Of Blades and Demons

Chapters

Nightmare's Return (redone)
Meet the Hunters
Dark Research

Nightmare's Return (redone)

A young colt woke up with a start, hearing the sounds of fighting outside. His coat was a royal blue with his mane and tail being a lighter shade, his small frame present under the covers of his bed. As he got up to look outside his wings grew visible, smaller than average near the point of being considered deformed. His father had always assured him that he was just a late bloomer and his wings would grow with time. His father always told him to be strong and have faith in himself, something he often lacked despite his father being among the vanguard of the fort.

At Fort Neighers the creatures of the badlands only attacked it at night, the ponies who lived there sleeping during the day and awake at night. As such they were more reverent to Princess Luna than they were to Celestia, especially now that she had returned from her exile. Even the children were told stories about their Princess of the Night, how she had to go beyond the heavens to keep watch on them from the stars prior to her return. They were the wall that kept the dangers out of Equestria, they were the vanguard that kept peace for their country. Still, it did little to ease the nerves of the soldiers that stood watch. Each night it seemed they would either be facing some monster or a small force of changelings. Either way there always seemed to be fighting in the darkness around the village.

As the young colt looked out the window he was almost immediately blinded by the sunlight, surprised there was so much activity so early. After a few moments of his eyes adjusting to the brightness he saw something that horrified him. Fires were strewn all across the fort. The alarm bells were ringing furiously. Soldiers were running and fighting through the streets. Pegusi soldiers were flying above and getting shot down with black arrows, falling to their deaths below. There was only one word that described what the young colt saw: hell. This was more than enough to shock the drowsiness from his system and made him rush to the main floor of his home, watching his father donned in full armor and a spear across his back as he spoke to his wife.

The soldier's name was Galeblade, a stout pegasus stallion with a dark gray coat and a silver mane. His cutiemark was of a spear piercing through the heavens. His armor was not the gold of the royal guard of Canterlot but functional steel plate, the old dress armor discarded long ago by the soldiers of the fort in favor of better protection in their battles. He looked into the eyes of his wife with concern and fear in his eyes.

"Swift, you need to get Bladechaser out of here! The enemy has breached the gate and I don’t know how long we can hold the fort. The town isn't safe for you, you need to get to Canterlot right away. You need to get out of here."

Across from the warrior was a pegasus mare, her coat a deep lavender with a deep blue mane. Adorning her flanks was a wing lifted over a heart. She wore nothing save a set of saddle bags that were hastily strewn across her back, a short blade at her side should she need to protect herself.

"But what about you Gale? The soldiers are dying out there! Nopony should be forced to have to fight and die like this! Please, you have to come with us!"

The stallion shook his head. "As an officer I have a duty to lead my men. I cant abandon my squad like that Swiftwing."

"And you cant abandon your family like this! I wont let my son grow up without a father. I will not!"

"Mom? Dad? Whats going on?"

The two parents swung their heads to see their son, Gale quickly trotting over and resting a hoof at his son's side.

"Blade, I need you and your mom to go out for a while. Things are a little hectic here and I don’t want anything to happen to you. I'll send for you when it's safe, I promise."

The young colt was hardly naive as he clung to his father's leg, crying for his father. "Please don't go dad! I don't wanna leave without you. I wont!"

"Blade, there isn't a choice. I can't just-"

Swiftwing bolted forward and took her son's side.

"You can and you will, I'm not going to carry my son out of here unless you're with us. You're a soldier, you're supposed to protect those in need right? Well, these two civilians need an escort out of the combat zone and to safety in Canterlot. Isn't it YOUR job to make sure we're safe?"

Gale sighed and shook his head, a smirk on his face as he looked up at Swift. "Sometimes I regret marrying you, always getting me in trouble with that loophole logic of yours. Fine, lets go, quickly!"

Gale grabbed his son and helped him into one of the saddle bags, making sure he couldn't fall out accidentally during their flight from the fort. As soon as they got out of their home a group of pony bandits turned the corner. "Look boss, seems like we got more target practice. Hey army boy, why don't you get a shot at these whelps."

From within the rabble of dirt caked ponies walked out a unicorn wearing the Fort Neigher's guard armor, stripes on the shoulder guards of the armor to show his rank as a lieutenant. His coat was a dark purple, nearing black with a mane that was a few shades darker. His cutiemark was of a black curved dagger. "Well well, seems Sergeant Gale is thinking about missing the fun. Tsk tsk."

Gale scowled as he saw his fellow officer strode out from the group, his anger rising seeing the traitor responsible. "Lieutenant Grimm, I figured you would sell rations for bits but this is a whole new low for you. I should have just run you through the first day I met you."

"Ah! Temper sergeant. We don’t want to set a bad example for your son now do we? Now, how about you die like a good obedient soldier. Don't worry, your wife and brat will be with you soon enough."

The bandits sprung into action and tried to overwhelm Gale, the soldier quickly bringing out his spear and impaling one of the attackers and swatting off the other two. "Swift go, NOW!"

The worry and fear in her husband's voice showed this was their only choice, tears rolling down her cheeks as she turned and flapped into the air. "Goodbye.."

As the son and mother ascended Gale began to spin his spear about, holding off the group of attackers.

Gale continued to fight off the two grunts until his son was too far away to see. Once he was clear the pegasus delivered two quick and precise thrusts to the throats of the bandits, the brigands clutching their throats and keeling over. Grimm scowled and barked to the others. “Get your bows out and shoot the whore and brat down! I'll take care of this wretch myself.” With the orders given the bandits ran after the two, Gale confident his wife and son would escape. In the meantime, he had a score to settle.

“By the authority given to me by the Fort Neigher's guard force, I hereby arrest you for the deaths of everypony at Fort Neighers and treason to the crown. How do you plead?”

Grimm simply smirked confidently and drew his blade, poising it ready to strike. “Oh, how I would love to see you pull that off. This should be fun to see you fail. Very well, I plead guilty. Now, lets see you try to execute me.”

(Treachery)

Gale quickly lunged forward, the tip of the spear quickly deflected with the magically raised blade, Grimm moving in to lunge before the pegasus parries the attack with the haft of the spear. The pegasus managed to get some distance away from the skilled blade. If he could just keep his distance he would be able to take Grimm down. This however was easier said then done, the dark unicorn guard darting right at the lance wielder with a dozen swift thrusts which Gale was barely able to avoid. Something was off, Grimm was much stronger than normal. The pegasus was barely blocking the attacks in time, the traitor Grimm seeming to change. His coat was growing darker, a black aura seemed to be seeping from his eyes. This was getting bad. However, he wasn't out just yet.

Quickly taking to the skies he began to make attack runs against Grimm, swooping down and delivering swift attacks to wear the unicorn down. The pegasus guard managed to deliver wound after wound but nothing that seemed to even give Grimm pause, merely weakening him slightly. This continued blow after blow until Grimm had enough of these games. Charging his horn he shot two magical bolts at Gale, barely dodging the first while the second went right through his left wing. The guard could just barely glide safetly down onto the ground, fatigued and in severe pain by his crippled wing.

Gale barely managed to get enough distance to ready himself, knowing he had to either end this now or never. He lunged forward with everything going behind his attack, forgoing defense for one vital hit. He already knew that either way he would die. He had to hit, he couldn't miss! Grimm had to use his blade to force the tip of the spear away, just far enough for it to glance against his flank armor. Gale failed to notice the dagger being pulled out from Grimm's side, not before it was thrust right into his throat. Drops of blood seeped from his neck wound onto the haft of his spear, his grip faltering and his body collapsing to the side. As he lay there, the last bit of his life flowing out from his throat, he saw Grimm standing over him, his spear gripped in the traitors magical grasp. Those terrible words echoing in his final moments.

“You're family will join you soon worm.”

"Daddy's going to beat them and catch up with us, right mom?"

Swiftwing was just barely holding it together, knowing the truth that she would never see her husband again. Her face glistened with tears of the greatest sorrow one could imagine: losing the one you loved most in this world. However, she didn't have the luxury of mourning now. She still had to get her son to safety and make sure her husband did not die for nothing. As she thought she would make it past the wall of the fortress she felt a sharp sting in her right wing, a barbed black arrow shot clean through and she was losing altitude.

"Mom!" Blade scrambled out of the saddle bag and clung to her mother's side, beating his small wings as hard as he could but unable to get enough lift to stop their fall. Swiftwing struggled but was able to flap enough with her son to slow their fall, quickly turning and cradling her son between her legs to keep him safe. Swiftwing landed with a loud thud and a sickening crack, feeling the bones in her other wing break from the landing. Most would have gone unconscious from the fall, but Swift had too much to do before she could even think about stopping. She needed to keep her son safe. Seeing an old rotted tree nearby she put him inside a small hole in the trunk, just large enough to fit him without being seen as well as letting him see what was happening outside. He was battered and bruised in the fall but had no serious injuries. She looked to her son and gave him a stern look.

"Stay here and be quiet. Unless your father, myself, or a member of the royal guard get you I don't want you to leave this spot."

"Mom, you gotta hide too! We just need to stay and rest and then we can go like dad wanted. Please!"

Swiftwing heard hoof steps coming and motioned for her son to stay, turning around to see Grimm walking towards her with her husband's spear at his side. With a smirk he tossed the weapon to her hooves, blood splattered over the haft of the polearm as tears came to her eyes. "You.. YOU MONSTER!"

Bereft with grief and rage Swiftwing drew her short blade and charged at her husband's murderer, Grimm quickly catching the blade in his magic and impaling the mare with his sword. Blade could barely keep from breaking down as he saw it, his mother run through by the same stallion who killed his father. As he held in the panic and fury he remembered what his mother told him, to stay quiet and wait for help. Soon enough, Grimm withdrew his blade and trotted off, letting the young colt wallow in his sorrow until he felt he had no more tears to shed.

What felt like an eternity later, after fainting in that rotted out tree and letting himself just sit there and die, he heard hoof steps coming to the tree. A gruff voice could be heard even in the young colt's stupor.

"I'm sorry Princess Celestia, it seems every pony here has been killed. This outpost was completely overwhelmed."

A regal sounding voice came in reply, soothing and radiant though also sorrowful.

"I understand Major. As sad as I am to say it part of me always figured there would be no survivors.."

A third voice came, much like the second but less mature and experienced.

"And to think sister, this fort was one of the few places that truly understood my night."

"I know sister, I'm sorry you had to see this. I know you loved this place dearly Luna."

The name resonated within the young colt's mind, immediately recognizing it as hope. He was saved! Groaning out from both the pain of his injuries and the pains of his own empty stomach he worked his way to the opening of the hole in the tree, seeing the two princesses and guards all over searching the ruins. "Luna.."

The lunar Princess turned around to the source of the voice, her eyes going wide as she bolted to the young colt. "Sister! We found one!"

Celestia turned toward her sister and followed suit, the major calling for a medic before joining the two princesses. Luna arrived first and levitated Blade out of the tree and onto the grass, laying him out as comfortably as she could as a unicorn medic came up to them and started tending to Blade. The young colt was slowly blinking awake, seeing the Lunar Princess over him speaking along with Celestia and the Major. "It's OK. You're safe now."

As Luna was comforting him he saw another Princess Luna walk into his field of vision, the others fading into mist and leaving behind a blank landscape.

"You know Blade, you really should sleep at normal hours of the night instead of during the day. As much as I love you enjoying my night I'm not usually dreamwalking during the daylight hours."

Bladechaser, now much older began to get up, the old wounds gone and his wings an appropriate size for a pegasus his age and strength. His stout body was firm and quick, honed after years on the guard. The cutiemark adorning his flank was of a single sword pointing upward with wings sprouting from the hilt.

"Heh, what can I say? My sleeping habit is one of the few things I kept after Fort Neighers. Besides, fits my schedule as a Lunar guard rather well. Anyway, I'm flattered that you went dreamwalking just for little old me." His attitude toward the Princess was far less formal and revering after years of spending time with her, whether on his patrols at night or as her personal escort. He was one of the few who bothered to join the Lunar guard voluntarily and ended up as one of those assigned to her protection.

Luna's gaze showed concern for her friend, knowing that what she would tell him later would bring about a change in the pegasus. However, it was something she could only entrust to him. "Blade, I- I actually wish to speak with you tonight. When you start your shift please come to my quarters. We'll have much to discuss."

Blade was a little put off by the mystery as Luna severed her connection, slowly waking up and going about her day until he could start his shift.

Night had fallen just as Blade put on the rest of his armor, rather nervous about what Luna wished to discuss with him. After knowing her for so long he didn't often see her worried like this. Last time was when there was an assassination plot on the three princess's lives. Sure, he had the chance to meet Princess Twilight in person, but could something of that scale be in the works? A smirking red unicorn bumped into Blade's side and chuckled. "Well come on Blade, whats with the glum face?"

Wearing identical armor stood a red unicorn with a slicked back silver mane and unkempt tail, his cutiemark of a shield with a crescent moon. His left ear was also scarred, half having been torn off long ago.

"Ah, hello Knightstar. Good to see you're feeling good tonight. The Princess asked me to meet her in her room. Seems rather important. And before you ask I'll introduce you when you can stop swooning over her long enough to make a good impression."

The unicorn rolled his eyes at the pegasus. "Hey, not like I can get her to even look at me. You met here as a colt and stayed in contact since you came to Canterlot. It's not like we all have your advantage." Blade's gaze went downward as he remembered what had happened all those years ago, Knightstar immediately picking up on it. "Ah crap. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories. It's the anniversary of the incident, isn't it?"

Blade nodded solemnly. "Twenty years. Twenty years since Neighers was destroyed. Twenty years since I lost..." The pegasus could barely stand to mention it, shaking his head before Knightstar pulled him close.

"Listen, you have family here. Your mother Maddie, your brother Shade, hell, even me and the other guards here. We all got your back through thick and thin."

Blade gave his friend a warm smile, nodding as he calmed his nerved. "Thanks Knight, I needed that. Anyway, better get to your station before Nightwing shows up and makes you trot laps around the city again."

Knight wasted no time in dashing toward his post, the blue pegasus lifting off to meet the Princess as requested.

After a few minutes of navigating the insanely large castle he arrived at a large circular door emblazoned with Luna's moon insignia. Giving a quick knock he waited.

"Please, come in."

With the OK from Luna he opened the door and walked in, Luna sitting at a desk looking over a report. She looked up at Blade and back to her desk, having second thoughts about this action but knowing it was too late to change her mind.

"Blade, we have received reports of a criminal siting. Keep in mind I wouldn't normally be telling you this but it does concern you. We've spotted former Lieutenant Grimm near the border to the Changeling badlands."

As soon as that name was mentioned a fire was rekindled in his chest. Grimm, the pony who had betrayed Neighers and destroyed his home. Grimm, who had went and attacked his father, the pony's own comrade in arms. Grimm, the pony had had heartlessly slaughtered his own mother right before his eyes. There was only one thought going through Blade's mind: Vengeance.

"How old is this report? We need to create a hunting team immediately to find him. I swear I will-"

"Blade enough!" Luna's voice boomed with a hint of the Royal Canterlot Voice, silencing him for a moment.

"Blade, I didn't ask you to come here so you can pursue some vendetta. I asked you here because I know you are one of the best guards in my Lunar regiment as well as someone I feel I can trust to see this through. I want you to swear to me that you will capture him alive if possible."

Blade was almost ready to just fly off on his own to find that murderer when Luna stopped him short, sighing to himself and nodding. "Fine, I'll try to get him alive. No guarantees though. I may have to kill him if we get into a fight."

Luna was about to stare Blade down when she heard him relent on that, a surprised smile coming to her face. "I know how much this man has harmed you, but we must keep justice in mind when we go after a criminal. Kill if you must in this case, but we want him alive. There is a bigger threat than him, a MUCH bigger threat that we believe he has ties with and even aided in the destruction of Neighers."

Blade's brow furrowed at the thought, wondering what might have the power to do such a thing. "What could this threat possibly be? How can it dwarf what Grimm has done?"

Luna's eyes grew sorrowful, knowing that it was partially her fault that this had happened. "Tell me Blade, are you familiar with the tale of my banishment?"

Grimm was leading a small band of renegade ponies through the caverns of the badlands, leading his new recruits to his master and the one who had gifted him with his power. He was barely recognizable now, his mane and tail taking on the look of ethereal smoke as his eyes had become slitted and serpentine. His power had also grown considerably since the attack on Neighers 20 years ago. Ah, how he relished that battle! Slicing Gale's throat open and pouring his blood onto the stone below. Running Swiftwing through the chest and discarding her like common trash. Crushing every pony who dared oppose him and even those who tried to run from him. That first surge of power was truly glorious!

Soon he arrived at an ornate antechamber, the ponies behind him baffled by the construction and wondering about their new boss. As they came upon a diagram on the floor, Grimm gave a toothy grin and called out. "My Master, I have brought you more soldiers to join our cause."

An unearthly cackle seemed to echo throughout the caverns and the chamber, a feminine and truly dreadful voice seemed to come from both everywhere and nowhere. "Ah, so good to see you remaining loyal Grimm. You have done quite well as my apprentice. Now, to prepare this new bunch of rabble to gain true power."

Grimm stepped out of the circle as it began to glow blood red, walls of energy surrounding the ritual circle as the marauders bucked and punched at the walls. However, after only a few moments they had begun to scream and convulse in pain, their bodies morphing and changing from within in a twisted way. Their organs felt like they were melting and freezing all over in a new order, shadows coating their bodies and melting their flesh before reshaping them into something truly vile. Once the transformation had been completed they stood as menacing golems of ponykind, their coats pitch black with ebony wings and horns made ready for battle. Their eyes opened to show spheres of purple, glowing with a dark aura as the shadows themselves reshaped the bodies in their image. Their minds were gone, warped into beasts by the darkness within the caverns. Grimm smirked seeing the new battalion made ready, turning to the ethereal form taking shape beside him.

Though far from solid it had a dominant physical presence, shifting shadows all in the shape of a tall alicorn, mane and tail billowing pure shadows in it's wake. "Soon, we shall be ready to destroy this pathetic land. Peace and harmony have made them weak, unable to survive. We shall shatter their fragile reality. But first, I need a proper body. Not some vagabond off the street or bandit, but a true scion of magical power on par with Starswirl the Bearded himself. Then we shall truly be unstoppable! Luna is no longer an option. She will expect me to use her. Celestia even more so since she herself banished me before. That upstart Cadance has nowhere near the power I require and is too far away for my essence to survive. No, we need that new Princess, Twilight Sparkle. You must break her heart and bring her to me. This time I shall consume her completely and take full control of her lifeless husk. Bring her to me Grimm, and you shall be rewarded with power second only to my own."

The evil purple stallion bowed with a toothy grin. "Yes my Master, Nightmare Moon.”

Author's Note

Whew! New project idea that has been festering i my head for a bit. EIA is on hiatus until I iron out the backstory for our group here in the prequel. I'm aiming for this not to just be exposition on the characters but a thrilling story in and of itself. Dark tragedies leaving the seeds of fury and vengeance, a secret plan to destroy Equestria and control it forever, not to mention more subplots as we go along. I hope to see this story flourish as I add more chapters along with D&D Equestria.

EDIT: I inserted the fight between Gale and Grimm. Seemed a little disappointing to leave them there so I found a nice fitting soundtrack and wrote it up. It's funny what you can imagine with the right music.

Meet the Hunters

Blade pondered on the implications of what Princess Luna had just revealed to him. Could Grimm have been manipulated into destroying Neighers? He found it somewhat unlikely but he couldn't deny that he had changed suddenly, even when he was just a young colt. Grimm was like an uncle to him and a brother to his father. Sure, he was a bit of a renegade and disobeyed orders from time to time, but it was usually to help somepony with a more discreet problem. The rations he sometimes snuck off with he would give to the poor and hungry in the city though he was rumored to just sell them. He was practically family to Blade before the incident. This struck him particularly hard over the next few years of his life as he came to terms with this. All this time he had disconnected himself from Grimm as family and only saw him as an enemy for the longest time. He needed to think, to ponder what he would do when he confronted the one who had destroyed everything.

"Princess I- I appreciate you telling me this. More than you know. I need to think about things for a bit before I go and start hunting him down." Luna sighed and shook her head. "You have three days to prepare before your team is sent out. By that time I hope you'll have decided on how to approach him on this matter."

Bladechaser blinked a few times in surprise. "Team? What do you-" As he was about to ask a knock was heard at the door, Luna looking around Blade and calling out to them.

"Enter."

Two ponies in Lunar armor stepped int the room, the first a stout unicorn mare, dark navy blue coat and unkempt mane kept under her helmet. On her flank was a kite shield emblazoned with a crescent moon and a scythe crossing behind it. Behind her was Knightstar, blushing and trying not to make a fool of himself as he met his crush. Blade though was still quite surprised to see his closest friend and his CO in the office with him. He looked to Luna for an explanation which she gladly offered.

"This is an important mission and I know this is of a... personal interest to you. I'm not taking any chances of Grimm escaping. If we make too big of a team though he may catch on and know we're coming. If he just sees you, he'll figure you seek revenge and that he has not been discovered. Knightstar is skilled with combat magic and I have read reports that you two work exceptionally well together. Roshie will be joining you as the chief investigator on the mission. She has had commendations for her skills in investigations and being level headed in tense situations."

Bladechaser took a step forward. "I must object to this Luna. I can understand your reasoning for this choice but I cant take my friends with me on this one. This is too personal for me to drag them along like this."

Luna gave her friend a steady glare, no different fro one she would give to any other insubordinate guard. "It is exactly for that reason that I cannot let you go alone. The fact that you are personally invested in this is reason enough to keep you out of this investigation. Roshie will make the decisions in this case. Your role is mainly as a scout and to give your insight into Grimm, help Roshie understand how he thinks so we can apprehend him and take him in for judgment. I saw what he did to your home, both in your dreams and visiting the aftermath in person. He will face justice but it must be done properly, through the right processes. But most importantly, you will need the help to apprehend who I fear is the mastermind of all of this. We have no idea how Nightmare moon may be involved or how powerful she may be. That is why I am also assigning a member of our scientific division to your group. Where is he anyway?"

As soon as Luna had uttered those words they could smell burning hair and flesh as a white and slightly charred unicorn stallion entered the room. His lab coat had burns on it and a few lingering embers as well, one burnt hole large enough to show the bucky ball on his flank. His mane was messy and dark, a pair of spectacles on his face. "Heheh, sorry about being late. Bit of a.. situation on my way here. Apparently changeling goo can explode if exposed to crystals from the Crystal Empire." Bladechaser and Roshie shook their heads disapprovingly, knowing how often Bucky's experiments seemed to 'incidentally' explode without warning.
Knightstar facehoofed at Buckyball's entry, shaking his head and forgetting his crush for a second. "OK, so we have a demolitions expert joining us as well. But when do we meet the actual scientist pony?"

Bucky, as if not recognizing the disappointment in the eyes of his colleagues, simply smiled. "I am the science pony. Now then, I'm looking forward to this experimen- I mean, mission." His colleagues simply sighed and shook their heads, Luna giggling a bit to herself at their antics. "Anyway, that will due for now. Each of you will be getting the files when your shifts end for the night. Everypony but Bladechaser is dismissed."The three other ponies all went back to their duties for the night, leaving Blade to watch over Princess Luna as he always did. During that whole night he pondered about what he would do when it came time to confront Grimm. For now, he knew what he had to do tomorrow.

It was bright out as his shift finally ended, storing away his armor and heading to his old home. After the fort Neigher's incident he had been adopted and he still kept in touch with his adopted family. Sort of. It was a strange relationship anyway you looked at it but there was love there. Mostly snide quips and sarcasm, but some love too. Last he heard his brother Shade was still gambling in Las Pegasus and his adopted mother was still going to the hospital every other week for some illness she thought she had for one reason or another. Mostly the doctors just ran the tests to humor her at this point.

He slowly got to the door and turned the handle, slowly opening it and trying not to make a sound. As he poked his head to see if the coast was clear his nose picked up the telltale scent of cigarette smoke, sighing and resigning himself to what was to come. He now stepped in openly and turned to the counter. "Hi mom."

At the counter was an older unicorn mare, well into her 60s with pale short spiky hair and a coat just as white. On her flank was a cigarette and a red plus sign, showing her talent for smoking and as a nurse. She put it out with a playful smirk. "Oh hello Blade, so nice of you to drop by! Least you actually came to visit instead of sending another one of those letters."

Blade's expression reflected the awkwardness of the situation, having spent the last few months so wrapped up with his duties that he rarely got the time to do more than send a letter every month. "Ya, about that... Things have been just kinda hectic with work, protecting the Princess and all that. Luna really liked that souffle you sent me."

Blade's mother, Maddie, simply rolled her eyes. "Really? One bad dish and you actually asked the Princess to be your taste tester? Probably said it was a gift from your mother to her right?" The pegasus gulped silently, knowing that was almost exactly how it played out. Deciding it couldn't be worse than the situation as it was, he decided to come clean about his reason for coming. "I- I need to grab a few things from storage, from when I first came here from Neighers." There was a long pause in the room, he could feel Maddie's gaze practically drilling into him. He was wrong, THIS was worse.

"Blade, you need to stop thinking like that. The guard will catch the ones responsible. It's not our place to gain vengeance for whats been done." The pegasus sighed and shook his head. "I've been assigned to hunting Grimm down. The ball is in my court now. I'll need every bit of strength I can get to face this." Wordlessly he went up to his old room and went into his closet, finding the familiar spear and bringing it out. Dust and blood stain not withstanding, it was very well kept and cared for by him until he left for the guard. Now though, now he would confront Grimm with the very weapon he took from his father's corpse. Maddie stood in the doorway, watching her adopted son. "Blade, I need you to promise me something."

The pegasus didn't turn his head, nor made any sign he had heard her at first, taking in a breath and turning to her. "Ya?"
"I want you to promise me that no matter what happens, no matter what he has done, you will try to bring him back alive. That you wont kill another pony in cold blood. If you do that then you go down the same road he took. I don't want to lose my son." Maddie pleaded with tear filled eyes, hoping, praying her son would listen to her. Blade sighed and nodded. "Ya, the Princess said pretty much the same. Alright, I'll do my best. I'll fight to defend myself but I'll take him back to Canterlot if I can." Blade's mother held him close, the guard wrapping one foreleg around his mother while the other still held the spear. Despite this he was still rather conflicted about this.

"I should go see the Captain. God knows his is the opinion I should get before I set out." Maddie nodded in agreement, knowing that stallion was the one who initially helped bring him back those years ago when he was just a major in the Equestrian military. With a quick farewell Blade strapped the spear across his back and took off, knowing just where to find his old friend."

Blade touched down at the guard's training grounds about an hour after leaving his mother's home, getting the spear off of his back and holding it firmly in his hooves. Slowly he raised himself upright, standing on his rear hooves as was necessary for many non-unicorn guards to use their weapons at their best. Strangely enough it was a mint green unicorn from Ponyville who first took note of the advantages of standing on one's rear legs, something the military adopted to improve the skills of the guard. In any case, Blade was just thankful this stance offered him the flexibility of movement to use his weapon at his best. He began to deftly swing the weapon about, remembering the drills he was instructed in back when he was just a rookie. He spun the bladed staff about, facing a horde of mental enemies aiming to kill him. Though there was one thing lacking with this method of training: while your opponent was always highly skilled, they were also easily defeated. Something that was about to be corrected by a certain spectator.
"Good to see you haven't slacked off with your form Blade. Wish I could say the rest of the guard bothered with practicing after graduation." The source of the voice was a stout unicorn, slate gray coat and mane with a fortress tower as his cutiemark. The pegasus gave his old mentor a smirk and turned to face him, still standing upright.

"Good to see you again Major, or do you still prefer Captain Bastion since your promotion?" Bastion simply chuckled and teleported over. "Heh, even when we first found you you called me Major. Suppose I should fault the Princesses for always just referring to me as that. Then again, from that weapon I can guess this isn't about pleasantries. You wanted to ask me about when we found you, right?"

Blade nodded grimly, sighing to himself. "You know about the details I gave in the debriefing when you found me at Neighers, about Grimm. If I did ever cross paths with him again, say I was sent to find him, hypothetically. Would you strike him down in my hooves? Would you just deliver justice then and there knowing nothing he could do could ever redeem what he had done?"

Unlike the other two Bastion took pause at this sentiment, mulling it over. "I suppose you have a point. The Princess's judgment is typically to just banish or imprison those who commit such heinous crimes. They would no doubt do the same to him if you brought him back alive. But tell me something soldier, how often had you been forced to take the life of another creature? Pony or otherwise?"

Blade had to think back on that one, knowing he had to do it a few times in the past due to bandits and monster attacks on the towns he had previously been sent to to protect. It hurt him each time he had to kill another, as if another piece of him chipped away. The look on Blade's face was all Bastion needed. "And that was simply to protect yourself. What would happen to you if you slayed Grimm against orders in cold blood, albeit with the best intentions? It's daunting when you kill another under circumstances that is life and death, but to kill another in cold blood is a whole other story. Some go insane from the guilt and even try to lash out at others. Would it truly be worth it to kill this pony if avoidable?" Blade still struggled with his position, mulling over the dilemma in his head.

Bastion smirked and nodded. "Perhaps a sparring session might help. It's been too long since you had the chance to show me how you improved." Blade looked up at his old teacher with a grateful smile, unlatching the blade from the spear as Bastion levitated a training staff to his side. "Let us begin, shall we?" Blade nodded and took up a defensive stance, getting good protective coverage of his body using the haft of the spear. With a quick twitch of his teacher's eye, the fight [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sS1p01nfMpo.

Blade lunged forward to see Bastion sidestep the attack, quickly spinning the staff around his body to deliver a heavy blow toward Blade's wing. The pegasus swiftly blocked the attack and shoved the unicorn away, using his wings to increase his mobility and attempt to outmaneuver his mentor. With both Bladechaser's wings giving him added mobility and Bastion's magic allowing him greater control of the staff the session seemed to be evenly matched. However, each guard had a few tricks up their sleeves so to speak.

Both of the guards ponies began to lash out harder and faster, their staves cutting through the air as their determination to test the other showed. This was unlike their previous sessions, they were not only exchanging blows but speaking through their attacks. Slowly each guard's grin grew wider with every blow, smiling even as they were struck and bruised. Each blow landed was a testament to their growing skill and the fact that each received the same number of minor bruises as the other. After nearly an hour of the two fighting hard against the other they lowered their weapons, each one with a broad smile on their face. Even the elderly Bastion, who has long since been resigned to command, could not have felt any younger than he did then. "Heh, bruises aside, I haven't felt that good in years. It's good to see you haven't slacked off with the lance."

Bladechaser nodded in return, returning the head of the lance to it's rightful place. "I'd never slack off and leave my friends hanging. You certainly made sure to drill that into my head back at the academy." The older pony gave his former student a jab on the shoulder, chuckling a bit. "I do that with everypony. Don't act like you were the exception." There was a long pause between the two, the student sighing at long last and looking to the older stallion. "I guess it'll all depend on the situation. I do know this though." The pegasus looked to the older stallion, resolve in his eyes. "If he should be a threat to anypony while he is still alive, if I doubt the Princesses could keep him in check and he escaped, everypony he killed will have died because of me. If I knew what would happen then letting him live would be the same as condemning those ponies to death myself. I'd rather have the blood of one on my hooves rather than a hundred."

Bastion looked to his student solemnly, nodding in understanding. "Whatever choice you make, I hope you make the right decision."

Garble began to walk through the caverns deeper into the mountain, where his father resided. Over the many years Garble had matured into what was considered to be the age of passage, where dragons were tested to see if they were worthy of carrying on their legacy. Each dragon would perform a task assigned to them by their forebears, or in Garble's case, the elder. Other dragons his age came to him for leadership because he was the son of Grell, the very dragon which led the united dragon tribes. Since he was young he had been groomed to take his father's place, knowing he in particular would need to be strong if he was to replace the old dragon. The red dragon had become much more muscular, standing seven feet tall on his hind legs. The years since the dragon migration had helped him to mature mentally as well, remembering how he had picked on that smaller dragon who had come on his own. Back then he was blinded by his pride, but later he came to respect the infantile dragon for his courage. A dragon that young to follow the migration without a parent to carry him, that was a form of courage he could respect. With a loud rumble that nearly shook the caverns, a deep voice called from within. "Enter, my son."

Garble entered into what had to have been the largest dragon hoard anyone had seen, enough to even make Smaug envious as it seemed to flow freely throughout the underground passages. On top of the hoard lay a dragon that seemed as old as time, his age showing the slightest bit of white at the edge of his scales and the spines on his neck. His age was also apparent by his size, almost dwarfing Canterlot several times over. Despite the hoard and his size, he was not even using his greed growth.

"My son, it is time for your trial. As you know already, your friends have already left on their own assignments. Most dragons must face them alone, though you are a special case. One day you must lead our tribes with honor and duty. With this in mind, you are permitted to recruit others to your aid. However, your friends may not join you. This challenge will test both your physical skill in combat as well as your ability to inspire and lead others. I would advise you seek aid, for your challenge shall be all the more dangerous with this rule."

Garble nodded, having already figured such stipulations would be in place. What he did not count on was that his friends would not be able to permitted to join him. He thought about who he might bring from the nests when his father continued.

"There has been a darkness growing to the east, one that I have not felt for a millennia since the two pony sisters battled one another. While we know Princess Luna is still residing in the capitol, it has become clear this darkness is some new entity or perhaps something completely separate. I am charging you with this creature's destruction."

Garble was awestruck by the insurmountable task given to him, knowing it took the magic from the elements of harmony to eliminate such a foe before. Even Princess Celestia, who could almost easily destroy a matured teen dragon like himself, stood no chance on her own. Immediately he knew the strength of dragons would do little to aid him. He would have to be forced to resort to the lesser race of ponies and their pitiful magic. "Is this wise father? Entrusting the destruction of such a threat to one dragon and whoever might be decide to help him? If this threat is as dangerous as you say then surely this should be taken more seriously."
The elder smiled, having already anticipated this. "As elder you must be the strongest you can be as well as a strong leader. This will test you to your limits and beyond. The greater the obstacle, the greater one's reward. My son, you have already shown such restraint and control already, denying your greed growth at such a young age. Most dragons take centuries to master their greed. The dragons all have high expectations for you Garble. I know you will not fail us. However..." The elder's face grew grim, knowing the critical stipulation for the trials."Should you leave and fail at your trial, you will be banished from the tribes. All dragon-kind will shun you and never lend you aid. The only way you will be able to redeem yourself is by accomplishing the task you were sent to finish. You shall return a true dragon, or not at all."

Garble bowed his head, knowing what had to be done. As he headed out of the cave and took flight heading straight to Ponyville. His mind immediately returned to the purple dragon runt that he met at the migration and smirked. "Well, he said this Twilight was the protege of Celestia. If this holds true then she may know more of what I am going to face and how to destroy it." As he ascended higher and higher he began to see the Equestrian border, a smirk coming across his face. "Besides, I do wonder how that little runt Spike is doing with none of his own kind to help teach him."

Back in Ponyville at that same moment a quick sneeze could be heard from the inside of the Golden Oaks Library, also known as Princess Twilight Sparkle's house. The purple dragon had grown a good few feet, roughly five feet tall with a lanky figure resembling that of a normal teenager. He had grown to be about the same age as the teen dragons he had met at the migration all those years ago. His head spines had curved backward and grew more slick with his older age, looking more like a proper dragon. He was just thankful that the change was gradual or else the whole town would think he was getting his greed growth again.

As Spike lounged back in his seat in the living room which also served as the main section of the library, Twilight was in the kitchen getting some lunch ready for the two. For her nothing had changed in the twenty years since her coronation. She had gotten used to how everypony treated her now but many who knew her beyond her five friends were at least more casual with her. She had even taken to wearing her crown full time since she received so many questions why she didn't do so more often. However, very recently she had bags under her eyes, having had many sleepless nights over the past year. As she came back into the living room with a sandwich and a bowl of gems she heard the tell tale sound of Spike's belching, recognizing the light from his fire. "A letter from the Princess, Spike?"

Spike grabbed the letter and looked over it, a bit surprised by the lunar seal as opposed to the solar one used by Celestia. "Ya, letter from Luna." The princess of Friendship was rather puzzled by that, levitating it over and reading the contents.

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

I apologize for contacting you directly, but this is a more personal matter I must discuss with you. As you remember almost 23 years ago you banished Nightmare Moon from my body and I was left to be reunited with my sister. While I thank you profusely for aiding me in my time of need, I am afraid what you saw wasn't the whole truth....

The letter went on to explain how what possessed her was not simply hatred but a dark manifestation in and of itself. Twilight grew pale as she read through the full truth about Nightmare Moon and how she was now potentially on the loose. Her brow unfurrowed a bit as the letter finished the explanation and briefed her for her potential role.

As it stands I am sending my most reliable squad to your home to learn how best to eliminate this threat. For the time being they believe they are simply going after a known criminal, though said criminal has likely been receiving aid from what I have been dreading most. I would ask that you find what you can about the manifestations known as 'Nightmares' and help teach the squad when they arrive.

Yours Truly,

Princess Luna.
P.S. Please make sure Bladechaser does not know of this information. You will know why once you get to know him.

Twilight looked more concerned than she had before. Who was the criminal getting hunted? Who was Bladechaser and how was he involved. She just didn't know. For now though, she had preparations to do. Spike looked up at her going toward the shelves, years of living with the newest of Equestria's Princesses making him know just what was happening: Twilight research mode. "Alright Twilight, what are we looking for." He quickly hopped up and began searching the shelves himself. As he did so Twilight called out. "We need everything we can get on Nightmares. We have a royal guard squad coming here to know what we can find in about two day's time." Spike nodded in understanding, searching carefully has he had been taught to by Twilight. Minutes soon turned to hours as they retrieved several texts concerning the creatures known as Nightmares, the two looking through them and taking notes on what they could. It was already dark when Spike heard a hard knocking at the door, looking to Twilight and seeing her passed out from the work. With a warm smile on his face he draped a blanket over her and went to the door himself, nearly going pale at the sight.

"Heya Spike. Been a long time."

Spike looked up at the tall red dragon, eyes going wide as dinner plates. "Garble?!"

Author's Note

Sorry for the long wait. Sadly things have been hectic here on my end but all that time has allowed me to think more on my story and how to develop it. Originally I did not even consider Garble to join in but saw so mane fics mentioning Spike's growth into adulthood that I figured it was time to see the old teen dragons as something more than the a-holes they were portrayed as.

Decided to flesh out Grimm a bit to add to the emotion of the story. I kinda left it open ended with the dream state but decided to add another little dramatic characteristic to the story. I would like to thank Knightstar and Roshie for letting me include them in the story. They are good friends of mine and I highly recommend looking them up in Tumblr.

Dark Research

"Garble?! What are you doing here?!"

Spike was right to have been surprised. Last he saw of Garble and his friends was a good 20 years ago when he was taking part in the gauntlet of fire with Ember, err, now Dragon Lord Ember. The more mature red dragon rubbed the back of his head nervously, still a bit embarrassed by the stupid acts he and his friends took part in.

"Ah, right... Lets just say those were some crazy times. Anyway, last I heard you were always looking into dragon culture right? Well, I've been tasked with my trial for adulthood. I've been tasked with finding a source of a great darkness the elder has sensed and destroying it if possible. He did mention a similar darkness was felt more than twenty years ago, the day that Nightmare Moon returned and your Elements of Harmony destroyed her. While you may not entirely like me, we have a bigger threat on our hands. I wish to ask for the help of the Elements. I wish for their aid in destroying another threat to both our nations."

Spike had indeed read about the trials but knew they were mainly adventures to help a dragon build their hoard, not often to test their ability as a leader. A dragon was always to go alone except when being tried to become the next Elder. Given this he decided to treat Garble as he would an emissary of the dragon empire.

"Well then, I'm afraid it will have to wait till morning. Twilight just fell asleep a little while ago and she needs her rest for tomorrow. As for the dark energy you were sent to find, well, we already noticed it. We have a squad of soldiers on route here to get supplies in Ponyville before heading out to investigate. You may as well sleep here for the night. Go ahead and take my room, up the stairs and second door on your left."

Garble was thankful for the offer and nodded. "Thanks Spike. Do you need a hand getting the Princess up to her room?"
Spike chuckled to himself and shook his head. "Nah, Twilight spends most of her nights sleeping with her face in a book. Sometimes I think her having a bedroom is more a formality than anything else." Garble raised an eyebrow at that bit of information, having heard the newest Princess was a bit bookish but never realized just how much till now. "OK... Well, goodnight."

Spike nodded and got comfortable on the couch as Garble went upstairs and entered the room. With Spike's growth to a teenage dragon he had what seemed typical of a teenager, posters with different bands, some simple dressers, and a single full sized bed. As Garble reclined on the bed he couldn't help but ponder what action the Princesses were considering. "Why send a squad of guards to fight something like this? Are they some sort of elite unit? Maybe they just want to poke the nest to see what comes out before sending the real thing?" Garble was left to question if the squad was to protect the Elements on their journey, act as a stick to poke the hornet's nest, or take this threat on alone even as unlikely as that is. He would have to figure it out when the squad arrived in the morning, easing himself to sleep.

Bladechaser had arrived at the train station before everypony else, deciding to check his equipment over again as he waited. Once he finished making sure his armor had no faults in the purple metal he went over his weapons. His sword was flawless as usual though he found himself lingering on the spear he now kept with him, remembering how his dad used to let him help with maintaining his spear.
Hey Blade, care to give your old man a hand with this spear? Always needed another set of hooves to get the point back on after sharpening."

"Sure thing dad! Like this right?"

"Just angle it a bit down and hold it steady.. back up a bit to help straighten it out. Blade, are you paying attention. Blade?"

"Blade!"

Bladechaser yelped out in surprise and held the spear out ready to fight only to hear a snickering Knightstar behind him. Apparently the unicorn got a good kick out of scaring the crap out of him. "Very funny Knight. I even forgot to laugh."

The unicorn chuckled despite his friend's glare, almost threatening to burn a hole right through his head.

"Oh come on now Blade, where’s the fun in NOT messing around with you every now and then?"

Knightstar's laughing was quickly interrupted by a wing slap to the back of his head, the expression immediately falling from his face. "...Sorry."

Roshie and Buck E Ball arrived soon after, all boarding the train as Buck tried to get them roped into another one of his experiments. "Listen, I just want someone to taste test the artificial Zap apple jam I made. It's not toxic or anything like that, just getting another pony's opinion. If this works we wont have to wait a year between getting our jam."

Knightstar finally relented and nodded, taking a jar and popping open the lid. "Alright, just what did you use to make the stuff anyway?" As Knightstar was about to take the first taste Buck began to list off the ingredients.

"Well I use sugar, some regular apple jam, hint of grape jelly, and liquid rainbows from Cloudsdale."

Blade smirked as Knightstar's tongue touched the jam, his face immediately flashing every color of the rainbow before ending on red. He rushed through each cabin searching for a bottle of water before he found it. About seven cars down. Once the unicorn had washed away the searing heat of the jam he walked into the booth to see Blade sipping on a bottle of water he had so carefully kept in his bag. As Knightstar glared at the pegasus Blade simply smirked.

"Now we're even."

Twilight groaned happily as she began to wake up, half expecting a page of her notes to be stuck on her face. When she instead felt the cool linens she smiled, figuring Spike had carried her up the stairs to bed. She couldn't be happier with how the library was rebuilt after Tirek destroyed it so long ago. It was only after a few years she knew a new library had to be built, deciding to oversee the reconstruction herself. She decided to make it a tree house, just like the last one. It would remain a testament to how Equestria could recover from any tragedy, no matter how dark. Even the grassy field where they had their fight was starting to grow lush with grass again. The tree house was just like how it was before, except a bit bigger to help make sure she had plenty of room for all the new books coming in.

She slowly got up and stretched her back and wings, having finally gotten used to them after years. Slowly getting up and placing her crown on her head she went to Spike's room to wake him up, knowing he could never get up on his own since he was now entering puberty as a dragon. "Spike! It's time to get up. You need to open up the library!" A gruff and deeper voice responded.
"Just a few more minutes Mom."

The voice was somewhat foreign to Twilight, cracking the door open and taking a peek inside to see the red scales. Somehow they looked familiar. "Wait, you're not Spike!" Her lavender magic surrounded the dragon and rudely hoisted him into the air, slamming him into the nearby wall. The impact quickly woke him up to the situation at hand. His eyes wide open he saw a rather livid alicorn princess. "WHOA! Hold on a second! I'm an emissary from the dragon tribes on my trial. I was told to track down the source of a dark presence our elders have sensed. Spike offered me his room to spend the night till I could speak with you."

Twilight's face eased slightly as he mentioned being an emissary of the dragons, taking it at face value since he too was aware of the dark power. "Normally I'd be questioning you for some document confirming this, but only government officials would know of the situation. We've already taken notice and are assembling a team to deal with the threat. However one thing still bugs me." Her memory was starting to come back to her, recalling some of the dragon's features from the dragon migration. "Where did you meet Spike? At the dragon migration?"

Garble heaved a sigh at the seemingly simple question. "Ya, was quite some time ago. Little guy really impressed me back then. Name's Garble."

That was all Twilight needed to hear. "YOU! You made Spike, whom I see as a little brother, dive into a lava pit and try and steal phoenix eggs!! If I didn't have to worry about getting roasted by your friends back then I'd have- have- Well I don't know what the hay I'd do, but it would be BAD. Now give me one good reason not to send your scaly hide to the moon!"

Garble was breaking down into a cold sweat, feeling like he may wet himself in fear of the sparks emanating from Twilight's horn.

"Uhh, foolishness of youth?"

The sparks was soon focusing into a brilliant glow of magic before Garble interjected once more.

"Listen, we were stupid, we were young. We grew up and learned our lesson from that incident! My dad damn near tore my wing off when he heard about the phoenix eggs. I grew up after that and looked out for the younger dragons afterward, and I mean ACTUALLY looking out for them. No more hazing or acceptance trials. Just simply teaching them about growing up into adulthood."
Twilight's glowing horn subsided to it's normal strength, looking at Garble scrupulously for a few minutes to gauge how genuine he was. "I believe you."

Garble looked to the alicorn and smiled, heaving a sigh of relief before she continued.

"However, I still should punish you for putting Spike through all of that." Without even a flinch of effort she tossed Garble clean across the library and into the opposing wall just outside of Spike's door, the young purple dragon leaping up with a start at the commotion. However he saw the result, one he figured might happen in either two scenarios. Either Garble couldn't get out that he was an emissary, or he did and Twilight realized who he was. In both situations, he came to the same conclusion.

"I'll go get the first aid kit.."

Bladechaser and the others soon arrived at Ponyville station, Knightstar still glaring right at the back of Blade's head as Roshie led them to the rebuilt library in the center of town. They had heard about how Princess Twilight spent her most recent days living out of the library, working day and night to help get it back up and running. In addition, she was even taking up a job as the librarian until somepony else took the job. Needless to say, she would be stuck in that position for quite some time since all of the applicants could barely hand over a resume before they had to bow down in Twilight's presence. It had almost become a running gag with the guard in town, sometimes calling Twilight the Princess of Literature.

As they got close they heard a crash come from the library, dashing forward with weapons at the ready. It only took a minute before they barged in, the trio of guards surveying the scene to notice there was only one unfamiliar face: a red dragon who was currently being patched up by Spike. Bladechaser slung the spear onto his back, Roshie put her scythe away, and the energy building up in Knightstar's horn dissipated. "Everyone OK? What happened?"

Twilight simply hummed to herself as she came out with three hot cups of tea, seemingly quite hospitable despite what looked like the scene of either a serious accident or a beating with the red dragon still in the room. "Oh? Just getting even. It's a long story." Garble simply chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head, wincing as he felt the muscle in his arm complain at the motion. Still, this was the princess, somepony they all knew they were loyal to and one they didn't want to mess with. Blade moved forward and the others followed suit. Roshie stepped forward and gave a nod to the others. "I'm Roshie, sergeant of the Night Guard. This is Bladechaser of Luna's personal guard, Sentinel Knightstar, and our scientific expert Buck E. Ball."

Each of the ponies nodded in turn, Twilight's gaze lingering on the pegasus for a moment. She had been sent Bladechaser's file and knew about how close this hit to home. She was surprised he was even allowed to take part on the mission at all. Still, Luna had a point. Bladechaser was the only pony alive who knew Grimm, the only one who could predict what he might do or where he would hide. Whether she liked it or not, they needed him.

"I thank you all for coming. As it would seem we also have some aid from the dragons. Garble here is an emissary from the dragon clans as well as the son of the chief elder. They too are concerned about this situation. From what intelligence has shown, we believe that Grimm has somehow obtained a remaining fragment of Nightmare Moon's power from after it was exorcised from Princess Luna when she first returned to Equestria. The Elements of Harmony are being recalled back to Canterlot as a last line of defense. We believe this fragment of power will try and infect Princess Luna or one of the other alicorns. Keeping that from happening is of the highest priority. The Night Guard is distinguished for handing covert operations for the Princesses as well as sealing forbidden magics away.

"Bladechaser, Roshie, and Knightstar of you will take down Grimm and force the remaining power to retreat from his body. Buck; you, Knightstar, and Roshie will then create a temporary seal to secure the shard of power until the Elements and I can come and permanently purge the evil energy. If it is determined Grimm was aware of his actions he will stand trial for his crimes. Otherwise he will receive treatment to recover from Nightmare Moon's influence."

"And if he can't be apprehended alive?" Blade cut in, drawing looks of concern from the others. Twilight sighed and knew this would come. Her gaze lightened as she turned to the pegasus. She knew how he was hurting inside. With her magic she could already peer into pony's minds. The pain and rage pouring off of Bladechaser could be felt without even reaching for it. "Bladechaser, I know how personal this is for you. You were assigned to this mission because you sparred with him back when you were a kid. He is a near legendary swordspony even before the incident. You know his moves better than anypony and your record shows you are on par with his skill. You also know him personally. You'd have the best idea of where he'd go, what strategies he'd use. Your insight could make the difference between the success of the mission and chaos all over Equestria." Her gaze and tone became more serious, more commanding. This was no longer reassurances. These were orders. "That said, I don't want your emotions to get in the way of the mission. If your comrades report that you executed Grimm without provocation or move to kill from the start, you will be court marshaled and deemed unfit for duty. You will also be dishonorably discharged for executing a prisoner without cause. That said, if there is genuinely no alternative, then one death will be better than the deaths of Equestria's citizens. Am I understood?"
Blade remained stoic for several seconds before relenting. "Yes... Princess." As much as she would hate to admit it, that was probably the best Twilight would be able to get from him. "Very well. Bladechaser I'd like you to take Garble to the guard station in town. He sent for his equipment to be prepared last night and should be ready soon. Knightstar, Roshie, and Buck. I want you to join me. I wish to go over the sealing spell you will use once Grimm has been captured and the corrupt magic removed from him. With the stakes this high we cannot risk it escaping." The four ponies nodded and went about their assignments, rage still burning in Bladechaser's eyes as he knew what this mission would come down to. Knowing that either he or Grimm would be dead. He could only hope that the heartless bastard suffers before the end.

A howl of pain emanated from the dark ruins below the mountains, a darkened and corrupted unicorn struggling against the wall to break free. His right eye was clear and looked no different from a normal pony, his left however was shrouded in a dark glow. He looked back at the monster responsible for this, making him into a puppet, for making him lose his mind all those years ago and turn on his friends. He stared back at the epitome of darkness, Nightmare Moon. "Why do you bother keeping me alive after all this time. You have everything you need, all I know about Equestria's outdated tactics, their old defenses, even your demonic recruits. Why cant you just let me die in peace?!"

The shroud of shadows stepped forward, rubbing a taunting hoof against the struggling pony's cheek. "Why Grimm, I thought it was obvious. With you being my puppet, all of Equestria thinks you are responsible for every one of those atrocities. The sacking of Neighers, the disappearances in the neighboring villages, all attributed to you going mad and seeking power. Even that runt Bladechaser sees you as nothing but a monster."

The unicorn's eye shot open and looked at the darkness. "Blade, he's alive?" His voice held a long forgotten hope, knowing after he butchered his parents the boy was never spotted or found by the bandits, having figured he had been buried under some of the rubble. He always hoped he had survived somehow, that he was able to escape. The sadistic alicorn smirked.

"Oh? You never knew? He joined the guard in hopes of finding you, for making you pay after you killed his father and butchered his mother right in front of him. He was right there, in that hollowed tree when you ran your blade through sweet sweet Swiftwing. Oh you were always angry at her, after turning you down and taking Gale instead, how jealous and furious you were with him for stealing your bride to be. You accepted my gift, hoping to kill her husband and win her heart." Grimm's fury mounted with each taunting word, his body tense and struggling against the tendrils. "Ironic isn't it? Taking my power to win the heart of the one you loved only to run it through with your sword. It's quite poetic really."

"ENOUGH!" Grimm broke free of the shadow tendrils and lunged for Nightmare Moon, only to be caught once more. Nightmare Moon simply chuckled and stepped forward. "As fun as these sessions are, we are getting off track. Yes, Blade is coming to find and kill you. However, when he finds you, you are going to kill him. You will kill him but not before slaughtering his precious little friends right in front of him." Grimm shook his head furiously, refusing to go along with such insanity. "No, you cant make me do that. I will NEVER do your bidding again!"

Nightmare Moon chuckled to herself, growing into maniacal laughter as her horn slowly grew closer to Grimm's head. "Ah, you seem to forget that I can. You are my little puppet, and I pull your strings." As soon as the horn made contact Grimm let out a blood curdling scream of agony, lasting several minutes as pure unrelenting darkness poured into his mind. He was dropped limp in the floor, slowly regaining consciousness. He opened his eyes, both black as pitch as he arose. "Now my pet, find Bladechaser and his friends. End them for me."

The corrupted pony bowed low, prostrate as he obeyed the wish of his dark master. "Yes, my mistress."

Author's Note

This is one of my... slower chapters. Mainly setting up for the next one which I plan to be big. Gonna have a lot of action coming soon including a rather emotional encounter right in the center of Ponyville. Hope to finish it faster than this last one.