One Wish For Nothing

by BlackRoseRaven

Rating: teen
Tags: Princess Celestia, Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Alternate Universe, Original Character, Comedy
Length: 71459

An evil alicorn tries to bring destruction to Equestria, and accidentally ends up fighting a much greater threat to the nation than he could ever be.

He has many names, but no matter what he calls himself, everypony knows he's pure evil. Or at least they would, if he hadn't been exiled for five hundred years by Celestia. But now he's returned to take his revenge and destroy Equestria... even if Celestia seems to be acting a little strange...

Third story in the Songs for Lost Children series.

Published 2014-03-05 18:30:01 UTC
Last updated 2014-03-14 14:15:08 UTC

The Present Presentiment

Chapter One: The Present Presentiment
~BlackRoseRaven

The two ponies walked side-by-side along the wide battlements of the fortress, fearless of the darkness and the grim shapes that moved in the shadows around them. The larger of the two had his head tilted back, a warm smile on his glossy black features, his gorgeous, curly silver locks floating silently in the wind as he remarked pleasantly: “This is a wonderful night, don't you think?”

The other figure sighed tiredly: he was wrapped tightly in a cloak, but it hung loose around a thin frame. Then he scowled as a sharp wind blew back his cowl, revealing that it was no normal pony... but rather, little more than a bleached skeleton, unholy crimson light shining out of his sockets and thin veins of what looked almost like crimson string pulsing eerily over his bones and along his rust-red horn. “It's a night. It's a night like any other. It's nothing special.”

“Do you always have to be so cynical?” The pony halted, looking down at him with amusement as his silver eyes opened, tilting his head as his smile became teasing. “You know, Antecedes, you could try and smile just once. Look, look at the full moon! It's beautiful! This world is beautiful!”

“Come back to me after you've been dead for a few centuries, and then we'll talk about how the night's so pretty.” Antecedes grumbled, and then he scowled over at the pony as he laughed and flexed his raven-colored wings almost eagerly... and his black horn rose high, gleaming in the moonlight. “Besides, I thought you were going to destroy all of it.”

“Well, yes, I am, Antecedes. But that's all the more reason to enjoy it while it's here.” the winged unicorn reasoned, smiling pleasantly as he looked out over the vast stretch of twisted, evil wood and dark swampland that surrounded his beautiful fortress for miles and miles around. And while it was a rare, clear night... normally the skies would be full of thunderheads and stormclouds and freezing winds that would help keep any spies at bay. Not that there weren't plenty of defenses in place as it was, after all.

Antecedes sighed and half-flopped over the narrow wall that fenced in the walkway, looking grouchily out through the darkness before he asked finally: “So what did you want to talk to me about? You said you wanted to talk to me privately.”

“I did.” The pony sat himself by his skeletal companion, leaning out over the battlements and smiling a little as he crossed his forelegs over the wall. “I think I've solved our little problem, regarding the Elements of Harmony. We're not going to go to them. We're going to lure them to us.”

The skeleton looked over at him dryly, then he said sourly: “That's a really, incredibly stupid idea. You're doing it again.”

“I am not.” The winged unicorn scowled at the skeleton, then he shook his head quickly before calmly brushing his coiffed locks back, saying pointedly: “It will save us time, Antecedes, think about it. And furthermore, we have the advantage here in our own territory, do we not? So it just makes sense. I'll lure them here, we'll capture them, and then we'll move right to Canterlot to strike.”

Antecedes rubbed at his face slowly, and then he gestured at him and asked grumpily: “And what about Princess Celestia? And Princess Luna has returned, in case you forgot that important piece of information, and furthermore there's now a Princess Cadence as well. Also, I heard that Discord is actually helping the Princesses out these days. What if you invite them in, and we get a bunch of extra guests for the party? Hell, pretend your plan does go perfectly, we get the Elements, we head to Canterlot... how the hell do we pound our way through them, the Royal Guard, and everyone else?”

The stallion only looked at the unicorn for a few moments, and then he reached up and pointed at himself, asking mildly: “I'm sorry, I forget: am I not the Prince of All Evil? Am I not the most powerful pony in Equestria? Am I not the unchallenged master of strategy?”

Antecedes glowered at him, retorting: “Okay, first: stop changing your title, Prince of Everything That Sounds Bad. Second, your plans are not that great. And no matter how many steps you plan ahead, none of that matters if something goes wrong and all your plans go completely out the window. Plans and reality don't mix.”

The stallion scowled at the skeleton, but then he looked ahead and said dryly: “Well, I'm still more powerful than all of them. And it's not like we're going in alone.”

“Uh, I'm not leaving the castle. I don't like it outside. It's either cold and wet or it's dry and hot, and you're not dead like me so... don't give me that 'I understand' garbage.'” Antecedes grumbled moodily, shaking his head vehemently. “And power alone won't get you anywhere. Besides, I don't know if you really are stronger than Celestia. For another, say you are. There's still four or five of them and one of you. One does not equal five, kid. Do some math.”

“I am not a kid. I am more than six hundred years old.” said the winged unicorn pettishly, scowling over at the skeleton before he rose his head arrogantly, adding flatly: “And Celestia has grown weak, and we all know that everyone depends on her. But I can deal with her easily and the others will be no match for my powers. Especially some... puny little Princess of the Night. I can't imagine she's very strong, after all.”

The skeleton gave a short laugh, then he looked over at him and said pointedly: “Of course, I hate to point this out, but you do remember how Celestia beat the snot out of you and threw you into Tartarus, right? Because I do.”

“No, no, no. I am not having this conversation again.” The winged unicorn groaned, shoving himself away and storming as he strode quickly down the walkway, his expression childish and grumpy. Then he halted and glared over his shoulder when Antecedes didn't move, the skeleton only continuing to lean over the short wall as he gazed up towards the night sky.

Eventually, the winged unicorn sighed tiredly before tromping back to the skeleton, looking down at him sourly as Antecedes said calmly: “About, oh... five hundred years ago, give or take a decade, there was a pony who went by the name of-”

“I went by my title at the time. Master of All Darkness.” interrupted the winged unicorn loudly, glowering at the skeleton. “And Celestia, if I recall correctly... and I do... knew me by the name Black Shadow. Prince Black Shadow, Master of All Darkness, King of Evil.”

“Not to nitpick, Your Redundancy, but you can't be a King and a Prince at once. Unless you're your own son.” Antecedes remarked, and the stallion scowled at him horribly before the skeleton added meditatively: “Or I guess your mother was the queen and you married her...”

“Thank you, Antecedes. And I will not point out it is possible to have a different title in two different kingdoms.” said the winged unicorn irritably, glowering down at his companion. “Now, if we could skip the history lesson, considering it's my own history...”

“No, we're having this history lesson for a reason.” Antecedes retorted, shaking his head briskly. “Now, as I recall, Dim Dunn-”

“I am not Dim Dunn and he is not based on me! That is a foal's play!” snapped the winged unicorn, a faint blush tingeing his cheeks, but the skeleton only favored him with a look of ironic amusement... which just made him scowl all the more. “Just get this over with. Besides, I have taken on a new name-”

“I should point out that you can't keep changing your name every time you make a new plan, to try and pretend you've never failed before, or whatever it is you think you're doing. You act like when you change your name, you get to keep all the positives and drop all the negatives.” Antecedes said dryly, gesturing widely with one hoof before he pointed at himself. “I can call myself Mockingbird the Magnificent, but that doesn't make me either a mare or a comedian. I'm still a pile of bones. Just like how you hid your cutie mark doesn't mean you've also hidden your strengths and weaknesses.”

The stallion only looked at his companion grouchily before he said crankily: “You really think that low of me, do you? I am hurt, Antecedes. You of all ponies should know that I change my name merely to... to keep my legend dynamic. Alive. And to confuse the weak-minded.”

“You confuse yourself. Also, every time you change your name, we have to change all the embroidery and the tags and the property deeds, and we have enough to deal with without excessive paperwork. So please stop it.” Antecedes argued, sighing and gesturing at him almost pleadingly, and the stallion grumbled before the skeleton added in an empathetic voice: “And you could go back to using your real name-”

Immediately, the stallion glared at him, and the skeleton sighed and rolled his eyes before saying drolly: “It doesn't say much about your confidence as the ultimate evil if you think your name alone makes you a laughingstock.”

“My name is... is not important. Besides, you just told me that I shouldn't change it all the time. So let us simply stick to my current name and title.” said the winged unicorn stiffly, and the skeleton shrugged before the pony added quickly: “And the story goes that I fought her, underestimated her trickery, and she got in one cheap shot before throwing me into the evil darkness beneath the Pit of Tartarus, but I survived and escaped and here I am now the end.”

“Next time try pausing for breath before you tell the story. And you skipped over some rather important information. Like how you attempted to attack head on, how you were so sure that you were stronger than her, that very childish mistake you made-”

“And I have learned from my mistakes.” interrupted the stallion, as he glared at his skeletal companion. “I have a good idea of what these ponies are capable of, and I know that of all of them, only Celestia will have any inking of my true power. But there's no way she can have any conception of how I've grown and evolved over the time I spent in purgatory.”

The skeleton sighed and shook his head slowly, looking dryly towards the stallion and saying tiredly: “And there you go, doing it again. You spend so much time assuming that you're the greatest, and the most powerful, and prepared for every situation, that you're just... not thinking. You need to consider that maybe, just maybe, not everything is going to go to plan. That maybe, just maybe, you aren't the be-all and end-all.”

The stallion only grumbled under his breath, reaching up and flicking his curly mane back as he retorted: “Actually, Antecedes, I'll have you know that I have considered the slim possibility that I will lose, and my plans will not work out. And I am very well aware, thank you, that I can't do this alone. That is why you are here, and why I have that muscleheaded moron, and an entire army at my beck and call. I do not plan on doing all of this alone, and I have faith that, should something happen, at least one of you will come to my aid.”

The skeleton turned slowly towards him, cocking his head. “So you expect us to somehow know when to run in and help you after you manage to get yourself blown up?”

The winged unicorn rolled his eyes, saying sourly: “Oh, stop it. I know what you're doing, you're just... trying to annoy me now, that's all. Look, Antecedes, if you didn't have faith in me you wouldn't be here. So stop lecturing me like I'm a foal or I'll lock you back up in that mausoleum where I found you, and you can fester away there for all eternity.”

“That doesn't frighten me. As a matter of fact, I might even welcome it.” Antecedes muttered, and then the skeleton shifted slowly before saying finally, looking up towards the night sky: “And I wouldn't say that I'm here because I believe in you, precisely. It's more that... I don't have much of an alternative. And it's a fun ride. Especially if you do destroy Equestria and reduce everything to nothingness. I'll be very happy then.”

The pony smiled wryly over at his companion, then he shook his head and said softly: “You know, my friend... you may complain so often about your 'desolate unlife,' but that doesn't seem to stop you from trying to live it all the same. What will you do when everything's gone?”

“I suppose the same thing everyone else will. Nothing. But a whole lot of nothing would be desirable over this existence.” The skeleton absently picked at his cloak, sighing grouchily again. “I guess a long time ago I used to think like you do, kid. I'll rule the world, or I'll destroy it, or... I don't know, my magic will let me live forever. Well, the last part came true, but it turns out when you live forever, it tends not to be a very happy sort of existence.”

“I will live forever, and I am very happy with my existence.” replied the stallion mildly, winking over at the skeleton. “But I, my friend, am blessed with a great mind, great power, and a great body. Perhaps you should have invested a little more in... preservation.”

The skeleton looked sourly at the winged unicorn for a few moments, and then he said irritably: “You know, it wouldn't hurt you to learn just a little bit of humility. That's what I was getting at before, by the way, since that lesson has apparently gone completely over your lordship's big head.”

“Antecedes, please. You and I usually get along so well. There's no need to ruin that by acting so pedantic. Who am I going to replace you with, Neato Burrito?” the stallion said pointedly, leaning over and nudging the skeleton a few times. “Now come on, that's enough... history and lectures. Have faith in me, my friend. And why not have a bit of fun for now? Let's head downstairs and wait for our spies to report on Celestia's next move.”

The skeleton grumbled under his breath, scowling over at the stallion before he asked almost abruptly: “What about that piece of business you wanted to talk about, that was so important?”

“Maybe it's not that important after all, Antecedes. Maybe I just wanted to get away from everyone else and spend a little time with an old friend.” the stallion replied mildly, shrugging easily before he glanced out over the dark forest, smiling slightly. “Besides. We've already discussed enough, haven't we? We're going to lure the Elements to us.”

“And that's it? No thought, no plan, no additional information? Just... we're going to lure the Elements to us?” asked the skeleton waspishly, but all the same Antecedes fell in at the pony's side as the winged unicorn turned to stride calmly along the battlements. “Or are you keeping this entire plan to yourself again, because apparently-”

“Haven't you spent enough time lecturing me today? Come on, try and just enjoy yourself for a little while. And don't tell me that you can't, I know that you can at least manage to be a little fun at least. Stop being so... boring.” the stallion almost whined as they headed towards an open archway that led back down inside.

The skeleton turned his bony, permanent grin on the stallion with a little sound of disgust, and the stallion simply shrugged a bit before he added plainly: “It's a fair point, Antecedes. You really could... oh, what's the vernacular? 'Lighten up?'”

“Yes, your all-knowing lordship.” Antecedes grumbled, rolling his glowing red eyes before he said grouchily: “I have a better idea, though. How about instead of 'lightening up,' you instead 'buck off' and mind your own business?”

The stallion only laughed at this, shaking his head slowly before he said in an innocent voice: “Now you don't have to be so rude, old friend. I'm just trying to get you to be a bit more positive. And you should be! We're on our way, after all, to destroying everything that hurts us, that... that drives us down, that holds us back!”

The stallion scowled a little as they strode through the open arch, heading back into the fortress and down a spiraling set of steps as he continued in a moodier voice: “Yes, we have a lot to be proud of. We're going to conquer them, Antecedes, we're going to make them sorry for saying 'no' to us... they wouldn't let us help, or even share the blocks with us? They're so proud of their... their sandcastles, their houses of cards? Well, we'll just knock them all down, rip them up, take all the toys away! Then we'll see who laughs last! I never had any toys to begin with, after all, I won't cry when they lose theirs!”

Antecedes looked at the fuming winged unicorn for a few moments, and then he said dryly: “Yes. I'm the one here who needs to lighten up.”

“I... I'm fine. I'm perfectly fine.” grumbled the stallion, who shook his head briefly before he stopped at the bottom of the steps to calmly adjust his curly, coiffed mane, then rub at his face briskly for a moment before he gave a brief smile. “Your bad mood is rubbing off on me, Antecedes, that's all.”

Antecedes gave the stallion a dour look, and then he said finally: “You do realize that part of the reason you inspired Dim Dunn is because-”

“I did not inspire that... that idiot, that oaf! My plans are perfect, his are... his are stupid and silly! Stealing the sun's light to sell, that doesn't make any sense at all.” complained the winged unicorn even as he looked awkwardly away, flicking one wing in a nervous gesture before he suddenly turned a glare back on Antecedes. “And I thought I told you not to bring that up anymore, anyway.”

“I have no ears. That makes listening difficult.” Antecedes said acerbically, pointing at his own bare skull, and the stallion gave the skeleton a dour look.

“You also have no physical brain, and yet you're the smartest pony I know, Antecedes. And you're always complaining about being itchy.” the stallion replied grumpily, and then he smiled suddenly before striding over to the edge of the walkway they had stepped out onto, saying easily: “You need to relax more. So go and relax. I'll deal with business from here.”

“Yes, of course you will.” Antecedes sighed, looking exasperated as the winged unicorn hopped up onto the stone railing that went around the walkway, the skeleton pausing for a moment before saying finally: “Not to question you, sire, but I would like to ask if you've ever considered the fact you can fly down from this walkway to almost anywhere in the fortress... to be a defensive flaw.”

“Now, now. You know as well as I do, this fortress is really nothing more than a beacon for the forces of darkness we've been able to scrounge up so far, a... big sign. All the important chambers are down below.” replied the stallion mildly, winking over at the skeleton. “And it's not like I ever plan to run away from anyone who might be foolish enough to attack me, Antecedes. In fact, I'll be inviting our enemies right in shortly. They won't bother ambushing from above when they can use the front door.”

With that, the black stallion leapt off the rails and dove out over the labyrinth of disconnected walls that made up the various 'rooms' of the fortress, smiling calmly as he turned and flew sharply towards the end of what was really one massive room separated only by free-standing stone walls. And Antecedes sighed again as he leaned over the rails and watched the stallion fly off, the skeleton muttering: “You're underestimating tactical advantage again. And a few dozen goblins is by no means an 'army of darkness.'”

But by now, the stallion had already flown his way to the wide, open 'throne room' at the rear of the fortress, steering straight towards the immense, platinum and bone throne that sat on a raised dais on the far side of the chamber. And with only a flick of his wings, he spun around and landed neatly in the throne, front hooves behind his head and a grin on his features as he called easily: “Assemble! Assemble, my minions!”

Without looking, the stallion's horn glowed, and a small bell mounted on an iron rack beside him began to chime quietly away. It was a faint, pleasant sound, and the winged unicorn closed his eyes, his smile growing wider as similar bells began to chime all throughout the fortress.

Strange creatures looked up at these little golden bells almost fearfully, before the entirety of the fortress began to rush towards the throne room, beast-like creatures scampering over the walls and down the empty corridors.

The bell continued to chime, and the stallion closed his eyes, giving a pleased sigh before he reached up: his hoof hovered for a moment beside the golden bell beside him, and then he reached out and almost gently touched it, silencing it.

The moment it stilled, the rest of the bells went silence, and the stallion opened an eye before smiling pleasedly and clapping his hooves together as he exclaimed: “Excellent! Look at all of you, gathered here today, so promptly and so...”

The stallion stopped, his eyes flicking upwards to one unlucky creature that was clinging to the wall with three limbs, looking as if he had frozen just in preparation to leap. The little green creature was slowly toppling forwards, and the stallion scowled, his entire mood going from cheerful to irritated as he craned his neck towards the beast, glaring at him balefully as the rest of the army of wretched little creatures trembled fearfully.

And then the goblin finally lost the fight against gravity, falling off the wall with a squeak to hit the ground hard on its face... but to the little green creature's credit, it managed to stay surprisingly stiff, half-rolling awkwardly onto one side but otherwise keeping still.

The stallion gave a long, tired sigh, and then he reached up and flicked his curly locks back, remarking wryly: “You know, I have very few expectations of all of you. Very few. One is that when I ring the bell, you all come to me. And when the bell stops, you stop. It's that simple.”

The stallion took a slow breath, and then he reached up and flicked his curly mane back, saying in a more-amiable voice: “But today, I will have mercy. No, my little ones, come here. Come closer, sit, sit! All of you ran so fast and so hard to get here, didn't you, yes?”

The goblins all shifted uneasily, but then hesitantly began to nod as they looked back and forth at each other. Their warty, green faces twisted into smiles as the little beasts carefully made their way forwards and gazed with awe up at their master: a figure made unnecessarily enormous by his throne on the raised dais, considering the fact that none of the goblins were more than a foot high.

They looked up at him fawningly as he smiled and gestured down over them all, nodding a few times before he chuckled and dropped his hooves in his lap. “Yes, yes. I can be generous even to you little ruffians. I have good news, after all! My minions, today is a great day... the first day that we truly begin to move forwards to eradicating all who would stand in our way!”

The goblins looked back and forth, and the stallion glowered at them before one of the few diamond dogs suddenly brightened and hurriedly started to clap. Several goblins looked up in terror, but when the winged unicorn smiled, they quickly began to applaud wildly as well.

The stallion laughed loudly at this, almost bowing out of his seat as he looked back and forth over his army of yelling and cheering minions. He gestured at them with a wide grin, and they applauded harder and louder, some of the goblins whistling and diamond dogs howling, and the stallion drank all of it up, basking in all the attention...

And then the applause suddenly cut off as a newcomer smashed his way through the group, knocking beasts and creatures flying in all directions before the stocky earth pony skidded to a halt in front of the dais. And the winged unicorn was left staring blankly at the mustached earth pony, who looked up with what could almost be described as a snarl, his beady little black eyes gleaming before he glared over his shoulder and shouted: “Cheer! Cheer, amigos! Cheer for the boss!”

“Uh... thank you, Neato Burrito. That's... very helpful.” the winged unicorn said carefully as he dropped back in his throne, looking moodily down at the sand-colored earth pony, with his stuffed soft taco cutie mark... but he didn't quite dare to say anything as he rubbed slowly at his face, before adding pointedly: “Have we not discussed-”

“Yes!” Neato spun around, his eyes blazing, looking up almost fiercely at the winged unicorn and making him wince back in his throne. “But I cannot suppress my passion! My passion is limitless, my passion grows with every moment, my passion-”

“Okay, Neato Burrito. That's. That's very nice, thank you.” the winged unicorn interrupted testily, holding up his hooves and sighing tiredly. He hated that of all the ponies integral to his plans, one of the most important ones happened to be this... very peculiar... earth pony. But for now, he had other things to deal with rather than trying to make sense of his personal bodyguard.

Neato Burrito looked up at him with loyalty and adoration, and the winged unicorn cleared his throat before he awkwardly shooed him away with one hoof. Neato saluted him sharply in return, but thankfully took the hint and leapt to the side, almost squashing a goblin: he was actually rather short compared to your average pony, but he had a distinct bulk and weight about him that let him quite easily knock around most of the other ragtag army of darkness that had formed here.

The winged unicorn tented his hooves, looking meditative before he rose his head and said calmly: “My friends. I have called you all here because I wish to announce the name I will take, the name by which I will lead you. Oh, yes, I've been through a few different titles, but none have ever captured the essence of... well, me, as well as the name I have chosen to lead you by.

“You shall all know me as Morpheus, the God of Darkness and the Master of All Evil, and...” the winged unicorn stopped, then scowled at a goblin near the front of the group that awkwardly rose a little green hand. “Yes? What is it?”

“Uh... well, boss, technically Morpheus is the God of Dreams, and even though he's been misappropriated as an evil figure because of his relationship to the night, he actually is much more pleasant than his brothers Phobetor and Phantasos, and he is often described in old Equestrian literature as possessing a 'smiling face' and 'beckoning welcomingly' to those he brings dreams to. You know, dreams. Not nightmares.” said the goblin awkwardly.

There was a long, uncomfortable silence as several goblins looked with horror at their compatriot, and one of the winged unicorn's eyes twitched a few times before he suddenly smiled pleasantly. The goblin looked relieved by this as the stallion leaned forwards, saying kindly: “I appreciate your knowledge and candor on the subject.”

Then the stallion almost leapt out of his seat, his horn glowing as he bared his teeth and pointed sharply at the goblin, and the little creature gave a squeal of terror as green lightning zapped over his body before there was a burst of emerald static and smoke.

It cleared, and the creatures of darkness flung themselves away from what had been left behind, squealing and whimpering in horror: now, instead of a goblin, a green, ugly garden gnome sat, frozen in porcelain, an eternal expression of terror scrawled across its molded features.

Morpheus sat back, looking more irritated than anything else as he waved a hoof sharply through the air, snapping: “Have him sent to the gift shop with the other rejects! Perhaps he can do some good sitting on some pony's lawn instead of interrupting me and wasting our time with made-up nonsense he clearly knows nothing about!”

Two goblins hurriedly grabbed the statuette, dragging it quickly off through the crowd, and Neato Burrito nodded violently several times before he spun around and roared: “Yeah! You all keep that in mind! You don't ever forget who has the biggest cojones here, yeah!”

Morpheus slowly pushed his hoof against his face, dragging it slowly across his features before he said tiredly: “Thank you, Neato Burrito. Now, will you please... go away? Maybe you could go ahead and bring the next load of detainees to our little gift shop. That would be very helpful.”

“You got it, boss!” Neato Burrito turned and saluted sharply, nodding rapidly again before he spun back around and stormed after the goblins that were dragging away their transmogrified comrade.

The winged unicorn waited until these three had left, and then he sighed and rubbed slowly at his temples with his hooves, slumping back in his throne and muttering: “Where was I...”

Slowly, he took a breath and composed himself before raising his head and saying as calmly and pleasantly as possible: “Now. Let us try this again, shall we? My name is Morpheus, and I am the Master of All Evil and the God of Nightmares. Does anyone have a problem with this?”

Awkward silence greeted him as the goblins looked nervously between each other, and the stallion gave a thin smile before he dropped his forelegs along the throne and said grumpily: “Good. Excellent. I'm glad we're all agreed then. Morpheus: it is a proud name, suiting for a proud deity like myself. A name written in the stars, where I was always destined to be...”

Slowly, the winged unicorn looked up, falling silent for a moment before he shook his head briefly and murmured: “Yes. But that was all taken away from me... so now, my brethren, who have all had the light stolen from their lives, we shall take away from them, what they took away from us.”

Morpheus slammed one hoof down against the arm of his throne, smiling almost coldly before he shook himself out. His demeanor lightened little by little even as the goblins and diamond dogs all looked up at him nervously, until the stallion rose his head and said in a more-pleasant voice: “You should all be excited, though! Soon, all this hard work we've put in will be paying off. Soon, this whole nation shall fall...”

The stallion rubbed his front hooves together, grinning slightly before he sat up and looked slowly over the mass of minions crammed into the wide throne hall. The thronging goblins looked nervously back at him as diamond dogs shifted uneasily, none of them daring to look up at their master for more than a few moments before looking away.

Then, suddenly, Morpheus became serious again, pointing at a goblin and making the poor creature squeak in terror and drop to cover his head. But the stallion seemed to ignore this reaction completely, asking instead: “What is the status of our fortress? How have the construction efforts for my dungeons been going?”

“Uh...” The goblin looked up with terror before he swallowed thickly, carefully straightening as Morpheus narrowed his eyes at him, before the little green creature said nervously: “It's been going... as well as ever, my lord!”

Morpheus looked thoughtful for a few moments... and then he gave a brief nod before smiling and saying pleasantly: “Good. I am very glad to hear that. Not that we are not already a proud, powerful force to be reckoned with... but it never hurts to have a bit of extra security, does it? That was a lesson I learned a long time ago...”

The stallion chuckled, sitting back in his throne and stroking his chin thoughtfully as the goblins looked worriedly between each other, and one of the diamond dogs dropped his head and pawed anxiously at his face, eyes flicking back and forth fearfully. The only saving grace was that, no matter how powerful or intelligent or anything else their master was, newly-self-titled Morpheus also refused to 'belittle himself' by involving himself in the affairs of his minions. He would tell them to do something, then expect them to complete his plans... and only really notice that something was incomplete or broken when it was too late to do anything about it, such as when he was trying to put aforementioned plans into play.

Morpheus tapped his hooves meditatively together, then he drew his eyes slowly over the crowd before him before he frowned ever so slightly, like he had maybe detected that something wasn't quite right, like perhaps things weren't working out precisely as planned. But after only a few moments, he simply shrugged, disregarding this as he smiled briefly and reached up to adjust his coiffed, perfect mane, saying calmly: “Very well. I just wanted to inform you all of my new chosen title... and oh, yes. Very soon, we will be having some 'guests' arrive. Please ensure that they are treated according to their status as heroes... we all know how to treat heroes, don't we?”

Morpheus threw his head back and laughed, and the goblins and diamond dogs simply stared up at him with confusion, not a single one of the poor beasts understanding what the stallion was talking about. But when he looked suddenly down and glared at them, the entire army erupted into cheers and wild, terrified applause, and Morpheus smiled.

He was determined to get his way, no matter what: he believed, honestly, that he was entitled to having things work out precisely as he imagined. And when he looked over the scared, little-more-than-animals calling their praises up to him, he saw only the humble beginnings of what he so rightly deserved. And he smiled at them, opening his forelegs as he failed to imagine they applauded with anything but the absolute truth: that they loved him, admired him, believed in him.

His army of darkness cheered in fear of what their master could do to them, and he smiled over them almost mockingly, delighting in their praises and feeling almost a sadistic sort of sympathy for how gullible they all were. After all, it wasn't like Equestria was ever going to belong to the darkness, like he had promised.

You couldn't own something if it had ceased to exist, after all.

Truth And Lies

Chapter Two: Truth And Lies
~BlackRoseRaven

Morpheus scowled out from the battlements of his fortress, gazing out through the darkness that blanketed the swampy forest around his chosen home. His closest accomplices, Neato Burrito and Antecedes, stood on either side of him: the earth pony was scowling horribly, and the skeleton only looked bored, moodily leaning against the side of the walkway.

And finally, the winged unicorn flapped his wings sharply before he shook his head and asked irritably: “Where is Celestia? I know she must know about me by now. I have made my presence very clear. There is no way, utterly no way, she can have forgotten about me...”

“Yes, it's only been five hundred years since you last met and she banished you beneath Tartarus, my lord.” Antecedes said dryly, looking up at the sky with boredom visible in his ruby-glowing eyes. “You may want to consider, great King of All Darkness, that Celestia may not be eager to leave her throne and kingdom to make a personal visit to you with the Elements of Harmony, especially since you've surrounded yourself by... oh, dark forests and swamps and thunderclouds. It's all very scenic, but...”

“I will go and get them! I will bring them all to you!” promised Neato Burrito, turning his intense gaze on Morpheus and raising a hoof in a clenching motion. “I will make them beg for an appointment with your lordship that does not conflict with your important personal schedule!”

“Uh. Thank you, Neato Burrito. That is not entirely necessary, though.” Morpheus said moodily, and then he shook his head shortly before slamming a hoof against the battlements in frustration, complaining almost childishly: “But it makes no sense! Antecedes, you told me yourself, the first thing she did in every threatening circumstance was to send the Elements of Harmony out to deal with it-”

“Well, consider this, oh great lord of darkness. They're only mortal ponies, and the journey is a long and difficult one. Perhaps they are on their way. Or, if you prefer, maybe Celestia considers you to be too dangerous a threat to send the Elements alone and unprepared.” Antecedes reasoned, raising his head and looking strangely resigned to trying to comfort the winged unicorn. “Or maybe she has decided to wait for you to come to her.”

“Like an ex-marefriend! A treacherous ex-marefriend... is she your ex-marefriend?” Neato Burrito suddenly became curious, even if his scowl only lightened ever-so-slightly as he looked with interest over at the winged unicorn.

Morpheus looked irritably back, by now used to the intense, constant scowl and piercing, beady glare of the little earth pony. “No. I am pure evil, I am the opposite of Celestia in every way. Therefore I have decided to live a life indulging the unnaturalness that is homoeroticism.”

Neato Burrito looked stumped by this response, while Antecedes sighed tiredly and rubbed slowly at his skull, saying moodily: “You don't have to justify being gay as part of your great evil existence. You do understand this, yes?”

But Morpheus only snorted at this, looking almost condescendingly over at the skeleton. “Oh please. As if I feel I have to rationalize this and justify myself. I'm merely reinforcing the fact that I have purposefully chosen this lifestyle for myself and, less because of any attraction I may actually have to any other stallion, and more because it better puts me at opposites with Celestia, who follows the clear and natural order of heterosexuality. An order I will corrupt and destroy.”

Antecedes looked flatly at Morpheus for a few moments as Neato Burrito only scratched his head, before the skeleton said sourly, as the winged unicorn started to look away: “Then I hate to point this out, but according to your own logic, then all you've done is made yourself more like Celestia. Reproductive issues aside, as a heterosexual mare, she likes stallions. As a homosexual stallion, you also like stallions. The opposite of a gay stallion is not a straight mare. It is a lesbian mare.”

“You... your argument lacks all logic! Heterosexuality and homosexuality can never peacefully coexist!” Morpheus snapped, and then he huffed and glared back out over the forest, grumbling: “Homosexuality is depravity and indulgence. It is unnatural and evil. It stops all reproduction. And I wish to stop all reproduction on a much larger scale through this entire world myself.”

Neato Burrito awkwardly held up a hoof, and then he asked after a moment in an almost-nervous voice: “Boss, uh... does that mean... I do not have to be homosexual, do I? Because a mighty Luchador such as I cannot bed the colts.”

“I do not care what you prefer, Neato Burrito, I know you are loyal. This is a matter of personal pride.” Morpheus muttered, and then he glared at Antecedes when the skeleton snorted loudly. “Oh, do not be such a child.”

“My apologies. Should we amend your titles, then, and begin calling you the Lord of Evil Love as well? Perhaps the King of Excessive Male Enjoyments?” Antecedes asked dryly, and Morpheus slowly turned a horrible look back on the skeleton. “You brought this up, mighty Morpheus of Nightmares. The only reason I care is because these stupid attempts of yours to be the 'ultimate evil' are going to end up distracting or ruining us.”

“Sexual preference equates to evil, not incompetence. I am no less powerful or intelligent for it. Some would say it makes me even more dangerous.” replied Morpheus moodily, the stallion reaching up and flicking back his silver locks before he turned an irritated look on Neato Burrito, who had turned almost suspicious. “Yes?”

“We are not... I mean, it's still okay to... no, no. Forget it. I shall work out my frustrations in the ring, as I always have, Señor Morpheus. I do not mean to question your governance.” Neato Burrito finally said humbly, bowing his head and going quiet for a moment before he suddenly leapt forwards, leaning over the battlements and roaring: “All of you shall learn to beware my master! My master is the most gay and most evil and most feared stallion in all of the wide, wide land! He shall rule you with impunity and... and great fashion sense!”

Morpheus smiled with wry entertainment at Neato Burrito as Antecedes sighed and lowered his head, before he muttered: “If you were truly evil, Morpheus, you would do away with the concept of 'love' altogether.”

“'Love' is not a thing reserved solely for the forces of good, Antecedes, and I would think that even a skeleton like you would know that. You may be nothing more than brittle bones, but you still feel emotions. You know that to deny the existence of these emotions is weakness.” Morpheus touched his own breast, smiling calmly, looking almost patronizingly at the skeleton. “And you know love yourself, if I remember correctly...”

Antecedes looked sourly at Morpheus, refusing to be baited before he rolled his glowing eyes and turned his gaze back ahead, muttering: “Very well. Then, casting aside this... childishness for now, let's focus on the problem of Celestia-”

“I will go and get her! I will bring her and all the mares back here! And do not fear, for it does not break my sacred oath as a Luchador to do so. It is only within the ring where I am not permitted to harm mares, unless she herself is a master of Lucha Libre. Although, I swear by my code of honor, I shall do no harm to any mare who does not quarrel with me. They will feel only the forceful grip of my mighty grasp, but as the powerful mouth may cradle the egg!” Neato Burrito bit at the air a few times before baring his teeth, raising his head high as his eyes flashed. “To hold firmly, without breaking!”

Morpheus and Antecedes traded looks, and then they both shivered a little before the winged unicorn turned his eyes back towards Neato Burrito and said carefully: “I appreciate your... enthusiasm, my friend, but believe me. This is not necessary. They will come to us in time, I guarantee this. We may have to draw them towards us, and your efforts may be needed in the future... but I would not waste your time bringing all those ponies here when they're sure to arrive themselves. We need merely... give them a little bit of encouragement.”

The winged unicorn looked thoughtfully up at the dark clouds, patting the stone wall moodily before he asked meditatively: “Antecedes... how long has it been since true spirits of darkness and evil have entered the kingdom? Aside from my return, of course.”

“Evil things come and go as they please. What you really want to know is which among those creatures has bothered to attract the attention of the ponies, whether through stupidity or arrogance.” Antecedes said moodily, and Morpheus gave him an irritated look.

“Stop nitpicking. It's getting less charming and more annoying as time wears on.” Morpheus said distastefully, and then he added moodily: “And besides. Everyone here already knows that few 'evils' have ever come to Equestria. Not upon my level, that is.”

Antecedes sighed loudly, but didn't argue with the stallion. Instead, he tapped a hoof against the stone before saying finally: “Accordig to my sources, seventeen years ago there was an isolated incident. A mass murder. A pony was consumed by evil magic after he tampered in what he did not understand, and went on a killing spree. This only ended after he was captured by the Royal Guard, and Celestia had the incident... suppressed.”

“She's always been a tyrant. A dictator, really. Because that, you see, is all good truly is. Dictation of so-called 'good' over everyone else.” Morpheus said with an odd self-satisfaction, and Neato Burrito nodded vehemently in agreement. “But see, Antecedes? They won't understand what they're dealing with, not until too late. So why don't you stop worrying so much about everything... all I have to do is open a path for them, and they'll come right to me.”

“No. No, they won't. You keep treating Celestia like an idiot, but that just reveals your own stupidity.” Antecedes said sourly, and then he reached up and touched his bony nose as he said pointedly: “History is written by the victors and all lines of monarchy stem from conquerors.”

“Then Señor Morpheus is destined to be the leader of us all! Ever since he was a young colt, he has been a conqueror, has he not?” Neato Burrito's forcefulness made it sound a lot less like a question, and a lot more like he was stating some unquestionable, solid fact. “But wait... if Celestia is a great conquistador... why do we never hear of this?”

“That goes back to my first point. Because history is written by the victors. Celestia controls Equestria... quite literally, as she and her sister move the sun and moon.” Antecedes said irritably, gesturing up at the sky... and then the skeleton slowly turned a moody look on Morpheus as the stallion visibly lit up. “Oh no. You have an idea.”

“Yes, yes I do!” Morpheus said cheerfully, clapping his front hooves together once and turning an almost-excited smile towards the skeleton. “I'll use my magic to create an anchor... that way, we can lock the moon in place in the sky! We'll bring eternal night!”

Antecedes rolled his eyes and muttered something, and immediately Morpheus scowled, leaning forwards and asking moodily: “What did you just say? I didn't quite catch that.”

“I said, you're an idiot. And you're also copying Nightmare Moon, the... whiny evil spirit thing that took over Princess Luna.” Antecedes waved a hoof moodily, adding dryly: “Speaking of which, I'm fairly certain the ponies would all just blame her, not you. You're going to have to be more original. No eternal night.”

Morpheus rolled his eyes, then he paused before looking thoughtfully at Antecedes. Antecedes looked moodily back, before the winged unicorn pointed at him almost childishly and declared: “You like her! You like the Night Princess!”

“I do not.” Antecedes said waspishly, glaring at Morpheus even as his crimson horn sparked. “Look, you're the one who wants to be some kind of... idiotic supervillain! Well, you have to claim responsibility for what you do, yes? And you should try and practice at least the smallest bit of originality in your plots!”

“You just do not want him going after the Night Princess' plot, that is all, sí?” asked Neato Burrito with a waggle of his eyebrows, baring his teeth in that aggressive grin of his. “But that is not bad! You must woo her!”

Antecedes stared at the earth pony for a few moments, and then he shook his head shortly before turning his eyes back to Morpheus, saying irritably: “Just try and do something original. Your entire plan here isn't even original. You're not trying to destroy Equestria by yourself, you're-”

“I am so!” snapped Morpheus, and then he reached up and slowly smoothed his coiffed locks back, taking a slow breath before he said calmly: “Look. Once I get the tablet, everything will fall perfectly into place. All I'm missing are those little toys that the Elements of Harmony need to contribute. And once I have them, I will be unstoppable.”

“Well, that's a small improvement from 'I already am unstoppable.'” Antecedes said drolly, and then he winced when Neato Burrito leapt forwards, thrusting a hoof towards him.

“Hey, bone-pony, you best watch your mouth! Señor Morpheus' friend or not, I will have to defend my master's honor if you keep this up!” the small stallion threatened, waving his hoof back and forth before he rose his head proudly. “Our boss, he knows the deal. We just gotta have faith in him, that's all.”

Antecedes sighed and rubbed slowly at his face, but Morpheus only smiled before saying kindly: “Thank you very much, Neato Burrito, but that's not necessary. Antecedes means no harm. He's just a little cranky from not getting his nap and having all his 'helpful suggestions' so easily brushed aside by my much-better plans. Which, by the way, now include capturing the sun and the moon and creating an eternal darkness.”

“Oh that's clearly so much better.” the skeleton said dryly, rolling his eyes before he looked grouchily down at the dark forest below. “Do you see what I see?”

“Forests. Mud. A few goblins. A diamond dog over there is peeing on that tree.” Morpheus said mildly, pointing at the last, and Neato Burrito immediately almost threw himself over the wall, yelling angrily at the diamond dog in his native language and terrifying the canine creature into bolting into the forest, presumably while still urinating.

Slowly, Morpheus looked over at Neato Burrito, but the earth pony was stalwart, raising his head and snorting steam out of nostrils before he growled: “They disrespect you! They disrespect your creation! I will punish them all, Señor! I will show them who is a real stallion, who has the big cojones!”

“Try not to worry about it, Neato. Besides, that's less creation, more... a reworking of the raw material.” Morpheus said gently, and Neato Burrito looked somewhat soothed, nodding shortly and hopping back to a more humble position beside his master.

The winged unicorn nodded a few times to his earth pony companion, and then he clapped his front hooves together before scowling when Antecedes said moodily: “If everything is covered in complete darkness, how are they going to make their way through a pitch-black forest filled with monsters when they're only dumb little ponies? And furthermore, if Celestia does come with them... do you really think she'd be stupid enough to risk pushing through the bog and swamp?”

“You just... oh, fine, Antecedes, fine. Have things your way.” Morpheus muttered, rolling his eyes before he gave a long, theatrical sigh. “I'll be right back, then, while I fix everything... as usual. Excuse me, gentlecolts.”

Antecedes only glowered as Neato Burrito saluted sharply, and the black stallion gave a wry smile before he spread his wings wide and leapt calmly over the edge of the battlements. He glided smoothly down through the air, flapping his wings only once before he neatly landed on the extended bridge that crossed the soggy moat that went around his fortress: a defense measure he failed to realize was rendered mostly useless by the fact the water was little more than waist-deep and just below the level of the bridge... which itself couldn't be drawn back, anyway.

The stallion looked straight ahead, into the boggy, mucky forest and along the faintly-walked paths that led towards civilization. Morpheus chuckled to himself, then shook himself out and stretched back and forth, humming under his breath as his horn thrummed with malign light.

Then he calmly sighed before dropping his head forwards and his front hooves to the ground, taking a slow, leisurely breath. For a few moments, there was nothing further, even the light around his horn fading a little... and then the stallion suddenly snapped his head up with a cold smile, his eyes flashing as his horn released a single, powerful pulse.

The ground in front of him all but erupted, the boggy earth ripping upwards in one terrible tsunami that smashed aside trees like toys, the magical force tearing a trench through the earth leaving a rooster tail of debris and brine in its wake.

Morpheus smiled calmly as trees fell and shifted, the bridge beneath his hooves shivering almost in fear along with the aching earth as the long, seemingly-endless ditch was carved through the earth. He chuckled quietly, studying the destruction he'd caused so easily with a pleased look in his eye... and then he scowled a little as some of the trench started to fill in with sludgy water, the embankment on either side already starting to peel away as trees seemingly yanked themselves back from the wound in the earth. “No, no. Can't have that.”

His horn glowed faintly as he rose one hoof, then closed his eyes and made a simple, short rising gesture: in response, the earth quaked before massive slabs of stone began to shove themselves roughly up out of the trench in short succession, forming a rocky, ugly highway that stretched as far as the eye could see: that, in fact, would form an almost-straight path right through the dark forest that surrounded his fortress.

“Now. Even ponies should be able to manage that...” Morpheus paused, looking thoughtful as he rubbed his front hooves together. “Except... perhaps I'm overestimating them again, yes, Antecedes is right. I should send someone to wait for them, to light their way and bring them to me. Otherwise they might be too scared of the dark.”

Morpheus began to laugh at his own joke... then leapt into the air with a little squeal when a voice shouted: “I shall do it! You consider it done, boss!”

“Neato! How the hell did you get there?” shouted Morpheus, one eye twitching... and then he blushed slightly before hurriedly dropping out of the air and brushing himself out, clearing his throat and adding awkwardly: “You should be more careful I... if it wasn't for my self-control, I could have seriously injured you, my friend.”

“Do not fear! I do not doubt your might, Señor Morpheus, but not even the crushing power of the moon, the most fiercest source of gravity in all of Equestria, can push me down! She may be able to crush the oceans, but a Luchador is greater than the oceans! A Luchador is like the rage of mother earth!” declared Neato Burrito, stepping forwards as his eyes glowed with passion, almost shoving face to face with Morpheus as he grabbed him by the shoulders and made the winged unicorn wince. “Do you understand, Señor Morpheus? Do you comprehend the majesty that is brought by Lucha Libre?”

“I. Yes. I do.” Morpheus said uncomfortably, leaning back with a grimace and giving a weak smile before he cleared his throat loudly, gently prying the earth pony off and saying carefully: “Neato, I... have a much different job for you. Your services are too invaluable to me to have you simply... standing around, waiting for a few ponies to show up at their own accord. No, you, my friend, must be put to work on something more suiting to your abilities.”

“I shall not fail you!” Neato Burrito all-but-shouted, thrusting a hoof into the air as his eyes glowed with pride, and then he gave a short, firm nod before he stepped back and almost ordered: “What is my mission? I must know! I must do!”

Morpheus sighed inwardly, reflecting that he was probably never going to get over how... exuberant Neato Burrito was, so to speak. But all the same, he forced himself to smile and nod awkwardly, clearing his throat before he said carefully: “If by tonight, we haven't had any contact from Princess Celestia... we are going to send her a little message. More specifically, you are, Neato Burrito. You will be going deep into enemy territory to... to defend my honor. Do you think you're capable of that, my Luchador friend?”

“Capable? Capable?” Neato Burrito puffed out his chest, eyes blazing, sounding furiously excited for the chance to prove himself. “I am more than capable, my friend! I am excited! I am enthralled! I am most ready to show you the true, unmatched might of Neato Burrito... of El Casco, the punisher who knows no fear and no equal!”

Neato Burrito slammed his hooves together several times before nodding firmly twice, and Morpheus gave him an almost-uneasy smile before he cleared his throat and said finally: “That is... good to hear. You uh... you uphold the honor of... Luchadores everywhere.”

“Yes!” Neato Burrito almost shouted, thrusting a hoof into the air, and Morpheus almost flinched away from the earth pony, before he sat back and crossed his forelegs, settling those blazing, beady, somehow-terrifying eyes on the winged unicorn again. “So now, I wait. I prepare mentally. And tonight, I will race to Canterlot and beyond if needed to punish your enemies and bring them to you!”

“I doubt you'll need to punish them, Neato. All you'll have to do is... give them a good reason not to ignore me anymore.” Morpheus replied candidly, before brushing at himself and adding pleasantly: “I'd do it myself, of course, but... such trivial things are beneath me. After all, I have much other important work that must be done, involving our preparations to capture the tablet that we seek.

“And, once I have it in my possession...” Morpheus turned away, smiling coldly and rubbing his hooves together before his eyes flicked over his shoulder, towards his still-almost-glaring minion. “No one will be able to stop us. Certainly not Celestia, now that I know her dirty little secret, just as I know the secret of the tablet... a tablet that will allow me to erase this country, if not the entire world!”

“Sí, Señor Morpheus. As you command.” Neato Burrito bowed his head humbly, then he looked quickly up and said firmly: “As it is, though, boss, there is no one who can match your strength! And you have much honor and tener cojones! There is no one who can match you!”

“Thank you, Neato.” Morpheus smiled again, this time a little more wry and relaxed as he gazed over his shoulder at the earth pony. Then he quickly shook himself out before gesturing at the brawny Luchador a few times, saying in a milder voice: “Now please. I... need time to think and prepare. It would be wise of you to do the same.”

“I am always prepared! I am always ready for whatever may happen!” Neato Burrito almost shouted, and Morpheus couldn't help but flinch a bit at the peerless passion of the strange little earth pony. “But very well, Señor Morpheus. I shall go, and will be ready the moment you need me. Do not fear, Señor Morpheus! I will punish your enemies!”

Neato Burrito nodded fiercely several times, then he spun around and strode quickly away, and Morpheus gave a long, tired sigh as he slowly rubbed at his face, watching as the earth pony strode back into the castle in his strange, quick, and incredibly-determined way.

Neato Burrito was a very odd pony... but, like it or not, also a very necessary part of his plans, and a useful servant. Yes, he was loud, 'passionate,' and sometimes a little slow... but then again, the last quality wasn't always a bad thing, either.

Besides, the earth pony's good qualities outweighed his eccentricities. His loyalty was without question, he was strong, and he was able to go places where Morpheus obviously couldn't: being a lavishly-handsome winged unicorn and all, he stood out like a sore hoof in a crowd. Well, if that sore hoof was beautiful and radiated charisma, of course.

Neato Burrito also had a few odder qualities that made him exceptional: he was an excellent fighter, able to wrestle down teams of diamond dogs with ease. He was also very resistant to magic: the short, stubby little brute was tough as nails, with hide like a dragon's scales. Even Morpheus' dark magic had trouble effecting the mighty little Luchador, and the winged unicorn's dark powers were enough to make even Princess Celestia quail in fear.

Morpheus' eyes drew outwards as he turned back ahead, smiling wider as he rubbed his front hooves together almost gleefully. The best thing about Neato Burrito was that he was sure Celestia didn't know about him: she might not even know that he had freed Antecedes from where he'd been sealed in his crypt, or about the fact that he had an entire army of darkness waiting on him, claw and hoof. And these goblins and diamond dogs were only the beginning... not that he really needed these forces of evil, of course, but a little backup never hurt.

He could only imagine what Princess Celestia was feeling right now... and the stallion grinned coldly as he leaned forwards, eyes flashing as he called out mockingly through the darkness of his desolate, hollow kingdom: “I'll be waiting, Day Princess! I'll be waiting... because the sun has already started to set on your rule!”

Princess Celestia's brow furrowed as she sat back in her throne, head down, a faint tingling passing through her horn before she gave a quiet sigh, murmuring: “Moonflower.”

There was silence for a few moments, and then she looked up and gave a brief smile to the six ponies in front of her. The ivory mare slowly stood, her beautiful rainbow mane twisting itself to the side as she looked over the six ponies gathered in front of her.

Two earth ponies, two Pegasi, two unicorns: all with vibrant colors, all with bright eyes... eyes that, even filled with worry, also had hope and total confidence in her, like she could somehow fix all this. But she couldn't... as much as she wished she could, some things couldn't be repaired, couldn't be mended, couldn't be made better.

“Princess?” asked a purple unicorn: a pony she knew very well. It was her student, Twilight Sparkle, who acted like the impromptu leader of this little gaggle of ponies. “Is... is 'moonflower' something we're supposed to find?”

Right. She was supposed to be telling them about what she needed from these six, these Elements of Harmony. But she'd felt that familiar, powerful dark magic, and when she'd closed her eyes, she'd almost seen him for a moment... sensed how powerful he'd become. How, even after all the years that had passed, even after being trapped in a place of evil and torment, he'd only grown stronger from it... while on the other hoof, she'd grown weaker over the years...

“Princess?” Twilight asked nervously again, stepping forwards and looking more worried now. Princess Celestia gave a brief smile at the honest care and compassion she saw in her student's eyes: something that meant even more to her than Twilight's respect.

The ivory winged unicorn held up a hoof, but took a moment to look over her friends, who had such variety between them. From athletic and impatient-looking Rainbow Dash, to coiffed and resplendent and distracted-looking Rarity. But how much difference was there, really? They were all friendly, all believed strongly in the laws of Equestria, they were all from the same culture, all mares. Even if they looked very different at first glance, they were all cut from the same cloth...

Celestia banished these thoughts, her smile only a little forced as she said gently: “I apologize, Twilight Sparkle. I was just... thinking. No, Moonflower... once, he was a unicorn. A unicorn who came from a village that has been... lost to the sands of time.”

Twilight nodded wisely, as if this actually explained something. She would probably repeat it to anyone who asked like it was absolute fact and the only acceptable answer, too, like how two plus two was four, never stopping to consider that villages didn't just vanish. But a certain naivety existed in most of the ponies she ruled, even the smartest ones: something she had helped breed into them, admittedly, although only to protect them of course. From themselves. From what ponies became when they weren't held to strict standards and morals.

Celestia made her voice a little more serious, studying the way the six responded to her verbal cues as she continued: “But Moonflower became obsessed with dark magic. He even challenged me for the throne, saying he wanted to rule a kingdom of darkness. He became an evil pony, calling himself... Moros, the Prince of Darkness.”

Okay, slightly-smudged facts. But they didn't need to know all the details, did they? After all, Moonflower was gathering an army of evil monsters, and she knew he was making plans to attack Canterlot thanks to information gathered through spies and her magic mirror. And it wasn't like Twilight was going to know that-

“Isn't that the ancient word for dumb-dumb?” asked Pinkie Pie querulously, and Celestia had to repress the urge to glare at the pony who was as brightly-colored as her namesake. And apparently as vapid as well, as she giggled brightly and said happily, completely ignoring the seriousness of the situation: “That's silly! Why would he name himself dumb-dumb?”

“I am fairly certain he meant 'Morose,' as in sadness.” Celestia said, only a little bit of stiffness in her voice as she forced herself to smile, before adding gently: “Please listen, we don't have time for interruptions, my little ponies. This is very serious.”

They always had to be treated like foals. Even now, they acted like little school-fillies, Rainbow Dash glaring at Pinkie Pie and Applejack grumbling at her and the pink mare herself only adding to the distraction with the exaggerated way she pretended to zip her mouth shut. And Fluttershy just sat apart from the group, waiting for it all to be over, while Rarity seemed preoccupied with neatening her outfit and adjusting her mane and tail.

Celestia let them settle before she continued in a calm, serious voice: “I was forced to banish him to Tartarus... but he has escaped from there, and instead come back even more powerful, as an alicorn of darkness. He wants to destroy Equestria, and he will stop at nothing to achieve his ends. Only the Elements of Harmony can hope to stop him: we need to... seal him away.”

Celestia wasn't actually sure what the Elements would do to Moonflower: what she honestly hoped was that they would flush the darkness out of his system and drain his strength, returning him to the state of a normal unicorn instead of what he had become. The thought of another winged unicorn in her kingdom, and one who practiced dark magic, at that...

The mare repressed a scowl, instead turning her eyes to Twilight as her student asked uneasily: “But Princess, if he's so powerful and so dangerous... do you really think we can stop him?”

Probably not. “Of course, Twilight Sparkle. As long as you work together with your friends, I know that you can conquer any enemy and solve any problem.”

Twilight Sparkle smiled warmly, and Celestia sighed inwardly, silently wishing that she could go back to the days when she had believed that herself... except, well, she never really had, had she? But she had grown up in a harsher, crueler time, with trials and tribulations these ponies couldn't even dream of thrust upon her again and again... and that was why she was determined to do whatever it would take to keep these ponies safe and stop them from making the mistakes their ancestors had.

“And the six of you are not in this alone. I will be coming with you myself, to help you in every way I can.” Celestia said gently, and Twilight lit up at this as all her friends looked up in surprise that quickly turned to a mix of relief and happiness.

“Thank you, Princess Celestia! With your help, I know we'll be able to stop him!” Twilight exclaimed, and Celestia smiled almost sadly at her student, her eyes flickering with both happiness and pain. Twilight was so naïve still: she still believed in things like perfection, and easy answers, and good and right and justice...

The Princess of the Sun shook her head slowly, and then she said softly: “But for now, Twilight Sparkle, you and your friends should go and get some well-deserved rest. Tomorrow, we will begin training and preparations for the journey. We will not allow ourselves to be rushed: Moonflower is still in the process of establishing his presence in our country, and he has many dangerous servants. We have to be cautious.”

“Hey, we can take him any time!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, pumping a hoof in the air and nodding firmly, and Twilight Sparkle blushed and glared at her friend, but seemed to agree all the same.

Celestia repressed the urge to sigh, instead only forcing herself to smile again as she chastened gently, in her practiced, teacherly voice: “Now, Rainbow Dash. Don't be hasty or overconfident. Moonflower is a very serious enemy. We don't want anyone to get hurt.”

The others nodded, and then Celestia prompted: “Shining Armor is waiting, though, and I'm sure you're all eager to rest for tomorrow.”

There was the faintest spark, the smallest pulse of magic, and a moment later even exuberant Pinkie Pie was yawning as five of the six ponies were all overcome with sudden exhaustion. Celestia smiled slightly as Twilight Sparkle nodded respectfully, then turned to her friends... and laughed, saying awkwardly: “I'm sorry, Princess, I guess my friends really are tired... and I really do want to make sure I'm as prepared as possible for your lessons!”

“Good. It's my fault, though, Twilight Sparkle.” Celestia smiled wryly at her own truth,although she knew Twilight wouldn't catch on: her student still hadn't learned how to suppress the telltale aura around her horn, or how to detect cloaked enchantments. And it wasn't like Celestia had any intention of teaching her that, either: some things were better left untaught.

“So I'll... see you tomorrow!” Twilight said awkwardly, smiling lamely up at her teacher, and Celestia nodded calmly. She watched, but didn't really pay attention as Twilight turned to marshal her friends away: instead, she thought of all the plans she'd once had for her student, plans that had all changed so suddenly thanks to one little thing she had never anticipated.

She watched in silence as her personal student led her friends away, and then she gave a quiet sigh before shaking her head slowly and sitting back in her throne. She shifted impatiently as everyone filtered out, ignoring the brief wave and smile Twilight gave her as she lingered in the doorway for a moment before the guards finally shut them.

Celestia let her shoulders slump, her head dropping before she glanced irritably up at her guards. They looked back at her impassively, and the ivory mare grimaced before muttering: “I'm going to have to fix you two someday.”

She rose her hoof and flicked it to the side, and both guards quickly stepped back in front of the doors before sitting themselves down, as if to block them with their bodies. For a moment longer, they stared at Celestia before she made another short gesture... and then both soldiers suddenly lost all color and distinction, becoming solid stone statues in golden armor.

They weren't lifeless, though: these constructs still seemed to breathe, even with a lack of mouth... not to mention no lungs and bodies made of inflexible marble. These golems were carefully programmed to mimic real pony behaviors, and to 'disguise' themselves in the presence of real ponies... well, apart from her and a few others who knew that her personal escort was composed mainly of dependable synthetic constructs.

Celestia scowled a little: the one problem was that they couldn't think creatively, which meant that real ponies were still a necessity. Ponies like Shining Armor... not that he actually knew about any of the golems, of course. He didn't even know which soldiers under his command were real, and which ones were constructs, thanks to how well they were able to blend in with normal ponies.

The ivory mare sighed tiredly, then held up a hoof as her horn glowed: a moment later, a large bottle floated up from where it had hidden behind her seat of power. It dropped into her grip, and the mare quickly uncorked it before taking a few long, soothing drinks from the bottle.

She sighed, then slumped, hugging the bottle against her body and scowling moodily up at the ceiling, muttering: “Well, here I am, mother. Wasting my life, just like you said I would. So at least you're happy, since little sister always was your favorite... and she thinks I'm wasting my life here, too.”

Celestia took another long drink from the seemingly-endless bottle, and then she dropped it back into its safe cradle in her forelegs, holding it like it was a baby as she closed her eyes. She shifted uncomfortably as she felt a prickling need for something else twist through her mind, but it was only just starting to move towards dinnertime: if anyone came in, they'd smell the smoke and then there would probably be a riot, because oh my god, how could such a perfect princess do something so awful and terrible as smoking a cigarette?

“Maybe I should let Moonflower take over. Then he can mollycoddle Equestria all day.” Celestia muttered under her breath bitterly, and then she shook herself out, scowling a little at her own self-pity and silly dreaming. No, she was Princess for a reason: one day, she would be able to step down, but only after she found the right inheritor.

She'd thought – hoped – that would be Twilight Sparkle... but she had been wrong. She still couldn't believe it, either, after Twilight had shown so much promise... and even now, she seemed exceptional, she seemed so talented, she seemed so incredible...

But none of it was thanks to some innate gift. All of it was because Twilight Sparkle had worked hard her entire life to get where she was today... and for Celestia, that was a disappointment. Moreover, considering all the countless hours spent studying and practicing magic, Celestia had calculated that Twilight should be far above the current level she was at...

But she wasn't. She was plateauing, as a matter of fact, and even though Twilight was currently mastering 'the highest level of magic,' that wasn't actually a very high level of magic at all. Unicorns even a few hundred years ago would have cast circles around her, metaphorically and probably literally, since holding spells had always been a popular choice among mages.

Celestia grumbled tiredly to herself. One little accident of magic... she shouldn't have acted on impulse. Many unicorn foals, when panicked, produced incredible feats of magic, but it wasn't something that lasted very long: by the time they were adolescents, their magical abilities usually dropped and required effort and hard work to develop.

Twilight Sparkle wasn't special. Her biggest feats to date were defeating Nightmare Moon and Discord... but Nightmare Moon had been the equivalent of a childish little filly having a hissy-fit, and Discord was nothing more than a clown looking for social validation. Which he would never get, of course, no matter how much he tried to help or how hard he worked to get along with the ponies.

Celestia grumbled under her breath, then sipped at her bottle... but with a little more restraint this time, absently playing with her peytral. The worst part of their current plight was that, if Moonflower had just been a little bit nicer, she would have gladly accepted him as a student, and eventually taken him on as an advisor or more. And he'd certainly gone and proven that he was powerful enough to be a ruler... the problem was that he had such an egotistical, bratty personality. Always combing his hair or trying to show off or rubbing oils all over himself...

Celestia shook her head hurriedly, then she slapped her own cheek a few times before looking down at the bottle. She grimaced after a moment, then took one last drink to fortify herself before quickly corking it and shoving it under her throne, muttering: “That's enough of that now. And enough of you, too.” She added, looking pointedly down at herself. “You're too old to fall for the bad boy types. You know that.”

There was a rumble of disagreement from... well, herself, so to speak... but the mare only shook her head and slouched back in her throne, absently letting one hoof trail over her body as she mumbled: “Still. He always was handsome, and strong, and... well, that's about it. Well... no, he had a nice voice, too, didn't he? It was easy to listen to. I mean, he was boring, but he was easy to listen to...”

The mare closed her eyes, sighing softly as she slumped back in her throne. And the worst part of it all? He was from the old days, meaning he was a pony she could actually probably be herself around, instead of... perfect princess ultra perfect super perfect Celestia. Sure, maybe she couldn't completely be 'herself,' but at least she wouldn't have to pretend she was nice all the time. She could show her real emotions, if not her real face.

“Moonflower.” Celestia muttered, and then she shook her head slowly before closing her eyes and trying to focus in on him. But just on her own, she couldn't find him: he had inundated the entire area around his fortress with a powerful shroud enchantment. So unless he performed some great feat of magic, she wasn't going to be able to so much as catch a glimpse of him without the use of her magic mirror... which she didn't exactly have in easy access right now.

Her thoughts were interrupted as there was a hammering on the door, before a muffled voice shouted through the wood: “Celestia! I know you're in there! Let me in!”

“No.” Celestia said sulkily, slouching further in her seat and not caring how childish she was being. The annoying mare pounded on the door a few more times, and yelled something through the wood, but Celestia only flicked her horn with a scowl, and a moment a thin barrier appeared over both doors, bracing them... and more importantly, muffling any noise trying to pass through them.

She knew that it wouldn't hold for long, all the same, but Celestia closed her eyes and dropped her head forwards, praying for just a few more seconds of peace and quiet before she had to play babysitter to the biggest baby of all. Some days, she really wished that her little sister would go crazy, just so she could send her horrible, bratty, whiny, obnoxious little sister straight to the moon...

Luna was horrible. She had a bad temper, no sense of volume control, and she was bossy and childish and scared all the handsome colts away. She also considered herself to be a wellspring of great wisdom, when she didn't have enough common sense not to lick metal poles in winter.

And I bet she licks a lot more than metal poles, any season of the year. Celestia thought grouchily, although even she recognized this was far from charitable even by her standards. But well... she wasn't feeling charitable today. Especially not towards a certain pony who thought she could solve all their problems with Moonflower by having a 'nice little talk' with him.

The mare scowled a little, then she shook her head quickly before sighing and looking up irritably as a loud buzzing sound filled the air. A moment later, a portal ripped open in reality that Luna tromped through, the sapphire winged unicorn glaring up at her challengingly, her starry mane swirling around her as she snapped: “You can't lock me out whenever you want!”

“I can so. It's my castle. I can do whatever I want.” Celestia retorted, and Luna glared at her before the ivory mare sighed and reached up to slowly rub her forehead, muttering: “And that is a ridiculous abuse of magic. A portal, really? Ancient space-time magic, to get through a locked door?”

“You put up a magic barrier, I can see it!” complained Luna, and then she stormed forwards as Celestia moodily flicked her horn, shutting the portal that Luna had apparently already forgotten about. After all, leaving wormholes festering in reality was a rather bad habit to get into. “Now you listen to me. We are equals. If you don't respect me saying that, remember that our mommy always said so too.”

“Mommy said a lot of things.” Celestia muttered, and then she dropped her chin on a hoof and sighed quietly before she said suddenly: “I hate you. And I hate this. And I hate most of all that I actually don't, because at least you're the one person who I can at least be my real self around.”

Luna looked surprised at this, raising her head for a moment... and then she bit her lip before giving a small smile, dropping her own head forwards and mumbling: “I'm still mad at you. But it's your fault, you know. You said-”

“I know. I know. I'm responsible for a lot of this.” Celestia sighed softly, then she shook her head slowly and muttered: “But even you understand. There's no perfect medium, only one extreme or the other. They live like children, or they live like monsters. I'm... losing my patience with them.”

“You always call me a child, though, and you say it's one of the things about me that makes you angriest... is it really such a good idea to make them live the same way?” Luna asked quietly, and Celestia looked up in surprise, before slowly lowering her head and looking considering.

She tapped a hoof against the arm of her chair, and then she sighed, instead asking: “What was it that you wanted to talk to me about?”

Luna scowled at her, then she huffed and blew some of her starry mane away from her face, muttering: “And great. One heartwarming moment later, and now we're back to this.”

“Back to what?” Celestia asked irritably, sitting up and frowning darkly in return, but Luna only rolled her eyes, complete with a dismissive, rude little flick of her head, and the ivory mare ground her teeth together in irritation.

“I wanted to talk to you about Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Involving them is too cruel, even for you. You're going to get them hurt. We've talked about this, you promised you'd stop putting ponies at risk.” Luna said pointedly, and Celestia glared at her little sister, opening her mouth-

A soft ding filled the air, and Celestia grimaced and gave Luna a short, rude gesture before she sharply flicked her horn: immediately, both of her golems stepped away from the door as the barrier vanished, and they both took on the shape of Royal Guards a moment before the doors were carefully pushed open, and a blushing Twilight Sparkle stuck her head inside.

Celestia smiled calmly, straightening in her throne, making herself look as maternal as possible as Luna turned around and rose her head high. As always, her posture was stiff, and her voice came across too serious as she greeted cordially: “Twilight Sparkle, it is good to have thou in our presence.”

“Hi, Princess Luna! It's nice to see you too.” Twilight smiled, completely unaware that Luna's bastardized regality wasn't because she was some long-ago time, but because Celestia's little sister was a horrible, horrible actress. Just like in cards, she always overplayed her hoof... but it wasn't like any of these ponies had ever caught on.

“How can I help you, Twilight Sparkle? And please tell me you didn't come alone: I'm very concerned for the safety of you and your friends in particular.” Celestia said, putting as much concern as she could force out into her voice.

“Yes, Twilight Sparkle. We are very concerned as well.” Luna added pompously, and Celestia did her best to resist the urge to glare at her horrible little sister. “This is truly a most dangerous and pressing time, after all. We know that our most-loved sister may have your best interest at heart, but there are many dangerous games ahoof.”

Twilight only smiled and blushed a bit, lowering her head awkwardly. “Well, I... did get a Royal Guard to escort me, one of Shining's best soldiers, he said. I just... I'm really worried about everyone. I wanted to make sure there was nothing else I could do. Maybe I could help you... prepare defenses around the castle, or I could use my magic to help you investigate what Moros is doing.”

Celestia resisted the urge to laugh: the wards on the castle were ancient and more powerful than Twilight could begin to imagine, and a unicorn of her meager talent would only get in the way. It would take Celestia days to teach her any new magic... “That is a nice thought, Twilight Sparkle, but those spells are very... complicated. I'm not sure you could use them properly without practice.”

Twilight blushed and nodded, then said hurriedly: “But... but I'd be willing to try! I know sometimes it takes me a little while of studying before I really... master new magic, but... when we dealt with King Sombra a little while ago, I was able to use that kind of magic really fast!”

Celestia's eyes sharpened at this, the mare's features becoming colder as Luna frowned uneasily. Twilight caught the change in expression... but apparently attributed it to something completely different in her naivety, saying embarrassedly: “I'm sorry, I... don't mean to brag or anything, you're always telling me to practice, practice, practice, and about how getting it on the first try often means luck, not skill... but it really felt-”

“Twilight Sparkle, perhaps... we should speak later tonight. Yes, I have some business to attend to with my sister, but we'll talk tonight.” Celestia stopped, realized how abrupt she was coming across, and quickly smiled as Twilight looked at her uncertainly, the ivory mare saying gently: “I'm sorry for being short with you, but our country's business doesn't grind to a halt just because of Moros. I have a very busy schedule.”

“Oh! I'm sorry, Princess, I didn't mean to intrude.” Twilight blushed and dropped her head humbly, smiling awkwardly. “I won't ring the bell next time, I'll just wait outside the doors, okay?”

“No, it's fine, Twilight Sparkle. Thank you for telling me what you have. Tonight, please come to my room, and we'll find a place where you can demonstrate your magic proficiencies to me. We'll go from there.” Celestia said gently, and the violet mare smiled happily and nodded a few times.

Neither of the winged unicorns paid any attention to Twilight Sparkle as the unicorn left and closed the doors, barely hearing her goodbyes and platitudes... and, the moment the doors were shut, Luna looked sharply up at Celestia and said quietly: “You cannot kill her.”

“I will do what I must. It's bad enough she ended up being a disappointment. But if she does have a talent for dark magic, then I'll... do what must be done to protect Equestria, just like I have since I first took over.” Celestia muttered, looking away and scowling darkly. “I'll start with a genealogy. I checked three generations back for any compromising qualities... maybe I didn't look back far enough.”

Luna looked up at Celestia, then she shook her head slowly before muttering: “You call me the big baby, sister, but you're the one who seems to enjoy pretending to be-”

“I am the one who has to take care of this nation. I am Celestia.” The ivory mare snarled, sitting up and glaring furiously down at her sister, who winced back in surprise at her sibling's fury. Then Celestia closed her eyes and took a breath before she said icily: “Our conversation is over.”

“Fine.” Luna growled, spinning around and heading for the doors. But even in spite of all her anger and how upset she was, she couldn't help but look worriedly over her shoulder at her big sister, afraid that she might end up doing more damage to her own country than the darkness she was trying so hard to fight ever could.

Unequal Consequences

Chapter Three: Unequal Consequences
~BlackRoseRaven

Twilight Sparkle knocked hesitantly on Princess Celestia's ajar door, peeking through into the winged unicorn's bedroom. But Celestia only held up a hoof from her seat at her writing desk as she finished a few notes in a large, old book, saying softly: “I'll be with you in just a moment.”

The violet mare nodded quickly, saying embarrassedly: “Okay. I don't want to rush you or anything, I'll just... wait right here...”

Celestia didn't bother replying, continuing to write for a few moments before she stopped with her quill on the page, and her gaze silent as she stared down at the book. At the endless river of text scrawled over these pages, all these hopes, these dreams, these desires... and so many of them were so foolish. Stupid. Idiotic. Worthless...

She stopped, then shook her head quickly before dropping the quill between the pages and carefully closing the tome. A book always written by hoof, a book that she did her best to never touch with magic. A journal from the days long, long ago...

She pushed herself away from the table, then turned her eyes towards Twilight Sparkle, asking softly: “Are you ready?”

Twilight smiled up at her: naïve, innocent, trusting, loving. It was almost enough to make Celestia feel guilty, but she knew what had to be done: Equestria's continuing peace was more important than the life of any single pony, after all.

Celestia gave a brief smile, and then she shook her head quickly before suggesting gently: “Why don't we head up to the observation tower? There, we'll have plenty of room, and we can talk a little in privacy, Twilight.”

The violet mare blushed and nodded a few times at this, looking up with delight and warmth at her mentor, apparently forgetting everything from the seriousness of the situation they were faced with, to the fact that she was about to be tested. Celestia found it both endearing and... a little worrying, too. Normally, after all, Twilight would be having ridiculous anxiety attacks over her tests – likely thanks to the fact that some part of her was well-aware she had no real talent in magic, and all of it came from her struggle to master spells that a skilled unicorn could learn in only a matter of hours.

Celestia softened a little as she looked at the mare: at least she could respect Twilight's work ethic. The few truly talented unicorns, after all, usually became indolent and lazy, and their arrogance often led to them dropping into pointless lives of luxury... if only Twilight had been born with some innate ability in magic! Then she truly would have been a worthy inheritor...

Well, except for this one little thing. A natural talent for dark magic... Celestia had to repress a shiver before she cleared her throat when she realized Twilight was still staring up at her ardently, the Princess prompting gently: “Why don't we go up there now, then?”

The violet mare nodded hurriedly several times, smiling warmly up at the ivory mare before turned around and almost bounced off the doorframe as she scampered back into the hall. Celestia sighed quietly, shaking her head slowly and wishing wryly for a cigarette or a stiff drink before she followed the young mare out into the corridor.

Their journey up to one of the observation towers was relatively uneventful. Well, Twilight rambled the entire way, but Celestia just nodded along now and then, not exactly interested in what the mare had to say, thinking about the much more pressing issues at hoof than all the silly garbage Twilight kept bringing up.

They reached the top of the tower without running into anyone apart from the Royal Guards that routinely patrolled the halls. And Twilight marveled up at the night sky with foalish awe as they stepped out onto the top of the tower, her eyes roving over the stars and up to the moon before she whispered: “It's all so beautiful...”

Celestia frowned a little as she stepped out onto the roof herself, looking moodily up into the night sky for a moment before she sighed inwardly. Yes, Luna had rearranged the stars and the moon in some half-hearted gesture... but Twilight, of course, was too thick to realize why things seemed so much closer and larger than usual, or that the arrangement of blinking stars formed what was almost a veiled warning...

“Twilight.” Celestia said gently, and immediately the purple mare turned her eyes towards her, smiling warmly, looking up at her expectantly.

Celestia bit her lip and hesitated for a moment... and then she sighed softly before leaning down and saying softly: “Why don't you demonstrate this magic to me, Twilight Sparkle? But be careful. This is a very advanced, very dangerous form of magic-”

“Oh, I know! I did some research, or... well... at least as much as I could manage by myself. There was barely any information on any of it, but... I managed to scrape up a few old articles from the historical archives on certain kind of magic and...” Twilight blushed before she awkwardly dropped her head. “I'm sorry, I'm rambling, I... I just want you to know that I've worked really hard on this and done everything in my power to make sure that I take every precaution and-”

“Twilight. Please demonstrate.” Celestia said gently, although it was incredibly difficult for her to keep the growing irritation out of her voice... and worse than that, the worry that was building in her body. The way Twilight was talking about it...

And then Celestia stared as Twilight smiled even as black energy crackled over her horn, a terrible miasma bleeding out of her eyes as she said in a voice that was friendly, happy, without the slightest bit of strain: “Sorry, Princess, I'll do it right away!”

Her horn crackled, and there was a toxic pulse before she calmly flicked it upwards: black flames shot in a jet out of the spire, shooting up into the air above and becoming a dark sun that floated ominously above their heads, as Twilight said proudly: “See? See, Princess Celestia? I think my training is finally paying off because it all feels so-”

Celestia sharply flicked her horn to the side, and Twilight winced in pain and surprise as there was a single bright flash that dispelled her dark magic. She mouthed slowly as Celestia looked down at her coldly before the ivory mare gritted her teeth: she was disgusted to see that even with her counterspell, her horn still thrummed with dark power and that miasma was still pouring out of her eyes... “P-Princess?”

“Twilight Sparkle, sit down and be quiet.” Princess Celestia said sharply, and the violet mare whimpered as she dropped on her rump and lowered her head... but the ivory mare gritted her teeth in frustration as she saw that dark malevolence was still glowing in her eyes and from her horn, as she snapped angrily: “And drop that aura, now!”

Twilight flinched, then hurriedly clenched her eyes shut, and a moment later that aura vanished from her... but she still stank of it, of the dark magic she had used, and Celestia shook her head in disgust before she said coldly: “So many years of training, of... investment and work. And now look at you. Using these dark powers, abusing these... poisons. Do you understand what you've done?”

“N-N-No... I... I didn't... I j-just wanted to impress you...” whispered Twilight, trembling hard as she looked up and swallowed thickly, but she was unable to meet Celestia's glare, her whole body shivering, tears already starting to run from her eyes as she whimpered: “I... I just w-w-want to b-be the best student I can be and... I feel... I want...”

“Twilight, that is dark magic, evil magic. I did not demonstrate it to you so that you would mimic it like a... a monkey. I showed it to you because I wanted you to understand the evil and the danger of it, which you have obviously failed to do.” Celestia snapped, shaking her head shortly before she said with disgust: “That kind of magic is not our magic, it is not the magic of Equestria, or civilized unicorns. It is the magic of evil. It is a poison, a darkness. It is wrong and bad.”

Twilight trembled violently, and then she looked up and blurted, trying helplessly to defend her actions: “I... but it's just m-magic! Magic can't be good or evil, it's what you do with it, like-”

“Enough! Don't try and talk about things you clearly don't understand!” Celestia shouted, leaning angrily down towards the mare, who cowered back with another whimper and dropped her head as her whole body shook. “Some magics are forbidden for a reason, and if you're so arrogant that you truly believe that you're... pure-hearted and strong-willed enough to resist temptations that have turned hundreds, if not thousands of real unicorn mages infinitely more talented than you into nothing but brainless animals like Sombra-”

“No! N-No! I never said that, I n-n-never...” Twilight trembled violently, and then gave up all semblance of trying to make sense, suddenly dropping to the ground and bursting into wailing, miserable sobs.

And Celestia, even with her iron will and her resolve to cut off any possible threat to the country before it was too late, felt a stirring of guilt and discomfort cut through her mind. She hesitated for a moment, biting her lip before she quickly shoved her emotions aside, leaning down and snapping: “Stop crying and acting like a filly, you brought this on yourself!”

“I... didn't mean t-to!” wailed Twilight, and she looked up frantically, tears leaking from her eyes, her whole body shaking with her sobs as she cried out, her voice cracking, so terrified and upset that it was almost a scream: “P-Please! Please! I w-w-won't ever do it again, please please please!”

“No. I have no other choice.” Celestia said coldly, raising her head slowly as her horn glowed with golden light, and Twilight whimpered, curling up in terror but staring up at her with those amethyst eyes that held no hate or anger for her, but only fear and despair and self-loathing and... and...

Twenty minutes later, Celestia emerged from the tower into the main hall, grimacing in distaste as she looked down at one bloody hoof before irritably wiping it against the floor. Then she glanced over her shoulder at one of the construct guards she'd put on duty here, saying coldly: “Keep this room sealed. I will be sending one of my servants up shortly to... deal with cleaning up.”

“You're a monster.” said a quiet voice, and Celestia slowly looked away from the golem to see Luna standing in the hall, trembling and glaring up at her defiantly... but fearfully, as well. “I... I can't believe you! Didn't you learn anything from the crusades? Mommy would never-”

“Mommy is dead.” Celestia said shortly, and Luna froze up, looking like she'd been punched. Celestia only looked at her impassively for a few moments, and then she shook her head and shoved past, saying disgustedly: “And you're welcome, by the way.”

Luna snarled over her shoulder, opening her mouth... and then her eyes widened as something clicked in her mind before she spun back forwards. She scrambled past the constructs and hurried into the tower's interior...

And there, near the base of the staircase, was Twilight's bloodied and battered body. Luna trembled as she approached it... then sighed in relief as she reached down, silently touching the side of the mare's neck as she whispered: “Alive... hurt, but... alive. But...”

Luna didn't understand. Twilight looked like she'd been beaten, and she was covered in blood... but there wasn't a cut or scar on her body. But as she examined the bruising and her hide, she saw the little signs of regrown flesh here and there... meaning Celestia had probably healed her after doing something to her, then left her here. But she had left her suffering: she hadn't healed her because she cared about her, clearly, but because it covered something up...

Luna studied the violet mare, then shivered and shook her head as Twilight only lay on the ground, lost in unconsciousness. But there wasn't anything she could do right now: Celestia had some purpose in mind, and Luna knew better than to try and interfere with her. Even when her big sister was putting someone else's life at risk; to Celestia, 'protecting' Equestria was all-important.

For a few moments, the sapphire mare looked silently down at the bloody unicorn, and then she sighed softly before reaching up and touching her temple gently, saying quietly: “I hope for your sake, you really are the one pony in this whole country my sister actually cares about.”

With that, Luna shook her head before turning and walking away, leaving Twilight trembling and alone in the darkness of her mind, the darkness of the tower... and the burning iron grip of Celestia.

Morpheus and Antecedes sat across from each other, the stallion staring intently at the chessboard as Antecedes rested back in his chair, paging through a newspaper. The skeleton seemed bored at the most: Morpheus, meanwhile, was treating this like it was the most intense challenge he had ever faced, sweating a little as his eyes flicked back and forth over his pieces and his hooves rubbed together uncomfortably.

They were in a little, comfortable den that was situated far beneath the castle: unlike the fortress above, these rooms were fully furnished and served more of a purpose than to act like a giant cardboard cutout designed to attract Celestia's attention. And, well, because what evil mastermind didn't have a fortress? Sure, Antecedes had pointed out that maybe breaking convention would be a good idea, since the 'evil fortress of evil' was kind of an easy landmark to find, but... well, Morpheus wanted to be found anyway! So Antecedes wasn't so damn smart after all.

The not-so-smart skeleton in question looked up from his newspaper as Morpheus hesitantly started to reach forwards, and then he said dryly: “You wouldn't take so long to make a move if you'd actually think about cause and effect beforehoof, oh benevolent evil overlord.”

“Be quiet! Chess is... chess is nothing like real war, everypony knows that. Real war does not have... rules, and luck plays as much a part as... the quantity and quality of soldiers and... a king such as myself can eliminate more than one pawn with his powers at a time!” retorted Morpheus, and then he angrily reached out and swept up a bishop before using it to rudely bat one of Antecedes' knights off the board, smiling in triumph. “There! Now what do you have to say to that?”tt

Without looking, Antecedes reached up and used a pawn to gently swat Morpheus' bishop over, saying mildly: “The king is the weakest piece in the game. He's designed to be a liability. But I'm happy to agree that you share quite a few characteristics with that piece in particular, sure. And speaking of kings, yours is in check.”

“What? I don't.... I can't... what?” Morpheus looked disbelievingly over the chessboard, and then he growled in frustration as he finally saw it: the queen had an open line of sight straight to his king, thanks to Antecedes' last move. “Well, aren't you so cute? Still, I've claimed your most powerful pieces, and-”

“You captured a rook and a knight, Moonflower, and you've lost most of your pawns, both bishops, both knights, and one rook. And that's only because we have nothing better to do so I'm drawing the game out.” Antecedes retorted, and Morpheus hissed like a teakettle before he slammed his hooves down on either side of the chessboard, making the table rattle and the pieces jump.

“Don't call me that! That is no longer my name! I am King Morpheus, Prince of Darkness!” he replied furiously, and then he reached out... before halting with a hoof over the chessboard, narrowing his eyes and then smiling thinly at Antecedes, who was only looking at him patiently. “Oh, I see. You know that your wit is no match for mine, so you're trying to get me angry. You are trying to use my emotions against me; rather cruel, Antecedes, this is supposed to be a game between friends. But you always do take things so seriously, don't you?”

Morpheus sat back, smiling calmly and brushing his silver mane away from his features. But the fact he was sweating and flushed and still breathing a little hard all went to show that maybe, just maybe, he was the one who had the problem with taking things seriously.

So, instead of responding, Antecedes turned his eyes back to the paper and said mildly: “That mare you like has a new fashion line. Dazzling Diamonds, clothes for the aspiring... prostitute, I suppose, from the look of them. Oh, and purses. Gaudy, ugly purses the size of backpacks.”

“You know nothing of fashion, Antecedes. It's not always about function, but about making a statement. And furthermore, clothing exists to accent our assets. We ponies are already strong and savvy enough to exist in any climate even without clothing, after all: it is a symbol of status.” Morpheus replied calmly, brushing at himself with a proud smile as he gestured at his own body. “Unless, of course, we ourselves are a greater symbol than our clothing could ever be.”

“You're just embarrassed about the fact that one of your wings is smaller than the other, and it makes it awkward to tailor anything for you.” Antecedes replied without looking up, and Morpheus scowled and reached back to touch one wing self-consciously before the skeleton added: “Bright's Bewildering Beat is finishing up a short three show run, but they're calling for it to run for at least a month more. It's been very popular.”

“I am not Dim Dunn.” growled Morpheus, scowling horribly at the skeleton as he absently extended one wing and rubbed at it awkwardly. “And you are not earning yourself any further into my favor by continuing to compare us.”

“Yes, I'm trying very hard to kiss flank right now.” Antecedes said ironically, and then he sighed quietly before folding the paper and becoming more serious as he dropped it in his lap, saying in a softer tone: “Look. What I'm trying to say is that you are rushing, and you are making connections where there are none to be made. And worst of all, you're hesitating.”

“I... I am not.” Morpheus muttered, looking awkwardly away as he continued to toy nervously with the end of his wing, and then he looked down and added grouchily: “I'm concentrating, that's all. You always resort to cheap tricks to win this game.”

“And you have yet to send out Neato Burrito, who I believe is still patiently waiting in his room.” Antecedes said mildly, steering the topic away from the chess game. There was an awkward silence for a few moments as Morpheus shifted in his seat, trying to come up with some excuse, but the skeleton asked in a quieter voice: “What are you afraid of?”

Morpheus shifted again, and then he sighed and dropped his head, mumbling: “It might be... succeeding, Antecedes. Because you're right, I talk a big game, but... part of me is hesitating. Not about right or wrong, good or evil... I don't care about those things. What I care about is that I feel strangely... content right now. Celestia is afraid of me and I am powerful and have established myself. I have minions and... well, Neato, and you. It seems like such a shame that this is all going to be gone so fast.”

“It doesn't have to be.” Antecedes said gently, and Morpheus frowned as he looked up, before the skeleton shrugged and gestured towards him. “You could change your plan, that's all I'm saying. Maybe... maybe try and pick the Elements of Harmony off one at a time, at your leisure. Maybe you should confront Celestia and fight her... but leave her defeated. Leave her struggling. You could take over, or form your own kingdom... you don't have to do... this.”

“I do, though, I... I do. I need to prove that I am superior in every way... and I know that if I push Celestia too hard, if I threaten her too much, she'll use it against me!” Morpheus' voice rose, becoming angrier... but not at Antecedes. He was angry at the world, for leaving him in this impossible predicament. “As it is, we know the only reason she doesn't use it is because it will require stripping the Elements of Harmony of their power!”

“What once was, back again.” muttered Antecedes, and then he sighed quietly and shook his head slowly as the crimson light of his eyes flickered. “Look. Celestia likely doesn't even know that you know of the existence of the tablet. And even if she did, she wouldn't imagine that you know how to activate it, or about her true face. And... as painful as this might be for you to think about... you do not have to display your full power. You could... choose to lose.”

“I am not a comic book character or a villain from some child's cartoon! I am evil, real evil! And I am powerful and I will not have them... laugh at me or cast me aside anymore!” snapped Morpheus, and then he bad-temperedly swept a foreleg out, knocking chess pieces flying off the board.

There was silence for a few moments, and then Antecedes sighed again and sat back, shrugging and saying quietly: “Look. It's your call, Morpheus. I'm not a big fan of being not-alive, and what you want to do is something I want to see happen, because... for one thing, I'll be dead. For another, it would be incredible. We would see magic like had never been imagined in action. We would watch the death of an entire civilization, if not an entire world... we would have proof that there is a power out there, on a level that makes us look like gnats... and prove to everyone on this miserable little planet that we are no more important than... clumps of dirt on the ground or the dust in the air or anything else, in the grand scheme of things.”

“Death by existentialism.” Morpheus said dryly, and then he shivered a little and shook his head slowly. “I... I suppose I should tell Neato Burrito that it's time for him to get going, then.”

“I suppose you should.” Antecedes sounded strangely disappointed, and the stallion frowned across at his skeletal friend for a moment... but then only shrugged when Antecedes turned away to start picking up the pieces that had been knocked off the chessboard.

He lingered all the same for a moment, but then cleared his throat and slid out of his seat, gesturing awkwardly at the door and saying lamely: “I... I suppose I will, then. I'll. See you.”

Antecedes only grunted, and the stallion scowled at him for a moment before grumbling and turning, pushing his way out into the corridor. He almost ran right into a living suit of armor, the winged unicorn swearing under his breath as he carefully slipped past the silent sentinel slowly stalking through the hall.

He had no idea why Antecedes had insisted on creating such creepy creatures to crawl around these corridors: it wasn't like anyone was ever going to be able to sneak through all the layers of security above without being noticed, after all. But that was Antecedes: always concerned about silly 'what-ifs' and 'could-happens' and all this other nonsense.

Morpheus peered suspiciously over his shoulder after the animated suit of armor, then he huffed and turned his eyes back forwards, striding quickly down the hall to the far end. He bit his lip as he hovered uncertainly in front of the door for a moment, and then awkwardly rose his hoof-

The door was flung open, and Neato Burrito almost-glared out of the doorway at him, Morpheus wincing a bit before the earth pony saluted sharply and said fiercely: “I will make your enemies quiver in fear of you! Just give the word, boss, just give the word and I shall be on my way!”

“I uh... thank you, Neato Burrito.” Morpheus found himself hesitating again all the same, for more reasons than just the awkward vigor of the stallion, but then the winged unicorn closed his eyes and forced himself to take a long breath before saying almost grudgingly: “I... yes, I think it's time for you to send a message to Canterlot. I would like you to...”

Morpheus stopped, realizing he didn't actually have a target for Neato Burrito in mind. While he could just have the earth pony attack the castle, there was a chance that even the mighty little Luchador could be overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of Celestia's soldiers... or, more likely, he'd fall in the moat and drown, since the little stubby pony couldn't swim and sank like a rock.

But then a brilliant idea came to the stallion's mind, and his eyes widened slightly before he smiled suddenly, saying calmly: “I would like you to attack the theater playing host to Bright's Bewildering Beat, in Canterlot. It's something that no pony will be able to ignore, and it will force all of Equestria to acknowledge my presence.”

“I will, Señor Morpheus! I do not entirely agree with the rampant destruction of property, but in this case, I know it shall bring me great honor because they have been mocking your good name!” I will teach them to never slander a great pony like you again!” declared Neato Burrito, and Morpheus groaned and dropped his face in a hoof.

Neato frowned for a moment... but then suddenly brightened and nodded firmly, saying with a wide, rather frightening grin: “Yes! You are right, this is not a job for Neato Burrito!”

The stallion leapt backwards, slamming the door violently, and Morpheus swore and staggered backwards as the wood smacked painfully into his nose, grabbing at his muzzle as his eyes watered. But before he could even take a breath to shout, the door was flung back open, and the earth pony stepped back out in full Luchador regalia.

Silver and white boots covered his hooves, and a matching vest clung tightly to his body: this latter was connected to a heavy, U-shaped yoke of steel that locked around his neck, but left his throat bare instead of connecting, with large studs along the body. Really, the costume was quite simple...

But it was the mask that drew all the attention, and much more complex. It was a steel-silver, with narrow holes for his beady eyes and a single large gap that his muzzle poked through. Tight straps went under his chin to secure it, and thick, hanging veils of cloth fell down to his shoulders to half-cover the sides of his muzzle, making it harder to identify him and adding a sense of mysteriousness. Or making it look like he was wearing a mare's veil, Morpheus was never really quite sure.

The most terrifying thing about the mask, however, was the fact that there was a massive metal horseshoe that stood out of the front of it, upside down so the arms of the U-shaped piece of metal formed blinders on either side of his face, so thick that it almost completely blocked the sides of his muzzle from view. The horseshoe was immense and polished and black, secured by... well, Morpheus honestly had no idea, but despite its weight, the mask never seemed to strain or tear even though it was securely attached to the material. Either it was magical, or Neato Burrito was a lot better at sewing and stitching and costuming than he'd ever let on.

“This is a job for El Casco!” roared Neato Burrito... or rather, 'El Casco.' Morpheus grimaced a bit at this, as the alter ego of his loyal henchpony rose his head proudly. “I shall defend your honor, Señor Morpheus! Now, do not fear, for none have ever defeated El Casco, inside or outside of the ring! I shall ensure that you prevail, and in a way that is not contemptible nor will leave you a victim of further slurs upon your reputation!”

“Yes. Thank you.” Morpheus said moodily, noting ironically that if there ever really was a meeting of evil minds, Neato Burrito would likely get him thrown out of the meeting within the first minute. And then he would have to go back in and kill everyone just to ensure they all knew he was the superior force of darkness... so really, it's a good thing there's no other known evil lords around here. The darkness is a lonely place, but it's better that way. Because the alternative is... this.

El Casco was looking at him, eyes blazing with excitement, ready to move and do whatever he commanded... and Morpheus couldn't help but smile a little, in spite of his misgivings, his frustration, his... well, unfairness. Because like it or not, he knew that Neato Burrito was someone he could count on, someone he could trust; something very rare to have in your life even when you weren't pure evil.

“Alright... El Casco. You have your orders. Destroy the theater, and announce who sent you. Send a challenge to Celestia, then return here immediately: try not to get in any other fights along the way.” Morpheus said calmly, and the Luchador saluted sharply. He didn't move immediately, however, and there was an uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Morpheus sighed tiredly and grumbled: “So commands Señor Morpheus to his honorable Luchador, El Casco.”

“And El Casco hears him, and is away!” roared the earth pony, almost shaking the walls of the corridor as Morpheus winced, and then the Luchador dashed off so quickly he seemed to leave a streak of color in his wake.

The winged unicorn scowled moodily after the small pony, then he shook his head slowly before muttering: “Sometimes I wonder what possessed me to save that idiot.”

He paused for a moment, then shrugged briefly before turning and letting his hooves carry him down the corridor, as he thought idly about the day he had met Neato Burrito: a day that he both remembered fondly and regretted horribly.

It hadn't been long after his escape from Tartarus, actually... he had been out looking for a place to set up his new home, and he had ended up coming across a very curious sight: a dragon, attacking an earth pony. What he'd found strange was that the earth pony was actually fighting back.

Now, of course, he knew all about the laws and treaties Celestia had enforced with the dragons. Back then, he'd just assumed it was some unlucky pony who'd been attacked and was going to serve as a nice lunch for the giant red lizard.

But he'd been intrigued by how hard the little pony had fought. So hard, as a matter of fact, he'd managed to punch out several of the dragon's teeth and torn swathes through its scales. The dragon was furious and focused completely on the little pony, less intent on eating him and more just on killing the earth pony for these humiliations...

And not even knowing completely why, Morpheus had targeted one of the dragon's wounds before sending a spear of dark magic through the hole in the beast's scaly armor. It had torn apart most of the dragon's neck and felled the great beast... although of course the dragon collapsed right on top of the little stallion in his death throes. Which was an image that still amused Morpheus to this day.

He had calmly taken the opportunity to help himself to some of the dragon's still-fresh blood, any usable scales he could gather, and most of the beast's remaining teeth... but after about twenty minutes, the little earth pony had wriggled his way out from beneath the behemoth and run over to him. To the winged unicorn's surprise, the earth pony had thanked him profusely, then gone on a long ramble about how this dragon was some... terror of the valley, blah blah blah, saved the village, helped people, did great stuff, and other nonsense.

He'd only perked up when the stallion had pledged his loyalty to him: this had quickly turned to irritation when he'd discovered that this stallion, who loudly introduced himself and his career with a passion that Morpheus had at first mistaken as arrogance, was going to follow him everywhere he went. Eventually, he'd tried shooing Neato Burrito away with magic... only for the stallion to shrug this off and then compliment on him his 'blazing energy.'

Morpheus had been stunned by this turn of events. He had tried another, more powerful spell, and it had barely left a mark on the already-beaten-and-bruised Neato Burrito, who had laughed and declared him a 'promising beginner of Lucha Libre!'

So Morpheus had accidentally gained a loyal servant, one far stronger and more-solid than your average pony. And Neato Burrito had been with him for quite some time: they'd freed Antecedes from where he'd been imprisoned by Celestia, and Neato Burrito often ran out and took care of all the necessities for him, like shopping for things and spying on ponies and gathering information... while his alter-ego, the fearsome El Casco, robbed banks, stole precious objects, and beat up anyone that Morpheus told him to beat him. So really, it had all worked out quite well.

The winged unicorn absently pushed his way into his room, then approached his bed and crawled into it with a sigh of pleasure. It was a giant, soft thing that he literally sank into the mattress of, with blankets messily scattered around it and all variety of pillows, including one that was suspiciously shaped like a pony. Morpheus rose his head almost furtively to look back and forth around his dimly-lit room, and then he reached out and snatched this up before pulling it against his chest and flopping onto his back.

He mumbled a little to himself as he sank into the comfort of his bed, wishing strangely that... things had been different. He felt himself slipping down into a strange unhappy void, staring listlessly up at the ceiling as he clung to his pony-shaped pillow, and then he gritted his teeth in a badly-faked display of anger, trying to convince himself that was his... his insurmountable rage and aggression just boiling a hole in him, not... not sad feelings, which were for babies and good people.

“I... I will have my revenge!” snapped Morpheus, and then he dropped his head sulkily and muttered: “I... it's all your fault, Celestia. Your cruelty made me become what I am today.”

He stopped, then glanced awkwardly down at himself as his wings fluttered a bit at his side: okay, he was a handsome, powerful, nigh-omnipotent winged unicorn with an army at his command and his own fortress. Still, well... “Your... I mean, your cruelty caused the wounds in me that will never heal! Like... like my wing!”

Morpheus snapped his slightly-short wing out, nodding violently before he awkwardly folded this to begin playing with the tips of it with his hooves, still keeping the pony pillow hugged tight against his chest as he grumbled: “And I will have my revenge. Just you wait and see, Celestia. You might be laughing now... or... you might think you're laughing right now, but you're not. Your laughter is just a prelude to your screams of fear, a sad denial of your impediment fate!”

“I think you mean 'impending,' boss.” said a sour voice, and Morpheus squeaked, his first reaction being to squish himself further into bed and try to hide under his wing before he sat up with a glower at his writing desk.

It looked at first like there was nothing there, but after a moment, a tiny shape leapt up and landed on the table. It waddled forwards, and Morpheus blew his mane out of his eyes before he leaned sourly towards the tiny, rotund... “Toad. What are you doing here? You're sliming everywhere.”

Aptly-named Toad scowled at Morpheus: he was an ugly, warty, fat little thing, with sullen eyes... and a surprisingly-rumbling voice, as he growled in return: “If I had a choice, I wouldn't be here at all. But genius that you are, Mr. I'm Better Than My Teachers, you're the one who had to test forbidden black magic on his pet.”

“Oh, here we go again with the You Tested The Phoenix Spell On Me speech!” complained Morpheus, who waved a hoof dismissively. “I think that a few tiny inconveniences are nothing in compared to the infinite power and invulnerability I have imparted upon you.”

“'Little inconveniences?' Every time my life ends, I spontaneously combust! And then I come back as an egg! And if you forget to put me in a glass of water, when I hatch, I blow up. And I go through this over and over again until you go 'duhr huhr, hey, hey there, I guess I should put you in that aquarium, huh?'” retorted the amphibian angrily, stomping his floppy feet a few times before he pointed furiously at Morpheus, who scowled back at him. “And the fact you gave me pony level intelligence just means that, instead of being a dumb toad who blows up, then forgets about it, and lives out a happy life wallowing in mud and eating bugs, I spend every freaking day remembering and fearing the horrific pain that the so-called 'end' of my life will bring, wondering if I'm trapped in some reincarnating hell because I was some horrifically-evil pony in life!”

“I told you not to read those philosophy books. I told you. That's your fault.” Morpheus muttered, flopping back in his bed and sighing as he furled his wings and hugged his pony pillow against his chest. “Now leave Daddy alone, he wants to sleep.”

Toad groaned and closed his eyes, dropping his face into one webbed palm as he mumbled: “Dude, I am not a cat and you are not my father. Being your pet is bad enough. Can you at least not talk to me like I'm retarded, like your Loochie pal?”

Morpheus huffed at this, threatening: “If you don't treat him with a bit more respect, Toad, I'm going to let him boil you in a pot. Lucadores love frogs' legs.”

“No, that's those fancy ponies from across the ocean. You don't even know your stereotypes, colt, that's sad.” Toad huffed at this, then he waddled to the edge of the table, leaning forwards and asking grouchily: “So when are you going to feed me, by the way? I'm hungry.”

“You're always hungry, you bottomless pit.” muttered Morpheus, and then the winged unicorn gave a long, drawn-out sigh... but didn't move from his spot on the bed, saying mildly: “Go feed yourself. You have the intelligence to.”

Toad groaned, then whined: “Yeah, but I also don't have telekinesis or magical powers or anything else! Come on, you could at least get the jar for me! It's not like I can hunt anything else out here, either... ever since you splattered this whole place with dark energy, most of the bugs have grown bigger and meaner than I am. You owe your pet.”

“You hate being called my pet.” Morpheus grumbled, covering his head with the pony pillow and trying to hide beneath it, but he could still feel Toad glaring at him.

“I do, but it's the only thing that seems to get your butt in gear. Unless I bring up the story about how you tried to pass me off as your familiar when you went to magic school...” Toad wheedled, and the winged unicorn groaned and covered his ears with his hooves, the pony pillow tumbling off his head.

“Stop, stop! Fine, you idiot. Besides, you are my familiar.” Morpheus muttered, and then he sat up and held a hoof out, a jar floating down from a nearby shelf as he added in a mumble: “My familiar pain in the flank...”

Toad huffed at this, but then licked his lips greedily and hopped over to the edge of the table closest to the jar as Morpheus carefully opened it. He winced backwards from it, then uncomfortably tipped it forwards to pour a few mutilated bug-corpses into the lid, saying grudgingly: “Here. Now go away and leave me alone.”

Toad ignored him, his tongue lashing out to sweep up one the broken bodies greedily, and Morpheus turned his eyes away with a nauseated expression, adding in a groan: “Why of all the powerful, incredible magical creatures I've created, did you have to be the only one to return to me?”

“Hey, you sent that loony Loochie to come and break me out! You wanted me back!” whined Toad, and then he snatched up the last bug from the lid and chewed it up slowly, before saying thoughtfully: “I think you're lonely without me, boss. And I think you know who has all the real ideas here. Who's in charge. Who's got the master plan.”

“I do.” growled Morpheus, slamming the lid back on the jar.

“Those weren't questions.” Toad replied flatly, and then he sniffed disdainfully before adding grumpily: “And you know, you don't have to be such a giant wad, either. Look at you, you're acting like a caterpillar who crawled into a cocoon all excited, only to find out he turns into a moth. And then he gets eaten.”

Morpheus floated the jar of dead bugs back up to the top of one shelf, where he didn't have to look at it. Then he looked moodily over at Toad, considering doing the same to his pint-sized sidekick. “I forget why you were my pet in the first place.”

“Because, Moony, your parents were too poor to afford a dog. So you went out and picked me up and claimed I was a magic frog. Being too dumb and naïve at that time to understand that we toads are much more sophisticated and advanced than frogs.” replied Toad primly, brushing at himself with one webbed set of fingers.

The winged unicorn rolled his eyes, then he reached up and flicked Toad onto his back, grumbling: “Or maybe it's because I'm trying to create a better version of the phoenix spell, and you, my friend, are my only possible lead.”

“Thanks, chief.” Toad grumbled, still sprawled on his back. Then the little amphibian carefully rolled over and climbed back up to his feet, asking finally: “Why do you care, though? I mean. You're always doing all these weird little experiments and stuff, but... you know if you destroy Equestria...”

“Yes, I know.” Morpheus dropped his eyes, then he curled his short wing forwards to silently start playing with it, his eyes closed as he mumbled: “I know. But that is the ultimate goal, Toad... I'm... I'm merely trying to entertain myself before I bring this world crashing down into nothingness. Once I get the tablet...”

He quieted, then looked down and said softly: “The tablet contains our world's memories, and what our world dreams of. Whoever holds the tablet can use it to make any wish they want... can shape reality as they desire. I will gain entry to it with the Elements of Harmony, and then I will use it to... to make one wish, for nothing. And then everything will be nothing and there won't be any more hope or dreams or nightmares or suffering...”

He closed his eyes tightly, breathing slowly in and out before shaking his head quickly and muttering: “It would be an assured victory. It would prove my superiority. And from there...”

“That's kind of uncreative, boss. I mean, if you could wish for anything, why not just make yourself king of the world or something?” asked Toad mildly, and Morpheus gave his pet a flat look.

“Because, you little cretin, while it's easy to make even cosmic changes in the physical realm, the mental and emotional are outside the tablet's assured power. And those who have used the tablet before cannot be affected by its enchantment: Celestia has used the tablet at least once, and it's safe to assume that her sister likely has as well.” Morpheus halted, then gestured with one hoof, saying finally: “It's like mind control. When you know that someone is trying to tap into your psyche, you can find ways to resist it. If you don't understand what's going on, you stand no chance. But even knowing the tablet's existence diminishes its effectiveness.”

“Boss, no offense, but you don't even know if the tablet is fact or fiction yet. You could try a smaller wish first or something.” Toad suggested pointedly, but Morpheus only gave a sour laugh.

“Oh, yes, sure, and risk losing everything? No. No, better to deal in absolutes, Toad... and I will gain my absolute victory.” Morpheus smiled bitterly, then he shook his head shortly as he let go of his wing, furling it at his side and sitting up... but at the same time, he swept his pony pillow into his lap and clung to it as if for comfort, even as he said moodily: “I don't need anyone. And you should be happy, because when the world is gone, you will be too.”

“Gee. Thanks.” Toad said moodily, and then the amphibian dropped his head with a quiet sigh, murmuring: “Look, I know that... you're kind of a creampuff and all, whatever big scary face you put on for the world. But dude, just... lighten up, will you? And consider that not everything has to be extremes. Maybe it'd even be okay if-”

“I was captured? I was killed, tortured, thrown to the depths of darkness again?” Morpheus asked darkly, scowling over at Toad before he shook his head vehemently. “No. I won't be humiliated again. I won't be made to feel... feel weak, and helpless! I am neither of those things!”

Toad sighed tiredly at this, and then he shrugged and said finally: “Fine. Okay. Sure. What do I know? I'm just a wartier frog, right? Look, boss, just... don't think too hard. And don't mope too much, it's bad for you.”

Morpheus grumbled and flopped over on his side, scowling a little as he wrapped his wings around himself and hugged his pony-shaped pillow tightly against his body. He gazed silently off into the distance, and then he asked almost meekly, just as Toad began to turn away: “You don't... think I'm stupid, do you?”

“Boss, there's no one more stupid than you are. But I don't think you're a moron, even if everyone else tells you that you are. You were smart enough to make my life an endless hell, right?” Toad asked ironically, and Morpheus gave a small smile over his shoulder before the amphibian added gruffly: “Now stop being such a pansy. You're making all gay stallions look like faggots, you hear?”

Morpheus sighed tiredly, rolling his eyes and dropping back on his side as he mumbled: “I told you not to use that word. It's annoying. It reminds me of my parents.”

“What kind of bad guy is scared of offending people?” Toad asked pessimistically, and Morpheus only grumbled under his breath and snuggled himself deeper into his bed. The amphibian rolled his eyes, and then he sighed tiredly before saying grouchily: “I'm going back to my aquarium now, because you're being such a filly.”

“Lock your froggy door on the way out.” grumbled Morpheus in response, and Toad blew a raspberry at him before his pet hopped away. Morpheus refused to move until he heard the distinct clacking of the little swinging door that Toad used to get around their bunker, and then the winged unicorn quickly sat up and flicked his horn, a deadbolt locking into place over the swinging door.

Then he flopped back into his bed, hugging his pony pillow and muttering: “I'm just going to sulk for a while, and no one can stop me. I will resume being evil after I've had some beauty sleep. Besides, Antecedes can handle things around here, and Neato will take at least until morning. I have plenty of time to... take for myself.”

He nodded to himself almost moodily, then sighed to himself before closing his eyes and dropping his head. And for a little while, he was alone in silence, where nothing in the world mattered, where his darkling dreams were his only safeguard from loneliness.

False Faces

Chapter Four: False Faces
~BlackRoseRaven

“Princess Celestia! Someone has attacked Canterlot!”

There was no surprise in the mare's cold amethyst eyes as she rose her head, the Princess of the Sun asking calmly: “Is it an alicorn? Or is it something else?”

The Royal Guard looked up at her with surprise, and then he shook his head hurriedly before saying quickly: “It only looks like an earth pony to me... but he's wearing some kind of costume, and he's incredibly strong! We've lost contact with the Royal Guard we sent in to stop him, after we saw that he'd set fire to the King's Theater!”

“Do we have any eyes on him? I want observation, not engagement. As a matter of fact, I believe I made that very clear earlier.” Princess Celestia said icily, and the soldier quailed backwards in fear before the ivory mare forced herself to take a calming breath, resting back in her throne and adding quietly: “By which I mean, I didn't want to see anyone hurt. That was why I wanted you to report to me, not engage.”

“I... I apologize, Princess Celestia, but we felt we had to take action immediately, to protect the citizenry. They were finishing up a play when he attacked and set fire to the theater. We engaged while firefighters moved in to try and put out the fire and get ponies to safety.” replied the soldier, even as he stayed with his head humbly bowed, sounding a little... shaken.

Celestia realized she was probably coming across as callous: not that she actually cared, but she forced herself to smile as gently as she could, saying softly: “That was very brave. But it sounds like it's only led to more complications. I want to save every pony, but you and I both know that's not possible, is it?”

The soldier shifted uncomfortably, and Celestia calmly stood from her throne before striding down towards the soldier, reaching up to touch his shoulder as she said: “I want you to inform the Royal Guard that they are to track and observe. Help ponies if they're put in danger, but I have the feeling that this is connected to the evil that has come to Equestria, and this is likely only a message. A message I will answer myself.”

Princess Celestia strode past the Royal Guard, the soldier staring with disbelief over his shoulder: but by the time he managed to get his thoughts in order, Celestia was already gone, the mare losing much of her gentility as her eyes hardened.

She made her way through the mostly-empty halls towards her own quarters: just as she'd been about to head to bed for a few hours, that idiot Moonflower had gone and made a scene. She had been willing to overlook his presence and bide her time, but he'd decided to make his first move... and a very stupid move, at that.

Fine, if he wanted to challenge her, she would gladly bring the challenge to him. Even if the Elements of Harmony did nothing more than distract him, it would still be enough for her to finish the job... and even if these six little idiots who fancied themselves the 'purest of the pure' of her Equestria saw her burn and torture the son of a bitch to death, they'd believe any explanation she pulled out of her flank for it. Like saying... it was just banishment magic. It just looked like she had set him on fire and he'd slowly charred away to nothing but ashes, he was really imprisoned somewhere safe and sound, because she'd never ever hurt a pony.

A nasty little smile spread over Celestia's face as she stormed her way up towards her chambers, turning a corner... and then scowling as found a familiar pony blocking her route, looking up at her sourly as she asked irritably: “Are you thinking about killing kittens again, big sister?”

“I'm thinking about killing someone, Luna, and if you start annoying me then I'll start thinking about killing you, too.” Celestia retorted as she spun towards her sister, and Luna flinched at this before the ivory mare leaned down towards the mare standing in the middle of the hall.”Now get out of my way or I might be tempted to act on those urges. I don't have time for this right now. Moonflower has attacked Canterlot and used up the last of my patience.”

“And even if he's too dumb for a diversion, it's pretty obvious he's trying to lure you into a trap!” Luna snapped, but she backed off a step all the same... then winced and took another when Celestia aggressively moved forwards. “I... stop it and listen to-”

“Get out of my way, now.” Celestia said coldly, her eyes locking on Luna, and the sapphire mare trembled before dropping her eyes and stepping aside. Celestia only continued to look at her contemptibly for a few moments, and then she said coolly: “Make yourself useful and bring an elixir up to Twilight Sparkle to get her back on her hooves. You can play pretend that you're a nursemaid, just like the old days. Then you can go and sit in my throne while I'm busy. Do you understand?”

Luna glared up at her sister for a few moments even as she trembled, and then she cursed under her breath before turning away, muttering angrily: “Fine. Go get yourself killed, I don't care!”

Celestia only snorted, glowering after Luna before she turned her attention back to the current problem: a problem that was quickly proving to be much more serious than she'd thought at first. She had expected him to come sauntering up to challenge her, to make some show of power, or just to sit there and gloat until she eventually came to him... but to actually attack, to burn down a building in her crown city as some stupid challenge...

The ivory mare ground her teeth together slowly, then flicked her horn sharply to slam the door to her room open. She kicked it shut behind her, then ripped off her peytral plate, shredding the thin chain before she flung it aside and said coldly: “It doesn't matter how strong you are, Moonflower. All you have is brute strength. Unlike you, I have a mind.”

Celestia strode towards her desk, then she sat down in front of her mirror and said icily: “Give me what is mine, so I may give my enemies their just reward.”

Her mirror thrummed as runes lit up along the golden border, and then the glass rippled like liquid before her reflection changed, a new object appearing around her throat. And as it did, Celestia felt a distinct weight settling around her neck, the mare smiling coldly before she reached up and touched the large, golden choker that had appeared, stroking a hoof slowly over the darkly-thrumming amethyst locked in the center of it.

Moonflower had no idea what he was calling down. She had more than strength and cunning on her side, she had tools, she had ancient artifacts and weapons that he couldn't begin to imagine the danger of... and now he had gone and pushed her to the point where she would be more than happy to introduce him to a level of suffering he had never imagined.

Celestia stroked slowly over the golden, scarab-shaped choker again, and then she studied her reflection for a moment, grimacing a bit as she saw the effects it was already starting to have on her. Her mane was glowing a little brighter, and her eyes had taken on their own supernatural gleam. If she wore this for too long or was forced to draw on its powers for an extended period of time, she would end up revealing a rather unpleasant truth about herself...

She shook herself out, then reached up and yanked open a drawer of her desk. She pulled a small wooden box out of this, and removed her choker with only the faintest hesitation, but quickly let out a sigh of relief as the supernatural radiance faded immediately out of her eyes.

She slipped it gently into the box, then pulled the lid shut and rested both hooves on top of it for a few moments, closing her eyes. She was tempted to gather another of her old treasures, but she figured that this would be enough... and well, even if it wasn't, she still had at least one trump card up her sleeve. Moonflower couldn't possibly know the truth behind this world, while she did: if her attack and the Elements failed, then she would return to Canterlot and simply erase him from existence.

But she couldn't risk using the Tablet of Dreams unless it was completely necessary: every wish required a sacrifice. The bigger the wish, the bigger the sacrifice required, from blood... to souls. And even putting aside that only the Elements of Harmony could unlock the path to the tablet, there was no way she could kidnap a pony and drag him through the security-infested maze to the necropolis where she had hidden it. And while Luna could portal in and out of where it was hidden as she pleased, getting her sister to help her was like pulling teeth these days. Her little sister had never really forgiven her for the way she'd been forced to take on a new identity, and Celestia thought that she actually was afraid of the tablet's power, like it was possible that she, Celestia, was actually losing control...

Al that aside for now, if Celestia could get the tablet herself, it would be another matter entirely... but the Elements of Harmony refused to respond to her anymore, and if she forced them to bend to her will, she could break them. And considering what a powerful tool they were in the right hooves, she didn't want to do that unless it was entirely necessary. No, at worst, she'd just reason with Luna – or threaten her – until she finally listened to her and fetched the artifact for her.

Celestia shook her head briefly, then shoved away from the table. Pointless musings, that was all she was wasting her time with. She had better things to do, like speak to her advisors and have them take on emergency powers while she went with the Elements of Harmony, to make sure Luna didn't do anything stupid while she was gone.

She only took a moment to gather up a few things: a heavy white cloak to conceal herself, and a satchel she tossed the wooden box and a few other odds and ends into. Then she stormed out of the room as her horn glowed bright, the mare announcing coldly: “Meet me upstairs.”

Her voice echoed through the corridor... but she knew that the message would also be heard loud and clear by her advisors, who both wore necklaces that she could speak to them through at any time with the use of a simple spell.

They were already waiting for her when she strode into the meeting room she favored, the mare giving a thin smile between the pale, cold-faced ponies as she said moodily: “At least I have two professionals here. Moonflower has been stupid enough to attack Canterlot... furthermore, to do so very publicly. He burned down a theater and has hurt ponies. I'm still waiting for further information.”

The sallow ponies traded calm looks, and then they both nodded before one of them asked in a ruthless rasp: “Will you exterminate him?”

“Yes.” Celestia said simply, and then she scowled and looked up, her eyes tracing slowly over the portraits on the walls before she added with contempt, as her eyes locked on one picture in particular: “And I'll be dealing with a certain traitor as well.”

Both advisors gave thin smiles at this, glancing over their shoulders at the picture of the mage on the wall: one of th e students of 'legendary' Starswirl the Bearded... not that he'd really been that great a mage. But he had been a relatively harmless old coot... although gullible and stupid enough that he'd been tricked into letting one of his more gifted students access several forbidden texts on the premise of a 'research project.'

Antecedes... and to think, he'd shown so much promise, too, apart from his obsession with dark magic. But she would have made an exception for him and allowed him to continue his studies... except he had refused to pledge his loyalty to her.

He had escaped, and used dark magic to make himself undying... but as she'd been more than happy to teach him, that didn't make him invulnerable. And then she had sealed him away... at least, until that idiot Moonflower had freed him. But after Moonflower's banishment, she had hunted down Antecedes and had him sealed again in a mausoleum: not out of mercy this time, but because she knew by now Antecedes would be begging for the peace of death. That was likely why he was helping Moonflower... just so he could escape his punishment.

As strong a mage as he was, after all... he hadn't been able to complete the immortality process, like she had done for her personal advisors. That required more than fables and wild guesses from old, dusty textbooks. And there was no way she was going to help him now, not even if he agreed to pledge his strength to her. No, this time, when she caught up to him, she was going to grind his brittle bones to dust and then have whatever little remained of him sealed in the vaults of the Magic Academy, to serve as a guinea pig for her experiments for the rest of eternity.

The mare slowly shook her head, then returned her eyes to the sallow ponies, as one of them said quietly: “We will ensure that Canterlot is maintained according to your wishes. Princess Celestia. We will not allow Princess Luna to interfere with politics, and we will maintain peace and order, as you so desire.”

“Good. I trust in you both.” Celestia halted, then hesitated for a moment before adding quietly: “Twilight Sparkle may be on her way to joining your position. She has already made me a promise... to serve loyally. And I have already placed my mark on her. She has a talent for dark magic... and while I normally would not be keen on the idea of letting her live...”

“Perhaps she can be of use.” Her advisors traded calm looks, and then they both nodded slowly. Celestia looked between the two impassively and almost impatiently before they both looked up, and the sallow pony on the right seemed to speak for both the counselors, as he said quietly: “If she fails to be useful, Princess Celestia, she can be... converted.”

“Converted...” Celestia frowned thoughtfully, lowering her head and chewing on the inside of her cheek for a moment. Yes, she hadn't really considered that option... and after a moment, she gave a brief nod before saying softly: “Yes. She would be a prime candidate. We haven't attempted a conversion for a hundred years, and we've never had a willing subject...”

“And she is still an Element of Harmony, yes?” asked the other pale pony. Celestia opened her mouth to scoff at this... but then she slowly closed it, instead looking thoughtful before she gave a brief, meditative nod.

“You're right. She's been exposed to the Element of Magic and can use it... and as far as I know, it hasn't stopped responding to her.” Celestia halted, then she rubbed thoughtfully at her chin before she murmured: “And if we're successful, then we can work on country-wide conversion...”

Both advisors nodded slowly, and Celestia slowly smiled, murmuring quietly: “Yes. This is a good thing, after all. And if we're successful, perhaps she truly can be my inheritor after all, and all this work won't have been for nothing.”

Her advisors nodded again, and Celestia looked between them before saying calmly: “Keep me informed. If Luna attempts to do something idiotic, stop her by whatever means necessary. Neither of you should have an issue dealing with her, even if she throws a temper-tantrum. Otherwise, I leave this in your capable hooves... and besides. Luna won't break character in private, let alone public. We've discussed many times what will happen if she attempts to expose the reality behind our Equestria.”

“Yes, your majesty.” both advisors murmured, bowing their heads low to her. Celestia gave a thin but pleased smile to the two of them, then she calmly turned around, striding to the door and pushing out without another word.

Before she could get very far, however, she felt a distinct tingle down her spine before she looked up to see a mare shambling towards her... and Celestia felt a strange twist of guilt in her stomach as she saw the way that Twilight Sparkle was trying to rush to her, even if she was still obviously in pain.

“Princess... Princess Celestia!” Twilight stumbled to a stop, looking up at her with a trembling smile and eager-to-please eyes... and Celestia couldn't help but reflect how eerie it was to know that her magic played only a small part in Twilight's enthusiasm. At least, at the moment: if she so desired...

The ivory mare looked calmly down at the violet mare, studying her with interest. Barely a bruise, coherent, loyal... and then Celestia's horn glowed brightly, and Twilight choked back a whimper as she grabbed her stomach, her whole body shivering with agony before Celestia gave a thin smile and relaxed. And as her magic faded, Twilight's pain visibly subsided, the mare breathing hard in and out before she looked up at Celestia... and the Princess marveled at her sheer delusion as she whispered: “S-Sorry... I'm not used to that... gift you gave me. It's acting up but... it's my fault...”

“Yes, it is.” Celestia reached up, gently grasping under Twilight's chin and pulling her head firmly up, studying her silently for a few moments before she smiled briefly. But Twilight lit up at this, smiling radiantly back before Celestia asked calmly: “Are you ready to serve? To make amends, Twilight Sparkle?”

“Yes, Princess Celestia! Anything you desire!” Twilight saluted awkwardly, and Celestia smiled wryly before the violet mare blushed and dropped her head, adding quietly: “And... and it means so much to me that you're giving me another chance.”

Celestia only chuckled quietly, and then she shook her head slowly before replying quietly: “It is also your last chance, Twilight Sparkle. If you make any mistakes from this point out... I will not hesitate to make you suffer every last tingle of pain that you deserve.”

Twilight swallowed thickly, but then she nodded slowly and bowed her head humbly. And Celestia smiled again before she stood straight, saying calmly: “This is your first real test, Twilight Sparkle. You will lead your friends into battle against Moros. I will accompany you... but it will mainly be to watch you and judge your actions.”

“I'll stop him. I... I swear.” Twilight hesitated, then she bit her lip before looking up and asking hesitantly: “What... am I allowed...”

“You will try and use the Elements of Harmony against him, first and foremost. You will neutralize as many of his powers as possible, and once he's sufficiently weakened, I'm going to...” Celestia stopped, then she smiled thinly as she shoved past Twilight, saying with a strange sort of pleasure: “Right. I don't have to pretend anymore around you. You're part of the inner circle now, Twilight Sparkle, so I'll drop the act.

“You and your friends are going to annoy Moonflower... Moros, for as long as possible. Partly because I want to see how strong he's become, partly because I want him distracted. One of two things will happen: you'll make him make a mistake, or he'll stop you and your friends by hurting you or killing you.” Celestia said almost carelessly, and Twilight trembled, her eyes widening in horror. “Either way, I'll step in when the opportunity presents itself and kill him. But you aren't going to tell your friends that, of course. You're going to back me up when I say that it was simply banishment magic.”

Twilight trembled a little, looking uncomfortably back and forth before she shook her head quickly and whispered: “Princess, I... that... n-no, you're not like this...”

Celestia stopped, then she looked over her shoulder and said calmly: “One of your parents, as I recall, attended the magic school. Your mother, correct? She and her friends – and unlike you, she had friends – often partied late at night. She was caught with a small supply of pills one day. Ecstasy, I think. But she was a good student, so they were confiscated and she was suspended, but the police weren't involved.

“She had several boyfriends. I heard she was fond of going down on them. And Shining Armor was born shortly after your parents were married, correct?” Celestia tilted her head as she asked in a voice made crueler by how kind it was: “Did you know that he thinks he was born as a mistake, and his parents wouldn't be together today if whatever birth control had worked? And imagine if he hadn't been born, Twilight Sparkle. Maybe your parents would have just continued having sex until it got boring, then broken up and moved on. Which makes you... less than a mistake, doesn't it?”

Twilight trembled violently, staring weakly up at the Princess as Celestia looked coldly down at her before stepping forwards and leaning slowly down, saying softly: “Everyone wears a mask. You only see your mother as your mother. But next time you look at her, why don't you stop and wonder if maybe her favorite hobby is still licking your daddy's lollipop?”

Twilight looked... crushed. And Celestia smiled thinly as she straightened up, saying coldly: “I smile. I'm nice. I'm pleasant. I'm also the ruler of a country based entirely on concepts of love and harmony and happiness, which means I have to pretend to be loving, and harmonious, and happy. I'm none of those things, Twilight Sparkle. I don't give two horseapples about you, or about the ponies in this country. What I care about is keeping the country moving: this extreme of 'niceness' keeps everypony in line and from acting like the idiots that our instincts compel us to be, that's all.”

The violet mare trembled, unable to respond, unable to do anything but whimper a little as she stared at the floor, before Celestia reached suddenly up and jerked Twilight's head back. The mare gasped, her eyes filled with tears as she looked up at Celestia and Celestia glared down at her... then almost imperceptibly softened before she said quietly: “But there's more than one side to this. If you prove you're useful, and loyal, Twilight... if you help me, then I'll help you. And I'll give you the privilege of seeing things few other ponies have ever gotten to see.”

The unicorn only looked up at her through her teary eyes, and Celestia rolled her own, looking irritated for a few moments before Twilight said in a whisper: “But... I don't wear a mask... I... I love you, Princess Celestia, like my mother, like... like a big sister, someone I... I thought would protect me...”

Celestia shook her head slowly, then she suddenly slapped Twilight hard across the face, the violet mare yelping in pain and surprise as she staggered to the side before touching her bruised cheek, looking horrified. Her eyes looked up with terror at Celestia, but Celestia only looked coldly back as she said quietly: “And you expose your naivety and stupidity... and demonstrate, far better than I ever could, why my disguise is so necessary. A cruel word? A single mean gesture? And suddenly I'm a monster. The thousand years I have spent ruling and protecting Equestria forgotten, because, oh no! I upset someone!”

Celestia snorted in disgust, gesturing bitterly to the side. “I push you ponies to better yourselves. But if I don't do it with treats and sunshine and coddling, you scream and call me a monster. I can throw myself, physically, between a dragon and a pony who stumbled across his aerie, and if I call that pony an idiot, then I suddenly become the villain of the piece, as if I threw him to the jaws of death. But, on the other hoof, if I smile and act nice, giving gentle little advice and nudges, I can rule without question, I can enforce any law I want, and I can send six young mares out like my personal assassins to deal with whatever might be irritating me at the time.”

Twilight stared with horror at Celestia, trembling and shaking her head weakly before the ivory winged unicorn reached up and slowly brushed her rainbow mane back. And then she took a slow breath before looking down and saying softly: “There is no difference between who I am today, and who I was yesterday, Twilight Sparkle. You merely think there is, because I am no longer treating you like a child, or any of these... idiot ponies. You should be honored that I have let you into my world. And Twilight...”

Celestia rose a hoof, thrusting it towards the mare and looking coldly down at her. “You seem to forget who rules this country, and who here is the criminal, found guilty of using forbidden, dark magic very similar to the very evil we now face. You owe me an apology. You also owe me gratitude.”

Twilight lowered her head, swallowing thickly before she clenched her eyes shut, then nodded uncertainly, breathing slowly in and out before she whispered: “You're... you're right. I'm sorry, Princess Celestia. You've done so much for this country, and for me. I'm not worthy of your forgiveness but... I... I hope you can give it to me anyway. I'll... I promised to be loyal. I am loyal. I am.”

The violet mare leaned hesitantly forwards, then silently kissed Celestia's raised hoof, and the ivory mare studied the unicorn with interest before she gave a slow, approving nod. Twilight flushed as she rose her head nervously, looking almost like a dog anxious to please her mistress, and Celestia gave a quiet chuckle before she said softly: “Good. Try and keep that in mind, at all times, Twilight... as a matter of fact, I insist that's what you try and remember. That everything I do... I do because I care about you and because I want to save you. I want to protect all of you.”

“Yes... yes, I understand.” Twilight whispered, and then she gave a trembling smile even as tears rolled down her cheeks, looking up and forcing herself to believe... but it didn't take much of a push. Every part of her wanted to please and believe in her mentor, no matter what that worried little voice inside her said... but it was tiny and insignificant and easy to blot out. And it became even easier when Celestia smiled at her, and Twilight proclaimed with more brazenness, more pride: “Yes! You're right! I won't disappoint you, Princess!”

Princess Celestia studied Twilight with interest. Even her advisors weren't this sycophantic, and they could scarcely be said to have minds anymore: she had bent them so completely to her will that they were barely anything more than puppets who talked back to her.

But Twilight Sparkle... Celestia couldn't resist testing her, even knowing she was wasting her time, asking calmly: “So you'll do anything I ask?”

“Yes. I will. Because I believe in you, and I'm loyal and... I know you're working hard to protect and save Equestria.” Twilight replied, and when she spoke the words, it made them easier to believe. When Celestia nodded to her, it made it even easier still, completely missing the patronizing, amused way the ivory mare was looking at her.

“And if I asked you to hurt someone, would you do it for me?” Celestia asked calmly, and Twilight hesitated only a moment before she bit her lip and nodded. It made Celestia smile, even as she continued pleasantly: “If I asked you to hurt your brother?”

Twilight shivered... then nodded slowly, looking up at Celestia. She was breathing a little harder, visibly straining... but all the same... “I... I would.”

“Words are easy, Twilight... and yet with just these words, you're shivering. Actions prove our mettle. Like what I've been telling you... what I say to you, the way I treat you, doesn't matter, when my actions are to protect a nation and encourage its growth... especially since you are nothing but a criminal and a disappointment.”

“I'll do whatever it takes to prove myself to you. A-Anything.” Twilight whispered, looking up and trembling as she nodded uneasily. “It... a great pony once said that to protect us all, sometimes you have to … you have to sacrifice...”

“Don't paraphrase great authors, especially when you do such a bad job of it.” Celestia replied calmly, and then she studied the violet mare for a few moments before saying softly: “Unfortunately, there's no time to test if you really mean what you say, Twilight Sparkle. Instead, since you've promised your loyalty to me... I expect you to do whatever I might ask without question, understood? You have to back up your words, Twilight Sparkle.”

The violet mare swallowed a bit, then she nodded a few times, looking up silently and whispering: “I will, Princess Celestia. I won't fail you. I won't.”

“I hope not.” Celestia looked meditatively over Twilight Sparkle, and then she gave a brief nod of her own before striding past her. Twilight hurriedly spun around and fell in at her side, and the ivory mare didn't even bother looking at her as she said calmly: “Our enemy, who you know as Moros, is not the only pony we need to put a stop to. I'm also waiting on information about who this strange, costumed pony was that attacked Canterlot, and a creature named Antecedes, who ceased being a pony long ago. Now he's become an abomination, a deathless monster who only cares about magic and destruction. We have to eliminate him.”

Twilight nodded, then she hesitated for only a moment before asking uneasily: “But how do we... stop something like that? Is it like Sombra?”

Celestia laughed shortly, shaking her head and replying irritably: “Sombra was an idiot. A second-rate monster and a third-rate magic user who ran face-first to his death like a moth to the flame. Antecedes is another former acolyte of mine: I seem to have trouble with picking students who won't fail or betray me.”

Twilight flushed and dropped her head, and then they stopped at an intersection, the ivory mare looking coldly down at the violet unicorn as she shifted uneasily, until Celestia ordered calmly: “Go and retrieve your friends. Wake them up, get them moving and prepared. In an hour, I'll summon you.”

The violet mare nodded hurriedly, looking up at Celestia with a small, hopeful smile... only to then flush and drop her head again when the ivory mare said irritably: “Don't make me repeat myself. Get going. Prove to me you can at least manage this small, simple task.”

There was silence for a moment, and then Twilight forced herself to nod before she turned and hurried off. Celestia's eyes flicked to watch the mare leave, the Princess of the Sun's brow furrowing before she finally gave a grimace, muttering: “I don't know how much I trust you, Twilight Sparkle. I hope for your sake, you make yourself useful.”

Celestia lingered for a moment, feeling... well, almost a twist of guilt. But she threw it off easily, reminding herself of everything that was at stake, and she instead scowled as she turned around and slowly walked through the castle halls. She stopped only to ask a passing patrol if there was any news from any of the other soldiers, but no one had heard anything: it irritated her.

She made her way down to the main hall, ignoring the few ponies that were still up at this hour. Instead, she closed her eyes as her horn glowed, paging mentally through a long list of ponies before she settled on one in particular.

She focused on him, then asked calmly, her voice barely a murmur but her question echoing through the soldier's enchanted helm: “General, what is the current status of Canterlot? And why have I not yet received a report?”

There was silence for a few moments... and then a nervous voice spoke back to her mind: no matter how good an actor or how stoic or strong a pony was, when you communicated mentally, it was almost impossible to hide your emotions. “We don't know, Princess Celestia. I sent my best soldiers, but there's no report back as of yet...”

“If they have engaged or disregarded any of their orders, you will bear responsibility for it, General.” Celestia said quietly, and she felt the shiver of fear that ran through the mind of the pony she was talking to before she forced herself to take a breath and calm down. No, she couldn't expose too much of her real face, even to this stallion. “Of course, my concern is that these soldiers have been injured... or that they may have forgotten themselves in the skirmish. It's been a long time since we've had such a serious attack on Canterlot, after all.”

For a moment, there was no response, and Celestia frowned as she felt her mood darkening considerably. She did not like to be ignored. But just as she began to open her mouth, the General's voice said hurriedly into her mind: “Princess Celestia, my scouts have just reported back! They've brought the wounded with them and-”

“What did they have to say about the pony that attacked? That's very important, General, and as much as I'd like to... speak to our soldiers myself, I'm waiting to leave at this moment.” Celestia said moodily, and then she opened one eye and looked irritably at a pony who had sidled up to her, doing a bad job of hiding his attempt to listen in.

She clicked her tongue loudly, then turned her eyes away as the General replied hesitantly: “It's strange. One of them says it was just an earth pony, but... he was very strong. Another said he was wearing... a big horseshoe on his head, and he had a costume on. They said he fled west.”

“Some kind of assassin... probably enhanced through magic.” Celestia muttered, looking down for a moment. She ignored the pony that was trying to listen in on her conversation: a moment later, it didn't matter anyway as the pony was grabbed from behind by one of her construct-soldiers, who dragged the pony away as he flailed wildly and began to babble out excuses, which both Celestia and the golem ignored. “Likely expendable, meant to get our attention, and to mock us. Thank you, General. You and your soldiers have done...” Terribly. “Well.”

The General tried to ramble something, but Celestia had already cut the connection, turning her meditative gaze back towards the door before she closed her eyes and forced herself to calm down as she carefully put the pieces of the puzzle together in her mind.

Yes, it was clear that Moonflower was up to something, and he had some strange, obtuse plan in mind. He was trying to lure her in, and he clearly was either experimenting on stupid ponies, or had gathered himself a little band of followers. He probably expected her and the Elements of Harmony: in fact, his recent actions all-but-confirmed that he wanted one of two things.

The first option was that he wanted to start a war of sorts with Equestria: he was probably well-aware of the fact that the Royal Guard of Equestria was no longer at the strength it had once been. Many divisions had been either disbanded or reconfigured, and little as Celestia liked it, in order to maintain the facade of peace, Celestia had to claim she was helping 'better' the military while instead she was damping down their training. The knights of today were nothing compared to the knights of Equestria's glory days...

Undoubtedly, Moonflower knew this. And he was likely well-prepared with an army of cannon fodder he would use to distract and delay her soldiers while peppering them with black magic, likely killing them in great shows of power and force to try and fortify his legend and start swaying ponies to his side. If they went to war, then win or lose, he would bring back black magic and he would turn her peaceful nation back into the savage beast that Equestria had once been, before she'd fixed everything. And there was no way Celestia was going to allow that to happen.

The second option was that he knew she wouldn't attack him head-on, but instead she would come herself with a small force, such as the Elements of Harmony, and fight him herself. He probably thought that he was at least as strong as her, and sadly, he was almost assuredly right.

But what he likely was too stupid to suspect was that she had artifacts that would level the playing field between them... and even if the Elements of Harmony would probably just be a nuisance to him, a good jolt could diminish his powers, or the six ponies could at least provide a distraction and allow her to attack him while his back was turned.

Celestia felt a strange tickle run through her mind, however: she had gone over these things a thousand times in her mind, and yet she still didn't feel reassured in the slightest. As a matter of fact, if anything, she only felt more worried... was she underestimating Moonflower's powers? Or had he grown more clever over all his years trapped beneath Tartarus, and he actually had some kind of strategy up his sleeve this time that was more complex than: 'lure her in and beat her up?'

And was that some weird kind of hope in her for that exact outcome? That he might actually prove he had some kind of brain? But then again, maybe that wasn't such a weird hope, after all. If he had a brain, he might be able to recognize when to surrender... and even if she knew she'd have to kill him eventually, he really was such a handsome stallion, and she was very curious how he'd escaped Tartarus and managed to come back even stronger than before...

Celestia bit her lip, smiling slightly to herself as she let her eyes slip closed. Oh yes. Capturing him alive was unlikely, but she could hope for that outcome, at least. Then she could 'interrogate' him at her leisure... chain him up in a private room in the dungeon, make him helpless, then slowly and agonizingly break that big beast of a stallion...

The ivory licked her lips slowly, then she shivered a bit before grimacing and opening her eyes as she remembered she was out in public. She hurriedly adjusted her cloak around her body, then hugged herself tightly and muttered: “I'll deal with him one way or the other, though. It's just too bad we can't convince him that...”

She shook her head briefly, then looked moodily up at the doors before she scowled a little. And more out of spite than anything else, she concentrated for a moment on Twilight before her horn sparked, and she felt the surge of pain that tore through the violet unicorn, the Princess giving a bitter little smile as she muttered: “Hurry up.”

Apparently Twilight Sparkle understood her nudge, because only ten minutes later, she was hurriedly leading her little cadre of friends into the hall and smiling eagerly over at the Princess. Celestia, however, barely acknowledged her before she closed her eyes for a moment, gathering her strength and mind before opening them and smiling as calmly as she could. “Are all of you ready?”

“Yes, Princess Celestia!” Twilight spoke up for the group, nodding fervently before she blushed a little and looked back over her friends: each and every one of them wore their their matching Element of Harmony around their neck. All apart from Twilight, who had hers in a tiara upon her head... but she always had to be different and special, didn't she?

Celestia felt an uncomfortable sensation in her gut, like some part of her was trying to reprimand her for being so continuously, cruelly unfair to the violet unicorn... but it wasn't exactly difficult to quash that little voice, as the ivory mare forced herself to turn her attention to the five tired-looking ponies that stood behind Twilight. “I will be coming with you, but this is a job that only you can do, my little ponies. But there are many evils in this world, all of which I shall do my very best to help protect you from. I will ask a lot of you, but remember: I ask this because it's what I believe you're capable of.”

That all sounded a little awkward, but Celestia was having trouble forcing the words out right now. She was irritable herself, and Twilight was making it hard to concentrate, hard to form the words... which was rather strange. Why was she feeling any kind of guilt? She hadn't before. And Twilight Sparkle was the one who had failed, who had chosen to try and use black magic, and who had chosen – of her own free will – to make her pledge of loyalty...

Celestia shook her thoughts off as she realized that the five ponies were looking at her with a little more confusion now... maybe even a bit of concern. And it didn't help that Twilight was staring up at her, almost slavering over her...

The Princess of the Sun reached up and gently pushed Twilight off to the side before she cleared her throat. With Twilight out of sight and her attention instead focused on the five other Elements of Harmony, it became a lot easier to pretend this niceness all came naturally. “What I'm trying to say is that there are many challenges ahead of us, and I need you to be ready for them. But I know that as long as we work together, we can conquer any obstacle in our path.”

“Yeah, guys! Let's put a stop to this jerk Moros and show him what ponies like us are capable of!” Rainbow Dash said firmly as she pumped a hoof in the air, and the other ponies nodded in agreement with her... well, most of them did. Rarity looked exhausted, and Pinkie Pie waved a hoof wildly back and forth for attention.

Princess Celestia looked with barely-concealed loathing at the pink mare, grinding her teeth together slowly before she asked in a resigned voice: “Yes, Pinkie Pie?”

“Uh, is it possible that maybe he just really needs a friend? I mean, don't get me wrong, but my Pinkie Senses have been going c-r-a-z-y since last night!” Pinkie nodded fervently, reaching up and poking herself a few times on the nose. “It tells me there's a pony who needs a friend and a party, pronto, and I feel like we should head way out west!”

“Pinkie Pie...” Celestia stopped, then frowned in surprise, leaning forwards and asking quickly: “Wait, you're saying... you feel something to the west?”

Pinkie nodded a few times, beaming up at the Princess. “Yep, that's right! I always know when there's a sad pony around, you see, and it feels like there's at least one, maybe two really sad ponies over there, and a whole lot of more not-happiness. Do you think maybe he just needs to learn how to smile a little more?”

“No, Pinkie Pie. I wish it was that simple, but unfortunately, it's not.” Princess Celestia said as gently as she could force herself to be, and then she shook herself quickly before raising her eyes and saying calmly: “But come, my... friends. We have to get moving. There's no time for delays, since I suspect it will be a long march... although, Pinkie Pie, perhaps you can help me find the route.”

The bright pink mare nodded firmly several times, smiling warmly up at Celestia, who loathed herself for the suggestion even though she knew it was likely for the best. Celestia only had a rough idea of where Moonflower was: perhaps Pinkie's strange premonitions would help them find the shortest, quietest route into his territory. Or maybe she'd just walk right into whatever traps Moonflower might have set for them and make herself useful as bait.

Either way, they were going to deal with him as quickly as possible. From here on out, there was no turning back... and Celestia smiled coldly as turned around to lead the way towards the doors, as Twilight nervously ran up beside her and the five ponies uneasily followed their Princess as they wondered just what they were getting themselves into.

A Clash Of Two Worlds

Chapter Five: A Clash Of Two Worlds
~BlackRoseRaven

Celestia scowled darkly, once more in the lead as Pinkie Pie mumbled apologies and followed nervously behind her and Twilight Sparkle. Twilight herself was struggling not to speak or cry out or plead with the Princess... all of it would be pointless. No, worse than pointless: it would make Celestia punish her, for being a bad filly.

Pinkie Pie had done a good job at first: she'd helped them find several passes they might have otherwise overlooked, and brought them into what was clearly the territory of the evil pony, marked by the dark swampland and the heavy, foreboding clouds. With Twilight lighting the way, Pinkie Pie had been able to easily navigate them through the marshland... but the moment they were again on solid, dark ground, Pinkie had led them right into a trap.

More specifically, she had somehow led just Celestia right into the trap: apparently Pinkie was very light of hoof, even hopping. She had bounced right over a thin covering above a pit, while Celestia had smashed face-first through it and almost ended up impaled on the wooden stakes below.

She had set off several more cheap booby traps on the way before she'd lost her temper, swearing furiously at Pinkie Pie until she'd caught herself and carefully pushed Pinkie behind her, saying in a voice somewhere between 'reasonable' and 'furious:' “I think it would be much more productive if I took the lead.”

Now, they were heading towards what looked like the edge of a forest... but in the distance, Celestia could see that black fortress. And even more telling than that was the fact that there was a stone path ahead, and several strange figures standing at the end of it with lanterns, waiting for them.

Twilight gasped quietly, and her friends gave sounds that varied from growls to terrified whimpers: less at the sight of the green, warty little goblins, and more at the sight of the undead mounts they both rode on.

They had once been ponies: now they were both just skeletons, with simple saddles bolted to their bones and heavy rawhide reins. Brightly-glowing lanterns were clutched inside the ribcages of each: it lit the area around the mounts, but made the riders look more intimidating, protected inside a cocoon of shadows.

Celestia narrowed her eyes a bit, but that was all: they were just animated bones, barely intelligent, completely harmless. She looked with irritation over her shoulder at the ponies: Rarity and Fluttershy were at the back, looking like they wanted to bolt, and Applejack and Rainbow Dash were both trying to look tough, but very clearly scared out of their minds.

Pinkie Pie was looking up at her almost desperately, though, apparently less concerned with the living dead and far more worried about the fact someone was mad at her. Celestia couldn't help but reflect wryly that in these maddening circumstances, that was actually the most logical reaction for any of them to have.

She shook her head slowly, then turned her eyes moodily towards the two goblins. They both cowered immediately, quivering on their steeds before one of them squeaked: “Lord... Lord Morpheus awaits your presence! Follow, follow!”

“Very well.” Celestia said evenly, and then she looked over her shoulder at the ponies and said calmly: “Do not fear these creatures. They are weak and cowardly. But stay close: Moros... or Morpheus, as he seems to have taken to calling himself... may be waiting to ambush us.”

“The boss isn't smart enough for that.” mumbled one of the goblins as he carefully reined his steed around. The other goblin jerked ineffectively on the reins of his own skeletal horse a few times... and then looked horribly embarrassed when, instead of turning around, the skeleton simply began to walk calmly backwards.

Celestia grimaced at the slow pace they set, striding along the black stone road as Pinkie Pie turned her eyes with fascination to the skeletal ponies. She hopped up in front of the one that was walking backwards, making Celestia scowl a bit, but she didn't bother calling her back. If Pinkie Pie died horribly in the next few minutes, she wouldn't complain. “Hi there! What's your name?”

The skeletal pony didn't speak, only continuing to walk backwards, expressionless and hollow. Pinkie Pie frowned a little, and then she leaned up and asked the goblin rider: “What's wrong with him? I mean, I can see he's kind of a skeleton and all but...that's no reason to be rude!”

“He's not rude!” the goblin said indignantly, putting his hands on his hips. “Don't be silly, pony! They're very nice, much nicer than diamond dogs!”

“Oh no, you have those dreadful things here?” Rarity scowled a little at this, flicking her mane to the side with a disdainful little huff. “This... Morphy must be truly despicable if he fritters away his time with such... creatures.”

Fluttershy mumbled something, and Rainbow Dash snorted as she leaned forwards, saying firmly: “Look, none of that matters, because we're here to save Equestria, you got that? We're going to put a stop to your boss, and you better not get in our way, or else!”

“Or else what, Rainbow? Y'know I agree with you, but we gotta think about this one. Right, Princess?” Applejack asked uneasily: she was trying hard to hide it, but she was trembling almost as much as Fluttershy at the sight of the skeletal ponies. But if Celestia remembered correctly, Applejack had never really gotten along well with the concept of death.

Twilight Sparkle only swallowed thickly, then looked up and said quietly: “We're all ready to do whatever it takes, Princess Celestia. Just like I promised.”

Everyone fell silent at this: even the most vapid of their group seemed to recognize that something was seriously off, as Celestia gave Twilight a moody look for a moment and Twilight looked up almost pleadingly at her mentor.

The uncomfortable silence lasted until they reached the bridge that led into the fortress: Celestia noted that in his usual half-assed fashion, Moonflower hadn't bothered to make a real moat, and the drawbridge didn't actually draw upwards: it was permanently fixed in the down position. It was also guarded only by a figure that Celestia instantly recognized, the mare giving a nasty little smile as she said clearly: “Girls, allow me to introduce this pony to you. This isn't Morpheus, but a pony who once was mentored by Starswirl the Bearded... and then ran away when things got too hard.”

“You didn't give them my name. It's Antecedes.” said the cloaked figure moodily, and then he reached up and pulled his cowl back to reveal his bare skull, which was fraught with crimson, wiry veins. “Lord Morpheus is waiting in his throne room. Shall we?”

Princess Celestia nodded shortly, and Antecedes turned around to lead them in. The ivory mare was fearless, but behind her, the six traded worried looks as they marched after her into the terrible black fortress, Applejack whispering: “Guys, I ain't so sure this is such a good idea...”

Fluttershy meeped an agreement, and Rainbow Dash began to open her mouth.... then leapt into the air and shot up almost to the ceiling when the gates slammed behind them, her eyes wide and whole body shaking before she hurriedly dove back down to rejoin the group, saying hurriedly: “Well, we... there's no turning back now, so there's no point in being scared!”

Twilight hesitantly nodded, then bit her lip before hurrying away from her friends, crossing the short distance towards where Antecedes and Celestia were walking almost side-by-side. She stayed back a little, but she could make out their quiet conversation now, as the skeleton muttered: “-idiot, but the idiots conquered our country a long time ago.”

Celestia laughed shortly at this, then she glared at him and said through gritted teeth: “It is not our country. It is my country, and I am fully aware that you and Moonflower have some stupid plan in place to try and take it away from me. But I'm not going to just roll over and die, Antecedes.”

“Of course, can't do that now. God forbid, somepony might get a splinter.” the skeleton replied dryly, and Celestia snarled at him as they started up a wide flight of steps.

“You and I both know it's far more serious than that... although monsters like you only want to see the world in pain, the country reduced to nothing but black-magic-wielding unicorns and barbarian earth ponies, reduced to nothing more than mindless slaves!” snapped the mare, and the two halted at the top of the stairs.

Twilight flushed, frozen on the steps themselves, while her friends were still at the bottom of the stairs: she felt all eyes suddenly lock on her as Antecedes calmly looked back over his shoulder, and then the skeleton turned around before he asked loudly: “Do any of you know the legend of the Killing Light?”

“Enough games!” Celestia shouted, snapping her horn out, and Antecedes was blasted off his hooves and slammed cruelly into the wall, before the skeleton hissed as he was crushed back into the stone by intense waves of psychic force, Celestia's eyes blazing as she snarled: “You are the monster here, Antecedes! And I will not have you telling them... ghost stories and old lies!”

“I'm not telling the story right now, Celestia... you're doing it for me.” Antecedes replied calmly, the crimson light of his eyes blazing with defiance. And Celestia bared her teeth in disgust at this before she snorted and stepped suddenly back, the glow around her horn vanishing and letting the skeleton drop to the ground.

He landed unevenly, barely managing to catch his balance. But almost the moment he steadied himself, he gestured moodily with one hoof to the side as if nothing had happened, saying disdainfully: “Shall we continue on our way?”

Celestia only snorted in contempt, and then her horn glowed brightly before she snapped it sharply to the side, smashing the wall beside her with telekinesis. And to the surprise of the ponies and the exasperation of Antecedes, the entire section of wall toppled forwards, smashing into another wall section behind it and causing a domino effect that spread through the entire open fortress.

In his 'throne room,' Morpheus had enough time to look dumbly up before he squeaked and flung himself backwards, narrowly avoiding being squished as one of the front wall sections was smashed out of place and nearly landed on top of him. He blinked stupidly a few times at this before one of his eyes twitched as Celestia stepped into the hall she had created, crushing broken stone panel under her hooves as Morpheus shouted furiously: “What the hell are you doing?”

“I am not in the mood for games, Moonflower!” Celestia thundered back, striding carelessly through the trail of wreckage. Behind her, Antecedes sighed tiredly and rubbed at his face before he gestured irritably at the ponies, and Twilight winced before hurrying after her mentor, with the other five ponies straggling behind.

Rainbow glared at Antecedes as she passed, while Fluttershy dropped her head meekly and mumbled an apology. Then she squeaked as she tripped over one of the broken plates, but she was quickly caught and steadied, the skeleton saying dourly: “Careful.”

Fluttershy smiled over at him meekly, then scurried quickly away and promptly tripped over another piece of stone, but she at least managed to catch herself this time and not look too embarrassed. Antecedes shook his head moodily at this... then winced a bit when he found a bright pink pony standing beside him and looking at him with a big bright smile, the mare saying warmly: “I knew it! You guys just need friends, right?”

“No.” Antecedes said bluntly, and then he turned and walked away, leaving the mare staring dumbly after him as he shook his head with a tired sigh, feeling a strange pity for these poor, deluded ponies, who clearly had no idea about what they were getting into.

His point was further confirmed when one of the ponies ahead of him complained to the yellow Pegasus, as they shifted their way through the wreckage: “I simply cannot stand all this mess! And this fortress, it's so... uninspired, so ugly, so... icky! Why, this villain, he must be absolutely...”

Rarity and Fluttershy stepped out into the main room, and the ivory unicorn stared at the stallion who was now seated in his throne, glaring at Celestia. Rarity's eyes slowly widened as they drew over him, taking in his perfectly-styled mane, his handsome features, his gorgeous body... and then she squealed loudly, clapping her hooves together as she exclaimed: “He's beautiful!”

Twilight dropped her face in a hoof as Morpheus blinked dumbly, but then smiled and sat back, looking pleased as he polished a hoof against his chest and said pleasantly: “Well, I wouldn't quite go that far... but I am very attractive, yes.”

Rarity giggled as she looked over him with awe... before wincing when Celestia stomped a hoof, the ivory mare glaring up at the black winged unicorn and saying coldly: “Don't let his looks fool you. That doesn't take away from what he is. Evil. Cruel. A master of black magic. Powerful...”

Celestia narrowed her eyes, resisting the urge to lick her lips as she felt a horrible, ironic yearning run through her body, hating that she was feeling the same way Rarity was at the moment. But then she shook her head quickly, breathing slowly and saying in a quiet voice: “Moonflower, you will either surrender, or you will be punished.”

“No, Señor Morpheus, he's gonna punish you, ladies!” shouted a voice, and even Celestia looked surprised when an earth pony stallion seemed to appear out of nowhere on one side of the throne as Antecedes rolled his eyes in exasperation and sat down on the other side. The glaring little earth pony hopped from hoof-to-hoof, and Celestia's eyes narrowed: she didn't see anything special about him, but she guessed that this was the stallion that had attacked Canterlot.

Morpheus smiled thinly as he sat back in his throne... then turned beet-red as Neato Burrito continued firmly: “And he is gonna punish you in a completely non-sexual manner, because he is a homosexual and I and you and we all should respect his decision, even if it gives me the heebie-jeebies. But I still respect him! He is still my master! Not in a creepy homosexual way but in a way that honors the traditions of the mighty Luchadores!”

Pinkie Pie cheered loudly, and Neato Burrito nodded violently at this, hopping up on his rear hooves and pointing at Morpheus as he awkwardly tried to shrink back in his throne, saying proudly: “That's right! You mares can fawn and plead all you want to my master, but your beautiful bodies won't have any effect on him because he don't like you none, he likes other stallions, who are made of meat and muscle and big solid-”

“Thank you, Neato Burrito, you've made your point!” Morpheus snapped in a strangled voice, and then he dropped back in his throne, trying unsuccessfully to glare over the ponies who had entered his fortress.

But all of the Elements of Harmony were staring up at him: Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were actually giggling, while Twilight was looking at him with disbelief as Applejack and Fluttershy only seemed confused. And Rarity, lastly, looked dismayed as she held up a hoof, asking awkwardly: “But... but you can love anyone for their personality, right?”

“Quiet, Rarity.” Celestia said irritably, and the unicorn looked shocked but dropped back into silence as the other ponies looked with surprise at Celestia. But she ignored all of them as she and Morpheus resumed glaring at each other, the tension between them like electricity before the Princess of the Sun finally asked curtly: “How? And why?”

Morpheus smiled coldly: of course, Celestia always just had to know. But he was more than happy to answer. “Well, Celestia, I'm not the first pony you banished to that abyss, am I? Oh no. I suppose it shouldn't have surprised me, but there were quite a few others down there... although none quite so powerful as me. But I was able to learn a lot from them, all the same... they taught me enough that it was just a matter of training myself until I was able to break free from that hell of hells.”

Celestia frowned darkly, then she snorted in disgust before saying contemptibly: “So you talked to a few other evils that I sealed away and then used brute force to get out. Of course.”

“You do enjoy throwing around that word, 'evil,' don't you Celestia?” asked Morpheus wryly, and he chuckled quietly as he sat back in his throne, saying easily: “But I suppose it makes it that much easier to convince yourself that you're doing the right thing, doesn't it? It must be nice. Everyone you don't like is 'evil,' and everyone who agrees with you is 'good.' Every time you take a life, you do it because they are 'bad' or 'wrong,' or because it was a 'just' thing to ultimately do, yes? But I have to tell you, Celestia... I don't think that old architect I met was very evil after all. Why, really, he was a rather nice old stallion... and he knew quite a bit about a certain princess...”

Celestia's eyes widened, and then she bared her teeth and leaned forwards, snarling: “I did what had to be done to protect Equestria!”

“And it almost sounds like you really believe that. Almost.” Morpheus retorted, looking with a mix of contempt and triumph over at the mare. “But that wasn't it at all, was it, Celestia? Oh no. He knew the truth about you. And more than that, he knew the truth about the Tablet of Dreams. After all, he was one of its caretakers, until you decided anyone with knowledge of that artifact was a liability.”

Celestia's eyes widened... and then she snarled as it all locked together in her mind, leaning forwards and saying with disgust: “So that's it. That's why you lured us here. But you're an idiot if you think any of us will let the Elements of Harmony fall into your hooves... which I'm sure you must know you need to access the tablet.”

“I do. And it's funny, Celestia...” Morpheus stood slowly, smiling thinly down at the mare as he gestured to the six confused-looking Elements of Harmony. “You don't seem to regret your decision to bring these innocent little fillies along with you. That makes me think you're willing to sacrifice the Elements of Harmony to me after all.”

Princess Celestia was silent herself for a few moments... and then she looked up and said softly: “No. That's where you're wrong, Morpheus. Oh, I'm sure you could kill them all with ease. But you have a problem there: if you kill or seriously injure them, their Element will lose power until another pony worthy of its abilities claims it.”

The stallion scowled, and then Princess Celestia smiled calmly before she looked over her shoulder, ordering: “Twilight Sparkle. Lead your friends in the attack. Morpheus cannot put any of your lives at risk.”

The black stallion stared in disbelief at this, and then he hurriedly looked over at Antecedes, blurting: “Is she right? Can we not... what do we do?”

“Do not fear! I am here to protect you, Señor Morpheus!” Neato Burrito said immediately, stepping forwards before he suddenly grinned and readied himself, then leapt high into the air and flipped backwards, most of the eyes in the room watching in surprise as the tiny stallion vanished behind Morpheus' throne.

And then a moment later, the earth pony flung himself back over the throne to land in front of the stallion in full costume, roaring: “Or rather, El Casco is here to save the day! Now come, one at a time or all-together, and I shall defend the honor of my master!”

Morpheus looked almost embarrassed as he rubbed the back of his head, before Antecedes said tiredly: “Except Celestia is right, yes. I thought you knew that, oh Prince of Darkness and King of Evil. Furthermore, if you disable one of them, they'll all become useless. They work harmoniously.”

The dark stallion gritted his teeth, then he snapped: “Neato Burrito, knock them out, but don't hurt them badly! Do you understand?”

The Luchador completely ignored Morpheus, and there was an awkward silence for a moment before the winged unicorn slowly closed his eyes and dropped his face in a hoof, muttering: “Oh, fine. Fight with honor, knock them out, etcetera etcetera. So commands Señor Morpheus to his honorable Luchador, El Casco.”

“And El Casco hears him, and shall punish his enemies!” roared the earth pony as he leapt forwards, and then Morpheus and Antecedes both shouted uselessly at the stallion as he charged straight at Celestia-

The Princess of the Sun simply snapped her horn to the side, and El Casco was blasted through the air to slam face-first into a wall with a resounding crack. The large section of stone swayed back and forth for a moment, and then it toppled slowly forwards to land on top of the earth pony that had been squished into it with a resounding crash.

Morpheus dropped his face in his hooves, then rubbed slowly at his temples as Antecedes sighed before saying plainly: “Well. I'm not going to rush to your defense. You started this. You can deal with the consequences of it yourself.”

“Oh, thank you, Antecedes. Your loyalty, that's truly your best quality.” Morpheus retorted irritably, and then he turned an icy glare towards Celestia as she gave a thin, mocking smile. “You can laugh all you like, Princess, but you seem to be forgetting something: I don't need the help of my minions to fight you on even ground.”

“And we won't give you that chance! Girls, come on, we need to focus together and use our Elements!” shouted Twilight... but her friends hesitated, and the violet mare trembled violently as she spun around, almost pleading: “Please! Please, we need to-”

Morpheus snorted in derision, and then he leapt out of his throne, leaning forwards and snapping: “Oh please, it's not as if I have anything to fear from six little ponies who don't even understand this... this game of superior minds and magic that Celestia and I have been playing for-”

Celestia snapped her horn down, and Morpheus gasped in pain as golden rings of energy formed around his body, binding him in place as he gritted his teeth and struggled helplessly against the magical restraints. Antecedes's eyes flashed at the sight of this, staggering to his hooves... but then he was blown backwards by telekinesis, pinned against the rear wall with a curse of pain as Celestia ordered sharply: “Twilight Sparkle. You and your friends must act now.”

“We have to stop him! He's... he's evil! Evil things must be punished and destroyed!” Twilight said almost desperately, looking to her friends, trying to rally their support. Her friends looked back at her, uncertain, afraid, and Twilight shook her head vehemently before she cried out: “Please! We need to do this!”

“You can't do it! You lack both the strength and the will!” Morpheus snarled, yanking against the golden rings before gritting his teeth as energy shocked over his body, Celestia's eyes blazing as she glared at him furiously.

“Do it! Stop him, he is a threat to Equestria, he will put our entire nation in jeopardy!” Celestia shouted, then she glared over her shoulder at Twilight, and the violet mare shrank back fearfully as her five friends flinched away from their Princess. “I am your ruler! I am giving you an order!”

“We have to!” Twilight shouted, and then she clenched her eyes shut, calling up all the magic she could as her friends trembled, but then stepped forwards one after the other, focusing on their own Element, channeling their powers together...

There was a static between them, a hesitance, a fear, even as the sense of magic began to grow, and Morpheus gritted his teeth as he glared between the ponies. Even with their tension, their worry, there was unity: even if they didn't entirely believe in what they were doing, they were still determined to do things together.

There was something to admire in it, even if he was stuck in the awkward position of being on the sharp end of their magic... or so they thought. As he felt the magic push past the point of no return, he bared his teeth before shouting: “Antecedes! Now!”

Celestia's eyes widened before she snarled in fury as the skeleton nimbly shoved himself off the wall, somehow sliding right out of her telekinetic grip. She began to prepare a second spell, but before she could release it, her concentration was broken as Morpheus simply tore his forelegs to either side with a wide grin, shattering the loops of magic around his body into nothing but motes and making the ivory mare stagger as recoil zapped along her horn.

Her eyes widened in disbelief, and she mouthed wordlessly before snarling in fury as she realized that Morpheus hadn't been trapped at all. No, he had wanted to appear vulnerable, he wanted...

She winced in surprise at the force of the blast of energy that tore past her, her eyes widening as a rainbow of energy shot towards Morpheus, but the stallion didn't so much as twitch, only grinning widely before Antecedes appeared in front of him and thrusted his hooves into the air, tracing a pattern of glowing red runes into the fabric of reality before the crimson sigils glowed brightly just as the rainbow of energy smashed down on top of them.

But Antecedes seemed to catch the rainbow, the skeleton skidding backwards a few inches with the force of the collision against his own magic. Multicolored sparks ripped up along the bottom of the rainbow as Twilight and her friends cried out, twitching back and forth on the spot before each pony was almost torn off her hooves as the Elements of Harmony were wrenched free of their holders, one after the other.

And Celestia watched in horror as the Elements of Harmony were sucked along the glowing rainbow before they crashed, one after the other, into a solid marble shield that Antecedes was now holding above his head, the skeleton seeming to smile as he slowly lowered the smoldering stone protector, saying calmly: “Thank you, Celestia. But you always did have a bad habit of getting a little bit too aggressive.”

Celestia trembled as she stared at the shield: five Elements of Harmony were embedded along the border, and the Element of Magic sat in the dead center. Furrows that ran between the captured Elements formed the distinct pattern of a pentagram, and Celestia swore under her breath before she whispered: “How did you... that's not possible...”

“It was quite easy, as a matter of fact.” Morpheus replied pleasantly, and Antecedes scowled at him as the skeleton carefully lowered the heavy shield so he could lean on it. “You see, the Tablet of Dreams wasn't the only thing that this architect I met told me about... he said that in the past, you had collected many other artifacts of great power, hiding them away or destroying them as you saw fit. Some you even sealed away in Tartarus or other places of exile and punishment; rather silly, really. I certainly understand the reasoning, but if, say, a particularly strong and handsome young god broke free of his imprisonment in one of those places, he might just be tempted to take a few keepsakes with him on his way out...”

Celestia smiled thinly, and then she said softly: “So you stole the Shield of Heaven and absorbed the Elements of Harmony into it. Well, good for you, Morpheus, but a dark, evil pony like you could never use a tool of justice like that.”

“I'm curious, Celestia: if it's a tool of justice, then why was it sealed away in Tartarus? Is it because you admit that you fear giving the ponies the powers to protect themselves?” Morpheus asked mildly, and then he gave a nasty little smile as Celestia snarled at him. “No, you fear any threat to your rule, to your... pathetic idea of order. But I plan to bring your entire country crashing down. Because, as a matter of fact, I can use the shield.”

Morpheus flicked his his horn, and the marble shield crackled with energy before it suddenly vanished in a burst of dark smoke, and the stallion chuckled quietly as he said calmly: “But of course, there's no point in me wasting my time demonstrating my vast array of powers to you, Celestia. Not when I'm about to kill you.”

He smiled pleasantly at her, and Celestia swore before she snapped her horn suddenly downwards, Morpheus looking blank before a golden blast of flames hammered into his face and knocked him backwards into his throne. Immediately, she snapped her horn to the side, following up with a second fireball at Antecedes, but the skeleton only batted it away with one hoof, not flinching as he said calmly: “I'm not interested in fighting, Celestia.”

Celestia snapped her horn forwards, blasting Antecedes with telekinesis, but this time he barely skidded backwards instead of being thrown away, the strange red veins over his skeletal body pulsing with eerie light as he resisted her attack. It made the ivory mare snarl... before her eyes glowed with rage even as she smashed a burst of black flames away with her horn with barely a flinch, Morpheus looking dumbfounded for a moment before he bared his teeth and shouted: “Your battle is with me! Celestia, this is our destiny, this is the epic climax of our conflict, which began six centuries ago when you first refused me the position of-”

“Twilight Sparkle, kill him.” snapped Celestia, and Morpheus' mouth fell open as he stared blankly at the ivory mare, barely able to believe what she had just ordered. And then he watched stupidly as Twilight Sparkle hurried forwards in spite of the fact she and her friends still seemed stunned and confused, the stallion still trapped in a state of disbelief and failing to notice the jerky way that Twilight was moving, or how she didn't seem entirely in control of her own body.

Morpheus began to scoff... and then Twilight's horn glowed blackly, a toxic miasma starting to spill from her eyes as she snarled and snapped her spire forwards, a blast of dark lightning shooting out and blasting across Morpheus' frame. He squealed in pain, leaping backwards and slapping wildly at himself before bolting, and Twilight yelled wordlessly and leapt after him, snapping her horn angrily out and firing bolts of black magic after the winged unicorn.

“We... we have to help Twilight!” Rainbow Dash shouted after a moment, shaking herself hurriedly out and getting her senses back... but even she sounded uncertain with how Twilight looked almost like she was being jerked along by something, her face contorted with rage... and that magic she was using, it felt so... evil...

“Yes, you should.” Celestia said coldly, bringing the attention of the five ponies to her before she smiled thinly over her shoulder at them. “Keep them distracted. I need a few moments. Then I'll settle things with Morpheus once I'm ready.”

“I... Princess...” Applejack looked worriedly up at Celestia, but the ivory mare only turned away and shoved her way through the group, heading to the far side of the throne room. The five mares traded fearful looks...

And then Twilight cried out, and Rainbow cursed under her breath before the mare snapped: “Look, either way, Twilight needs our help! We can't just sit back and do nothing!”

But before any of the mares could speak, the stone debris on one side of the room suddenly exploded upwards, El Casco leaping to his hooves and looking completely unharmed despite the fact he'd been buried under a pile of rubble, his eyes blazing as he thrusted a hoof in the air and shouted: “If you wish to harm my master, then first, you must push your way through me!”

“Okay, Rainbow, Pinkie Pie, let's deal with this one! Fluttershy, Rarity, you two do something about that skeleton guy, keep him distracted! Once we get these two out of the way, we can grab Twilight and focus on fighting Morpheus together, Elements or no Elements!” Applejack said quickly, and Rainbow and Pinkie both nodded firmly before the three ponies leapt forwards to face the stallion.

The earth pony glared at them, raising his masked head high, the immense horseshoe attached to his face gleaming. Then he raised both forelegs high, beady eyes glowing with passion and determination as he shouted: “For the honor of Señor Morpheus I shall fight! Very well, I show no fear to you, come at me however you like and I shall show you the strength of El Casco, and he shall teach you the ways of Lucha Libre!”

“Let's kick his flank!” Rainbow Dash growled, and Applejack nodded firmly as Pinkie Pie only yelled loudly, cheering from the sidelines as the two mares rushed forwards.

And they were both caught by their faces before they could strike, the two staring before yelping when El Casco whacked their heads together. Then he laughed loudly as he plucked Applejack's hat off her head before shoving it firmly into Rainbow Dash's face, sending the Pegasus stumbling backwards as she shook her head wildly to try and dislodge the stetson.

Applejack snarled, spinning back towards El Casco... and he slammed a headbutt into her that knocked her senseless thanks to the enormous metal hoof on his mask, sending her flopping down in a stunned heap. Then he turned easily towards Rainbow Dash and slammed a jab into the hat the Pegasus was ineffectively trying to pull off her face, knocking her sprawling on her back as the stetson finally popped off with a sound like a cork.

El Casco laughed brazenly again, punching his hooves together before he posed quickly, declaring: “I am among the greatest of all Luchadores! I fight with honor and pride for the stallion who saved my life and my village!”

Rainbow Dash only bared her teeth as she rolled up to her hooves, and Applejack scowled as she slowly crawled up to her own hooves, her head ringing and her words slurring a bit as she said slowly: “Y'know he's... gonna destroy Equestria and all... and your village is part of Equestria, innit?”

But El Casco only shrugged, sitting back and saying calmly: “The code is a difficult thing sometimes, señorita, but I must obey it wholeheartedly all the same. With all my heart, all my honor, and all my pride! Besides, Señor Morpheus is not so bad. He has a good heart. He has tener cojones! And he will do the right thing in the end, I know it!”

Rainbow and Applejack both only glared at the earth pony, and then the Pegasus said flatly: “You're delusional, pal. And your boss ain't so tough... Twilight's still chasing him around all by herself! I bet we aren't even going to need the Princess' help to take down him and his freaky skeleton pal and a giant jumping bean like you!”

El Casco reared back, looking offended before Applejack added sharply: “We ain't scared of any lucy-doors, either, since all you seem like is some short weirdo wearin' baby booties and a big piece of metal glued to his face!”

“You insult the Luchadores? You insult my mask?” El Casco reared back, and then he pointed at them sharply, saying furiously: “You leave me no choice now but to defend my honor, and the honor of my family!”

The two mares only glared, even as Pinkie Pie winced and waved a hoof wildly, calling hurriedly: “Wait, wait, they didn't really mean it, they just-”

But it was too late: Applejack and Rainbow Dash had flung themselves towards El Casco, who met them with an impassioned roar. And Pinkie Pie winced away, half-covering her face as the two mares were thrown around like rag dolls as El Casco shouted proclamations and preached about the art of Lucha Libre.

Rarity and Fluttershy, meanwhile, had awkwardly approached Antecedes, who had seated himself down beside the throne and was pointedly ignoring everyone... including Morpheus, who swore at him every time he ran past with a grinning, insane-looking Twilight following, zapping the winged unicorn with black energy every now and then.

Fluttershy winced as she looked up and watched them complete their narrow loop of the room for the dozenth time, and then she looked worriedly at Antecedes, before asking the skeleton hesitantly: “Can... can't you do something? Your friend is in danger and... Twilight looks so strange...”

“She's being influenced by your Princess.” Antecedes said moodily, not looking up from the newspaper he had unfolded before he added irritably: “And unless you want me to kill her, it's better to just leave her alone until she tires out. But I suppose that Celestia will be ready to fight by then, and the silly games will end and she and Moonflower can have their little ego-battle.”

“My name is Morpheus!” snapped the winged unicorn as he skidded to a halt... and then he cursed as a black fireball smashed into him, knocking him to the side with a wince. But a moment later, he blinked stupidly as he realized it had little effect, absently brushing at himself before he groaned even as Twilight Sparkle ran at him, yelling furiously. “What am I doing, running away from... stop it.”

Morpheus flicked his horn irritably, and Twilight ran face-first into an invisible barrier, whimpering as the magic whiffed out from around her horn and her eyes. And a moment later, a solid box of dark stone formed around her, leaving her imprisoned as Morpheus huffed before he approached and added moodily: “And you, ingrate. Come. Up on your hooves, we aren't done here yet.”

“Y-Y-You're not going to h-hurt us, are you?” Fluttershy whimpered, looking over at him fearfully, and Morpheus turned to scowl at her.

He only managed to look at her for a few moments before he blushed awkwardly and cleared his throat, turning his eyes away and mumbling: “I... just... Antecedes!”

“What Lord Morpheus is trying to say is that if he kills you, the Elements of Harmony will cease to function. Even if they're trapped in the shield, you're still connected to them.” Antecedes said mildly, not looking up from his newspaper.

The winged unicorn sighed in what almost sounded like relief, nodding quickly a few times in agreement as he cleared his throat. “Yes, that... that is precisely it. So... stay out of my way, and we won't have any problems. That's all.”

He peeked awkwardly at Fluttershy, then winced when Rarity leapt up beside him, her eyes gleaming as she rubbed a hoof along his breast and said encouragingly: “Maybe we can all... put all this silliness aside and just be friends, what do you say, darling? Oh, I can see there's certainly some bad blood between you and Celestia, but my dear, that doesn't mean we're all bad...”

Morpheus looked blankly down at her, and then he carefully reached up and pushed the unicorn away, shivering a little. But as he started to turn away, he found Fluttershy looking up at him meekly, the Pegasus asking hesitantly: “Mister Morpheus, why... why do you want to destroy Equestria? You don't seem like an evil pony...”

“Well, I am. I am evil. I am the Lord of Darkness!” Morpheus said after a moment, raising a hoof high in the air... and then he scowled over towards Celestia, who was only calmly standing on the other side of the room, the stallion saying in a colder voice: “And for too long, the sun has shone. Isn't that right, Killing Light?”

Celestia only smiled thinly from where she was standing, and Morpheus narrowed his eyes uncertainly. There was something strange about her now, something different... yes, she had put on some kind of choker. And he thought he could sense her magic power rising...

But before he could question it any further, there was an almost-frantic knocking before Twilight Sparkle's voice called weakly: “Can... can someone help me, please? I can't... it's... I'm scared! And I... P-Princess Celestia, it hurts!”

Morpheus scowled at this, and Antecedes slowly folded his paper closed and looked up with disgust as Rarity and Fluttershy traded confused looks. But Celestia only continued to smile calmly, coldly: she and Morpheus locked gazes, both refusing to look away as they tested each other's resolve and power, their horns sparking faintly now and then as they saw into one-another.

Across the room, El Casco put Applejack into a headlock, then yanked her along with him as he charged at Rainbow Dash before leaping up and slamming both rear hooves into the Pegasus. The light blue mare was knocked flying through the air as Applejack gargled when she was slammed down on her stomach, and then El Casco laughed as he leapt up to his hooves, shouting: “You two know nothing of what it means to be a Luchador!”

“They don't! But I do!” snapped Pinkie Pie, and both Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked groggily up to see the pink mare had somehow pulled out a multicolored, blue-and-yellow costume that covered most of her body, a mask covering the upper half of her face like a cap, her eyes glaring through narrow holes in the checkered fabric. “El Casco! I am Ex Parte! And I challenge you to máscara contra máscara!”

“You dare? You dare?” El Casco drew himself up to his full height, pointing back at her as his eyes blazed with passion, but Pinkie Pie.. or Ex Parte, rather... only glared and pointed back, and El Casco laughed loudly. “Yes! You have the passion! You are fearless! Very well, I accept!”

“Oh horseapples. This is not going to end well.” Applejack mumbled from the ground, and Rainbow Dash wheezed as she tried to push herself up.

“P-Pinkie! You don't stand a chance against that jerk alone, just...” And then Rainbow wheezed and dropped back on her face, mumbling: “Just wait for us to... do stuff...”

El Casco lunged at Ex Parte, but Ex Parte caught him by the face before she spun around and flung him to the side. The moment he landed, however, El Casco yanked himself around and leapt back at the mare, but with ease, Ex Parte leapt over him and then dropped onto his back, slamming an elbow into his spine and driving him to the ground as he howled in shock.

Then Ex Parte seized him around the neck and twined one of her forelegs into his own, and the stallion shouted in shock as he was pinned on his stomach... but after only a moment, he grinned widely, eyes blazing with passion as he roared: “Yes! You have the passion, and you have the skill! But I am the greatest of all Luchadores!”

El Casco suddenly leapt upwards and yanked the mare off his back, swinging her down into the floor back-first with a crushing thud before he wrapped both forelegs around her throat, crushing down on her neck as she gasped. She began to weaken as El Casco grinned... but then, in a surge of sudden strength and vitality, she seized both his forelimbs and yanked him forwards into a roll with her, slamming the stallion down onto his back.

His forelegs went comically wide, and Ex Parte flung herself high into the air, then dropped elbow-first onto the stallion, making him gasp in surprise more than pain... but it still left him vulnerable for long enough that Ex Parte was able to seize one of his forelegs and roll onto her back, locking her rear legs in a scissors around his neck as she stretched his foreleg out over her body.

The stallion was rendered helpless, gritting his teeth as Ex Parte growled like a chihuahua and fiercely pulled back on his foreleg. But then her eyes widened as El Casco roared and slowly began to raise his foreleg, pulling her along with him before he suddenly rolled to the side and yanked the mare through the air, slamming her face-first down into the ground and knocking her loose with a gasp.

Immediately, he pounced on top of her, then attempted to slam his horseshoe-covered face down in a vicious finisher, but Ex Parte roared and slammed her own head back against him, surprising him as he was repelled. He stared down at her for a moment, then said incredulously: “But El Casco has never failed to crush his foes beneath his mighty hoof!”

“That's because I already submitted my injunction!” Ex Parte shouted, and then both her rear hooves slammed up under his chin, knocking him crashing off her as the mare rolled backwards. El Casco barely managed to stagger up to a standing position, starting to get into a defensive pose before his eyes widened as the mare pointed at him. “And now it's time for a declaration of irreparable harm!”

“This can't be happening!” El Casco cried, stepping back as he shielded himself as best he could with his forelegs, and then he gritted his teeth when Ex Parte charged before suddenly leaping into the air, launching himself straight at the mare as he started to swing his head down... but fearlessly, Ex Parte leapt up and caught him around the neck, letting her legs kick out as they spun wildly together before slamming down to the floor with a tremendous bang.

El Casco gasped, and then Ex Parte rolled on top of him, yanking him back by the shoulders before slamming him face-first down into the ground. She yanked him up again, then held him in place as she shouted: “Where's your counter-motion?”

She slammed him down into the ground again, then yanked him back as he gargled, eyes rolling in his head as she snapped: “Because I'm gonna petition for habeas corpus! And it's gonna be your corpus, El Casco!”

She slammed him down into the ground again, then yanked him back up and this time flung him onto his back, leaping forwards and dropping to pin him as she straddled the helpless stallion, who stared up at her with amazement. “And it's just about time for the judge to make his ruling!”

Ex Parte growled down at him, and El Casco stared up at her before he gritted his teeth and reached up to grab her shoulders, shouting: “Well, El Casco never stops walking! And he's gonna walk all over you, Ex Parte!”

He reversed the hold, slamming her down and grinning... and then he stared as Ex Parte only grinned back, snapping: “Except in this court, the only right you have is the right to a fair beating! And I'm about to serve you up a notice of smackdown!”

Ex Parte suddenly rolled beneath him, slipping free from his grip and then bouncing to her hooves under the short stallion to lift him off the ground. For a moment, he laid across her back, looking stupefied... before Ex Parte bucked hard forwards and caught him at the same time, flinging him down and slamming him headfirst into the ground.

For a moment, El Casco tottered back and forth on his head, awkwardly balanced on his face before he slowly keeled forwards and landed with a thump on his back. He stared blankly up at the ceiling, and then he whispered: “Madre de Dios. I cannot believe it.”

“Well you better, because the jury just found you guilty on all counts.” Ex Parte retorted, and then she reached down and forced the stallion to sit up, El Casco wincing before his eyes widened in horror as the mare seized the metal horseshoe on the front of his mask. “And the sentence is death for El Casco!”

Ex Parte tore the Luchador's mask off and thrust it into the air above her head, and Neato Burrito grabbed at his face before throwing his forelegs wide and howling a denial to the ceiling. Then, slowly, he tottered to the side and curled up in the fetal position, staring off into the distance with glassy eyes.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash both looked up disbelievingly as Ex Parte nodded firmly and flung the mask down, and then the Pegasus scowled as she carefully approached, peering down at the stallion and poking him a few times as she muttered: “Hey. He doesn't look that badly hurt.”

“Well, duh, I wasn't trying to hurt him you guys. We were wrestling, not fighting.” Ex Parte said reasonably before she reached up and yanked her mask off with a bright smile. “It's all about the show and the style and the substance, not who throws the hardest punch! Don't you guys know anything?”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash both stared at the mare disbelievingly... and then Celestia said coldly: “Thank you, girls, you've all made my job much easier.”

All five mares looked up as Morpheus' eyes widened, Celestia suddenly breaking contact to slash her horn out, and a massive wave of golden flames tore through the air. Antecedes and Morpheus both immediately shielded themselves, but the mares screamed as the waves of aureate fire passed over them before their bodies – along with Neato Burrito's – were all encased in solid stone.

Celestia smiled ruthlessly, throwing off her cloak as her mane sparked and her eyes glowed with anger and power, saying icily: “Now I've eliminated one problem. The Elements of Harmony will no longer function. Now you can't reach the Tablet of Dreams... not that I'm going to give you the chance to. Either surrender, Morpheus, or I will kill you.”

“I can save them, Morpheus. For... for the sake of the plan, of course.” Antecedes said in a low voice, and Morpheus hesitated, biting his lip and feeling a strange churning inside his stomach...

“No, you can't.” Celestia said almost gently, interrupting the stallion's thoughts, and she chuckled softly before her horn glowed brightly, continuing with the faintest hint of regret: “It's too bad, though. They were good little listeners, the perfect little 'heroes' for our nation. But at least I might be able to salvage Twilight, if she's still alive in that box you put her in.”

The glow around her horn grew brighter before she suddenly snapped her head back, closing her eyes and arching her back with a cold smile, a tremble running through the world before cracks tore through the floor around her and the ceiling high above. The fractures spread as the earth began to shake, and Morpheus snarled as Antecedes leapt into action with a curse, almost tackling the statues of Rarity and Fluttershy before they both vanished in a flash of red light.

Morpheus leapt up over the dais his throne sat on, before his eyes widened as he saw the ground around the other four statues was already heaving apart. So, acting on instinct more than anything else, he snapped his horn out as he shouted: “Only you, Celestia, could make me want to save these stupid goody-two-hooves!”

A black sphere formed around the statues, the wall of the forcefield disintegrating whatever it touched even as it lifted the four petrified ponies into the safety of the heart of its dark embrace. Morpheus gritted his teeth as several massive chunks of stone ceiling collapsed over the shield, but they too were dissolved into dust and ashes on contact with the terrible orb, before the winged unicorn's eyes flashed, and the sphere of dark energy vanished, statues and all.

Then he turned a glare towards Celestia, stepping back in front of his throne even as the world rocked and shifted around him, ignoring the chunks of ceiling hailing down all around his once-beautiful fortress as their eyes locked. Darkness and Light faced each other, and in that moment, it wasn't about saving Equestria or destroying it, about good or evil, right or wrong: all that mattered was that one pony was going to win... and the other was going to die.

The Killing Light

Chapter Six: The Killing Light
~BlackRoseRaven

Morpheus and Celestia stood some thirty feet apart, the ivory mare seeming to glare down at him patronizingly in spite of the fact he had the higher ground with the dais he was standing on. He gritted his teeth, hating how she was looking at him, lording over him... and yet for some reason, that wasn't what was making him angriest right now.

“How could you just throw away their lives like that? They trusted you, and... you, so-called 'savior,' you proved you really are nothing more than the Killing Light! You tried to kill them, not just innocent ponies, but the Elements of Harmony, heroes of your nation!” Morpheus snapped, gesturing angrily out around his destroyed throne room as the dust and shaking finally settled.

Celestia only smiled coldly in response, shaking her head slowly before she asked contemptibly: “And what do you know about 'sacrifice,' Morpheus? Sacrificing the things you hold dear yourself, I mean, not... using up and throwing away the lives of other innocent ponies who mean nothing to you.”

The ivory mare was still smiling, but her eyes were blazing, and her mane was slowly beginning to separate into glowing, crackling strands as she continued icily: “I do. You seem to think you know all about me... who I really am, where I came from, what I am capable of. But you know none of these things. You have no idea what horrors we fought when we first came to this brittle and blackened land, more than a thousand years ago now. You have no idea how it felt to watch my friends ripped apart by monsters, and politics tear my illustrious family apart. I did the only thing I could do!”

Morpheus shivered a little as Celestia's eyes blazed, the mare leaning forwards and snarling: “We were here to bring order and justice! But those savages refused to give up their beliefs, refused to elevate themselves to a higher, purer level! We were as angels and they were nothing but dogs!”

Morpheus winced as tremors tore through the room, before he set himself and said coldly: “Except you weren't shy about helping yourself to their treasures along the way, now were you? Don't lie to me or yourself, Celestia: the Forgotten Crusade was about curbing a growing threat to the Old Kingdom and stealing treasure more than anything else. Something I would actually admire if you weren't so self-righteous about it.”

“To the victor go the spoils, Morpheus.” Celestia smiled thinly, and then she straightened as the choker around her neck gleamed, her eyes glowing with power as she said with disgust: “I claimed what was rightfully mine. You are a thief, a coward, and... pathetic.”

“Pathetic, yes, I'm the pathetic one here.” Morpheus rolled his eyes, then he pointed towards the ivory mare and said darkly: “You made me what I am today, Celestia. You created me, with your absolute refusal to give me so much as a chance... all I wanted was a chance! I came to you with an understanding of night magic that, even in the past, completely dwarfed even the most knowledgeable necromancer or keeper of secrets!”

Celestia laughed shortly at this, shaking her head slowly. “All you brought were bad memories. Now, you and I, here and now... we are going to settle things. In the past, when I led the crusades here, I saw terrible, awful things, and I met a ruler who refused to do anything for her people even though they saw her as a goddess. Who refused to use her power to end the conflict...”

Celestia lowered her head, shaking it contemptibly before she said coldly: “She talked down to me, you know. She saw me... likely similar to the way that I see you. A meddling, rude little insect, a cockroach... no, a maggot. A slimy little rot-eater. But the difference between you and I, Moonflower, is that my goals are noble. Even if you kill me, you'll only make me a martyr. And the ponies will never obey you, never listen to you, never accept you.”

“Maybe not. But I don't need them to...” Morpheus gritted his teeth, shaking his head and glaring at her furiously. “You've built yourself a house of cards, Celestia, and the only thing I want to do is smash it down. Once I get the Tablet of Dreams, I'll use it to do to your happy little sycophants precisely what you did to me: wish them away into an endless darkness... and the only difference between what they'll suffer and I did is that none of them will escape.”

Celestia smiled coldly at this, leaning forwards as her horn sparked, her eyes glowing as she said coldly: “So you'll punish the entire world just because you were held accountable for your actions, is that it? You really are pathetic, Moonflower.”

Morpheus snorted at this, then he looked up coldly and retorted: “I'll punish the world for all the reasons you already gave me, Celestia. Because this is your world, not mine. Because this is a world of light, and happiness, and I am evil and darkness. Because I will never be accepted by these ponies, just like you told me: and if I'm going to be alone, I'd rather be alone in the darkness than forced to spend my solitude surrounded by happy ponies, living together in their wretched, false harmony you've imposed over them.”

The ivory mare laughed shortly at this, and then she shook her head slowly before saying in a disgusted voice: “Then so be it, Morpheus. But the Tablet of Dreams isn't the only artifact of great power in my possession.”

She rose her head, smiling coldly as the choker around her neck gleamed, and Morpheus began to snarl before the mare snapped her head forwards and unleashed a tremendous blast of golden flame. It smashed into the stallion, too large to dodge and too fast to stop, and he was flung backwards through his own throne to crash into the back wall.

The stallion snarled as he tore himself loose from the cracked stone, his eyes blazing, his body seared and aching... but it was anger more than pain that drove him as he snapped: “Go ahead, use all the stupid little toys you want, Celestia, but you'll never be as powerful as I am!”

Celestia snarled as she snapped her horn down, unleashing another torrent of holy fire, but this time Morpheus was prepared: he flapped his wings hard as he leapt straight up, veering out of the way before he fired a black fireball at the mare, but Celestia only flicked her horn to the side and negated it with her own magic, saying with disgust: “You're nothing but an ignorant child, Morpheus. Even a foal wouldn't be so direct with such a weak spell.”

She flicked her horn sharply, replying with another massive blast of golden flames, and Morpheus snarled as he lashed his horn forwards, creating a shield of black energy that the holy fire uselessly disintegrated against.

The stallion shoved his front hooves into the barrier, his horn glowing darkly as the black shield slowly began to spin, becoming a black vortex that started to slowly but steadily expand as it pulled in debris and energy. Celestia swore under her breath as she felt it pulling at her, glaring furiously up at the stallion before she dragged herself backwards even as she felt the strength of its grasp increasing.

Her horn glowed brightly as she continued to pull herself away from the growing grip of the vortex, swearing under her breath before she suddenly stomped both hooves savagely into the ground. Cracks ripped through the floor in front of her, speeding forwards before a massive pillar of stone ripped out ground behind the vortex, smashing into Morpheus and knocking him out of the air with a curse of pain.

The black vortex sparked before it exploded in a tremendous black wave that hit Morpheus before he could crash to the ground, flinging him bonelessly across his throne room: the force of the shockwave knocked Celestia staggering as well, and sent several more thin sections of wall collapsing into ruin, filling the air with dust and debris.

Celestia looked sharply back and forth as she recovered, before she snarled as she sensed movement, snapping her horn to the side... but all she hit was another tottering wall, blowing it into pieces in a flash of white light. She swore under her breath, eyes glowing, her mane separated now into long, glowing strands of multicolored energy that looked almost serpentine, eyes glowing with eerie amethyst light as she hissed: “Where are you...”

A rock flew at her, but Celestia slapped it aside before cursing and raising one wing as a blast of black fire streaked towards her: they bounced almost uselessly off the almost-glowing white feathers, however, and Celestia spun towards Morpheus as she lashed her horn out, sending a blade of golden light streaking through the air.

Morpheus deflected this with his own horn, and then he grinned coldly as he fired a volley of dark magic back at the mare. But every crescent blade he launched was met and canceled out by a blade of holy light, before Celestia roared and snapped her horn forwards, and six missiles of white energy streaked out of her horn, zigzagging wildly in every direction before they homed sharply in on the stallion.

Morpheus barely managed to avoid two of the bullets of energy, while the rest hammered viciously against his body, bruising and burning him as he was flung backwards to crash and roll painfully away on his back. But he recovered quickly, gritting his teeth as he forced himself to shove backwards and land on his stomach... before wincing and creating a wall of black energy in front of himself as another barrage of golden blades shot towards him.

His barrier held under the assault, and Morpheus gave a sigh of relief... a moment before the ground beneath him exploded in a tremendous burst of white light, the stallion sent flying through the air to bounce painfully off the black crystal box imprisoning Twilight Sparkle, sending cracks through the dark stone before he landed with a thump on the other side.

Celestia snarled, launching a mortar of holy energy after the stallion: this crashed down on top of the box and exploded with a tremendous wave of white energy, knocking Morpheus rolling backwards with a curse and shattering the top of the box completely. Then the ivory mare paused before scowling as a whimpering Twilight Sparkle stuck her head out of the box, looking back and forth fearfully before Celestia snapped: “Twilight! Come here!”

Twilight Sparkle looked at her mentor... and her eyes widened in fear at what she saw, as the gorgonesque mare glared at her with hate-filled, glowing violet sockets, her tendril mane snapping back and forth, her body thrumming with a terrible, unnatural radiance. The violet mare trembled violently for a moment... and then Celestia snarled, her horn glowing gold, and the purple mare screaming in agony and falling to the ground as pain ripped through her system. “Do not make me repeat myself!”

“Your hypocrisy will be your undoing, Celestia.” Morpheus said coldly as he stood up, glaring furiously over at the ivory mare, and she slowly turned her attention to him with a look of contempt. But Morpheus looked fearlessly back, brushing at himself slowly as he said with disgust: “Magic is only a tool. It is what we do with it that determines whether it is good or evil... and at least I'm open about my aims, Celestia. You... you are only the Killing Light.”

Celestia snarled furiously... and then, slowly, she steadied herself before giving a cruel smile. She snapped her horn to the side, and Twilight Sparkle was batted away like a toy, crashing bonelessly to the ground on the other side of the throne room as the mare said darkly: “You're only right about one thing, Morpheus. Because you see... even when I must allow the darkness to live, I keep it in chains and shackles. I show no mercy for anyone infected by the disease of shadow. None of them can handle it: Antecedes, you, Twilight Sparkle... all of them are corrupted by it. That is why they must be controlled, and monitored, and punished... and eventually disposed of, when they get too strong or when they refuse to listen to my orders. When they refuse to serve the light.

“But I am the Killing Light, Morpheus.” Celestia smiled coldly, raising her head and saying softly: “And I'm going to give you the honor of fighting me as I was in my prime. Before I took on this... tawdry, stupid disguise to make the ponies listen to me.”

Celestia stomped her hooves down, her eyes glowing as she dropped her head forwards and snarled, white light spreading over her body as her choker gleamed dangerously around her neck, and Morpheus gritted his teeth and winced away as the glow built higher and higher... and then it vanished, and left an armor-clad beast in its wake.

A cold smile spread over a scaled face crisscrossed with scars, half-equine and half-dragon. Two new, darker and sleeker horns pushed out the back of her skull through a mane of tendrils that snaked and twisted over her now armored back, kept out of her face by the heavy crown-helm over her features that was designed to add extra support to her unicorn horn, which had become bladed and even larger. Massive, bladed boots protected her hooves, and large, feathered wings stretched out and flapped slowly, eagle-like at first glance... demonic at the second, with the almost-hidden claws at the end of each and their enormous, draconic structure.

She was covered form head-to-tail in thick golden plating, gothic spikes sticking out of her shoulders and running along her limbs and down the length of her thick tail; this particular armored appendage ended in four huge, thick blades, turning her tail into a flanged mace that weaved slowly back and forth.

And at her neck, that choker glowed brightly, feeding her power as the half-dragon, half-mare said coldly: “You called me the Killing Light, Morpheus. The ponies call me Celestia. But the name you curs first came to know me by was Lady Stronghold Halfdragon.”

“The most feared commander of the crusades. When I was a foal, parents were still telling their children that if they misbehaved, Lady Halfdragon would devour them.” Morpheus said coldly, his eyes narrowed, his body tense as they faced each other. “Shouldn't that tell you we're more alike than you want to admit?”

Celestia... no, Halfdragon only laughed loudly before she shook her head slowly and said quietly: “My name has been erased from the sands of time. No one knows the truth... that I used the Tablet of Dreams to replace Princess Celestia after I killed her. What choice did I have, though? We were sent here to purge the barbarians and monsters from this land, to bring the Order of the White Dragon here. Our prophets told us that our God demanded war and eradication of those ponies who would not serve.”

Morpheus laughed at this, and Halfdragon narrowed her eyes at him before he asked mockingly: “Is the god of dragons really so impotent he's scared of a few ponies on the other side of the ocean?”

Halfdragon snarled... but then she caught herself, instead smiling thinly before shaking her head and saying with disgust: “We are not dragons, like the brutes that live throughout Equestria. We are... were Draekin. But in a moment of... of stupidity and weakness, our holy army was disbanded and excommunicated by the High Elder after all the work we had done for God, and we were left alone in this wretched place...”

The mare shook her head shortly again, and then she closed her eyes and smiled thinly. “My home country was destroyed shortly after. Of course it was: peace is maintained through force, unity is maintained by conformity. The High Elder turned against these teachings. I don't know and don't care why. I do know that the leader of the ponies, Princess Celestia, had spoken to him, and even if she refused to force order over this country... the ponies listened to her. And in her presence, I felt...”

Halfdragon stopped and almost seemed to lose herself for a moment, then looked coldly across at Morpheus as she flexed her body slowly, then smiled calmly. “Well, Moonflower, you know enough of my secrets, and I've quibbled away enough time with you. Thank you, by the way. For so politely sitting there and listening. It's been a long time since I've been able to show my real face to anyone... and more importantly, it takes quite a while for my strength to reach its peak.”

Morpheus only smiled in return, raising his head high and replying pleasantly: “Well, Celestia... or Lady Stronghold Halfdragon, if you prefer... I wouldn't want to fight you if you weren't feeling your best. After all, I want to make it clear, beyond the shadow of a doubt, which of us is superior. And besides... you've given me all the more reason to kill you and destroy this entire country.”

The mare snorted, then reached up and snapped her helm's visor down over her eyes, her expression cold as she said contemptibly: “I've saved this country. I brought them together, under one banner, under one rule. It's too bad I have to kill you now, Moonflower, you would have made a pretty ornament to add to my collection. And you'd make an excellent test subject for conversion... a process I've been working on for many years now, that turns negative energy into positive power. My ultimate answer for this nation of ponies that seem to always revert to their old ways.”

“That's funny, Lady Halfdragon. I thought you were a commander of the crusaders. There's something in most religions about greed and lust and hate, isn't there?” Morpheus asked moodily, looking at the mare with an almost childish disgust. “Even you have to realize you can't just take everything that's 'evil' in the world, and try and make it 'good.'”

But Halfdragon only grinned coldly, replying darkly: “We did God's work, and we were thrown to the wolves for it. What I've learned is that god doesn't exist, and rules are only for the weak. But I am strong, Morpheus: I can handle the weight of my so-called 'sins.' The rest of the world either can't, or won't... and so they leave me no choice but to take matters into my own hooves.”

And, without wasting another word, Lady Halfdragon leapt suddenly forwards, snapping her horn out and unleashing a blast of holy fire straight at Morpheus. But the stallion deflected this with a bolt of dark energy, before snarling and snapping his horn back and forth as Halfdragon roared and fired spell after spell at him.

Blasts of magic collided in the air and ricocheted off each other, smashing apart stone and forcing the two to struggle to focus through the explosions of light and sound that wreaked havoc on their senses. But every spell was countered or neutralized by their opponent: Morpheus' dark magic had barely managed to leave a single burn against Halfdragon's armor, and Halfdragon's holy energy had only left the smallest of scratches over Morpheus' side.

Then Halfdragon suddenly leapt upwards, flapping her wings hard and taking to the air: Morpheus cursed as he quickly backpedaled, looking up before his eyes widened in horror as Halfdragon leaned down and roared out a blast of white hellfire: an attack he admittedly hadn't expected from a creature he was still thinking of as Celestia.

He leapt to the side, and the scouring flames slowly pursued him as the mare snarled in fury. The power of it was incredible and intense, and Morpheus grimaced as he realized that this kind of attack would likely eat through even his strongest defense... except...

His eyes widened, and he suddenly snapped a hoof upwards, a black wall appearing in a blind spot at Halfdragon's side before he shoved his other hoof up in front of him, a second black vortex forming. The gout of flames blasted down into this as Halfdragon grinned cruelly... before her eyes widened in shock as her own fire was redirected through the dark oval beside her, her wings flapping wildly as her own flames seared her armor and roasted her flesh.

She fell from the air a moment later to land on her hooves with a tremendous crash, snarling; but before she could regain her balance, she was driven backwards by a barrage of black magic, bolts of dark lightning sizzling and crackling around her body as she swore and shook herself back and forth angrily, shouting: “I will not stand for this embarrassment, filth!”

Her horn glowed brightly before she snapped it back with a roar, and a blast of force and flame erupted through the air around her, negating Morpheus' magic and knocking him crashing backwards with a wince. The winged unicorn barely managed to catch himself before his eyes widened as Halfdragon leapt out of the inferno, her eyes blazing with hatred and her horn thrumming with power.

She snapped the spire forwards, and a tremendous blast of white lightning hammered into Morpheus and launched him backwards with a squeal before he crashed and bounced violently over the floor until he hit the wall with a thunk. Halfdragon grinned coldly at this, then seized the stunned stallion with telekinesis before he could resist, the mare spinning around and lashing him through the air to send him flying face-first into another section of wall.

He smashed through the thin stone plate with a tremendous crash, striking the wall past it and knocking that section crumbling forwards. He ended up sprawled out over the fallen slab, his eyes rolling in his head, his expression dazed before he shook himself out and mumbled: “Perhaps Antecedes was right with all his... complaining about shoddy work...”

Morpheus shook himself out, then turned around and gritted his teeth, shoving himself off the fallen wall and launching back into the throne room area... only to squeal like a filly and kick wildly at the air as Halfdragon's bladed tail snapped down towards him. He barely managed to throw himself out of the way, hitting the ground painfully on his side... but it was much better than being torn in half by the deadly mace-tail.

Halfdragon yanked her tail back as she leapt at Morpheus with a snarl, but the stallion managed to roll out of the way before he snapped his horn out, and a spinning wave of dark energy slammed into Halfdragon, yanking her violently backwards in a wild, out-of-control whirl before she crashed down to the ground on her face, rolling almost comically backwards. But she caught herself with a snarl and skidded around in a half-circle, her eyes blazing as she roared: “I'll rip you apart!”

She snapped her horn out, and a massive blade of golden energy ripped towards the stallion, Morpheus' eyes widening in shock as he barely managed to duck out of the way of the blast of magic. He glanced over his shoulder in disbelief as he heard an awful smashing noise, and he stared with horror at the sight of the rear wall of the throne room: a slash almost ten feet long had been torn through it by the blast, at least a meter deep. Even he wouldn't survive getting hit with one of those attacks...

He turned around just in time to see Halfdragon follow up with two more that formed a crisscrossing X, and the stallion gritted his teeth before he ran forwards and then furled his wings tightly at his sides as he dove through the narrow space beneath the crossed blades.

Halfdragon's eyes widened in surprise, and then Morpheus snapped his horn out and blasted her with a telekinetic hammer, knocking her rearing back as she snarled in fury and spread her wings on instinct. But before she could anchor herself back to earth, Morpheus snapped his horn straight up, and a tornado of black energy tore up around the mare, yanking her off-balance body into the air as she howled in frustration and fury, one of her wings snapping loudly as the other tried uselessly to steer her into some kind of control.

She was dragged almost up to the ceiling by the black twister before it simply disintegrated, and the mare was dropped unceremoniously through the air, crashing down through one of the wall sections head-first with a tremendous bang. Morpheus couldn't help but grin at the sight of this as he stood up, then he called mockingly: “What's wrong? I thought you were supposed to be a feared crusader, not a... fearful pushover!”

Morpheus began to smile... and then the world all-but-exploded, the stallion flinching away from the terrible light that filled the air before he looked up in horror at the sight of Halfdragon standing with a look of absolute hatred on her bloody features, her eyes glowing with rage as dozens of pieces of broken stone wall floated like jagged blades around her, the mare roaring: “I'll show you why I was the bane of your nation, pack-beast!”

Massive chunks of concrete shot through the air, one after the other, and Morpheus was barely able to dodge back and forth between them: except every time a piece of stone drew close, it exploded in a hail of shrapnel and aureate fire, digging gashes through his body and distracting him.

He attempted to shield himself, but he couldn't concentrate enough to prepare the magic. Instead, his badly-timed pause was rewarded with a large chunk of rock to the face, knocking him sprawling backwards in a broken heap before he howled in misery as an avalanche of burning, magic-charged rock was slung on top of him.

Halfdragon grinned, then she ran forwards before tackling the stallion just as he started to scramble upwards, pinning him cruelly on his back. She leaned down, eyes blazing as she shoved her face down into his, and hissed: “See? You're nothing. You're a worthless little pile of meat. You don't have power: I have power. I have everything, and you have nothing. Your friends aren't going to come running to your aid: darkness is a dead end, useful only when I need a quick and dirty solution.”

Morpheus gritted his teeth... and then Halfdragon brought a hoof up and smashed it down into his face, crushing his features down into the ground as she bared her fangs at him. “I feel younger than I have in years! I'd forgotten everything I'd given up... this, you see, this is sacrifice! I was born to be judgment and wrath, to be the sword of Heaven... but instead, I had to give all that up to become a preening little pony princess, and pretend to be loving and compassionate and kind. I had to rule them like I really was some useless alicorn named Celestia. I had to become Celestia. And I did it for the greater good, to serve and protect these ponies!”

“You did it... to rule them yourself... because you think you're better and stronger than them, because you think you know what's best for them and... you're scared of them.” Morpheus retorted... and then he cursed in pain when Halfdragon slapped him across the face, looking down at him with disgust and hatred.

“I did it because without my aid, they were barbarians. Unicorns enslaved earth ponies and Pegasi were thugs and the few earth ponies that escaped their masters became criminals. Your people were primitives, savages, ruled over by a Princess who didn't care about them! I cared! And when god abandoned me, when I learned Heaven does not watch out for us and our world, I made it my mission to be that god, that ruler, that controller, to keep Equestria from becoming a threat to itself or the rest of the world!” Halfdragon snarled, seizing him by the throat and shaking him roughly. “How many people would give up their lives to protect the very people they had been sent to destroy? I have trained these ponies to protect what is good, and to eradicate what is evil! I am their savior!”

Morpheus laughed weakly at this, and then he smiled bitterly before whispering: “And here I thought that I was supposed to have the delusions of godhood, as the villain and all... that's rather disappointing. I may call myself Prince of Darkness, God of Evil, oh, any of these other silly names... but I know in my heart I'll never be anyone more than Moonflower, the colt no one loved, the little boy that will always be alone, forever...”

“Not for much longer, Moonflower. Very shortly, you'll be dead.” Halfdragon said contemptibly, and then she pinned him down by the shoulders as she asked cruelly: “So do you have any last words? If you beg, I might be willing to let you live a little longer. I've missed having someone to talk to.”

“You're deranged. And that's not a compliment coming from me.” Morpheus replied gently, and then he gave a thin smile before adding calmly: “And I'm the one with the upper hoof here, I'm afraid... so if anyone here should be begingg for life, it's you.”

Halfdragon gave a cruel grin, opening her mouth... and then her eyes widened in shock as there was a distinct cracking sound. She trembled for a moment, then reached a hoof slowly up to touch her choker, before she snarled as she felt the amethyst orb flaking and tumbling away under her gentle touch, reduced to nothing but blackened, broken pieces.

She looked down at Morpheus, who smiled coldly back up at her before he winked as his horn gave one brief black glow... and then the radiance and the sense of magic vanished, as he asked wryly: “Didn't you teach me that it was a beginner's level trick to cloak your magic?”

Halfdragon snarled, then wrenched him up off the ground before turning and flinging him across the room. Morpheus barely managed to catch himself before his eyes widened as he felt a tremendous surge of magic power as the mare roared furiously: “Then why don't we stop playing games, Moonflower?”

She snapped her horn forwards, and it felt like she had just channeled all the raw power of the sun into the roaring comet that streaked towards him. And Morpheus realized with horror that all that energy, crammed into one barely-focused, barely-coherent meteor, was going to create a blast of apocalyptic magnitude. It wasn't just going to erase him if it hit: it was going to eradicate this entire fortress, likely including Halfdragon herself.

Morpheus leapt into the air and flapped his wings hard, the fireball tearing past him before it started to curve downwards... but if it hit the ground, he knew they were all just as dead. So instead, he snapped his horn down, a blast of black lightning hammering into the fireball before it formed a latticework of energy around the meteor, multiple leashes of lightning feeding out of this back to the stallion's front hooves and horn.

He roared as he flapped his wings hard and wrenched upwards with all the strength he could muster, gritting his teeth as he hoped against hope this was going to work. The comet streaked towards the ceiling, and the stallion snapped the leashes of dark energy binding him to it before he snapped his horn out to boost the fireball wrapped in the net of black lightning with all the power he could spare.

It shot upwards and hit the fractured ceiling... and thankfully, tore straight through it. It rose, higher and higher, as Halfdragon's eyes widened and she strode forwards, staring up through the collapsing roof before she shouted in denial as it streaked into the sky...

The fireball rose... and then suddenly gleamed brightly before exploding in a monumental burst that shook the walls of the fortress and sent a rain of fire cascading over the swamps and dark forest. Morpheus was knocked to the ground by the force of the blast, and Halfdragon staggered back and forth, struggling to maintain her balance before she cried out in denial again: partly because of her failure to destroy them all, and partly because her body was beginning to revert, armor loosening against her frame and her mane starting to fuse back together into one radiant mass.

Then she snarled in fury as she spun towards Morpheus, charging sloppily for him even as the stallion began to pick himself up. He barely had the time to look up before a hoof smashed across his face, knocking him onto his back with a wince before Halfdragon shouted furiously down at him: “There is no retreat, Morpheus! I don't care how powerful you've become, I will fight you and I will destroy you, do you understand?”

Morpheus glared up at her... and then he looked to the side in surprise as a trembling voice asked weakly: “P-Princess... what.... what's going on...”

Halfdragon's eyes widened before she turned towards Twilight Sparkle, who was staring with horror at the mare... and for good reason. Bits and pieces of her body had returned to Celestia's shape, but with the dragon scales and the horns and other parts of her body that had yet to revert, she looked even more monstrous, especially in her damaged, bloodied armor. “Twilight Sparkle... I...”

Halfdragon gritted her teeth, and then she stepped back and ordered sharply, pointing at Morpheus: “Kill him. I order you to finish him off.”

“Oh please, Lady Halfdragon. If you can't kill me, a novice like her can't. Leave her out of this.” Morpheus interrupted irritably as he climbed to his hooves, and the ivory half-pony glared at him furiously as he looked coldly back. “Die with dignity. Because unlike you, I don't enjoy the thought of making people beg for their lives when I have interest in leaving them alive.”

Twilight swallowed thickly, looking back and forth between the two disbelievingly as Halfdragon gritted her malformed teeth... and then she suddenly spun towards Twilight, eyes blazing as she snarled: “I gave you an order!”

Her horn glowed, and even if her magic sputtered weakly, it was still enough to send the violet mare into agony, screaming as she dropped and hugged her stomach. Morpheus' eyes widened in shock at this, before he snarled when Halfdragon suddenly picked the convulsing mare up with telekinesis before turning and flinging Twilight savagely at him.

He caught her with a curse... and then howled in pain when a blast of golden flames followed up the unicorn, sending her flopping bonelessly away to crash on her side with a whimper and a gasp, as Morpheus hit the ground on his back. Then he hissed in shock as golden restraints formed around his forelimbs and yanked them both wide, pinning him to the ground as Halfdragon slowly began to approach, growling even as her horn sparked and her body shivered with pain: “I will do anything it takes to protect what I have built... their lives mean nothing to me, all that matters is purging this country of all evil...”

“You are evil, Halfdragon. A competing evil.” Morpheus growled, and then his horn glowed blackly and released a pulse of powerful magic, making the mare wince as the restraints binding him were shattered. And his horn continued to crackle with dark power as he climbed to his hooves, his eyes blazing with a rage he couldn't entirely explain at the way Halfdragon so carelessly tortured, cheated, hurt others just to maintain a worthless facade even she seemed to hate... “I don't like competitors.”

There was a rumble from behind Halfdragon, and the mare frowned before her eyes widened in horror as a black vortex swirled into being. But this wasn't like the portals before: this malevolence exerted a titanic pull that immediately began to drag her backwards as it sucked up stone and debris, and it devoured even light...

“No... no!” Halfdragon tried to throw herself forwards, eyes filling with fear as the black hole dragged her slowly but steadily backwards. She snarled, then swore and looked over her shoulder in horror as chunks of armor were peeled from her body like skin from a fruit, cursing as she struggled to resist the tightening grasp of the vortex.

Morpheus bared his fangs at her, glaring furiously at the mare as he kept himself anchored, trying to use his raw hatred to will her into the portal. But Halfdragon, even exhausted and with barely a shred of magic left, was putting up a tremendous fight against him. And if he wanted to maintain control over this powerful and dangerous a spell, he couldn't risk so much as moving a single step.

Halfdragon snarled, glaring furiously at the stallion before she tried to lurch towards him... but the pull was too strong. No, she needed to make him cancel the spell... and the mare gritted her teeth before shouting suddenly: “I... I surrender! You're right, you're... you win, just please don't kill me!”

“Then allow me to show you the same mercy you showed me!” Morpheus retorted, his eyes blazing as he focused more energy into the magic, and Halfdragon howled as the entire tail section of her armor was torn free and devoured by the black hole, the mare clawing at the stone floor for any kind of purchase.

She snarled, raising her horn as it glowed, but Morpheus only grinned at her challengingly, fearlessly, which confirmed her worry: this vortex wasn't going to magically go away if he lost his concentration. He was willing to risk killing them all to kill her... or at least...

Halfdragon's sharp eyes flicked towards Twilight Sparkle, who was trembling on the ground, staring at her... and then the violet mare convulsed as Halfdragon's horn glowed brightly, and she ordered sharply: “Throw yourself into the vortex!”

“What?” Morpheus' eyes widened as he looked with disbelief towards the violet unicorn... and then he shouted a useless denial as the young mare shoved herself up to her hooves, swaying back and forth and whimpering as tears filled her eyes, staggering weakly into the pull of the black hole and letting herself be drawn towards it: whatever Halfdragon had done to her, Twilight couldn't fight it.

The stallion snarled, his eyes flicking back and forth, breathing hard and not knowing what to do before he suddenly swore and snapped his horn down. And immediately, the black hole snapped shut, letting Halfdragon leap forwards with a cold grin before she turned towards Twilight Sparkle and lunged, stabbing her horn cruelly down.

Twilight looked weakly up as her mentor's horn thrust towards her... and then the violet mare's eyes widened in shock as she realized there was something over her. A shadow, and a warm weight.. and then the Princess she had once so adored slowly stumbled backwards, gasping quietly, trembling violently as she clutched at a bloody wound torn down the side of her neck.

Morpheus breathed hard, not even knowing how he'd moved so fast... although he'd suffered for it, too, from the long slash ripped down his own face. He didn't know if Halfdragon had expected him to try and protect Twilight or not, but the mare was devious... but not fast enough to take advantage of the opening she'd created either by accident or intention, with how beaten and low on energy she was.

Halfdragon staggered backwards even as her features finished reverting to that of Celestia's, and she trembled for a moment before slumping to the ground, bleeding heavily from the gaping wound in her throat. Morpheus shook his head in contempt... then stared in disbelief as Twilight launched herself out from under him, running over to the mare and catching her head as it fell, crying out: “C-Celestia! Princess Celestia!”

Lady Halfdragon only laughed weakly at this, shaking her head slowly before she whispered: “Stupid filly. I'm not... I'm not your...”

Her eyes fluttered, and then she snarled and attempted to look up, rasping: “My... sister will stop you. Worthless, stupid brat or not... she can reach the Tablet of Dreams before you can. You're going to die, Morpheus. You're going to die horribly.”

“Princess, shush now, we're... I c-can try and heal this, you need to stop talking, though, you're making yourself bleed more and-” Twilight Sparkle was abruptly cut off as Halfdragon shoved her away with surprising strength, and the violet mare whimpered as the not-Princess glared up at her coldly.

“I thought... you would be my successor. Instead, you're... nothing but...” Halfdragon coughed, then shivered once before dropping her head to the ground, and Twilight Sparkle trembled violently before hugging the mare's head tightly and burying her face down in her mane.

She shivered, trying to hold back her sobs before she opened her eyes... and then almost threw herself backwards in shock as she saw not a pony, but an ancient, emaciated drake.

She shook her head weakly... then trembled as she turned around, looking up at Morpheus as tears ran down her cheeks. She started to snarl at him, but Morpheus only shook his head before he said softly: “My quarrel isn't with you, Twilight Sparkle. Besides, I need you alive. But if it makes you feel any better, the pain is going to be over soon... for... for all of us.”

Twilight looked down, shivering before she gritted her teeth, then turned her teary eyes back up to whisper: “She just wanted to protect us. She loved us. She loved me. She told me so... she s-said I would be... that I could be...”

Morpheus only gave a brief smile, and then he shook his head slowly before he muttered: “I don't think any of us really know what we want. Now, if you'll excuse me, Twilight Sparkle, I have to go and make sure your friends are safe, then head to Canterlot. I'm eager to finally see what the Tablet of Dreams can do... and to make my one wish come true.”

“It won't change anything.” Twilight whispered as Morpheus began to turn away, and the stallion frowned a little, halting and looking uncertainly over his shoulder at her. But the violet mare only smiled bitterly, shaking her head and looking down as she said bitterly: “Even if you kill us all, what's it going to solve? You'll still be alone. The only difference is you won't have any distractions, any plans, any future. Just a past you'll never, ever be able to get rid of.”

Morpheus bit his lip at this, shifting uncertainly for a moment before he shook his head shortly and muttered: “It... it will give me peace, it will. You'll see.” He stopped, then scowled a little, adding moodily: “Actually, I suppose you won't.”

He stopped, then shifted uncomfortably as Twilight looked up at him coldly before the violet mare turned back towards the drake. A tremble ran down her spine, and then she shook her head fiercely before whispering: “Just go. Leave me alone. All I want to do is spend my last few moments here, with Princess Celestia.”

Morpheus opened his mouth... and then he only sighed as the poor, delusional mare silently walked over to the corpse and curled herself against the dead, already-decaying drake. He studied her for a few moments, wishing strangely that he could say something... then only shook his head and finally turned away, bitterly reminding himself that no matter what he did, he was never going to be accepted by any of these ponies anyway. He could conquer even a legend from the past who had usurped a goddess of the present... but none of it changed a thing.

So Morpheus walked away, leaving Twilight Sparkle in the embrace of a husk; and as he left, he couldn't help but reflect bitterly that if only Halfdragon could see the love this little pony still had for her in spite of all that had happened, it would convince her that she had finally succeeded... and destroyed every last shred of dignity these ponies had once possessed in the process.

Stubborn In Victory

Chapter Seven: Stubborn In Victory
~BlackRoseRaven

The forest was burning, and Morpheus shivered at the sight of it. The rain of fire that had fallen from Halfdragon's attempt to kill them all had spread far and wide, and he thought that it had maybe set fire even to the grasslands beyond the mountain...

But rain was starting to fall from the storm clouds above, and Morpheus was glad they were getting a chance to do more than just serve as decorations. He shook his head briefly, then glanced down as he heard a ribbit from beside him before smiling a little at the sight of his pet. “Toad, what are you doing here? You should be back at camp.”

“Actually, boss, you're the one who should be back at camp right now. That's why I'm here, to get you. They just finished destoning the last pony.” Toad replied mildly, jerking his head at him before the amphibian sat back and hesitated. “Hey, uh. Not that it's any of my business or anything, but uh... you okay there? You seem a little... you know, down in the dumps, is all. Shouldn't you be celebrating? You like, freed Equestria of the tyranny of a fake Princess Celestia and all that. I mean, right before you're going to destroy it, sure, but still. Brownie points.”

Morpheus grunted, then he shook his head slowly before muttering: “It doesn't feel like a victory. I feel strange, Toad, that's all... I... I just...” Morpheus scowled, then shook his head again, with much more vigor this time. “No, it doesn't matter. I'm going to end this world as we know it, anyway.”

Toad sighed a little at this, and then he said wryly: “You know, boss. You could just not end the world. Hell, this is your chance to rule Equestria! Wouldn't that be cool?”

“Not really, Toad.” Morpheus reached down and picked the amphibian up, gently placing him on his back before the stallion turned and headed in the direction of their little camp, adding moodily: “Besides, where would I rule from? My fortress is all but completely destroyed. My entire dark army has fled – so much for them being a major plot point in my achievement of world domination – and the ponies all hate me. Why, I bet-”

Then Morpheus yelped in surprise as he was seized in a fierce embrace around the neck by two of the mares, staring down with horror in his eyes as Rarity and Pinkie Pie both looked up at him with shining eyes. “Oh, darling!”

“You saved us all! And... and Twilight, you saved Twilight too, right?” Pinkie Pie said brightly, looking warmly up at Morpheus, and the winged unicorn winced before carefully reaching up and prying the two off, staggering backwards and shivering a little as Toad chortled on his back. “Yeah! And Princess Celestia wasn't really Princess Celestia, right?”

“I knew it the whole time!” Rainbow Dash said hurriedly, raising her head high and wobbling a bit on hooves that were still made of stone, and Applejack favored the blue Pegasus with a mildly-entertained glance as she continued quickly: “I just... you know, she totally didn't act at all like the real Princess Celestia. The real Princess Celestia is always so nice and at least twenty percent-”

“Please shut up. You're making it very tempting to leave you with rocks for feet for the rest of your life.” Antecedes said dourly as he approached with a sponge and a small bucket. Rainbow Dash glowered at him, but the skeleton was unperturbed as he dropped beside her and dunked the sponge in the container, before he leaned forwards and carefully started to paint one of her remaining hooves. “We don't have much of this left. Tell me, if you had to choose a limb to be permanently crippled, which one would it be?”

Rainbow Dash stared at the skeleton, but Morpheus only rolled his eyes before he looked back and forth, awkwardly doing his best to keep Rarity at a foreleg's length until he spotted Neato Burrito sitting away from the rest of the group. “Uh. Excuse me.”

“Only if you promise to come right back, darling!” Rarity called... and then she stared in horror as Toad leapt down from Morpheus' back and grinned up at her.

“Hey, babe. Don't you worry about him. I'll keep you company if you want.” The amphibian puffed out his neck, then winked at her and grinned... before scowling as Rarity shrieked and turned to bolt, the toad visibly deflating.

“Oh cool!” Pinkie exclaimed, sweeping up the little amphibian, and he yelped as he was hefted into the air above her head and spun around, the bright-pink mare gazing up at him with awe. “It's a talking frog! Talking frog, hey, do you turn into a prince if I kiss you?”

“Oh please don't try!” Toad groaned, trying to pry himself out of her grip before he called helplessly: “Boss! Hey, hey boss! Come on, come back, give me a hoof here, for crying out loud!”

But Morpheus ignored Toad as he sat down beside Neato Burrito, looking curiously at the Luchador as the earth pony miserably played with his torn El Casco mask. “Señor Morpheus, I am very glad you are okay, but... oh, I am not fit to be seen by your high-and-mightiness. I have failed you.”

“What? You did not, Neato Burrito. You did very well.” Morpheus encouraged, but Neato Burrito only mumbled, dropping his head and looking ashamed of himself. “Celestia was my battle to fight. And you stopped those other ponies from attacking me, did you not?”

“But I was defeated! I have brought shame to my Luchador line!” Neato Burrito said weakly, thrusting his torn mask almost into Morpheus' face and making him wince. “Now all know that I, Neato Burrito, am El Casco! And El Casco is no more! I lost, in máscara contra máscara! And I was unmasked, and I am ashamed!”

Morpheus reached up and slowly rubbed at his face, and then he frowned before asking moodily: “So what, does that mean after any Luchador loses his wrestling match, he has to give up his title forever?”

“What? No! That is ridiculous!” Neato Burrito proclaimed, shaking his head fiercely. “Only a coward or a weakling would retire after losing one match! No, I will never stop fighting, it is in my blood, I am a Luchador! But... but I can no longer wear my mask! She has been taken from me!”

“Please don't. Ever refer to your mask as a 'she' again.” Morpheus shuddered a bit, and then he frowned before looking over his shoulder at Pinkie Pie, asking slowly: “Well... could you reclaim your honor by defeating the pony who beat you?”

Neato Burrito nodded slowly, then he frowned over his shoulder before saying honestly: “Yes, but that mysterious Luchador, Ex Parte... she came from nowhere, Señor Morpheus! I do not know how we would get in contact with her again.”

Morpheus looked for a few moments at Neato Burrito before he turned his eyes back towards Pinkie Pie, who was giggling and bouncing around with a miserable-looking Toad. Then he drew his eyes back to the stallion and looked at him sourly, asking flatly: “Are you serious?”

Neato Burrito only frowned at this, asking curiously: “Why? Do you know of this Ex Parte? Did you perhaps meet her during your mighty battle with Princess Celestia?”

“It wasn't Princess Celestia, it was... someone else.” Morpheus muttered, grimacing and not wanting to get into who Celestia had revealed herself to be... and something about that was still nagging at him painfully. But maybe it was just the part where Halfdragon had mentioned her own sibling had replaced Luna... “Look, I don't have time for all of this Neato Burrito. But if you want to challenge Ex Parte to a fight, you don't need to look any further than these ponies. Ex Parte leapt in to protect them, correct? So if you want to fight Ex Parte...”

“I must challenge each and every one of them to battle, until Ex Parte leaps in to defend their honor, as I defend yours!” shouted Neato Burrito, thrusting a hoof into the air as he clutched his mask against his chest with his other foreleg. “El Casco will rise again!”

Morpheus looked blankly at Neato Burrito for a moment, and then he rolled his eyes before patting the stallion awkwardly on the shoulder, saying dryly: “Good talk.”

“Yes! Excellent talking! I must now go and prepare, Señor Morpheus... for I must restore my honor before I am again worthy of being at your side!” Neato Burrito declared, and the winged unicorn blinked in surprise before Neato Burrito leapt up to his hooves and bolted away from the campsite, calling over his shoulder: “Farewell, my friends!”

Morpheus sighed tiredly, rubbing slowly at his face for a few moments before he strode moodily back towards the others. He stopped in front of Pinkie Pie, who looked up at him curiously while squeezing Toad against her chest.

He looked back at her with a slight grimace, studying her and wondering how the hell this spry little thing could have kicked Neato Burrito's flank, and then he simply shook his head before saying moodily: “A little bird told me that El Casco wishes for a rematch with Ex Parte. He wants to... 'regain his honor.'”

Pinkie Pie's eyes widened slowly, and then she nodded fervently, bouncing up and down on the spot and looking strangely excited. “Oh yes, yes, yes! I'll definitely let Ex Parte know right away. You know. I'll let her know. Right away.”

Pinkie Pie tipped him a wink that could probably be seen from the moon, and the winged unicorn sighed tiredly before he dropped his head forwards as she informed: “I'm Ex Parte, silly.”

“Thank you for sharing.” the stallion said moodily, and then he shook his head briefly before looking up and asking irritably: “Antecedes, are you done yet? We need to go to Canterlot. I still need to destroy Equestria, and from what I learned during my fight with Halfdragon, Princess Luna might be one of the Draekin as well. Which could make things very difficult.”

“Hey, you can't destroy Equestria! I... I thought you were secretly a good guy or something!” Rainbow Dash blurted out, and Applejack frowned worriedly as Fluttershy looked up fearfully. “And what do you mean, Princess Luna is a dragon?”

“Draekin. Very different. Usually with ironic clan names, like Halfdragon or Smalldrake.” Antecedes muttered as he finished carefully scraping Rainbow Dash's hooves with the substance: now only one was stone, but it was rapidly turning back to flesh and blood as he stood up.

The skeleton realized that all eyes were looking at him, and he gave an exasperated sigh before explaining grumpily: “Equestria used to be occupied by three tribes. Hearth's Warming Eve tells us this. What they leave out is that the three tribes didn't instantly start working together because of one nasty little encounter with some ice spirits.

“Unicorns created little kingdoms and used earth ponies as conscripts and Pegasi as mercenaries. They enslaved both as well. There were many, many years of conflict, and at that time, Equestria was also a wild land, untouched by any civilization. There were many creatures here that didn't take kindly to the intrusion of the ponies.” Antecedes paused, then he looked slowly around at the semicircle of ponies that had naturally formed around him, and he continued in a quieter voice: “Then the crusades began.”

“I don't think any of us... ever learned anything about any 'crusade' in school... I mean, I wasn't the best student, but I think I'd remember that.” Applejack said slowly, but Antecedes only chuckled quietly and shook his head slowly.

He looked around at them all, his red eyes glowing with strange entertainment as he said wryly: “I feel a little sorry for you ponies. You've lost so much of your culture. And even if that culture was mostly made from atrocities, evil, and suffering, it's still your culture. You should still know your roots.”

Applejack glared at the skeleton, saying moodily: “I know my roots. My family, as a matter of fact, helped found Ponyville!”

“You're talking to a thousand year old dead stallion. Do you really think that I'm going to be impressed by your parents founding some little city somewhere?” asked Antecedes moodily, and Applejack grumbled under her breath even as she blushed a bit before the skeleton held up a hoof. “Back to the point.

“The crusades were led by the Dragoons of the White Dragon. It was a very strict religion, which gave its Grand Masters a ridiculous amount of wealth and power. And when you have wealth and power, you often end up wanting more wealth and power.” Antecedes shook his head slowly. “So they began a march against the 'pagans,' starting with Equestria. Ponies were either 'converted,' and forced to relinquish their treasures – and often, daughters – to the Dragoons... or they were 'cleansed.'”

“By which you mean...” Rainbow Dash swallowed a bit, trading looks with her friends. “Oh wow. That's heavy... but... no way, I've never heard of it!”

“What history do you know?” Antecedes asked, and it would have come across as ironic or mocking if he hadn't sounded so serious. The ponies traded looks between themselves nervously, and the skeleton nodded calmly, saying softly: “Exactly. All you know is what you've been taught. And all you've been taught is that a thousand years ago...”

Antecedes allowed his voice to trail off, then he glanced to the side at Morpheus, who was frowning deeply. “This part will interest you. The Halfdragon Clan was one of the noble families at the time of the crusade. It was never confirmed that the Killing Light was actually a member of the Halfdragon Clan until now, though... I always thought she was part of the Bladescale family, which is the only Draekin family that we still have records of.”

“That is not anything that interests me, Antecedes. Please get to the point.” Morpheus said dryly, and then he grimaced at the sky as he felt the rain beginning to fall in heavier droplets, muttering: “Oh, wonderful.”

He flicked his horn irritably, and a dome of black energy burst into being, floating above him like an enormous umbrella. He smiled at this... then winced when the five pony mares immediately huddled in around him, the stallion glaring back and forth between them before he snapped: “You are in my personal space! I do not like mares, you're all... icky!”

“Icky!” Rarity looked horribly offended, and then she huffed and whined: “And well, then use your magic to shield us all! I absolutely cannot get my mane wet on top of everything else and... oh, come on, darling, Twilight isn't here so...”

Rarity quieted, and Applejack grimaced a bit as Pinkie Pie looked up uneasily. All five of Twilight Sparkle's friends shifted, and even Morpheus felt a strange twist roll through his gut before he sighed softly and muttered: “Fine. I'll expand the shield... and... well, don't worry about your friend. I'm... sure she's fine. Right, Antecedes?”

“The shield is still whole, yes. As long as the shield is whole, it means you're all alive, and you're all still connected. Besides, you five should know better than us if something happens; you'll feel it.” Antecedes replied calmly, and then he shook his head briefly before adding irritably, as he glanced up at the clouds: “Also, you didn't cast this spell properly. The atmospheric pressure is completely off.”

“Oh shut up. It's not like you can feel the water anyway.” Morpheus complained as his horn glowed, expanding the protective dome of dark energy over the entire field. Then he turned a pointed look back towards Antecedes, saying irritably: “You were getting to the point then? Because I'm hoping you have a very good reason why I'm wasting my time here while I could be on the way to Canterlot to destroy the world.”

Antecedes sighed tiredly, rubbing at his face moodily before he asked in a dry voice: “Could you please stop announcing your intention to destroy the world constantly? And this is important: besides, I don't think Princess Luna will make a run for the Tablet of Dreams... more importantly, if she did, there's no possible way we could stop her, anyway. If we take our approach slow and measured, she might give us a chance to explain ourselves.

“Because remember, we aren't dealing with the real Princess Luna. And if she really is the sister of the Killing Light, then there's only one person she could be: Throna Halfdragon. She was thought to have died, but... the records were always indistinct. It's very possible that instead she was taken prisoner or badly injured, and later recovered by Stronghold.”

Morpheus frowned at this, then he licked his lips slowly before asking uneasily: “What do you know about this... Throna? I've never heard of that name, but you're much more familiar with ancient history than I am...”

Antecedes only shrugged, saying moodily: “Nothing special, from what I can recollect. Second-class healer, not the kind of Draekin I'd expect to have survived... but maybe because of her noble name and her status as a noncombatant, she was spared while others were not. I think that we should ask her ourselves in Canterlot, Morpheus. And I'm beginning to think we should escort these ponies home with us, strange as that may sound.”

The five mares looked up in surprise at this as Morpheus groaned and slapped at his forehead, then he snapped: “You're supposed to be a skeleton, so think with your brain, not your nonexistent-”

“You think for a moment, Morpheus. We need all six of them alive to keep the Elements of Harmony working.” Antecedes retorted, then he gestured pointedly around at the rumbling, rainy darkness around them. “If we just abandon them here, chances are they'll be attacked. And while the goblins might not do much to them, there are much more dangerous creatures guarding this territory... not to mention all the idiotic traps you had us set up.”

“He's kind of right, Boss.” Toad piped up from one of Pinkie Pie's forelimbs. “They could end up getting hurt or worse if we just abandon them out here. Especially since. You know. The crazy evil lady set the whole forest on fire.”

“She wasn't evil, she was... well...” Morpheus halted, frowning uncertainly as he bit his lip, and then he shook his head quickly and flung those thoughts away, grumbling: “Anyway, I... well... I'm not dragging these five back with me. It will take us literally the entire day and night to march there if we have to tow them along. Antecedes, you take care of them, I'll go ahead alone.”

The mares all grumbled at him, and Antecedes sighed before he said finally: “There's no telling what will be waiting for you ahead, though. I can feel your magic waxing and waning, and you won't be at full strength when you reach Canterlot. And from what you described before, the Killing Light must have been stockpiling magical artifacts and treasures since the crusades.”

“Well, that's perfectly fine. I still have my secret weapon, after all.” Morpheus replied pointedly, and Antecedes only stared at him for a long, awkward moment before the winged unicorn glared back, blushing only slightly. “You forget, Antecedes, the caliber of enemy we are faced with. You'll see: this is an act of tactical genius.”

“This is a blunder.” Antecedes rubbed slowly at his face, and then he sighed tiredly before nodding and muttering: “Fine. It might be better this way, anyhow. When that purple unicorn finally comes to her senses, I can remove the hidden enchantment carved inside her body.”

“Is... is that why Twilight was acting so strange?” Fluttershy asked worriedly, and then she looked uneasily towards the castle, murmuring: “Oh my... maybe we should... we shouldn't leave her alone if she's got some kind of... spell on her...”

“No, Halfdragon is dead. Besides, the real hold that Halfdragon had over her was...” Morpheus stopped, then he shook his head slowly and murmured: “Well, it's not important anymore. It... it doesn't matter, because I'm going to end this all.”

“You don't have to, darling... you can... come with us.” Rarity said softly, and Morpheus glanced over at the mare with surprise: both at her words, and the change of demeanor to something... honestly gentle and compassionate instead of fawning. “We'll... help explain everything. Honestly, it's hard to wrap my mind around but... something was wrong with Twilight, after all, the whole way here, and this impersonator was so angry and cold.”

Applejack nodded firmly, adding: “We've seen things called Changelings before, you know, who take on other ponies' shape and form... so it ain't like we can't believe something like that happened here. I bet the real Celestia must be out there... we should work together, and if that Luna really is a big fake too, we should interrogate her and find out where the real princesses are!”

“They're probably dead.” Antecedes said tactlessly, and the five ponies all stared at him with horror as the skeleton said softly: “They've likely been dead since the crusades.”

“That's... that can't be, though. Celestia was always so nice to us... and... what about Nightmare Moon?” Rainbow Dash asked incredulously, shaking her head vehemently. “I can't believe that! We need Princess Celestia! The real one has to be out there somewhere, and... and we gotta find her and save her!”

Morpheus chuckled at this, shaking his head slowly before he muttered: “No, I just have to find the Tablet of Dreams. I know where it must be hidden: in the treasure vault at the core of Canterlot. Then I'll... fix everything in my own way. By making everything... nothing.”

“You don't have to, though. Come on, we... we can all be friends.” almost pleaded Pinkie Pie, smiling at him reassuringly as she leaned towards him. “Come on, let's go back to Canterlot and figure it out together, and... after we fix everything, we can have a big party!”

Morpheus grumbled under his breath, and then he shook his head shortly before muttering: “No, I won't be dissuaded from what I've chosen. I'm going to do what must be done. All of you...”

The stallion gritted his teeth, and then he shoved himself away from the crowd before snapping his horn sharply, and the mares flinched and shouted in surprise as the dome of darkness vanished, rain pelting the ponies as the winged unicorn spun around and snapped: “I am not the good guy! I am not going to be... done in by your wiles, deceived into giving up everything I've worked for, and I will not forget what the world has done to me, or that this world is crafted in the image of a false empress... it must all fall down! And I have wasted enough time on all of you and all of this! I am Morpheus, I am the King of Darkness, I am Lord of Evil, I am not your friend or your savior!”

With that, Morpheus leapt into the air and then vanished into a burst of dark energy, leaving the mares standing in the pouring rain and staring into the space where he had been moments before. None of them knew what to say or how to react, shifting uncomfortably, eyes drawing down, trying to form questions... but it all felt suddenly so... useless.

Antecedes sighed quietly, and then he flicked his horn calmly, and a ceiling of red energy slowly formed over the camp, suspending itself between the trees around them and shielding the ponies from the heavy rain. “Well, there he goes. And like it or not, he's probably going to succeed.”

“Yeah. Poor bastard. Poor, stupid bastard.” mumbled Toad, and then the amphibian shook his head before adding wryly: “And poor us too. I mean. We're kind of going to get erased shortly and all. That's a pretty crappy deal.”

“Why, though? I mean... what's his problem?” Rainbow Dash blurted, looking back and forth disbelievingly. “I thought... I mean...”

“Isn't there anything we can do?” asked Fluttershy quietly, the sun-colored mare looking up and biting her lip. “He seems so... he just seems so sad.”

“Yeah... he wouldn't want to destroy everything if he just realized he had friends.” Pinkie Pie added pointedly, nodding a few times. The other ponies gave varying murmurs of agreement, and then the pink mare paused before looking curiously between Antecedes and Toad, asking slowly: “But you guys are his friends, right? So... why didn't you stop him?”

“Hey, I'm just a pet.” Toad defended lamely, holding up his webbed hands. “What the hell am I supposed to do? Moony doesn't listen to me. And when he gets really annoyed with me he squishes me or doesn't feed me.”

Antecedes shook his head, and then the skeleton muttered: “Why would I want to stop him? My existence is nothing but pain and frustration. I sought dark powers, I achieved dark powers... now I suffer with these dark powers. And I am selfish and, if you must know, too cowardly to want to live like this for any longer. But if the world is erased, I'll be erased with it, and free.”

There was silence for a few moments, and then Fluttershy said meekly: “I don't think any of us want you to die, Mister Antecedes. You seem... nice.”

The crimson glow from Antecedes' sockets softened as he looked for a few moments at Fluttershy, and then he shifted a little before muttering: “Well, I'm not. But... come on. Your friend has been given enough privacy. We need to bring her back to reality, and then we might as well start marching back towards Canterlot.”

“Yeah, maybe Moony will screw up. Or monologue for long enough that we'll be able to get there and...” Toad hesitated, then laughed a bit, mumbling: “And I don't know. We could just smash the Shield of Heaven...”

“Moonflower already took the shield from me. He's got it keyed to his summoning magic now.” Antecedes replied with a shake of his head, and then he hesitated and looked up before murmuring: “But fine. Let's get going. I suppose there's no great harm in giving you ponies one last chance to try and convince Moonflower to do something different.”

“But he's a stubborn bastard. And he won't believe a word you guys say, either.” Toad said pointedly, nodding a few times. “Guy's got all the power in the world, enough of a brain to use it... but not a single shred of trust for strangers. He's got an anxiety thing.”

“He's got a lot of things.” Antecedes muttered, as he turned towards the ruins of the fortress. “Enough, all of you. Let's pick up your friend, then you can decide from there what to do.”

No one really knew what to say, so they all simply agreed through silence and motion, following after the skeleton, none of them completely understanding what was really going on... but all of them hoping that Morpheus would give Equestria another chance to show that there was more to ponies than just whatever he had suffered under Halfdragon's secret regime.

Morpheus wheezed painfully as he appeared in front of the gates to Canterlot, almost falling over as he slumped slowly down to the ground. He mumbled a little under his breath before shaking his head briskly out, his horn sparking a bit before he glanced awkwardly up as he found two large, burly Royal Guards glaring at him.

He immediately straightened and hopped backwards, raising his head high and thundering: “I am Lord Morpheus, bringer of darkness evil! I mean, the... the bringer of evil darkness! Not just regular darkness, but the kind that's filled with... evil.”

Both Royal Guard were now looking awkwardly at the winged unicorn, and the stallion blushed slightly before he swore under his breath and rose a hoof as his horn glowed. Green lightning surged outwards over both Royal Guards, making them flinch before there was a puff of black smoke... and a moment later, both soldiers had been transformed into large, chubby lawn flamingos, posed awkwardly on one leg with expressions of horror on still-vaguely-equine features.

Morpheus huffed loudly, and then he glared back and forth... but as it was that dark time between late night and early morning, there was no one else around. So instead he bad-temperedly shoved one of the flamingos over before striding towards the sealed castle games.

Morpheus scowled at this moodily, and then he rubbed his hooves together before his horn glowed blackly as he approached, baring his teeth in a grin and growling: “No matter how large or how you shut it, a gate is still a gate... and my magic is the key to any door!”

He laughed loudly as he slowly forced the immense portcullis to rise, gritting his teeth as his eyes blazed and his horn crackled with the same dark aura that gleamed around the metal bars. And as it rose high, the enormous doors past the sealed gate shuddered violently before they began to slowly creak open as Morpheus poured all his strength and concentration into the telekinetic push.

Ponies stared as Morpheus smashed in through the ajar doors, the stallion grinning widely around the entrance hall and throwing his head back as he declared: “Try as you might to hide, none of your locks, your barriers, your walls will stop me! I am Morpheus, Lord of Shadow!”

He stepped forwards and let the gate drop behind him, doing his best to hide his wheezing... although there really wasn't a whole lot he could do to disguise the sweat running down his body. And then he scowled as one of the few ponies in the entrance hall pointed awkwardly past him, Morpheus glancing moodily over his shoulder... and staring blankly at a small side entrance, the door leading outside left invitingly ajar.

Morpheus mouthed slowly at the sight of this... and then one of his eyes twitched before he turned around and snapped: “My... my awesome majesty demands that I use the main entrance, not some... not some silly servant's entrance. Now, I demand to be brought before Princess Luna!”

“That is funny, Moonflower, we were about to demand that thou would be brought before us.” boomed a voice, and Morpheus blinked dumbly before he looked awkwardly up to see the Princess herself was standing only a short distance away, several bat-winged ponies on either side of her glaring fiercely at the stallion. “I am glad we are in agreement about this, at least. Let us not waste time and speak in private... but first, I must ask that thou make an oath that thou wilt do no harm to any ponies here, including myself.”

“Oh, don't worry. I won't hurt any ponies.” Morpheus said moodily, and the Princess of the Night glared at him before the stallion straightened and gave a grim, short nod. “Whenever you're ready, your highness. But I should warn you now: if you attempt to ambush me, you will leave me no choice but to demonstrate the fullest extent of my powers.”

Luna only laughed shortly before replying thinly: “Unlike some present, we have honor here, Lord Moonflower. Shall we?”

“I am Morpheus. Morpheus. Not Moonflower.” the stallion said testily, but then he gave a brief nod and gestured at her irritably, and Luna huffed at him before turning around and quickly striding away, the stallion following after her and her guard with a scowl on his face... but nervousness in his eyes, far from sure about what the hell was going on.

To his surprise, they headed to the throne room: Luna dismissed her guards almost the moment they entered, leaving only the lifeless-looking soldiers standing at the doors as these swung slowly closed.

The moment the doors shut, Luna's entire demeanor changed, going from fierce and self-assured and loud to slumped and... tired, he thought. Morpheus frowned at her, and Luna reached up to silently toy at her peytral before she murmured quietly: “You killed my sister. You killed her, and now... I'm the last of my kind left.”

She quieted, then shook her head slowly before giving a faint laugh, whispering: “And do you know what the worst part is? I'm actually relieved. She had become so... obsessed. So damaged. I had to watch her over a thousand years as she became... more and more twisted... so determined that she could play goddess to this nation...”

The mare shook her head silently, and Morpheus hesitated only a moment before stepping forwards and saying quietly: “Your name is Throna Halfdragon, isn't it?”

“Yes, that's right.” The mare looked up with surprise, then she blushed a bit and glanced back down. “And you are... Moonflower, yes?”

“Morpheus. Moonflower is my old name.” The stallion glanced away awkwardly, and then he rubbed the back of his head slowly, looking uncomfortable before he asked finally: “Do you understand that I'm here to destroy the world, and that I just killed your sister?”

“There's nothing more dishonorable to the Draekin than dying a peaceful death. And my sister... was sick in mind. I think she knew her body was ailing... as I can already feel my body beginning to weaken.” The mare silently touched her own body, murmuring: “The spirits of the Draekin aren't meant to inhabit such soft pony forms. That's why she grew so weak, so... unpredictable and angry. Even after just a few years, I feel like... I'm changing. My compassion and discipline are bleeding away, and the... childishness I've always had is coming more and more to the surface. Just like Stronghold was so full of rage and hate and pride and had forgotten... who she had once been. Honestly, it's... it's a strange relief to know she's at peace. I was starting to fear that in her quest to make the whole nation 'good...' she was going to destroy everyone in it, myself included.”

Morpheus looked at the mare, realizing she hadn't really answered either of his questions but deciding not to press the subject any further. Instead, he shifted uncomfortably before prompting slowly: “So you and your sister... you took the places of Celestia and Luna a thousand years ago, you... became them?”

“Yes. Or at least, Stronghold did. She used the Tablet of Dreams to become Princess Celestia after killing her: it allowed her to both fake her death and take control of the nation in secret.” Throna replied quietly, giving a brief smile. “I just... stayed quiet, and hid away. It wasn't that hard: I know all the old places that history has long forgotten.

“Luna, of course, noticed her sister was acting strangely, and... well, we all know the story of Nightmare Moon. I doubt Celestia would have ever been so callous, but... Stronghold was always focused, always... selfish.” Throna quieted, looking down silently. “When Nightmare Moon returned from the moon, Stronghold had grown comfortable enough playing her role she was able to wait out the defeat and reconciliation with Luna... and then, that night, she was cursed and turned to stone, and thrown in the treasure trove with all the other artifacts. And... I used the Tablet of Dreams to become the new Princess of the Night. Although there were... differences between us.”

Throna fell silent as she reached up to stroke slowly through her starry mane, looking down before she shook her head slowly, trembling a little. “It... it wasn't fair. To her, to me, to... anyone. Stronghold was always so convinced she absolutely knew what was best for everyone, but look where we are now!”

The mare cursed under her breath, then she slowly forced herself to calm, closing her eyes and hugging herself before she murmured: “And I'm too weak and too tired of this whole charade to do anything about it. I could use the Tablet of Dreams to kill you, but... what would that accomplish? Precisely, nothing. I'd still have to rule the country and explain the absence of almighty Princess Celestia. Which I couldn't do.

“I could use the Tablet to bring Stronghold back, but... it would require a sacrifice. And sister or not... I'm not willing to commit murder to power the Tablet.” The mare closed her eyes, shaking her head briefly. “And I... I'm afraid of what Stronghold would do if she came back. These last few months, she... she lost the little of herself that had been left. I was scared of her. And I fear what she would do much more than what it is you plan to do.”

Morpheus nodded uncomfortably, and then he silently put his hooves together before saying awkwardly: “Even though you do know that... I'm going to take the Tablet of Dreams and use it to destroy the entire country, right?”

“Yes.” Throna looked up at him with a faint smile, giving a slow shrug and a quiet sigh. “And I'm going to keep my claws... or my hooves, rather, out of it. You do what you feel you have to, Moonflower, Morpheus, Mumford, whatever your name is. And if the world ends, I'm not going to complain. I've been alive for a good fifteen hundred years and... I miss Mommy.”

The mare looked up and gave an open, honest smile, and Morpheus looked at her with surprise before she shrugged and said simply: “I think that when we die, it'll just be another coming home. I never lost my faith, like Stronghold did... I still believe that there's something or... someone out there, who cares about us. Each and every one of us, you, me, and all the ponies and dragons and other things in the world. I do.

“I think when I die, I'll get to see Mommy and Daddy and all the rest of the Clan. I hope Stronghold is there, too, and that... she's learned her lesson. Mommy always scolded her, but that was because Stronghold always had to be right, always had to be special, always had to push and push and push. And while her pride and drive made her a commander in the crusades... it also meant she missed out on a lot of life. I feel sad for her... not angry at you, just... sad.”

Throna stopped, then she shook her head and murmured: “No, how could I be mad at you? You did... you did a good thing. She was losing herself. She had started... drinking more, and abusing potions and powders, and throwing around her power to get whatever she wanted. She really started to believe she was better than everyone else, purer somehow. Able to 'handle it.'

“I never thought she was a bad person, even if she was scary and ruthless and proud... but she was true Draekin, and the Order of the White Dragon was everything to her. So when we were given the order to retreat, she ignored it, along with most of the army, treating it like it was a test of faith. And when we were excommunicated for continuing the war against the High Elder's orders... it destroyed her. She really believed she was doing the right thing, but... she only saw enemies on the battlefield. I was a healer. I only saw... victims.”

Morpheus shifted a bit, and then he shook his head shortly before grumbling: “You're telling your story to the wrong person. I'm not interested. All I care about is-”

Throna reached up and smacked him, and Morpheus' head twisted to the side as he mouthed slowly and wordlessly before the mare scolded: “Stop it. Good or evil, right or wrong, that doesn't matter and it's not an excuse to be so willfully stupid. If you beat Stronghold, you can't be stupid. So don't act like it.”

Morpheus glared at her, and then the mare shook her head slowly before biting her lip, then she looked up at him and said quietly: “And I think that you'll ultimately make the right choice, anyway. Like I said, you must have a brain in there.”

The stallion only shrugged moodily, rubbing slowly at his cheek before he said sourly: “Enough of one to know that any inconveniences that might arise from the world being destroyed wouldn't be difficult to overlook if it meant I'd never have to deal with another mare, ever again.” He stopped, then hesitated before adding wryly: “And furthermore, I thought you didn't care. Or you were afraid or something of being left to try and rule this pathetic little kingdom on your own.”

“It's not a kingdom because there's no king.” Throna said testily, and then she shook her head shortly before adding in a quieter voice: “But I am, yes, but... I also know that it's better not to run away from my problems. No matter how far you run or how you try to hide, they have a habit of... showing back up.”

Morpheus frowned a little at this, his eyes flicking to the side as he shifted uncertainly, before the mare sighed softly and said quietly: “The Tablet of Dreams can only be activated by a sacrifice. Are you willing to sacrifice life to achieve your ends?”

“I suppose the sacrifice will be the entire world.” Morpheus replied moodily, and then he shook his head and looked down, muttering: “So I guess that... I guess I am.”

Throna studied him for a few moments... then she gave a strange smile before simply nodding briefly. They looked at each other uncomfortably for a few moments, and then the mare said calmly: “If you want, I'll teleport you directly down to the vault in Canterlot's core. I would prefer to avoid any further conflict... none of us can stop you, anyway. I might as well send you right down to the vault, although you'll still have to figure out how to get in yourself.”

Morpheus hesitated for a moment, and then he nodded briefly before biting his lip. Throna looked at him curiously, and the stallion grimaced, then shifted before mumbling almost grudgingly: “Thank you. For... being reasonable. I didn't expect you to be.”

“I was only ever unreasonable with Stronghold. And that's just because... at the end of it all, we were arguing about absolutely everything. The only time we were sisters was when we pretended to be Celestia and Luna and... the rare occasion when...” Throna halted, and then she sighed softly, reaching up and silently touching her breast. “I can't wait to shed this pony's body. I wish I could be my old self again without needing a Reconvertor, but... sacrifices must be made. That was one of Stronghold's favorite sayings...”

“You have funny names.” Morpheus almost blurted, and then he winced a bit when the mare glared at him sourly, her starry mane sparking violently. “I... mean that in the most flattering way possible, of course. You just... sound...”

Morpheus realized he was painting himself into a corner, so instead of saying anything further, he simply smiled awkwardly and closed his mouth. They looked at each other again for a few long moments, and then the stallion said finally: “I'm ready to go, Throna Halfdragon. And... I... suppose I should thank you for helping me. It's strange, but... this isn't the first time... someone I never expected to has helped me.”

“Then maybe you should consider that before you do anything stupid. Stronghold was trying to build a perfect, peaceful nation: I'm not sure if she succeeded, or if she failed in a wonderful way, but I do know that Equestria is a good place, where maybe even you can... be accepted. You just have to be willing to try.” Throna stopped, then smiled faintly and shook her head slowly, her horn glowing as she murmured: “But perhaps in another life.”

Slowly, a portal revolved open in the floor, and Morpheus looked down into this uncertainly, feeling a strange hesitation welling up through his body before he glanced over his shoulder as the mare gave him another brief smile. “And thank you for listening to me, too. It's been so long since... since I've really had anyone to talk to. Stronghold could get along without any friends, but we were... we were never all that alike.”

Morpheus only looked at her for a few moments, and then he dropped his head and shrugged a little, replying quietly: “I suppose it's the least I can do for you. Even... even we villains have our codes, you know. Maybe even, in another life, like you said, perhaps...”

The stallion broke off, then shook his head quickly, looking down for a few moments before he muttered as he turned away: “Well... goodbye, Throna Halfdragon.”

With only the briefest of hesitations, he strode towards the portal and stepped into it, and the mare gave him a faint smile before shaking her head slowly as he sank through the vortex. And she couldn't help but reflect on how even if the stallion claimed he wanted to be left alone... he seemed to trust unfailingly in and depend upon other people all the same, leaving her some hope that there just might be a future for Equestria after all. Even if Stronghold would have called her childish and stupid and cowardly for deciding to bow out of this fight, Throna knew that sometimes you just had to trust in fate... and that even the worst of people could make the best of choices.

Dreams And Nightmares

Chapter Eight: Dreams And Nightmares
~BlackRoseRaven

Morpheus slowly rose out of a swirling vortex, smiling coldly as he looked straight ahead at the doors of what could only be the treasure vault... and then he yelped as he was flung the rest of the way out of the portal to land painfully on his face a moment before the rift in reality slammed shut.

He awkwardly half-rolled forwards, toppling onto his back with a grimace and glowering moodily between his own legs at the vault doors. Then he carefully clambered up to his hooves and shook himself out, scowling over his shoulder at the ground and grumbling: “What an excellent piece of magic, really. That portal could have...”

Morpheus halted dumbly, then blinked slowly as he realized that portal could have actually taken him just about... anywhere, really. He rubbed awkwardly at this face, then shook himself briskly out and mumbled: “No, no, clearly... clearly she had no choice but to tell the truth, really. Not just because of my influential presence but because... uh... because.”

He couldn't even come up with a good reason why she hadn't just sent him to Tartarus or to the center of a volcano or something. Sure, he'd probably survive and make his way back, but it certainly would have bought her a lot of time. Long-distance travel wasn't one of his strong points, after all: his chain-teleporting exhausted him and he had to stop and rest every few miles.

Maybe she just... hadn't been smart enough to think of that. Maybe she was afraid of his power, since he'd killed the Killing Light. Maybe she had some secret backup plan...

Morpheus shook his head shortly, trying to ignore the strains of anxiety and odd excitement running through his veins as he strode quickly towards the vault doors. They were at the end of a bottlenecked hallway, massive and imposing and inset with the crests of the moon and the sun... and a shape that he knew could only represent the Elements of Harmony, although he didn't recognize the strange, hexagonal figure.

The stallion looked meditatively at this for a few moments, then he finally flicked his horn forwards and sent a bolt of black energy into the doors. But his magic only bounced uselessly off, both doors lighting up with a potent magical force, and the stallion grimaced a bit. “Old magic. Very powerful indeed... the architect was right about the vault.”

Morpheus stepped back, anchoring himself as he looked calmly ahead and smiled slightly, his eyes narrowing as electricity crackled over his horn. Smoke puffed up at his side, then quickly cleared, the winged unicorn easily catching the heavy marble shield as it fell towards him out of the vanishing smog. “Now, let's just hope he was right about this, as well.”

The stallion hefted the heavy stone shield in front of him, grasping the artifact carefully by either side as he faced it towards the vault doors. He took a slow breath as he focused himself, squeezing into the sides of the shield as he forced away his nervousness and apprehension.

He concentrated on pouring his energy into the shield, breathing slowly as he tried to keep the spiritual energy as pure as possible, not tainting it with either darkness or his own malevolent energies. Only pure energy, closing his eyes as he muttered: “Not good, not evil, only energy... this is just about making it work... get it powered up...”

He could feel it starting to activate: the shield was absorbing his energy, and he could feel the Elements of Harmony trapped inside it all linking together, as a humming filled the air. He gritted his teeth, clutching the shield tighter before his eyes widened in surprise as he found himself no longer pushing, but only struggling not to have all his energy dragged out of his body as whatever had been blocking his energies was completely overwhelmed.

The embedded gemstones lit up one after the other as the marble shield thrummed with white light, and then Morpheus yelped, nearly knocked off his hooves as a rainbow-colored ray of energy tore out of the shield and smashed into the doors. It squarely struck that hexagonal symbol in the center of the vault gates, and the stone lit up with unnatural radiance for a few moments before cracks suddenly ripped through the rock as the harmony sigil was blasted out of place, the doors slamming open and nearly tearing off their hinges.

A moment later, the rainbow ray vanished, and the shield lost its glow as steam poured up from the surface, Morpheus wheezing in surprise as he awkwardly tossed the now hot-to-the-touch artifact aside. He patted his front hooves quickly against his chest, blushing slightly before he shook his head hurriedly and muttered: “I... I knew I could do it. I was absolutely sure of it.”

The stallion bit his lip, and then he sat back for a moment: not out of tiredness, but trepidation that was only growing higher and higher as he looked uncertainly through the broken vault doors. He felt... well, it was hard to put into words what he felt. He was... afraid. It didn't feel like there was victory waiting ahead for him, it felt like it was just another inevitable failure.

One wing unfurled, and he started to knead the feathers nervously between his hooves as he gazed uneasily into the vault beyond, not sure of what he should even be feeling. Where was the sense of victory? Why did this all seem too easy? Shouldn't someone be trying to stop him?

It was funny: he had reached the end of the long, desolate road, and he was scared of finishing this journey. The winged unicorn shook his head slowly, cursing under his breath before he gritted his teeth and hopped up to his hooves, quickly furling his wing back against the side. He took a breath, then strode towards the treasure vault, muttering: “No, I'll... I'll prove that my plans are superior, that I am the strongest in this world, I'll... I'll force everyone to suffer, to be excluded like I have, to... know darkness and loneliness!”

He growled as he strode quickly into the open vault... and then tripped stupidly over his own front hooves, falling in a sprawl and gaping in disbelief at the size of the room he walked into... and almost every inch of the massive storehouse was filled with treasure, gold and baubles stacked in enormous piles along the walls, and the walls themselves covered in walls and racks that held every kind of artifact, gemstone, and trinket imaginable.

There were totemic statues that were so tall, they stretched into the darkness above; there were large, rolling shelves stuffed with papyrus and scrolls and books. There were piles upon piles of coins and gems, and maps and suits of armor and weapons of every shape and size...

The stallion looked back and forth in awe as he slowly strode through the room, and then his eyes widened before he hurried over to two enormous sets of full plate mail. He studied them with fascination: they were Draekin armor, and one of them clearly had belonged to the Killing Light herself, while the other was smaller and had strange letterings and symbols over it: if the stallion had to guess, he would imagine it denoted Throna as a healer.

He studied them both with fascination, then noted that Stronghold's armor was missing a piece: that choker. Throna's, however, still had hers present, and the stallion studied it with interest before he reached up and touched it, murmuring: “I see. So that's what Throna meant by a 'Reconvertor:' it must be some kind of space-time magic, letting them assume their old forms... literally, become as they were in the past. That was why Stronghold became so weak after I destroyed it...”

He frowned thoughtfully for a few moments, then shook his head and stepped back and gazed almost yearningly over the heavy Draekin armor again. He was surrounded not just by treasures, but by pieces of the long-forgotten past, come to life... it was incredible.

Morpheus drew his eyes around the vault... and then stared at a statue, placed almost perfectly in the center of the room. He mouthed slowly at the sight of this before swallowing a bit and approaching nervously as he was reminded forcefully of what he was here.

It looked like a statue of Princess Luna... except the stallion knew that this was Princess Luna, frozen in stone for all of eternity. She looked frightened but defiant, her head held high, her forelegs crossed as if she had been refusing to give any ground in spite of how humble she seemed at the same time. She looked like someone who had been pushed into a corner, but then refused to be shoved any further... gods above and demons below, how well he understood that...

But what caught his attention most of all was the object cradled in her forelegs. It looked like nothing more than a simple stone tablet, with a completely blank, polished face, framed in gold. It looked like nothing special, maybe just some decorative plate waiting to be fitted with a crest or a name... and Morpheus laughed faintly before he reached forwards and silently lifted it free, gazing over it with a tremble before he whispered: “This is it. This is what I've worked to try and retrieve, my entire life... this is... the Tablet of Dreams.”

He sat back, studying the Tablet of Dreams silently, barely able to believe that he had it after all this time. He held it here, in his own two hooves, the stallion licking his lips slowly before he laughed weakly again and thrust it up above his head, trembling... but the pose was anything but victorious. It was almost fearful, as he stared up silently at the blank slate and wondered... what the hell was he going to do now?

Slowly, he lowered it down into his forelimbs, then frowned uneasily as he almost cradled it against his body, looking back and forth. He knew how to use it... or at least, he thought he did. The architect who had helped Stronghold make this had told him that the Tablet of Dreams tapped in to a power outside of their world: it was connected to some kind of cosmic energy that was capable of transforming their reality, literally rewriting the world.

The architect had been old and wise and... a very strange pony. Morpheus hadn't known what to make of him, but now he supposed he was going to find out the real worth of the ancient pony's words, one way or another. But yet, he was still hesitating, still worrying, still... so goddamn afraid. This wasn't the way it was supposed to go, was it? The bad guy wasn't supposed to win... but... he was the bad guy, why the hell was he thinking that?

Morpheus scowled as he shook the tablet... then stared in horror as he clumsily dropped the goddamn thing. It hit the ground with a thud and flopped over... and... it was perfectly unharmed. Yet as he stared down at it, it wasn't relief that he felt: it was a weird kind of disappointment, like he'd almost been hoping that... well...

“Stop it. Just... just jitters. I mean, after I destroy the world and prove I'm the most powerful, evil pony in existence, I'm probably going to have to make some kind of... evil award acceptance speech. I've never been good on stage.” Morpheus mumbled as he picked the tablet up again, shaking it briskly once before he looked warily back and forth. “This feels almost like a trap, too. I... I should activate this and... get it over with.”

Morpheus breathed slowly, then he looked down at the Tablet of Dreams and gritted his teeth. He threw away his hesitation and his anger and his everything else as he looked down at it, before saying slowly and carefully: “Sleeping tablet, I call you out of rest... to grant a wish at my behest. I am your master now, so you must obey: awaken now, and hear what I have to say!”

There was silence for a few moments, and Morpheus shifted uncomfortably as nothing happened before he looked back and forth, mumbling: “Maybe Stronghold... changed the password? Or the architect was wrong or... uh...”

Morpheus looked awkwardly at the tablet, and then he shook it firmly several times. Nothing happened, and the stallion scowled before rolling his eyes and dropping it on the ground, muttering: “Well. This has been a grand waste of time after all, hasn't it? How delightful, really. I'm sure that Antecedes is going to get a big laugh out of-”

“I'm awake! I'm awake!” A voice blurted out of the tablet as it shot into the air, and Morpheus squealed like a filly and leapt backwards, staring in shock as the tablet floated groggily back and forth, the voice muttering out of it as it took on an eerie, colorful glow: “I was just getting to sleep, too... now... what do you want?”

Morpheus stared blankly at the floating tablet, and then he pointed at it and said dumbly: “You... you talk. And you sound... stupid.”

“Your stupid what.” snapped the tablet in response, and there was an awkward silence for a few moments before the tablet mumbled: “That wasn't the right response. But what did you expect?”

Morpheus only scowled, then he stepped forwards and grabbed the tablet out of the air with one hoof, yanking it down as it squawked before he said irritably: “I don't like being toyed with. I have a wish to make. Will you grant it?”

“If you're willing to pay the price...” the tablet whimpered, seeming to try and nod in his grip before the stone plate added uneasily: “But yes, I can... I can grant any wish you desire. I can do anything: nothing is outside my power, so long as the payment is good.”

“And how do I make this payment?” Morpheus asked moodily, shifting uneasily before he said slowly: “Can you simply... take life away? Or do I have to do it myself?”

“Well...” The tablet hesitated, and then it said finally: “The payment has nothing to do with the extent of my powers. The payment is so that those who make a wish understand the gravity of what they're dealing with... I'm a force of cosmic supreme power, you know. We don't do things lightly.”

Morpheus smiled slightly at this, and then he rubbed his hooves together as he let go of the tablet, allowing it to float backwards as he said pleasantly: “Excellent. And, Tablet of Dreams, is it true that you cannot affect the minds of those who have already been touched by your powers, but you can still affect them physically?”

“Yes, that's right! Gosh you know a lot about me.” the magical plate said thoughtfully, floating towards him and seeming to inspect the winged unicorn as it whizzed back and forth around him. “Have we met before? Except I really don't get out that much.”

Morpheus scowled at the the tablet, and then he swatted at it irritably before complaining: “Why are you acting like a foal? Look at me! I am pure evil, I am a terrible villain, so I act regal and cultured and... very posh. I know my character and I act perfectly naturally for it.” He reached up, calmly adjusting his coiffed locks and smiling pleasantly. “And look at you. All powerful and you sound like... like a child. A whiny child.”

“Hey!” the Tablet of Dreams exclaimed in an injured voice, and then it huffed and spun around once before floating up in front of Morpheus' face, declaring: “I am all-powerful. I can do absolutely anything I want. I don't have to pretend to be anything but myself.”

“Then why are you trapped here, taking orders from anyone who knows how to wake you up?” asked Morpheus irritably, and the tablet huffed and floated backwards to drop itself into Luna's petrified forelegs... but the aura around it turned to a pale pink, as if it was embarrassed.

“Because... well, everyone has rules, that's all. You have rules, I have rules, we have rules.” the Tablet of Dreams replied almost defensively, the stone tablet apparently trying to shrug as it wiggled back and forth on the spot. “I can only grant the wishes of other people. If I try to do anything by myself, without being ordered to, it'll kill me. Same goes for doing things without taking a sacrifice.”

Morpheus grunted, and then he hesitated before asking curiously: “What did Stronghold Halfdragon sacrifice for her wish? And what about her sister, Throna?”

“Uh... well... I don't think that I'm supposed to discuss that, but... well...” The tablet suddenly popped up, blurting: “Stronghold sacrificed all kinds of ponies! She was nuts! Anyone who disagreed with her, whoosh, she would kill them right in front of me and then order me to do something for her. Apparently that counts as a sacrifice because. Well. It scared the hell out of me enough that I was willing to risk it, one way or another. Because I didn't want to get smashed.

“Throna was a much sadder case. It was really Stronghold who made the wish anyway, she sacrificed this perfectly nice pony... turned her to stone, as I remember. I wonder where she is.” the Tablet of Dreams mumbled, settling thoughtfully back into the forelegs of the very statue he was speaking of, and Morpheus winced before he awkwardly rose a hoof and pointed.

The tablet tilted oddly towards him, then floated up out of the statue's forelimbs and spun around before looking up and down it... and then it screamed loudly and rushed over to try and hide behind Morpheus, the winged unicorn staring over his shoulder in disbelief as the tablet wailed: “Oh my god, that's where they've been keeping me? They're sick! Oh, game over, dude, game over, this is just not cool, oh god oh god oh god...”

“Get a hold of yourself.” Morpheus grumbled, then he reached up and snatched the tablet out of the air before saying pointedly: “I have a wish for you. And it's going to cost a lot of people their lives, so you will take those as my sacrifice. Fair?”

“I... oh, oh come on! I... I really don't like killing people! Come on, dude, just... think twice about this, okay?” the tablet pleaded, glowing a bright, shocked multitude of colors as it tried to wiggle out of the stallion's grip.

Morpheus huffed at this, then he shook his head before saying sharply: “All my life, I've been... the bad guy, forced to play the role of villain, shunted aside for being... different, for being dark! I walk into a room and ponies judge me because... I have a dark coat and I like to take care of myself, so oh no, he must be pure evil, he must not fit in, let's judge him without even getting to know him... no, I won't stand for any of this, do you understand?”

The stallion shook his head vehemently again, then he looked down and muttered: “Enough is enough. Unlike the rest of the world, I've seen it firsthoof, I've... wasted my time trying to make friends and... being betrayed. I've seen the real face of the world...” Morpheus forcibly spun the tablet around, shoving it out to face the petrified, scared and defiant face of Princess Luna. “And behind the false faces are false rulers who are only concerned with their own vision of the world. Never once taking into account what might be best for their people... corrupting their country into... into a state of broken docility, where...”

Morpheus looked down, and he shook his head slowly before whispering: “This is for the best. I wish this entire world was gone... and I was finally alone. Like I've always been... Antecedes only cared because he wanted the world destroyed and his life ended, Neato Burrito only served me out of honor, not friendship... my whole kingdom of evil fled like dogs when...”

Morpheus halted, then he turned the tablet around and shook it violently, snapping: “Didn't you hear me? Take all their lives if you want, but erase this entire world, make it all go away! Destroy it all and leave me-”

The Tablet of Dreams flashed brightly, and Morpheus winced... before staring back and forth in disbelief as he found himself floating silently in... blackness. At first, he could swear there was nothing around him, just emptiness that stretched on for eternity... but then he frowned a little as he realized there were stars twinkling quietly in the distance, and... yes, he thought that was the moon up there, and to his back, the sun burned brightly so many, many miles away...

Morpheus breathed slowly in and out as he looked back and forth, and then the Tablet of Dreams floated in front of him and mumbled: “One world, sacrificed, you crazy bastard. Now, since all that is kind of... the sacrifice... you have one wish. Pretty much... anything you want.”

“I...” Morpheus halted, and then he scowled before putting his front hooves behind his head, kicking his hind legs to swim through the weightless, dark air as he muttered: “I made my wish already. I don't need it.”

“Well, you have it. I can't give you a freaking return or gift credit on a wish, you know.” the tablet retorted sourly, floating doggedly after him as the winged unicorn closed his eyes... and felt no sense of victory, no sense of triumph, no sense of... anything. It had all been so... anticlimactic, really. A flash, and poof. The whole world was gone.

The whole world was gone. Morpheus opened his eyes and rolled over, looking uncertainly back and forth as he hugged himself and... just... floated. After all, there wasn't a lot to do now but... float here, without any feeling of victory, with no Antecedes to gloat to, with no Neato Burrito to congratulate him, with no Toad to point out what a moron he was...

Morpheus looked uncomfortably back and forth, and then he shook his head quickly before glaring over at the Tablet of Dreams as it floated up beside him, saying loudly: “Hey, I just said that you have a wish remaining. One wish remaining. You have to use that up.”

“Can I wish for you to throw yourself into the sun?” Morpheus asked waspishly, and the Tablet of Dreams halted, then spun around almost happily.

“Ha! So the architect was right! There would be someone someday who would wish for me to destroy myself!” the Tablet of Dreams said cheerfully, and then he spun around again before revolving in a slow circle around Morpheus, as the stallion looked at the stone slate blankly. “He told me that was one of the few wishes I should never honor, and I wouldn't be punished for it. So the joke's on you, you joker you! Although, you know, you still have a wish left.”

“Oh come on!” Morpheus groaned, slapping his forehead. “Can I wish for you to go far, far away then, and leave me in my misery here?”

“Well, yeah, but... hey, buddy, you know you could wish to be happy or something too, right?” the tablet said pointedly, and Morpheus opened his mouth... then slowly closed it, staring over at the stupid, loud piece of rock as he realized it might have a point.

He smiled, then leaned forwards... before frowning uncertainly, shifting uneasily as he looked down and muttered: “But... what makes me happy?”

He fell quiet, shifting into a sitting position in the weightless darkness before he scowled a little and looked back and forth, murmuring: “This didn't... and... why was it so simple, Tablet of Dreams? There was a pop, a crackle, and then... what did you do with the world?”

“It's gone, like you said. It, and everyone in it, gone, stuck in limbo, kaput, booshed. Zipped and zapped out of here. Poofed.” The tablet spun back and forth as it spoke amiably, glowing with a strange pride. “Like I said, I can pretty much rewrite anything. So what I did was rewrite all of it outside of reality, while I left you inside, in this bubble of atmosphere. And hey, you know, if you wish for happiness, I'll throw in a free blanket for you if you want. Because even if there's kind of a big air bubble still here, it's gonna get real cold soon without any... anything.”

Morpheus frowned uneasily at this, looking back and forth and shivering a bit before he asked finally: “So you mean... I'd have to wish for a planet to survive? I... I don't know what makes me happy, though. I don't... I thought that I'd be happy when I destroyed everything.”

“Seriously?” the tablet asked disbelievingly, and Morpheus blushed a bit and glowered moodily off in another direction before the stone slate asked irritably: “So like, just how the hell did you find out about me, anyway? You can't be that smart.”

“Hey! I am the supreme master of all evil, the most powerful villain in all the... land...” Morpheus' gesture slowed to an awkward halt as he looked out and reminded himself... there was no land anymore. No land, sea, or technically air. Just darkness and loneliness and... him, stuck in the middle of it all. Completely alone, completely triumphant... completely goddamn miserable.

He sighed a little, and the Tablet of Dreams remarked pointedly: “Guess that doesn't mean a whole lot when there's no world anymore, right?”

“Oh shut up. I... I just wanted you to destroy Equestria, anyway, I simply... misspoke.” mumbled Morpheus, looking grouchily down and twiddling his hooves together, but imagining... it would have been the same, wouldn't it? He'd be sitting here, alone... without... without all the people who'd gotten him this far.

He thought of Antecedes: a pony he respected enough to have rescued twice from Celestia, who had mentored him and helped him even when... even when he was hurting, and he, Morpheus, hadn't done a damned thing to help him. He thought of Neato Burrito, that silly little earth pony, so dedicated to honor that he had thrown his life away for him... the one pony in maybe the whole world who had really... believed in him. Sure, he'd come with him because he'd been rescued, but... what kind of self-pitying jerk was he to say that had been Neato's only reason for staying? And Antecedes! There were a thousand easier ways Antecedes could have found his 'peaceful death,' but he had always been there...

And Toad, his precious friend Toad... and... and those stupid ponies. Even Twilight Sparkle... what had she said? Right... that his wish wouldn't change anything. Even in the depths of pain and delusion and sorrow, she had spouted wisdom at him that he'd brushed right off, but was proving so goddamn true... he'd destroyed his friends, no his enemies. He'd erased all the light in the world... and left himself trapped in darkness, all over again. He was alone all right... and...

“And I couldn't even be right about Celestia... she turned out to be nothing but a lie, Stronghold Halfdragon's greatest mask. If only she had been real... maybe... maybe none of this would have happened.” muttered Morpheus, and then he sighed softly as he looked silently away.

The Tablet of Dreams thrummed, then glowed brightly. The light made Morpheus wince, and he scowled over his shoulder at it, opening his mouth... and then staring in disbelief at the phantasm of an ivory mare that smiled down at him tenderly, one of her hooves reaching up to touch his back gently as Princess Celestia said softly: “You don't have to believe in me, Moonflower. I already believe in you.”

Morpheus mouthed slowly, and then the Tablet of Dreams hiccuped before saying in an uncomfortable voice: “So I'm kind of scared right now because I just threw up a ghost. Can someone please explain what the hell just happened?”

“Not every wish starts with the phrase 'I wish...' and not every wish made to you, Tablet, requires giving up a life. Especially not when someone's just calling back a sacrifice already made...” Celestia smiled softly, becoming a little more physical as she turned her kind eyes towards Morpheus. “But I don't have a lot of time. Yes, you've made a mistake... but that doesn't matter. I can't fix this for you: no one can. That's something that Stronghold Halfdragon never understood: you can't seize control of someone's life and force them to do what you believe is right. That takes away meaning, freedom, and every pony's right to determine their own future.

“Stronghold never realized that even with all the good things she taught the ponies of Equestria... she also took away their strength, their will, their ability to choose and decide things for themselves. She hated them, but she was the one responsible for her own hatred...” Celestia smiled faintly, shaking her head slowly. “But all you can do is guide your people. The answer is not executions, gulags, and strict law. And what Stronghold failed to realize was that Equestria, wild as it was, was never violent until the crusaders came and brought their war with them. She never realized that it was her own church that created the rifts that pushed the country into a bloody civil war. And she never stopped to think about it, either, when she unwittingly took the same side she'd always taken and assumed they were good... the believers, who wanted to crush out the ponies that still clung to their own gods and spirits.”

Celestia quieted, looking down and sighing softly. “But I never thought she'd go so far. It's ironic, but she used not just Draekin magic, but the help of the most powerful practitioners of pagan unicorn arts she could find. But I suppose by then, she had decided if God had abandoned her, she would abandon God...”

Morpheus looked silently up at the spirit, and the spirit of Celestia gazed back down at him before she smiled softly and said quietly: “But now, you can make things right, Moonflower. Take the Tablet of Dreams, and make your one wish. I believe in you.”

The ghost reached up and gently touched his shoulder, and the stallion dropped his head and shivered a little before he whispered: “But... you don't know me. I'm everything you're not, and... everything that you hate. I'm...”

“You're a pony.” Celestia said softly, and then she smiled at him kindly before saying softly: “That's all I have to know about you. You're a pony, just like me. Nothing else matters, really, Moonflower: without night, day would be meaningless. Without pain, you could never truly appreciate pleasure. Dualities are the basis of all things.”

She reached up and gently tapped under his muzzle, then smiled again before adding: “And I think that, secretly, Stronghold admired you. She was afraid of you, but I think she admired you all the same. I think part of her... knew that what she was doing was wrong, continuing the crusade her Order started a thousand years ago. But I can only hope. Just like I hope that you'll make the right choice.”

Morpheus dropped his head silently, not knowing what to do or say. He shifted uncomfortably back and forth... then finally sighed quietly before nodding slowly as he closed his eyes for a moment.

He took a breath, then looked up... but Celestia was gone. The Tablet of Dreams floated uneasily nearby, seeming to look back and forth before the stone whimpered: “Oh dude. Dude. I'm... I'm full of ghosts? Oh come on, I thought... sacrificed souls... I wanna be sick but I'm terrified if I throw up I'm going to puke out more ghosts and then it's going to be like when you throw up really hard you can't stop throwing up because it's so-”

“Tablet of Dreams, shut the hell up.” Morpheus said flatly, and then he straightened before gritting his teeth. For a moment, he felt a burst of emotion, of selfishness, of stupidity... but he stomped on this savagely in his mind before shouting: “Tablet of Dreams! I wish for everything to go back the way it was, before I made my wish!”

There was silence for a few moments, and then the Tablet said grumpily: “You don't have to yell at me, okay?”

Morpheus began to glare... and then there was a bright flash, and the stallion winced and stumbled backwards... before falling over and landing painfully on his side with a thump, the stallion blinking stupidly before he looked up blankly and realized... he was back in the vault.

He mouthed wordlessly, then stared at the Tablet of Dreams as it floated down to him and said loudly: “You're welcome!”

“I...” Morpheus scowled up at the tablet, and then he shoved himself up to his hooves and snapped: “Well, you just granted me two wishes instead of one!”

“No I didn't! I didn't! You're a liar!” the Tablet shouted, and then it added threateningly: “And we're never going to talk about that lady showing up out of nowhere again or I'm going to make you disappear, you hear me?”

“Oh, I'm really so afraid.” Morpheus retorted, and then he reached up and punched the tablet, sending it zipping across the room to crash into a pile of gold coins before he frowned a little over at the statue of Luna, asking curiously: “Tablet of Dreams. When Princess Luna was sacrificed... did you take in her spirit as well?”

“I don't eat ghosts! I don't... they're... they just end up inside me, I don't know how!” the tablet whined as it rose up out of the pile of coins, and then it floated over and shook itself vehemently, adding grouchily: “But I don't think so. Why?”

Morpheus was already looking thoughtfully off in the other direction, however, tapping a hoof slowly before he asked finally: “And life. Must a life always be sacrificed, or for small things... say, reversing a wish... would blood suffice?”

“Uh...” The tablet did a remarkable job of looking stupid, which was very impressive for a piece of stone, before it said awkwardly: “No one's ever wanted to reverse a wish before. I mean, before you. You just did it, and it felt like... well... half a wish, really, and-”

“Then you still owe me half a wish. Now shut up.” Morpheus spun around, his horn glowing before he shouted loudly, his voice echoing through the treasury: “Throna Halfdragon! I, the Prince of Darkness, demand your presence!”

The tablet whimpered something about its nonexistent ears, but Morpheus was only hopping from hoof-to-hoof, grinning widely before he laughed loudly as a portal opened, and a scowling Throna Halfdragon strode out of it. She glared at the stallion for a moment before saying irritably: “As nice as it is to see that-”

“Silence, the Emperor of Evil is going to speak.” Morpheus said imperiously... and then the mood was ruined slightly as he frowned a bit and asked awkwardly: “Wait, you can portal directly into the treasure room?”

“Yes, I can. Stronghold had it magically sealed and protected, but one time while we were visiting here, I snuck away and tossed a coin with a waypoint enchantment on it into the pile of treasure. Even Stronghold couldn't track it down in all this mess so I gained a way to come and go as I pleased... although then Stronghold decided to hide the Elements of Harmony and turned me into her personal pack-mule.” Throna scowled, then shook her head and asked irritably: “Now what-”

“The Lord of Darkness knows what wish he shall make.” Morpheus said clearly, and then he glared over his shoulder when the tablet mumbled: 'half-wish.' “Shut up and grant this half-wish, then. Rend Throna's glammer asunder and revert her to the shape of her past existence!”

“Can you repeat that maybe in a language I can understand? Not a dictionary here. Just a big flat piece of stone.” the Tablet of Dreams said sourly, floating over to Morpheus and clunking itself firmly into his head, making him wince.

He rubbed sulkily at his forehead, then looked with embarrassment over his shoulder at the staring mare before he quickly looked back ahead and whispered: “Look, just. Turn her back into a Draekin, the thing she looked like before you turned her into Luna. Can you do that?”

“Oh, yeah, right, easy. I don't even know if that counts as a wish, to tell you the truth, minor... aesthetic change and... okay, okay, stop glaring at me like that!” the Tablet of Dreams whined, and then it glowed brightly... but there wasn't even a flash before it declared: “Done.”

“Oh come on, you can't have...” And then Morpheus turned around and gaped in shock at the sight of the Draekin now standing behind him, looking over herself with shock. She had blue and white scales, and a mane that glowed like starlight, and hooves with small, nub-like claws. She was only a little bigger than him, and Morpheus mouthed wordlessly at the sight of her before he hurriedly pasted an evil grin on his features as the mare looked up at him dumbly.

“I... I mean, yes! See the power of the Tablet of Dreams? It is... powerful.” Morpheus stopped for a moment to stare at her a little more, then rapidly shook his head and cleared his throat before he thrust a hoof into the air and declared: “And this is only the first stage of my evil plan! Next is this!”

Morpheus' horn glowed darkly, and then he spun around and snapped it towards the statue of Princess Luna, which lit up with a strange, pale radiance... and a moment later, the stone gasped before dropping forwards as rock turned back to flesh, eyes blinking as her pale blue mane spilled over her face, mouth working wordlessly before Morpheus forced out as evil a laugh as he could. “Now Equestria will be thrown into political chaos and turmoil and... uh...”

Princess Luna – the real Princess Luna – looked up and silenced him with a glare before striding over to the stallion and slamming her hoof into his face, knocking him in a stupid sprawl as she shouted angrily: “Thou art nothing but a stupid git! Cease thy wretched acting and speaking, for 'tis like adders' venom in my mind! Now, knave, cease such preaching to yon maiden-Draekin and I, for my sleep in stone hath left me with ears wide open!”

The Tablet of Dreams attempted to float casually down beside Morpheus before it asked in a whisper: “So uh. What did she just say?”

“She sayeth shut the buck up.” growled Luna, and the Tablet of Dreams squeaked and hurried behind Morpheus before Luna shook herself out roughly, then sat up and slammed a hoof into her other, glaring imperiously back and forth. “Now that I am free of my prison, I shall set about making Equestria right! In the name of my sister, who I loved so dearly, we shall turn the tide of-”

Then black lightning sizzled over Luna, and her eyes bulged before she toppled onto her side, twitching weakly. And Morpheus sighed, relieved that his spell had worked as he crawled up to his hooves and then walked over to her, leaning down into the glaring, paralyzed winged unicorn's face before he said mildly: “Only I'm allowed to make the speeches, okay? That's the rules. Evil talks. Good shuts up. Evil brags. Good stays 'humble,' which is another word for 'silently embarrassed because Good never does anything cool.'”

Morpheus spun back towards Throna, who was still looking at him dumbly, and the stallion grinned. He was actually enjoying himself... actually really enjoying himself, as he pointed upwards and declared: “And now, I shall demonstrate the other half of my evil plan!”

His horn glowed with dark magic... and then it fizzled out, and he scowled up at the spire before Throna said dourly: “There's a block on all teleportation magic here. Only Draekin portals work.”

“I... well. Then. Portal us up to the highest tower of Canterlot.” grumbled Morpheus, and when Throna gave him a childish look, he rolled his eyes before asking grumpily: “Please?”

“Only because you asked so nicely.” Throna said ironically, and then she smiled despite herself as her unicorn horn glowed brightly, asking almost teasingly: “Shall I take the Princess as well?”

“No, leave her here. She's much more dangerous than I thought.” Morpheus mumbled, rubbing at his jaw as a glowing blue portal slowly formed. He paused, then looked lamely over at Throna Halfdragon, adding lamely: “Thank you.”

He skittered through the portal like a foal, and Throna smiled despite herself as she followed, the Tablet of Dreams hurrying after them as Luna gurgled on the ground and glared furiously at the portal. But a moment later it slammed closed as the three emerged onto the highest rooftop of Canterlot's highest tower, Morpheus' horn already glowing with green light before he shouted: “And now, see my greatest work of evil!”

He pointed his horn outwards and released a thrum of energy from the spire, and Throna frowned as she looked out over the world... but nothing seemed to be happening. She looked dumbly back and forth, but the deep night was still and silent apart from...

One large, horse-like ear twitched, and her eyes widened slightly as she looked down and saw lights were flicking on, all throughout the city. She could hear screams and yells, and panic... and then Morpheus laughed. But even as she looked at him with surprise, she sensed... something less than malicious about him, as declared: “You fools and your love of tacky outdoor ornamentation... it has been your downfall! I've sent hundreds of my minions, disguised as harmless lawn toys, to be sold in gift shops all around Canterlot! Now my army awakens, and you will rue the day that you ever tried to battle Lord Morpheus, Prince of Darkness! This... this was my true evil plan all along!”

Morpheus laughed again... and then he turned beet red when Throna leaned over and kissed his cheek gently, the mare murmuring softly: “Thank you, Morpheus, for making the right choice.”

Morpheus glared at her, and then he flung himself off the roof, flapping his wings wildly and veering slightly to the left as he sailed off into the night, howling over his shoulder: “I'm evil! Evil! And there's nothing you can do to stop me! Stupid ponies, why would I destroy the world when I can take it over?”

He cackled as he sailed off into the night on his slightly-tilted course... and Throna sighed and shook her head slowly before the Tablet of Dreams said wryly: “What a doof. But I'm gonna miss him.”

“Oh, he'll be back, tablet. Now come, we have... much to do. And you have a story to tell me before we find a safe place to keep you... a place where no one will be tempted to abuse your powers.” Throna said softly, smiling over at the stone slate, but she paused to give one last warm look into the skies, whispering: “Thank you, Moonflower.”

Epilogue: A Humble New Beginning

Epilogue: A Humble New Beginning
~BlackRoseRaven

The winged unicorn glared furiously across the table at the weird, inverted zebra with the weird skull pattern on his weird face. Lightning almost sparked between their eyes as they both leaned aggressively forwards, trying to intimidate the other... but dammit, he had been like a god back home, and he was still stronger than most of the ponies here in the Orphanage, and he absolutely refused to be intimidated by a weird zebra in weird clothes with a weird accent!

“Y'all ain't nothing but a bag of hot air! Take your crazy ouaouaron, oh mighty folle de la nuit, and scat! Fly off on your silly mismatched wings!” snapped the zebra, and one of the winged unicorn's eyes twitched.

“That's it, La Croix! How about you try flying off, you... smelly jerk!” retorted the pony, and then he pointed sharply at his hated enemy as his horn sparked with green energy before emerald lightning surged out over the zebra.

La Croix squawked, then transformed in a puff of smoke into a pink, plasticky lawn flamingo with faded white stripes and tiny little wings sticking out of his back, the polymorphed zebra staring down at himself before he snarled and rose both hooves as eerie emerald energy glowed over them, shouting angrily back: “How about you have a taste of your own medicine, mon ami Moonflower?”

He gestured sharply at him, and Moonflower yelled and flailed violently as green lightning surged over him before he transformed most of the way into an enormous blackbird, feathers puffing out in all directions as he flapped one oversized wing wildly and windmilled his other forelimb. Then the two glared furiously at each other, leaning forwards and snarling: both knew they couldn't completely transform the other, but that didn't stop them from trying all the same.

“Stop being idiots, you two.” grumbled a third voice, and neither half-bird managed to look up in time before a firm hoof grabbed the back of either stallion's head, then firmly slammed their skulls together. They both yelped and rocked backwards, clutching at their skulls as their bodies returned to normal, looking embarrassedly at the mostly-white winged unicorn mare.

She scowled at them, then shook her head tiredly before saying moodily: “Moonflower, I'm not questioning Hecate here. She's smart. But the Orphanage of Wayward Youth does not have a pack structure, and you are not 'fighting your way to the top' or 'proving you're the ultimate evil.' We don't do good and evil here in Decretum. You should know that by now.

“And La Croix. Don't encourage him. Just don't. You're already in trouble as it is for all the sneaking around you've been doing.” the mare added pointedly, glaring at the zebra, and he mumbled and dropped his head, reaching up to adjust his top hat awkwardly.

“Alright, alright, Cygne. Ain't no need to take that tone with us, we ain't dumb.” La Croix grumbled, and then he scowled over at Moonflower, adding grouchily: “At least I ain't. Don't know 'bout him none, though.”

“I am a genius. I destroyed my world, remember? And then I brought it back because I was bored. I don't know anyone else here who was put on trial. And as much as I like you, Cadence... I feel that I should not have to remind you that I'm not here by choice. This is my punishment.” Moonflower said testily, reaching up and carefully adjusting his coiffed mane.

Cadence shook her head slowly, then she sighed and said softly: “Look, Moonflower. I know it's hard to adjust at first. I had trouble, too... even if... a lot of things happened to me on my world and coming here was the best choice I could make, because it saved Daddy.” Cadence reached up, touching her own breast silently and tracing over a pink, bird-like pattern over her front, giving a brief smile. “But this is a good place. You're going to enjoy it here. And I'm personally really happy that you've been assigned to our little team... we can do great things together.”

Moonflower only grunted noncommittally, but then he sighed tiredly and reached back to silently rub at his cutie mark: a glowing white flower with a swirl of magic sparkling around it. “I don't understand why I can't go by Morpheus though. Or why I can't cover up my cutie mark.”

“I wish I still had my cutie mark.” Cadence murmured, glancing over her shoulder at the faded streaks of color that were all that remained on her haunch. And then she shook her head quickly, glancing back ahead and saying softly: “It's part of who you are. We don't hide from who we are here... we use who we are and who we've become to help protect the worlds. Hecate has taken something evil and terrible and... made it into a hub to defend all the parallel worlds from evil. You saw how easily she can travel between worlds, after all... and there's lots of other things that can hop between them too. Things that most ponies can't fight against. Things that the worlds might not be ready for.”

“Like me!” Moonflower said cheerfully, holding up a hoof... and then he scowled when La Croix snorted in amusement. “What do you find so funny, zebra?”

“You be a little fou, that's all.” La Croix said dryly, and then he sighed when Cadence gave him a pointed look, holding up his hooves and complaining: “I ain't gonna start no fights, mademoiselle! But he fou. That's all there is to it.”

Moonflower glared, opening his mouth... and then he blinked in surprise when Cadence said pointedly: “He's our teammate, La Croix. That means we have to at least try and be friends. And even if we're not friends, we still have to trust each other and work together. So come on. Try, okay?”

La Croix sighed tiredly, then he dropped his head and nodded grumpily before he looked over at the winged unicorn... then frowned at his look of surprise, asking moodily: “What? You ain't never had a friend before, folle?”

“I've had many friends! All the friends in the world!” Moonflower argued hurriedly, and then he huffed and shook his head before looking awkwardly at the two. Cadence tilted her head curiously as La Croix looked at him with entertainment, and then Moonflower huffed before turning away and grumbling: “Oh shut up.”

But all the same, he smiled briefly for a moment before suddenly spinning back towards them, asking in a suddenly cheery voice: “So have I ever told you two about how I once destroyed the world? And all by myself, too!”

Cadence rolled her eyes as La Croix groaned and grabbed his top hat, yanking it down over his own head, but Moonflower only grinned. Maybe he was in a strange place on some kind of crazy parole, still not entirely sure what this place was or what he was supposed to be doing... but maybe, just maybe, there was a little bit of hope for the future after all.Be he a King of Gods or a God of Kings;

He has no meaning without a people to rule.

February 17th, 2014 – March 3rd, 2014

Prologue: A Dark Horse Rises

Prologue: A Dark Horse Rises
~BlackRoseRaven

Two Years Ago...

He was in darkness... but not for much longer.

Yes, he could feel it: light and warmth above. He longed to feel light and warmth again after so many years sealed away... trapped by Celestia's magic, in a terrible place below even Tartarus. But a place where he had learned the truth of the world... that this world had been shaped by a secret Celestia kept hidden away.

He pushed towards the surface, kicking and fighting, using every ounce of the dark magic that had originally gotten him banished here in the first place. Sealed away, thrown in prison, and for what? For daring to practice the dark magic he had a natural talent for! For daring to be better than the other unicorns at the academy had been! For daring to be different, for daring to ask to help Celestia as a 'Prince of the Night!'

And she had refused him and driven him away. And when he'd come back, more powerful than any unicorn in Equestria, they had fought. And he had lost, because of overconfidence and inexperience. So she had called him a villain, and sealed him away, beneath the world, beneath muck and mire and grime, beneath Tartarus itself.

Oh, but he had survived, and the experiences in the darkness had made him stronger and better. And more than that, he had met other ponies who had shared secrets with him, told him about a past he'd barely believed, revealed Celestia's weaknesses and even more importantly, the sources of her strength. He had learned a lot from them... and he had found a way out of this den of torment and suffering.

He had crawled, up and up and up, through darkness made solid, the energy stinging his body the entire time. He had forced his way forwards by thinking of the past, of how they'd judged him for being different. But who was laughing now? It wasn't them. Or at least, it wouldn't be them for much longer. They had driven him to this, after all: they had always called him evil. Well, if they wanted evil, if they wanted bad, he would be the most bad evil villain of them all!

He reached the surface, and tore through with a gasp into the warmth and light of the day, roaring his victory... and then promptly howling and covering his eyes, falling over and writhing painfully on the ground as he rolled back and forth in pain. The sun continued to shine mercilessly down, and he swore under his breath as he crawled quickly back into the tunnel in the earth, pushing up a bit of dirt and wincing away from the painfully, scorching bright light of day, far too much to bear after five hundred years in darkness.

Well. He'd waited five hundred years. He would wait until tonight.

But then, after tonight, true evil would return to Equestria. And even if it would have to wear sunglasses for a while, it would bring a cascade of darkness over the entire country, blotting out Celestia's light and their precious sun. Which felt very warm even from the safety of his dark little tunnel in the earth.

The evil that had escaped Tartarus grumbled a bit under his breath, then curled up and covered his head with one wing, swearing that he'd start making his move and he would take his revenge and gather a great army of darkness... but first he was going to have a nap. And then after nightfall, well. Then he'd start gathering the forces of evil together and take his revenge. And a shower. Probably not in that order.

Revenge, after all, was a dish best prepared when evil was well-rested and clean.

Two Days Ago...

The mare was surprised when she received the first letter, but the moment she'd read it, she'd immediately rushed to make preparations to leave for Canterlot before she'd run out the door to gather up her friends. When she'd returned to the library to get the last of her things some forty minutes later, she'd found a second letter waiting for her. The dragonlet she considered a little brother wanted to come with her, but she had already decided to keep him out of this: a decision confirmed to be for the best by the second letter.

She hurried off, leaving her assistant and adopted sibling behind, and now alone, he couldn't help but look at the two letters that had driven the mare into such a panic. But he regretted it almost immediately as his fear for the mare only increased with what he read...

Twilight Sparkle,

I require your presence at Canterlot immediately. You must gather your friends and come speak with me as soon as possible, although I fear the Elements of Harmony alone will not be enough to stop the rising threat to our nation.

I hope that you are already on your way. But as an extra precaution and because I know the trip to Canterlot even by train will take some time and you must already have many questions, I will do my best to tell you what is going on through a second letter that will arrive within the hour.

Be careful.

Princess Celestia

Twilight Sparkle,

I had hoped that Equestria would never see this day. As you know, our nation has many enemies that were defeated or banished long ago. But as the years have worn on, these enemies have begun to return as their prisons have weakened and Equestria has forgotten the past.

Among these many enemies, there is one great evil who stands out above all others. He was perhaps the most dangerous foe that Equestria has ever faced, and now he has escaped the dark prison I sealed him, more than five hundred years ago. I do not know how, but I know what he plans to do. He will try and destroy Equestria, by using an ancient artifact that I will not write of. We will speak of it, in private, after you arrive.

I will not write his name, but I will tell you a little about him: when we first met six hundred years ago, he claimed to be a 'Prince of the Night,' and desired to take a place at my side, as a ruler of Equestria. Of course, I would not give up that position to any stallion so easily, especially not to a unicorn who tried to impress me with dark magic that, even back then, was forbidden in Equestria.

He believed himself to be high above all other ponies: he did not desire just to rule the night, but to eventually take over my position and rule all of Equestria. I told him that I would not have it, and he challenged me to a battle.

I won the duel, but with difficulty: he had great power, and used evil magic, meant to harm and kill. But eventually I overwhelmed him, although he managed to escape. The Royal Guard searched high and low for him, but he had fled the nation.

A hundred years later, he returned, now claiming to be an alicorn. But his wings were earned by deceit and selfish magic, and in the process of gaining more power, he had lost the little conscience and morals he had once possessed. He came back, only wanting to kill me and destroy Equestria. And somehow, he had discovered many of Canterlot's secrets.

There was a great battle. Many unicorns were killed: you have seen their pictures in the hall of heroes, and statues of them in the stone garden. But eventually, we managed to suppress him between our powers, and I bound him to what I thought would be eternal punishment, below the pits of Tartarus, locked away in the very heart of darkness.

He is very powerful, and very dangerous. But he is also arrogant: he has not made any efforts to hide his return. As a matter of fact, he has announced his intentions by building a fortress of evil to the west of Canterlot. He has set his hoof in a wild place, much like the Everfree Forest, and he has already begun transforming it with his evil magic. But we must be cautious all the same: he will attract other evil-hearted ponies and likely already has many dark and terrible allies. He may try and use the greed of the dragons to turn them against us, and he will call up monsters and beasts to serve him and his interests.

When you arrive, I will take you aside, and I will teach you the magic you will need to help me fight him. Your friends will also be prepared, each in their own way, to deal with the great evil that he will undoubtedly bring.

One last thing, my student, in case something happens on the way to Canterlot: do not trust him, or his lies. Do not believe anything he says, or that he wants anything but darkness. When he finds out that you are my student, he will undoubtedly try and lure you away, to do great harm to you. Keep yourself safe: put your faith in me and in your friends.

Shining Armor will be waiting for you when you arrive, and he will tell you a special memory when you see him. Do not trust anyone else, and do not trust him unless he is able to tell you a secret about you that he has already assured me no other pony could possibly know. He will bring you and your friends directly to me.

Stay safe, Twilight Sparkle.

Yours in confidence,
Princess Celestia

All About Fish

Chapter Nine: All About Fish
~BlackRoseRaven

Lord Morpheus, Enemy of Equestria, most wanted villain in the entire world, relaxed with a sigh as he sat back in his throne room. Yes, for once... everything felt like it was going right. He had the entire world under his hoof, just like he'd always wanted. Or at least since about about a month ago. And that was close enough, right?

His fortress had been rebuilt... and now, with actual rooms instead of just large stone panels, since the incident with Stronghold Halfdragon had finally shown him why large, free-standing pieces of stone were a bad design idea.

Sure, his 'attack' roughly a month ago had been firmly repelled. But at the same time, he had demonstrated his point and thrown Equestria into chaos. Sort of. And okay, so maybe things hadn't gone quite as he'd hoped with Throna and Luna, with Luna now acting as Commander-in-Chief and Throna her advisor and second-in-command. So much for bearing grudges.

But hey. He had a massive army of terrible, evil... well. He had a lot of goblins, packs of diamond dogs, and a whole load of idiot jerk ponies to boss around. Neato Burrito had returned to his side, and Antecedes was sitting on the edge of his throne's dais, reading a newspaper. And seeming pleased as punch, but Morpheus wasn't about to let his snide little self-proclaimed victory get on his nerves.

No, everything was going right for once. And Morpheus smiled pleasantly as he rested back in his throne, rubbing along the arms of the enormous seat as he said wryly: “You know, it's good to be king, Antecedes. It's good to be the master of all evil.”

“That's an oxymoron. Moron.” Antecedes said without looking up, and then he added dryly: “And listen to this: 'Lady Halfdragon has announced that a new national holiday has been declared. Freedom Day: a day to celebrate the day that balance was brought to Equestria, will be in three days.'”

“There's nothing special about that date. That's silly. I should find a way to ruin it for them.” Morpheus said thoughtfully, rubbing at the underside of his chin, and then he scowled as he heard loud laughter from beside him.

Slowly, the winged unicorn turned a scowl down to Toad, who grinned at him from the safety of his watery aquarium before the amphibian said mildly: “Did you really forget your own birthday, dude? And furthermore, it's also the day when you tried to get Princess Celestia to let you be the Prince of the Night. And, you know, also the day you got your ass kicked.”

Morpheus blushed deeply and scowled horribly, shaking his head vehemently before he grumbled: “That's probably why I was blocking it out of my mind. Thank you oh so very much for reminding me, Toad. I think I'll stick you in a blender to celebrate.”

“We don't have a blender. Neato Burrito broke it making one of his protein shakes, and the diamond dogs and goblins are too dumb to steal one for you. And, you know, since all of Equestria knows who we are now, we can't just walk to the store and buy one.” Antecedes folded his paper down into a little square, tucking it away in his robes as he added mildly: “So good work there, your lordship. You've actually left us in a worse state than we were before you tried to destroy the world.”

“Okay, for one thing, I did destroy the world. Secondly, look around! This place we've built is fantastic!” argued Morpheus, shaking his head quickly and huffing. “Don't be such a child. Just... be thankful for what you have, Antecedes. And you should be thankful too, Toad, and... where did Neato Burrito go?”

Antecedes only shrugged, and Morpheus sighed and smacked his forehead before he added grumpily: “Dealing with you two has given me a headache. You've ruined my happiness. Happy?”

Antecedes shrugged again, and then he turned his eyes forwards and said mildly: “And in case you weren't listening, your lordship, I'd like to remind you that Throna Halfdragon will be coming by. Hopefully not to ask us for more help with the Tablet of Dreams. I marvel at the genius of the defense mechanism, though: making it so idiotic I'd rather smash it than make a wish on it.”

“Apparently it wasn't half as talkative around Stronghold. But then again, from what I hear, Throna has become much more at peace and pleasant herself with Stronghold gone.” Morpheus paused, then looked back and forth quickly, adding hurriedly: “But I didn't do a good thing in killing her! I merely proved that I am the most powerful evil force in all of Equestria and... and moved my terrible plans to conquer the world another step forwards!”

Antecedes glanced over his shoulder at him mildly, and then he rolled his red eyes before he said calmly: “I'll be taking the evening off.”

“Do you have another tea party with your friends to attend?” asked Morpheus, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Yes.” Antecedes said simply, which shut Morpheus up... before the winged unicorn glared when the skeleton added sourly: “It's not a challenge to your homosexuality, which, oh great and flamboyantly-evil one, is far greater than my non-sexuality. But it's nice to have a break with the ponies. They're quiet. They're respectful. They listen to me. Unlike someone else I know.”

“Oh, sorry, Antecedes, I wasn't listening to you because I apparently think nothing but gay thoughts all day. Gay gay gay gay gay, that's all that's in my head. Stallions, stallions, stallions.” Morpheus said huffily, whirling his hooves through the air around his head before he added grumpily: “And it reflects badly upon me, Antecedes, that you're going out and... making friends and the like.”

The skeleton sighed and shrugged, then replied drolly: “If you're so concerned with keeping up appearances, Lord Morpheus, master of all that is bad-wrong in the world, why don't you say that I'm just earning their trust so that I can later betray them?”

Morpheus looked thoughtful at this, rubbing at the underside of his muzzle before he huffed a bit and waved a hoof irritably. “No, no, that doesn't make any sense at all. No, if anyone asks, I'll tell them... that... I've sent you to gain their trust to spy on them, so that one day we can lure them into a trap or use them as part of our evil schemes.”

Antecedes looked at Morpheus for a few moments, and then he sighed tiredly and turned around. Toad, meanwhile, leaned up against the wall of his aquarium and said ironically: “You know, it really goes to show that there's no one quite as smart as you are around here, boss.”

Morpheus glowered down at Toad, and then he said crankily: “If you keep this up, we're going to play a game of fetch with one of the diamond dogs, and you get to be the ball.”

Toad huffed at this, and then Morpheus sat back in his throne and tented his front hooves before he smiled a little as he relaxed in the heavy seat, murmuring: “We've come a long way my friends, haven't we? Conquered the world. Uncovered ancient Equestrian legends. Fought and defeated the last of the Draekin. And now here we are...”

Antecedes glanced up, then the skeleton sighed a little as he said wryly: “I would prefer being dead, but... I guess this is the next best thing. I suppose having a reason to live makes things... easier, though. That, and the fact I can come and go as I please to Canterlot... and you know. When you killed Halfdragon, her advisors lost their immortality. It might be cruel, but I enjoy having conquered them. And I'm glad that you stopped her, Morpheus.”

Morpheus smiled briefly, and then he looked down at his friend and said softly: “You didn't say that you were glad I killed them, though.”

“Death isn't a punishment.” The skeleton looked up with a chuckle, and then he added finally: “And at the same time... maybe death is too much. It's been strange, getting to know these ponies in Ponyville and Canterlot... seeing how they can change and adapt. It's strange to walk through the streets of a city that knows we're supposed to be the enemy, and yet they don't attack us.”

“Well, they fear us, that's all.” Morpheus said comfortably, brushing at himself before he added moodily: “Although it would be nice if they didn't close all their doors to us, too. Here I am, willing to pretend to follow their rules and pay them good money, and they won't let me in. Then I have to smash down the door and steal everything in the shop.”

Toad snorted at this, then dropped back into his aquarium with a splash, even as he said with amusement: “Yeah, and how often do you screw that up, boss? You can't fly very well as it is. You end up careening into buildings and dropping all the stuff you've stolen on the way.”

Morpheus huffed at this, scowling and opening his mouth... and then he blinked dumbly and looked up in surprise as there was a loud chime. He frowned a little, then brushed himself hurriedly off before straightening and neatening himself out, calling calmly: “Enter the sanctum of darkness!”

“That's downstairs. This is just the throne room.” Antecedes muttered, and Morpheus slowly scowled down at the skeleton, even as the doors opened and a goblin in a ragged little suit hurried inside, wheezing and saluting awkwardly.

“Lord Morpheus, sir, I... visitor, strange visitor!” wheezed the goblin, gesturing behind himself and looking more than a little frightened... which made Morpheus feel uneasy as he leaned down, tilting his head. After all, usually his goblin servants were nervous or anxious, but never really... afraid. “Well, she's with Lady Throna... but she's scary! Strange and scary!”

Morpheus only huffed at this, waving a hoof as he relaxed a little. “Well, bring Throna in so she can introduce her friend properly. I'm sure that it can't be anyone that bad, Throna is nothing but a childish pushover who knows her place, after all.”

Antecedes looked meditatively up at Morpheus as the goblin skittered off, and then the skeleton said dryly: “You know this is likely in response to your last letter. And for all you know, perhaps she's found another Draekin. We know she sent out envoys to scout out her home nation.”

“You and everyone else I've spoken to have all told me that the Draekin nation was destroyed, though.” Morpheus replied mildly, tilting his head pointedly towards the skeleton before he gestured airily at him. “You worry far too much, that's what I think.”

Antecedes sighed tiredly at this, shaking his head slowly, and Toad looked warily up from his aquarium, asking uneasily: “Boss, uh... you sure you want to go underestimating her and all? I mean, I get it, Throna ain't exactly like her big sister. But that doesn't change the fact that she's still a Draekin. And they seem to live pretty much forever.”

Morpheus only sniffed disdainfully, resting back in his throne and tenting his hooves... then smiling as the doors opened and Throna was led inside, alone, by his goblin servant. “Excellent, so glad you could arrive so promptly... my friends here and I were just discussing you. I was reminding them that you know your place, don't you, Throna? Firmly hiding with all your other goody-two-hoof friends, away from the might and wrath of my terrible, ultimate evil.”

“That is in part what I came to talk to you about, Lord Moonflower.” Throna replied easily, and Morpheus scowled at her even as he sat up a bit, tilting his head almost uncertainly. “What would you do if I told you a much more dire threat has come to Equestria? Something... far more evil, far more powerful than you?”

Morpheus snorted in amusement, and then he sat back and grinned widely, dropping his forelegs on the throne and saying easily: “Throna, dear, I've already proven that I'm more powerful than any pony in Equestria. Furthermore, while it amuses me when 'new villains' crop up, you know that I have no interest whatsoever in sharing territory. What did I say to that witch that came by? Oh, yes. 'Good or evil, this is my country. And you will suffer the full wrath of my awesome might if you do anything that interferes with it.'”

Throna simply smiled wryly at this, and then she said pleasantly: “Then I assume that you would be willing to test your strength against this new evil that's come to Equestria? She's very powerful, though, I must warn you. She makes you look... well, I don't want to say 'weak...'”

Morpheus scowled darkly at this, crossing his forelegs before he snapped: “There is nothing in the entire universe that can make me look weak! I am the most powerful being in the world! I am a god of darkness! I am... I am the king of my dark and terrible and homosexual domain!”

“Oh, will you please stop dragging the fact you're gay into it? Honestly, Moony, no one cares anymore.” Toad groaned, leaning up and adding flatly: “Or are you still insulted that the Canterlot gay pride parade wouldn't let you join in?”

“They are not truly gay! Their rainbows and sashes and fruity uniforms are not a symbol of the true evil that homosexuality is all about!” Morpheus snapped crankily, and then he huffed a bit and crossed his forelegs, muttering: “I didn't want to be part of their stupid parade anyway. And if I really wanted a baton or sash I'd just... take it from one of those silly dancers.”

Throna cleared her throat loudly, and then she said pointedly, dragging Morpheus back on topic: “It might be true that you are very powerful, Moonflower. Perhaps you even are the largest fish in our little pond, as you like to say. But the universe is a very big place, and as I've learned, there are things out there that make even a marlin like you look like a minnow.”

“What's a marlin?” asked the winged unicorn dumbly, and then he cleared his throat and crossed his forelegs, adding hurriedly: “I... know that it's a fish of course. Probably a shirk. There is nothing greater in the sea than shirks, after all, and... even in the ocean of the universe, I am the most dangerous and powerful of all fish.”

“Shark. And it's not. It's more like a swordfish.” Antecedes corrected, glancing over his shoulder at Morpheus.

“That's what I said. What did you think I said? I said shirk.” Morpheus argued, completely oblivious. Antecedes only sighed, and the stallion scowled at the skeleton before he huffed and turned his eyes forwards, saying grouchily: “But enough of your silly metaphors, Throna. Evil does not have time to waste, unless it is good's time that... evil is wasting. Because it has nothing else to do. So. Show me this... 'greater evil.'”

Throna smiled slightly at this, then she glanced over her shoulder and called clearly: “Queen Hecate!”

Morpheus scowled at this... then paled slightly as the double doors to his throne room were smashed open and a massive figure strode slowly inside, ducking under the archway. It was enormous, with a steel body that stood on two legs ending in massive, metal hooves, arms crossed in front of a chest literally chiseled and sculpted from hard metal. But the head that sat atop its shoulders was flesh-and-blood: a pony's face, with pale white hide and sunken, dark sockets, a mane of living electricity and thick black cable floating ominously around her features as a single, steel-sheathed horn gleamed dangerously from her forehead.

Morpheus slowly swallowed as Antecedes stared, and Toad whistled slowly as he leaned over the wall of his aquarium before he said almost admiringly: “Dude. You are so completely screwed.”

“I... well, this is quite a surprise, Throna, you've... manufactured a golem! This is a Draekin design, I expect, yes? No wonder it looks so fearsome.” Morpheus said awkwardly, and then he cleared his throat quickly before adding hurriedly: “Not that I'm afraid at all of this... thing. It's nothing but an animated hunk of metal, after all, nothing that can compare with my-”

“I don't like practical jokes.” Hecate said moodily, and Morpheus' jaw dropped as the mechanical creature turned away from him to glare down at Throna. “I was informed that something of great, incredible power managed to make this entire world blink out of existence for a few minutes. I find it hard to believe that this is the being that pulled it off.”

Morpheus mouthed wordlessly as Throna scowled up at Hecate, stomping one nubby hoof as she replied grumpily: “Well, it's true!” She stopped, then smiled awkwardly when the metallic creature glared down at her, swallowing her childish pique and instead saying finally: “He's... eccentric. And he's not very bright. But he's stubborn and powerful.”

“I... I am the greatest evil that Equestria has ever known! I am the scourge of this country, and I am not about to allow some other false terror to take my place!” Morpheus snapped, but he sounded much more confident than he felt, his legs visibly wobbling even as he forced himself out of his throne to storm off the dais and towards the enormous machine-pony. “Now you just... pick yourself up and leave, do you hear me? Don't force me to bring my powers of darkness to your doorstep, to unleash upon you the same force that killed Celestia!”

Hecate gave a strange, thin smile at this, and then Throna leaned forwards and said awkwardly: “She knows about my sister, Moonflower.”

“Oh. Uh. Well then.” Morpheus halted in front of the mechanical mare, then he looked uncomfortably up at her, saying uneasily: “You're... female?”

“Yes.” Hecate said moodily, and then she rose one claw, a faint glow emanating from her steel-sheathed horn before before several enormous, illusionary walls appeared around her. Morpheus stared at these, then he squawked and flailed violently when a searing light passed over him... before gaping in shock as images of him appeared on these magical, floating screens with a scrawl of runes and numbers. “Interesting...”

“I've never seen an analysis spell so advanced. It must work in conjunction with the technology of your body armor.” Antecedes said thoughtfully as he strode forwards, studying the images intently. “Those runes are not Equestrian in origin...”

Hecate only smiled thinly again, and then she glanced at Throna and questioned casually: “Are you sure that he isn't the one who was pulling the strings all along? He seems to be the more intelligent between the two.”

“Hey, the boss is plenty intelligent!” snapped a voice, and Morpheus yelped as Hecate's eyes flicked down with only the slightest hint of surprise to the earth pony now standing beside Morpheus. “He is honorable, strong, and has cojones like a dragon! A big dragon! Big!”

Hecate scowled slightly, then she returned her eyes to her screen, one claw flicking over the image and causing it to change as she muttered: “There is a thin line between bravery and stupidity. And neither side meshes very well with intellect. But still, he is a winged unicorn... and I suppose he might have a place in my plans yet.”

Morpheus scowled at this, then he stomped one hoof as he shook himself out, saying sourly: “Okay, I've had enough of this nonsense. You may be large and metally, Queen He-Cat, but I doubt your magical prowess is anything compared to my divine power!”

Morpheus snapped his horn to the side, and Hecate grimaced as black lightning sizzled over her armor and her screens whiffed out of existence. The stallion grinned immediately up at her as Neato Burrito cheered, and Antecedes and Throna both shifted uneasily... and then all eyes stared as Hecate simply stepped forwards and punted Morpheus across the room, the stallion rocketing backwards to slam squarely into his throne.

He twitched weakly in his seat, then shook his head hurriedly out before attempting to pose in his throne, forcing a grin despite the fact his chest was already clearly starting to purple as he rasped out: “I see that... you feel you have no choice but to resort to barbarian physical methods in answer to my... majestic powers. But I feel I must warn you, that... I will be forced to retaliate if-”

Hecate began to walk calmly towards him, and Morpheus squeaked and panicked for a moment before hurriedly sitting up as his horn glowed blackly, gritting his teeth before he snapped the spire sharply forwards, sending a black fireball hammering into the mare's steel chest. It struck with enough force to make the goliath stagger with a grunt of surprise, glancing down at her seared armor before she absently brushed a bit of char away, looking surprised as Morpheus shouted: “And that is only a sample of my power! The power that once destroyed this world!”

“You're stronger than I expected. You almost pierced the protective layer. That would require at least six thousand bæns of energy.” Hecate crossed her metal arms, looking meditatively down at him before she said calmly: “I'm here because I lead an organization gathering people from different worlds for a special project. A task force, so to speak. From what the half-dragon has told me, you're a nuisance and an idiot, but you're not a threat to the worlds, in spite of your earlier actions.

“All the same, what you've done hasn't gone unnoticed. Certain interested parties would like to see you punished or imprisoned, even if I've been informed that the tool you used to make this entire world vanish has already been disenchanted.” Hecate gestured towards him. “So really, you don't have a choice in the matter. You can quietly come with me, or I can force you to come with me.”

“What? No! I'm... this is my world!” Morpheus blurted, glaring furiously up at the mare and shaking his head vehemently. “And we all make mistakes and... really, is it such a big deal that I destroyed the world? In the long run it's benefited everybody! Those idiots should be thankful that such a benevolent evil like me exists!”

Antecedes sighed, and Neato Burrito shrugged amiably before the earth pony remarked positively: “The boss kind of has a point, lady. Señor Morpheus did good. I mean. Well. He did great evil, I mean, but it also was good, even if... evil. I do not ever doubt that you are the Emperor of Evil, Señor Morpheus, I mean no disrespect!”

Morpheus sighed tiredly, while Throna stepped forwards with a frown, saying almost worriedly: “Queen Hecate, I... Morpheus serves a purpose here in Equestria. He brings balance-”

“One pony alone does not bring balance.” Hecate said distastefully, and then she scowled down at Throna. “Consider this a free lesson. We all pay the price for our crimes eventually. And we all have to atone, whether we like it or not. Redemption doesn't come with a single act of fixing what you broke in the first place, as nice as that would be.”

“Well, I'm... I will not go without a fight, Queen Hecate! And no matter how fearsome you may look, I defeated the Killing Light, the most dangerous, terrible, violent, cruel...” Morpheus awkwardly came to a halt, then he smiled lamely at Throna as the Draekin mare glared at him. “Uh. Well, she was... very strong.”

Hecate rolled her eyes at this, and then she pointed at Morpheus and said coldly: “I'll make it very simple for you. You're going to come with me. Because of you, the functionality of my Orphanage has been called into question. So you are going to come with me and explain how you managed to make an entire world vanish, and then why this is not going to occur again, and how you can help us ensure that this set of events does not repeat on any other worlds.”

“Orphanage? You look after foals?” asked the winged unicorn dubiously, and Hecate rolled her eyes before Morpheus huffed and leapt out of his seat, grimacing only slightly at the pain that ran through his bruised chest as he snapped: “But I refuse to leave, or to be judged by... an evil council of evil or any force of good or... anyone else, for that matter! I am Morpheus, God of Darkness and Nightmares, and you will-”

Hecate strode forwards and reached down before Morpheus could react, yanking him into the air by his horn, and Morpheus whimpered and flailed wildly in all directions... then squealed and convulsed violently as electricity sizzled and crackled down the mechanical mare's arm and over his entire body, Neato Burrito and Throna both wincing away as Antecedes dropped his face in a hoof.

Then Hecate simply dropped Morpheus, the stallion landing in a smoldering heap on the ground and twitching a bit before he coughed smoke, then forced his head to rise as he slurred out: “That's... that's a good try but... y-you just wait 'til... I...”

He blinked dumbly as he realized there was something hovering over him... and then even Antecedes winced away as Hecate stomped on him. Then again. And again and again and again and again and again, looking irritably down at the stallion as she continued to squash him under one hoof until Throna blurted out: “Stop, he's had enough!”

“Well, I haven't.” Hecate said sourly as she stomped the stallion a few more times, then finally drew her metal hoof back, crossing her arms and glaring down at the winged unicorn. The force of her stomps had actually crushed him partway down through the stone dais... or at least, stone-plated dais, he saw now. The inside was mostly cheap wood, and for once the stallion was glad his stupid goblin minions were always cheating and cutting costs to get things put together faster...

He wheezed a little, then whimpered as Hecate grabbed the back of his neck and tore him free from the crushed stage, immediately covering his head and howling: “Oh god, not in the face! Not in my pretty face!”

Hecate rolled her eyes and slapped his forelegs aside, and then she shook him roughly once before asking menacingly: “Are you going to do what I say?”

“Yes, yes! Okay, you win!” Morpheus wheezed, nodding violently before he trembled a bit, then looked past the mechanical mare at the people who were all staring up at him... helplessly, he thought. And he hated how helpless they looked, as he whispered before he could stop himself: “I'd just started to be happy, though...”

Hecate sighed tiredly, then she half-turned and flung him irritably to the ground in front of Antecedes, Neato Burrito, and Throna, the mechanical mare saying flatly: “I have no patience for crybabies. Hurry up and say your goodbyes, Morpheus. Then we'll go to the Orphanage, a place for... other ponies like you.”

Morpheus dropped his head silently as he picked himself slowly up, then he glanced over his shoulder... but his whole body was shivering in pain, and he was very well aware that Hecate hadn't even had to try to put him in this much agony. Throna had been right... he was a big fish here, but apparently that meant very little in the grand scheme of things.

“I'm sorry, Moonflower. I... I didn't mean for this to happen. Please believe that.” Throna said quietly, and the stallion gave a brief smile to her before she lowered her head and laughed a little. “Princess Luna will miss you, too... you... kept things interesting.”

“I... I know. But...” Morpheus halted, looking uneasily over his shoulder at Hecate before he sighed and smiled faintly, turning his eyes towards Antecedes. “I know you're all nice these days and all that, my friend, but... you'll keep things going, won't you?”

“Not as well as you always did, perhaps, but I'll do my best, Moonflower.” Antecedes replied softly, and then he hesitated before holding up a hoof.

Morpheus smiled as he took it and shook it firmly, then he turned his eyes towards Neato Burito, who was rubbing at his glaring eyes as his lower lip trembled, struggling to contain himself before he simply burst into tears and flung himself forwards to hug the winged unicorn fiercely. Morpheus groaned in agony, but then he awkwardly reached up and patted the little stallion on the back a few times, mumbling: “It'll... it'll be all right, Neato Burrito. You just... take care.”

Neato blubbered some response as he pulled back, then he sat down and rubbed miserably at his eyes. Morpheus smiled at him awkwardly, then glanced down curiously as Toad hopped up beside him, the amphibian looking up at him before he said awkwardly: “Hey, uh, boss, we've... we've been through a lot together and... well. If you don't mind... I think I'll come with you. No offense, guys, but... Moony's kind of family and all.”

Morpheus glanced over his shoulder at Hecate, and the mare sighed tiredly before she gave a brief nod, muttering: “Why not? And if it'll get you all to stop whimpering, he'll be allowed to return after he makes amends for his past actions.”

The stallion looked up hopefully at this, and then he gave a brief laugh before murmuring: “Thank you, Hecate...” He stopped, then puffed up his chest, turning towards her and adding almost mockingly: “Of course, if you'd be more willing to just explain things instead of continuing to make surprise attacks in order to try and establish how much stronger-”

Hecate pointed at him, and Morpheus squealed in agony as electricity zapped over his body, jittering wildly back and forth before he flopped to the ground in a semi-conscious heap. Toad winced away from the sparking stallion's body, and then he made a sound of disgust as he hopped backwards, complaining: “Oh gross, I think you made him pee himself.”

“Wonderful.” Hecate muttered, and the mechanical mare shook her head in disgust before she strode forwards and hefted the winged unicorn up by the scruff of his neck. Then she turned a dark look over the other three as Toad awkwardly hopped up to cling to Morpheus' mane, the mechanical mare pointing at them and threatening: “If anything like this ever happens again, I will return, and I will not be nearly as kind as I have here.”

With that, Hecate turned and simply rose her free claw, and the earth pony, skeleton, and Draekin stared in amazement as a portal swirled into being. Without hesitation, Hecate strode into this vortex and vanished into it, along with Morpheus and Toad.

And only a moment later, the portal vanished, leaving the three standing silently for a few moments in Morpheus' throne room before Neato Burrito asked quietly: “Do you think... Señor Morpheus, is he gonna be okay?”

“I'm sure he will. As long as he keeps his mouth shut around Hecate... he'll be fine. Moonflower's always found a way out of any of the trouble he ever got himself into...” Antecedes shook his head wryly. “He'll wiggle his way out of this, too. And he might even enjoy the challenge.”

Neato Burrito nodded: slowly at first, but then it picked up into a fierce bobbing before he shouted: “Right! That's right! Nothing can keep Señor Morpheus down, not nothing! And while he is gone, we shall continue his work, right?”

Throna smiled briefly at this, shaking her head slowly before she said softly: “Good. Hecate... Hecate does at least seem to have a vested interest in protecting us. 'All of us,' she said to me: she explained that there were many parallel worlds to our own, but wouldn't go into great detail about it. And she mentioned her Orphanage, too... she said she was gathering people who had nowhere else to go, and giving them training and a place to live and work as long and participate in this special army she's building. She was certainly frightening, but...”

“She looked familiar.” Antecedes said thoughtfully, and Throna nodded, the two looking at each other for few a moments before Antecedes shrugged slowly, and the Draekin smiled faintly. And since no one knew what else to say, the three only stood in quiet for a little while, turning their eyes towards the space where Hecate had simply walked away with Morpheus, and hoping silently that their eccentric friend was doing okay, wherever he had gone... and that one day, he'd return.

Twilight Sparkle sat in her private room at Canterlot Castle, quietly finishing up a few notes for Princess Luna. She rubbed absently at a thin scar on her stomach: a reminder of what Stronghold Halfdragon had done to her, and a reminder of why blind loyalty and love were such dangerous things.

To this day, she still felt that some part of Stronghold had loved her. And part of her refused to believe that it had been a Draekin all along, not... Celestia. She had thought she'd known the real Princess Celestia, that she had been one of the privileged few to truly know her inside and out... but as it turned out, she hadn't really known anything at all.

The violet mare sighed quietly, then closed the book she was working on, looking down at it for a few moments before she flinched at the sound of a knock on her open door. She spun around in the chair, then blushed a bit as she saw Throna Halfdragon, the mare giving her a small smile before she said quietly: “I just wanted to check up on you.”

“Thank you, I'm... I'm fine. I'm... getting over what happened, I think. I can't forgive Morpheus, but... I also know that what happened... who Celestia really was...” Twilight looked away, biting her lip before she shook her head slowly and murmured: “I don't want to talk about it.”

“You've pulled away from everyone. Your friends, Princess Luna, myself... I understand why you might not want to talk to me, Twilight Sparkle, but I'm also the only person who can understand a little of what you're going through right now. I saw my sister turn herself into something false and bad, trying to do what was 'good' in her eyes for all the wrong reasons...” Throna smiled faintly as Twilight turned away, shaking her head shortly. “Alright. Well, if you're not busy, Princess Luna requests an audience. She wants you to help with the Tablet of Dreams. Stripping its powers was surprisingly easy, but it's proving very difficult to make it take to its new function as an archiver.”

“I'll see what I can do.” Twilight murmured, looking down and nodding once. Throna nodded briefly, then turned away... and the unicorn bit her lip for a moment before looking up and asking hesitantly: “Is... Stronghold only used good magic, didn't she?”

“There's no such thing as 'good' or 'evil' magic, Twilight Sparkle. Only what you control, and what you allow to control you. Holy magic can be as terrible as dark magic. And dark magic can bring as much hope as any 'pure' magic.” Throna said softly, looking over her shoulder and smiling faintly. “My sister believed in the teachings of the Order of the White Dragon. She served the Order of the White Dragon loyally and honorably. But she used to treat me like a child because, instead of putting my faith in what they said... I just believed in God. God and, well, Mommy too. But my sister and my mother never... entirely got along.”

There was silence for a few moments, and then Twilight Sparkle nodded briefly, and Throna chuckled before she turned away, deciding not to press the subject. She could only hope that one day, Twilight would learn to trust again... but it would be a long, hard, and painful road for her, especially if she kept turning away her friends.

But Twilight's friends would always be there for her, even if at the moment, they were trying to give her some space to work things out. For now, the five were back in Ponyville, sitting at a table outside of the most popular candy shop in all of Ponyville... with a sixth, only slightly uncomfortable guest who was only holding his mug of tea between his skeletal hooves.

Antecedes looked back and forth, and then he sighed a little before dropping his head, muttering: “If Moonflower could see me now, he'd have a laughing fit.”

“Oh, do tell us another story about that handsome stallion!” Rarity exclaimed, gesturing easily at Antecedes with a warm smile. “You have so many wonderful little tales about your adventures... I never realized that you were such a wild stallion yourself!”

“I wouldn't call it 'adventuring.' And it's not really all that thrilling when there's no risk of death.” Antecedes replied dryly, gesturing at himself pointedly. Then he sighed and shrugged a bit, adding finally: “But Moonflower has always been a magnet for trouble, that's all. Just look at how he met Neato Burrito.”

“Aye, he saved me from the most fierce of dragons! Señor Morpheus, though, he was never afraid of nothing!” shouted the earth pony's voice as he seemed to pop into being next to Antecedes. The skeleton didn't flinch, although Fluttershy squeaked and Rainbow Dash choked on her food.

Then Neato's eyes flicked sharply to the side, and he leapt across the table, knocking Applejack sprawling as he landed between her and Pinkie Pie. He dropped one elbow on the surface of the furnishing, almost glaring down at the mare as he flicked his mustache out, and Pinkie Pie gazed back up at him with something like wonder in her eyes before the stallion suddenly snatched her up and dipped her back, leaning over her and saying firmly: “Señorita. You are coming with me.”

“Okay.” Pinkie Pie said breathlessly, her eyes sparkling up at him.

“Then we go!” roared Neato Burrito, and he seized the table with one hoof and flung it to the side, sending plates and napkins and food and ponies flying in all directions. Then he tossed Pinkie over his shoulders before leaping forwards and bolting away down the street, the raucous laughter of the stallion and the giggling of the mare slowly fading into the distance.

Antecedes rolled his eyes, sipping at his tea as the remaining mares picked themselves slowly up, and then he carefully slipped out of his seat and put the cup down on the chair, saying mildly: “As nice as it's been, girls, I have to go to Canterlot now. Would you like me to pass on any messages to Twilight Sparkle while I'm there?”

The four mares looked between themselves, and then Rainbow Dash smiled a little and shook her head, saying finally: “Nah, we gotta let her come around on her own time, right guys? And... hey, don't go abandoning us just because you don't wanna help clean up this mess.”

Antecedes looked at her dourly, then he simply flicked his horn, and all four mares stared as the table immediately righted itself and the plates, food, and utensils all flew back into place, broken porcelain mending itself and candy and drinks rearranging themselves as neatly as possible. Then the skeleton turned away, asking himself why he bothered with these ponies...

“Thank you, Mister Antecedes.” murmured Fluttershy quietly, and the skeleton glanced over his shoulder as the crimson glow in his eyes softened, the question answered for him before it could even be fully processed in his mind.

Maybe ponies weren't so bad after all. He just hoped that one day, Moonflower would be able to come back and see for himself the impact he'd had... and that even evil ponies like them didn't have to be villains all the time.