been surprised, but permitted it, curious to see if it was a true show of loyalty or some kind of trick.

The first wave consisted of almost forty creatures of shadow they led quickly through the Empty Forest during starless, false night, Luna grimacing in disgust about how the sun had refused to set again and would likely rise all too quickly. Opening the Bifrost had tired her, and she had no idea how the creatures would hold up passing through the indescribable vortex across the rainbow bridge... but although it seemed to hurt the creatures, they all passed through... and into Looking Glass Equestria's starry night, the creatures staring around themselves with awe at the life and energy of the world they passed into.

They looked almost childlike: demons gaped innocently, Nightmares shivered beneath the starlight in relief, Velites touched the trees and dragged their bony hooves through the grass. These things, considered awful monsters, reacted with the same happiness the Pales often did to stepping into this new world for the first time... and in spite of everything, Luna smiled faintly. She was trying to think of them like a weak disease she was using to vaccinate Looking Glass Equestria against far-worse illnesses... but more and more, she saw in them herself, she saw in them life and dignity and a desperate desire to continue to exist.

She brought them first to Ponyville, to check in with Greece and Illyria and another Architect, Babylon, who registered each and every one of the creatures and assigned them jobs. Odin had apparently devised a system to help keep these beings of darkness busy and give them a place in the new world... and for the eight days Luna and Scrivener spent in Looking Glass World while the Bifrost regenerated, they observed the creatures of darkness closely and their interaction with the world around them.

Scrivener was so fascinated he had started keeping a journal filled with notes and observations, and Luna often added her own thoughts and feelings to this. It felt very personal to them both, like they were delving into the abyss as well as gazing into it, now no longer simply fighting monsters but dining with them as friends and family... and in many ways, both darkness-tinged ponies were excited and reassured by what they saw, despite the perverse natures of many of their newest additions to the world they were helping rebuild.

In some ways, it was easier to get the creatures of shadow to work alongside them than it had been to convince the Nibelung to act as laborers: the dwarves were not as tightly-bound by their word of honor, and furthermore required lodgings, provisions, and entertainment, otherwise they would regularly ruin half the things they built while trying to find something to do outside of work. Demons and Nightmares, on the other hand, immediately found nooks and crannies they could hide in during the day, hunted for wild prey in the early evening – often alongside Phooka, which they shared the scraps with – and then went efficiently about their jobs they were assigned. And Velites simply did what they were told, day or night, tireless and obedient.

Even Odin found it interesting, and for the most part, he left Scrivener Blooms and Luna alone after seeing how they were already keeping track of the new creatures they had brought into Looking Glass Equestria. It was a task that Scrivy took pleasure in, however... awkward as it was sometimes when some supernatural entity would catch him watching and wander over to look, or when he'd been writing notes on Nightmares and a Phooka had sat down beside him, and he'd absently petted the half-animal creature for ten minutes while reviewing notes until he realized what he was doing.

Pollen was both excited and a little scared to see other Velites roaming around... but once reassured that they were victims like her and not predators, she interacted with them willingly enough. The other skeletons were a bit brainwashed in a few cases, and a few others had forgotten what it was like to have once been mortal... but none of them were worshipers of Veliuona, and all of them were eager to obey once they heard that an end to their endless suffering was coming.

Discombobulation was a little flustered by the fact that now Nightmares and demons were regularly showing up at the cabin, the chaos entity hiding in his aquarium and grumbling about the presence of Helheim, but the creatures ignored him so long as he ignored them. Not that the Draconequus could always put safety first, but since Luna only had to stop a Nightmare from attempting to eat him once, she thought the chimerical creature was doing a better job of keeping himself in line than she could have herself.

When it was time for Scrivy and Luna to return to the corrupted layer of reality, they left their journals and logbooks behind and only took a bag of simple supplies. Odin warned them again about the state of the world when they left, and Luna had grumbled out a promise to be careful before they had opened the Bifrost and made their way across, back into the twisted, mutant world... and straight into an ambush.

The skirmish was brutal: low on energy from summoning the bridge but high on adrenaline and endorphins, Luna and Scrivener ended up in a melee with wraiths and a middle-tier demon. The wraiths they crushed first: awful entities clad in rags, hiding their skull-like features beneath cowls, they were halfway between zombie and ghost and drained the energy from anything they could sink their claws into. The demon, meanwhile, flitted around the edges of the fight until the wraiths had been killed, then attempted to grab Scrivener from behind... only to first get two rear hooves slamming into its horned, scaly features before the earth pony dropped flat as Luna lunged over him and plunged her horn into the monstrosity.

The wound was far from lethal, and had only enraged the demon: it gnashed its teeth, clawed at them, slithered rapidly around on its body table and propelled itself faster with the bony wings that extended from its serpentine back, claws ripping against the ground as it yanked itself along and looked for a vulnerability. It was hunger in a physical form, gluttony that longed to feast upon them, and far tougher than it looked.

Finally, after taking a bit of a beating, the monster tried to bite Luna... and the winged unicorn had replied by slicing its lower jaw off in a single neat parry. The demon had finally fled at this point, and Scrivy and Luna had grumbled, both bruised and battered and cut as they'd stumbled their way back through the Empty Forest to their cottage for some rest.

There were scars of battle around the cabin... and while the Nightmare and one or two Velites had survived, the other creatures that had stayed behind had not. Demons were sweeping back and forth across corrupted Equestria, as were other entities of destruction, all hellbent on taking down as much of the world as they could before they were taken down themselves. It was enough to make the living ponies uneasy, wondering if their time here was finally at an end.

They rested, and the Nightmare watched over them almost fawningly... a feeling that was still strange, even if no longer uncomfortable. Luna had started calling this particular Nightmare 'Melinda' after the witch in the famous poem, and the entity had only attempted to point out once that they already possessed names they held in secret and silence before Luna had glared at her and the creature had decided it would graciously accept its new name.

Over the weeks that passed, they fought against monstrosities, demons, and even what seemed like the world itself come alive: they gathered more creatures to their cause, found more Pales, and Luna decided that there was no longer any point in being too cautious or careful. Instead, she led Scrivener on wild adventure: they explored past the Frozen Reef, they dredged the sacred vaults and catacombs of Canterlot, they crossed back and forth across Equestria further disturbing the already-disturbed land, every now and then accompanied by creatures of the night that eagerly banded with them.

In the months that passed, Scrivener found himself battered and bludgeoned and beaten by everything from Nibelung and Velites more interested in one last battle than a chance at salvation, to mutant dragons, monsters that were all-but-legendary, and demons of every tier. And yet at the same time, despite the carnage, the mayhem, the violence, and spending every few weeks passing over the Bifrost to transfer Pales, servants of the night, and the few objects of value they managed to get their hooves on, it also felt strangely-quiet. The nightmares when they slept had become lulling and calmer, and even Valthrudnir had faded, showing up only once or twice, his presence and the feelings of corruption in Scrivener's mind both seeming to diminish as time passed.

Finally, after eight months of living in this rotted-out, self-cannibalizing Equestria, Scrivener sat up on his bedding and blinked his eyes tiredly, rubbing absently at his features as his collar all-but-glowed around his neck. It was a bit scuffed and worn now, and the earth pony's body bore several ugly scars from the battles he had fought... and he couldn't help but smile a bit as he glanced towards Luna, who childishly grabbed at a pillow and pulled it over her face with a mumble as she refused to get up. Her body was still almost pristine... there were only a few hints of marring here and there, and that was all they were: hints, hidden to even the observant, known only by Scrivy because he knew every inch of her shape and form.

He admired her as he reached out, rubbing a hoof gently along her spine... and Luna sighed a little as her mane twisted backwards, half-spilling up along Scrivener's frame as she mumbled beneath the pillow: “I do not wish to get up today, Scrivy. We just crossed back across the Bifrost yesterday. It had been nice and calm and quiet and for once I wish to enjoy this... I demand coffee to further my enjoyment. Make Melinda put on coffee, the creature can make itself useful for insisting on staying even after every other creature has long gone on to Looking Glass world.”

Scrivener reached up and gently patted the pillow over Luna's face, and she grumbled a bit beneath it before the earth pony pushed himself off the bedding with a yawn, glancing absently around the dusty, damaged living room before he turned and made his way towards the kitchen, not bothering to look for his glasses. He glanced up, unsurprised, when the Nightmare materialized beside him, smiling at him kindly as she bowed her head respectfully: even after all these months, the odd creature was still as loyal as ever, and as polite and flattering as when they had first begun to work together. “Shall I, Scrivener Blooms?”

“No, it's alright, thank you.” Scrivy smiled a bit as he went about the process of putting the coffee on, taking his time as the Nightmare nodded, then the earth pony asked curiously: “How are things looking outside? Any pests in the area?”

“It has been... empty.” the Nightmare replied after a thoughtful moment, and the smoky, dark equine strode slowly past Scrivy, almost sultry, glowing white eyes seeming oddly soft. “Storm clouds are overhead, blocking out the sunlight and keeping the world dark. Corruption is trying to whisper something and the world gasps for breath: do you feel it, brother?”

“He is not thy brother, Melinda, do not be obnoxious.” Luna called from the den, and the Nightmare sighed a little as she turned towards where Luna was finally sitting up in front of the fireplace, grumbling a bit as she attempted to keep the blankets up around her shoulder as her black pearl bounced gently against her breast. “Truly, though, nothing abound? Perhaps we shall actually get a day to relax after all.”

Scrivener grunted in agreement as he turned the coffeemaker on, then turned to open the refrigerator... and cursed under his breath at the reek that floated out of it, shutting it firmly with a look of disgust as his eyes flicked back towards the coffeemaker and he realized it wasn't working either. “Something drained the battery. Looks like you'll have to go without your coffee.”

“Nonsense, I'll do it the old-fashioned way, then.” Luna replied moodily, and she flicked her horn towards the fireplace, blue flames immediately bursting into being. “Would thou mind checking the battery, then, Scrivener? Perhaps 'tis just a loose connection.”

The earth pony nodded to her as the Nightmare looked curiously towards the machinery, murmuring as Scrivener headed for the back door: “Strange. We had no visitors while you slept, and no difficult weather.”

For some reason, this didn't help Scrivy's foreboding as he stepped outside, glancing up at the cloudy, dark sky overhead before something caught his eye: not the floating chunks of stone here and there, not the foul clouds or the flashes of flickering light that danced throughout some of them... but something else beyond as he frowned a bit. Then, as he gazed back and forth over the splotchy clouds, he realized that the sky above had turned completely black... and for some reason, it made his stomach clench. No violet, no crimson, and no baleful glow of the red sun, even though the air around him seemed gray and listless.

Yet the luminescence had no source: it was as if the air itself was emitting that strange, phantasmal gray light, and Scrivener frowned deeply as he walked slowly out into the back yard before something chuckled quietly behind him, and the earth pony looked over his shoulder in surprise... then gritted his teeth at the sight of Valthrudnir lounging complacently against the side of the house, the ivory dragon grinning widely as he held up a hand of five cards... five tarot cards, the reading that Scrivener had almost been able to put out of his mind, as the Jötnar said kindly: “It looks like today's the day, slave-pony hack. Today is the day past and present and future all collide, and we see just how resourceful you and Brynhild really are. Can you conquer Fate? Can you outmatch the Norns? Only know one thing, Scrivener Blooms... this time I'm not going to let you cheat and change the ending of the story.”

Scrivy began to open his mouth, but Valthrudnir only laughed and grinned, flicking his wrist and tossing the five cards into the air, and they floated in a row in front of the earth pony: the Hanged Man, the Lord of Sorrow, Judgment, the World, and the Lord of Loss in Pleasure. Scrivener's mouth closed and he fell silent as he gazed over these, as his eyes roved along their twisted images... and then Valthrudnir calmly pulled a platinum-framed pocketwatch out of his suit jacket and looked down at it as his amber eyes gleamed dangerously. “I'd say you have about sixty minutes before you die. Do prove me wrong if you can; I enjoy our games.”

The Jötnar flickered out of existence as Scrivener looked up in horror, feeling a tremble roll through his body before he spun around and charged into the cottage to find Luna already on her hooves, looking at him with concern before her eyes widened as their gazes met and locked and traded memories and thoughts in a flurry before she cursed under her breath, turning and flicking her horn to the side to throw the steel kettle and metal netting out of the fireplace, snapping towards the surprised-looking Nightmare: “I keep a set of runes in the bedroom, fetch them now, creature!”

The Nightmare winced and scrambled away without questioning as Scrivener hurriedly tore through the cupboards and Luna leaned down to slice her own forelimb open, cursing under her breath before she flicked the blood into the blue flames as her horn gave a sharp pulse, and they immediately flared upwards and turned a darker sapphire as she asked the earth pony incredulously: “But what does the echo want?”

“I think he wants us to suffer, that's all... if we live, he gets to keep torturing us, and if we die, he gets to feel like he's won. I don't even know if he's right or not about the world collapsing but... something out there is wrong and he...” Scrivener shivered a bit as he dug several pouches out of the cupboards, then picked these up and hurried over to Luna, who took them with a grimace. “He knows things.”

“The echo may not be Valthrudnir himself, but if it possesses his memories, instincts... aye, I do not doubt the sick and pedantic god studied the collapse of every layer he destroyed. He would know the signs well.” Luna muttered, and then she cursed under her breath before the Nightmare hurried back with a black case, adding darkly: “The Bifrost is collapsed and if the monster spoke true we have but one choice and one chance.”

Luna's horn glowed and yanked the case free from the Nightmare's jaws, and it winced and staggered before the case opened and dropped to the bedding, the winged unicorn's eyes flicking back and forth over the square tokens inside, each made of bone and engraved with different runes. She quickly but carefully selected a handful of these, lifting them into the air as she concentrated her magic, then flicked them into the fire... and the flames twisted and swirled upwards, filling the entire fireplace before they became almost crystalline.

The semisolid fire pulsed with iridescent light as Luna and Scrivener gazed into it apprehensively... and then Luna threw her head back with a sigh of relief as Odin's voice echoed out of the fireplace, concerned and surprised: “Brynhild? Has something happened? There's some kind of interference...”

“Then likely the creature spoke true. The world seems to be either nearing or beginning the collapse, Odin... we need to access thy portal to Valhalla in order to escape.” Luna said sharply, and for a few moments there was a sense of hesitation from the flames before Luna gritted her teeth and and shouted: “'Tis no prank, cyclops!”

For a few seconds longer there was silence... and then a tired sigh before Odin said quietly: “It's in Ponyville. Go into the cellar of the house past the statue of the noble witch, there's a false wall to the left.”

“Odin... I thank thee.” Luna responded quietly, and then she nodded firmly before turning away from the flames and grimacing a bit as she ordered: “Nightmare, fly ahead! Scrivy, there is no way we can cross that distance by hoof or wing... I shall teleport us. But it shall be unpleasant.”

“Just like our first date.” Scrivener smiled a bit despite himself, and Luna gave him a look for a few moments before she shook her head with a snort as the Nightmare vanished from sight. “Wait, Luna, before we go... is there anything we need?”

“Coffee, still, but I'll settle for tea in Valhalla. Come, Scrivener, let us make haste.” Luna muttered, even as a twist of fear spilled through her gut, and the earth pony nodded as they headed for the front door, the winged unicorn throwing it open... and grimacing at the gray aura that filled the air outside before her eyes flicked up to the clouds overhead, and she cursed under her breath. “The world begins to more and more to resemble the bastard child of Helheim and Ginnungagap, made up of all the worst qualities of both. But what else would a dying world resemble?”

Scrivener grunted in agreement... and then Luna turned towards him and embraced him suddenly and fiercely, and the earth pony looked up in surprise even as he hugged her back on instinct. For a moment, they rested together like that, the winged unicorn's mane and tail twisting forwards and around him as she pulled him closer, then shook her head slowly and murmured: “Perhaps this is Valthrudnir's truer and crueler plan... to make us indebted to his machinations and evil and terrible mind, to pretend to save us only so he may mock us...”

“It's just an echo. It's been... dormant for the most part, too. Let's just... hope for the best for now, and concentrate on getting out of here.” Scrivy replied quietly, and Luna nodded slowly before she and Scrivener pressed their foreheads together, both of them concentrating as electricity sizzled along their bodies.

Luna's horn began to glow as her mane and tail pulled tighter around the pair, squeezing one another closer as Scrivener poured his concentration and energy towards the winged unicorn, and her magic spilled through the bodies of both ponies before a swirl of sapphire mist twisted around them, corkscrewing upwards before vanishing into sparkling motes of blue.

Moments later at the outskirts of Ponyville, electricity sparked through the air, and then a swirl of sapphire smoke rose from the ground before coalescing and reforming into the shapes of the two ponies, their bodies still pressed together, forelimbs still tightly-embracing one another. Then another jolt of electricity shocked through the air around them, and they knocked their heads together firmly before Scrivener fell backwards with a groan, steam hissing up from his body as Luna staggered backwards and her ephemeral locks flickered violently. “Damnation!”

They both looked at one another stupidly for a moment, Scrivener on his back, Luna's legs wobbling as she stood before she shook her head firmly as the two regained their senses... and then they both stared in dumb surprise as a Nightmare flickered into existence beside them, Melinda leaning forwards as if she had never left their side and saying quietly: “The atmosphere is becoming riddled with energy, laced with Helheim's corruption: the effects this will have are... undesirable.”

“No, I did not imagine that.” Luna muttered drolly, and then she shook her head quickly, grimacing a bit as the air around them seemed to pulse with the same unnatural aura as Scrivy climbed carefully to his hooves. “It is not yet enough to interfere too much with things, but it explains this supernal light. Come, let us hurry: I do not wish to tarry.”

“I agree.” Scrivener nodded as he fell into step beside Luna and the Nightmare followed them anxiously, the earth pony glancing back and forth as they strode towards Ponyville, hooves crunching ice and gravel beneath them as he added quietly: “It's so quiet...”

“The pureblooded demons would have sensed this first, and fled back to Helheim... then the shades that remain here in this world would have felt it next. Now that I am aware of what this energy means, I can feel the prickling of this energy... but it still confuses more than it does scare. It is not that I doubt your judgment, my wiser siblings... it is that I worry this is only a phase closer to destruction, not imminent destruction itself.” the Nightmare said carefully behind them, then she winced a bit when Luna shot her a moody look over her shoulder. “ I am only voicing an opinion.”

“For once, I wish to err on the side of caution. And furthermore, thou forgets that a phase can last anywhere betwixt seconds and years.” Luna grumbled, and the Nightmare bowed her head in respectful accord.

Then the three halted and looked up in surprise as electricity surged over a nearby building, the arcs of energy growing and strengthening, becoming almost blindingly-bright before the remains of the structure tore itself free from the ground and lifted into the air, dirt and rock and wooden debris tumbling off it... but the broken pieces of building fell towards the sky instead of the ground. It rose slowly, hauntingly, and Luna shivered a bit as above their heads, the clouds ripped themselves apart and revealed more of the void of the black sky above.

“And if there ever was an omen we should hurry on our way, 'twas that.” Luna muttered, watching as rotten earth and a few broken boards floated out of the hole in the earth, and she shook her head quickly as she hurried onwards, looking back and forth for the shattered remains of the statue of her lost student, Trixie the Brave.

Scrivener Blooms and the Nightmare followed anxiously before the male winced as he glanced towards another ugly crater in the earth, and Luna's eyes flicked towards this quickly before she grunted in agreement. “The statue is gone, but aye, this is where it was located... that means... look, there!”

Luna pointed past a listing, collapsed house, to where a second building lay in complete ruin, covered with thick, jagged ice... but beside the piled debris of this was a half-imploded cellar door, and Luna ran towards this and then flicked her horn, yanking them off their hinges and throwing them both to the side with a single hard telekinetic pull.

Recoil surged along her body, and she arched her back with a curse, half-staggering as Scrivener felt a twist of pain roil through his own being as he skidded to a halt beside her, but Luna only quickly shook her head with a grumble, muttering: “'Tis likely due to the energy in the air, that is all. It amplifies everything... positive and negative. Let us hurry out of here.”

Scrivener grunted in agreement, following quickly towards the steps leading down into the rotten earth, and she grimaced a bit in disgust at the reek of death and must that floated up out of it, the earth pony close at her heels and the Nightmare bringing up the rear. As Luna's eyes adjusted to the darkness, she winced at the sight of spiderwebs, and then cursed under her breath at the sight of the slimes clinging to the walls and floor here and there before her eyes flicked towards a wall that seemed to be vibrating faintly, small sparks twisting here and there over it.

The illusion was almost perfect, but the buildup of energy in the air was creating a strange distortion effect, and Luna grinned as she lowered her shoulder before simply charging into it. She crashed through in a hail of wooden splinters, runes violently sparking for a moment over the debris before sizzling quickly out, and Luna let out a grunt of victory as she grinned at the sight of an ancient, circular tablet of stone that rested against the back wall of the rot-smelling hidden room, gemstones carved into an intricate pattern of exotic symbols all-but-glowing over it as she called easily over her shoulder: “Scrivener Blooms, I require thy concentration. 'Twill sting only for a moment. Nightmare, halt the slimes from attacking us.”

Scrivy stepped up beside the winged unicorn, looking awkwardly back and forth through the cubical, hidden room as Luna dropped her head forwards, and then he winced and hurriedly lowered his own. Slowly, the breathing of the two began to even out as their heads bowed further, their mixed soul swirling, their minds and bodies and emotions synching up as Luna's horn began to glow even as sparks of energy twisted over their bodies.

In front of them, the gemstones in the tablet began to glow in response before it began to tremble, a faint rumbling filling the air... and then, as Luna and Scrivener rose their heads and gave a final, firm shove with the combined strength of their energy and will, the circular stone slab glowed brightly and the light spilled brighter and higher, blinding and enrapturing the two even as they staggered backwards from the recoil that sparked and twisted along their bodies as it transformed into a golden, glowing portal.

For a moment, they could both only stare... and then Luna grinned widely, breathing hard as a strange tremble of excitement twisted through her before she turned her eyes to scrivener, saying firmly: “Come, husband... let us find out if my old home truly is as glorious as I remember.”

Scrivener laughed a bit at this, and then he gazed towards the portal as the Nightmare hesitated at their backs, but Luna only grinned widely as she looked over her shoulder, saying easily: “Worry not, Melinda... there have been worse things in Valhalla than thee. Come, though, before the portal closes!”

She turned back towards the golden light, laughing as she leapt into it, and Scrivener snorted in entertainment as he followed quickly after her, wincing and yet grinning, exhilarated in spite of the pain that sparked along his body as the Nightmare followed last. The journey was incredible: running through a tunnel of sound and fire and light, it was like being inside the Bifrost instead of traveling overtop it, breathing hard as they sprinted for seconds that felt like hours before ripping out of the other side of the vortex.

Luna immediately skidded to a halt, and Scrivener staggered to a stop beside her, the Nightmare stumbling out last and then hissing in shock as it cowered backwards behind the two. A radiant sun shone down from where it hung in a clear blue sky above, and they stood upon a wide dirt highway that was lined on either side with immense trees filled with blue apples that stretched for countless miles. All that either of them could do was stare... and then the Nightmare slowly straightened, its eyes wide as it whispered: “The sun does not burn me here... there is a stabilizing presence in the air. Everything is different from the physical realm, even from Helheim... do you feel it?”

Luna answered this question by closing her eyes and tilting her head back as she took a deep breath, and Scrivener shuddered a bit as a strange euphoria rollicked through his system, filling his body with strength. Luna's ephemeral locks all-but-sizzled with new vitality as her mane and tail wafted backwards in the windless air, and then she grinned widely as her eyes opened and gazed up at the bright, but far from blinding sun overhead, irises sharp and intense with the strength flooding her form as she whispered: “Aye. I do. For we are in warrior's paradise: where the body is flooded with strength, where the strong are blessed to be who they truly are at heart, where we may laugh and sing and fight without grim death lurking around each and every corner.”

She turned suddenly, and Scrivener and the Nightmare both turned to follow her gaze... and all three gazed with awe towards the immense castle that was only a short distance away at the end of the dusty highway, protected by a massive moat and an immense, half-raised bridge of polished wood. The outer walls were made of gray stone that seemed somehow vibrant, and immense towers stretched towards the sky around an immense central structure of stone and metal, simple and yet beautiful in its design before Luna threw her head back and laughed in delight. “Yes, Valhalla itself! Valhalla of Asgard... I feel both like I am coming home and visiting for the first time, and 'tis... 'tis truly strange.”

Scrivener Blooms smiled warmly as the mare blushed a bit, and Luna's eyes roved towards him as his gaze trailed almost shyly towards her, the two studying one another as the link that bound them seemed to become almost like a physical, tangible thing for a moment, a radiance pulsing for a moment around them both in the secret shapes of their mixed souls... and then another reverberation echoed through the air, and Scrivy grimaced a bit as he glanced down in surprise. Luna frowned at him, and then she gritted her teeth as her heart thudded in her chest painfully and her head bowed forwards, her mane sparking violently as the Nightmare backpedaled away from the two in surprise and fright. “Siblings?”

“What's happening...” Scrivener grimaced in pain, leaning his head forwards... and then Luna's horn gave a sudden, dazzling white pulse, and the earth pony arched his back with a scream of shock and agony as blood burst from one of his ears and his features rippled like water, reality around the pony distorting as charcoal coat became ugly black scales, his eyes widening in fear as he began to shake his head violently and Luna stared at him with horror... then shrieked in denial as her horn gave another pulse and Scrivener's body began to glow brighter, feeling his pain, his terror, and something deeper and darker and fouler-

Scrivener clenched his eyes shut as his body warped and distorted... and when he opened them, he was standing in the darkness of his own mind, trapped in the claws of the bog-beast as Valthrudnir stood in front of him with a triumphant grin on his features and his arms crossed, eyes glowing with malicious pleasure as he said with delight: “You walked right into my trap.”

“What are you doing? H-How are you doing this? Luna! Nightmare Moon!” Scrivener howled in agony as another pulse of pain ripped through his body, and then his head lashed and twisted to the side, his form warping, becoming half-pony, half-wyrm before he glared towards Valthrudnir as rage and hate flooded through his mind, trying to rip forwards through the bog beast's claws as he snarled: “I'll kill you!”

“Excellent, you're progressing wonderfully. Go ahead, give in to those primal emotions... anger, hatred, sorrow, and suffering; that's what feeds my Wyrms. It will only serve to accelerate the transformation. Scream all you want, your precious Valkyrie can't hear you when she has her own problems to deal with.” Valthrudnir replied calmly, and Scrivener threw his head back with a raw, senseless yell even as horror flooded through his being, struggling to repress himself even as the rest of his very soul roiled with the need to give in to everything bottled up inside of him.

The Jötnar smiled knowingly at him at this as he reached into his suit jacket, then produced the hand of tarot cards, fanning the five out and saying mockingly: “But I suppose I can answer your question without worries... it was a brilliant strategy that I put together, I must humbly admit. And for a while, I was concerned that I would only be able to kill you and Brynhild, until I realized there was a much greater opportunity to be had if I bided my time. So that was what I did, feeding off you and Brynhild like a common demonic parasite. Degrading, yes... but some sacrifices must be made for the sake of victory.”

“I'll rip you apart!” Scrivener snarled, and then he howled in agony as the claws of the bog-beast tightened around him even as he felt his body pulse with pain, even as his teeth grew larger in his jaws and terrible light glowed out of his transformed eye, feeling the scales spreading further over his pony-half as his body increased in size. “Let me go!”

“Temper, temper.” Valthrudnir mocked, and Scrivener snarled, furious and maddened, managing to almost yank himself forwards before the monstrosity pinning him down tightened its grip and jerked him back. It only seemed to further please the Jötnar, however, as he laughed quietly and said softly: “Better than I ever could have hoped. Yes, emotions are such an immense flaw in mortals. They steal all perceptions away from them. Tweak them in the right directions... and you can make a mortal do anything you want. Then again, they are so often willfully-blind to begin with... it made it so easy to convince you and the Valkyrie bitch that I was focused on you alone, and that my Tyrant Wyrm's corruption was only able to affect your mind... when in reality, that pretty romantic link between your souls permitted me all the access I desired to Brynhild as well.”

This made Scrivener freeze up, staring in shock at the ivory dragon as he smiled coldly. “I even almost had her convinced to start this process earlier, too. That dark part of her soul is so convinced it's a secondary consciousness it even thinks it has its own thoughts, you know... thoughts I dripped a little poison into now and then. So-called 'Nightmare Moon' was too arrogant to believe she could ever be influenced by outside sources... and Brynhild thinks so low of that part of herself she is eager to find more reasons to despise it. They further influenced your emotions, your passions, your... sickness... under my bidding, without knowing it. And they almost poured Fenrir into you because of my suggestion. It's only too bad that you and the Valkyrie are both cowards. The Nightmare Moon part I can at least respect for its ruthlessness.”

Scrivener snarled... but even as he felt the fury bubbling up inside him, he forced it back, whispering: “I won't let you win. I beat you once, Valthrudnir. I won't let you win, not when you're nothing but a goddamn shadow in my mind.”

“Oh, but that's only made me all the more dangerous to you, hasn't it?” Valthrudnir replied softly, glancing down at the fan of cards still in his hand before he reached up and gently tapped the last card in line: the Lord of Loss in Pleasure. “You are flawed, and pathetic, and easy to break. You give in easily under the right conditions, although it is admittedly a delightful change of pace that instead of torture, all I have to do is throw the vermin a piece of poisoned cheese, and he gorges himself happily to death on it.”

Scrivener snarled, and then his head dropped forwards, feeling the scales spreading further, body thickening and warping in the awful claws of the monster as he tried his hardest to fight back... then threw his head back and snarled furiously: “Then why don't you let me show you what kinds of things I've come to enjoy, Valthrudnir?”

“Do not worry, beast, there will be time for that shortly.” Valthrudnir replied mockingly, and Scrivener's body bucked as the last of his pony features were swallowed up by scale, the last of his mane bursting off his skull and falling in a useless hail of straw-like hair to the ground as he felt awful desires roiling inside him and the bog-monster shifted its grip behind him, seizing into his shoulders to pin him down as its heavy, filthy and terribly-hot body dropped over his to hold him in place. “Don't you want to hear the rest of my brilliance? How I continued to keep my presence known to you alone, how I made you two focus on what I was doing to you while this whole time I've been using that very link you yourself can control Brynhild through in order to complete my plans? I cannot express my delight that you both missed this entirely! If anything proves that you are both idiots and I am the supreme intellect in this pathetic set of worlds, it is most definitely that.”

Scrivener's eyes glowed with unholy sapphire light as he lashed both gnarled front claws out and ripped into the ground, clawing savagely at Valthrudnir, but the Jötnar grinned as he continued to stand calmly, just out of range. “I even couldn't resist dropping hints about this, as you should be able to see from the reading I so generously performed for you...” He held up the fan of cards, pointing calmly at it as Scrivener only growled in response, feeling his thoughts becoming alien, monstrous instincts taking over. “I even warned you ahead of time... a Tyrant Wyrm, powered by a Valkyrie soul. You will be the body, and Brynhild will provide the energy, the strength... after all, here we are in Valhalla, a place where we become reflections of our true souls... and pretty little Brynhild just happens to specialize in transformations and polymorph effects on top of that.”

Scrivener shivered in horror, looking up at this as he snarled... then he forced his passions down, struggled to get himself under control as he whispered: “But how did you know that...”

“All I needed to wait for was Brynhild to enter an energy-rich environment that would enhance her magic a little further, or to manipulate her into doing something that would increase either your power or her own... either effect would have helped greatly in getting me towards what I desired.” Valthrudnir replied softly, and he finally closed the fan of cards into one hand and tucked them calmly into his suit jacket, his amber eyes glowing with malicious, savage glee. “And now you're all mine, Scrivener Blooms. I have all the ingredients: Brynhild's power, your mixed soul, an environment laden with energy that will actively influence and help the process of your transformation, and the last ingredient... the corruption that has been growing and spreading through you. And once it fuses into you, you will become a new pet, a new puppet who will do whatever I please... and my very first target can be that other cheater, Odin himself.”

Scrivener began to open his mouth, and then Valthrudnir held up a hand as his eyes gave a flash, saying curtly: “Checkmate.”

He snapped his fingers, and the bog-beast above Scrivener roared as it pounced downwards, bursting into dark liquid that swirled and roiled over the transformed once-pony, and Scrivener screamed in his mind at the agony of it surging over him, fusing against him, hardening and ripping into his veins, his mind, his heart, his soul. It ripped through him, savaging his spirit as he convulsed wildly, and the Jötnar only laughed as he strode backwards and spread his arms, shouting: “It's too late to struggle now, pathetic animal! You were mine from the very first moment the Tyrant Wyrm stretched its gift into your mind... now you'll make a serviceable warship until I can gather the materials I need to reconstitute my own body!”

A claw ripped upwards as the howls of agony became animals roars, and then it slammed into the ground as a head tore towards the sky, dripping with muck, its eyes glowing, unholy blue lamps as the mottled Tyrant Wyrm rose with a snarl. It was immense now, the last of the mud sliding from its worn dark scales, its features brutal and vicious, and Valthrudnir laughed as he clapped his hands together, his eyes glowing with triumph. “Perfection! A machine restored and rebuilt, the first of my pets renewed, destruction incarnate to destroy my enemies and-”

The Tyrant Wyrm growled slowly as it leaned down, narrowing its eyes, and Valthrudnir frowned immediately at this even as he hesitantly took a step back: the creature towered over him now, its eyes blazing, a bit of drool dripping from its jaws. For a moment, they only looked at each other... and then the Jötnar snarled, raising a fist and shouting: “I command you! I was the one who created you! As we speak, your host body is transforming to accommodate you and you will do my bidding, you are made of-”

“I am made of the corruption you used to hide and protect yourself, the corruption that links you to me... but that corruption was only a puppet, never alive, never with its own consciousness, and all of that has been poured into me. Valthrudnir, I am rage, and hatred, and destruction, but all of that is directed towards the only object I see right now in front of me.” the monster snarled, and Valthrudnir's eyes widened in horror at the sound of Scrivener Blooms' voice, elevated to a terrible degree before the Tyrant Wyrm grinned widely. “You remembered to take away my fears, you transformed my body, you corrupted my will... but you forgot about my mind. You put my mind in this deadly puppet of your own design, forgetting that the puppet serves you, but I do not bow to you: all you filled me with is a need to destroy and kill. And guess what the first thing I'm going to destroy is, genius?”

Valthrudnir rose a single finger, his jaws falling slightly open... and then he simply swallowed thickly, looking stupefied before the Tyrant Wyrm's jaws lunged down and snapped shut over him, the ivory dragon shrieking as his legs managed to kick once before the Wyrm lashed its head back and its teeth crunched down with awful power. In moments, the echo of Valthrudnir was devoured, ripped apart and swallowed greedily down before the monstrosity slowly ground its teeth together, leaned back... and then spat out several saliva-covered, rotting playing cards that dissolved slowly into ashes as they floated towards the dark ground.

The enormous beast snorted in disgust at this, bowing its head forwards as it stood alone in the realm of its mind. It shivered weakly for a few moments, breathing hard, and then fell forwards with a howl of misery, grasping at its skull with its front claws before Scrivener's voice rasped: “No... don't give in... don't let it take over... no, no, no, no

“No, no, no!” Scrivener cried miserably, throwing his head back... and he stared up at the blue sky above even as his body gave another terrible pulse of pain, his eyes glowing with awful sapphire light as Luna shrieked, grinding her hooves against the ground as she tried to pull away... but her glowing horn was dragged inexorably forwards like metal towards a magnet, her hooves leaving narrow trenches through the dirt as it gave another pulse, and the earth pony howled in agony that Luna felt ripping through her own mind as well. It drowned out Nightmare Moon, it sent static surging through their linked souls... and Melinda had already vanished, fleeing in terror from whatever was happening to her so-called 'sibling' winged unicorn and earth pony.

Except with his rippling, changing frame, he no longer seemed like merely an earth pony: his body seemed like it was beginning to warp, distort, transform, a terrible, pulsing aura shimmering around him of mixed white-and-black. It made it difficult to even look at him as Luna felt herself drawn closer... and the closer she drew, the more she felt her energy drained from her body, poured into Scrivener, accelerating the transformation all the faster.

Tears fell from Luna's eyes as pain ripped through her body, trying to yank herself backwards again... and then a strong hand seized her shoulder and managed to shove her away, and the aura died down slightly as she was pushed to a distance. Luna looked up with a gasp to see Odin looming over her, the once-god looking with horror towards Scrivener... and the winged unicorn couldn't repress a cry of misery as she saw how he looked awfully... melted, twisted, trying to continue to transform even as he visibly fought against himself.

“By Yggdrasil...” Odin whispered, and then he shook his head quickly before Scrivener looked up at him pleadingly, and the once-god gritted his teeth as he reached down and yanked a sword free from where it was sheathed at his side, and Luna's eyes widened as the falcon-headed being quickly drew the blade back, muttering as Scrivener stared at him helplessly: “I am sorry, but this is all I can do.”

He stabbed downwards... and Luna lunged forwards with a shriek, striking the sword with her horn, guiding the deadly, thin blade away from Scrivener's face and instead sending it plunging into the collar around the male's neck, shattering the gemstone and severing the thin metal, but only managing to score a shallow cut before Luna threw herself savagely against Odin, knocking him crashing backwards. He rolled once with a curse of surprise as the winged unicorn stomped in front of Scrivener Blooms, shouting furiously at him: “Monster! Thou wouldst sacrifice us both rather than save him?”

“No, this sword will kill the body but bind the soul.” Odin grimaced as he slowly picked himself up from the ground, but his eyes were dark as he rubbed slowly at his chest, the sword hanging loosely from his other hand... but all the same, Luna held herself at the ready as the once-god said quietly: “I have to kill him, Brynhild. He's caught in the middle of some awful magic I recognize all too clearly as Valthrudnir's tampering. It will hurt you, but it will not kill you. Only his body will die, and then your pact with him will be severed. You can visit his spirit here in the warrior's heaven any time you like.”

“Not good enough! I would prefer to die myself than sever that which lays between us, Odin, and if thou tries to harm him, then I will stop thee. I will kill thee.” Luna snarled, leaning forwards as tears streamed down her face, and the once-god looked surprised before the winged unicorn looked over shoulder, trembling, as Scrivener stared back at her helplessly, gargling and shivering before he howled in misery and dropped his head forwards... and Luna moaned in not just pain, but horror at the way his body rippled and shifted.

“Brynhild... look at him.” Odin said gently but firmly, straightening and gesturing outwards with his free hand, and the winged unicorn shivered as her eyes stared helplessly at the pony. “The transformation has already gone wrong... it will madden him or kill him anyway, and you will die if it fails... but if it succeeds, if he gives in to it completely, he will become a Tyrant Wyrm, and we cannot ever permit one of their kind to live. You know this. It will like-as-not consume you; they do not know love, it will not be your husband any longer... and while I admire Scrivener's bravery in battling this transformation, he cannot last much longer. Either he dies... or he becomes a monster.”

For a few moments, Luna could only stare over her shoulder at Scrivener, trembling, as he looked back with his glowing eyes, his body rippling before bulking up, then shrinking downwards, letting out another scream of agony as a hoof split apart into a claw to rip at the ground, then seal tightly back together into a hoof once more... and then the winged unicorn clenched her eyes shut and bowed her head, whispering: “I understand.”

Odin nodded slowly as he began to stride calmly forwards... and then Luna lunged towards him, and then once-god stared in surprise for a moment before he automatically swung the sword upwards, and Luna snarled as she slashed savagely into this with her glowing horn, shattering the blade of the weapon like glass before her hooves collided savagely with his ribs and crushed him down into the ground, the falcon-headed being coughing blood as he arched his back in shock before Luna pinned him and glared down into his eyes, snarling: “I will not abandon my soulmate.”

Odin stared up at her, panting hard, and then Luna turned around and strode towards Scrivener, the aura pulsing, growing brighter and larger as the winged unicorn willingly stepped towards him now, her own horn glowing more and more as she smiled faintly at him until she was standing with their faces only inches apart. Then, slowly, she lowered her horn towards him, touching it to his forehead, and Scrivener felt the pain dying out as time seemed to slow, both surrounded in a terrible glow of radiance and darkness as Luna whispered: “It's okay.”

She laughed a bit, then closed her eyes and continued softly: “I love thee. Thou art my husband, my best friend, my soulmate, my... my everything. Everything we have done, we have always done together. And now, thou stands upon the threshold of a change but I want thee to know... it's okay. It's okay, whatever happens. I love thee. I am going to stay beside thee, and I am not afraid. As long as we walk the path together, nothing else matters... not what others think of us, not what the world wants us to be or do, not society, not even the gods or the Norns or anything else.

“No matter what, Scrivener Blooms, I am here for thee. Luna Brynhild, Nightmare Moon... I am thine, thou art mine. We are each other's rulers and servants, but we are also always equals. We are also always together, and loyal, and fight for one another, not just beside one-another.” Luna smiled faintly as she opened her eyes, looking slowly up, and Scrivener's own glowing eyes flickered before she kissed his lips chastely, then nodded once and whispered: “I do not care what we become, or what we do. I do not care about Valhalla, or Equestria, or the countless layers. Not if I can spend all that time with thee, together. If we are to become evil... if we are to become villains and destroyers... let it be. We will still be together, even if we are monsters... I would rather be a monster beside thee, doomed to Helheim's torments, than a heroine Valkyrie alone in Paradise any moment of any day. I love thee, Scrivener Blooms.”

Scrivener stared at her, at the depth of her devotion, her love, her indescribable loyalty and affection as his body rippled, feeling their hearts beating in time, their souls mixing together, their gazes locked and countless thoughts and memories and feelings spilling between them... and then, even through the pain, even as the glow built higher, Scrivener smiled with faint but true happiness, and he whispered: “I love you too, Luna Brynhild. Always.”

The glow around them built, swirled with darkness and shadow, and Odin winced back from it even as he sat up with a curse under his breath, covering his features with his arm... and when he slowly drew his limb away, he stared in disbelief, whispering: “Impossible.”

Scrivener Blooms lay on the ground, the earth pony bleeding from several ugly wounds in his body, steam rising from his form... but he was breathing slowly and regularly, and his eyes were only half-closed as Luna rested with him protectively curled against her, one hoof stroking slowly down his back. She was smiling tiredly, and her ephemeral mane and tail had transformed back into light-blue hair as she looked down at her husband, saying quietly: “Sometimes, Odin, all it takes is a little love, and a little reassurance. That which lurks inside us cannot be fought with a sword or blocked with a shield, old fool. I had hoped you had learned that by now.”

Odin only laughed faintly, and then Luna glanced tiredly towards the once-god as she slowly laid her head down atop Scrivener Blooms, closing her eyes as the earth pony closed his own, and she murmured: “Please do not kill us whilst we get some much needed sleep, old lecher. There will be time to beat upon one-another later.”

“Of course.” Odin murmured, and he rubbed slowly at his aching chest as he carefully pushed himself up to his feet, then looked silently down at these ponies beneath the blue skies and warm sun... and he smiled.

Metempsychosis

by BlackRoseRaven

Prologue: Dawn In Darkness

Our Neat Little Home In Hell

Passions And Nightmares

What Lies Beneath

Adapting To The World

Renewal Beneath The Rain

Puppets And Puppeteers

Explanations

Plans And Schemes

Setting Out

Return To North Neigh

That Which Was Desired

Ragnarok's Dark Cradle

The Cost Of Revenge

Shepherds Of The Dead

Crossing The Bifrost

The Reflected World

Wicked Words In A Wicked World

Friendships New And Old

Strange Sentiments

Wolf Hunt

Spilled Blood

Deepening Shadows

Metamorphosis

Epilogue: Through The Looking Glass