Soul Fire

Chapters

Chapter 1:
Chapter 2:
Chapter 3:
Chapter 4:
Chapter 5:
Chapter 6:
Chapter 7:
Chapter 8:
Chapter 9:
Chapter 10:
Chapter 11:
Chapter 12:
Chapter 13:
Chapter 14:

Chapter 1:

It was a beautiful night, clear despite the recently fallen snow, the longest night of the year: Winter Solstice. The night was calm and quiet, and her highness's full moon glowed bright as the chilly winter air blew silently through the dark purple and turquoise mane of our main character. She shivered at its touch, so cold in comparison to the warmth of his. Thinking back to how she awoke that moonrise, for unlike other ponies she was a loyal subject of the New Lunar Republic and spent her time awake by night rather than by day, in perfect happiness she had opened her eyes to see him sleeping soundly for once. Standing by the edge of the cliff overlooking the small town and forest below she worried over him. He seemed so restless these past few weeks, but as usual pushed her away from all of his troubles.

She stomped a hoof as she thought, ‘Always protecting me. I wish he would lean on me more.’

Lowering her ears and head down, her entire stance and demeanor softened, as it usually did when it came to him, unlike her usual rock solid and fiery spirit. She sighed thinking, ‘I've always been a take action type pony, but I care for him so much that I want to respect him, his space, and his decisions. Even when I view them as wrong, or when I wish he would take my help.‘

She looked to the moonlight, so conflicted by her emotions and what she should do, but for the life of her, she didn't know the answer to either problem. Thinking of his bright crooked smile, she felt herself brighten and warm up from her core out, but was quickly cooled by a soft blast of cold winter air. It was a calm quiet night, but unlike other ponies she knew that something was wrong. She could feel the emotions of all the spirits surrounding her, both living and departed. Empaths were rare, but especially in pegasi. As she opened her wings, she felt the cold air sting her back and sides where her wings had lain. Taking off into the night sky, she flew towards the area. She surveyed what gave her those wrong feelings and thought back to her days and a filly.

Walking down the hallway to her next class, the little filly briskly weaved through the crowd of other ponies. Ignoring the words and whispers, even the occasional shout hailing the names "Blank flank", "Freak" and "Worthless". She was the latest bloomer in recorded Equestrian history. Most ponies got their cutie mark in elementary school, while she was already in her second year of middle school. She was the only pony there that was different. Not as in special. She felt very un-special as the thought about the blank space that was under the paint of her fake cutie mark. Not that it had fooled anypony. She was also different in the fact that her entire look was darker than everypony in the school accompanied by her multiple pierced ears, and heavy dark makeup.

Nopony was her friend. Even the nice ponies at her school avoided her. She felt truly un-liked and outcast. She found that she was good at many things including art, singing, school, and a wide arrangement of sports, but she was never great at any of them and never excelled. To be honest, she was pretty much a cat, always on the fence and never truly belonging on either side. She walked into her next class, and could feel the air change around her, the emotional atmosphere shifted into annoyance, fear, and disdain. Yes, she could feel the emotions of everypony in the school. And she hated it. In elementary school she was always found to be emotionally unbalanced. One day she was found bouncing around all excited, and the next was found balling her eyes out.

It still affected her, shaking her mane to cover the eyes and face she walked to her desk and became as still as a statue, attempting to block the huge turmoil of emotions hitting her all at once. Feeling so overwhelmed, she wanted to cry and never stop, but flat out refused to. Concentrating on her own emotional state she fought back internally. It was a constant fight. Never ending. Placing her headphones over her ears, she shut out all things, letting the hardcore drums and rifts block everything out of her world. Well, save for the notes that she took off of the board.

As she walked back home, she entered the door to hear her mother screaming that the chores weren't done. As per the usual the little filly was in for it now. Her sister, who had already had her cutie mark and who was the first in her class to get one, had neglected her chores entirely, while she had studied at the school library before heading home. She started the chores silently as her mother screamed about how nopony helps her. Her dad looked to her, as she looked away from his blameful glare. He walked over as she emptied the dishwasher and said, "A pony like you should at least know how to do the dishes. You need to help your mother out more. And don't give me that look, you're the disrespectful little pony here."

"I was studyin-" She had started to say, empowered by his anger before she was smacked on the back of the head by her fathers hoof, not hard she thought as she had not felt it, but then again, she stopped feeling it when she was in her last year of elementary school.

“No back talk missy, and clean up your face. I can't believe you go anywhere with all of that crap on," He said as he stomped off. She boiled inside. Holding back tears of frustration, she finished her chores and took her things to her room. She had locked the door by pushing her dresser in front of it. She was used to barricading herself inside her room after a spat with her dad, just in case he came upstairs with that state of mind to give her a lecture, which she would debate and be given a well earned "spanking" for her insolence.

She opened her window and jumped out, opened her wings and flew to the Everfree Forest, a most dangerous idea as everypony found that the forest was crawling with monsters. She landed in her usual spot and began walking amongst the animals. She loved animals, as they communicated not with words but emotions, so she knew everything that they wanted to express. They were her only friends, but despite these honest friends, as an animal will never lie nor hide their emotions; she felt that their friendship was a warm blanket. Keeping her warm on the outside alone, without the capability to warm the cold and lonely feelings she felt inside. She walked and walked, passing the homes and caves of bats, bears, and even a dragon, which knew she wasn't scared of him and so had just snorted his disinterest and ignored her as she walked on by. The little filly had felt worthless in that moment and decided to walk along a different path to ease her mind, not knowing the dangers it may have. She didn't care.

She found comfort in the night sky and in the soft calm light in the moon’s glow. Looking up, she ended up tripping on a rock, and fell flat on her face.

"Argh! Useless! Totally bloody useless!" She screamed in frustration, sighing as all of that built up aggression, depression, and frustration had finished venting out from her trembling equine body.

"Maybe everypony is right. Maybe I am…" she sniffled as a single tear left her eye. She stopped and looked around her and saw something in the distance. Walking through the fog, completely drained, she started to make out an object. It was a tombstone. Sitting before the lone tomb she stared at the blank slate.

"No words. No name. Blank. As blank as me," she said somberly. "We're both alone in the world aren't we? Existing. Yet without purpose."

Closing her eyes she felt the atmosphere around her, and listened to absolutely nothing. No animals were anywhere near, but something wasn't right, something was here. In the atmosphere, but it wasn't physical. She opened herself up further, something she always feared for being overpowered by the swirling turmoil of emotions that were always around her. She could feel a great sadness, potent but small. She infinitely opened herself up and could feel something… a name. What was it? A name came to mind.

"Flora. Is your name Flora?" she spoke as if to somepony, even though nopony was here.

"Who's there!? You! How can you...? I'm here," a female pony spoke. Shocked, the little filly opened her eyes and could see the pony's apparition crying beside the tombstone. She was dressed in the old style as if she was from three hundred years time ago, with blood on her dress.

In a shocked voice the little filly spoke, "I...I...I... I don't know how or why but I can see and hear you now. Umm... Umm... Are you ok? You’re bleeding?"

"I'm lost. I was in the forest to pick flowers for my garden. I started to pick a... And was enveloped by a... I ran, but all I could feel was biting. I ran... Not seeing... I fell from atop a cliff. I couldn't feel anything. I got up and started to run again to look behind me. I was dead. I am dead. Lost... I can't find…" she panicked and gasped with wide tormented eyes, as if she was reliving everything in one-hundred percent clarity, only three times stronger. Flora began to cry hysterically as she fell to the ground in a heap.

Gasping and whimpering through her tears, Flora attempted to say, "I... I'm lost. I... I... Don't know w-wha... what to do. Can you help me?"

The ghost fell upon the young filly, she felt like a wisp of silk cloth, retaining shape but empty and not even physically existent. The young filly had been through a lot, but nothing like this. All of a sudden, the dormant fire in her soul burned with a strength she didn't know she had, the strength of acceptance and understanding. The fire in her was strong and wild, yet controlled and powerful, overcoming her own fear and uncertainty, she became the strong fire, but gentle soul required to help Flora's spirit.

She felt the cold air carry her as she smiled, remembering how she brought the spirit to the New Lunar Republic, asking for guidance on what she should do to help Flora. Princess Luna was surprised at first, but immediately gave them an audience. The now mare shivered externally in response to the cold, remembering how the smiling Princess had assisted the spirit peacefully to the other side then called for The Rite. The mare smiled proudly; the rite had included a purifying ceremony. As Princess Luna, herself, washed the young filly in the mares memory, and how the Princess had looked at the filly as the makeup and paint washed away to reveal the filly's new cutie mark, a light blue flame. The mare looked at her mark and smiled, then sighed, looked ahead, recoiling internally to what came next.

"I must tell you, if you wish not to go through this?" Princess Luna began.

"I will not let fear stop me, Princess. I've been through so much already that I care not of what may happen next," the young filly said as she walked into the dark metal doors.

"Then keep your wits about you, for no pony as young as you has ever ventured into this room. I cannot assist you from here on out, my daughter. And remember, don't scream," the Princess closed the doors with her magic and a worried somber face as the moon had set in the sight of the filly via a window. The filly was now enveloped by darkness. The rite would go on for the entire day. Come moonrise, the doors would open. The filly looked around in the darkness. She sighed, releasing the tension in her to ease her own rising fear.

She took one step when it happened. Pain shot through her still small equine body. She gasped and tried not to whimper. Biting her lip, she repaired for the onslaught. It seemed to go on for hours. When would it stop? This was unlike everything she had experienced. Worse than the lashings and beatings of her father, and one-hundred times worse then the teasing and groups of kids that had beaten her senseless in school. This felt like the collection of everything bad that had happened to her coming back all at once. She bit her lip harder to avoid screaming as she felt the pain sting, not through her small equine body, but her soul. Harder she bit as she crumbled to the ground, tasting the copper blood from her lip.

As suddenly as it began, the pain stopped. She gasped, and breathed in big gulps, completely immobilized by the pain she had felt. After a moment, she breathed harder, struggled to get up on all hooves. Her vision was blurry. Licking her lip, she tasted the blood that was now welling onto her chin accompanied by the salty taste of her tears. Closing her eyes, she attempted to breathe calmly. Something was off. She started to feel warmth. Opening her eyes, she could see a fire. She foolishly began to move closer to it. The moment she was within eight feet from it, the fire spread, wildly racing around her in a circle until she was surrounded by fire. Gasping at her situation, the filly began to panic as the fire moved in on her. She looked wildly around. She almost called for help when she bit her lip, reopening the partly closed wound. Feeling the small sting of pain calmed her in a way, which was odd all things considered.

The filly breathed calmly. Completely detached to her current situation, she opened her eyes and watched as the flame touched her tail. Gasping as the flame then jumped collectively onto her. It burned. She was going to be burned alive. Gasping without the ability to take in air, as the fire was eating all of the oxygen before she could get it. When she opened her mouth, the fire ran down into her body, almost as if it wanted to touch every part of her. She opened her eyes that were crying with everything it had even thought the flames had dried each tear before it could touch her cheek. She was in such pain that she couldn't even move or scream. Not that that could happen without oxygen. She watched as the flame condensed and became hotter, stronger but also how the fire started to change color. Slowly turning from red and orange to a blue and purple hue. As the filly began to lose consciousness, a bright white light flared. The filly lay crumpled on the ground; she awoke to hooves carefully lifting her up.

She awoke the next moonrise to Princess Luna carefully watching her. The filly opened her eyes, breathing calmly. Then smiled at the night sky. The filly was in that moment calmer than she had ever felt. She began to cry. Never before had she felt such peace. A single tear fell onto her black new gemstone that was lying on her chest, held by the purple silk cloth around her neck. As it flared internally with a purple-blue flame, the filly gasped.

Princess Luna spoke, "For every night should you feel something is amiss, venture into the night to save the lost souls and guide them into the other side. This stone is your map and key to the other side. The rite has also given you a gift in the midst of its pain. You shall now hold the power of fire. A fire so potent that it burns blue in its condensed state. You shall now hold the title of Ms. Amber Nightsong Soulfire. Sing to the spirits with your voice. Call their names so that you can find each other. Be the mystic flame that is concentrated into a stronger but gentle light to guide their way."

Amber has been apart of the New Lunar Republic ever since. Then she met him.

Chapter 2:

Amber glided over the cold winter air toward her destination. Flying under the glow of moonlight as she focused on the ground below, searching for where her senses were calling her. She was close to the source when all of a sudden she felt a searing pain break through the atmosphere. She urgently needed to find that spirit. Landing on the crisp snow that lay before the opening to the forest ahead, Amber closed her eyes and opened her senses. There was so much blind panic in the air that it was hard to find the spirit’s name. Amber breathed deep, calming her own energy and sent it out in a rush before her to purify the air and calm the spirit that she knew was there. It only worked for a millisecond, but that’s all that it took. Something was wrong; no spirit is this panicked unless something in this moment and time is occurring in the spiritual rift on this earth.

“Little Tree. Little Tree, where are you?” Amber spoke swiftly yet calmly, not wanting to startle the spirit further.

“Help me! Mommy! NOOOOO!” a young colt’s voice screamed. Amber opened her eyes immediately, and began running.

“ I’m here to help you Little Tree,” Amber called out. “Follow my voice, Little Tree. Run to me. Run.” Something was very wrong. Then Amber could see it, through the trees, a young colt’s spirit was running from a Oni, a lesser daemon spirit. The daemon was big and bulky, two or three times bigger than she was, with pointed ears, gray skin, and large crooked teeth seen only by the large overbite and two protruding lower canines.

Amber ran and as the Oni reached to grab the young colt’s soul, her instincts spiked. Just when she breached the clearing to where the spirit’s were, the fire within her burst free, illuminating her eyes in a black light. Shifting balls of blue flame formed around her, and attacked the Oni as Amber opened her wings and, with a burst of speed, the flames flew onto the Oni. Singeing it as it screamed and writhed in pain. Amber felt bad for the creature and her heart stung as her eyes stopped glowing. The creatures burnt soul dissipated into air, becoming energy once again.

Amber looked to find the colt crying behind the great oak tree in the middle of the clearing. She stood strong, but melted on the inside. With a clear and soft voice, she began to sing as she slowly stepped toward the young soul, stopping to close her eyes a few feet from the scared colt.

By night, the dark lit sky,

If I had, one wish, I’d see you smile,

Without such tears, or fears in your eyes,

Though it’s hard, to say goodbye,

The moons, light, will guide you home,

Can you see, her caring sweet glow,

Follow her light, and find your way home,

By Luna’s night, you’ll find you’re not alone,

So please come back home.

Amber opened her eye to see Little Tree sniffle and as he ran out of his hiding place and to her. Amber smiled softly as she gently lowered her head to hug the young colt and said, “It’s ok Little Tree. It’s all over now. I’m going to help take you home.”

“Really?” The colt sniffled while wiping his nose, “Will I get to see my mommy?”

“No matter a situation, Little Tree, there are always possibilities,” Amber spoke what she felt was the truth, as she didn’t know the answer for what lay on the other side, but she did know that impossible things, like being saved by somepony can happen.

“Argh! I don’t know why it’s not working,” Amber said in frustration.

She sighed, “I already know how to return them to the other side. And I was able to find and help a spirit even before the rite. Why would I even use fire to help spirits anyway?”

“Be patient. I had trouble when I was younger too,” said Princess Luna’s aid. Nightwish, was a beautiful unicorn, her cream colored coat and navy purple hair made her look like one of the stars that Luna brought to the sky every night. Amber sighed. Everypony was frustrated and it was getting to her. After recovering for a few days, Luna had suggested for Amber to train so as to be able to realize her full potential and to be able to defend herself. Defend herself from what? She felt so rushed to learn that she was completely frazzled, and that didn’t help anypony in concentrating to learn something.

Breathing deeply, Amber decided to speak honestly and just get it off of her chest, “To be honest I feel pressured. What’s the big rush? Why must I train? If this gift is meant for me, and is part of who I am, then why can’t I just start helping, and let it come as it may?” Nightwish grew quiet, becoming nervous and secretive. Amber hated it when a pony kept things from her.

“Augh! You know what, I need a break. I’ll come back to lessons when I feel like it,” Amber spoke sharply and then opened her wings and flew out of the practice courtyard. Flying as fast as she could, Amber tried to calm her emotions.

“She was pushing herself too hard, it wasn’t just everypony else who was the problem,” she thought, feeling petty and selfish. The feeling made her heart sting and head hurt as her ears sank down. The biggest thing was that she was disappointed in herself, and more mad at the situation than others. They can’t help their emotions, and not everypony can relay their emotions without feeling vulnerable or rude. She knew that, but it didn’t mean that it didn’t tick her off every now and then.

As Amber started to relax against the warm night air, she looked down to the forest and found something that stirred around her, within her. Opening herself up to her senses, she found that she had the same feeling when she found Flora, only somehow different. Landing in the meadow before the forest entrance, Amber stood with closed eyes and opened herself up in search of a name, when suddenly she felt as if huge shards of glass had shot threw her chest, and as if something was holding and squeezing her heart with teeth. Amber opened her eyes as she nearly fell to her knees, seeing a black shroud of smoke.

The smoke seethed and swirled, creating the form of a snake that circled her, moving into the form of a wolf. A shape shifting spirit? Non-spirit? What was it? Amber was so displaced and shocked that she didn’t even think to run, until the smoke made wolf lunged at her. Amber ran and tried to fly, but was grabbed by her hind hoof with teeth. The smoke animal seemed to be without form, but the teeth felt real.

“I started to pick a... And was enveloped by a... I ran, but all I could feel was biting,” Flora had said in Amber’s memory. Fighting in a panic, Amber tried to kick the cloud of now deformed smoke away, but to no avail.

Scanning the ground below for trouble, Luna’s Captain flew through the night sky with a somber dead look on his face. Damn this world, Princess Luna’s leadership was the only light in this darkness. He can’t fail her. He won’t. For Equestria he’d lay his life. He won’t fail. Not again. Never.

Looking ahead, he could see movement in the distance, in the meadow before the forest. Somepony was in trouble. With one mighty thrust of his tri-wings, he burst forward with incredible speed. Focusing on the lavender Pegasus, he could see that she was in trouble. An obake, a daemon, had torn her heel with his teeth. He had to hurry; the obake was lunging towards the filly to tear her throat apart. Not fast enough, he was going to be late.

“NO!” he screamed as he moved to engage the obake.

Amber gasped as the creature had bitten through her flesh. Hearing a faint voice, she stopped feeling. She froze. Not from fear it seemed. It was like this sudden burst of peace making the world move slower. Her vision blurred. Looking to the distance, she saw a white pony land as the world ebbed away into nothingness.

Amber opened her eyes seeing nothing, just black. Where was she?

“Hello? Is anypony there?” she asked the nothingness. She decided to begin walking, looking at nothing. As she walked Amber soon realized that she could see a faint glow.

“Hello?” she asked the new found glow as it started to move away. “Wait. No. Please stay. Who are you?” Running toward the glow, she could see that she was catching up, until it seemed to disappear around a corner. Running faster, Amber whipped around the corner, only to come to a sudden stop. Before her was a display stand, upon its marble figure was a small tree. Glowing purple from its core, the tree seemed to move with every shifting breath of its apparent visible energy.

As she stepped forward, the tree suddenly burst in blue flames. Glowing brighter as it spoke, “Amber, you are lost. What an adventure you have ahead, but only if you can do what is required.”

“Holy Luna! Where am I? What adventure?” Amber said in a blind rush.

“The future can not be foretold, but found. Face your fears and meet this challenge head on. For neither pony is strong alone, but only as one can you begin to save yourself and him.”

“Him? Who is he?” Amber demanded.

The tree continued through the question, “I am your tree of life, Amber. You die. I die. Your soul has been awakened although you’re still alive. This only happens to souls who protect and heal others after death. In that moment, they become an elemental. Your element of fire is a part of your soul. It has and always will be apart of you. You can feel spirits. Now feel through the depths of your own and find that fire. Let it burn wild as you hold it in your hand. Grab hold of the flame, Amber.”

“Wait-What!?” Amber pleaded, just before the room went black.

‘Feel through the depths of your own and find that fire’, she thought. Closing her eyes, Amber slowed down, looking through her own energy for once rather than another’s. Holy Luna, she had no idea that her own energy was so chaotic and conflicted. Feeling her own energy truly for the first time, she was saddened by the realization that her wires were so screwed up.

No, she needed to keep moving forward, and not just fight back. Slowly one by one, Amber picked at each tangled strand of emotion, each with their own memory as to why and where this memory came from. She had to do the hardest thing she's ever done. Learn to accept and give in, for she wouldn't be able to find her strength without giving in to her weakness. The process was slow, painfully so. Bit by bit, Amber weaved through the web and further inside, realizing that sometimes weakness is strength, until in the darkest corner she found it.

Teeth of the smoke wolf bit down onto the blade slicing through the air, when suddenly the eyes of the young filly’s unmoving and bleeding body split open, revealing a black bright glow. The glow got brighter as she stood. The Captain had looked upon the injured Pegasus in shock that she was standing up, but wouldn’t let himself become distracted and looked onto the smoke wolf, who was cowering in full form as he moved to turn and run away from the filly. The Captain looked back at her, the filly’s body began to glow as a blue condensed flame began to form before her. Just as the smoke wolf had begun his hasty depart, the flame had found full form and suddenly condensed further on itself and widened in haste as if it exploded. The blue flame burst in a black light enveloping everything in it’s path.

When the light dissipated, the obake was gone, incinerated. Looking to the filly responsible, the Captain watched silently as the energy died down and the black light ebbed from her yellow-green eyes. She groaned as she began her descent to ground. Moving swiftly, the captain caught her as she collapsed, completely unnerved and in awe of her.

Amber had no memory of the blast when the energy had taken her over. She only remembered the fire enveloping her and waking up to pain and exhaustion, feeling only the warm body of him grab her before passing out again. She remembered waking back at the Princess Luna’s palace, feeling ashamed and foolish for her rash action. Thinking to how she had apologized to everypony, especially to Princess Luna and Nightwish. Thereafter, Amber had decided to train with patience, and meditate on her own time so as to get a hold on and maintain her own chaotic energy. She knew how to understand and accept others, now she must learn to do that for herself. Something she had made great strides in, but was still learning to this day, she thought as she looked at Little Tree, but then again everything was always changing. The moment you conquer one challenge is the moment you start a new one.

“Really?” the colt said as he looked up to Amber.

“Always,” Amber said with a gentle smile, thinking of how Princess Luna had told her about who had saved her when she awoke. She was honored to know the Captain now, and beaming to how close they were today.

“I’m going to take you home now, Little Tree,” she said.

“Ok,” Little Tree said with a sad but happy face.

“Ingerdere cecidimus. Fly with me, Little Tree.” Amber spoke the words to open the gate and show her the way as she lifted her head and closed her eyes. Opening her wings, Amber took off into the sky as a single blue flame formed in front of her and stopped in front of a shocked Little Tree. “Step inside, Little Tree, it won’t hurt you. With this, you can fly home with me.”

Chapter 3:

Standing on the watchtower overlooking the valley below, Luna's Captain could see the faint lights of Ponyville to the far southeast, the rough edges of Rambling Rock Ridge to the south, and the forest to north of Baltimare in the southwest. Looking at the small nameless valley before him, he could see the cliff that Amber liked to perch upon. Amber had made her home in the large weeping willow tree, that like her, enjoyed the view. He liked how he could keep an eye on her from his post, but hated when she had to leave to assist a spirit. He knew her strength, but wished that she wouldn't go off into harms way by herself. That kind heart of hers was going to kill her one day, and that worried him. He had to admit, she still made him nervous from time to time.

He chuckled, thinking of what a shy, but playful little silly filly she was. He always had to remind himself that she wasn't the filly he saved when he was a young stallion anymore, and that he needed to be cautious. He needed to stay focused and not let himself get distracted. His first priority was to defend Equestria one hundred percent, and he couldn't do that if he let himself get distracted. He knew that she wasn't intentionally doing it, and that it wasn't her fault. Thinking of her made him melt a little and worry a lot. She was too sweet to him. Always wanting to protect him or help in anyway she could, and he knew that she understood his burden and that it was his alone to bear, but even knowing and understanding that, she still was always there.

To be honest, he felt that she tried to help him too much. In the past and even now, she had helped him open his eyes and grow a bit in a way. Sly she was, he smiled. He never let her help him outright, but just inadvertently he realized that she was, and he could she that helping him made her happy but that it was hard on her. He could see the times that she smiled sadly, not ever in pity, but in disappointment when she couldn’t help, and at the times that she wished he would open up to her. Her face was so easy to read, especially in her hazel green eyes. She was an honest young mare, the only times when she wasn't being honest was when she was quiet. That way she never lied. She just never said anything.

"Captain!" one of Princess Luna's guards spoke as he flew just a few feet off from the watchtower before the Captain. "We have news that a group of obake and oni are gathering in the Everfree Forest."

"How many?" the Captain asked with calm focused authority.

"About a dozen."

"Prepare nine stallions to take them out. I'll lead the party. We must stop whatever they are planning before they harm somepony."

"Yes sir!" the guard said as he flew off hastily. The captain looked over the valley one last time to see if there was anything else requiring his attention. Noticing that she had returned from her last venture unharmed eased him. He felt cold on the inside thinking of how he distanced himself from her in a way, thinking to how many have called him a cold bastard, but at the same time he felt that he was doing it for both his and especially her protection. Knowing she was safely back, he felt that he could focus, looking within himself, he changed into his battle form, exchanging his wingless equine body and dark blue coat in a second of bright white light for his tri-winged white-coated equine body. Taking off into the night sky, the captain remembered the conference he had with Luna after the attack.

"We can't just sit here and let these attacks keep happening. Now it’s not just the spirit realm that is being attacked now, it's living ponies," The Captain spoke, trying not to sound disrespectful toward the Princess.

"Amber is hypersensitive to the spirit realm and the emotional atmosphere around her so she was an easier target because she's an open channel. She is spiritually protected by the mystic blue flame inside her, and she’ll mend physically just fine. We need to know our enemy first my dear Captain. We can't just rush in blindly. We know not nearly enough about these creatures," Luna spoke calmly. She seemed to be able to look straight into his soul. Luna took him in many years ago, so she knew him well and was almost like a mother to him. "We know what these creatures are, but we know not how to deflect them."

"Why bother looking for a way to deflect them? If they harm another pony then should that not be worthy of death?"

"Give and take my young Captain. Without balance between good and evil then life would not able to exist."

"You always say that, and I still can't see why."

"Look into the mirrored pool in the middle of the room," Luna spoke. It was just a few hours past midnight so the Captain could still see the reflection of the moon in the still water as she moved to the west. Luna stood and came down to the pool, placing her glowing horn into the still water creating a ripple. When the ripples vanished, the captain could see the ocean. The beach so white was in glow of the moonlight as the dark waters invaded its territory.

"I still don't understand Luna," replied the Captain. Luna didn't speak, only opened her wings and sent a big rush of air over the waters. When the images became clear, the Captain looked down upon the image of a deer running through the Everfree Forest. The young buck was running from something, a timber wolf. The Captain tensed wanting to do something about it, but he couldn't, because he wasn't really there. The young buck faltered and tripped only to be killed by the wooden jaws of the timber wolf, which had preyed upon him.

"Why? Why show me this?" the Captain asked, anger singing the edge of his voice when he wasn't able to do anything for the young buck.

"Life must be kept in balance. The ocean gives and takes, pushes and pulls the land it surrounds with the waves that give it motion and life. Too much of a good thing is just as bad as too much of a bad thing. The deer never did anything to the timber-wolf, but if the herd grows too big, the deer would eat all of the foliage and starve to death. The timber-wolf also has to live too, and be able to provide for his pups. If everything was perfect and there was nothing but happiness, then no one would know what happiness was if they didn't know what sadness was. There is no happiness without an equal amount of pain to balance things out. Sometimes evil must be allowed to exist. Ponies wouldn't find passion in anything if life were so boring and meaningless without this balance. Also as a leader, we need to learn how to forgive, and how to take the bad with the good, and not just the good."

The Captain was silent, feeling a lot like a young foal.

"She makes you nervous too. Doesn't she?" Luna spoke.

"So we want to be passive for a while and wait till we find our enemies weakness. Then we can remove them from Equestria for good."

"Captain," Luna spoke as the Captain’s head whipped to her face. "You need to learn to give in, which is why I'm placing you two as partners. You are the best blade here. In two weeks time, Amber should have learned how to harness her ability enough so she can begin to learn how to fight with it. You will be her trainer, and if you wish never to speak to her again after she is fully trained, then you are welcome to it, but you will train her. Dismissed."

Amber looked up to the mountains behind her, where she could see the Captain fly out of the shield that camouflaged Princess Luna's hidden palace. She sighed and she looked ahead to the meadow below her, lying down on the grass close to the edge of the cliff. Closing her eyes she began to meditate; she was so stressed that she had not had the time to calm herself and think like this in weeks. Feeling through her own energy, she realized that things were tangled up again, as it commonly was if she only meditated once a month. She did note that the tangle was less and less each month through, which she was happier with.

It seemed that every time she learned to accept something… that a new thing would pop up. As was the usual in life, she always had to work to maintain balance, always had to be strong and protect herself. Sometimes certain problems would come back, not because she reverted back into her old self, but because her memories pained her. It sucked. One second she would be happy the next, sad and scared. Those flashbacks were a bitch, but she was only a pony. Anypony who had been through all that she had would understand. She was happy that it took her less and less time to recover from those hi-how-are-you-now-I'm-going-to-screw-with-your-head’s, but that didn't mean it wasn't draining.

Each day of fighting made her feel less capable of breathing. She remembered her days as a filly when she used to numb herself out. Block everything so that she couldn't feel. No pain or sorrow, but also no happiness or joy. She still believed that living like that wasn't living. Living like that was surviving and nothing else. She decided that if she wanted to be happy then she had to accept the pain that came with it. This realization made her capable to grow, despite all that she'd been through, and this epiphany is something she reminded herself all the time. It was always the thing that helped her recover from her frequent attacks.

Though she knew that doing what she did... I mean... She was always a fighter, but that was always more so because she had to be then because she wanted to be. She knew that she had to put up walls when she was younger, because she knew that despite her hard shell and tenacity, she was sensitive. She remembered when she awoke from sleep in Luna's palace after the obake attacked her.

Amber awoke, feeling very sore and groggy, "Wha... What happened? How long was I out?"

"You don't remember?" Asked Luna. "Of course, who would, considering that you were half dead when your power over took your body. You've been asleep for three days."

"Wha… Really? Oh… oh no. Princess Luna, I'm so sorry for..." Luna interrupted by placing a hoof on Amber’s lips.

"It's ok Amber. I understand."

Amber breathed a great breath, looking down in shame and then towards the window, "What attacked me?"

"A obake, also known as a daemon. We know that they are based on ancient texts before Celestia and I came to rule, but we know not their strength or weaknesses. So far, they have been attacking ponies lost in the spirit realm, but now that they've moved on to you, we fear that if they become stronger, they will start attacking the living."

"But they've attacked the living before Luna," exclaimed Amber. "Flora the first spirit that I helped was from a time three hundred years time ago, she was killed by being driven off a cliff by an obake."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Then we have a bigger problem than I thought. We don't even know enough about these things, and you and the Captain aren’t ready to fight these things."

"Captain?"

"The Captain was the person who found you."

"He was the one who saved me?"

"I like to think that you saved each other," Luna smiled. "He saved you by stopping the obake from killing you. There in, giving you the time you needed to look inside yourself and find the fire that I knew you had. In turn finding that fire unleashed it and that fire, your fire, saved the two of you. The Captain only finished the deed by bringing you back safely and alive. You lost nearly a quarter of your blood. You were bleeding so much when you came in. We even think that you were terminally dead for a few minutes before your fire kicked in."

"Was I?" she was stunned by the events. She thought of the Captain, not even knowing what he looked like.

"You will meet him in two weeks time. He is going to help you train to fight, though you will continue your lessons on controlling your powers with Nightwish still." Amber could hear the Princess but was still looking out the window with a displaced look on her face.

"Amber."

"Yes Princess?" Amber said as she moved slowly to look at the Princess.

"Do you think that your heart is made of stone?"

"Umm. I don't know." Amber said as she looked down and away uncomfortably as the Princess looked straight through her. "I guess I'm hard when I feel I have to defend myself, and there are times when I wonder if I can even love anypony. I care, but I don't know. That's why I have to slow down and think, to get a handle on my own mixed up wires."

"I want you to be cautious. You’re more delicate than you think you are. Things are changing for you. You'll find that you’re more gentle and kind then you are hard," Luna explained with a sad face. "I know life has been hard for you. And that it seems that everypony does nothing but hurt you, but you can trust ponies. And just because ponies have hurt you, does not mean that they are right to do so or that you are worthless. You’re more special than you think you are. Think about that when you meditate, alright?"

Feeling depressed and uncomfortable at the topic and her emotions, Amber sighed, "I will try, Princess."

Amber looked at herself now and thought of love. She found that she was still a little scared to love, but that her heart longed to be brave even through her fear, and that bravery alone made her capable of taking that risk. Looking at herself now, she realized that she still had to remind herself of her potential and her own self worth sometimes. It seemed that her mind worked like a dog chasing his own tail. She laughed at the thought. Yes, of course, playful like a silly puppy. Always hopping over fences into old memories, comparisons, reality, and fantasy. Turning her thought process into a puzzle that needed to be pieced together and thought upon in order to be understood. A hyperactive puppy that in the moment she looked behind her, she would end up chasing her own tail until the thought process became too fast or chaotic that she would stomp her hoof and say enough. She needed to stop herself when or before she became too paranoid.

Amber internally shrugged. She was only a pony, she reminded herself as she continued. At least she was always moving to continually work on herself. Of course she had to. Once she started helping spirits, she realized that she was more of a healer than a fighter. She only fought because she had to, and that tenacity made her a warrior. Her heart was the thing that made her a healer. So kind to others that many a time she would forget about herself. She had to give herself some credit; it took a great deal of strength to be a warrior with a healer’s heart.

All of a sudden Amber felt like she had been sucker punched in the chest. Gasping with eyes wide open, she struggled for breath. Something was wrong, very wrong. This wasn't just a spirit, or an obake attack. This was worse. Much worse. Amber took flight as fast as she could, heart pounding, head racing; she braced herself for the unknown.

Chapter 4:

Amber walked into the combat courtyard of the Princess's palace. Instead of just one big open room with a large open skylight, this space was outside with four practice arenas and a small garden space in the middle with a small pool and benches for the trainees to rest between sparring matches. Amber saw no one around and decided to sit at the pool and relax her senses a bit. She hadn't relaxed and just breathed in a while, as trying to develop her powers while deflecting others emotions took it out of her. Just as she closed her eyes and sighed in relaxation, she was hit by a dark somber mood. Someone was here. She turned her head, to see somepony sitting alone in the shadows, looking up at the moon. Getting up, she walked over to see a dark blue, black haired earth pony wearing an exercise hoodie.

"Hello," Amber said in a gentle tone. The earth pony, startled that someone was there had immediately jumped up in a fighter's stance and gave her a glare. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. I'm just a little early for my first day. I'm looking for the Captain. Captain Earthstrider."

The stallion groaned, as his mood changed from dark to pissed off with a tinge of annoyed and nervousness. She didn't know why though, she suspected it was because she bothered him in a private moment, which she could understand.

"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to bother you," she said as she turned to go wait just outside the small garden area.

He sighed, "Wait. I'm the Captain. I didn't expect you to arrive so early. At least you have quiet feet. That will aid you in stealth. Luna explained the responsibilities that you have been given. Tell me, do you really plan on doing this alone?" Amber was a little taken aback. She thought that the pony that saved her was a white pegasus from what she remembered of that night.

"Umm yes, I can't concentrate with another pony’s atmosphere blocking the faint ones of the spirits I have to find." she said. First, he was almost royally pissed; now he buried his energy and the only thing left was strong determination and slight nervousness, but why would he be nervous of her? He could take her out easy, and she wasn't a threat even if she did mean harm, which she didn't. Amber already knew that a lot of the time she would take on more than she could chew, always fighting even against odds that weren't even remotely in her favor. Sometimes she won just because people backed off from her attitude. Other times she would just keep fighting even if she was left beaten in the end. She always tried to maintain that she was a fighter first; she had to be to survive.

Then she saw it. He was a survivor like her. She knew it because she had been through the same emotional bullshit. There was something else behind it too. He'd given up something; something that he felt wasn't enough to ease his guilt. But what could he have done that was so bad? She opened herself and focused on him. He had a good soul, and a pained heart, but in the end she didn't pity him for any of it. He was strong, a defender, a fighter, and out of all of the ponies she had ever read, he had the most genuine and pure heart of them all. She immediately knew he had placed a heavy burden on his shoulders, a burden that would crush him if he kept beating himself up at the same time. If ever she felt sadness at this, it was because she knew the same pain. Thinking of it even slightly would bring everything back to her mind and torment her all over again. She felt selfish for thinking of herself in such a moment, when she should be thinking of others.

Amber guessed he could see the look on her face, because for those who were brave enough to look into her eyes could see through her, he immediately blocked his own emotions, but failed when she could sense his anger at the invasion. She cursed the fact that she was an open channel for both her and others emotions sometimes. There were times where it just happened, and other times where without even thinking, she would invade ponies emotions without even knowing that she was doing it.

"I know all about your sixth sense, and I would greatly appreciate if you stayed out of my head, okay?" he said with gritted teeth.

"I'm sorry. It just happens sometimes. It takes a lot of energy and effort to block ponies sometimes, and you caught me in a relaxed state," she said, surprised when she found herself actually feeling shy around him. It was the oddest thing. He intrigued her from the beginning.

"Whatever. Lets begin. Lets start with the basics." After making her run laps, do an agility test, and a strength test. The captain came to find that she was average for anyponies capability, but was below average for everything if she was to be considered for his recruits.

"Lets now look at your ability strengths," he said, bringing out three targets. Breathing heavily, Amber looked at the targets then closed her eyes, gathered her strength and breathed slowly looking inside herself. Everything slowed down and she began harnessing her soulfire. She opened her eyes, seeing the small blue flame. She looked to the target and commanded the flame to shoot straight to it.

"Is that little flame it?" the Captain exclaimed. Amber smiled at the comment, just before the flame shot straight at the bulls-eye and straight threw it. The Captain was amazed.

"If you condense and compress something wild then the energy of that object becomes more potent in a smaller area, and in my flames case that is just the thing, and the reason why it burns blue. Just because something is small, it does not mean it's helpless. It all depends on it's spirit and will to fight," she looked to him feeling proud of herself.

"Ok, Miss show off. It’s time for you to learn a new lesson. I will be your partner. It's time for you to learn to spar," he said with a smirk.

"Spar?! Shouldn't you at least teach me some drills?!" she exclaimed, knowing for a fact that just her basic instincts and tenacity wouldn't be enough against him.

"Ready?" he said as he moved into a fighter’s stance, the same one that he gave her earlier.

"Shit," Amber cursed as she collected herself. Focusing on him she studied his stance and copied it, realizing that she was placed in the perfect position to both defend and attack. Accept who was going first?

The Captain looked at her, "Very good. It seems that you learn best based on observation then on explanation." He smiled then charged in, faked a left, dodged right, and spun around in a collected gait to back kick at her. Amber, being on edge just decided to evade. Gathering herself into a tiptoe collected gait, she spun around and away to avoid the hit. Then she raised an eyebrow at him. Oooooh, he was in for it now. Her fiery attitude came through in this; win or lose she was still going to get him. Using her agility and speed to her advantage, Amber dodged in, keeping her head down tight to her neck to avoid injury to that vulnerable spot. Spinning away from all of his attacks, she attempted to rear and hit him on the shoulder. Wrong move, this was what he was waiting for. Dodging under her, the Captain spun low with a hind leg out and clipped her feet right from under her.

"Not bad. For a below average filly with no formal training," he said as she rolled over and breathed heavily, trying to regain the breath that was knocked out of her after the fall. "Come back tomorrow. Same time. Your best skill is your ability, and agility. We'll work on your weakness in strength, but only as a fitness element. You will never be as strong as a fully-grown stallion, but speed and agility can beat brute force so we need to build your current strengths up to their potential. Dismissed."

The training in the days thereafter were constant and grueling, but she did notice a change in herself. She was starting to improve but also feel... feel… She didn't know what it was. Every time she fought with him it felt more like a playful romp than anything else. After a while she felt that they had become closer, and she felt like he accepted her a bit more. After finishing a drink by the stream, Amber turned her head to see him in the same spot in the shadows. Only somepony was with him? She walked in, but no one else was there. He was livid, boiling on the inside, about what she didn't know. He had his eyes closed and body tense.

"Captain?"

His ear flickered. "You really don't want to be around me right now, Soul," He said. Others in the combat yard nicknamed her “Soul” a while ago, but he was the only one who ever used it really. She knew that he was serious, and she could feel the malicious killer energy emanating out of him. Ignoring the threat in his voice and the energy around him, Amber, took those last few steps toward him and gently placed her head against his shoulder. Opening herself to his energy, she became the channel to allow him to relax and expel his energy, but the only way to do that was to place her in risk of his energy harming her. She didn’t fear it, not simply because she didn’t know entirely what to fear at the time, but also because she felt protected by her own energy. His energy was simply rain that would make her cold for a moment at it’s touch, but that like rain would only wash over her skin. After about two seconds he relaxed and let out a great deep sigh as the energy leaked out of him like a calm river, and placed his head down atop hers. This was the part she enjoyed. When she could after the storm feel the calm peace that would give relief and warmth to her and to him.

"Why?" he asked.

She wasn't entirely sure why she had put herself in risk for him, so she told him a part of it she did know, "Because you’re my friend." The next day was different from the rest.

"Amber, step forward," he commanded. All of a sudden, he grabbed her chin and looked deep into her eyes. Their faces were so close, she thought he was going to kiss her. She melted at his touch. Her lips opened slightly and softened, but she did nothing and waited. The she realized that he was looking through her eyes and into her. She bucked up and held onto herself, focusing on his eyes, and what he saw in her.

"What do you see," She said softly, trying not to sound breathy even though she could feel warmth on her cheeks, which was undoubtedly a blush.

"You mean no harm. You’re kind and fiery. And you’re not going to let yourself be pushed over. That's who you are Soul," he said as he walked away then stopped and laughed a bit. "You’re blushing Soul."

Shocked at herself, Amber felt her cheeks redden more, then she breathed deep and said, "Umm. Yes. Ah… Are we going to start?" They did indeed. She found that today was a drill day. Running, jumping, fight stances and combos, but at the end, he placed great emphasis on abilities. Getting her to not just hit a target but also control the potency of her flame and the area that she hit. He also wanted to see if she could control the movement of the flame floating around. Lastly, he made her form the flame into the appearance of an object, first a simple vase, then a flower, and even a sword and dagger. She was exhausted, feeling as if she had used every drop of soulfire that she could. Meanwhile, the Captain hadn't used a single ounce of strength. Amber fell on her knees.

"Get up Amber," the captain said in a hard tone as he removed his hoodie and shoes.

Amber struggled to get up, breathing hard, "But I'm spent. I ca-"

"Yes, you can. Now you will fight me. Open yourself up, Amber. Don't even bother blocking the world’s emotions around you. Just look inside yourself and fight with all your soul," he said as he sent his energy forth and changed into his battle form. "Start!"

Amber didn't know why those memories came to her now as she frantically searched for the source of her premonition. She thought it was more of a mental review of her fighting skills should she require to use them as she flew under the moonlight.

"Help me!!!" screamed a young voice. Amber flew ahead faster, diving down under the canopy of the Everfree Forest. Weaving through the trees and vines, she came across a young grey Pegasus with a blond mane on a well-traveled path.

"No! No! Get away! AHHH!!!" the pony screamed in pain as a creature that looked like an obake bit into her flank. The smoke form was that of a fox. A very large fox, only this one had nine tails, and retained form rather than a foggy apparition.

"Get away from her!" Amber screamed as she charged in, calling upon her fire. The black light and blue flame traveled all over her, changing her form. She was in her battle form now. Amber recalled how the Captain had helped her find it.

Amber dodged the blade that came flying at her. She was amazed by his appearance; this is why she saw a white pegasus that night! She had never seen him properly in his battle form. Oh no, shit was going to get hardcore serious. He wasn't going to go easy on her. Stumbling with weak legs like a newborn foal, Amber dodged the attacks as best as she could, feeling the sting of the blade creating small cuts along her cheek, then her legs and flank, and then her chest. All of a sudden, the world freeze-framed as the Captains blade headed straight for her heart with no signs of stopping. Amber in that moment closed her eyes, and looked within herself, visually seeing in her mind’s eye the chains and walls that she placed upon her soul, upon herself. She had dampened her spirit so much in order to maintain control; control of herself, control of her ability, and control of her world. She realized in that moment how scared of everything she was. Scared of other ponies, scared of the unknown, scared of herself, her capabilities, of making mistakes, and of her own emotions. She realized in that moment that she could live, and not just survive, so long as she let go of her sense of control on herself, and truly opened up.

Those internal chains broke in that moment, in which Amber opened her eyes, creating a glowing blaze of black light that shone from them; encompassing the room and space around her. Dark blue flame sprung from the centre of her chest and covered her entire body. When the flames dissipated, Amber's coat changed to dark purple, her hair became infused with shifting colors of blue and purple, as if her mane was fire itself. The fire of her soul had condensed itself to create a hardened plate of chest armor and boots, and a horn that was covered in her blue flame. It was like as if her soul was too big for her body even in it's condensed state that it leaked out.

The blade that was aimed at her chest had stopped the moment she had changed. The Captain looked at her and said, "Congratulations. You are the second pony to ever achieve this form. You are also the youngest."

Chapter 5:

Just as the nine tailed fox spirit went to rip and tear at the grey pegasus’s stomach, Amber charged in with a quick thrust of her wings. Keeping her head low and chin tucked in, Amber aimed her horn into the fox spirit’s stomach. He screamed as the blue flames from her horn singed a large area of his flank as the horn itself burrowed its way into his firm but still smoky flesh. The fox spirit leaped away from the pain as Amber stood at the ready for an attack in protection of the young grey mare with her wings open. The smoky fox screamed in frustration that she had taken his prey from her. Amber could tell that this wasn't good. This obake seeming creature was on an entirely different level than the rest that she has dealt with before, and even obake were hard to manage alone. The large fox snarled at her as he began a slow approach. Now she was the prey.

Suddenly the fox charged at a blinding speed. Amber counter-attacked by collecting her own advance and then spun with her wings open as she commanded the fire within her to set her wings ablaze. At a rapid pace, balls of condensed blue flame shot out of the fiery tornado at the fox spirit, but the fox was faster, dodging every attack, toying with her, playing with her. Suddenly the smoky fox leapt into the air and straight into the middle of the vortex. Grabbing hold of the base of her wing, he pulled and slammed her on the fresh snow, as it yelped at the contact with the flame covering them, letting go of her wing. The snow was a nice cushion, but the wind still leapt out of Ambers lungs at the impact. Infuriated, the fox spirit growled and reared up and over Amber to rip her throat out, not having enough time or air in her lungs to get out of the way, she used the shot of adrenaline going through her to move her wings quickly in front of her to protect herself while she rekindled them to a flame to deflect.

The fox screamed as he burnt his paws and face on Amber’s wings. She grunted as she pushed the large fox off of her and wobbled, still trying to regain her breath, as she slowly got up. The fox grinned slyly as he began to circle her. Creating five flame orbs around her, Amber breathed deep and calm as she waited. The fox sprinted in, dodging from side to side. Amber couldn't keep up with the creature’s movements, but moved to meet the attack head on herself anyway, until the fox dodged around her and headed straight for the young Pegasus.

"NOOOO!" Amber screamed, sending the five orbs sprinting past the fox and to the grey mare where in a flash they created a firewall. The fox then leapt onto and off of the wall straight towards her. Amber didn't have time to defend or counter attack, the fox was just too fast and sped past her, leaving her with a long large gash on the shoulder. The fox sped past her again and again, cutting her up slowly. Amber attempted to defend a few times, but to no avail, even dodging one or two of the nine tailed fox's many attacks. It seemed that with each cut, she became weaker, like as if the creature was sucking the life out of her… slowly… painfully… bit by bit. This was no obake.

Leading the fray, the Captain charged in, taking out two oni with his duel-wielded blades, as their heads dropped to the floor, the fight began. The five of the royal guards each took on an oni, while three obake’s opponents were the last four remaining guards, as the Captain took on the biggest obake there. As the guards made quick work of the oni soon the obake each had multiple guards to deal with. Moving left and right, dodging low and high as the largest obake attempted everything in the books to attack the Captain as he moved with great skill, letting his ego grow a bit as the toyed with the obake. To think that the largest obake were suppose to be the strongest of the pack, the Captain chuckled. Bored with the battle already, he spun around the large raccoon dog shaped obake and sent both of his blades evenly into the back of his enemy and to the heart, the only way to physically kill these bastards.

Right after the Captain took his kill, the guards had dropped another obake. Wait a minute, there was suppose to be twelve daemons here. There was seven oni, and four obake. Where was the last daemon?

"NOOOOO!" screamed a voice from inside the forest, but not just any voice.

"Soul," spoke the Captain, eyes widening as he blasted into the forest searching for her. Surveying and scanning through the trees, the Captain searched as quickly as he could. Opening his senses, ears, sight, and smell for anything that would tell him where she was. He could hear the makings of a fight and crying. Speeding through the trees, the Captain could then smell blood. Faster. Faster he needed to move.

Moving into the clearing, he could see a creature attacking Amber. She was covered in her own blood. Looking to where the crying came from, he could see Derpy was also injured and was surrounded by Amber’s firewall. It took a lot of concentration for Amber to do that. And great desperation for her to even use it. He was proud that Amber defended others even if it meant her getting hurt, but hell would freeze over before he'd ever let her die defending someone. The Captain sprinted into the battle and tackled the thing right before the thing attacked her again.

"Captain?" Amber said weakly, shaking her head. "Captain! Don't let it cut you."

The fox spirit smiled at her and laughed, "Now we can get this thing started. Now that I have the blood of the healer, now all I need is the blood of the defender, then I will finally live again."

"That voice," the Captain said, tensing the muscles in his body. "Sombre!"

"Yes, my boy, I'm back, though I'm not alive thanks to you ponies."

The fox spirit that held Sombre's voice screamed as it charged in on the Captain.

Amber couldn't see a thing. It was all blurry. Her vision was fading from the loss of blood that matted her coat and fell into her eyes, making her see red. Listening to the sounds of battle, Amber couldn't tell who would win. She felt so drained, so weak, and vulnerable. She didn't want to move for fear of falling but instead slowly made her way to where the young grey Pegasus was protected. Entering the other side of her firewall, Amber realized that she didn't have enough energy to heal herself with her fire completely and protect them. There was just enough to do one thing, and this was going to hurt. Using pure flame Amber sealed her wounds by burning them closed to stop blood loss. Amber gasped and whimpered as she bit her lip, drawing the coppery taste of blood as she commanded her own flames to attack her in this way to save herself; smelling her own flesh burn. Amber could hear the battle draw on and the young Pegasus starting to cry in earnest. Amber could feel her reach out to her, terrified by the flames attacking her.

"No!" Amber screamed she tried to only breathe in a whisper to warn the Pegasus not to touch her, but the pain was so great that she couldn't hold back the scream. She heard the Captain falter when she screamed out, but from the sounds of battle, he regained quickly. The flames had done their work and were dissipating. Collapsing to ground, Amber struggled to remain conscious. She could feel the edges of her strength and power fade, but before she lost consciousness, she realized that she could see a little better. The Captain was doing great but Sombre's creature was better. The Captain faked left then spun right, slashing the left flank of the creature. Sombre's voice laughed then, and suddenly with blinding speed faked, left, then right, then left again, then jumped over the Captain to behind him. The Captain spun around, not fast enough; the creature dodged in and bit the Captain right on the neck.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" Amber screamed, for once in a long, long time felt utter and uncontrollable fear. Something snapped within her. There was no control, no understanding, nothing existed but fear. When that fear broke free, her energy snapped, sending her firewall out and away like an explosive charge. Sombre laughed as his now glowing and completely solid creature disengaged and fled with the firewall right on his heels, looking as if it was morphing his shape into something else as it did. Amber started crying uncontrollably, feeling almost frozen in time.

The Captain wavered, feeling as if half of his strength was taken from him. He cursed at the fact that the bastard got away, but he had more important things to do right now. Turning to where the girls were, the Captain took one step and stopped. No. No. No! It was back. He could feel it seething under his skin, but that couldn't be! He thought that he was making progress. That it was going away. He could feel the beast come awake with his anger and bloodlust, the beast’s rage and his combined. No. Why was it back? With his strength weakened, he could feel the beast grow stronger, trying to take over. Damn Sombre. He had gotten what he wanted and more.

"Big Brother. Big Brother!" Derpy cried as she crouched over Amber. Oh no, Amber. Focusing on the task at hand, the Captain could still feel the rage scratching under his skin as he ran over to them.

"Are you ok Derpy?" Derpy and him were both raised as orphans by the same... Well it was a long story, but they have been together so long that Derpy was like a little sister to him, or even a daughter at some points and times considering their age difference.

Derpy sobbed, "I'm scared. She’s not talking. Is she ok? She... she..."

"Derpy, it's okay. I'm here, you can stop crying," he said, noticing that her wounds were all healed. Amber must have healed her before entering the firewall when he'd attacked Sombre's creature. Kneeling down to Amber, he noted that she was curled into a ball and shaking terribly, whimpering into her hooves.

"Amber?" he said softly. "Amber, it's okay. We're all okay." He placed a gentle hoof on her shoulder. Her eyes shot wide open, faster than he'd ever seen her move, she leaped up in a fighter’s stance with her wings open and ready for takeoff. She was in a complete panic, ready to bolt at a moments notice. Looking at her, he could see the full damage on her body, seeing some of the burnt wounds and flesh bleed as they had reopened when she got up. It made him want to weep, he'd never seen her like this and it scared him. On the inside, his beast called for blood, wrath filled his body in thought of who had put her in such pain. Though she didn't look to be in pain, but then again adrenaline is an amazing painkiller. Fighting his and the beast’s anger he looked into her wide tear streaked eyes.

"Amber," he said softly as he lowered himself slowly to lie down, trying to make him look less threatening and less likely to spring on her. "It's okay. Look at me. You’re safe. I'm here. It's me."

"Ca-ca-captain?" Amber said blinking, unable to breathe properly with a breathy and terrified voice. All of a sudden, the tension eased out of her. The Captain moved smoothly up and slightly forward, as she collapsed onto him and did nothing but cry. He held her gently because he didn't want to hurt her further with the wounds she carried.

"Yes. It's okay. I'm here", he said softly. It seemed that his beast raged at the one who hurt her and Derpy, but seemed to settle just barely when he focused on caring for her. He was surprised that she had not passed out yet. Any other pony would have. She seemed so weak and fragile as she clung onto him, but even in this state she was still a strong fighter to him; still living, still breathing, still fighting. Even fighting herself as the tremors left her body that he knew was her instinct to fight or flight. Hiccupping and gasping through her tears, she started to calm down a bit, but continued to cry. She had lost so much blood. It was all over the snow, and seemed to soak everything. Yet she was still conscious and fighting. His beast fought him to get out at the scent. Bloodlust filled him. Amber jerked back, frozen but calmer.

"Captain?" she said, as she looked at him with scared wild eyes. Shit, she knew, she knew because in this overwhelmed state she wouldn't be able to hold back that part of her, but she knew beforehand too. She helped him calm down that one time. Tears began to fall from her eyes, fresh and new, as she hugged herself. Looking at her arms, he could see that she had bitten them earlier to keep from screaming before he'd approached her. Anger spiked; she shouldn't hurt herself. He looked down and away, barring the feeling, good Luna he was ashamed of himself. He could feel something on his check. He looked, Amber was still crying and shaking, but had kissed him on the cheek, even with his beast raging. She was way, way too kind to him, being brave for him even though she was terrified; he assumed of him now. And even though he should have pushed her away to keep her as far from the beast as possible, he opened his arms. She trembled as she entered them of her own choice, as she kept crying silently while breathing like stone. He worried. Was she breathing? She was so tense. He just pet her slowly and stayed by her as she began to calm down. Slowly she relaxed, and then suddenly became limp as she passed out.

"Is she ok?" Derpy whispered. He had nearly forgotten about Derpy. He was so focused on Amber that he forgot the time.

"Captain! Captain!" the guards were looking for him.

"Derpy, get them to stop yelling. We need not startle her," he said quickly.

"Yes!" Derpy said. She was such a good little filly, always looking to fix things, and cuter than a kitten when she tripped over herself or made a mistake. With current affairs, he couldn't even smile at the memories. He gathered Amber's body gently as he grunted while he stood up, carrying her. He flew through the trees to the stallions and Derpy.

"Captain, are you ok? You’re bleeding?" said one of the guards.

"Quiet. We have to hurry," he said in a harsh tone.

"Oh my dear Luna. It's Amber. Is she ok? Would you like us to take her?" said another with a softer voice.

"No, I'll take her," he said, not letting any other pony touch her. "Blackwing, please scan the area for any other daemons, take five stallions with you. You two. Go inform the palace healer that we have an emergency. Freefall, please escort Derpy back home and stay there. Protect her. I'm sorry, Derpy. I will check on you in the fortnight. Do you need anything? Are you hurt?"

"No. She made me feel better. My boo-boos are all gone. Is she ok?" Derpy said with sad hopeful eyes. They seemed to give him hope in turn too. He could feel a flicker of something. Sadness… fear… hope? He didn't know. And it only showed in the softening of his eyes, but nowhere on his harsh face. He kissed Derpy on the forehead as he always had, "I'll do my best to make sure she is."

Chapter 6:

Amber felt so much pain that her body and mind was adrift, like she was in some dream. She was asleep, but awake at the same time. She could hear everything around her, but felt like she didn’t have the strength to open her eyes.

“Bliss, get the Princess,” said a mare’s voice. “Siren, get me needle and silk thread. Rosebud, get me the ointment. Hurry everypony.”

“Is she going to be ok Dr. Kindwing?” asked the Captain’s tense voice.

“Leave it to me and we’ll try our best, but I will be honest, we need the Princess to heal her because she is in such bad shape. How did this happen?” The doctor said as Amber felt a pinprick along the wound on her shoulder.

“She was doing her job protecting other ponies, and was attacked,” the Captain spoke only part of the truth. Probably so as not to scare everypony that Sombre was back.

“But Amber can normally handle herself.”

“We suspect an ambush of many. We disposed of many daemons before reaching her, and she was also preoccupied in defending Derpy.”

“ Oh no! Is she ok?”

“She’s fine. Amber healed her before herself and was low on power so she burnt the wounds to close them instead.”

“I swear this mare is going to one day give just too much.”

Amber agreed, but she would not be who she was if she didn’t. It wasn’t something that she could control really. It was like giving to others was almost an instinct more than a choice. It was actually harder for her to not give and take instead then to give to others. If her friends enforced what they wanted to give to her, rather than let her say no, then Amber knew she had good friends. Rather than friends who used her.

She sighed internally. That’s why she knew that he was the most deserving of kindness; he never wanted to accept anything that she gave to him. It was for that reason that she knew that he was the most deserving of anypony. She knew how hard it was to do things on your own, and not have help, or to have your pride or mistrust push help away. She was still learning to accept help and only just starting to learn how to ask for it. Though, she did wonder if he pushed her away because he saw her as a nuisance or if he didn’t care for her that much. She knew that it didn’t make any sense and that she was a bit... ok very paranoid about things.

“Where is she?” Princess Luna’s voice struck the air as the doors swung open.

“Just finished closing her wounds, Princess. We’re about to apply ointment, but she’s fading,” said Dr. Kindwing.

“Please leave us, Doctor. We don’t need the ointment. Captain, please stay,” commanded the Princess.

“Yes Princess,” said the Captain with a tight voice.

“So. It’s back,” the Princess said, as Amber felt her body warm and ease it’s tension as the pain ebbed away. The Captain said nothing.

“You know in order to conquer fear you must face it and let it go. Each time you bottle fear it gets worse. There’s an old saying. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering. I would hope to see you conquer your rage, by conquering your fear.”

The Captain was still silent and seemed to have shut himself down when he said, “Sombre’s back.”

The Captain looked into Amber’s sleeping face. The once tense brows were now relaxed. She looked like herself again; peaceful, happy, and strong. He wanted to reach out to her but held himself back. The itch under his skin was something he didn’t want to expose her to. He needed to get a hold of himself. He didn’t want to see that face, that face she made where her happy features fell into worry, sadness, and concern. He wanted to run each time that he saw that face. He felt that he couldn’t let her see his troubles because each time he saw that face he felt like he was or was going to let her down.

Amber stirred, moaning a little as she turned over towards him. Even in her sleep she seemed to crave him. He was so scared to make the same mistakes and let her down. His monster writhed inside, scratching at his skin wanting out. Good Luna, he hated himself, hated this beast. Why wasn’t he strong enough to conquer this? Dear Luna, he wanted to scream and never stop. He was itching for a fight. No, he didn’t just want a fight. He wanted to maim, kill, and just destroy everything in his wake. He could feel his back muscles tense to the point where he wondered if they would snap off. He felt like he was seeing red. Luna Damn!

Blinking her eyes, Amber awoke from her recovery sleep. She looked at him, happy but with minor concern behind her eyes. His face stayed hard, but at least he could feel himself soften just a tad away from his malicious bloodlust to the relief that came to tell him that she was okay. She smiled softly and then looked around and sat up quickly, only to waver and place a hoof on her head.

“Whoa girl, take it easy,” he said, sitting on the edge of the bed as he placed hooves on her shoulders to get her to gently lay back down again.

“Where’s the grey mare? Is she ok?” she said and then gasped as her brows and face tensed in ache, only relaxing as she placed her head on the pillow once again. Her face held that normal strong state of mind that she carried, though he could see her anxiety linger on the fringes of her control.

“Derpy is fine. Thanks to you,” he said. She breathed in relief and looked down, but her body didn’t relax entirely.

“Are you ok?” she asked softly. He breathed deep without relaxing due to the itch awaiting him.

“I’m living,” he said, knowing that she was skeptical about how he was doing, and that she knew that something was up. She always tried not to pry when he was like this, because she knew he didn’t want her to.

She focused the subject elsewhere instead, “Derpy? That’s her name? You know her?”

“She’s like my little sister. We were raised by the same... pony,” he said. He should be beaming that she saved her, but the monster in him denied him that. It wasn’t going to let up. He didn’t know why he was still here. He shouldn’t bring Amber’s good spirit down by placing his contaminated one beside her.

“I have to go. You’re going to be ok now, Amber,” he said as he headed for the door.

“Please don’t…” she started to say, making him pause. “Please don’t go, Captain.”

“Why? Why should I not go?” He said, hoof on the door where he’d paused. She didn’t know how to explain it. When she woke, she had felt that eerie calm when she had awoken from the rite. She’d used that calm to stop how she really felt when all of her memories of the battle came back to her, but even using that to make herself seem calm on the outside, she could feel how scared she was. She could tell that his beast was back. She searched his energy, closing her eyes as she snapped back to herself. No. It wasn’t just that his beast was back; it was always within him, though there were times that you wouldn’t even know it was there. It was that his beast was worse than she had ever seen it. It was... It was like his energy was changing. It was becoming... Becoming like Sombre’s.

“Don’t kid yourself, Amber. I’m no good for you. Especially right now,” he said as he left. Amber reached out a hoof, wishing she could stop him, and that she had the voice to tell him everything without fear. Her fear not of him or his beast, or his changing energy, she clearly knew that, but she was scared of losing him. She felt selfish in pulling him back to her as he first tried to leave. She felt utterly terrified of him leaving, and ashamed… ashamed because she was being selfish. It was for this reason that she was also scared of herself, of her wants, and so she stopped herself from saying or doing anything. She just didn’t know what to do or say, not just to help him, but also to save her from sounding and feeling weak.

Staring at the door that he left, Amber could feel her chest and throat tighten as a single tear formed and fell onto her cheek. She breathed in a tight breath as more followed, feeling as if somepony had taken a hold of her heart and squeezed it almost too tightly to beat. Placing her face in her hooves she cried alone. Thinking that at least no one could see her.

No more. He couldn’t accept her kindness. He couldn’t let her do it, the Captain thought as he let the wind carry him over to Derpy’s tree in Ponyville. It was still very early in the evening, as Amber awoke just before moonrise. Derpy should still be up. He said that he would check on her. He would check in on her and leave. He shouldn’t even be going anywhere near anypony in this state of mind, but a promise was a promise. And he wasn’t going to break his word. Landing at Ponyville’s Post Office, the Captain knocked on the door.

“Hello?” Derpy said on the other side as she cheerfully went to open the door.

“No Derpy. Wait before you open that,” said FreeFall on the other side. “Who’s there?”

“It’s the Captain, FreeFall. You can let me in,” the Captain said, annoyed for no good reason. His beast tinged the tone of his voice.

Freefall quickly opened the door, “Sir. I’m sorry I didn’t know it was you.”

“Stand guard outside,” the Captain commanded.

“Big Brother!” Derpy squealed as she ran into his chest and gave him a big hug. The Captain was shocked by her reaction, even though he shouldn’t be considering it was Derpy. He felt tenser than a cable line, but felt just a molecule of calm in receiving that enthusiastic hug, but even here he could feel the wrath in him towards the one who had hurt her and everything else in the world. The same. It was the same with both of them.

“Yay, you’re here. How is she? Is she ok? What was her name again?” Derpy said with a sweet smile.

He couldn’t help but smile a bit in turn, “Amber is ok. She’ll be fine.”

“That’s great. I’m so happy that she is. She’s too nice to be hurting. She is such a pretty pony too,” Derpy giggled. The Captain smiled internally. Derpy was always so kind to give compliments to everypony. Her bubbly personality also made one feel like nothing in the world could go wrong in that moment that you were with her. Damn it to hell, he wanted to scream and kill this beast within him for ruining that.

“Is she like you, Big Brother?” Derpy asked.

“Like me how, Derpy?” said the confused Captain.

“A protector? She can change like you too.”

“No she is a...” the Captain started to say.

“Healer? Medium?” he thought, not knowing which one. Then he thought of how Sombre called him a Protector and her a Healer. Rage blasted through him that Sombre was even on his mind at all. He breathed deep, attempting to calm himself a bit before answering.

“She’s a Healer, Derpy. And a very good one at that. She’s strong and protects others too. She tries to always put others first,” he said somberly.

“Why are you sad, Big Brother?” said Derpy with a small worried but curious face. He could see the light of her bubbly nature in her eyes. He shouldn’t be here right now. Seeing the worry on her face. He just shouldn’t be around anypony right now. Closing his eyes, he could feel the rage burn inside him. He should be out there hunting Sombre, he thought. If he had this beast, he should at least use it. He just had to make sure everypony stayed away from him and his beast. He wasn’t worth their getting hurt.

“It’s okay, Derpy. Everything will be okay soon,” he said.

Pulling on a brave face, the Captain smiled for Derpy. She smiled brightly return. No pony seemed to have a brighter smile then hers. He looked away, feeling completely torn.

“I must go now, Derpy. Okay?” he said.

“No. Don’t go, Big Brother. Please stay and have some dinner muffins and chocolate milk with me,” she said as she grabbed onto his leg.

“I’m sorry but I can’t. I have to go,” he replied softly.

Derpy pouted; he normally couldn’t resist that but his beast was scratching at every inch of his skin and he needed to get away from here. He looked to the door and walked out.

“Protect her, Freefall,” The Captain said as he launched into the sky.

“Yes sir!”

Through the winding woods and trees of the Everfree Forest, an eerie laugh bit at the early night sky. Sombre couldn’t hide his laughter from Equestria, as he looked to the moon.

“I’ll start by ruling the night, Luna. Your palace shall be mine, but first I must find it. How carefully you hide my dear, but not for long,” he said as he laughed.

He was alive again and now no pony could stop him. He would have vengeance on all those ponies who had shunned him. On Celestia and Luna, for banishing him to the shadows, and on the homes of those ponies in Ponyville who destroyed him. The Crystal Empire would not only be his once more, but it would all be his. No pony in all of Equestria would ever hurt or take things away from him again. And no pony would ever disrespect him. If he couldn’t be loved or respected then he would be feared. And everypony would suffer under his wrath. All he needed was more power.

“You. What’s our status?” Sombre motioned to the obake beside him. The obake was in the form of a smoky giant spider. Stepping forward, he sounded an earsplitting screech that echoed into the sky. Soon little spiders that were some of the other newer obake started to crawl out of the forest and into the ruins that was their current fortress. Climbing up the legs of the larger spider, they all gathered upon the larger obake’s back. Soft sounds of clicking and clattering sounded around the smoky cloud of spiders. The largest obake then squealed and squeaked to Sombre as his large menacing jaws clicked and clacked the air before him.

“Perfect. The Captain is already there. You, the badger! Have we gathered enough souls and energy?”

The large badger let out a hoarse scream and then growled as his form shifted and changed with the wind, moving from smoky to solid and back.

“Wolves, Foxes, Snakes, and Raccoon Dogs. Do we have enough fighters?”

A chorus of barks, howls, yips, yaps, growls, hisses, and screams filled the air as the shadows of smoky apparitions leaked into the ruins. Invading the moonlit cracked flooring into a black and dark expanse of seething shadows.

Sombre laughed at the response, “Then we attack. Make way for Ponyville!”

Chapter 7:

Freefall’s short black-cropped mane shifted in the wind as his baby blue colored face looked up to the Captain. He sighed as he opened the door to keep an eye on his charge. The Captain was a good stallion, but was scary as hell when he was like this. Walking into Ms. Derpy Hooves’ home, he shut the door behind him and locked it. He turned around to see a sad Derpy sitting on the floor. He smiled at how cute she looked. The Captain’s sister was the sweetest young mare that he and the rest of the guards had ever met. Everyone loved Derpy.

He smiled, “Mmmmm, something smells good, Derpy. Are those blueberry muffins I smell? Would you like some help?”

“Oh yes. My muffins,” said Derpy brightening up. She didn’t like it when her brother had to go off, but she understood that he was busy protecting her and Equestria. It was a good thing that she was such a happy pony. It always seemed that nothing bugged her for very long. She would always go back to being the same happy Derpy Hooves.

He smiled, following her into the kitchen in the back of the home. Until he heard shifting at the back window where the forest lay behind.

“Derpy, come back here right now please,” he asked, briskly moving towards her and the window.

“Why, what’s wrong?” she said with a smile as she put on her oven mitts.

“I would just like you to be away from the window, please,” he said, thinking that it could be just the wind, but decided to still place himself between the window and Derpy, keeping an ear and an eye on the glass opening.

Just when Derpy finished placing the muffins on the cool stovetop and turned off the oven, multiple screams cracked through the air in Ponyville. Suddenly a black smoky cloud crashed through the window and onto Freefall’s back. Derpy screamed in terror, as Freefall bucked off the smoky apparition that formed into a wolf as it landed on the kitchen floor. The wolf dashed towards Freefall but faked and headed to Derpy, licking his chops.

“Oh no, you don’t,” exclaimed Freefall, dodging in front of Derpy only to be bitten square on the shoulder.

“No more! Stop it!” screamed Derpy as she started to sink down to the ground and cry. “Please no more.”

Screams pierced the air behind the Captain. Ponyville was under attack. Before the Captain could think, he changed course and shot back towards the town.

“No, Derpy! Hell no, your not touching my little sis,” he growled. He swung between the first few buildings and then blasted right through the front door of Derpy’s home.

“Derpy!” he screamed and then heard her crying as Freefall fought while bleeding against an obake. Rage spilt through him, launching him into action. In one blinding move the Captain drew a sword and sent it flying straight through the obake’s heart and into the kitchen wall. Feeling his rage leak into his features and up his spine, the Captain retrieved his sword, took a deep breath and turned to Derpy and Freefall.

“Freefall, call reinforcements to evacuate Ponyville immediately, and take Derpy with you to safety,” he said with anger leaking into his voice. “Take care of her. I must hold them off.”

Amber lifted her face from her hooves in a gasp that felt as if someone sent a blade straight through her chest. No, something was wrong. No. She wobbled as she got out of bed, grabbing hold of the night table beside her. Taking her gem from its surface she placed it around her neck. There was no time to waste, she thought as she struggled to open the window. She took a step back and then launched herself out and into the cold winter night air. She opened her wings to fly, but fell. Her wings wouldn’t grab air through her desperation.

No, no. Her strength was so drained still. She breathed in as she fell and then opened her wings and angled herself just right. Forcing her wings to hit as much air under her as possible, she forced her wings down as hard as she could. She shot up into the air and began to fly. She needed to get there fast, but each wing beat was a struggle. If she tried going any faster, she would fall to ground before she got there, or have no energy to fight when and if she had too. Focusing on the task at hand, she paced herself as she flew to the source, Ponyville.

The Captain felt his heart tear a little as he unsheathed his two swords and sped out through the door, seeing in the corner or his eye how Derpy had reached out to him and cried, “No! Big Brother don’t...”

Blasting back and forth through the streets, the Captain dispatched oni after oni, each in a single blow, and plowed through each single obake with blazing speed and skill. He knew it when each of the cuts of his enemies fell upon him, but felt nothing in his rage. He kept going, one on one… one on three… one on seven. It was blinding. Never ending. Good Luna save him, he reveled in the strength that his beast gave him. Each of his two swords flew in crescents and jabs that beheaded and killed anything that came in his way. They would all suffer for hurting Derpy, for making her cry, and for making Amber feel pain.

Spinning left and right, and dodging back and forth the Captain laid waste to them all. Soon they all came to him, circling him. He still fought sending his blades flying through air, flesh, and blood that fell to the ground and around him in a bloodbath. The one-shot kills from his blades were sent flying in every direction until the Captain could only see red… nothing but red… nothing but rage.

It consumed him and his blades, killing another two more before the first body could even hit the ground, before blood could even escape from his previous blade’s cut. As his blade struck, slicing up and down, left and right, in arches and crescents; it was almost as if he and the monster were becoming one as he danced the warrior’s dance of death around his enemies, spinning left and right, from one daemon to the next and back again. He started to growl and yell as each blade sunk into his enemy and anyone who opposed him.

Flames illuminated Ponyville in the distance. “Just a little more”, Amber thought as she gasped from the exertion. She focused on breathing and gathering her strength. She searched within herself, but for some reason couldn’t unlock her flame. She couldn’t change! And the flame she could use was small and fragile. Damn it. Why was this happening? She should at least be able to reach her flame, but it was locked away. Suddenly while passing a street, a large web shot after her and caught her back hoof.

“No!” she screamed, forming some fire to burn the web off. She struggled to regain flight and ended up falling down into an alleyway. An alleyway filled with three oni! She struggled to get up after getting the wind knocked out of her as she had fallen on her backside. She coughed and choked; rolling quickly over she faced the oni and stood strong in a fighter’s stance, a primary one that was taught to her by the Captain in her first few weeks of training with him. The oni laughed at her frantic but determined face as the first one advanced slowly on her.

Slowly she formed three fireballs behind her, letting them gain strength from the air around them. The oni charged at her as she jumped up and back, sending the fireballs straight at each oni. Each caught fire and screamed in unison. But they still came at her even with a leg or arm each burning way. She dodged around them and jumped up high to send three more their way. The two smaller oni were consumed by flame, while the last one charged at her to grab her with his burning arms.

Dodging swiftly to the right, Amber tripped and fell. The oni screamed as he fell upon her. Sending her back legs up, she focused fire at the soles of her hooves, and pushed the burning body off of her with all her might. The body crumbled into ash along with the others. Amber sucked in the air around her, and with wild eyes scanned the area as she ran into the center of the town. She dodged attack after attack, using momentum to kick, hit, and throw any who truly focused on her.

She needed to save her energy, her fire for when she truly needed it. Then she saw it, a mass of bodies leading to the center of town. Opening her wings, she launched herself up to the top of a nearby building. Looking over the top and down to the town square, she saw him. Oh good Luna of the night, he was covered in blood with the most enraged and malicious face she’d ever seen him with. The enemies were terrified of him as he killed another two who were retreating; they all were running away. No one could oppose him.

Clicking sounds accompanied a screech sounding behind her. Amber looked frantically to see a smoky spider behind her. She acted before she could think and jumped off the roof to fall into a pile of hay, for she knew that she had not the strength to fight this thing and win. She quickly got out of the hay and began to run toward the square, but the obake had jumped off the roof and had landed on top of her back.

The spider sank his large fangs into the back of her neck. Amber panicked, bucking and kicking as the spider held on. She looked to the Captain, whose eyes had focused on her and suddenly flashed red as he used one thrust of his powerful tri-wings to blast at her and the spider. His entire body glowed red for a moment as he punched the spider with the hilt of his sword. She breathed deep as she got up to look at the battle. He was toying with it, killing it slowly with cuts and hits rather than killing it outright. His energy was almost exactly like Sombre’s now. With a menacing sneer, the Captain looked at the beaten spider and sent a single blade down into its body and through its heart. The battle was over, won, but it was not a joyous victory.

“How could you be so stupid?!” he said with tight lips. She blinked and looked up at him and away from the dissipating creature.

“Excuse me?” she said with a single soft breath.

“How could you be so stupid to have left your bed!? You’re not even supposed to be up!” he was pretty much screaming at her as he walked over. She would have calmly told him off had she not felt so weak in that moment. She felt like hiding inside herself when he yelled at her, not out of fear, but of shame. If ever she seemed wary, nervous, or scared of him it was because she was scared of doing something wrong to make things worse. Even when he yelled at her, she wasn’t scared of him though, and for some odd reason she still felt safe. She could tell that his beast was invading the fringes of his voice.

“I don’t know. I’m sorry. I just felt… I wasn’t thinking. I just had to get here,” she replied shyly.

He growled, “You should have stayed out of it.”

“I didn’t even know that you would be here. I just... I just instinctually... Do... Do you see me as weak?” she asked as she wavered as tears formed at the corners of her eyes. She gasped as he grabbed her into a warm embrace. His entire body was tense as he sighed.

“No. You’re injured, and still recovering from a previous battle. That’s not weak. That’s just being stupid,” he said with an angry but calm tone.

She smiled weakly, “As if you wouldn’t have done the same.”

He closed his eyes and didn’t laugh. She gasped as he picked her up before she fell and launched into the sky. After a few minutes soaring through the cold air, the Captain said, “No pony can help me, Amber. So don’t try to.”

She felt like she was too tired to exclaim otherwise so she sleepily said, “Did I ever say that I was trying to?”

Chapter 8:

Amber was so drained that she fell asleep with her head against his shoulder. Some of her blood had leaked from her wound down onto his chest. He had to hold tight onto himself just to keep from yelling at her all over again. The monster within him was screaming to get back out. How could she fall calmly asleep in these arms? His and the monsters arms! How could she fall asleep when she should be terrified of him? Flying over the calm valleys and forests towards Amber’s home, he growled. She needed to stop this or she was going to destroy herself.

She was kind to everypony, and even sympathetic to her enemies. He knew that it hurt her to intentionally harm another in general, and would rather be harmed then to harm another. He gritted his teeth at the thought. He was at least thankful that when push came to shove, that if she had to, she would fight back rather then let herself get pushed over, but still… That heart of hers... It was not something to be shown for others to harm as some have, but it was something to be protected.

Landing on the lawn before her home, the Captain opened the door and carried her inside to her bed. He had spent some time in here before, so he knew where everything was. Gathering the ointment and gauze, the Captain walked out of the bathroom and grabbed a chair. Pulling it to the bedside, he checked to make sure she didn’t need stitches. The princess’s magic was still in her as the wound had started to close already, even though she had been pierced deeply. After taking care of her wounds, he put everything away and sat down again. The beast itched under his skin still, and he was starting to get used to it, even though he knew the itching was getting worse.

What was he going to do with her? This silly filly wasn’t going to give up. Not on anything, never once had he ever seen her give up. Sure he’d seen her spirit slump to where she would almost give up, and seen her with low self worth, but that was more because she was way too hard on herself then it was on herself giving up. Even in her weakest moments, this young mare still kept fighting. It was almost exhausting to see her do it. He didn’t even want to know what it was like for her. She had his respect, and that wasn’t something he gave often. Even when she was being dumb, it seemed that she still had his respect, because he knew that she was still figuring things out just like every other pony was. She’d made mistakes in her life, and was a little more free-spirited than him, but she seemed to... to just keep moving through all of it.

The Captain looked to her sleeping face, it was filled with soft features even with the worried arch on her brows. The Captains face filled with a mix of sadness and anger. He kissed her on the forehead. Even in her sleep she blushed.

“Someday I will hope to earn your trust enough that you can call me by my first name,” whispered the Captain as he placed a hoof gently on her sleeping face. She relaxed and smiled slightly as she nuzzled her face closer into his hoof. The Captain got up, put the chair away, and paused for only a second as he opened the door and walked outside. It was snowing. It seemed that even the skies wanted to wash him of the blood that still lay upon him. A silly filly indeed, he thought.

Amber woke up to the crackling sound of the glowing fire. She hadn't turned that fire on since before a week ago. Who could've done it? Looking at herself, she could see a bandage around her neck. The Captain was here. He was the only one who tied a bandage in this fashion. Placing a hoof over the smooth white and red stained fabric, she stopped to look at the care that he placed in wrapping it around her neck; not too tight, but not too loose. So that it would stop the bleeding from the obake that had bitten her, but not create any discomfort for her.

She could feel the warmth of the fire on her coat, and the cool winter air leaking through the glass window by her bed. Grabbing hold of the blankets, she felt like cocooning herself in them and never leaving. She realized that she craved the warmth and the comfort. She remembered how as a foal, she used to spend hours under the covers. She felt that within those covers that she was safe and warm and protected. Something that she almost never felt in the arms of her parents, at least that she had not felt for a long, long time. She remembered how she would let her imagination run wild, and how she used to daydream with her eyes closed in bed, escaping to another reality. She remembered that when things were really bad that she would let her depression control her dreams, and how horrible things would happen to her there, things that both have and haven’t happened.

She thought that in a way, those nightmares had prepared her for when some of those things actually did happen in the future. So that when they really happened, then she would be ready for the worse, and then she wouldn’t be hurt as badly, or then she would already have a back up plan. She thought that in the past she had always had a back up plan. Always. Just to save herself from the heartache, and the failure. That was why if someone hurt her that it never phased her, at least not noticeably. She felt that she should always have a back up, and that she shouldn’t let herself get attached to anything, even a dream.

It was a selfish and cold-hearted way to protect one’s self. It was like developing scar tissue or calluses. The more you expose yourself to something, the less you react to it. The more scar tissue you have, the less a blow will cut into you. If she wanted to care for others, she had to care just a little less and develop a thick skin. Amber thought about how the blankets made her feel now. They felt warm, and she never wanted to get out of bed, but she felt cold, like she was holding onto herself. She felt like she was the only one protecting herself. She felt… alone.

Amber looked to the door of her room, as tears stung the edges of her eyes. She slowly got out of bed, wobbling as a minor fainting spell swept through her mind, slowing her thoughts. She had to see if he was still here. Thinking about how being in his arms felt like as if she didn’t have to hold on so hard. She felt safe, like she wasn’t the only one protecting herself. She didn’t feel so alone anymore. She burst into tears. How did this happen? How could she let herself depend on another pony? She felt so weak. She shouldn’t feel the need to be helped.

Feeling as if she was taking her first steps again, she played leapfrog from furniture to furniture. First the bed, then the dresser, the bedroom door, the couch, the table, until she finally stepped out the front door of her house, holding onto the frame as the cold wind chilled her to the bone and froze the now still tears on her checks. Of course he had left, she thought as she bucked up, feeling as if she had closed of her heart a little just to keep it safe. He wouldn't want to be around her with his current state of mind.

She warmed on the inside from an internal blush at the thought of him caring for her, though she sighed as she closed the door. Thinking of how she admired him so much for his strength, and respected him so much for his independence, at the same time she though was saddened. Probably because she felt so selfish at overthinking everything, all so that she could be strong enough, so that she could stop herself from saying anything that she hid inside herself, and that she didn't want to accept. She more so felt selfish because she was lonely and she wished she could help him, she wished that she was able to, but at the same time should respect him. She didn't want to do anything wrong at the same time.

She looked upon herself, and thought about how in the hell can she could help him. He wouldn’t even let her be there for him. And how could she help him when there were times that it seemed that she could barely help herself, especially right now. She was so scared of everything around her. She was scared of losing him, and was scared of everything else on top of it. Of not being able to protect any pony. Scared of just being scared, and terrified and doubtful of herself.

Looking into her hooves, she saw that water had fallen on them, and that they were her tears, her tears of doubt, of fear, and of regret. She was realizing that she felt frozen, that she couldn't move. She was so scared that she felt as if she couldn't even move or even try to do anything. Almost at the same time the fire within her burned, telling her to keep moving forward, keep fighting. She always had that fire within her reminding her not to give up. That flame within her always stopped her from completely giving in. That fire had saved her so many times. The problem was that she felt like the battle that this flame was always fighting was never-ending. She felt as if the flame was starting to go out, as if she had doubted herself so much that she couldn't continue to fight. The fire within her was wearing down from the personal abuse. It wasn't the fact that he wasn't able to protect her or that she wasn't able to protect others either.

She felt so confused and lost, and it was almost too much. It was like everything was attacking her mind all at once. She couldn't move, she couldn't breathe, she couldn’t hear the gasp that had left on her breath, or feel the air move past her lips. She felt her chest and throat tighten until she couldn't breathe. She realized now that she was dry heaving and crying out as much as she could possibly have been. She was breaking down and she knew it. She was holding on for dear life, looking for anything that could at least help her carry on. That could help her keep fighting. She felt so selfish because she felt that she was leaning on him almost too much, or wanting to lean on him too much. She shouldn't have felt so weak, despite the fact that some ponies had called her strong, or whether other ponies had tried to help her stand up in her moments of doubt, and those were truly good friends. And she felt this way even more so whenever he said it.

She felt that each time she felt or did something that benefited herself that she was betraying him, betraying her friends. She looked away into the fire that burned beside her bed. Still crying, still weeping, still hiccupping after every single breath, feeling so tense that she could barely breathe. She felt like she was dying. Not from anything exterior or even anything anyone had done, but that she was killing herself. She was trying too hard to hold into herself and that thin rope that she dangled from. That’s why she shouldn't stop trying. As hard as she was trying to hold on, she still felt like she was going to fall if she didn't, in that moment, do everything she could just to... just to survive the battle within herself. How chaotic her mind was as it tormented her.

The Captain scanned the area from above, looking at the buildings and valleys below as he was passing just slightly over Ponytail. It had been a few weeks since the battle and every pony who had been injured was healing up. He looked down to see Ponytail’s hospital where Freefall was still mending, although he would be released today. Looking down, he could see the moonlight’s glow illuminate the ground and figures below as Freefall and Derpy left the hospital together with smiles on their faces as they laughed. Freefall was so kind to Derpy, and he truly respected his comrade and trusted in his abilities to take care of his little sister.

For some reason, although everything was alright, he could still feel a malicious air around him, and could even feel the presence of Sombre like before when he had felt it during the battle at Ponyville. He didn’t know why, but that energy felt like it was from himself, and that scared him tremendously, like as if he was becoming the malicious energy within him. He barricaded himself internally, not wanting it to come out, and started to breathe heavily. Realizing that he was so scared of himself that he was going to go into a panic, he shot his tri-wings closed and then burst higher into the air.

No! You will not fail. You will not fall. You will not be scared. If he was damned to contain this energy then he will use it against his enemies, even if he was to turn into Sombre himself. He could feel himself being pulled away from his friends, from his family, from every pony that had ever cared about him, especially from her. He could feel himself ebbing away, becoming something else, something he did not want to be, but he felt he had no choice but to become. Looking to the moonlight, he could remember the words that Luna had so strongly, and yet so softly spoken to him. He only wished he was able to do as she had asked, but was scared that he wouldn't be capable to do it. If he couldn’t, then he had decided to at least fight for her, and for Equestria forever, in any possible way that he could, no matter what the cost.

Chapter 9:

Amber looked up to the moonlight as she walked through the Everfree forest. The beauty of that soft light never seemed to phase her from feeling enlightened and somewhat bright despite her low mood. She sighed as she opened up, scanning the atmosphere, which was surprisingly devoid of any and all energies bearing malicious intent anywhere around her. It seemed too quiet, but she had still decided to continue walking towards where her animal friends were. She could tell where they were based upon her senses, like how the timber-wolves, squirrels, rabbits, cougars, bobcats, panthers, wolves, birds, deer, eagles, and every critter around her that ever been friends with her, including a few snakes or two, were all gathered in safety. Walking into the moonlit grass of the meadow, she could feel their energy on the fringes, so she knew that they were there, even though no pony besides her had ever stepped into the grass of this hidden meadow. Amber looked around to see her friends, each group clamoring in a different corner of the meadow; each species in their own group. It was like this so that they would try not to bug each other, even though the foxes were nipping at the rabbits into a fearful frenzy a little bit, or how the timber wolves were howling at the moon as the birds screeched at their noise in disapproval.

She laughed; at least she could still laugh despite how scared she was, and at least she could still enjoy herself amongst friends, and enjoy their company and companionship. Amber stopped in the midst of the wildflowers of the meadow and looked to the rabbits, who ran at the moment of her first step towards them. Why were they running from her? This had never happened before, ever. She looked to the Timberwolves who just growled at her, looking as if they were at the ready to bite her and tear her into shreds. As she looked to the birds, the flock took off and flew up into higher trees, ignoring her very presence. She found herself looking all over the meadow, in the trees, in the brush, amongst the grass, and in the wildflowers, all to see if she could find if any of her friends would spend some time with her, but for some reason they all ignored her.

They all shunned her, and she knew why. It was because she wasn't the same anymore. They didn't know her or her energy. Did she really change so much from the determined proud and stand tall pony she used to be? Was she really so weak and meek to long to be able to depend on somepony for once, and yet to still be so stubborn as to not want to depend on somepony? Even though she needed to simply feel something of comfort for once. When she had in the past time let them depend on her, and then thereafter had asked for the same in return, and yet none of them did anything. She guessed that some of her friends actually weren't her friends anymore. She had changed too much. They didn't know who she had become, or that she finally had broken some of her walls. She had finally had let a bridge of trust be built to where she felt that she could finally relax and be selfish in asking for something for once. They apparently didn’t... and never wanted to give her that.

Amber walked through the small stream that weaved through the meadow’s green damp grass caused by the currently melting snow. Large patches of grass and snow covered the now empty meadow. Only a solitary apple tree stood by the stream of the meadow. Just as Amber reached the base of the trunk, she slouched and ka-plunked down onto the grass. As silent as the tears that fell on her face, Amber remained still and quiet while she tried to regain that stone exterior that she once had. Meanwhile in the background, a select three walked out of the forest brush and into the edge of the meadow that all the animals had left. The only three that came towards her were the wolves. She looked up, wiping her tears with her hoof. The white wolf walked up to her and licked her tears that had not been wiped away. Amber was almost in a state of shock. She had never thought that she had made friends that would stay by her despite how weak she was. She laughed a little as the white wolf made a face at her salty bitter tears. The reddish brown one growled at her a little, as the other darker brown one nibbled at her tail a little bit.

She burst out laughing and smiled as the tears began to fall anew from feeling so blessed and undeserving; she had never had any friends like these before. She froze at the thought of losing them. These were her true friends where no matter what you were still considered to be a member of the family or in this case, of the pack. Amber broke apart in that moment and truly cried. Something that she hadn’t done in a while, and something that she needed to do more often just to relieve the pressure of her own conflictions. Meanwhile, without realizing it, the bandages were soon removed by the wolves. She could feel the warm wet tongues of the wolves who cared for her as they licked her wounds clean. Wolves’ saliva carried an antiseptic that assisted in healing. They were caring for her, and wanted her to get better. Even the reddish brown one who growled at her also licked her wounds as she continued to cry.

She wasn't crying because she felt like she had lost some of her friends or because she couldn't bottle it in anymore, although that was a factor, but because she didn't know that she had such good friends who would still stay by her even if she was crying and weak. She was crying from happiness. She had no idea, and through all of her senses and knowledge, she still didn't know anything really, and that alone made her feel vulnerable, made her feel scared. She didn't know what was going to happen and she was terrified in that moment. Scared of the unknown. If it weren't for her good friends, to keep her holding onto that rope that she desperately clung to. So long as she knew that she had good friends, and could spend time with those friends, and feel that comfort she felt that she didn’t have to live fighting. She was terrified of the unknown and of losing herself down the chasm she could fall into, but that's what being brave is. It’s facing what makes you scared. She realized that she could live alive, and not just live fighting.

She stopped herself for a moment. Luna, she did nothing but go around in circles. She always had to remind herself of each and every lesson she learned, some days more than others. Was it all for not? Was she forever trapped in this recurring circle? Would she ever be free? She didn’t know. She wished like hell that she did know how, but she didn’t. She didn’t know the answer, but did she really need to right now? Well, yes she did, but certain answers are meant to come when they came too. Maybe she just needed to roll with the punches until she found those answers. Maybe I don’t know doesn’t mean that you have given up. It just means that you haven’t found the right answers. She may still be conflicted, figuring things out, in that same cycle, and in pain, but it didn’t mean that even though her spirit slumped that she had given up. She wasn’t going to let herself. She was going to keep pushing herself and moving forward.

Looking down, her tears had dried up. Her composure was back, for how long she didn’t know. She knew that it would hit her again and that she would have to lift herself up again as if she was fighting to stand in the high waves of the shifting tides of the sea in Pony Edward Island, Vanhoover, or Manehatten. Her face was clean, the once salty drying tears licked away by her true animal friends. Leaning against the trunk of the apple tree, she looked up to the moon, like she had before entering the meadow. Feeling better than once she had, despite everything else, she realized probably for the thousandth time that then again, even without these good friends, she was never truly alone. Even without good friends, she would still lift herself up and keep her feet moving.

Through the dark trees of the Everfree forest and into the fog where the cracked stonewalls of the ruins lay, a malevolent force resided, plotting for another chance at grabbing hold of Equestria and all that lay within it. Seen only by the stars that lit up the rooms and halls via the holes in the cracked and broken ceiling, as piece by piece each shifting grain of stone broke away from the ruined unintended skylights.

“We have them now,” laughed Sombre. “I didn't expect for them to be so strong, or for the Captain to have taken out so many of us. We may have been hit harder than expected, but don’t worry. I will have a plan that will grant us our powers and reclaim our land. We have also impacted our enemy greatly as well. If we hurry, we can strike while they’re still healing. We should hit them again harder and not stop until they fall apart. What say you, my daemons?”

Howls, screeches, growls, screams, yips, and cries filled the clear starlit sky, as the melting snow bled, glistening water drops with a twinkle that added to the sparkle of the stars in the sky.

“We have our required warriors ready. Do you who are chosen have enough energy to take on this task?” Sombre turned away from the ballroom audience and to the five obake standing behind him. They stated their response by bowing to him while keeping their eyes on him, to show that they were warriors who did not trust anyone and that they would keep their eye on every possible opponent. He knew they were ready, for they even considered him to be a possible threat or they would not have the courage to dare look him in the eye.

He chuckled, “Good. Then we should have our prey, and they will not be able to keep our bloodlust from devouring them, because we are strong and we are numerous. And that weak and petty love will not save them. Not when we can put fear into their hearts and make them doubt themselves and each other. We will prevail, and we will take all of Equestria.”

Sombre laughed as his minions wailed sounds of defiance and victory as the new battle was soon to be declared. So long as their prey kept pushing themselves apart, the better that Sombre could make them fear themselves and in turn break them. The trees rustled and moved through the glimpse of the broken stain glass windows as if terrified by every spirit that had stepped upon the ruins. The energy that they had kept in had fully emanated into every corner and crack in the dark damp stonewalls during that final battle cry. In order to not show that they become stronger after the last battle, they had held and sealed in their strength. The spell placed on the remaining walls kept their power in check as they celebrated so as to continue holding their soon to be realized secret. Everything in its wake moved in that ballroom as the energy grew, making even the earth beneath them tremble.

Looking to the moon, Sombre laughed and chuckled as he called out, “Luna. You shall not prevail this time, my sweet night-light. You shall not prevail. I will take it all over and you will not be able to do a thing. And the best thing is that I shall do it, for now we go to Canterlot and we shall kill everypony starting with your sister.” The moon was, for that night, showing it's glow throughout the forest. The moon was illuminating the darkness around Sombre and his minions as if in defiance, as if in doubt that he would be able to succeed. Most certainly not when there are ponies who continue to fight fear. The night was cold and silent and she waited for things to balance themselves out as the battle continued.

Chapter 10:

She would visit the meadow many more times in that week. In that time, she hadn’t heard a word from the Captain. It was snowing again that night. Amber had awoken early in the night to see the glow of the sun disappear from the sky. To be blunt, she was restless and had awoken early after only having a few hours of sleep. She had decided to bring some of the wildflowers that she had picked from the meadow with her to visit the Princess, who was always glad to see her.

“Why Amber, what a pleasant surprise. Though you must forgive me, I have been busy as of late,” proclaimed Princess Luna as Amber walked into the New Lunar Republic Palace Library.

“I’m sorry to have interrupted you, my Princess. I just thought to stop by and give you these,” Amber said, holding the meager flowers for the Princess, thinking about how they didn’t compare to the others decorating the Palace rooms and halls.

“Why thank you Amber. They’re lovely. I will have them placed in my private study.”

“I know that they are not so grand...”, she began to say when the Princess gave her a look that said are-you-really-that-silly-for-even-thinking-that.

“They’re lovely Amber, because they were given to me by you. Never think that something is worthless just because it’s humble and quaint,” the Princess said, as she turned back to her book.

“If I may ask, my Princess, what are you reading?”

“Come and see for yourself, after all, it is about you,” said the Princess, as she stepped back to invite Amber to read.

“That couldn’t be,” Amber exclaimed, as she stepped forward to read the passage.

When a protector sacrifices all,

A necessary monster will live,

One of anger and love,

Only when acceptance follows fear,

Will the blood no longer taint,

Nor give strength against thine’s will.

When a healer sacrifices all,

A great change will occur,

One of great sadness and fear,

Or one of acceptance and growth,

Blood given or taken can heal wounds,

Though only a pure soul can heal scars

“I don’t understand,” said Amber, looking up to the Princess after reading the passage.

“You don’t have to. The answers will be revealed in time, but I urge you to take great caution in the road ahead and trust in yourself,” told the Princess, as she placed a hoof on Amber’s shoulder. Amber looked down and didn’t say a word as she stayed in deep thought, wonder, and worry.

Midnight struck the night sky as the moon reached her zenith and lit up the top of every building, tree and reflective face of snow in the valley that within lay Ponyville. Along the newly snow covered streets walked Amber. She decided to go and visit Derpy to see how she was doing. To be honest, the Princess suggested it. Though Amber had thought of doing so, she originally had decided not to because she didn’t want to crowd a pony who she didn’t even know, even if she had saved her and she would like to know how they were doing.

Amber walked up to the door of the Post Office and lifted up a hoof to knock, only for the door to open, showing Freefall and the gray Pegasus, Derpy, that she had helped save nearly three weeks ago.

“Amber?” exclaimed Freefall. “What are you doing here? Oh my Luna, can we get you anything? Derpy, we have a guest. Would you mind if we catch the next showing and stop to invite Amber... Remember the pony who saved you? Lets invite her in for a muffin and some tea or milk?”

“Yes, yes, of course. Who’s here?” asked Derpy as she trotted down the hallway to where Amber and Freefall were.

“Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. Yay!” exclaimed Derpy as she ran towards Amber and tripped on her own feet. “Ouch. Amber’s here! Amber’s here!”

“Are you ok, Derpy?” Amber asked with a bemused look on her face as she watched the grey Pegasus get back up, only for her to bounce up and down and then abruptly give her a big hug, which Amber couldn’t help but smile at.

“We’ve all been so worried. Are you ok? Are all you boo boos gone?” asked Derpy as she looked up and then pulled open Amber’s wing and then leg to inspect them with a magnifying glass. Amber giggled and smiled, looking towards a very amused Freefall, who could barely control his laughter as he closed the door.

“Oh no! You are still hurt,” said Derpy, as she stopped to look at the healing wound on her neck. Derpy looked up with sadness and worry, as Freefall became serious, and looked to Amber.

“That one is new and not from that battle. Where did you get it?” asked Freefall.

“It’s okay. It doesn’t hurt, and it’s healing on it’s own time. Some of my friends have been helping me with it,” Amber said, moving to cover the wound as she looked down at Derpy.

“You’re avoiding the question, Amber. Where did you get it?” asked Freefall more firmly.

Amber looked up and sighed, “I got it from an obake who bit me here in Ponyville in the last attack.” Freefall groaned and shook his head.

“Ooo. Ooo. Who has been helping you make it better? The Princess?” Asked Derpy.

“My, you’re just full of questions today, Derpy, but I think it’s best that we all sit down in the kitchen and relax as you make us some of your famous carrot muffins and tea,” said Freefall, as he smiled at Derpy, who was still clung to Amber.

“Yay!” she said as she ran down the hallway and tripped in the same spot again. “Oops. My bad.”

Amber and Freefall chuckled under their breath, trying to keep quiet. She could see why, if anyone could… how this little filly could melt the Captain. She was absolutely pure joy.

“Amber, you were bedridden during the battle. Where did you really get that?” asked Freefall sternly.

“I got out of my bed and made it to the battle to do what I could,” she looked down and began walking down the hall to the kitchen that Derpy had disappeared into.

“You can’t be serious,” exclaimed Freefall as he grabbed Amber’s shoulder and pulled her back to his frightened, almost angry face. “You actually got out of bed…! You could have been killed in your condition just with the flight over!”

“I couldn’t just do nothing! I can’t sit back and watch things happen. I have to try and keep trying. If I can make even the smallest difference, I will try even if I fail. I will try with all that I have. I won’t stop,” said Amber as she turned away to begin walking again, only to be pulled into a big hug.

“You drive us all crazy, Amber. I mean for Luna’s sake, we all care for you. It hurts us to see you put yourself through hell. It’s no wonder the Captain is practically going mad.”

“What do you mean?” asked Amber, pulling out of the hug.

Freefall began walking to the kitchen and sighed, “I know that you see it in him too. He’s changing. He’s closing himself off, which is not making anything better. He’s so scared that he’ll hurt somepony.”

“I know that he cares, but he doesn’t show it and that makes me wonder and worry.”

“Are you kidding me,” exclaimed Freefall. “He likes you. You might have not seen it or have misidentified it, but he cares for you a lot. That’s why he separates himself from you.” She dropped her head and sighed.

Freefall placed a gentle hoof on her shoulder and said, “He may shut you out mentally, but he can’t do that emotionally. To be blunt, I don’t think anyone could with the fiery warm heart that you have.”

He patted her shoulder and trotted off into the kitchen. Amber walked into the kitchen in deep thought as Derpy placed the warm fresh muffins onto the table and Freefall gathered the hot steaming pot of lemon grass tea.

“Oooo. Oooo. Please come sit beside me, Amber,” smiled Derpy. Amber couldn’t help but smile in return. After enjoying a few cups of tea and the laughter of what she thought was the beginning of a really great new friendship, Amber had left the Post Office and begun a calm walk through Ponyville before she decided to take off.

Amber walked along and between the many buildings and boutiques, just simply enjoying the cold winter night air. Funny, she never liked the cold, but for some reason, she felt calmed by it and not cold at all. The chill nearly gave her a headache, but she still felt like the cold had calmed the over heated and overworked flame that was herself. She stopped to look around her, seeing all of the dark windows and closed doors during the night. It was a shame that more ponies didn’t enjoy the night. Though she could see all of the snow and buildings before her, Amber, through the sight of her mind, felt like she was in a land without time as she remembered all of the good and bad in her life. She was surprised that she smiled at some of the smallest things when the bigger things and accomplishments that she had seemed to be huge, but at the same time seemed trivial. She should be proud of them, but she wasn’t and she didn’t understand that or why she felt this way. Did she feel that she couldn’t own up to something? It just seemed that no matter what she did, that any accomplishment she made just wouldn’t give her any worth. There were so many other ponies out there that had done so much more than her, that had made a greater difference. She guessed it was the latter reason.

With a numb disconnected look, she sadly smiled. She shouldn’t compare herself to others, but for some reason she celebrated her achievements for milliseconds of what she should. She felt that her achievements weren’t that grand, that that there was always some other pony out there who was better then you, but also one that was always worse off than you. The cold facts had some truth behind them and that made her feel that she had a very trivial existence.

Good Luna, she was already falling back into that cycle. She looked up to realize that she had been walking without paying attention. She decided to walk back the other way, when she realized that somepony was behind her. It was the Captain. He hesitated when she noticed him but then started to walk towards her with a serious somber face. She became scared of what he was going to say in that moment.

Chapter 11:

Amber, despite being scared, walked towards him. She could feel that flame inside her ripple with life. She knew that if she felt she had the strength in that moment, she would confront him about everything she felt because she knew that it was the right thing, but instead she felt weak and powerless to do so in the manner she intended. She would like to do this with strength, but could instead feel herself close in on herself, just to keep herself in control and in check.

“Good evening, Soul,” he said. Amber looked up at his stone stare and felt herself break inside and so she looked down.

“Hello,” she said, almost whispering under her breath as his shoulders sank when he sighed in response. “Captain, I...”

“Yes, Soul?”

“I... I want you to stop it. I feel like you’re going to destroy yourself. It’s building each time you pull away and… and… I’ve had enough of standing back as you continue to keep beating yourself up,” she spoke as her voice and tone grew until she was nearly screaming the last half, as tears started to fall from her eyes. She knew he had become angry as she looked up into his face.

“And what about you, huh? You do the exact same thing. You’re so damn stubborn that it just won’t get through your thick skull,” he said with an angry tone. Amber gasped in a breath and bit down so as to control and keep herself from crying, even though the semi-silent tears kept falling.

“I’m leaving, Amber. And I’m not coming back. I’ve hurt someone I care about, and now they’re crying. I’ve failed.”

“Like hell you have! Good Luna, I don’t care about the mistakes you make! I care about what you do about them. You’re just one pony. You’re going to make mistakes. Mistakes are inevitable. Just keep trying to fix them. Don’t run away like a damn coward! Nothing could hurt me more then you leaving like this. Please don’t do this,” she spoke with great emotion as the tears flowed in each sentence, either in sadness or anger. She always had been a passionate pony, and she had in this rant let the main chains break apart as she finally let her true emotions flow. She grabbed hold of herself literally just to keep herself from physically falling down, as she couldn’t hold back her hiccups and gasps as she truly started to cry.

All of a sudden, an obake holding a giant spider’s shape jumped from the rooftop. Amber gasped before it landed, only noticing its energy just before the obake decided to attack. She looked up only to see the spider spray a stream of web onto the Captain, who was caught just as off guard as she, hadn’t even had the time to draw a sword. He grunted and then yelled in defiance as he began to fight the web that was on him just before the spider had landed squarely on him, forcing him to the ground.

“Noooooo!” screamed Amber as she lunged in, only for two large smoky wolf shaped obake to come out to bite and hold the Captain down more firmly.

“No! Amber get out of here,” he yelled as he attempted to kick the wolves away from biting his ankles. The spider shaped obake turned to her, just as she hesitated at the Captain’s order, only to spray her down with the sticky webbing. Unable to make any fire inside the webbing, even if she had her full powers back, she could only see through the white layer that covered her from head to hoof. She felt like she was going to stop breathing as she watched the black form of an obake slither toward the still struggling and fighting Captain, who was trapped under the webbing.

“No!” screamed Amber as she watched the form grow into that of a snake, only for the creature to bite into the Captain’s neck. His breath shot out of his body at the undesired strike and invasion. Amber struggled to stand as the web continued to strangle and hold her down until another wolf shaped obake ran in, biting her on the withers to hold her firmly down. A breath left her chest as the obake’s teeth bit down, just as the Captain’s eyes opened wide to look at her, only for them to slowly flutter and fall down. Amber began crying, thinking that he had been killed by venom that she knew had been pumped into him.

Sombre interrupted her sobbing, chuckling as he walked around the corner of the building. She could feel the malevolence in his now solid physical form as he placed a hoof under her chin. The air around him firm in the fact that he was here to stay as he tilted her chin up to see her tears. She breathed deep with her eyes closed, gathering her strength. Her eyes shot open as she dared to glare into the eyes of her enemy.

“Heh, heh, heh. You dare defy me?” stated Sombre as he smiled at her predicament. She growled in response as she began to struggle.

He chuckled, “I presume yes is the answer.” His face then swiftly changed in an angry flash as he lifted his hoof back and punched her in the face, knocking her out.

It seemed to be the darkest night as the Captain awoke from the hold of the venom. Groggy as he was, he couldn’t see a speck of moonlight through the windows. Everything was dark as the moon was not strong enough to cut through the thick clouds that hid her gaze. These clouds were not natural, he thought. Then he remembered... Sombre. Adrenaline shot through his body, clearing his mind. He could finally see where he was, in the old castle ruins just on the outskirts of the Everfree forest.

He tried to move and found that he was chained up by a wooden frame, front hooves pulled up and to either side as his rear hooves were chained down to the stone flooring. He began to struggle, and ended up finding no point to the chains. The sound of hooves clip clopped behind him as a deep laughter opened up into the room.

“Sombre,” growled the Captain. Sombre chuckled as he walked around from behind the Captain and into full sight.

“Simply wonderful. It’s a gracious thing that you have finally been able to visit my current home. Bring her out,” he commanded. Looking to his left, the Captain could see the doors of the old ballroom open to show a unconscious Amber, also strung up by chains to a rolling frame.

“No, Soul,” the Captain said as he lurched forward but was stopped by the tangle of the chains constraining him. The two spider formed obake rolled her over to where the Captain was and faced her towards him as they chained her, just twenty feet in front of him.

He began to growl, “If you lay a hoof on her...”

Sombre began to laugh, “And what are you going to do to stop me? The venom in you has weakened you to the point of not being able to break the bonds that originally you could have blasted out of, so long as you were able to change, which you aren’t capable of either.” The Captain felt so debilitated as he ground his teeth.

“Enter,” cried Sombre, looking toward the large open doors as soon, shadows of thousands of obakes entered the large ballroom. “My daemons. Tonight we feast on the blood of our enemies to gain strength for the next confrontation. Behold the healer… and the protector. Their blood is the key to superior strength and rejuvenation. Come and drink the blood of life.”

Sombre drew a dagger and had then slowly brought it to the side of the Captain’s neck. The bite of the cold metal blade stung only for a moment as the Captain gritted his teeth as his beast burned within him. This was one of the first times that he had agreed with the invasion as he growled at Sombre, who lifted his blade towards his face and while looking him in the eye, licked the blade clean of his blood and smiled while his cloud of warriors slowly descended upon him. Sombre began to laugh as the Captain grunted and growled as he felt the searing sting of teeth and fang pierce through his flesh. It started with his neck, moving to both sides. The captain didn’t care, but he couldn’t hold back every slice of pain as each obake took their drink. No, he kept his eyes on his enemy, and on what he was doing, swearing pain upon him should he harm Amber. Sombre smiled at the Captain as he turned to Amber’s still form and lifted his blade, moving to her neck.

“If you dare... No. No. Amber!” spoke the Captain as the group of feasting obake soon blocked his entire view as they full out attacked him, letting their gluttony for his blood consume them until they had bitten him in many places. Soon two were attached, each to one of his four legs and even his sides were torn horribly as a smaller obake bit deeply into his side, joined by another on his flank. He soon lost consciousness as he began to lose more blood than he could give, thinking, “Oh good Luna, don’t let them kill her. Don’t let her die.”

Holly’s light green coat and cream mane glowed in the light of the streetlamp as she started walking back from the theater in Canterlot. As she headed back home, a clicking noise from behind her startled her. She turned frantically to see nothing behind her, just the lit up street lamp and the buildings that she had passed only a moment ago. She laughed at herself, thinking, “Well she was just being silly now. There was nothing behind her, and why should she even be scared. This was a wonderful neighborhood, and everypony, say for the common snob, was a nice pony in Canterlot.”

She continued walking, only to hear hissing behind her. She looked back to see nothing again. Stopping in the intersection of the two roads before her, she looked around, when in the distance of the south road she could see something shift in the shadows. She squinted her eyes and stepped forward a bit. Wait a minute, it wasn’t something in the shadows, it was the shadows. What was going on? She began to run in the opposite direction when the front most part of the shadow separated and took the form of a smoky wolf. The wolf lifted its head, took in a breath, and belted out a mighty howl, calling in the charge as the shadows charged into Canterlot.

Screams erupted as the shadows attacked each open home and window as the army swept through Canterlot’s Southern district. Holly ran as fast as she could, telling herself not to stop until she reached Princess Celestia or a royal guard, and faster she ran above all or less she be devoured by the monsters upon her tail.

“Princess! Princess Luna, an urgent message from your sister Princess Celestia in Canterlot,” spoke one of the guards of the New Lunar Republic.

Princes Luna was sitting in the throne room of the hidden Palace in the mountains, dealing with other paperwork, she answered plainly, “Then speak it swiftly.”

“Canterlot is under attack by a large army of strong daemons. The southern district may be lost. Requesting immediate assistance or lest the city and your sister be destroyed.”

“Assemble every available stallion,” the Princess spoke as she stood rightly up and made her way to the royal armory to suit up herself. “Guard, follow. Any point of entry we may take into the city to aid my sister?”

“Just the northern tunnel, but we must tread it cautiously,” the guard who had delivered the message spoke.

“Good. We will take the west tunnel out of the palace and enter via the northern tunnel into Canterlot. We leave as soon as everypony is ready. Call for the Captain,” commanded the Princess.

Freefall flew to the Princess’ side from the window and told her, “The Captain is missing, and the same with Ms. Nightsong. They have disappeared.”

The Princess stood silent as she stared at Freefall and then walked away. Freefall followed her for further orders as the Princess thought, ‘That is not good. They must have been taken. Good fade, help them, if any of the obake had a drink of either of their blood, they would be almost five times harder to expel from Canterlot.’

As the Princess commanded Freefall to help her suit up, she then spoke up after some thought, “The Captain and Ms. Nightsong have been taken by our enemies who will be almost impossible to beat after feasting on their blood. Until the Captain has been returned to us, I need you to lead the stallions. Do you feel up to the task at hoof? I feel that there is no other pony who can do this for Equestria any better in our current situation.”

Freefall looked gravely up at the Princess then stood fast before her and said, “Yes, my Princess. I will try my best to do our Captain proud until he returns to us.”

Chapter 12:

Amber felt drained and sore all over as she started to wake up out of the fog. She tried to clear her mind as she began to hear something in the distance. A voice? Who’s was it?

“Amber! Amber!” screamed the voice. Amber tried to lift her head and groaned in response to the voice and to the soreness and pain all over her body.

“Amber please... Amber. Wake up!” called the Captain’s voice. Amber ignored the pain and moved her head up as her eyes fluttered open.

“Captain?” she weakly asked even though she was trying to regain every ounce of strength she could. She looked up to see the Captain chained up against a frame, bitten raw to the point that he wasn’t even bleeding anymore from the wounds inflammation. His frantic eyes began to relax as she opened hers fully.

“Captain. Oh my Luna. Captain, your wounds,” she said only to shake her head to fully clear it further. She breathed in deep as she fought the wave of pain that came at her. She looking back at him. she wondered why she hurt so much but was more concerned for him at the current time. She tried to move towards him but only to realize that her hoofs were chained up just like his.

“Captain, are you ok?” she asked with a worried look on her face.

“Amber, stop. Please don’t be worried about me. Worry about yourself. You’re going to bleed out if you don’t stop moving. Did you even care to look at your condition,” he asked in complete worry. She looked down at herself to see the very same wounds that he had. Hesitating to think, or more to float off a bit into a daze for a moment at her situation. She, in that moment finally looked around to see that they were in the old ruins that Luna and her sister Celestia once had shared.

Laughter erupted in the ballroom as the doors to the right of Amber opened up. Sombre and his army had returned.

“Ah. You’re awake my sweet bride,” Sombre said as he walked over and placed a hoof under her chin.

“Don’t you bloody touch her!” shouted the Captain.

“Oh shut up Captain Earthstrider. She was never yours to being with,” Sombre said as he turned to the Captain and smiled ruefully. “No you never accepted her, did you? You just shut her out.”

He chuckled as the Captain lowered his head and shut up, but kept focus on watching Sombre as he turned back to Amber, who was almost going into shock, she was so still. Damn, she still had not regained her strength and composure to deal with this. With her doe eyes, she turned her head away from Sombre’s hold and gaze. She wanted to be defiant but currently felt like she couldn’t even breathe. She felt as if her mind was awake but in nothing but a fog. She felt like a doll to the point where she could barely think. What was wrong with her?

Sombre chuckled, “Heh, heh. You should have known that she would have ended up with another. Did you really think that she wouldn’t have in the end?”

The Captain growled and began to struggle against the chains as Sombre looked back at him and began to laugh. He abruptly dropped Amber’s chin and turned to his daemons lurking in the shadows of the ballroom. Amber realized that she barely had the strength to hold her head up in that moment. She drooped as the chains holding her up giggled. She barely lifted her head and stayed looking down. She felt like she couldn’t look at him when she felt so weak.

“My warriors. We have been successful in taking the southern and western districts. Tonight we prepare and rest for tomorrow when we take the rest of Canterlot, and then all of Equestria,” spoke Sombre as the ruins roared in victorious cries. “And once we have drained the protector, our kind Captain here, of all of his energy and blood then his secret beast will have nothing left to focus it, or control it.”

The Captain looked terrified, as he softly said, “No.”

“Along with the strength we will gain from his blood, we will unleash the beast upon Equestria!” cried Sombre, as his laugh and cheers from the daemons surrounded every nook and cranny of the dark broken cracked stone palace. “And…! With my healer bride, I shall obtain unlimited power of regeneration and strength.”

The Captain struggled to free himself from his bonds. Amber gasped in response to Sombre’s plans for her whilst his laughter tormented her. She was so shocked by everything that was happening, and though she was unintentionally displacing herself from the matter, she knew deep down that it was really happening. She knew that what was happening now was the truth.

“No,” her voice barely carried on her almost non-existent breath. A silent tear fell from her eye.

The Captain sighed, “Amber. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I failed you, and not even from some stupid mistake. I’m no good to you. I couldn’t save you from this fate.”

He looked at her and then down as he continued, “I’m so far gone that I couldn’t even control it and concentrate on our surroundings to stop this from happening. I… I don’t know what to do.”

Amber began crying. It wasn’t his fault. She would blame herself. She wasn’t strong enough to do anything. She lost her fire, and now it seemed her spirit. She began sobbing.

“Oh, don’t cry my bride,” Sombre said sweetly, only to smack her. “I mean it. You will live, silently, and obediently for my purpose only. And you will give me foals of great ability and you will do it all to save his life, to prolong his death.”

Amber couldn’t feel the smack, or the red sting on her cheek. She could hear the Captain growling and his chains rattling. She looked up to see his eyes flash red.

Under her breath she said, “No.”

“What!” Sombre said as he shook the chains attached to her hoofs making her moan in pain.

“I will not yield for his safety,” she strongly said as she breathed.

“What! And why not?” he said with one of the most malicious faces she had ever seen, meanwhile hers remained still, strong, and lifeless.

“I know how you feel about him,” he said, shaking her chains again.

“That’s why,” she said, gasping at the pain.

“Because I know he would not want me to sacrifice myself for him. He would not want me to sacrifice my happiness. And he above all would rather die then remain alive as your bloody slave!” she screamed, as strength and fire flowed through her.

“And nor would I,” she spoke, as she glared up at him without fear. She didn’t care. And she knew what she spoke was the truth. She would rather save him, but she knew that he would never forgive her. Even if she wanted to hold him alive more than anything, feeling that losing him was the worst unbearable thought ever. She knew that if she had to choose between something that benefited her versus something that benefited him, she would always hope to choose him. And in this case she knew that he would rather death, just as she would.

Sombre was shocked at the now tear streaked mare’s stubborn determined face. And then smiled as he said, “Then you can watch as everything that makes you care about him dies. Take your fill, my daemons!”

“NOOOOO!” screamed Amber, as the Captain clenched his teeth, and grunted and groaned as each daemon took hold a stronger, deeper bite atop of his already sore, painful, and swollen wounds. Time faded into air as they each took a drink of what little blood was left. The torture seemed to never end in the slowed dimension of time.

“No. Captain. No,” she called out as she struggled against the chains with unrealized strength. Amber began to weep anew as Sombre walked over and grabbed her chin. He lifted her chin roughly and kissed her squarely on the lips. She struggled against his hold and then bit him hard, ripping open his bottom lip.

“You bloody broad,” he yelled as he smacked her so hard that she could see stars.

Just as the moon began to set and the stars began to disappear into the daylight that began to shine over the eastern hills, the final pony from the northern district entered the castle and into the ballrooms that had hidden the frightened civilian ponies of Canterlot. All of Canterlot had been evacuated as soon as the confrontation had begun in the Southern district. Every ballroom was in use as a temporary shelter as every able pony had come together to barricade the windows and arrange food and bedding for everypony to gain rest from the panic and chaos. Save for the largest ballroom in the palace that is, which was used as the current emergency medical bay. Nearly every current bed was filled with both Lunar and Solar Guards. Many were not so lucky as the fallen were still left unseen and out of reach to be given a proper burial that these brave soldiers deserved.

Any exhausted soldiers were commanded to rest for the next confrontation as any capable soldier, both Solar and Lunar alike either built or guarded the barricade that had been set both around the sheltered civilians, palace, and then the remaining districts, both the Northern and Eastern. The soldiers seemed to care not as they fought alongside each other. New friendships were formed as they worked together to protect the ponies of Equestria. No matter their differences, they accepted each other’s help and returned the favor in kind as true warriors worthy of honor and respect.

“Sister… What would you like us to do?” asked Luna, as she stood just behind her sister, Princess Celestia, who was overlooking the city below on the balcony just after she had finished rising the sun for the new day. Luna stepped towards her as she closed the balcony doors behind her.

“I know nothing of these creatures, nor that you had been building this secret republic behind my back and against my wishes,” she had spoken strongly and turned back to look at her sister who had looked down at her gaze in both respect and blame upon herself.

Her sister then smiled and spoke kindly, “I could never be more glad that it existed then I do today. We may be day and night, sister, but the only way that we could unite Equestria in this manner was by accepting all of our differences and strengths. I thought that your Republic would have torn our society apart with confrontation if our differences were brought to light. When instead it enabled us to unite them together. And rather then bringing us distain and discord it has brought us greater strength in all fields of this battle. Thank you, dear sister. Without you and your faithful members of the New Lunar Republic, I fear that this battle may have been a single confrontation win.”

“Celestia, I…” started Princess Luna.

Celestia placed a hoof on Luna’s shoulder as she continued, “You know more about this enemy then I do. You shall do the leading, for only through your knowledge can we defeat Sombre and his army again.”

“Celestia, I am blessed to accept this imperative role,” Princess Luna bowed.

“No, arise dear sister,” said Celestia as she bowed in turn. “Now what do we do?”

Luna lifted her head higher and asked, “What is our current condition? Once we are better situated, we can begin to arrange ourselves to strike back at the enemy. I have a plan to take back Canterlot, and my Captain and Lady who are the key to defeating Sombre. If only they can realize it.”

Chapter 13:

Within Amber’s view, she could see the Captain’s currently blurry form, blurry from her brain being bashed around in her skull after that last smack. The Captain’s body slumped down, almost spent, almost drained dry, as the last obake took their fill. Amber shook her head and focused on the Captain, as she began to struggle in earnest.

“Captain! Captain! No, look at me. Captain?” she asked, pulling herself as far forward as she could.

“Now, it’s my turn,” Sombre smiled as he walked towards the Captain.

“Don’t touch him,” she screamed.

“No! Stop! Captain!” she continued though she knew that she couldn’t do anything to help him. She watched as Sombre chuckled with that same evil smile and bit firmly into the Captain’s neck.

“Captain, no!” she screamed as Sombre abruptly backed away just at the moment that the Captain had screamed a monstrous cry of rage. His body convulsed as his eyes flashed red. Ripping the chains from their hold, a red light flashed over his entire body, replacing him with a beast. A dark monster with red eyes, a black coated body with a horse’s hind hooves and legs, a wolf’s face, a lion’s mane and chest with sharp rods protruding from around his neck, leading into two front paws filled with metal claws that would kill you in one fatal swipe the moment you came near.

The monster screamed and turned to grab the nearest obake by the throat, shredding it into unidentifiable pieces. Amber’s tears fell silently as she watched the monster’s muzzle and chest begin to glisten in a river of black blood from the obake as if the Captain was demanding the return of his blood back, only it was too tainted to drink.

Sombre laughed, “He doesn't know friend from foe now. Wolves, bait him into the tunnels of Canterlot. With our newly found strength and our beast, we will bring Equestria down to her knees.”

“No. Captain. No. No,” Amber pleaded as she began to mutter, her voice lowering down into a whisper.

“Ah, my bride. I'll see you join me in battle too. I should enjoy a drink every now and then as I take over the last of Canterlot,” he said, as he magically released her bonds and grabbed her mane, dragging her towards the monster rampaging near the exit. Amber slumped as pain bit at her scalp and strength barely enabled herself to stand in spite of the small amount of remaining blood that she had left within her. She ignored that and watched as the monster that was the Captain fought against those surrounding him.

She softly began to mumble, “No. No. No. No. NOOOOOOOO!” She, without thinking sent an unrealized and small flame out at Sombre who let go to defend himself but wasn’t quick enough and was still hit on the flank by the singeing fire. Amber ran to the beast that was the Captain and tackled him square on the chest, ignoring the bite of the steel on her neck and shoulder.

“You don't need to know what to do! You don’t need to know who or what you are! You just need to know whom you care for! And just because you don't know what to do doesn't mean that you have given up. It just means you haven't found the answer. Don't be scared of the unknown, Captain. Because I'm just as scared as you. Be scared of giving up. Not of failing and trying again,” Amber said, as she clung to the growling monster, unafraid by what she was physically touching for who she knew she was emotionally holding dear. The beast struck fast and bit Amber on the withers, shaking her and then slamming her to the ground. Before the beast lunged to tear open her throat, Amber smiled.

He struck, making her gasp as she said, “I love you.” It was the first time she said it, though she knew it deep down for so long. Amber’s eyes began to flutter down. Most ponies saw their life flash before their eyes, but Amber instead took a selfish moment and thought about herself for once. She was so stubborn, and she knew so much and yet nothing at all, and she was terrified of failing at everything. After all, she was a good for nothing useless pony, and she was raised to believe it, but hiding and pushing herself with harsh words and controlling measures wasn't going to help her, and she knew that. It was like she was treating herself like her father did so long ago.

She didn't understand how to pull out all the nails that she herself had allowed to be hammered in. She had left those nail in there alone to rust and rot, along with all the nails that she had herself put in to bully and push herself to succeed. She internally sighed, old habits died hard and it was going to be a challenge requiring a shit ton of patience, but she was going to try. Even if she didn't know where to begin and even if this was goodbye, she would survive and live because her soul was eternal and filled with fire. Amber’s eyes closed as she passed on and died.

Freefall lifted himself up after dispatching the dark form of an obake that had the form of a raccoon dog. Shining with the sleek reflection of moonlight on black oil he lifted his blade. The enemy was stronger, and their form was more solid than ever as they bled black blood rather than nothing at all. Normally, one slice with a blade would go straight through them to the other side, as if they were nothing but air. Now his blade actually sliced flesh, leaving a thin line of oil to leak and drip away from the open wound. On any mortal the slice would have opened a gash all the way down to bone, but not on these obake. Only the thin cut ever showed, and not only that their thick skin and larger mass now meant that it took three strikes to the heart to open the flesh up before you could even reach the heart before you could even think of dealing the final blow.

Thrusting his body up many feet into the air, Freefall then dived down at the enemy, thrusting his blade forward as he began to spin. He graciously thanked the Captain for teaching him this maneuver. It exhausted him and required a lot of skill to use it, but it was the only thing that could kill these things in one blow. As his form passed over the large golden moon, his focus on his target as he buried his sword straight through the spider form of an obake, only for him to flip off from his blade to throw three daggers at the black form of a snake. The obake ended up pinned against a tree. Freefall walked back to grab his sword. Maneuvering in front of the wounded obake he lifted his oil slicked blade, and with a mighty swing, sliced the obake’s heart straight into two, along with the rest of its body. So long as the heart is destroyed, the daemon would die with it.

Gathering his blades, Freefall turned to see his comrades ahead dealing with the last obake on this street. He galloped over to see that Nightshade had a gash on his hind leg and neck, while their new comrade, Blight from the Solar Empire, had a limp and a cut along his face.

“Sir, that’s the last of the runners,” relayed Nightshade.

“Good job everypony. Hurry, we must get you back to the Palace, you are both spent and need first aid,” said Freefall as he began to trot

“With all do respect sir, I wish to keep fighting,” stated Blight as he trotted alongside Freefall with a limp and a grimace. Freefall stopped dead in his tracks as the two stallions stopped in front of him.

“Do you think that you can do it?” he asked as he walked up to Blight. “In your condition?”

He didn’t smile. Usually an easygoing and all around fun stallion to be around, Freefall was utterly serious and stone cold calm like he was on the battlefield, which was why his comrades trusted him as a warrior and not as a unreliable jokester. Moving with a blinding pace, despite his exhaustion, Freefall dashed in and spun to kick Blight’s hind leg that carried the limp. Blight screamed out loud as he fell down to the cold night dirt and began holding his leg. Freefall could hear the grind of the broken bone inside his leg. Freefall only touched it with a very light kick that wouldn’t even leave a bruise.

“Quiet. No amount of TLC is going to stop that leg from hurting. You are not in shape to fight. You’ll be killed on the spot, get that through your head. That limp is an obvious weakness that even a foal would know to go for,” said Freefall, as he grabbed one small piece of wood, two large branches from a tree, and ripped three long pieces of cloth from his uniform.

“I will not see a member of my unit, and definitely not my new friend die because I let him be foolish. I will not let you destroy yourself. Not again,” he continued, thinking of the Captain and how foolish he was to let his one of his closest friends and comrades drive himself to who the hell knew where he was and what condition he was in now. He wouldn’t stand back and watch as somepony’s pride destroyed themselves again.

Freefall aligned the wood along the leg and said, “Brace yourself. I will have to set it. Bite down on this. Nightshade, hold him still.” Freefall offered the small wooden stick to Blight and nodded at Nightshade. After a quick scan for enemies, he looked at where the bumps and bruises were on Blights leg and swiftly grabbed, pushed, and twisted the leg until the bone was set into proper place. Blight bit down hard as his muffled scream erupted from his throat, which jerked in a sharp pull as the pain spiked through his body.

After quickly tying the split tightly into place, Freefall swung Blight’s slightly smaller body over his shoulder and onto his back as he began to trot back to the palace. Freefall had Nightshade cover their back as they retreated back to base. Looking up to the light of the moon, amongst a sky that held no stars tonight, he decided to instead wish upon the moon that his Captain and Ms. Soulfire were safe and that if they were fighting, that they would give the enemy a run for their money. They had taken back Canterlot, now they were going to take back their friends.

A minute after Amber had died, the monster had dropped her lifeless body and backed off, shaking from head to toe as he shook his head. From Amber’s bleeding and beaten body, a blue flame rose from her breast. The beast’s shaking body had turned, only to grab and rip apart another obake into five solid pieces that disintegrated into air. Letting out an agonizing roar, the beast ran head on into a standing pillar, again, and again, and again, bashing his head in until it started to bleed. The blue flame rose up into the air until it reached the middle of the room and floated there while the obake backed away from the flame and the beast.

A wolf’s howl erupted into the night sky and to the ballroom, as the moon’s face broke through the dark clouds. Sombre cantered over to the window as an injured daemon with the shape of a large black spider entered the Ballroom. Climbing down to Sombre, the spider began to rapidly click and squeal at Sombre.

“What!? Well don’t just stand there! Everyone, get out there. Get moving or lest our enemies push into our territory now. Damn it. Damn it!” he screamed.

“Well played. Well played my bright little stone,” he said, looking to the moon as he began to growl.

“Kill him! He’s no use to us now that he’s like this,” commanded Sombre as he looked at the beast while he walked towards the ballroom exit. The moment he passed into the middle of the room and under the blue floating flame was the moment that the strange blue fire above him condensed in on itself, bursting forth in a blinding black light traveling out in a wide circle. All the obake and oni screamed as they were incinerated. Amber’s body was consumed by the light, only to end up bursting into flame and dissipating into the atmosphere as pure energy. Sombre was the first thing enveloped by the light as his form disappeared into nothingness, followed by the entire room.

The black light then condensed back into a form standing in the middle of the room. It was Amber’s soul shaped by a blue flame, bearing nothing upon her, nor wings or a horn. Her pure blue flame body rippled in the wind as suddenly stallions of both the Solar Empire and the New Lunar Republic charged into the ballroom only to see Amber without knowing who or what she was.

Chapter 14:

The air whistled as multiple spears and arrows cut through the air at the fiery blue form standing in the middle of the ballroom. Her glow was neither light nor dark. It didn’t brighten the room like the blaze of the sun, or make a dim gentle glow around her like that of the moon. It was like the glow of her flame that resonated within her elemental form. In response to the attack of spears and arrows that were thrown and fired upon her, Amber reared up, striking the air with her hooves. The legs formed by flames rippled in the air as a cry erupted from her voice in the most iridescent and clear notes and tones as her firewall arose in front of her turning, all of the spears and arrows into ash that silently and gently fell to the cracked ballroom floor.

“Cease fire!” commanded Princess Luna as she entered the room in full gear.

“Amber!?” the Princess asked. Amber looked puzzled but then shook her head and blinked a few times realizing then who she was.

“Princess Luna?” Amber almost whispered. She was so quiet as she bowed with grace and remained there with perfect stillness. The Princess Luna looked about the once grand ballroom at the now burnt blood that adorned the once clear floor.

“Sombre?” the Princess asked, as a whimper erupted from behind the old cracked throne.

She smiled as she spoke softly, “Oh Sombre. Are we playing hide and seek?”

Taking flight with gentleness and grace, Princess Luna hovered over the stone throne and looked behind it to see a little dark gray colt who gasped and ran to the other side when she saw him.

“Oh Sombre, it's ok. Nopony is going to hurt you. You can come out now,” she said as she flew to the few steps just before the throne. Landing on the edge of them, still on the thrones platform.

“Why?” he asked in a small quivering child’s voice.

His head dropped in shame and sadness as he continued, “Don't you hate me? After all that I’ve done.”

“That's up for debate, Sombre,” Amber said as she walked silently up the steps, save for the ripples of her flame in the wind.

She giggled as he made a face, “Even after all that, we don't hate you. At least I don’t. Some may dislike you, and mistrust you for a time. And I can’t say I’m not one of them. But the good ponies… ponies like me, and the Princess will forgive you.”

“Even if you have been a bad pony in the past, it doesn't mean that you’re going to be a bad pony forever,” continued the Princess.

“Really?” Sombre asked, looking up as he sniffled.

“The possibilities are endless when you keep trying. Right Luna?” said Amber.

“Always,” she replied smiling.

Amber turned around to where the Captain was last seen. She stepped forward in complete silence as a sad look leaked into the eyes of her still face.

“Give him time, Amber,” Princess Luna said as she placed an unafraid hoof on her fiery shoulder. The flame did not burn. It was like the flame was an aura around her. Only burning those who intended harm upon her. Amber’s blue flame then began to melt away, leaving behind her true physical and alive form as if she never died in the first place. The flames traveled up her legs, and along her tail and nose as the collective pieces of flame gathered onto her back and sprouted forth in the shape of two flame wings. The flames then dissipated in a chattering mini blast that touched nothing but did its purpose in revealing her wings, which she gently folded against her back.

“He knows, but he must find his own answers,” Princess Luna continued as she turned and walked around to face in front of Amber.

“I know. I just wish that… I didn't feel like I have to chain myself and hold back from him as I wait,” she replied, looking to the floor.

Princess Luna lifted her chin and spoke, “Who said you had to? You love him. Don't kill your heart each time he feels he has to do this.”

“But it hurts when I do. Even if I hold back just to save myself a bit and feel numb, it’s the same.”

“That's not the answer and you know it. Sometimes to find the right answer, you have to ask yourself the right questions first.”

“Really?” Amber asked as the Princess nodded as she picked up the sleepy little dark gray colt that was Sombre.

“So, what is the real question, Amber?”

Amber thought about it for a second and then spoke, “If those are the options then.. it… it’s about… which option I would prefer. Not for him, but for me.”

“Go home, Amber,” said Princess Luna. “He'll find his way in time.”

Amber passed the standing soldiers as she walked through the ballroom door, taking flight as she entered the now clear calm night sky. Heading for her home, the willow, she took the chance to enjoy the forest below and valley beyond. She felt not entirely at peace, but was simply happy to be feeling her own emotions clearly for once. Even if those emotions were causing the small watery tears to fall from her eyes. She began to cry as she reached the willow cliff top.

She landed smoothly, turned around, looked to the setting moon, and crumbled atop the cliffs edge. She lay down upon the snow as she gasped through tears. Then she looked up, and began to giggle at herself. Never before had she ever cried so much. She smiled, wiping away the salty tears that stained her cheeks. She guessed that sometimes things just were the way they were, and you couldn't stop them. Including feeling the way she did right now. She certainly was a silly filly.

Looking down at her hoof, she easily called fire to the smooth hard surface. Cutting off the blue flame, Amber breathed deep and looked within herself; the fire was back stronger than ever. She realized then that fire was life, because it was alive. Collecting all her thoughts, she realized that fire could be contained but not controlled. It rippled in the wind and grew and died depending on its surrounding. It wasn’t something that you could force. It was just as alive as anything else.

Thinking to herself she thought, ‘Then what is life?It is the cells in our bodies, the random luck, and simple chance of it having been created. Is it magic, which seemed to be just as alive as fire, though seeming to be just as difficult and yet easier at the same time to focus and control? Maybe it was the fire itself, and the will of life that came with it. And that was the reason why it can’t be controlled.’

Amber knew that it could be focused, but like the rippling waves of the sea, or the currents of the wind, fire moved. It was a movement, a motion, an emotion, and a dance. Fire couldn’t be forced; it had to be felt. If fire was to be focused properly it had to be allowed to move and accept the ripples in the wind. Only a mature flame could do this, for an immature one would become uncontrollable.

Like the beginning of a forest fire, wind could feed the fire’s anger to burn the way it wanted, and would in turn be stubborn and burn the forest. If still stubborn in its conquest, fire could be blown into another direction, overtaking a greater section of the forest as it flew across the grass, and leapt from tree to tree. If the flame would but become still enough to feel its own movement and emotion, and then learn to just roll with it…

She should have known. She should have known that it wasn’t within controlling the flame within her that would enable her to help others. It was within feeling her own self and emotions that she could let the flame within her breathe, and live. Her only concern was that if this was true, then fire couldn’t be controlled, only felt. It wasn’t through force that you could control a flame. It was through the understanding of its ripples.

She had to let her emotions flow. It wasn’t always a bad thing when she was sad and crying for almost no reason, just as it wasn’t a bad thing to be happy for the weirdest reasons. She worried that this was bipolar, but then realized that it wasn’t. It was simply hypersensitivity. The smallest of reasons could affect her. Lifting her into joy or sorrow. Worry would become doubt, doubt would become fear, and fear would become great sadness and suffering. It was like fire was an amplifier of all of that.

Amber thought of the Captain, of Rio, and of how moments like these felt like she could do nothing but hold onto herself when she thought of him, and how everything else felt sluggish to her. She didn’t hold them back. If these were her true emotions, then she would let them flow as she should, for she knew that there was always something brighter awaiting her if she didn’t fight it, and if she accepted it.

The emotions ran through her quicker than she expected. She thought of all that worried her and saddened her, only to find the happy moments; moments of peace, laughter, happiness, and of moments that they had shared together. She fell for him all over again in her memories and felt that the smallest moments of all out weighed all else that tried to stop it. She found that she wouldn’t trade one moment of sadness or happiness, because in the end, after searching through it all she felt so happy that the tears that fell from her cheeks now, where tears of happiness.

The leaves and brush behind her moved. She turned to search the dark forest behind her home. The leaves opened up to the form of the Captain's monster as he walked through the green foliage towards her, growling as he approached. Amber sat up, still facing the open air after the cliff as she twisted her equine body towards him and wiped the tears from her eyes. She smiled as the beast stopped in his tracks, a mere ten feet from her.

“I thought that you wouldn't come back,” she said. The monster seemed to be struck stupid but then lowered his head and stance, and earnestly growled at her.

“You’re mad at me, aren't you,” she asked. He sneezed in response and then turned as if to leave.

“You’re going to make mistakes,” she blurted out, making him stop in his tracks.

“And I'm going to make mistakes. And I don't care. Please, listen to me and believe me. I don't care! I care for you. But I won't put up with any of your bullshit like what you’re pulling right now, but I will forgive you. And that forgiveness is my choice not yours as to whom I forgive, whether you believe it’s right or wrong is your opinion. You can't control everything, and nor can I. And shit is… and will happen. It’s inevitable. So I don't care,” she realized then that she had stood up and faced him as she nearly screamed out the last of what she was blurting out. The monster began growling as he turned and began to stalk her, only for him to crouch and lunge at her, jumping on top of her as he bared his teeth.

She punched him as hard as she could in the chest with her left hoof, then punched his face with her right when he dared to show fangs at her as she landed on her back, bearing an angry growl of her own. His face had turned to the side from her punch as his lips fell down and into a normal position. He then turned his head and looked at her.

“Screw you!” she screamed at him as the beast began to chuckle. His voice moving from the beasts deep angry tone into the deep light tone of the Captain’s as the monster’s fur grew long and then fell off as if it melted away. After a light sneeze in response to all of the fur that had landed on her nose, she realized that the Captain, that Rio, was laughing on top of her. She broke into a massive smile as she beamed back at him.

“You brat,” she said as she shook her head and crossed her front legs. She turned away and began to pout, trying to be mad at him. He chuckled at her attempted pout and smiled at her. She looked up at him and then found that she just couldn't be mad at him anymore as she broke into a massive smile, because she was just so happy for him to be here. He placed a hoof on her face and became serious, almost sad in a way as a tear began to form in his eye.

“I'm sorry. I'm so sorry,” he said as he hugged her and kept murmuring the apology over and over again.

“Rio,” she said softly. “Rio. Rio, it's okay stop. Please, it's okay you're going to make me cry. Rio please stop. Please, and I'm sorry too but please…”

He lifted his head and looked at her face that actually had shed a sole few tears of happiness. He took her chin gently in his hoof and came near, only to join their lips and kiss her for the very first time. She melted into that kiss, becoming absolutely liquid fire as she grabbed hold of him, never wanting that kiss to end. It was going to be hard as they were both very, very stubborn, but she hoped that they would simply be stubborn together. And never give up on each other.

The end