Six moons had risen and set since he'd been pulled through to this place, and he'd yet to discover a way to open his path back home. Not that he wanted to, but shortly after leaving the room of his summoning he quickly realized that he was unattached. He was untethered to his kin and likewise, they too were unresponsive. At first, this had been a source of mild concern to him, though as time went on, he naturally began to grow increasingly apathetic. Like all creatures of his design would be when in his situation, adapting was the most important objective on his mind. Without a contractor to give him direction amongst the mortal world, he was left to find his own way of residing within it, and of keeping himself preoccupied during the long hours.

The first day and a half had been the most challenging. Even with the bloodlink his contractor had not been easy to track down. The land had greatly changed over the centuries. Once, finding the contractor was easy, one just needed to follow the flow of magic between him and the soul. Now, there was magic everywhere. It saturated the air, the soil, the sky and greatly interfered with his ability to track.

Anger had been his most recurring impulse during the hunt, as a result of his interest of the situation in general and frustration at not finding his caller. Eventually, he had found his quarry residing in one of the few magic heavy home-shaped clouds. In times past, he had made contracts with many mortals, from griffins seeking power to ponies wanting knowledge. Yet instead of a Grand Magus or Emperor, a pegasus stallion-child held his bloodlink.

And for the first time in the thousands of years since his damnation , he found his interest raised.

Once the tracking had run its course, he was suffused with a sense of unending curiosity for this new and novel world he'd been thrust into.

He never strayed very far from where his would-be contractor was at any given time, but he was also fortunate in that the pegasus didn't always stay put. He went out and about at certain times of the day, and unbeknownst to the stallion-child, the demon went along with him. It was during these excursions that he observed the ponies of the present day, watching the many ways stallions, mares, and their offspring conducted themselves.

Magic hadn't been the only thing that changed. Earth walkers, unicorns, and pegasi lived side by side with little to no conflict. The last time he had been summoned the three kinds had been on the precipice of war over food and the land to grow it on.

It was intriguing.

It was through these instances that he began to fashion a persona-imitation for himself, taking in aspects that he found to be the most striking and memorable; elaborate language, bright colors, fantastical tricks, wide smiles, and meaningful marks on the flanks.

Eventually, after crafting a more… pleasing form, for the use of walking amongst mortals, he made the decision to introduce himself to his caller.

In his natural form, of course.

The rest of Rumble’s spring break days had gone well, all things considered. He was grounded, after all.

When he had gotten home those days ago, he immediately tried to tell his mom and dad about what happened at the mansion, which led to him spilling the beans about where he had been.

It might not have been so bad, if they also hadn’t asked where the lighting flashlight he took with him was. He only realized he lost it when he tried to give it back.

Dad had been even less happy then. Apparently, it had cost a lot of bits.

His room was where he spent the most of spring break, only leaving the house to go on very frequent errands with his mom.

And of course, they didn’t believe him.

He could barely believe what happened himself.

It sounded like nothing more than a bad dream.

Yet during this whole time while he was trying to have fun by himself in his room or trying not to be bored as his mom tried to pick out the best tomatoes or watching from the window as other colts and fillies had fun outside, Rumble felt… uneasy. Sick was the right word. He couldn’t shake off this feeling that nothing was quite right, like he was being watched.

Every so often he caught a glimpse of shadows out of the corners of his vision. Blurs and shapes indistinguishable from even the smallest movement. Things caught in only the split-second he had to blink, and then it was gone.

A knock on his door pulled the little pegasus out of his thoughts as his mother’s voice drifted in through the door. “Rumble, dinner is ready.”

“Yes, ma'am,” he said, hopping off his bed, the book on it having long lost his interest.

He quickly made his way out of his room and downstairs, where everypony was just gathering around the dinner table.

He sat down at his usual spot, smiling a little as he saw what was on the table.

Spaghetti, his favorite. He… wasn't expecting that.

“Rumble.” The colt jumped in his seat a little, fork inches from his mouth. He looked to his mother who was sitting across the table, looking very unamused. “Seeing as you’re so eager why don’t you say grace?”

Thunderlane snickered.

The light grey pegasus resisted to roll his eyes as he put the fork down and began to fold his hooves together.

Then he froze.

“Who’s that?” he said, pointing at the red stallion standing at the other end of the table. The deep red pony hadn’t been there a moment ago. Rumble knew that for a fact because he had to walk right past that spot to get to his seat and there was no one there when he had been there.

His confusion deepened as, once everyone at the table looked to where he was pointing, they gazed back at him like he had lobsters growing out of his ears.

“Bro?” Thunderlane began, “Who’s what?”

“Him.” Rumble insisted, pointing again at the pony right in front of them. “The unicorn with the funny horns.”

Again, he got strange looks and silence in return.

His mom finally spoke, concern edging into her voice. “Honey, what are you pointing at?”

Rumble frowned. That made no sense. There was a pony he didn’t recognize at the dinner table and they were looking straight at him.

The pony’s eyes flared wide, its back straightening as began to move.

It looked unimpressed, impatient. Even smug, as the stallion stalked unnoticed from the spot he had been standing at, and downwards along the table side. The pony paused behind Thunderlane, bending its head down towards the oblivious teen, and, fixing Rumble with a smile, sniffed at the back of Thunderlane's neck appraisingly before sticking out his forked purple tongue and licking where he sniffed.

Rumble felt his eyes widen as his brother didn’t even so much as twitch.

That’s when it hit him. Only he could see the pony at the table right now. How was that even possible?

The small pegasus looked back to his mom, who was looking worried and quickly shook his head.

“Nevermind, mom.” He said, forcing a smile on his face. “Um, could you say grace? I’ve got to go to the bathroom.”

“O-kay.” She said slowly as Rumble quickly stood up. The colt made sure he was out of sight and halfway up the stairs before he broke into a gallop for his room.

Without a moment to lose, he shut his door and pushed his desk against it.

“That won’t work just so you know.” Rumble whinnied in surprise at the voice. It was unmistakably masculine and it wasn’t his dad’s or brother’s.

He turned toward it to see the red stallion on his bed, scratching one of his horns with a hoof.

Slowly, the pony stood but not in a normal way. The pegasus colt was reminded of a cat from the way this pony got to his hooves and hopped of the bed towards him. It was...what was that word that they learned in class? Gray? Grateful? Uh, graceful! Yeah, graceful.

“W-who are you?” Rumble managed to force out.

The pony looked almost insulted by the question. “You summoned me and you don’t know what I am?”

Rumble could only shake his head. “What’s ‘summoned’ mean?”

The pony frowned, putting a hoof to his forehead.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” He mumbled. “You called and I answered.”

Again, grey pegasus shook his head. He would have remembered if he invited this pony home.

“No, I didn’t. We don’t even own a megaphone.” He backed away as the pony got closer, almost scared to ask the next question. “You’re real, right? Like, for real?”

The pony put down his hoof, tilting his head to regard the other with a curious expression, before blinking owlishly. After a moment he gave a reply, "Yes, I am."

Rumble frowned. “Then how come my family couldn’t see you? Are you casting a spell or something?”

The stallion chuckled. His laugh wasn’t pleasant to hear. “I’m only seen by who I want to see me, I don’t need to cast magic to do so.”

“But how are you in my cloud home if you’re not casting magic? You’re obviously a unicorn.” Rumble finished the sentence with a satisfied nod, knowing he pointed out a flaw in what this stranger said. There was no way he could be here otherwise, he had no wings.

But again the stallion chuckled and grey colt began wondering what was funny. “I’m an incubus, I’ve no need or use for your mortal magics.”

“What’s an in…inc…ink-a-bus?” Rumble asked. He’d never heard of any kind of pony like that before.

“I am whatever you want me to be.” The pony began. “Intimate, even. I am a wish granter and ecstasy bringer. I can bestow boons and powers onto you. In laypony’s terms, you sign my contract and I can give you whatever you want.”

The strange pony smiled as he finished and Rumble was reminded of Mister Rich on family appreciation day. That same odd looking smirk as he talked about how he made so many bits. Now that he thought about it, he couldn't remember anything specific about what the fancy stallion said. What he did learn from that present… presentation of his was that he was a business pony. And business ponies are boring.

And this pony smiled like a business pony.

"Can you go away?" He asked, plainly.

The pony blinked, mouth moving quietly before looking at him much like his family had. Only meaner. Like he was weird and stupid. He had gotten looks like that from Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon before.

"What?" The stallion hissed, his lips turning into a scowl and Rumble took several steps back at the sight of so many sharp teeth. The pony took a threatening step forward, and his shadow seemed to...split. That's all the grey colt could call it. The shadows began darkening the cloudwalls of his room, a low noise coming from as they began to turn grey, and a quiet, ominous creaking seemed to originate from the floor as if was wood. "Are you stupid, child? I just said I can give you anything you want? It's a deal of a lifetime for any being. Mortals greater than you would have given everything for such a chance. I could give you pleasure unending or wealth so great, your offspring's offspring can live in comfort for the rest of their lives."

Rumble was nervous, but didn't waver, at least not physically. He stomped a forehoof down and flared his wings as wide as he could, much like he had seen his father do when his decision on something was final. "You're a business pony." He stated. "And I don't need what you're selling. I have some bits saved up but I'm saving them for something special."

For a moment, the pony didn't move and just stared at Rumble with a flat expression. The grey colt took that as a sign to continue. "Besides Dad told me that if somepony wants to sell you something you have to find out the price first, don't just take their word."

The stallion smiled, again showing his very sharp teeth, giving him an even more predatory look. "You seem to be under the assumption that I require physical items of monetary value. My deals are binding as is my word. Believe me when I say that, for what I'm offering your...money is very inadequate."

Rumble was slow as he tried to process what he was being told. "So..." He began, taking a not too subtle look over at the piggybank on his desk. "You don't want my bits?"

"They are useless to me."

"Then what do you want?"

The stallion's smile didn't waver but his eyes seemed to practically glow at the question. "You." He purred as he slowly began to circle around Rumble like a timberwolf would a rabbit. "I want you. Everything you are. Everything you will be. I want all of you." The pony finally came to a stop in front of the grey colt, almost nose to nose. "I. Want. It. All."

Rumble thought for a moment, mulling over what the pony said before the idea hit him. "Oh," he said, tapping his hoof to the floor in a way that was meant to represent snapping a finger. "You want a picture of me? I can do that, I think there's a camera place in town."

The room went silent as the stallion looked at Rumble with an unreadable expression on his face then the pony did the last thing he expected him to do. He laughed. Not a mean laugh but one like he had heard a good joke.

"When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child." The stallion finally said after a moment, turning to the bedroom window with a swish of his spaded tale. "Fine, foal. I will leave for now."

He trotted to the window, stopped and threw one last gaze to Rumble over his shoulder. "But know this, youngblood, we are linked until a deal is made. You will not be rid of me a moment before."

"What's your name? Mine's Rumble."

The stallion almost seemed surprised by the question, his ears lifting before setting back down. "Sontin."

Several questions went through Rumble's mind for the pony-one of them being where did he come from-but before he could ask any of them, the stallion flicked his tail once more and was gone.

Again before Rumble had a chance to question what happened, he noticed something on the windowsill. He made a short gasp in surprise. His father's flashlight!

He didn't waste a moment, grabbing it in his teeth he charged out of his room, wanting to give it back to his father as soon as possible.

Sontin returned to the place of his summoning for the first time after leaving the youngblood's place of residence, not quite sure what to feel about the pegasus. At first, he had been irritated that the stallion-child hadn’t been something more. It would have been entertaining if it turned out that the innocence was nothing more than an act of a pony with ambitions on the world but his initial behavior while dinning with bloodkin made it clear from the start that he was far from it. So much so, that he required a demonstration that the others couldn’t see him.

The discussion in his summoner’s chambers further revealed his ignorance.

Then his refusal to make a deal…

The incubus shook his head as he marched his way through the empty halls, the structure creaking around him with every step.
If there was one thing most of his kind could agree on, it was that having their time wasted was more than mildly irritating. No demon came from the underworld and left without their payment. Many mortals had tried, none succeeded.

He had reacted in pretty much the same way any of his kind would. With a show of power. To provoke a more…expected response. He hadn’t really given it his all, it was a child he was trying to intimidate after all.

However, the foal hadn’t been swayed. He actually had the brass to stand up to him, and for such simple childish reasons. It was actually funny but somehow humbling. Here he was, the head incubus, a demon from Hell, a creature that tortured souls and could turn even the strongest of stallions with the highest of values into little more than blubbering mares that spread their legs on command or turn the most prudish of mares into whores who lived for nothing more than the next dicking, challenged by a child with simple ideals who had no other reason than because he was saving his money for something he wanted.

Not to mention, him offering a picture, of all things to him.

Sontin hadn't laughed like that in a long time.

For that, he returned the youngblood’s odd lantern.

Yet, that also was a cause for a concern. His summoner, Rumble as he identified himself, was simple, barely educated in the ways of the world yet somehow not only called him from Hell but cut off his link with it. That fact alone was cause for investigation.

He made his way up the centermost hallway to the room where he had first breath of air in centuries and frowned. He hadn’t taken a good look at his surroundings when he first arrived. Now that he was back did he take notice of the lack of…anything. No candles. No blood sacrifice. No drawn sigils.

He took a deep breath, catching the youngblood’s scent in the air. It was faint, curling in the dry air like thin ribbon. It likely would have faded completely had this abandoned structure been more heavily traveled.

Slowly, he traced the scent along the central row of shelving and looked down at the very area of molded rotting carpet he had awoken in and next to that spot, where the scent emanated the strongest, was a heavy tome on the floor, pages wide open.

He levitated the book towards him and shut it to examine the front. The cover was a dark shade of blue turned light with age, a five-pointed star enclosed in a circle with the zodiac symbols surrounding it in a semi-circle.

From there pages seemed to move on their own, flipping through rapidly as the demon's eyes tracked back and forth along their contents. Only the most blessed of ponies could have read at such a speed and understood, though to think of a demon as... 'blessed'.

That was hilarious.

Eventually the pages came to a stop, and Sontin tilted his head as he regarded the diagram that was drawn out over the sheets of old paper. "...huh." He stated, looking rather surprised but also like he finally understood.

Almost every single page had an incantation circle drawn in it and slowly the pieces began to fall into place as he shut the book.

Give any symbol long enough to fester, and it will grow the power within itself to do the magic or magic could be absorbed from either the caster of the spell or the surrounding area. In normal circumstances, it would take years, centuries even, for any single one of these circles to gain enough power for sacrifices to be unnecessary. However, in this magic saturated land the world now had become, these circles had who knows how long to gorge themselves on power.

It just needed something to be acting as a catalyst to set it off. The foal’s blood was probably it.

Straightening again, the incubus opened it back to the page he had been viewing earlier.

After only a brief examination, he had already come to a few conclusions. The first was that Rumble was one seriously motherfucking lucky bitch, because the symbols etched into the pages after his own would have brought a very different kind of problem onto the pegasus.

The reason was simple; whoever had written this book must have known what they were doing to at least some extent, because the ritual circles on the three pages he'd found were not normal. They were personal. They had his symbol in them, and those of his kin in the others. These circles weren't meant to just summon demons--they were meant to summon a High incubus. And all three of his kin had their own signature signs incorporated into the circles, right down to their names.

What the hell did they think they were going to do with three high incubi? Dyvina and the big man would have had a fucking field day with a situation like what he was in. He found it all to be a rather refreshing break from his usual routine--but that was just him. He was the highest of them and the sanest of the three. Whoever designed these things was either fearless, stupid, or something else.
He shut the book and looked around, taking the room in its entirety. He’d need to find out more about this place and it’s owners.

He closed his eyes and let his infernal magic flow through the building. Obviously, it had been abandoned for sometime and he was going to need some place to stay if he was going to be among mortals of an extended period of time.

This building was perfect. It just needed a little bit of renovation.

Sontin grinned as he began twisting the very foundations to his will.

Fluttershy jumped, the sudden sound of ceramic breaking grabbing her attention from her book. Across from her was Discord, who's currently empty claw told her all she needed to know. "Oh my." she said as she stood up, eyes on the shattered tea cup small puddle of tea. "Are you okay?"

The draconequus was unresponsive and when the butter pegasus looked up she only had seconds the process how pale his face was before, he snapped his fingers and disappeared without another word.

Author's Note

Oh, Jesus. I think I might have added substance to this thing.