Chapters "Death isn't so bad, guys. It's like taking a deep breath. It comes naturally, like it was always a part of life.
And maybe... someday... I'll see all of you ponies again... at home..."
-_N_-
Today, for some reason, looked more beautiful than it ever had in the history of days.
It was nearing the end of Summer.
Painted clouds swam lazily in the sky; their bodies churning, creating graceful anomalies of cumulonimbus and stratus clouds, which layered on top of each other like two brother foals wrestling in a prairie.
The boisterous beings flew miles from their creators in Cloudsdale, glided over Ponyville, and floated into the forest called Everfree, where they became free spirits.
Dark grey and angelic white mixed; precipitation stewed inside the sky lakes, Celestia's sun's ever-radiant light creasing halo rings around the outsides; making the grey seem darker, and the white seem almost holy.
Translucent rays eked in between the crevasses of the clouds, creating shining showers of light that elegantly dived to the land below, and waltzed slowly with the shadows across Equestrian lands.
The weather was a perfect masterpiece of Pegasi hooves. An amity in the sky, between light and shade.
Best of all, the rain was to stay put inside their billowing masters, until they reached the boundaries of the forbidding forest that neighbored Ponyville.
Peace. An unfamiliar, new kind of peace settled the town. The air smelt faintly of roses, which the citizens of Ponyville clearly, and diligently, took note of. The atmosphere felt acutely feather-like, as if a massive tsunami of overwhelming gentleness and love washed over the land, and embraced it. The usual bustling of heavy working ponies dulled to soft murmur of activity. It was a new kind of Ponyville, beyond the standards of the harmony that the town is known for.
T'was a Saturday, and by far, by all means, perfect...
*
Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Spike, and Apple Jack laid on their blanket looking up, staring at the sky, making out the shapes of the clouds. They all agreed to a meet up behind Fluttershy's cottage earlier that day. The weather was just too beautiful to not enjoy with friends.
"Oh, that cloud looks like a...a"
"A sparrow?" Interjected AJ, completing Fluttershy's sentence.
"Yes, exactly! A sparrow."
"I don't know, it kind of looks like a weird tube with trees coming from it's back." A certain purple mare added.
"Your looking at it all wrong Twilight." Rainbow smirked, "Turn your head sideways a bit."
Twilight tilted her head slightly to the right. "Well now it looks like a duck with lightning shooting out it's back."
The six ponies and dragon stared at her for a second, then broke into laughter at how ridiculous that sounded.
***
"Run, run fast Colgate run faster, it might still get me. Oh Celestia, what is that thing? What was that word that it said that... that... blue fire? How was it on two legs? It nearly killed me! I need to get home! No! I gotta tell everypony about this thing, THEY'RE IN DANGER! Oh dear, whats happening? Run RUN! RUN!!!" The blue mare quickly glanced behind herself; nothing present, but nothing was always something. The monster could still be following her. Colgate looked forward to regain her... BAM! The mare felt a sudden, excruciating blow to her head. She bounced backwards. Her vision became simultaneously blurred. Colgate landed on her back; a large rock protruding from the ground met with the hind of her head, pounding forcefully into her fall. She looked up and could see the bleary greens of the tree's canopy, that hung above her like a blanket of shaky emerald flakes. The ground was hard, but soft at the same time. She could feel a gentle breeze brushing against her coat, lulling her to sleep. Peripheral vision was blackening. Colgate was slipping into unconsciousness. Life somehow seemed to go in slow-motion, but at the same time things were happening so fast. A ray of sunlight broke between two clouds, illuminating her body, warming her. "Help..."
***
"You guys sure it wont take long?" Twilight asked from the blanket.
"Of course you silly filly, me and Rarity here will get that lemonade mix before you can say Kalamazoo!"
"Uh huh..."
Rarity chimed in in her evermore regal accent, "Oh, don't you worry yourself darling. Pinkie and I wont be long, it shall only be a ten minute trot."
"Okay, we'll just be around here then." The purple mare responded.
Pinkie jumped infront of Twilight, startling her a bit, "Hey, if we can can we get pink lemonade?"
Fluttershy lifted her head up and spoke softly, "There's a PINK lemonade?"
"YEAH!"
"Whats it taste like?"
"LEMONADE!"
Fluttershy became confused at her response, "What makes it pink?"
"PINKIE MAGIC!"
"Oh..."
Twilight rolled her eyes, "I'll tell you later Fluttershy. I guess that we'll be seeing you in a little bit then."
The purple unicorn laid her head back down and shut her eyes, joining the other five in a nap. Pinkie and Rarity left their friends sleeping on the picnic blanket while they started off towards town.
LEMON-ADE, LEMON-ADE.
SWEET AND TASTY, SWEET AND TASTY.
LEMON-ADE, LEMON-ADE.
MADE WITH LEMONS! MADE WITH SUGAR! JUST DON'T FORGET TO ADD THE WATERRRR!!!
"Pinkie, darling. You must relax, we're here." Rarity said, looking up at her friend hanging upside down from the top of a high lamppost.
"Hold that thought Rarity." Pinkie said before taking a deep breath in.
LLLLLLLEEEEEEEEMMMOOOONNNNNAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAADE!!!!!! ...yeah.
At the end of her chorus, Pinkie jumped off of the lamppost, landing next to Rarity with ease.
"How'd ya like my song?" She asked.
"It was lovely Pinkie, now where is Lemon Squeeze's stand?"
Pinkie squinted her eyes and placed her right hoof over her forehead, shifting her head from left to right smoothly, surveying the market place.
"There!" She exclaimed, pointed her hoof at a far off stand with a large lemon on the top.
"Oh dear, that's so far away." The white unicorn moaned.
"It's okay Rarity, you just sit your whiny hindy down and I'll go get the mix!" The pink pony exclaimed, and with that she bounced off into the crowd of unusually low toned townsponies.
"Wait..." Rarity mumbled looking at her friend jumping up and down towards the lemonade stand.
"ARE YOU SUGGESTING THAT I'M WHINY!?"
Pinkie neared Lemon's stand.
"Hi Lemons!!!" She yelled over to the yellow Earth colt.
"Well good afternoon Pinkie, how's it going?" Lemon responded.
Pinkie stopped infront of the booth where her friend Lemon Squeeze sold lemonade, mix and other lemon products. Lemon Squeeze was about the same age a Pinkie, and had just moved to Ponyville about a couple of months ago. Since then he made a lot of friends in town, he was quite a popular pony.
"I'm doing AWESOME! How's business today?"
"Pretty steady. Can't complain. How's the bakery?"
"Oh, it's going well. Mr. and Mrs. Cake are trying to make a new type of cake that Mr. Cake found the recipe for in the attic. He says that it's his Grandmother's super secret extra yummy yum yum cake. IT SOUNDS DELICIOUS! Doesn't it?"
Lemon chuckled a little at how Pinkie cheerily pronounced "yummy yum yum."
"That certainly does sounds delicious Pinkie Pie, maybe when Mr. and Mrs. Cake finish maybe me and you could... oh uh..."
"Could... what?" Pinkie asked quizzically, tilting her head left a bit, burrowing her brow under the other.
"Oh uh... EAT! Yes eat some, uh, of the cake I mean, uh..."
The yellow colt stammered, trying to regain his since of vocabulary.
"Lemons... are you asking me out on a... date?"
"Oh... uh..uhmmm..."
Lemon's blue eyes shifted down in embarrassed, the yellowness in his cheeks made the blushing red seem more pungent.
Pinkie smiled at him, he looked so innocent.
"GET OUT OF THE WAY!!!" Exclaimed a voice from beside the pink pony. The brown colt ran right into Pinkie, knocking her down, running off back in the direction he was steering as if his life depended on it.
"Pinkie are you okay!?" Lemon exclaimed, running around his stand to get to downed pony.
Pinkie looked up to find Lemon Squeeze staring at her with a worried expression on his face.
"What happened? Who ran into me?" She asked.
Lemon looked at the direction where the brown colt ran to, seeing that quite a few ponies were trotting the same way as well.
"It... it looked like Dr. Whooves."
Lemon helped Pinkie get up, being gentle to not hurt her in any way.
"Is he okay? He must have been in a REALLY big... Why is everypony gathering over there?" Pinkie said pointing to a growing crowd off to the right.
"I don't know whats going on, we should go find out."
Pinkie and her friend Lemons go off to join the crowd, hoping to enlightened why Dr. Whooves ran into Pinkie.
The crowd was growing larger and larger with exasperated ponies, most on the ground, some in the air.
"Get out of the way! Stay away, let Big Mac through!"
Dr. Whooves was barking orders to the crowd to move, obviously being protective of his friend/assistant on Big Mac's back.
The crowd was compliant, molding a path to help get an unconscious blue pony to the hospital as quick as possible.
"What happened!?" Asked a pony in the crowd.
Big Macintosh strained underneath the weight of the pony on his back, but answered the crowd honestly, "Ah found her... under a... tree near the edge of mah... orchard."
"Is she okay? Is she dead?"
"No... she ain't dead she's.... sleepin'"
Dr. Whooves walked besides Mac, trying to talk to Colgate, trying to wake her up, but to no avail.
"Is she gonna be okay?" Another pony in the crowd asked.
"She'll be fine if ah... get'r ta tha hospital... soon."
"THEN TROT FASTER!" Yelled the Doctor.
"If ah trot any faster than ah am right now ah might hurt her more!" Mac retorted with a full breath.
"Somepony go get help from the hospital!" A voice hollered.
A mint unicorn green mare started galloping ahead of Mac and Dr. Whooves, towards the hospital.
"Doctor..." Colgate opened her eyes slightly, looking at Dr. Whooves.
Somehow moving, but not walking at the same time.
Dr. Whooves turned to his friend being carried by the red Earth colt.
"Colgate, are you okay? What happened?"
"There's a..."
Colgate fell back asleep, not completing her sentence.
"Colgate! COLGATE!!!" The Doctor was slapping his assistant softly to try and wake her back up.
"Quit slappin' her, she's already got good sized bruze on her head." Big Mac retorted.
Dr. Whooves noticed the injury on Colgate's head, and immediately focused on keeping up with the red colt.
His eyes started watering. How could this be happening?
His friend was injured and he could do nothing but walk next to her.
Whoever hurt her was going to pay.
"IT'S COMING! WE NEED TO HIDE! WE NEED TO GET HELP! WE NEED TO CONTACT THE PRINCESS'. THAT THING WILL KILL US ALL! I SAW IT IT IT... IT EXPLODED A MANTICORE, IN BLUE FIRE! IT CAN SPEAK! IT SAID A WORD TO USE THE FIRE! IT'S REALLY TALL! MAYBE EVEN TALLER THAN CELESTIA HERSELF! IT WAS WEARING A LONG BLACK COAT, AND IT HAS NO FUR! AND IT HAD CLAWS WITH LITTLE CLAWS ON THE ENDS! PLEASE, WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE, OR WE'RE ALL DOOMED!!!"
Colgate stood infront of the town hall, in a white hospital gown with a few red stains on it, and a bag-less I.V. tube protruding from her right arm. About the whole of Ponyville as her silent audience.
"Colgate, I think it's time you should go." The Doctor pleaded softly, standing next to her in a state of embarrassment. His head hung low, shifting his eyes around the crowd of dumbfounded ponies around him.
"NO DOCTOR, NOT UNTIL EVERYPONY LISTENS TO REASON! IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING SOON, WE'RE ALL AHH!"
That's all the blue unicorn could say before the hospital security tackled her.
The Doctor stepped back, letting what was for the best happen.
Two brutish close-cut shaved colts struggled with the fighting Colgate.
"LET ME GO!" She screamed, "LET ME GO!"
"Hassle, ah, do it!" One of the wrestling colts exclaimed.
The second colt, Hassle, gritted the needle in between his teeth, and jabbed Colgate in her thigh.
Immediately, Colgate's thrashing body began to relax, and before long she was becoming unconscious yet again, for the fourth time in three days.
The two uniformed colts got off of her blue body, letting her twitching limbs slowly die out of energy.
"COLGATE!" The Doctor scrambled to his friend. He picked her head up and held it in his arms gently.
"Doctor..." Colgate looked up at the brown colt, her eyes drowsy.
"I'm right here Colgate, nothing bad will happen."
"Yes... it will."
Colgate closed her eyes, and drifted into a deep sleep.
"Colgate?" The brown colt looked at his tired friend sleeping in his arms, she looked troubled even in her slumber.
"Sir, we're going to have to take her now." The first guard boldly phrased, but it was obvious that he was in pain for being apart of this situation.
"Right..." Dr. Whooves said meekly, handing Colgate to the two security guards.
The two hospital guards pulled the wagon behind them. They brushed past the road space the crowd formed to make way for their unwell friend towed in the carriage. The two colts trotted hastily on their way back to the hospital, with Dr. Whooves in tow.
"What should we do?" A pony in the crowd asked.
"It's obvious that she's gone crazy. How does the -thing- she's talking about even exist? It's probably just a rogue dragon or something. They can breath fire, they can talk."
The crowd broke into a loud buzzing mumble. Each pony in the crowd talking among each other on the same topic.
"But what if it's like, some sort of new animal or something?"
"Do you see bunny rabbits talking around here? She's gone crazy and that's it."
"Do you think it will hurt us like she said it would?"
"I highly doubt it's a dragon, it's probably a new species of animal."
" What did she mean by claws with little claws on the ends?"
"Something is obviously going down here."
"Nothing is going down, this whole brew ha-ha will probably end in a couple of days."
"Are you sure? Because I surly don't think it will."
The wave of noise quickly up turned in volume, and soon Ponyville was bustling, mind-numbing, cacophony of mad speech.
A few baby fouls started crying, and Mr. and Mrs. Cake quickly left the scene with their two babies. The crying slowly died out.
Ponyville became one large heated debate, the harmony became a small dose of chaos.
Twilight closed the door behind her and turned around to face the other six ponies in her home.
"What do you guys make of this?" She inquired.
"The whole thing is all nutty." Rainbow Dash remarked from the ceiling window.
She turned her attention back outside, where the townsponies continued their debating.
"Honestly, ah really don't know." A.J. Responded.
"All this fighting, over the word of one injured pony such as poor Colgate." Rarity soothed.
"I, oh... I don't know. All this fighting is scaring me. It really is. What if that monster really is out there? What if it does want to hurt us. Just like Colgate said." Fluttershy softly exposed.
Pinkie practically exploded her answer. "This is all CRR-AAAAAAAAZY! I mean did you see all those ponies out there? Nopony knows what to think anymore! Colgate must have seen one Nelly of a monster out there. Why was she in the Everfree forest anyways?"
Lemon Squeeze was standing next to Pinkie Pie, and spoke.
"Dr. Whooves says that she wanted to "search" it. If you ask me she might have been a little crazy before Big Mac found her."
"Wait a second..." Twilight interrupted, gathering the attention of everypony in the room. "Big Mac did say that he found Colgate outside his orchard, correct?"
"Uh, yea' Twi. That's what he said." The country pony remarked, slightly defensive.
"Then... if Colgate was in the Everfree forest... how did she get to Sweet Apple Acres?"
The library went silent. Twilight was right, as usual. How did Colgate get to Sweet Apple Acres if she was in the forest?
The ponies thought to themselves for a minute.
Soon the silence in the library was becoming eerie, and uncomfortable.
"Uh... Twilight, you don't think..."
"I don't know Fluttershy. Somepony had to have brought her to Sweet Apple Acres, and left her their."
"No, that's not what I was going to ask... do you think that the monster exists?"
Twilight looked down, slightly quizzical.
She then faced Fluttershy and responded, "I don't think so. Whatever happened, and whatever Colgate THOUGHT she saw, was probably nothing."
Rainbow Dash swooped down and hovered just above Twilight.
"Ya sure about that Twi? She sounded pretty upset to me."
"Don't you girls remember the Poison Joke incident?" Twilight inquired.
"The poison what now incident?" Lemon asked.
"A while back ago, we all got into some trouble with this plant called Poison Joke. It literally plays a joke on anypony who touches it. Fluttershy's voice turned into a really deep tone, my horn went er... it became unusable, Rainbow couldn't fly without crashing into something, Pinkie's tongue swelled up big enough to mute her, Apple Jack shrunk twice her size, and uh... what happened to you again Rarity?"
A stern look was directed at Twilight. "My glorious mane became a horrid kitchen mop!" The fashion pony exclaimed.
"Oh, uh... Right." Twilight shied.
Lemon Squeeze still looked a bit confused.
"So what'r ya getting at Twilight?" Apple Jack asked.
"I'm saying that what if Colgate ran into some weird plant that made her hallucinate a monster?"
The six ponies considered the possibilities of what could have happened to Colgate in the Everfree forest.
"I suppose it could be possible... If it was." Fluttershy whispered out loud.
"You see? That's probably what happened. I can go and see Zacora tomorrow, and see if there's a plant that turned Colgate into a... you know."
"Crazy psychopath?" Pinkie exclaimed quizzically.
Rarity gasped, "PINKIE PIE!"
"What? She is..."
"But still, you should watch what you say. You could hurt somepony's feelings."
"Okay fine... I take it back." Pinkie grumbled.
"Good, now I must be going. I actually have a big order of dresses I must get back to. Farewell girls, Lemon."
And with that, Rarity opened the door and left.
"Ah should probably get goin' too Twi. Them Apples ain't gonna buck themselves. Heheh."
"Yeah, and I got cloud duty in about twenty minutes. Can't be late for that. I'll see ya later Twilight."
"See ya later guys." Twilight manned the door for Apple Jack and Rainbow Dash.
"Later." They responded, and they both left to their work.
Twilight closed the door.
"So, on another matter. Who wants tea?" The purple mare asked her guests.
"Oh oh oh ME!" Pinkie yelled ecstatically.
"Tea sounds fine to me. Thanks."
"Oh, yes please."
Pinkie, Lemons, and Fluttershy accompanied Twilight for awhile, but soon it was getting late and they all went home as well.
It was a nice evening though.
11:58 P.M. that night.
A soft mumbling was in the breeze of the Everfree forest. It was smooth, almost natural to be in the wind.
Yet it was also unnatural, for it was disembodied.
It graced over the forest like a shadow of words, of song, of mystery in the night.
It was mute to Ponyville.
"At night they would go walking, til the breaking of the day. The morning is for sleeping..."
"What do you mean Zacora left?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
"I mean that she left the Everfree forest! When I went to see her I found this note on the door." Twilight quickly nudged her saddle bag and retrieved a parchment of paper. Being hasty, Rainbow snatched the note out of the purple mare's mouth, "Let me see that!"
Rainbow Dash decided to read the letter out loud, that that the other ponies could hear.
To whom it may concern, this is my farewell letter.
I'm leaving on behalf of... certain reasons.
"Wait... she's not rhyming." Rainbow eluded.
""KEEP READING RAINBOW DASH!" Pinkie yelled.
Although it fills sorrow in my heart that this is the way I say goodbye to my dear friends of Ponyville, I ask that I be remembered.
I'm returning to my homeland if anypony wishes to know my whereabouts.
Do not try and find me, for I in no way wish to return.
"Why did she leave?" Fluttershy murmured.
"There's more."
This letter is not only a goodbye letter, but a warning to everypony in Ponyville.
"What?" Lemon asked.
Rainbow Dash ignored him.
Over the last seven days I've been in Everfree. I've been witness to... strange occurrences.
"Strange occurrences? Stranger than what's already in those ghastly woods? Oh my..." Rarity out spoke.
"WILL YOU GUYS SHUT UP SO I CAN READ!" Rainbow remarked.
"Rainbow, we're all in shock at this. Just keep read'n and we'll keep list'n." Apple Jack soothed.
"Fine!" The cyan Pegasus retorted.
I've witnessed things that I fear my safety for. Blue fire. Singing. A Hooman...
"Wait... A what!?" Twilight interrupted.
"Uh... a Hooman. What is that anyways?"
"I... I don't know.... Keep reading, I'll go see if I can find something on it."
Twilight trotted to her upstairs loft, where she kept her book on zoology and myth.
Rainbow kept reading to the other six.
According to my kin, a Hooman is something of legend.
"Twilight be sure to look into legends!" Rainbow yelled upstairs.
"Got it. Still looking."
A Hooman is said to be a great creator, but also a great destroyer. They are said to be about up to six feet or less in stature, and can speak many types of languages unknown to our kind, or any kind on Equestria.
"That sounds scary..." Fluttershy winced at the thought. The six, including Spike were deeply engrossed in what Rainbow was reading.
Not known is much of the Hoomans. They shouldn't even exist. They are of a story the Chief of my tribe made up for the enjoyment of our young.
"Oh..." Twilight said from upstairs, finding out that her search was for nothing. She trotted down the stairs while Rainbow kept reading.
Whatever this beast in Everfree is, it matches the description of the Hooman.
Please, I beg of you citizens of Ponyville.
Stay out of Everfree.
That especially means you and your friends, Twilight Sparkle.
Twilight blushed a little as she joined her six friends and dragon, they just looked at her with expectant smirks, somewhat amused at the sentence. They all turned back to Rainbow Dash.
"Is there more?" Spike asked.
"A little." Rainbow answered.
Hoomans aren't said to wield the power of fire. This is the only difference in this beast. (If it is a Hooman.)
I must go now.
Farewell Ponyville... I shall miss you sorely. You've been warned.
-Zacora-
Lemon Squeeze, Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Apple jack, Spike, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash all went silent.
...
"I'm Confused." Pinkie finally said.
"What in Equestria is going on here?" Apple Jack asked.
"Apparently..." Twilight remarked, "Colgate was right."
"Well, what are we going to do?" Lemons asked.
"If we tell Ponyville this, they might panic." Apple Jack said.
"You might be right A.J." Rainbow spoke.
"Twilight, what should we do?" Spike questioned.
Everypony in the room stared at the purple mare. Twilight studied the situation. Ponyville might do exactly what Apple Jack said, Panic. If Everypony does panic, it surly might bring out the monster.
Which wouldn't be good, especially if it can control fire.
Twilight brain-racked for about a minute on the subject.
"Well?" Rarity inquired.
"I... I don't knOH!!"
"What? Whats wrong Twi?" Fluttershy asked.
"We need to tell Princess Celestia, she'll know what to do."
Twilight galloped to the desk with the statue of the famous "King Knight's head" as the centerpiece, and pulled out some parchment with an ink container and a quill. She started writing.
"Twilight, you shore the Princess would be of any help in this situation?" Lemons asked. He made his way towards her, along with the other six.
"Of course Lemons, Princess Celestia has been here for over a thousand years. I'm shore she might know what this "Thing" Is."
Lemon Squeeze looked quizzical, but his only question had been answered anyways.
"So, you do believe that the monster exists?" Fluttershy questioned.
Twilight stopped the motion of her quill, looked up to Fluttershy and said, "Yes."
Twilight Sparkle...
The letter you just sent me is the gravest letter I've ever received.
Not because of your friend's departure, but of something of greater importance.
A tear fell onto the parchment.
"Oh, dear..."
Celestia was alone in her study, when she received the letter from her "star" pupil Twilight.
"Why her God? Why her?" Her inner voice pleaded.
She used a quick "dry up" spell to expel the dampness that fell to the paper before her, and continued.
I'm not permitted to explain anything, but I can tell you this; a shadow of a story wrapped in something true.
Before you and your friends were born, I was "visited" by somepony very special.
He told me something magnificent, beautiful even...
Celestia gasped for air. She realized that she wasn't breathing while she wrote... and why wouldn't she. This might be the final letter to her student.
Another tear rolled down her cheek.
She bowed her head in painful emotion.
"Sister?"
Celestia was startled to hear the voice of the messenger from so long ago. She sharply turned to the door of her study to find Luna, her sister, poised in awe and somewhat shock at seeing her older sister in tears.
"Luna?" Celestia asked.
"Sister, are you well? Why are you weeping?"
She couldn't tell her why, but she was caught redhooved in an emotional state, and Luna would need an answer.
Celestia stood up from her chair, and slowly walked towards the door.
She stopped in front of her sister, her head held up high, eyes bleeding tears, an emotion of pain clearly mirrored her frame, she bit the bottom of her lip as she looked down into Luna's beautiful night-gale eyes.
Without hesitation, Celestia kissed Luna on her forehead. A kiss of sisterhood, of family, of sorrow.
Celestia gently withdrew her kiss.
Luna was now beyond confusion.
"Something very bad. We'll all be fine, but at the same time, we're all in danger. I will lose somepony very dear to me, and you..."
Luna stared at her sister in utter wonder. What became of her sister? Why was she like this?
"You don't know the being we will lose Luna, because he's already lost..."
"My sister, what are you speaking of?"
"Luna... something remarkable is going to happen."
Celestia smiled. It was a joyful smile.
"What?" Luna asked.
"Hope."
***
The messenger told me things are going to be O.K., but let me tell you Twilight.
Peace is coming.
Three days before the event.
Lemon nuzzled Pinkie's neck. It was a way of tickling her that he rather was amused of.
Pinkie giggled ecstatically, "Lemons, hahaha, STOP! hahahahah."
Lemon squeeze nudged her one more time and then kissed her delicately where he was just tickling her.
"Have I ever told you how pink you are?" Lemons teased romantically.
Pinkie smiled sweetly at him, looking deep into Lemon's beautiful blue eyes.
"Have I ever told you how much you taste like lemon's?" Pinkie teased back.
Pinkie leaned in and kissed him softly on his lemon flavored lips.
"Guys!"
Their kiss was interrupted by a complaint from Apple Jack.
Pinkie and Lemon looked up.
"Yes A.J.?" Lemons inquired.
"Could you lovebirds quit 'ur sweet everythin's and hand me tha tape?"
Pinkie giggled a little, then grabbed the role of duck tape and gave it to Apple Jack, who was on top of a ladder taping a pony-witch cutout to the side of her barn.
This year the Apple family decided to host a haunted house.
Apple Bloom was about overjoyed with her hopefully "New family tradition."
The cutie mark crusaders were the one's who mostly did the decoration, with only one incentive in mind.
This was going to be the best Nightmare Night ever!
"So what's Apple Bloom gonna be this year A.J.?" Pinkie asked.
"I don't know, she said that she was gonna make costumes with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle this year. Never specified on the what."
"Huh, maybe they'll get their cutie marks out of it." Lemons inquired.
"Don't bet your bits on it sugar cube, ya didn't see it when it happened, but trust me on this. They got no sense of fashion... at'all."
"Why would ya say that?"
Apple Jack gave her answer very bluntly, "Talent show, 2011..."
"Huh?"
Pinkie smirked a bit and chuckled to herself, "You'd have to had been there lovie."
Pinkie unexpectedly scooted herself closer to Lemons, burying her head under his chin.
Unfortunately, the act of affection caused Lemons to nudge the ladder a bit too hard, and Apple Jack came crashing down.
She landed face first in the dirt, her hat returning to the top of her crown in a much lighter fashion. Almost seemed a little too cartoonish to happen, but it still did.
Lemons and Pinkie didn't notice though, they were wrapped up in their own little world.
Apple Jack raised her head in a groan of pain. She looked upon the two huddling together in the autumn scenery that canvassed the orchard, and smiled at the sight.
She knew it was an accident anyways, besides their relationship reminded her of the crush she developed on a certain new colt. He was from a farming town west of Fillydelphia, and was always really kind to all the ponies in his new home just outside of Ponyville. He was quite handsome as well.
"Apple Jack, you okay?"
Apple Jack turned her head to the left to find her brother Big Macintosh staring down at her.
He looks like a flippin' giant from down here.
Apple Jack Smiled up and said in a happy tone, "Yea' I'm fine, help me up."
Big Mac obliged, and helped his sister up. After she was up, Big Mac snatched his sister's hat and started dusting her with it.
"What 'r ya doin' Mac!" Apple Jack exclaimed.
The colt strained the words through his bite, "Ah'm tryin' ta get the dirt off ya, now hold still!"
Big mac was actually playing something he picked up from his father. It was called "Jus' bother."
Apple Jack took the game lightly and snatched her hat up half way from Mac hitting her a tenth time.
"Will ya quit it?" She said gritting the hat through her teeth in a annoyed tone.
"Mmnope!" Bic Mac amused.
He snatched the hat back and ran behind the barn with it.
This is when Apple Jack gave up, her brother was being a weirdo again, and when he play'd "Jus' bother." she never won anyways.
Big Mac peeked around the back end of the barn and glanced at Apple Jack with an unimpressed expression on her face.
Mac took that expression as a joke and went back behind the barn, the hat still in between his teeth.
"Heh, I swear he's gettin' more like Pa every day." A.J. Said to herself, a spark of amusement finally setting in.
She turned her attention to Lemons and Pinkie, both wearing pretty smiling faces.
"What?" Apple Jack ask.
"That was pretty funny to watch." Said Lemons.
"Yeah! Do it again!" Pinkie added.
Apple Jack broke into a soft chuckle.
Macintosh snuck up behind her and placed the hat back on his sister's head.
"Ah'll see ya later Sis, I gotta go pic' up Apple Bloom from school. Ah should be back in about ten minutes or so."
Not speaking another word Big Mac went off to school, leaving Apple Jack and her two friends behind him.
"Your brother is pretty cool." Lemons said cheerfully.
"Beg ur' pardon?" Apple Jack asked, turning to the yellow colt quizzically.
"He reminds me alot of my brother up in Cloudsdale. He's a really nice guy, hmm, I should call him up later."
Pinkie gasped after Lemons finished his sentence, "You never told me you had a Pegasus brother!"
"Well maybe if somepony wasn't so darn cute, I wouldn't have forgotten to talk about him." Lemons nuzzled Pinkie again, tickling her.
Pinkie loved it when he nuzzled her.
...
"Twilight, you should stop worrying. I'm sure the Princess has just been really busy over the past month and a half."
Spike was riding on Twilight's back, they both decided to get some fresh air this afternoon and go on a simple walk around town.
"I'm just not quite sure Spike. Ever since Princess Celestia sent me that weird letter about the messenger, or whoever he was, she's never written me back. I must have read that letter at least twenty-five times, and I still don't know what to make of it."
Lyra passed by and said a quick "Hey, Twi!" to the purple mare and her companion.
"Hey Ly!" Twilight responded before focusing her attention back on Spike.
"You think that she forgot about me Spike?" She asked in a slightly worried tone.
"No! I would never think so. Twilight I know you probably know this but, you tend to uh..."
"Overreact alot?" The mare said blandly.
"Yes! Oh I mean uh No not at all I uh just..."
"Save it Spike, I know what you meant." She replied knowingly, "I'll write her one more time later to see whats going on... Hopefully she'll write back this time."
"Oh Twilight..." Spike said, partially sad, yet partially annoyed because of the subject of the conversation.
"Hey there Twilight!" A colt wavered in a thick accent.
Twilight looked up to find Big Macintosh passing by.
"Hey Mac, how's it going?" Twilight responded.
The ponies crossed ways, "Get'n my lil' sister from school. I'll talk to ya later."
"Okay, bye!"
Twilight focused on the path ahead of her, looking forward at the crown of bustling ponies preparing the town for Nightmare Night.
Fathers and their young colts and fillies were carving pumpkins, making spooky and silly looking jack-o-lanterns, while the mothers were inside cooking dinner.
A few fillies were playing with a toy spider around the block.
Almost the entire town was getting ready for the night only a few sunsets away.
Orange and black streamers, cutouts of goofy looking monsters were on display, the autumn atmosphere only added to the excitement, the town was nearly exploding with anticipation.
Twilight thought to herself for a minute then asked, "How do you think Shining Armor and Cadence are doing?"
Spike looked at the back of Twilight's head for a second, but she didn't turn around to look back at him.
"What made you think of your brother and Cadence?" The little dragon asked.
"Nightmare Night is Shining's favorite holiday, and when Bic Mac past by he reminded me of the last time I actually spent a holiday with him. Gosh, it's been awhile hasn't it?"
Spike searched his mind, and found himself crossing a funny memory.
"Hey remember the year when you dressed up like a toaster for Nightmare Night? Didn't you lose a bet to him that year?"
Twilight remembered that embarrassing year, a look of bemusement washed over her face, "Don't remind me Spike." She said.
Spike giggled to himself that his attempt to bother Twilight succeeded.
Twilight shook it off and kept walking.
***
"TELL ME WHERE HE IS YOU LITTLE WORM!"
Fluttershy shriveled down and hid under her hair as the large colt stood above her menacingly.
His hind teeth were pointed, his eye's were blood red and cold, the two black pupils staring at the weeping pony below him.
He was angry, brutal and dangerous.
His coat was a dark grey tinted midnight, his mane was spiked, and resembled the color of complete darkness.
His cutie mark was quite evil looking, a red "6" in a bright white tongue of fire as it's canvas.
The chiseled frame of his face made him looked starved, as did the ribs that protruded under his paper thin hide.
"I'M NOT GOING TO ASK YOU NICELY AGAIN YOU CRYING BITCH!"
The monstrosity of a pony lifted his right arm up, and slashed Fluttershy across her delicate face.
She gave a mouse-like squeak of pain as the hoof forcefully swiped across her face.
The taste of iron found it's way into Fluttershy's mouth.
"WHERE IS CALCIFER!" He exclaimed.
She brushed her bangs infront of her face so she wouldn't be able to look at the pony in front of her.
"I *sniff* I don't know who your talking about." She pleaded.
The colt lifted his hoof up again, ready to strike down his prey.
A low unpony-like growl came from deep within the belly of the colt.
Fluttershy winced, ready to take another hit.
She was too afraid to yell for help, the colt might hurt her harder.
Something made the colt freeze just as his hoof was about to come in contact with Fluttershy's head for a second time.
He looked into the forest that bordered Fluttershy's backyard, shock distilled in his face.
His shocked expression turned into a horrifying wicked smile.
"Their's your fire you stupid bastard..." He put his hoof down and sprawled forward, lunging above Fluttershy.
A terrifying howl sounded from behind her, and drifted off into Everfree. It sounded like something like the roar of a dragon and a griffin mixed; either way, blood curtailing.
Fluttershy slowly opened one of her eyes, nothing but blue sky and soft green grass.
Her whole body was shivering from shock.
She slowly gathered the courage to look behind her, and saw the forest as it always was.
A muffled yell came from within the woods, then an ear shattering explosion sounded. A radiant blue light flashed deep within the forest.
Fluttershy's instincts kicked in, and she flew faster than Rainbow Dash into her cottage.
Into safety.
Two days before the event
Apple Jack laid her head down on on the soft grass under her favorite apple tree. She'd always went here for her
after-work naps, ever since she was a young filly. She tipped her hat over her eyes, and blew out hard. A few cracks across her spine sounded as her back expelled the soreness of manual labor, and she began to relax. It was around 5 o' clock, according to Celestia's sun. Big Mac called from across the field, his figure nearly completely hidden through the trunks of the trees.
"A.J., ah'm jus' gonna store these baskets in the cellar, and then we can call the season over!"
"That's great Mac, we had a good year this year huh?" The Earth pony called back.
"Eeyup!" A deep voice responded.
Apple Jack blew out another hard exhale and drew her mind into a state of rest.
Another apple pickin' season completed.
Daddy, you'd be proud. Were the only thoughts she could process.
Her relaxing slowly turned into slumber.
"Well, somepony looks rather comfy." He spoke boldly.
Apple Jack woke up with a start, but all she could see was tiny white spots and near complete blackness.
She recognized the voice though.
Her cheeks felt a bit hot, although she was under the sun for who knows how long.
She gave a quaint smile and said smugly, "Ah reckon ah rather am."
She kept her hat above her eyes, mostly because she was a bit in shocked by being caught off guard under her tree.
A large presents was felt taking a seat quite close the her, skin brushed past her left shoulder. Out of the corner of her eye could see a part of a blue-jay bird cutie mark, and a sun tanned hide.
"So you finished your season yet?" The colt asked.
"Eeyup! Jus' finished it today. I reckon we're ready for a good Nightmare Night this year."
"Uh... We're?"
Apple Jack winced slightly.
"Ah mean me and my family."
"Ahh, okay." He was obviously covering up the blunder he committed.
Apple Jack smiled under her hat. He was cute when he screwed up.
"So..." She cleared her throat, "What brings ya around here? And ya got any plans for the holiday?"
"Oh, uh... I was coming to buy some apples and make some chat. As for my plans in the next two nights uh... don't know."
Apple Jack got an idea.
She pulled herself up and sat hide by hide next to Jaybird. She lifted her hat to the crown of her head and looked into his emerald green eyes. His blueberry mane was banged over his emeralds in the way she found most fascinating about his features.
The bright orange sky, and the setting sun mixed. It looked strange though, she never seen the orchard so fragrant in color.
So beautiful, yet not her center of attention at the moment.
"Mah family's hosting a haunted house during Nightmare Night, Jay. How would you like ta be a ghost or somethin'?"
Jaybird looked at Apple Jack for only a second and said, "Absolutely."
***
Dear Twilight Sparkle,
I'm sure that you were expecting a letter from my sister, but she hasn't been feeling quite well for awhile now.
Do not worry yourself though, she's not grave. She speaks only of nonsense.
I fear she's getting tired.
I shall tell her personally any messages you wish her to hear in the letter back.
On a lighter tone, I' am overjoyed to bring you good news.
I shall be attending Nightmare Night Celebrations in your humble town this year for the second of events.
I have been looking forward to such fun ever since last year's festivities.
I ask you to please not tell anypony in Ponyville about my comings on Nightmare Night, for I wish it to be a surprise.
Lastly, and most importantly.
My sister wishes you to wear this necklace of sorts on your person at all times.
I asked her why and where she acquired such artifact, but she said it was for protection and nothing more.
She thinks you need protection, but whatever from is nothing you'd need to worry about it.
The creatures she speaks of are only in folklore anyways.
I ask that you pray for my sister Twilight Sparkle.
I shall see you quite soon,
Luna.
Twilight smiled at the good news of Luna's return to Ponyville. Yet she was upset about her teacher's illness.
"Spike, what do you think would make a good "Get well" gift for the Princess." She asked her companion who was standing atop a high ladder placing books back in their homes.
Spike mulled it over for a second, "Plants!"
"Plants?" She asked.
"Uh, I meant flowers. The good smelling ones. I love Lilac, get her some Lilac." The dragon said pushing a book in the bookcase.
"Spike, you eat Lilac." Twilight said sternly, observing the necklace Celestia gave to her.
"Your right! Get me some too! Fluttershy grows Lilac in her garden, I'm sure she'd give you some."
Twilight giggled a little, and wafted the necklace around her neck, it fit perfectly.
Spike slid down the ladder and landed on his feet with a thud.
He turned to Twilight and noticed the necklace.
"Hey! Cool necklace Twi. Who gave it to you?"
Twilight turned to Spike, "The Princess. Luna says she wanted me to have it for protection from something."
"Protection from what?"
"She said Celestia never specified. The least we could do is give her something in return, something nice. You really think Lilac would suit her Spike?"
Spike went back into the recesses of his mind and pulled out a different answer, "Roses would be nice I guess. We could stop by Rose and pick some up , but could we stop by Fluttershy's and get some Lilac too?"
Twilight soft a small laugh, "Sure Spike."
"All right!" He cheered.
Twilight and Spike stared at the letter pinned to the cottage door in confusion.
Twilight, Apple Jack, Rarity, Pinkie, Rainbow.
I need you to look after Angel and the other animals for awhile.
Don't worry, I'll be back by Nightmare Night.
There's somepony you all need to meet. You'll meet him soon, He's a very nice guy.
Don't worry about my safety, I'm completely sure I'll be fine.
Stay away from dark colored ponies with a "6" as their cutie marks.
-Fluttershy <3
"What are we going to do Twi?" Spike asked.
Twilight mulled it over for a minute, then came to a conclusion.
"Go find Pinkie and Apple Jack, I'll go and get Rarity and Rainbow Dash, we'll meet back here and search for her."
"... Could I get Rarity?"
"SPIKE GO!"
Lemon Walked into Sugar Cube corner; a smile on his face as usual, but no smile back from a certain pink mare.
The bakery was half empty, mostly because it just opened maybe a half hour ago.
The yellow Earth colt's smile slowly turned into a confused slant.
A strange worrying sensation struck him. Every time he walked into Pinkie's place of work he'd always be greeted with one huge hug after another, the smell of sugary delicacies scented in a fluffy pink mane.
With no embrace occurring, Lemons trotted up to the front counter.
"Good morning deary!" Mrs. Cake cheered. Even though it was 8 in the morning, the blue mare was as kind as ever.
"Good morning Mrs' Cake. Have you seen Pinkie?" He asked.
"Oh she came home quite late last night, she was with her friends for a long time, don't know what she was doing though.
Your welcome to go and see her dear, you know where her room is. Just be quit, the babies are still sleeping."
Lemons thanked the baker and, after almost turning down the offer of a morning Nightmare Night cupcake, headed up to Pinkie's room with the pastry atop his head.
Lemons softly tapped the door to her room with the side of his hoof, "Pinkie?" the colt cooed. He took everything with Pinkie as a lovely game. "Pinkie, I got you a surprise breakfast."
No response.
"Pinkie?"
Lemons softly opened to door, trying to be as silent as a mouse.
The window in her room shined with morning sun-rays, glowing the rest of her room in a bright light.
Lemons tiphooved up to the bed under the window, a Pinkie sized lump under the covers.
He had to step over many party favors splayed out around the room; Pinkie was a light sleeper and if he tripped he'd risk startling her.
Finally he reached the side of her bed. Lemon dipped his head down on the nightstand and let the orange holiday cupcake slide off the top of his head; it landed upright on the counter.
A perfect breakfast present for a "Perfect" mare.
Pinkie's body was completely under an ocean of bright pink blankets. Lemons smiled, he had been with a few other mares in his past, but Pinkie was something else.
A strange grumbling/growling sound echoed around the room, coming from a Gummy sized figure under the covers at the foot of Pinkie's bed.
Lemons chuckled to himself quietly. He grabbed the bottom sheets of the blankets and pulled them up. Soon enough a little green alligator appeared, looking up at Lemons with large purple eyes.
"Hello Gummy." The colt whispered.
Gummy responded with yet another strange alligator growl.
Lemons loved Pinkie's little buddy Gummy. He reminded him of the turtle he had as a younger pony.
Lemons patted Gummy on his head a few times then turned to the front of the bed.
He lifted up the sheets delicately; relieving a tussled maned pink mare, sleeping like a foul.
The past few months they dated was the best time in Lemon's life. He couldn't ask for anything more than Pinkie.
Her friends excepted the relationship wholeheartedly, even calling the couple "Pink Lemonade" as a little joke.
Pinkie took a deep breath in, then blew out softly.
She looked so peaceful, but she was also sweating like a Pinkie pig.
To cool her off the lemon colored pony pulled the covers down her body to let the cooler air breath on her.
The blanket made it half way down her body then stopped suddenly.
Lemons stared in complete shock at what was on Pinkie's side.
He dashed the rest of the covers off of Pinkie's body.
Starting from her lower shoulder, all the way down to her flank, was a scorching red burn.
Rippled of charred flesh placated the side of the pink pony; the smell was as worse as the sight.
For a moment, Lemon couldn't breath.
When he caught his breath he yelled, loud.
Pinkie was still asleep, but the sounds of two fouls crying sounded in the other room.
"PINKIE!" The colt cried out in astonishing fear.
The door slammed shut across the room. Lemons turned to the door.
A large black colt was infront of the closed opening, staring at him like he was a meal.
The black colt had the cutie mark of a "66" on it's flank, and it growled like a monster from Hell.
"Take him!" The dark colt commanded.
Lemon's vision was suddenly black, his whole body was burning.
His inner organs felt cold.
The bed he stood next to only a second ago was gone.
He tried to open his eyes, but when he did he saw nothing but a painful white.
The tried to breath, but when he did he felt choked by the pungent smell of smoke.
He couldn't move his muscles; he was scared out of his mind.
What was the black colt doing to Pinkie? What was he doing to him?
His mind raced, but his only realization was,
"This is more than bad."
***
"Please let us go!" Twilight pleaded.
The grey colt stared at her smiling maniacally, "And why should we?"
"We? But, your just one pony."
Twilight's response amused the colt.
"You really think we're alone?" He cooed in a sarcastic tone.
Twilight stared at him in confusion.
"We are never alone." The cult echoed, multiple voices coming through his mouth.
Twilight's confusion turning into blinding fear.
She thrashed away from the cult, hoping to get as far away from him as she could, but the cave boxed her and the other three in.
Rainbow, Rarity, and Apple Jack closed her in their embrace, shielding Twilight from the monstrosity of a pony poised in the mouth of the cave. They were never going to let her speak to that pony again, ever.
"Who are you?" Apple jack asked.
The grey pony turned to her, "I'm your newest nightmare." He said smiling.
***
"Calcifer, what's wrong?" Fluttershy asked.
Calcifer looked up at the yellow mare from his kneeling on the rocky ground, a painful expression on his face.
"They're here." He replied seriously.
"Calcifer what's going on?" Fluttershy asked pleadingly.
The human was arming his sword somewhere inside a sheath hidden in his long black duster jacket, he wasn't paying much attention to the winged pony asking him questions beside him.
"Calcifer please... What's going on?" She repeated.
Calcifer wasn't much for Q and A.
He looked down to Fluttershy, who was looking back at him with a worried expression.
He took a deep breath. He didn't want to tell her who he was, what had been done in the past, where he went, why he was here.
She'd never look at him the same way again.
The yellow pony was the first being in this world who he didn't have to kill for protection, or burn with the fire.
In fact Fluttershy had actually been very nice to him, even though he wasn't meant to be in this world; although he was meant for this world.
He exhaled harshly and slowly.
"Fluttershy, what if I told you that my being here was for something very important. Something more important than me, and something way more important than you."
Fluttershy was slightly hurt by his choice of words, but she knew he really meant well.
"My being here was not a mistake, it's... my destiny." Calcifer finished.
"Okay..." The pony shied back alittle, responding the the human in a way she was familiar with. Although, he did look a bit fierce in his words.
Calcifer realized that he was scaring her alittle, but the words he was speaking were quite scary though.
The first time he spoke to her, Calcifer could tell that Fluttershy was extremely timid.
He took her to the falls to protect her from any more of the Demonics; he didn't regret the decision.
The creatures in this world didn't know God. Fluttershy said when her kind prays, it means to wish something or "somepony" well. She had never heard of God before.
Unfortunately, any creature without a knowledge or understanding of God, is endangered by Lucifer.
Calcifer softened his voice to Fluttershy's level. He couldn't explain the situation fully, so he had to try to say enough so that Fluttershy could understand what she needed to know. She deserved somewhat of an explanation.
He knelt down to her height, looking at her eye to eye in a simple expression that says, "Everything is gonna be okay."
"Fluttershy, I'm going to tell you something very scary. I need you to be not afraid of what I'm about to say, because either way this is happening and you deserve to know whats going on."
Fluttershy stared back at him attentively in silence.
"You ready?" Calcifer asked.
Fluttershy shook her head delicately, and hummed a "Mm- hmm."
"Okay..."
Calcifer cleared his throat and began, "I'm of course not from this world, you should know that by now. I don't want to tell you how or why I'm here, because if you ever found out you'd never want to see me again."
Fluttershy was about to jest, but Calcifer cut her off, "Fluttershy I need you to listen right now, I'll answer your questions afterwards."
Fluttershy shut her mouth.
Calcifer continued.
"Before you can even understand any of this you need to know this story.
Long ago, before any of your friends, or family were ever thought of, their was a being known as God.
God was a masterful artist who could create life, and all other things that are good. God is a being of pureness, of wholeness, of love and compassion, but most of all he is how we exist, because we are his creations. He created another group of beings known as Angels, they are pure spirits, free of any sin, because they were molded holy. But not all of the Angels are holy..."
Calcifer stopped to fill his lungs with air, letting the seconds he breathed be a time for the pony to say something.
"Is... is this story all true?" She asked.
Calcifer looked at her, "Can you breath?" He answered.
"Erm... yes." She replied.
"Than yes."
Fluttershy silenced herself for the rest of the story.
"Now an Angel by the name of Lucifer became corrupt, he wanted to be as powerful and holy as God.
Lucifer was greedy, evil, and arrogant. The only Angel of his kind to feel any of those emotions.
He corrupted a good amount of Angels to follow him, and he turned them evil.
He attacked God and attempted to take his throne. A great war was started by Lucifer. God sent his warriors to fight, and God won."
"What happened to him?" Fluttershy asked tentatively.
"Well, because Lucifer and "His" Angels became unholy, God cast him out of his home. Heaven."
"Oh... that's so mean. Couldn't God have just forgiven Lucifer?" Fluttershy asked.
Calcifer responded, "God can always forgive Lucifer, but Lucifer must find a way to ask for forgiveness. I don't see that happening any time soon though."
"Hmm." Was the only thing that Fluttershy could respond to.
"Well, what makes him and his Angels so evil?" She asked another question.
Calcifer looked at Fluttershy almost befuddled, then he realized that she doesn't know the Devil at all.
"Your gonna have to find out how evil he is on your own, Fluttershy." Was all he said.
Fluttershy thought about it a second, then stayed silent to listen to the last of what Calcifer had to say.
"The war between God and Lucifer is still going on to the day. It wont stop for a long time either.
Now when I came here to your world, Lucifer got mad. I'm something he wants very badly. I don't want to tell you why. Don't ask, I just don't want to tell you."
"But, I... I don't understand. I know you told me not to ask Calcifer but, it just seems that your holding out something really important. It makes no sense, just... why?" Fluttershy asked knowing that it was probably a bad idea to anyways.
Calcifer stopped and looked at her for a minute, there was a pain in his chest where the wound was.
He looked down for a second in thought, and decided something.
Calcifer looked back up to Fluttershy, "How about this, I'll tell you why Lucifer wants me one day, but not today. Right now, I've got to go find some old friends."
Calcifer stood up and looked to the autumnal forest beyond the clearing.
The man glanced down to Fluttershy for a brief second and said, "I want you to stay here, these friends of mine are dangerous and could easily hurt you, possibly even kill you. It would be better if you stay here, so please just do this for me."
Fluttershy stared up at the tall figure before her. Calcifer's dark brown eyes were almost hidden under his light brown locks of hair. His facial features were cut, but looked about natural for a human she guessed.
His "hands" were clenched in balls, Calcifer was waiting for a response from Fluttershy.
"Okay, but you have to promise to tell me." She said.
Calcifer didn't like the idea at all, be had had made an obligation.
"I promise I'll tell you someday soon." He replied diligently.
***
The Demonic stared at the four ponies lying on the floor.
"I believe that we're ready to ask." He said to his four other companions, smiling with wild exasperation.
"We have the pink one as well, yes?"
A dark grey pony behind him spoke with delight, "We've managed to receive another as a little gift. I believe we are ready."
"Beautiful." He said delightfully, "We leave at six."
A Nightmare Night in Hell (Part 1)
In the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse, 3:27 P.M. (4 hours and 16 minutes before the event)
"C'mon guys, I'm sure that Applejack and Rarity will come back soon." Scootaloo was trying to get her friends to stop worrying.
It had been almost two whole days since Rarity and Apple Jack disappeared to go look for Fluttershy, and they haven't returned.
The absence of their sisters somewhat tore a hole in the holiday spirit of two small mares.
Both Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom sat on their haunches and stared at the floorboards, waiting for Scootaloo to say something that might actually help them.
They both wanted to spend time with their sisters this Nightmare Night, especially since they made their own costumes and started a haunted house in the barn.
Without Apple Jack and Rarity, Nightmare Night just wouldn't be quite as fun.
"Okay look..." Scootaloo pleaded, "Apple Jack and Rarity would never miss Nightmare Night, I'm sure that they'll be back by sundown. Besides, if they don't come. Don't you think that they'd want you to have fun tonight?"
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Bell considered it a moment.
"Yeah, ah suppose." Apple Bloom said, still somewhat melancholy.
"That's the spirit!" Scootaloo cheered, "Sweetie Bell?"
Sweetie looked at Scoots for a moment, then gave a small smile.
"I think so." She mumbled.
"There we go!" Scootaloo pronounced, finally getting through to her friends.
"Now come on, we still got some work to do in the haunted house."
Apple Bloom and Sweetie bell decided to let the thoughts of their sisters not being around for Nightmare Night slide, and Scootaloo was right. If they didn't show up for tonight, they'd still at least try to have fun.
Mr. Cake walked past Pinkie's bedroom door, Pumpkin Cake in the crook of his arm taking a nap.
The door was closed and hadn't been opened after hearing Lemon Squeeze scream, Pinkie and his disappearance, and how strangely cold it was inside Pinkie's bedroom afterwards.
He tried to ignore what must have been the strangest indecent to ever have happen in his house, and kept on moving through the hall.
Pumpkin squirmed a little in his arm, and her Dad cradled her back into slumber.
He smiled at his daughter, she was destined for a great life, he just knew it.
Jaybird stood infront of the Apple Family's house, a red stallion standing before him.
"Ah'm sorry Jaybird, mah sister's not here. In fact she's been gone fur about two days now. Said she was lookin' for a friend of her's. If you see her please tell her ta come back home soon."
Jaybird was alittle disappointed, "Will do Mac. Hey, do ya still need a ghost for the haunted house?"
Big Mac gazed at the ground for a second, then turned to Jaybird and said, "Ah suppose you can still come over and play the part, but ah wont make any promises that Apple Jack..." Mac winked at the stallion infront of him knowingly, "will be around. We could still use ya though."
Jay smiled at Mac, he knew that Mac would figured it out eventually.
"I'll be here around seven. That cool?"
"Eeyup, that be fine."
"Fantastic, see you then."
***
Calcifer Moved through the woods swiftly. He wasn't running, nor sprinting of any sorts, he was simply just walking fast, his paces long and repetitive.
The evening autumnal scenery painted his walkway, and it was almost like he was walking through a painting.
He didn't know where he was going, nor where to go.
Even though he was dead, he was probably just as hard-headed when he left Fluttershy as he was on Earth.
It had been about four hours sense he had left the pony, and their was no signs of the Demonics, but he had to keep looking for them before some being got killed.
So he kept walking.
"You know, it seems like your sixth sense isn't and was never direction at all."
Calcifer knew the voice of the being that appeared from behind a tree he passed only a second ago.
"Why are you here Nuntius?" Calcifer asked coldly, still walking forward at a breakneck pace.
"As your guardian, I'm sworn to always be by your side."
"I know that."
Nuntius stepped into the peripheral of Calcifer, his choice of image made Calcifer stop in his tracks.
Nuntius was a Pegasus.
"Why did you choose that form?" Calcifer questioned, turning to his friend.
"I think it suits me for the world we're in." The white armored Pegasus-Angel smiled.
Calcifer didn't know why, and perhaps it would be better to not push the blade in harder.
"So do you have a message or, anything?" The human asked.
"Ahh, yes..." The messenger cleared his throat, "It seems that you've been invited."
"Invited to what?" Said Calcifer.
"Well, it seems that the Demons that Lucifer sent to damn you love games and other areas of entertainment."
"Such as?"
"Plays."
"As in... theater?"
"Yes."
"All right, so what?"
"Calcifer..." The Angel's voice turned more serious, "They want to damn you in public, they want to show every being possible how quote on quote "Pathetic" you really are. They've planned to draw you out of the forest by bait."
Calcifer became confused by one word, and one word only.
"What's the bait?"
***
(Their arrival. 7:43 P.M.)
The speaker sparked into life and the Mayor's voice came across the teleprompter.
"Will... wi will everypony pl-please come to the stage for an im im important announcement. Everypony mu, must come immediately. Puh, please."
It was unusual for the Mayor to be so staggered in her sentences, especially since she was the one pony who's job it was to make and publicly speak speeches.
All of the costumed ponies slowly yet surely gathered at the stage decorated in Nightmare Night favors.
Luna was among the crowd, she had arrived just like she promised in the letter to Twilight; the letter that the pony never replied back to.
The Mayor was on the stage behind the stand, she was wearing a vampony costume this year.
The grey maned mare was shaking for some reason, and she wore an expression as if she was hiding fear; a struggling smile plastered on her face.
However hard the mare tried to look calm, it was impossible.
The last of the ponies arrived in the crowd, a humming chatter about the area.
The speakers squealed, silencing the crowd.
The Mayor stuttered, "We, wuh wuh wuh wee ha ha have some very special gue gue guests to tonight."
The crowds mumbling started again; eager ponies wondered who "they" could be, especially sense Princess Luna had already arrived.
Luna herself grew in excitement, but it was still very strange how the Mayor was talking.
"Well, who are they?" a pony from the crowd asked.
The Mayor continued nervously, "They're from... far away."
The crowd's anticipation grew still; ponies conversed with themselves about these far away visitors, and how they would certainly welcome them with open arms.
"Well, where are they?" The same pony from the crowd asked.
The Mayor didn't answer in words.
The grey maned Vampony stared off into the distance; they were coming.
Four dark colored Earth ponied came into view, and the Mayor was stunned immobile, her heart skipping beats.
Each dark pony carried a sack on their backs, what was in the sack she didn't want to know.
"Look!" A Pegasus from the crowd spotted the four from the sky, and signaled the rest of Ponyville about the whereabouts of their guests.
Everypony in the crowd turned their attention behind them.
Small groups of ponies went to go greet the four, most of them small fouls.
The groups of ponies greeted the four dark ponies with glee.
In return they were ignored.
The crowd that stayed infront of the stage cleared a pathway for the four ponies making their way to the front of the gathering.
The ponies of Ponyville were confused as why the four ignored their greetings though.
The four climbed up onto the stage, and the Mayor joined the crowd, still shaking in fear.
Each dark pony dropped their sacks onto the stage, a loud plop came from each sack.
The tallest of the four trotted slowly to front-center stage.
"Welcome to our little play! My friends." His voice sounded welcoming, cheerful at it's best, "We apologize for not returning your welcomes, but we have a show to perform; so please, relax and enjoy yourself!"
The townsponies cheered, their excitement returned.
The tall pony smiled kindly, and raised his hoof to shush the crowd.
The crowd grew silent, and the pony spoke.
"We have one more member of our little group that must be among us, unfortunately he is late..."
Some of the crowd began to "Aww." in the thrill of the play, they were expecting another performer to pop out of nowhere, sometime soon after their response.
The tall pony spoke again, "Tonight is something very special, for tonight our friend will play a special role in our... play. We have special gifts for him that we have put in our sacks. So since he isn't here yet, HOW WOULD ALL OF YOU PONIES LIKE TO SEE OUR SPECIAL SURPRISE!?"
The crowd exclaimed their cheered. Fouls leaped in excitement over the surprise. This was going to be a fantastic Nightmare Night.
"Okay! But I must ask you ponies, not to tell our friend what's in these bags after we put what's in them back. Can we trust you?"
The crowd responded with a loud "Yes!" followed by some smaller yeses by latecomers.
"All right!" The black pony exclaimed.
The crowd cheered continuously.
The tall one motioned for his companions to empty the cargo in the sacks.
They complied; one after another dark pony emptied their sacks, spewing the cargo on the stage.
The crowd went silent in shock.
The tall pony backed up to his sack, hoisted it to his shoulder, untied the opening, and out sprawled a severely wounded Twilight Sparkle.
The crowd responded with gasps and shrieks, six of their friends landing on the stage infront of them.
Each pony that came out of the sacks had burning red scorch marks somewhere on their body, they all looked either dead or unconscious.
The tall one tossed the now empty sack away, then made his way back up to center-front.
"Now then..." He complied to the crowd.
The colt stomped his hoof on the floorboards, and one of his companions lifted Rarity up, and held a jagged knife to her throat.
More ponies gasped, and a few more screamed.
"If our friend doesn't appear in the next six minutes, your friend here will die, and I will keep slitting each one's throats every six minutes then, until he appears."
He smiled evilly, everything was coming out smoothly.
***
(To be continued.)
A Nightmare Night in Hell (Part 2)
"You shall do no such thing!"
A pony from the crowd cried out against the evil that was taking place before her.
The crowd formed an opening for the dark pony on the stage to see who was speaking out; it was Luna.
The alicorn stood firm on the ground, looking demanding and fierce.
Her wings spread out wide and her head was held high, a midnight glow of magic illuminated the tip of her horn.
"You shall back away from my friends, and face justice for the crimes you are committing!" The Princess commanded.
The four took the princess lightly, and started to monstrously laugh at her, causing a feeling of dread in her stomach, but she needed to be brave.
The pony holding Rarity nicked the pony's neck with his blade, causing a small stream of blood to flow.
The colt in center-front stage regained some composure to speak to the blue mare while the other three continued laughing.
"And just who are you, little pony?" He baffled amusingly.
Luna puffed out her chest and glared at the dark pony, "I am Princess Luna of Canterlot, and you are assaulting my friends. Release them NOW!" She finished her sentence using the traditional Canterlot voice, hoping to scare the four into letting go of Twilight and her friends.
Upon hearing such a loud ending, the four colts began laughing wildly again.
Luna became angry.
As an act to save her friends, and an unknown yellow colt lying next to Pinkie Pie, Luna shot a bolt of lightening at the front colt.
The bolt of magic hit the colt's chest, but nothing happened.
The colt didn't fall back in pain, nor move in any way at all to show he was in pain.
He and the other three colts stared at her; half in silent amusement, half in hot bloodlessness.
Luna stared in awe, what kind of creatures were these ponies?
"That's a cute little trick you got their Princess..." The front pony spoke.
A white flash erupted from the stage, and in the next second that passed the dark colt was on the ground, only a few feet away in front of Luna, their faces nearly touching.
His voice imitated that of more than one being, "Lets see what other tricks you got."
The colt wore a wicked smile, then thrust forward and kissed Luna lustily.
Catching her and the crowd completely off guard, Luna stopped to asses the rather unexpected and vulgar situation.
Luna spat in the colt's mouth, separating herself from the beast.
The crowd watched in shock at the scene that unfolded before them, an unknown colt had just kissed their Princess.
Luna backed away, staring at the colt with hate in her eyes.
The dark colt smiled wide at the ground, his hind teeth jarred and his mane banging over his eyes.
The crowd reacted to how sharp the colt's teeth were; they now understood that he wasn't a pony, he was a monster.
"I see you aren't much for French, are ya bitch?." He joked, chuckling afterwards.
The Princess glared at the colt in disgust now, she shuttered at the thought of his tongue entering her mouth again.
"Watch your language monster, there are children here."
The beast laughed at her sentence a bit, then replied, "I'm gonna go ahead and say what I'd like. Now I'm gonna say whats gonna happen..."
Luna's spine tingled as the colt spoke.
He lifted his head up and glared at her with his deep red eyes.
"Me and my friends are gonna..."
A sword thrust into the ground between Luna and the colt, the clinging of metal against rock sounding.
"You and your friends are going back to Hell." Calcifer interrupted, "Everypony get into a house now, before someone gets hurt."
The four dark colts, Luna, and the entirety of Ponyville looked at this new beast.
Calcifer stood six feet high, he stood on two legs, he wore a long black coat that hung to about his ankles, on his head he wore a mac, his feet were barren of any shoes, his pants were black and his undershirt was white. He looked at the Demon before the blue pony with hate, sheer unloving hate.
The ponies of Ponyville stood firm, in shock at the being before them.
"I said to go, NOW!" Calcifer repeated more forcefully.
Some of the ponies started to scurry off to their houses.
"NO BEING IS GOING ANYWHERE! STAY HERE OR YOUR PRINCESS DIES!" The colt's voice was characteristically monstrous, and Ponyville stayed put.
The dark pony stood behind the Princess, his black knife held to her throat by the hoof.
His entire eyes glowed red, and all of his teeth were jagged.
He motioned for his companions to come by his side, and with another white flash the colt was accompanied with his other three standing behind him.
Rarity hit the floorboards, remaining unconscious.
The four stared at Calcifer expressionless, and the townsponies stared in awe.
The Demons and Calcifer stared at each other for what seemed like a couple of minutes, before the colt that held Luna's life spoke.
"It's about damn time you got here!"
Calcifer said nothing.
"What? Got nothing to say you bastard?"
Calcifer looked toward his sword, who's blade was cut into the ground behind the four Demons.
He stared back at the four.
He lifted the back of his right hand and stuck out his index finger, which startled the ponies for not being a hoof,
"First off, I want my sword back, because I'm an idiot for throwing it." He lifted his ring finger, "Second off, you and all of your little buddies look freaking ugly as ponies."
His remark made the Demons growl and hiss.
The human continued to his pinkie, "Third off, torturing the ponies here was the wrong way to ask for my presents, If you wanted to see me all you had to do was ask."
The knifed Demon let out a low chuckle, scaring Luna immensely to where she squeaked alittle in fear.
Calcifer put all his figures down and lifted only his middle, "And lastly," He said, "I'm going to nail each one of you bloodless, soul torturing, God damned Angels to an Oak tree, AND SEE YOU ALL BURN IN HIS FIRE!"
After Finishing his last sentence Calcifer said a word; one word. A word that means fire.
"Incendium"
A small blue tongue of fire ignited on the tip of Calcifer's middle finger.
(Part 3 to come at the end of seven and or eight days)
A Nightmare Night in Hell (Finally)
The tip of Calcifer's middle finger started to tingle, the first sign of what happens once he releases the fire.
The four Demonics infront of him looked at the flame in awe, and fear; A small blue spark in their crimson red eyes.
The dark pony that held the knife to Luna's throat dropped the blade stunned, and the sound of steel hitting ground echoing through a silent crowd.
The atmosphere changed. It was as if their were just four pony-like monsters and an unknown beast, standing in the middle of a ghost-village.
The wind grew eerie, even for Nightmare Night.
A long wallowing, chilling breeze engulfed the town, and it seemed to be starting from behind the tall being standing with the blue fire; the gust washed over all infront of him like ocean waves.
The ponies' costumes ruffled in the breeze that started from Calcifer, and yet every one of them stood still.
The Demon's hides were visibly shuttering, as if they'd seen the flame before, and immediately grew in fear.
"So... so it's true... He gave you his fire, didn't he?" One of the Demonics stuttered.
Calcifer glared at the dark-grey pony who asked the question.
The being in pony-skin stood motionless in fear, shaking in his place to the right of the Demon with Luna standing just as motionless infront of him.
Calcifer cocked a half smile, "Yes."
Calcifer threw up his hand into the sky, and let out a great yell. A sapphire blaze of about 200 feet high or higher shot toward the moon.
Ponyville was shrouded in a glow of bright blue.
The four Demonics formed into small clouds of pitch black smoke and fled into Everfree, running from the enraged blue fire, shrieking in un-animal like terror.
Ponyville watched in horror, and fascination. All eyes were fixated on the blue in the air, which tore a few clouds away from existence.
The wind picked up to a higher power, and trees and buildings shook with the sheer energy that the fire produced.
Calcifer withdrew the blue flame from the sky, ending his yell. The fire now covered his right arm, veined down his jacket's back in twisting tendrils of bright sapphire, and ended on the edges of his coat's hemming. Calcifer's face, left arm, torso, and down to his feet, were virtually unlit in the flames.
The tongues of blue licked the air from the human's body. He was on fire, but his pain was delayed for now.
Calcifer looked in the direction the Demons fled to, towards the forest.
Everypony, including Luna, stared at this new being, who payed them no attention.
He snickered with a cocked grin on his face, "I love it when they run."
Calcifer slowly jotted to his sword; flames wildly aglow. Once he arrived next to his weapon, he pulled the blade out the ground, and slung it over his shoulder. Luna stood a few feet in front of him, standing still. The mare was confused; she should have felt fear looking upon the flaming beast before her, but instead she felt peace.
Her gazing caught Calcifer's attention, and the human stared back at her.
His blue shining features were kind; her's befuddled.
Calcifer moved his eyes from Luna's wings to her horn.
"Your one of the rulers of the world aren't you? Are you Luna?"
Luna was shocked; this being knew her. Or at least about her. What was this creature anyways?
"Erm, yes. I' am Luna, Princess of the night."
Calcifer smiled, "Nice to meet you in person. Now I'd love to stay and chat, but I got to go meet my friends. Tell Celestia that Calcifer sends his regards. She'll recognize my name, trust me."
Luna remained her stunned composure, "Certainly."
"Fantastic..." He snapped back cheerfully.
The flames on Calcifer's right arm and back grew in intensity and size.
He looked past the crowd and to the stage where six ponies laid, obviously touched by hell fire.
Calcifer turned to Luna again, "I'll be back for them, keep them in cold conditions for now. Understand?"
Luna glazed her eyes to the stage, then back at Calcifer, "Yes."
The human turned to the forest beyond the painted buildings and nightly holiday decor, and simply walked forward.
As he walked the flames of blue started to cover the rest of his body.
The fire on his back grew to his left arm, the flames on his arms spread to his torso and down his legs, until all that was unlit was his head.
Calcifer strutted into the forest, cloaked in the fire that made even Satan himself fear.
He was a living, dead soul.
He was a damner from the damned.
He IS, a human from Hell... But a broken man.
(An hour past.)
The flames that swallowed his body were short and spiky. They were defiantly here.
Calcifer stood in the middle of a large circular rock quarry. The ground was burnt black and brown.
The quarry was a perfect circle of at least 300 feet in diameter, with Everfree as it's halo for hiding.
In the far back of the quarry stood a tall mound. Unearthly eerie in dark features.
On the mound's face was an opening; a small pitch dark cave.
That... was their portal here.
The dirt underneath his feet was warm, but Calcifer WAS standing infront of a Hell hole.
A humid gust came from behind Calcifer. Nuntius spoke through the wind.
"I right by your side, my companion."
At the sound of the Angel's voice, two small burning crimson eyes illuminated from the cave, staring at Calcifer with death-like intentions.
Calcifer payed little mind to the gawking eyes in the cave, and responded to his guardian's words.
"Nuntius, you seriously need to work on speaking in this time. Nobody says 'companion' like that anymore."
The monster in the cave roared. It's wails of anger sounded unlike anything alive. The quarry responded to the monster's roars with incredible vibrations that would knock any living being on his back, but Calcifer wasn't alive.
Calcifer and his fiery body stood still as the vibrations passed his body, harm not taking hold of him. His vision staring into the red eyes still lurking in the cave.
The roaring seized.
"Well... they brought a Hell-hound." He said sarcastically; partially to Nuntius, and partially to himself.
Calcifer smirked a grin and crouched down in a squat.
He placed his flaming blue thumb to his index and middle figure and rubbed them together, and began whistling playfully.
"Here puppy, *whistles, here boy. *whistles."
The beast growled from deep within it's belly.
A paw armed with sharp talons stepped into the moonlight; the claws sinking into the ground like ice in water.
The head appeared next; the head of a mixed breed of Rottweiler and a Great Dane, sleek black in color.
The beast slowly wallowed out of the cave, It's teeth jittering from the vibes of the growls it's master's stomach brewed.
It moved towards Calcifer's fiery blue body slowly and steadily, red eyes locked on it's still crouched prey.
"Here boy, c'mon. Come here." The human teased the beast.
The hound barked, and it actually sounded like a dog from Earth... A really really pissed off dog.
Calcifer continued teasing the hound with 'C mer's' and whistles.
The hound crouched it's front legs, readying to attack.
Calcifer smiled under his breath, the flames growing more vibrant.
"There we go." He exhaled.
The Hell-hound leaped forward and bee-lined towards Calcifer, it's jaw wide opened ready to sink it's teeth into human flesh, barking wildly.
Calcifer held his crouch, giddily smiling as his new puppy friend ran towards him.
The hound was nearing at a breath-taking pace.
one...
The beats of the hound's running rippled through the Earth below him.
two...
The hound leaped, attempting to pounce on Calcifer.
THREE!
"INCENDIUM!"
Calcifer hastily stood up, shooting his right arm at the Hell-hound who was floating in mid air, bent on killing him.
From his right hand, the flames reached in large tendrils of sapphire flames, engulfing the hound within seconds.
Lucifer's pet howled in sheer, blinding pain. The dog's body held in the air by the fire, and through the flames burning flesh smelted.
Calcifer's expression was bland, this was his least favorite part of damning. His hand was opened and facing towards the hound, and slowly... he started to close it.
The flames started to enclose the hound in a tighter grip.
His fist closed slower.
The hound cried louder, and the flames got tighter.
The tip of Calcifer's index finger touched his palm, and crackling bones could be audibly heard from within the dog's body, making the hound screech in un-heavenly pain.
The flames that surrounded the dog thickened in color, and the hound disappeared from sight within the flames; it's pain-filled hollering dulled to soft murmurs. It was if someone had cast a heavy blanket over the hound, and was suffocating it.
Calcifer's middle finger touched his palm, and the flames closed the hound's body tighter, causing more bones to crack and sickening fleshy sound to echo... and now for the quickest part.
The damned damner quickly closed his fist into a tight ball, and the flame that coated the Hell-hound swiftly became only a small tongue of blue fire, only about the size of a quarter. The dog disappeared, sent back to Hell, broken.
Calcifer turned his fist so that his enclosed palm was facing towards him, and he unfurled his index finger.
The small, levitating ball of fire gently floated to the tip of his finger, and sat on it.
This was the strangest part of damning...
Calcifer opened his mouth, and swallowed the tongue of fire whole.
A face of disgust reflected across the human's expressions, and he quickly gulped.
A ball bulged in his throat, making the skin above his esophagus glow sapphire; it gradually made it's way into his body.
Calcifer took in a deep breath; he hated that part.
He knelt to the ground and panted, trying to regain his composure.
Once he regained himself, he stood up.
"Nuntius search for them." He commanded.
Automatically, a cool and powerful gust of wind engulfed the quarry, and the invisible being searched.
Then the gusts' stopped suddenly, and the Angel's presence disappeared from existence.
Calcifer looked suddenly afraid; this never happens.
He always felt when Nuntius was around, but he's... not here.
But he's always here.
How could he have just...
"Your friend is back home right now, and he's not alright." A being said sternly behind the blue flaming human.
The voice was raspy, almost ancient sounding.
Calcifer didn't need to turn around to see who was behind him, he already knew who it was.
He remained silent.
"It's really no use to attack me Cal. You know..."
The being was interrupted, "Don't call me Cal."
Silence...
"All right then... It's really no use to attack me, Andrew."
Calcifer cringed when he heard his middle birth name.
The being continued, "I didn't appreciate the pain you put my dog in, I should sue you for that."
"There goes Satan, spewing his little jokes again." , Calcifer though.
Calcifer turned around to meet the Devil face to face, again.
He extinguished the blue fire from his body; his clothes and skin untouched by pain or scorching, for now.
He couldn't use the fire on Satan anyways, it was not in his power.
The monster infront of Calcifer was in a human shape.
Satan's eye's didn't show, and with the body he had chosen you couldn't make out any distinguishable Orphic anyways; the body was completely and utterly black, like a human figure painted dark on a white canvas. Except, it was night-time.
"What did you do to my Angel?" Calcifer asked offensively.
The black figure remained silent.
Calcifer withdrew his sword from it's hidden sheath from within his now unlit jacket, and pointed the tip of the blade to Lucifer.
He took on a much angrier tone, full of burning hatred, "I Said WHERE IS MY ANGEL! WHAT DID YOU DO TO NUNTIUS!?"
The eyeless being stood still, the blade only a couple of feet away from him.
"I gave him a home." Satan responded, in a more deathly tone.
Calcifer felt a pang of hurt in his chest, he knew where Nuntius was.
"You dragged him down, didn't you?"
Lucifer remained in silence, yet again.
Calcifer couldn't take it anymore.
The human lunged forward and swung his blade at Satan.
At the swipe of his blade, Satan vanished. The blade never meeting it's foe.
Satan was gone.
Calcifer stood motionless, his blade stuck in the position the swing ended in; facing towards the ground.
His face cringed in pain; it was starting. Hell was coming back to claim his body.
The burning started at his feet; the tendrils were growing.
Calcifer quickly sheathed his sword, and landed on the ground; starting to crawl back to Ponyville.
He had one last thing to do before he was Entired.
"The six burnt ponies."
He didn't know he was being follow by his four friends.
Once your done reading, please listen to this song. Pay attention to the lyrics.
'The aftermath' chapter coming soon.
The aftermath of the Flames.
Apparently if a tree does fall in the middle of a forest, it does make a sound...
A loud, ear shattering scream of pain sounded throughout the silent ocean of Everfree, piercing the crisp autumn night air like a stone thrown into a river.
His plea of the hell he felt engulfing his legs ended from the lack of air in his lungs, and the howls of a distant wolf pack took it's place.
The damned and injured human looked up from his resting place on the forest ground, reacting to the sounds of the wolf pack in the distance.
He was tired from using the fire, but only from what comes after the fire...
"Things can't get any worse."
Calcifer was belly down in the rough ground underneath him, his legs disabled due to the Entiring overtaking his body.
He was surrounded by vast curtains of dark, twisted, gnarled trees; moist, foggy air filling his dissipating lungs.
He couldn't feel his feet anymore; he didn't know if they'd fallen off, or if they were completely strewn in what comes from the Enticing process.
An image of his daughter came in his head...
Her beautiful brown eyes, her Mother's luscious blond hair, her own mix of both her parent's smiles.
The sound of her laughing entered into his subconscious, filling his thoughts with a bit of peace, but his legs were still in unbearable burning pain.
His daughter's laughter kept playing in his head. Each second that passed seemed that the laughing became more and more real... "wait..."
The laughing echoed through the woods; the sound bouncing off the trees and hitting Calcifer's ears.
It was too real to be just in his head.
The aura of peace of mind from the sweet melody of thinking/hearing his daughter's laughter extinguished, and was replaced with dread and the though, ... I'm not alone.
They noticed that he recognized that his daughter's laughing was outside of his head now, and they quickly paused the annoying sound of a mere dead child.
Everfree went silent...
The leader of the group whispered demonically Lucifer's orders to his three companions surrounding itself, "Take him."
The three let out howls of glee, the sound mirroring that of wolves; and in the next second, one took hold of his arms, another took hold of his head, and lastly and most painfully the third took his legs.
"GET OFF OF ME!!!" Calcifer yelled, mostly because one of the human formed demons had his Enticed legs.
"Damn him!" The leader commanded.
The demon that held his head covered Calcifer's mouth, so he would not be a distraction.
Calcifer only let out muffled screams, of agony and fear.
Calcifer could feel it, the intense cold chill that touched his stabbed heart. He was going back.
"
"BEGONE!!!"
A loud, echoing, commanding voice shattered out any sound in the forest for miles around them.
A piercing golden light came from high above the tree line, and was descending upon Calcifer at a slow, processional pace; the brilliance of the light turning night turn into day.
The four demons disappeared... whoever was here now held great authority.
The golden light cut short, and the night returned. The air smelt faintly of roses, and a soft ocean-like breeze washed over Everfree.
Calcifer cringed in the pain his legs were still in... Enticing was a bitch, but it was worth it to get to his family.
The Angel set foot on the ground, his golden sandals scuffing the Earth as he began to walk to the injured dead man.
Calcifer looked toward the being making his way, but the nightly atmosphere shrouded him, and the Angel's skin was a dark shade.
The servant to God stopped infront of the downed human, "Lie still." he commanded in a brisk yet friendly enough tone.
Calcifer couldn't not obey him; he saved him from damnation so he must be here to help.
He stayed still on the ground.
In the heat of the moment, and under the worst of circumstances; the under-skin tendrils of Enticing started to crawl up his back, causing another wave of unbearable, breath-taking pain to serge throughout his body.
Calcifer let out a scream, a terrible, painful, aching scream of pain, that blasted throughout the forest in boisterous agony.
Then... he was felt moisture accumulating on his back. The angel spilled out the contents from the white-glass bottle on the human.
Holy water.
His body suddenly felt relaxed, and all the pain of Hell suddenly stopped.
The rest of the blessed water pooled out of the small vile, and Calcifer cautiously moved to a sitting position.
The Human picked up his right bare-foot, and observed it.
Sleek and black, swirling and branching, tendrils that burrow under the epidermis during the Enticing process, quickly drew back into a small dark spot on the palm of Calcifer's foot; like if the branches of a tree grew backwards into it's seed, in an amount of time that took only mere moments.
The Enticing was killed.
Calcifer looked up to the Angel who saved his soul from the four.
He stared at the being with gratitude and in wonder of who his new friend was.
"Who are you?" Calcifer asked genuinely.
"Incendium"
The Angel spoke boldly God's word of flames, confirming that he was indeed a warrior.
The soft blue light brightened the dark pigments of his skin.
The Angel smiled keenly, a light blue spark in his dark yet kind eyes.
"I'am Micheal, the Archangel."
***
"LOOK!" A pony exclaimed, pointing towards a upright standing being walking up the main road to the stage.
A crowd of ponies began gathering. The swarm of Equine wasn't as big as it was when the Demons held those six ponies hostage; the reason being is that it must have been very early in the morning.
One pony in particular stayed in town though; Luna.
The crowd was undeniably silent; they knew the power the two legged being held, and they had no place to even want to converse with it.
The princess of the night gracefully walked out of the crowd and towards the incoming human; she had so many questions to ask, most of them concerning her sister's strange behavior.
The two met, and they both stopped infront of each other in quit coordination.
"Where are the six burned ponies?" Calcifer asked.
Luna stifled a knot twisting in her throat, she was nervous beyond belief.
When she felt comfortable talking, Luna answered.
"We moved them to a hospital as soon as you left. The screaming was unbearable to hear, but the ponies..."
Luna was interrupted by a suddenly distraught Calcifer.
"You tried to move them?"
Calcifer's expression turned to a soft sorrow; he had forgotten to command not to touch the burned ponies, under any circumstances.
"Er... yes."
Luna suddenly felt the knot in her throat return; she realized she had probably made a mistake ordering medical assistance to her friends and the colt, just by how the human reacted.
"Luna, if you or any other pony touched those burned by the four, you might have just condemned them to death."
Luna's heart dropped to her stomach.
Calcifer looked to the stage where he last saw one of the burned.
The six ponies were gone.
"Luna..."
The princess could feel her hooves sink in the ground with dismay.
The human glanced at the blue Alicorn, his face deadly serious.
"Where are they?"
CELESTIA DAMN HOSPITALS!!!
The nurse behind the counter flipped to the next page of this week's 'Mare's Digest' (This week's topic, "D.J. Pon3's floppy disk N.M.N. costume.), when a soft shouting could be heard from outside the main doors, echoing into the hospital lobby.
The white mare put down the paperback book, and stared at the glass doors at the far end of the large, chair-filled room.
The shouting continued for a couple more seconds, then stopped suddenly.
5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
The two sweeping glass doors burst into thousands of multiple sized shards of the burned sand they were made from, the frames of the two entrances flew into the lobby, and pierced into the wall behind the now extremely terrified nurse covering under the counter. The frames protruded out of two large 'man'-made holes in the behind-counter walls, projecting tingling beads of glass and chunks of flat plywood everywhere around the horrified nurse.
The cacophony of clashing pieces of glass and flying plywood slowed down to silence rather slowly, but eventually the lobby went semi-silent again.
"CALCIFER WAS THAT REALLY NECESSARY!?" An exclaiming yet still rather regal voice pierced into the shattered waiting room of the hospital.
There was no verbal response, only strange sounding hoof steps sounding through the shard scattered floor of the lobby, heading straight for the counter.
The hiding nurse froze in her place, unsure what she should do.
"Calcifer please!" The regal voice pleaded.
The strange, floppy sounding hoof steps were hastily approaching the counter.
The nurse's heart skipped a few beats...
"CALCIFER!"
"Shut up! Let me find out where they are!"
The floppy hoof steps stopped only mere feet away from the hidden nurse.
The air around her felt like it could explode at any moment.
The sheer terror of what these two unknown ponies wanted, and how they used such force to thrust the doors 'open', filled the nurse with a painful dread.
She swore she had never been so scared in her entire life.
Her entire body was shaking like a leaf.
Her only thoughts were, "Is this how it's going to end?"
*ding!
"Wait, what was that?"
*Ding
"Was that the service bell?"
*DING DING DING DING DING DING DING DING DING DING DING!!!
The dinging of the bell wouldn't seize, it kept ringing non-stop.
Over all of the years tending to the needs of sick patients, taking every bit of ear throbbing yelling from overworked, tired as Hell doctors, and impatient apathetically mean co-nurses; The one thing that the cowering mare hated the most, was that CELESTIA DAMN BELL!!!
The white mare snapped.
She sprung up out from under the counter, and slapped at the...
It wasn't a hoof that was ringing the bell.
Under the white hoof of the nurse, was some sort of warm, fleshy claw.
Except the tips of each claw weren't spiky.
In fact they were somewhat dull.
The claw was blanketing the now silent counter bell; pressed on the dingier by the gravity of the nurse's hoof.
The mare's vision followed the arm the 'claw' was attached to.
From the arm she found a shoulder, and from the shoulder she found a head.
It was no pony she was staring at.
Calcifer stared at the mare with cold eyes. She was obviously scared out of her mind, due the the fact that her face was frozen in a mouth-wide open, twitching cheek, absolutely shocked expression; not moving a centimeter out of place.
Calcifer slowly grabbed the mare's hoof with his right hand, and set it on the counter.
Then he lifted his left hand up, with the bell pinned to his hand by the dingier.
The little tin button used to make the bell ding was impaled into Calcifer's hand, although he showed no signs of pain.
The human ignored the frightened mare's expression, and forcefully yanked the bell from his hand.
No blood poured out of the appendage's wound.
Calcifer set the bell softly back to it's place on the counter, and stared back at the white mare.
"You know if I wasn't dead, that would have been a bitch of a lot of pain."
That was when the nurse fell backwards and fainted on the glass littered door under her.
"Crap..."
"They're in the morgue..."
Luna's breath halted, and the world around her froze.
Calcifer stood to the right of her; motionless and standing firm.
The colt in the white coat stood infront of the two; he had just broke 'the news' to his Princess and some strange upright creature.
The hall was a cemetery silent.
He adjusted his glasses to fit the frame of his snout more comfortably, then stared at Luna with broken eyes.
"My Princess... We've done all we could.
At 9:12 P.M. Pinkamena Diane Pie died due to the spastic convulsions of three separate seizures in three separate parts of the brain, that occurred at the same time."
The element of laughter passed.
Luna couldn't take those words well, but for her well being, and for the respect of her passing friends, she listened.
The doctor continued, "At 9:13 P.M. the colt known as Lemon Squeeze passed next, with the same occurrence that happened to Pinkie. I'll have you know this though, before he passed he was grabbing at Pinkie's hoof, unfortunately he never held her hoof again before he flat lined. He was really in love with her, or so was his last words."
The thought of the two lovers that had passed so tragically only tore at Luna's heart even more, but she continued listening.
"At 9:14 P.M. the Pegasus Rainbow Dash died due to an overflow of blood that drowned her liver, stomach, and lungs.
I cannot say that she passed peacefully, the anesthetic we injected into her wouldn't mix with her nervous system."
The element of Loyalty passed.
The doctor cringed at the thought of what happened only a few hours ago.
"Dear Celestia it was the loudest death I've ever witnessed.
Luna closed her eyes forcefully, trying to escape the pain seeping into her stomach, yet she continued listening as the doctor spoke again.
"A-at 9:15 A.M. AppleJack Apple passed."
The doctor didn't think that the Princess would have liked hearing how the mare died, so out of respect he kept his mouth shut on the specifics.
The element of Honesty passed.
"How did she pass?", Luna asked in a watery tone.
The doctor's fears had slapped him in the face; he couldn't deny his superior though.
The tan hided colt cleared his throat, and let the toxic words exit out.
"Her heart exploded."
A tear escaped from her eye... Applejack had a big heart when she was alive, and now it was gone.
A throat clogging knot tangled itself in Luna's esophagus, but she continued listening.
The doctor's mind was beginning to buzz with pain, but he needed to carry on.
"At 9:16 P.M. ..." The colt paused, as his eyes started to water. This was his least favorite part of his job.
"At 9:16 P.M. the mare Rarity passed away... She went peacefully though... In fact she was singing a lullaby when she died. It was actually quite beautiful, my Princess."
A small smile crossed her tear leavened face. At least she could hope that she was in a better place.
The doctor stopped on the last fatality that happened tonight, he had never seen such a death before.
***
Twilight's injured body was laying in a hospital bed. She was conscience, but blind. The burns had been swiped across her eyes. Bindings were wrapped across her burns, making the pony look like she was wearing blind folds... but it was more than that. Her breathing was steady, but her body was of a temperature of 106. Beads of sweat glistened her body under the artificial lighting of the hospital room.
The doctors believed she was going to make it, but her fever must be brought down immediately. A tube ran down into her left arm, a special concoction that was proven to quickly ease the effects of a high fever.
She was tired, and she could barely talk.
She was the only patient in the room.
A small purple and green dragon entered through the open door. He was absolutely heart broken.
Not just to see his best friend in a hospital bed, but because his family was dying.
Rainbow Dash, Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity..., even Lemons. Who he knew for only an amount of a few months.
They were all gone....
He stifled a sob under his torso, and waddled up to Twilight's bed.
"Hey Twilight." He said, hurting on the inside.
The purple mare only responded with a soft moan that sounded like, "Spike?"
"Yeah... it's me." Spike said genuinely.
Twilight pulled a hoof out from under the thin sheet of the bed she was in, and motioned it to Spike.
Spike took the hoof in his claw, and held it.
The little dragon couldn't help it, his tears started cascading from his eyes. Drenching his face beyond damp.
His small body was shaking under all the stress of this death around him.
"Twilight... Please don't go." The Small dragon softly pleaded.
The mare in the bed, hummed softly. It was a song she had sung to spike when he was a hatch-ling, which she still sung every now and then to him.
Spike smiled longingly, tears still flooding his sight, and he started to hum along with Twilight.
The song lasted for a minute before their was a loud and continuous beeping sound coming from a monitor to the right of Twilight's bed.
But even when her heart stopped, she still hummed the song.
With Spike crying right next to her body, hand still in hoof.
When the doctors and nurses took her body away, she was still humming softly. The dragon still crying on the bed.
The doctor's memory was interrupted by a commanding, and masculine voice.
"Where are they?"
The immense, thick metal door opened into a pitch dark room.
The tan colt stepped inside the darkness a few feet, and swiped a light light switch on with his snout.
Four adjacent hanging lights flickered, then with a final surge of electricity, shrouded a dull lighting into a dainty crypt.
On the left wall; ten or so pony-sized steel doors placated themselves on an equally steel wall; The other walls were white-tiled.
In the center of the room laid three steel operation tables. On each table was a single pony shaped body, each covered entirely in a white sheet.
The doctor stepped aside, letting Luna and her guest enter into the stuffy room.
Luna stopped in place once they entered.
A certain smell lingered in the air, causing her nostrils to both burn and cringe at the same time.
She knew what the smell was and where it was coming from; she just didn't want to believe it.
Calcifer, on the other hand, made his way to the nearest operating table in silence.
The human stopped infront of the clothed body on the table, and stared at it with partially sad, partially intent eyes.
He glared at the figure of the pony's head. It appeared gentle, small, round, and young.
A stifled sobbing sounded behind him. Calcifer turned his head to find Luna bowing her starry mane down, an expression of pure agony leavened across her face.
Calcifer remembered the woman he saw in Hell, and how she had the same expression... The same painful, heartbroken, lonely, bleeding expression. That woman had nothing... nothing but Hell... for eternity.
He sidestepped to hide Luna's eyes from the pony's head. Calcifer lifted the sheet covering the pony head, and laid it across her body.
Turning to Luna one last time; making sure she couldn't see the body, he looked longingly at the dead.
Her short azure coat, her multicolored mane.
The pony's eyes were strangely opened; they were a rich, bright rose red.
Dried blood crusted her mouth.
Fresh tears seeped from her beautiful red eyes; creating a small pool of water under her head.
Even when dead, she looked scared... Demons tend to do that when they're the ones who murdered you.
Calcifer felt a choking in his throat... the pony reminded him so much of his daughter... or at least when he had to identify her body.
If he could he would cry for this pony.
Still looking at the red eyes of the pony before him; Calcifer spoke softly, and fluently.
"Doctor, I want you to open the doors of the other three that died tonight."
The doctor stammered, "Erm... what?"
Calcifer laid the sheet back over the pony's head, then turned to the colt still by the light switch.
"I said, I want you to open the doors of the other three that died tonight. Is there a problem with that?"
The second time Calcifer had to repeat himself, he said it more forcefully; slightly intimidating the poor doctor.
"No... sir."
A certain, queasy feeling gripped the colt's stomach; whoever or whatever the standing being was, he felt like it was powerful enough to command him.
The tan hided colt wordlessly walked to the steel doors on the left wall; a tingly feeling crawling on his spine as he knew the being was watching him.
Luna was still staring at the floor, afraid of what she'd see. Her stifling sobbing unceasing.
Within a minute, the sound of three doors opening, and three stretchers sliding, echoed throughout the room.
When silence reigned...
"Leave."
The colt turned to the standing figure quizzically, "What?"
"Leave. Take your Princess, and leave."
Upon hearing her title, Luna also stared at Calcifer, the question "Why?" was the only words she could muster.
The human turned to the mare, "What I'm about to do... might end my existence... but may also grant life."
"Life?"
"Leave Luna, now."
A certain commanding spitefulness edged his voice, making Luna's heart feel a chill of fear.
She backed away slowly, exiting the door, not taking her eyes of Calcifer's stone face.
The colt edged his way out the door in a nervous walk; he wouldn't admit aloud that he was scared out of his mind.
Once both ponies were out of the crypt, Calcifer gave one last look to Luna, then gave a last command.
"Shut the door."
The colt stared away from the creature standing in the morgue, and carefully bit the handle of the metal door.
Luna and Calcifer's eyes kept contact until a moving steel wall shut them out in two different worlds.
***
Fluttershy was lying under the tree she grew accustomed to call a temporary bed. The sounds of the waterfall soothed her to sleep hours ago.
Absolutely nothing that happened this night woke her up.
Suddenly, a boisterous voice in the wind spoke and startled her awake.
"Awake and help..."
The four hanging bulbs of light slightly dangled back and fourth from their wires on the ceiling, making the shadows dance in small circles with the incandescent glow. The ceiling was invisible by the darkness in the room, but the reflective whiteness of the walls could be just barely seen. The door concealed Calcifer in the morgue.
He felt he had somewhat lied to Luna; IF what he was about to do failed to save the life of one of the ponies, it was just their time to go. Their was no security in reviving a life, and what he was about to do would probably Entire him back to Hell.
The only source of holy water in this world was the waterfall in Everfree, and it was too far away for him to make after he performed (or at least tried to perform) the miracle.
Micheal... Calcifer doubted he would come to his rescue again.
Nuntius...
Calcifer shoved the thought of Nuntius out of his mind... It was his fault where his Angel was. He could only pray that God's army was out to save him now.
Every event that happened this night happened way too quickly. Too many events had taken place for his liking, most of them were bad. In fact pretty much every event that happened this night was bad, but BAD tend to happen when they're around.
Calcifer stood still, wrapped in his conscience.
If he performed the miracle, and went to Hell out of the Enticing he was sure to receive, he would never see his family in Heaven, never see his daughter's smile, never see his wife's eyes... never... be happy... for eternity.
Was the lives of these six ponies worth his soul?
Calcifer, still standing in his one spot for now over a few minutes, continued to be in thought.
A small clink of metal hitting metal drove Calcifer out of his debate. The man turned around...
Nothing was out of place, the bodies were still covered and in the same positions; no being, Angel nor Demon nor mortal, was in the room.
Calcifer turned back around to consume himself again in his thoughts, debunking the sound as only a creak from one of the body drawers that were opened by the doctor mere minutes ago.
*clink
The sound opted again, alittle more louder. Calcifer ignored it.
*CLINK CLINK CLINK CLINK CLINK CLINK CLINK.
Seven distinguishable clinks sounded from one particular open body drawer.
Calcifer shifted his body to the outed metal stretchers, the sound had stopped but it sounded like it was meant to go off for a specific purpose.
The human hurriedly walked to the three drawers, stopping at the middle one.
A sheet-covered body of a pony laid on the middle stretcher protruding from the wall. A small red glow shined through the thin white sheet, and appeared to be a pendant necklaced around the pony's throat.
Calcifer stood for a moment, staring at the burning crimson glow of the somehow familiar shape of the pendant shining under the body-sheet.
Without another thought, he quickly threw the sheet off the pony's body, revealing a pale purple unicorn facing towards him with limp closed eyes. The sheet floated to the floor under him.
Around the corpse's neck was a rosary, a necklace of protection against evil.
How did this pony get this?
Calcifer became into a state of a trance. A rosary was a "weapon" of God, this pony must have had contact with someone who is either an Angel, God himself, or someone who has been visited by either.
If this mare had a rosary and used it, she and her friends might have been alive right now, as it turned out this mare didn't know how to use a rosary, considering the dead around him.
Wait...
A realization struck Calcifer, and the crimson glow of the rosary's crucifix pendant turned to that of normal glow-less metal.
These ponies were meant to die... but He was here.
Was he meant to be here for the purpose of these ponies lives?
A dead silence filled the room, something didn't feel right...
"Got the cold feet now don't you?"
A rough, masculine voice broke the silence of the room like an earthquake on water.
Calcifer simultaneously spun behind him, while filling the entirety of his lungs with gasping air from the shock he drastically received.
Standing behind the three medical tables, in the darkness of the other side of the room, was Calcifer's father.
The human stared into the eye's of his father. The deep, burning red eyes of his father. Although, what was before him wasn't the man who raised him at all. A burning in Calcifer's stomach started to ignite, and his face cringed in bitter hatred.
The monster raised both of his arms to the height of his shoulder blades, and in a mocking sarcastic tone the being taunted him.
"What, you not happy to see me, son?"
Tormenting rage bubbled to his head, and Calcifer scolded through his clenched teeth with every fiber of his near-damned soul, "How dare you take on my Dad's you burning piece of SHHHIT!"
Lucifer chuckled amusingly, letting his arms fall down to his sides. Then in the discorded rot of his voice said, "I thought you might have wanted to see your old man's face. I just wanted to pop by and say hi!"
What pissed Calcifer off the most was that the Devil was speaking to him like he was an old friend.
Calcifer drew his sword, and quickly tipped the point at Satan, who was still standing behind the three body-tables.
"Oh, what? You gonna slice me and dice me all the way from the other side of the room? Your not that stupid Andrew."
"Don't you dare even spit my name, snake!"
"I think we can do without the name calling my soul."
"MY SOUL BELONGS TO GOD!"
"THEN WHY DID YOU END YOUR PATHETIC LITTLE LIFE ON EARTH!?"
Silence... Thats all there was in the room.
Calcifer's head was still hot with rage, but his hands were red with guilt.
It was true; the night of the funeral of his wife and daughter, Calcifer had pierced himself through the heart with the very same blade he was pointing at Lucifer now.
Calcifer's tongue tied itself. Satan's words had rendered him mute. His damnation was his own fault yes, but his heart was broken. Why him? Why did his fate have to be this? A gamble for his soul between a world of ponies, and Hell.
Satan laughed from within the fire of his stomach, "Heheh, Cat got your tongue boy?"
Calcifer lowered his blade to the floor, bowing his head and letting the bangs of his hair shield his sight from the evil before him.
"Why are you here Lucifer?" He spoke steadily.
"I'm here to make a proposition."
A proposition for what?
Instead of asking intently, Calcifer bluntly asked, "What?" in between his teeth.
"What I want is simple..."
Satan swiftly moved from his spot behind the three tables, and stood infront of Calcifer; all within the time of a dash of an eyelid.
Somehow Satan also managed to strip off the body sheets of all six dead ponies in the room, revealing 6 pale colored Equines lying on metal tables/stretchers. The sheets found themselves on a single corner within the morgue.
Satan's ever-burning breath blew humid, damning air on Calcifer's face, causing the human's body to send cold shivers up his spine.
A low grumble came from within the monster's stomach. Lucifer grasped Calcifer's chin with his thumb and index fingers, and made the human look into his eyes. He still had the image of his father.
The graying 9 o clock shadow beard, the now-less-than humble and still red eyes, the roughly thick head of old brown hair.
Calcifer wondered what his real father was doing now, back on Earth.
Lucifer spoke fluently through his human-like teeth.
"I will give you your Angel, and your soul, if you give these ponies to me."
***
Leave your comments deciding what Calcifer should do.
I WILL take the most voted for.
It's in your hands to either damn (Rainbow, Twilight, Lemons, AppleJack, Rarity, and Pinkie.) to Lucifer, or save them and hopefully save their lives.
(Voting will end in three days from now.) -_N_-
Calcifer lifted his head up, and stared into the Devil's eyes.
The burning red irises painted on his father's face filled his stomach with a nauseous feeling that one could only get by being in the presents of true evil.
Whatever and why-ever Lucifer would want these pony's souls was beyond Calcifer, but he would never in all his existence, give the being in front of him anything.
Calcifer smirked under the breath of the Satan, and said a sentence that should have been texted in pure gold and laced in marble.
"On behalf of every soul trapped in Hell, every life you've ruined, every broken spirit by your hands; I say in their memory and countenance, 'Fuck off Lucifer.' "
Calcifer quickly hoisted his sword up, and jabbed it completely through Satan's chest; the tip of the blade protruding from his back, and carrying with it all his hatred and loath.
Lucifer scowled into Calcifer's brown eyes, "Fine... I'll tell your Angel you no longer need him."
In the next moment, Lucifer was gone.
...
No more thoughts... no more what if's... Calcifer fully believed he was meant to do this.
Six dead ponies laid on six metal beds, three of which were protruding from a wall.
It was time to go back to Hell, only out of a hope that he could save each of them.
Out of love he spoke out loud to only two people who couldn't probably see nor hear him.
"Isabelle, Ashley, I'm sorry. I love you."
That was all he needed to say.
Those were his last words to his daughter and wife.
He turned to the corpse of the purple mare, the closest body to him.
The pony's eyes were completely burned out of the skull. A horrible thing yes, but only a small act in the eyes of Demonics.
It's only sad that it happened to someone innocent.
Calcifer took a long, lingering breath; closing his eyes in concentration.
Still blind, he placed his right hand over the mare's eyes, and breathed out slowly.
He raised his left hand to his mouth, palm out, and whispered "Incendium."
Immediately, a small blue tongue of fire danced on his middle and index finger.
The tingling sensation started in his inflamed hand, but this time the purpose was different.
"Animatum Corpus."
Upon saying the words the fire flickered twice, then turned a shade of deep emerald green. What happened to the flame next, was something unimaginable; the tongue of fire froze, as if it was taken by a picture.
The small green fire dropped into Calcifer's palm.
The bottom was round and smooth, the top where the flame licked it's air was pointed, and sharp.
It was the texture of glass, but upon a single touch of this frozen fire, you could sense that there was power within the object.
Energy emitted a soft, rhythmic pulse from the emerald flame... it was medicine, made by the miracle of transubstantiation.
His right hand was still over the mare's eyes, warming only a small part of the cold body.
He opened his eyes, and stared at the corpse.
Calcifer closed his fist around the glass flame, and moved his hand to the pony's mouth.
He stuck out his index finger and opened the purple mare' mouth, wide as it could get.
The human took one last breath, and put the glassed flame into her mouth.
He wrapped the muzzle with his left hand, enclosing the small emerald fire within, and the right stayed over the body's eyes.
Calcifer closed his eyes, he needed the utmost concentration, because he was about to tell God that he chose Hell.
He took one more inhale...
"Ciao Dio,"
-Hello God,
" Quando sono scappato dall'inferno, grazie alle vostre Nuntius Angelo, mi hai datola possibilità di guadagnare il mio passaggio in cielo."
-When I escaped from Hell, thanks to your Angel Nuntius, you gave me the chance to earn my passage into Heaven...
"Ho fatto del mio meglio per fare quello che mi ha chiesto di fare in questo mondo, e mi dispiace, ma io ti ho fallito...."
-I have done my best to do what you asked me to do in this world, and I'm sorry, but I have failed you...
"Invece, ho deciso di dare la mia anima, corpo e spirito to Hell, al fine di salvare le anime di questi sei pony...
-Instead, I have decided to give my soul, body, and spirit to Hell, in order to save the souls of these six ponies...
"Così, nel nome del Padre, del Figlioe dello Spirito Santo, Dico quod ultima verba ancillae tuae..."
-So in the name of the Father, the Son, and the holy spirit, I say my last word as your servant...
"Incendium."
-Fire.
His last word sent an explosion of green fire inside Twilight's body, her hide glowed emerald, as well as her horn, hair, and under the hand of Calcifer, the formations of new eyes.
The light was blinding, but the brightness didn't take Calcifer's eyes off the body.
Three minutes past, it was time...
Calcifer lifted his hand off the mare's mouth, opened it, and retrieved the still glassy tongue of green fire.
The flame looked as it did when it entered the body's mouth, energy still pulsing inside it.
The body of the mare, was healed.
The heart, brain, and all other organs were fully functional and working.
The pony was even breathing again, her breaths were soft and vivid, but dry.
The only thing she needed was her missing soul.
Calcifer held the glassed flame in his right hand, proud of his action, but there was one last thing he had to do.
The human had to give her her soul back.
He leaned over the pony's head, his lips just inched away from her's.
The mare's lips were parted slightly, and her breath smelt of roses.
Calcifer smiled and whispered softly yet coolly, "Hey you, on the other side..."
There was no response from Twilight, because Calcifer wasn't speaking to the pony. He was speaking to Satan.
"She's not yours."
Calcifer moved forward, and kissed Twilight. Not out of love, but out of life.
He withdrew from the kiss.
The pony took a long, lingering, deep breath in. She was saved.
But could Calcifer save the other five?
A stab of burning pain shot up his left leg, the Enticing process back to Hell was beginning.
(Warning.... light sexual content.)
You have been warned.
He peeked his eyes open, but quickly closed them back due to the burning intensity of the light.
White, white was all that surrounded Calcifer. He was blind; no matter how hard he tried to open his eyes and see what was around him, it proved impossible.
The air around him was humid and musky; it choked him slightly, somewhat thinning his inhales.
How long has he been here?
He could only think of one place he could possibly be... he just didn't want to believe it.
He tried to swallow to help lessen his worries, it didn't help much with a dry throat.
He had tried... that all he could say about himself.
From what he could feel from his standpoint, he was kneeling, on what ground he did not know.
His hands were tied behind his back and pinned to the floor by some invisible force, and every time he moved his body the bindings would get tighter. This wasn't quite the feeling he experienced when he first was in Hell, so this must be some new level of it. This was living "Dante's inferno."
Calcifer remembered the woman he saw in Hell before he escaped by the hand of Nuntius. He's not suffering with others this time; he utterly alone.
His breaths were shaky, as if he were standing enchambered in snow, yet the surroundings abound him was warm.
Shivers of dread ran up and down his body, but he knelt in silence...
Suddenly.
"You can open your eyes now."
Calcifer took a sharp breath in, startled by the... familiar, feminine voice that seemed to be coming from in front of him. ... He kept his eyes shut.
A few more seconds passed.
Light footsteps were heard, they were coming towards him.
"Stay away!"
Calcifer tried to retreat, but the bindings on his hands only got tighter, making him give out short bursts of pain-filled groans. The pain of the bindings eventually got strong enough to stop his actions of fear.
So he knelt down like a statue, breathing heavily in pure burning fear.
A hand caught the side of his face, it felt human, warm, soft. The touch sent tingles of electricity through his body, it didn't hurt, in fact the touch felt... loving.
The woman brushed her head by Calcifer's, it nuzzled to the side of his cheek like it was toying with him.
"Open your eyes Calcifer."
It was then that Calcifer recognized the woman's voice...
"Isabelle?"
The hand that held his cheek slowly slid down to his chest, and held it's place there.
Another hand made itself present, and wrapped itself around the back of Calcifer's neck.
Her head gradually migrated from the side of his head, to the front.
Isabelle leaned her forehead into Calcifer's, egging her now peacefully dead husband to open his eyes.
"Open them... please."
Calcifer strained under the whiteness around him, but slowly, and painfully, he opened his eyes; being greeted by a pair of clear blue irises that he'd never thought he'd be able to see again.
The bindings that held his hands behind him released, and Calcifer fell backwards onto the white marble floor under him.
He stared at his wife, his long thought gone wife, kneeling above his fallen body.
She looked the same as the day before she died.
Her blonde hair flowed to her shoulders, the ends of her bangs curling on her skin like twisting grapevines, her blue eyes pierced into his heart, and it caused a slight throbbing in his chest.
On her body, she wore white cloth tightly wrapped around her breasts, and the same for her lower torso.
The sight of his wife brought an overflowing joy to his soul, but Calcifer was confused beyond reckoning.
"Where am I?"
Isabelle smiled, her teeth were bright; she responded with, "Home."
Happiness drowned Calcifer. He wasn't in Hell.
He smiled uncontrollably, and let his tired body fall flat on the floor.
He started to laugh uncontrollably. He didn't know how, or why, but he was at peace now, and he'd never have to see the fires of Hell again.
A hand placed on Calcifer's inner thigh, and his laughing almost immediately halted.
He looked at Isabelle. She was smiling, but it was a smile that meant something different than joy.
A sudden pang of a certain feeling hit Calcifer's heart like a spear had been thrust into his chest.
"Calcifer..."
He smiled lovingly at Isabelle, "Yes?"
She moved her hand up and down Calcifer's bare leg, it was then that he realized that he was naked.
A repeating throb drummed in his heart.
Calcifer didn't take his eyes off Isabelle's for a second.
Isabelle suddenly put an unbearably strong pressure on Calcifer's thigh, causing the bone to break simultaneously.
Calcifer let out a loud pain-flooded cry.
Isabelle thrust Calcifer's leg down, moving his entire body to be face to face with his wife.
She grasped his throat tight, Calcifer couldn't talk; he could only try to breath.
A harsh scowl was suddenly painted around Isabelle's blonde frame.
"Fuck off."
Lucifer opened his mouth wide. The bottom of his chin touching Isabelle's mid torso. He was her.
The monster engulfed Calcifer's head inside his mouth.
Blackness was all the he saw.
***
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"
"Incendium!"
A tower of pure blue light flied towards the sky, igniting from Calcifer's screaming lungs; the light showered the Everfree forest in a sapphire glow.
A hand quickly covered over Calcifer's mouth. ... A hand.
The sound of a waterfall substituted for his screams.
Almost immediately after the hand was placed over Calcifer's mouth, a bowl of water doused over his head.
The hand let go, and left Calcifer coughing asthmatically.
He turned to see who covered his mouth and nearly stopped breathing.
... Nuntius?
The fog. (part one)
Exactly one week after Nightmare night, and three days since the five survivors returned home.
It was morning, it was the breaking of dawn.
Over the past week the locals of Ponyville were buzzing with nervous energy about this... "Hooman."
The creature made it's second appearance the day after Nightmare night to ask the townsponies not to tell anyone that he exists. Luckily they listened, only talking about him among themselves in private.
In the library, a certain purple mare was up in her loft.
She had been preparing herself for the past half hour for meeting uh... Calcifer.
The thought of this being that held so much power, brought her back to the living, and...
Twilight was still unsure of what she should think about what Calcifer lastly did to her.
She silently examined her face in her dresser's mirror, mainly examining her eyes though, and the flesh around them.
In a way she was embarrassed of this new look, and it made it hard to go out in public out of the attention she, not so silently, received.
Fluttershy had been talking back and forth between Calcifer and the other five in the time past since Nightmare night.
He says he couldn't save the "yellow colt" (Lemons) because it was just his time to pass on. Out of all his friends and family, Pinkie took his death the hardest...
A soft knocking at the door sounded; a soft knocking that could only belong to a timid yellow Pegasus who was the guide to Calcifer's waterfall.
Taking her gaze off of the mirror, she looked down her loft to the front door.
She COULD just not answer the door. Not meet this..."thing."
Who knows what it's is more capable of!
The knocking stopped, waiting for the purple unicorn to open it.
Twilight thought back to Calcifer's invitation to meet him. The "Human" said that she and the other four didn't have to come, and can just have his condolences...
A snore from Spike curled up on the foot of Twilight's bed broke the mare out of her second thoughts. She turned to the small dragon mumbling in his sleep. After dying infront of him, Spike barely left her side. The shock of everything that had happened this past week had Spike in a morbid haze, and ended up with him seeking the comfort of Twilight's bed the past few nights.
Twilight stood silently looking at the baby dragon the SHE herself hatched. If it wasn't for Calcifer, she'd never be able to see Spike again.
...
A few seconds past before there was a knocking on the window above her bed.
Twilight looked up to find a glisten of a gold wing and a cyan coated Pegasus bathed in early morning blue, looking down at her through the window.
"C'mon Twilight! We don't have all morning!" Rainbow exclaimed through the glass.
Most of her left wing was enveloped in golden feathers, and the doctors say that even the flesh under the feathers is a skin-like golden tissue as well.
Before Twilight knew it, her rainbow maned friend was gone, flown back to her front porch.
Calcifer said that he'd explain why the burn marks were like that if they'd come see him; to Twilight that was another reason to meet him.
Seeing that she had no choice as to weather she'd go now or not, Twilight took a deep breath in and out, and looked at her face in the mirror one more time.
Her once purple hued irises were now the color of bright gold, and the scars left from the burns that scraped across her eyes were the same color, but all in all her vision was the same.
The necklace Celestia gave her still hung around Twilight's neck.
It was a wonder how it was even still on her person.
Putting that wonder aside, Twilight quietly started down the stairs.
She opened the door to more ponies than were invited.
Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Rarity, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and lastly Big Macintosh carrying a saddle bag on his back.
"Where's Pinkie Pie?" The purple mare inquired.
"We couldn't find her." Applejack answered, "Ah don't think that she'd wanna go anyways."
A melancholy thought popped into her head, and she understood why the pink mare wasn't among them.
Lemon's death made Pinkie start to act a bit... un-Pinkieish...
"Well... I guess she had a choice to come in the first place..."
Rainbow butted in, "YEAH! So can we go already? I've been wanting to see this thing for awhile."
"YEAH! Lets go already!" Scootaloo jumped next the the golden left-winged cyan mare, a large excited smile plagued across her face.
Twilight gave a somewhat happy grin, at least someponies were sure they wanted to go.
She stepped out of the tree-house, leaving Spike to his sleep, "All right then..."
***
They stood all stood infront of the treeline of Everfree in Fluttershy's back yard.
All silent, all still.
The nine ponies stared into the barely see-able autumn morning forest before them. Morning mist had shrouded the forest in a nearly invisible vial of thick white moisture; although the proximity around Fluttershy's home was completely clear of fog.
It was yet another weird thing that apparently occurs in Everfree's boundaries.
"We're going through that?" Rarity complained, the golden flesh on her chest glistening in the morning sun infront of the woods.
"Ah... guess." Applejack responded, "Unless Rainbow Dash could help us out."
All the ponies turned to Rainbow with wondering expressions.
"Sorry, clouds are one thing, but fog is alot different. There's no structure with fog."
Disappointed looks shot to the ground.
"Twilight do you think you could move the fog away with your magic?" Fluttershy asked the gold eyed mare.
Seeming a bit timid herself, Twilight said, "I could try."
The mare stepped infront of the group, and stared into the mist shrouded forest before her.
Closing her eyes in concentration, she tried to kinetically move a path out of the fog.
...nothing happened.
The purple aura had indeed engulfed in the concentrated areas to where Twilight fixated, but no matter how hard she tried the fog wouldn't bide by her command.
About a minute passed before she gave up.
The mare opened her eyes, and looked again into the fog.
"I don't think this is normal fog."
The group stayed silent, pondering what next to do.
"Um... excuse me."
Fluttershy interrupted the silence.
The group turned to the yellow Pegasus.
Fluttershy walked up besides Twilight, and faced the group.
"There's no discernible path to Calcifer's Waterfall."
"What?" The ponies said in response.
Belaying the confusion of the other eight, Fluttershy continued.
"It's true it may be harder to see where we're going, but no matter where you are in the forest all you need is a certain little song, and Calcifer will tell you where he is."
Confused glares shot at the Pegasus.
"How?" Big Mac asked.
"Oh well, Calcifer has really good ears."
They all stared at her somewhat awkwardly.
"Erm... Whats the song?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"It's more or less a tune, Sweetie, It goes like this..."
Fluttershy cleared her throat, and sang a short melody that went up three times to a higher pitch, then dropped to a low note.
"Do, do do; DO!"
A few silent seconds past before a low mumbling coming from the forest in front of them sounded.
Their ears perked up.
It was the exact same tune that Fluttershy had played.
A sudden nauseous queasiness crept into the stomachs of the eight, although Fluttershy was smiling keenly into the fog.
Somepony was in there...
"Twilight, do you think that you could give off a light and co-guide us to the waterfall? Just so it will be easier for us not to get lost." The yellow mare asked her friend standing next to her.
Twilight gave her an unsure look, but meeting Calcifer seemed like a quest now.
For whatever reason though, Twilight felt like this was a quest she had to take.
She smiled at Fluttershy, "Of course."
Fluttershy smiled back, then turned to the rest of the group.
"Okay, It really important that we stick together, so why don't we form a single file line. Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, you three stay behind me and Twilight. Keep an eye on the girls who are gonna be behind you. Big Mac you take the back so you can keep an eye on the girls as well. Be sure to always have sight of Twilight's light, understand?"
The ponies stared at the pink maned Pegasus before them, all thinking the same thing.
"Who is this mare, and what did she do to Fluttershy?"
The strange glances caught Fluttershy kind of strangely, "Is... is something wrong?"
She turned to Twilight beside her, even she was gobsmacked a tad.
"Oh uh, nothing. It's just that we've never heard you uh..."
"Heard me... what?" She asked timidly.
"You know, talk like you just did before."
"Oh my, um... is is that okay?"
Yep, she's still Fluttershy...
"Haha, it's okay."
"Oh, good. Now is everypony ready?"
She turned to the rest of the group who nodded in contempt.
"All right then. Twilight?"
Upon command, Twilight gave one last friendly smile to Fluttershy, and began to trot into the fog, her horn aglow with radiant purple light.
Her first step into the white vial, and there was a loud shouting.
"HEEEYYYY!"
The shout itself was somewhat confusing, it sounded waveringly, but also somewhat mad.
The glow from Twilight's horn seized, and everypony looked towards Fluttershy's cottage.
Low and behold, there was a straight haired pink mess of a Pinkie Pie running towards them, anger in her eyes.
"Pinkie?" Twilight asked under her breath.
The pink mare stopped suddenly infront of the group of nine, her breaths heavy and panting, and her head aimed towards the ground.
Twilight quickly trotted to the pink mare.
"Pinkie, we're so glad you could make i-"
"HOW---Dare---YOU!!"
The panting accusation coming from Pinkie startled everypony, and they all stared at her in awe.
"Pi Pinkie, whats wrong?"
The pink earth pony gazed up and stared at Twilight.
Her hair moved out of the way of the golden scars running up and down her right shoulder.
Her face was unforgettable. In all of her time spent knowing Pinkie, Twilight had never seen her like this.
Tear stains drenched her face, her expression was a pure mix of anger, sadness, depression, and out of all "Lost."
The sight of her made Twilight's heart break.
"Pinkie what's wrong?" She asked again.
Her stare was stabbing, but Twilight didn't pull away.
"You're going to see him..."
Twilight backed away a bit, giving Pinkie some space to breath.
"We all are. We looked for you but we couldn't fi-"
"HE COULD HAVE DONE IT! I KNOW HE COULD HAVE!"
Her out burst sent chills of dread lightning through her spine.
"Are you talking about Calcifer?"
"WHO ELSE WOULD I BE TALKING ABOUT?"
"Pinkie dear, there's really no need to shout. Calcifer couldn't ha-"
"Oh yes he could have Rarity!"
The pink mare gave a swift turn to face the golden chested unicorn.
"Don't believe his lies, He saved all five of us, and It was obviously our time to go! And when he says that he couldn't have saved Lemons, he LIED! He could have saved him."
"Pi- Pinkie He couldn't have..." Fluttershy threw a spear into the conversation.
"Calcifer was..."
"Was what Fluttershy, he WAS WHAT?"
Pinkie's dagger-like stare scared Fluttershy, and the yellow mare backed away a bit, hiding behind her long mane.
"He was---" She mumbled the last part.
"What?"
Fluttershy swiped a look at Pinkie's face, and said nothing.
She stared back at the ground.
"You'd have to talk to him so he could explain..." The mare said softly.
Pinkie's glare only got tighter in anger, it burned fear into Fluttershy as she slowly tried to walk away from her.
Her glare continued until, "Fine."
The tension somewhat eased up within the group, and things went awkwardly silent.
The cutie mark crusaders slowly peeked at Pinkie from behind Big Mac, still wondering what the hay just happened.
Rainbow, Applejack, Twilight, and Rarity's shocked faces stayed put on the pink Earth pony.
Fluttershy mumbled "Okay..." under her breath.
With still some spite in her voice, pinkie added, "But I'm not gonna like it." in a sort of punctual manner.
Twilight was the first to shatter her shock, "Well, um... Shall we get going then? I suppose you can walk infront of Big Mac"
The three fillies behind Macintosh began waving to Twilight and Silently yelling "NO!!!! NO!!!" to the mare.
Pinkie was unable to see, due to her now looking at Twilight.
Seeing that that was a bad choice, she changed her sentence, "O or you could walk with Rainbow and Applejack, and Rarity could walk with the girls."
Pinkie hardly thought it through when she said she didn't care, and walked to the edge of the forest, waiting for the rest of the group with a distilled frown on her face.
Twilight gave Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity a short look, then a worried look to the fillies behind Mac, then stared back at the three again.
They all gave a nod "O.K."
...
The messenger from Heaven
One year before the birth of the eldest of the elements of harmony...
The master of the sun and moon, Celestia, stood on her high balcony looking up to the stars. The invisibility of the new moon made the thoughts of her imprisoned sister to be pushed aside, for now. She studied the night-leavened atmosphere; the brilliance of nightfall was never quite the same beauty when Celestia took over as the night artist. Her gaze shifted from the starry sky, towards the starry lights of her royal city, Canterlot. The Princess stepped to the edge of the balcony, taking in all the sights of the sparkling city that she shepherds. She seen this city grow, she seen the bad and the good times, she knew it's stories, it's wishes, it's wants and desires. Canterlot; was her home, but it was also her sister's...
Celestia bowed her head in the sorrow that tortured her for exactly, to this very night, 979 years. The majestic "queen" of Equestria, closed her eyes, trying to escape from her ever-stirring emotions. For a moment, the world seemed silent, blissful, at peace...
"Hello."
An unfamiliar gentle voice echoed around the balustrade. Celestia snapped out of her meditation, turning herself sharply around, and found herself facing somepony standing in the middle of her balcony.
Poised elegantly yet boldly in front of her was a Pegasus even bigger than herself.
His coat was snow white, his mane was as white as his coat, but with each individual lock of hair on his long-grown, vine-like mane; sun-like golden. His snowy wings were folded beside his body, they were far more luscious than her own, the silhouettes of each individual feather crest was as gold as the locks in his mane.
The Pegasus wore a chest-plate made of what appeared to be forged white marble, the straps of his chest armor clearly woven out of metallic gold that braided around his back in twisting knots. In the middle of his chest-plate was the insignia of a cross, the right side of the cross was a sapphire blue, the left a bright crimson red. The colt wore elegant, yellow-metal horseshoes that climbed up his legs in tendrils of slender gold. He was in a way, the most beautiful Pegasus she had ever seen.
"I am Nuntius, of the forth chorus of Heaven. A messenger of God. I bring the good news of a war to befall your land, and of a soul of the damned to become a symbol of great peace..."
The tidal sound of the tall waterfall was relaxing, and a beautiful sight.
Trees surrounded the small clearing which nested around the falls.
Rocks bedded the clearing; most stones were white, some were dark grey.
A river was born from the bottom of the waterfall; it crashed into a deep pool, and the water cut it's way through the forest beyond.
The air was ever-longingly cool, vapid, and moist.
The full moon was sky-scraping above, surrounded in a vial of darkness and stars; the pendents of the night provided a very fluent dusty light, which made the falling water glow.
Fluttershy was huddled in the long black jacket her friend gave to her for warmth. She was fast asleep, and blew her breaths in near silence. Her sleeping body lay next to a tree on the edge of the clearing, where some soft overgrown grass grew and played as her mattress.
Calcifer looked up at the moon swimming in it's own bath. He let his body float in the pool, only his face protruding from the water to breath.
The underwater cacophony of the water crashing into the pool was like music to his ears.
His arms and legs dangled in weightlessness as the currents of the river tried to take him away.
He stayed in his one spot though.
He remembered his favorite song and played it in his head.
Look at the stars, look how they shine for you... and everything that you do.... and they were all yellow...
The song reminded him of his wedding day when he was still alive and on Earth.
When he remembered Isabelle's face he paused "Yellow" in his conscious.
He looked at the sky for awhile, blank minded.
"I'll see you soon Bell." He said to himself, "Tell Ashley Daddy says Hi..."
His words hummed back in his head.
The sky gave him no response, although a gust of wind rushed through the forest, close to where the pony was sleeping.
He smiled, "Thank-you for delivering the message Nuntius." He said to the wind. The gust only blew harder.
Even though his face was wet from bathing, he could still feel the tears fall down his face, and merge with the river.
Calcifer moved his right hand to his forehead, then to the mid of his chest, to his left shoulder then his right and prayed.
"God, be with us..." He whispered.
30 minutes later...
The white Unicorn... saved.
The cyan Pegasus with the multicolored mane... saved.
The purple Unicorn... saved.
The orange pony with blonde hair... saved.
The pink mare with an unusually puffy mane... saved.
The yellow colt, with blue eyes, slightly lighter colored mane, lemon half on his flank... possibly damned.
The colt couldn't be saved, this was his time to pass.
It was uncertain weather the pony was in Hell, Purgatory, or Heaven.
Calcifer could only hope that it was one of the last two.
Long, vine-like tendrils, the color of pitch dark black covered every square inch of the human's body.
This is Enticing at it's final stage.
Every movement was so painful, it was numb.
Calcifer's body could barely hold an inhale, causing his to somewhat choke.
The five saved mares were asleep with there souls, they were at living peace, for now.
Calcifer was proud, but also heartbroken beyond imaginable.
It was only a matter of minutes before he's see Hell again... and he didn't want to go back.
He wanted to cry, but he couldn't... his body was still dead.
The emerald flame, still in a crystal state, hung loosely between the dead colt's lips and the sleek metal table under it.
A burning red scorch mark ran along the pony's spine, that is where the Demons attacked him.
The five alive's burns were healed, but different.
Where their burns were are are healed, but healing comes with... something unique.
Calcifer stood infront of the late colt's table, staring at the corpse atop of it.
"Rest in peace."
It was then that his vision backed out, and he felt himself falling slowly backwards.
Calcifer hit the cold floor hard, the damned burning pain of the Enticing vines only amplifying the pain ten fold.
He let out a scream of pain inside his mouth, which dulled the sound only a little.
The five were still asleep.
"So... this is where it all ends."
The last thing that Calcifer thought of... was his wife Isabelle's, and daughter, Ashley's smiling faces.
They meant everything to him, and now they're gone forever.
The pain eased only alittle, letting Calcifer's mind to be free for only a little bit longer.
He relaxed his black inked body to it's minimal extent.
He was going to Hell, and he didn't even save all six of the ponies.
What a shame on his part.
The vines eventually grew over his face, it was time.
Calcifer squeaked out his last words...
"Amen."
-So be
Before he lost consciousness, the sound of the large metal door opened...