The Mirror of Souls

Equinox's eyes snapped open, and he jolted upwards. Several seconds later the pain hit him and he curled up, holding his chest. He heard chuckling and looked over at Blaze, who was sitting in a hospital bed. He realized he was as well and laid back down, his eyes scanning her. He saw several of his injuries on her body, which were missing from his. She laid down as well, and they both sighed, their eyes their normal color. "So...that happened...ideas?" Equinox said, glancing over at her. She shrugged gently, running her eyes over the uneven bumps in the white paint of the ceiling.

"Nope. I patrolled all night, but nothing really happened besides a couple of nobles trying to 'do the deed' away from prying eyes." He nodded and closed his eyes, running through the battle in his head. "I'm telling you bro, that thing came out of nowhere." She rubbed the covers of her bed gently with a hoof, hissing as her wounds spiked with pain gently. "Couldn't you have been just a little more careful?" He scoffed and smirked, and she smiled in return. They heard a gentle knocking and looked up at the door. It creaked open and the Princesses walked in, accompanied by a guard. He bowed politely, then backed out of the room and shut the door. The rulers' faces were a mixture of emotions, each showing guilt, thankfulness, curiosity, and worry. The two of them sat up, and Celestia cleared her throat.

"Well...I suppose we should thank you two...we saw what became of our throne room, and the demon...we arrived, it seems, shortly after you won. I'm a little surprised, to put it lightly, that you managed to succeed. May I ask how? From what it looks like, it was his own blade that did the trick, although in a very...brutal way." The two thought for several seconds, before turning to each other. Blaze nodded, and they turned back.

"There are...several things that help explain the matter. One: Blaze is a meat eater." The two princesses looked at her in minor shock, and she shrugged and smiled.

"I'm sorry, but i can't get enough of the stuff. Sadly, ponies can't eat too much without getting sick, so I only have some every couple of days. But it explains why we are used to the sight of blood and such." They nodded in understanding and turned back to Equinox.

"Two: We are twins, and we share an...interesting power."

"Different from your cutie marks?" Said Luna, raising an eyebrow. Equinox nodded and cleared his throat gently.

"Yes. Our cutie marks do give us both unique powers, but they are unrelated. We aren't exactly sure why we have it, or how it works, but we now what it does." He looked at Blaze and she nodded.

"You see, when we were foals, Equinox and I were playing in the woods. We found a small cave, and went exploring, but the entrance was sealed from a small quake by a large rock. That was when we first discovered this ability of ours." The princesses nodded, and Blaze smirked and pointed at her eyes. "What will happen is that one of our eyes will change to the color of the other's. My left will go blue, his will go red. Once this happens, it is almost as if our souls are connected."

"Exactly." Blaze pouted as Equinox took back control of the conversation. "When it first happened as a kid, we somehow were able to move the rock blocking the cave, almost as if we had both connected our strength into one force and multiplied it." They nodded, Celestia looking between the two with curiousity.

"So that's what happened for this fight just now?" She asked, walking closer to examine their wounds.

"Yes. We combined strengths to defeat that monster. And not only our strength, but our minds as well are connected, almost as if we can tell exactly what the other will do next. However, it drains us of energy rapidly, as well as other side effects. For example..." Equinox pointed to several of the wounds Blaze had. "Blaze was unharmed during the battle. But because we were connected, some of my wounds were transferred to her once it was over." Luna walked over and began inspecting Equinox, nodding as she saw several of his wounds seem to halt suddenly, only to see them continue on Blaze.

"That is very interesting...we don't know of any other cases like this, do we sister?" She said, looking at Celestia. The latter shook her head and stepped back, looking between the two siblings.

"No we do not...I'm glad we have such a strong pair serving us." The duo nodded, and then both winced in pain and held their chests. She chuckled a little, but her face quickly became grim. "Sadly, we cannot continue such simple chats. I hate to ask this of you two, but we need your help." They looked at her confused, as Luna frowned reluctantly. "We will have some of our best doctors and healers up here to mend your bodies, but you must immediately set out. This morning, a little before noon, it was reported that Manehatten was seen billowing smoke, and the sound of screams echoing outwards from the city. All of our other guards have been forced by the nobility to keep high watch, so you two are the only ones we can spare at the moment." The two nodded, raising themselves up.

"As you wish Princess. We will set out as soon as possible." Said Equinox, devotion ringing in his voice. Blaze just chuckled gently and nodded.

"Like he said Princess. However, may I ask something of you?" Celestia and Luna looked to her, nodding.

****

They now stood several yards away from Manehatten, watching the smoke as it rose into the sky. Blaze was outfitted in dark leather, a small mask obscuring her face, and several pouches strapped onto various places of her chest. She also had two jagged daggers strapped to her waist, the blades curved to cut deeply, and leave the wound open. Equinox was fully outfitted in full Royal Guard's armor, the sun reflecting off the gleaming gold and blue metal. Every part of his body was covered in the armor, except for a couple small chinks near his joints. His head was under a large helm, the visor connected to the sides of them helm by two large joints, shut over the front with just his eyes peeking through. It reflected the shape of his equine head, the sides ending in smooth curves. Resting across his back was a large greatsword, the hilt having several straps to allow him to adjust his grip on it in a number of ways. It was made of a fine steel, but the hilt and pommel made from sturdy yet simple leather and iron, as if it was homemade. They looked at each other, their eyes reflecting each other's will, before they set out for the city.

The wind blew strongly as they finally came upon their destination, the smoke billowing stronger. It was in ruins. Carriages lay in heaps at several spots along the roads, fires burning fiercely from the fine wood. The stench of blood and ammonia was in the air, and several bodies lay desecrated on the ground. They resumed walking, looking at the destruction around them. "Man...what the hell caused this?" Equinox shrugged, his armor clattering a little as he looked about. The silence was almost oppressive, bearing down on them with almost a desperate hunger. Hearing a small clatter, their heads turned towards a dark alleyway. Blaze backed away a little and faded into the shadow of one of the buildings as Equinox walked forwards slowly. His eyes scanned the walls and ground, only seeing several bins and boxes, as well as a dead pony or two. He heard another clatter and his head snapped to a box lying overturned by the wall. He readied himself and slowly walked forward, his hooves clopping gently on the cobbled ground. He slowly reached out, then quickly knocked the box away. The cat underneath yowled and scampered off, and he scoffed as he watched it scale the wall. He turned and walked back out of the alley, but was quickly stopped as a heart-breaking yowl of pain rang through the air. He turned and ran back into the alley, his eyes darting around. His heart skipped a beat as he heard the sounds of eating from over the wall. It stopped suddenly, and he heard the sounds of something scuffing against the ground. He slowly reached backwards, hooking a hoof through one of the bands on his greatsword as he saw something vaguely claw-like grip the top of the wall. It applied pressure, and he watched as a dark shadow slowly rose upwards. He took several steps back as it rose up, almost three times his height. Its body was thin and boney, scraps of skin falling off, with pus occasionally leaking out of wound. It smelled of rotten flesh, and it's body had blood and shards of stone piercing it in several places. It tumbled over the wall with a groan, before slowly rising to its...he didn't even know what it had instead of hooves. He looked back up at the head, backing up a little more till he was out of the alleyway. It turned, it's red eyes watching him hungrily. It took a step towards him, and it's head entered view. He felt his stomach turn over as he looked at the equine-like head. The snout was a little shorter, and the skin of what used to be a pony (he assumed) was rotten. From the off putting dark color, he could assume they used to be a dark male, judging by the genitals it had, but now...they were a monster. It growled, and his eyes snapped back to look into its. It was shambling closer, each step getting a little firmer. It growled and lunged for him, arms outstretched, but was quickly met by his greatsword. He slammed it into the ground with his blade, crushing its skull with a grimace as he watched the weak flesh cave in around his blade. It stopped moving, and blood pooled gently from its body. He swallowed and breathed deeply, the sight still shaking him deeply. As he looked it over, he saw that its mouth had a couple stray tufts of cat hair. His eyes widened and he clutched his stomach.

After spending a good couple minutes emptying his vacant stomach, he wiped his mouth and closed his helmet. He walked over and lifted his blade from the body, wiping the blood off on its leg. He took one last look at the corpse, then turned and resumed walking down the street. Sweet Luna...this is bad... As he walked, he encounter several other used-to-be ponies, cutting each of them down swiftly. So far, he hadn't seen any other signs of life, just destruction and bodies. He turned another street, and stopped. One of the things was scratching gently at the door of a small house on the street, staring at the door almost hungrily. He reached back and unslung his greatsword, dragging it gently across the ground behind him as he approached. It turned towards him, its maw caked in blood. It shambled towards him, then lunged, swinging its arms about erratically. He dived to the side, then twisted his body, bringing his sword up. He brought it down sharply on its back, slamming it into the ground and cutting into its body. It tried to get up and he stomped on its neck, hearing the bones crack. After making sure it was dead, he walked over to the door, and raised his hoof. He knocked several times, the sound echoing out into the street. After several minutes he knocked again, but was met with no response. He thought for a bit, then raised his hoof. He knocked again, this time knocking out the beat of Mary had a Little Lamb. He listened aptly, and after a minute heard the sounds if something behind the door. He backed up a little and waited, the sound of several locks being undone greeting his ears.

The door creaked open just barely, and a gentle pair of eyes looked out at him. "O-oh sweet Celestia...a-are...are you from the Royal Guard?" Equinox raised his helmet, smiling gently. He bowed and saluted.

"Equinox Shift of the Lunar Guard. Me and my companion Shadow Blaze were sent to investigate. What happened here?" The eyes darted over his figure, and he finally realized how close they were to the top of the door.

"I-I don't know...I woke up to the sounds of screams and fire...I looked out the window at the street and...it was all horrible. Those...things were shambling around and..." He nodded, waiting as she took a tearful breath. "I-I locked the doors...and hid in my house...but..." She faltered, and he took a small step forward.

"Would it help if I came inside?" Her eyes widened and she opened her barely visible mouth to speak, before she closed it and nodded. She closed the door and undid the last lock as Equinox walked up the steps. He reached up and slowly turned the knob, pushing the door open. It slowly creaked open, and a dark hallway was visible from the front. A staircase led upstairs on the right, with a closed door to the left. The house was dark, and the mare had disappeared. He slowly walked forwards, looking around. The furniture was in shambles, vases, the hatrack, and glasses knocked over in a panic. The lights were all off, and all reflective surfaces covered with any cloth they could find. The scratched wood floor creaked gently as he walked, the only sound in the house. He stopped and turned towards an ajar door, the sound of breathing coming faintly from inside. He reached out and pushed it open slowly. His eyes fell upon a loom, yarn and other cloths tossed around hazardously. He slowly made his way over them, his eyes scanning the room. "Miss..? Are you in here?"

"...right here." He turned to the right, but was met with a crashing blow to his head. He went flying into the loom, smashing through it and tumbling into the wall. His greatsword slipped off his back, skidding into a corner of the room. He slowly got to his feet, trying to scan the room as his head throbbed, his eyes blurred. He vaguely saw the shape of one of those things, holding a pan in its hand. She chuckled and raised it again, walking towards him. His eyes widened and he dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding her swipe. He stumbled on some cloth and tripped, rolling across the floor. She cackled manically and ran at him, grabbing his leg. She swung him around into the wall, his eyes widening. She swung again, and he felt several ribs break as she sent him to another side of the room. He shakily rose to his feet, his armor dented in several places from the sheer power behind her swings. His hoof brushed a broken shard of the loom, and he grasped it tightly, watching her hungry gaze. She dove for him again, and he swung hard. The wood cracked against her skull, sending her reeling with a howl of pain. He backed away, swaying as his head throbbed more in pain. He felt another shard of wood and grabbed it tightly, watching her as she clutched her head, groaning and moaning in pain. He met her eyes again, receiving the same look from the beasts outside. She lunged at him like an animal, spit flying from her mouth as she stretched her arms out at him. He yelled and drove the spike of wood forward, inpaling it in her skull and driving it forward as hard as he could. It ripped through her flesh, blood spurting out onto his helm as it and his hoof pushed fully through her skull. She collapsed in front of him, her now red eyes slowly burning out into empty husks of eye sockets. He panted hard, his chest burning in pain, then drew his hoof out with a sickening squelch, blood dripping off of his leg. He backed away a little shakily, looking over what had just happened, before turning and dry-heaving hard, his stomach already empty from earlier. He heaved again, and couldn't see as a black wisp swirled out of her body. He barely caught it in the corner of his eyes before it surged into his body. Instantly pain wracked his body, and his eyes widened as he howled in pain. His nerves sparked constantly, the feeling of his skin being melted, cut, and burned all coming together at once as he cried out until his vocal cords locked up into a silent scream of agony.

Blaze had faded into the shadows, and had appeared on the roof of one of the apartments. She slowly pulled herself out of the shadow of a chimney, walking over to the edge as smoke swirled a little ways away. Her eyes widened as she beheld the smoldering trash bin of what used to be Manehatten. "Holy shit...what the fuck happened here?" Fires raged in several buildings and streets, debris from broken lampposts and carriages littering the streets. Scores of the beings Equinox had fought were scattered around the city, digging at bodies, scratching at walls, or sitting against the walls. She kneeled down on the ledge, choosing to observe their behavior. Several of them, she could tell, seemed smarter than others. While some seemed to just stare blankly into space, others grabbed cloths and wrapped them around their bodies as imitations of clothes, grabbing sticks or metal bars as weapons. Upon closer inspection of the weird morphed ponies, she could barely make out two marks they all shared. One was what appeared to be a twisted version of a cutie mark, located a little bit above their right hip. The other was on their chests, right where she assumed their heart would be. Their skin seemed to close in and twist around it, and right in the center was a dark ring. She could almost swear that the border of it seemed to be made of flame occasionally. After another hour or two of observing, she felt a small, surge of pain spark through her mind, and she stood up. "Equinox?" She closed her eyes and began casting it outwards, looking for the strange connection they shared. The instant she found it, a large blast of pain rocketed through, striking her right in the chest. Her eyes widened and she fell backwards, grasping the shingles below her firmly. "Shit...what was that?" She opened her mind again and resumed searching, but before she could even begin a massive cry of pain rang through the air. Her eyes shot open and she snapped her head to the west, towards the deeper part of the city. She quickly lit up her horn and sank into the shadows, slipping down the building and flowing through the streets.

The cry came to a stop, right as she appeared before a house with a body in the front. She quickly dashed inside, her eyes darting around the room. "Nox!?" She ran down the hallway, stopping to check each room, until she came to the one at the end of the hall. Inside was Equinox, his eyes rolled up in pain, his mouth trapped in a silent scream. His skin was shifting and bubbling, the sound of his bones cracking echoing into the air. She quickly ran over, ignoring the corpse that was bleeding onto the wood floor. She looked him over, then swallowed and closed her eyes. She quickly bonded them, connecting their souls. Instantly her eyes snapped open in shock, a large force of the pain he was feeling slamming into her like a hammer. Her mind gave up and shut down to preserve itself as she began to shift like him, her skin starting to bubble. After several hours they both collapsed to the ground, changed forever, and minds dormant from shock.