Seeking Secrets

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Epilogue
Chapter 7

Prologue

“You know how sometimes, you'll be out somewhere, and feel like you shouldn't be there? Like you don't belong? That's how I felt every day.” -Secret Seeker

He leaned his head back as the machine finished strapping him in. It had made everything take much longer than if he could have simply had an assistant perform these duties, but he'd learned long ago, Never trust anyone. As he listened to the whirring pieces of machinery do their jobs, he could see in his mind the gears, pistons, circuitry and wiring that made it all possible. Each piece painstakingly crafted and placed, all in preparation for this day.

A century.

He'd been chasing this dream for just shy of one hundred years. The fluorescent lighting illuminated the bare tile floors, a handful of tables, and the wall of terminals, dials and meters that was the face of the supercomputer handling the calculations, power dispersion, etc. All at once the machinery stopped, snapping him out of his reverie. For a split second, panic gripped his gut, vanishing when he heard the familiar voice of his machine.

“Preparations complete.” He waited, thinking, running through all his calculations, checking, double checking, and checking again, making sure he had thought of everything. A chuckle escaped him as he recalled something from long ago, “Triple checked the check list? Check!”

“Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” he said, the safety phrase that kept him from accidentally activating the Shifting protocol.

“Shift me from this hell, that I might finally know peace.” Immediately he heard the clicking and humming of a hundred million switches flipping within circuitry. The gyroscopic arms of the device began a slow rotation around him, building speed with each second. Soon, they were whipping around so quickly that he couldn't discern them as anything more than a slight blur. He trembled in terror. A fear he hadn't known since that day almost 60 years ago, fear for his life, swelled within him. Fighting the panic, he struggled to remain calm, to avoid thrashing against the bonds that held him, not that he could have accomplished anything by doing so.

The humming grew louder as the third phase started, and he began to see something impossible. A splotch of midnight blue, like someone had spilled a piece of the night sky, was spreading before his eyes. It undulated and stretched, arcing over and beneath him, tiny pinpricks of white on a blue-black blanket, until all he could see was a cosmos he had never before witnessed. The hum reached the limit of his hearing, bordering on the decibel level just below his pain threshold, and his head began to pulse with a headache.

“Oh myself hurry up!” he shouted, or thought he did. It was impossible to tell as the hum vibrated through him, robbing him even of the feeling of his own speech, much less the sound. For a moment he was reminded of attending a rock concert, and being right next to the stage, the memory bringing a smile to his lips, as the cosmos began to move past him. He seemed to be rocketing through space, or maybe it was rocketing around him. Shifting was still largely speculation for most of the world, and as far as he knew, he was the first one to attempt it.

He had to shut his eyes against the blurring lines of the stars, and had the strange sensation of rotating, marveling at the feeling since no gravitational pull existed in space to affect the fluid in his ears. The feeling occurred again, this time in another direction, and he chanced opening his eyes to try and see what caused it. Immediately he vowed not to close them again. To his right, a massive black hole was in the process of devouring a sea of stars, a reddish orange swath, swirling around a black center, bleeding into yellow and green and blue. Tears formed in his eyes at the sight of something so beautiful.

Soon, too soon, it was gone, replaced by other scenes of cosmic wonder, each second making it harder to watch as he apparently continued accelerating, like trying to watch a single tree through the window of a car as he whipped past it. The thought occurred to him that this was impossible, that he had to be moving at something like one hundred million times the speed of light, when he heard a noise that brought his terror back full force.

The shuddering sound of machinery struggling not to fail.

Before he could truly be caught in the grip of his fear, the sound happened again, louder this time, and he heard a massive clunk of metal crashing into metal. He felt his body lurch, his head snapping forward and limbs flailing about as all the lights of the universe seemed to wink out. In some dim corner of his mind, he wondered why his restraints hadn't, well, restrained him, then all was darkness and silence.

Chapter 1

The first sensation he became aware of was the pain in his lower back, followed by the feeling of prickling against his neck. Drawing a deep breath, the smell of dirt and hay drenched his nostrils, thick and rich. He drew in another deep breath, savoring the potent scent, as he tried to gain his bearings. He was sitting on the ground, his back and head propped up against what was most likely a hay bale. Opening his eyes, he was assaulted by brilliant, vibrant color. Even though he was inside what appeared to be a barn, shielding him from direct sunlight, everything seemed like it was glowing. As if everything the light touched contributed energy to the photons, making the world more stimulating, more potent.

“It's like I'm in a cartoon...” he muttered, as he began to rise to his feet. The acuity of the statement hit him like a blow, causing him to stagger. A cartoon... Heart hammering in his chest, his eyes adjusted to the darkness, his HUD (Heads Up Display), which had been noticeably absent during his journey, seemed to have finally returned, alerting him that many of his nanobots' functions were still offline, and that it might be a couple days before enough could be constructed to restore them.

He opened the panel on his left wrist, and debated whether or not to shut all their functions down. If he did, then all of them could contribute to the repairs, making his recovery time probably half of what it would be now, but robbing him of his HUD, a resource he had come to view as nearly invaluable, as well as the healing capabilities they provided him. Finally, he snapped the panel shut. In a strange world, with no true understanding of what dangers may be lurking, it would be folly to rob himself of his seventh sense and regeneration. He certainly had no desire to successfully Shift to another dimension, only to be killed because he couldn't wait a few days to have exceptional hearing.

“Applebloom ya darned varmint, where'd ya go? You're not gettin' outta yer chores that easy!” With eyes like dinner plates he crouched down low and froze, listening intently. He heard the sound of hooves on grass, followed by what sounded like a short scuffle, and then squeals of laughter. Again he reeled from the sensation, rocking forward and landing on his hands and knees. The mirth! The pure, unadulterated joy in the sounds slammed through him like a river, his heart throbbing with the beauty of it. Never, in all his long years in his home dimension, had he bore witness to such happiness! Until he noticed the wet spots on the ground, it never occurred to him that he was crying.

With a smile stretched across his face, he returned to his crouch, and made his way to the window through which the sounds seemed to come. Steeling himself for the assault, he peeked outside. Waves of green greeted him, and over the crest of a small hill, he could see what appeared to be apple trees, bearing only small, green fruit. Amidst the trees he saw the source of the sounds, two shapes he recognized immediately. A small yellow filly with a red mane and tail, and a larger, but still small, mare with an orange coat and blonde hair partially hidden by a cowboy hat.

He wanted to shout to them! To vault the window and run across the meadow, a smile on his face as the two ponies ran to him and greeted him as a new, if strange, friend! His hands gripped the wood of the window, preparing to launch him through it.

“No.” Who had whispered that? Sinking down to the dirt floor, he turned and rested his back against the wall.

“No.” he said again, with more conviction this time. Folding his legs into the lotus position, he sat and contemplated. He did not survive one hundred twenty years amongst humans by making rash decisions. He had not become the first, and so far only immortal on earth by acting without planning. And he certainly had not managed to become the first successful Shifter by moving blindly forward! No, he would sit, and think, and come up with a plan.

He awoke from his nap just after twilight. Watching the sun's motion for an hour had allowed him to readjust his internal clock to the time in this world, which, as luck would have it, was not too terribly different from hell, as he had come to call his birth dimension. Seconds, minutes, hours, and days were all the same here, though the sun had a strange tendency to move in clicks, rather than the smooth motion he was used to. After setting his nanobot alarm, he had climbed up into the loft and found a good spot to hide.

He had been relieved to find that he wouldn't need to forage for food until the night, having had no idea how long the journey through dimensions had taken, or what damage he had sustained after... whatever had happened. His body seemed uninjured, and all his vitals were strong. Whatever was causing this world to seem to him like he was on a mescalin trip was, apparently, not caused by an oversensitivity of his perceptive organs, but rather by the vibrancy of the world itself, a fact he found both comforting and intriguing.

After ensuring he was alone, he made his way out of the barn, indulging himself in his prior whimsy of vaulting through the window, since opening and shutting the barn door would likely have been even more risky. That was the excuse he told himself anyways. First, food.

After scrutinizing the landscape for a minute, ensuring that nopony was still out and about, he began making his way through the meadow. Fortunately, the grass was just tall enough that he was able to remain hidden while sliding on his belly. During his painfully slow journey to the orchard, he collected sturdy stalks of grass here and there, careful not to leave any bare patches, and used his feet to partially straighten the stalks he had smushed with his passing, leaving almost no sign behind.

While crawling he wove the stalks together, creating some gilly bands for his arms and head, and a few for his legs, making him blend in even more. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, but which had only really been two hours, he reached the cover of the orchard. Quickly weaving his way amongst the orderly trees, he obscured the view line of anypony who might be looking at the orchard from outside, before shimmying up one of the trunks. The fruit wasn't ripe yet, but it was close enough, and he ate a few from each tree, consuming all but the seeds of each apple. It wouldn't do to have snuck so carefully, only to leave a trail of apple cores behind leading to his hiding place!

Hunger sated, he collected a few more apples and stored them in some of his pockets. It galled him now that he hadn't brought any tools or equipment with him, since things had gone so smoothly, but he had needed to be prepared for the eventuality that he would arrive in the court of Canterlot, or some other equally populated location. It would not have been wise to arrive with cloaking devices, foreign, and frankly alien-looking tools, and other such nonsense that would seriously detract from any claims to have come in peace.

Emerging from the orchard, he began his trek north to Ponyville. Looping southeast through the orchards had cost him some time, but he needed glucose in his blood if the nanobots were going to keep working, and lots of it if they were going to construct enough new nanobots to get the rest of his systems online. Mostly he was worried about his regeneration. In his current state, a serious injury, like a fractured bone, or a pierced organ, might take days to heal. And some injuries that would normally pose little or no threat, like a stab through the heart, might actually prove fatal! It was imperative that he keep enough food in him to get those systems back as soon as possible.

With the farm behind him, and some distance until he was within eyesight of even the outer houses of Ponyville, he relaxed his vigil a little and moved in a low crouch. For most, maintaining this position of motion for even a short time would quickly prove debilitating; the compressed rib cage reducing lung capacity, and the strain of being bent over while running. For him, it would be hours before stiffness or cramping began. His muscles contained carbon-weave fibers, and his bones had been reinforced with SkeleTON implants, making them almost ten times as strong as they ought to be. Between that and the nanobots whisking away the waste products of exertion, he would make it to Ponyville with energy to spare.

Letting his gaze roam over the landscape, he again felt the cool wetness of tears on his cheeks. It was just so beautiful! Every scene was like a painting. The night sky twinkled with stars and a shining moon, like a lovingly crafted masterpiece. The pale light bathed the grass and trees, giving the whole world an ethereal glow, looking like the prized creation of a master silversmith. With a smile he wiped the tears away and shook his head. It was going to be hard to make a good impression if he couldn't even look at an empty field without tearing up like a leaky faucet.

The journey was significantly lengthened by his borderline obsessive desire to remain hidden. Giving any homestead he encountered a wide berth, and avoiding roads in favor of fields or trees made his route circuitous and wandering.

Finally he came into view of the smattering of homes that was Ponyville. Immediately he recognized the Carousel Boutique, Sugarcube Corner, and the library, as well as a few other buildings he had seen in the show back in hell. Goal in sight, he slackened his pace and crouched lower. There didn't appear to be anypony out and about... still, caution was warranted. His whole plan would be ruined if somepony saw him now. Once he was within several yards of the outermost buildings of Ponyville, his movements slowed further, barely faster than a walk. Years of practice attempting to emulate ninja allowed him to step lightly, making almost no sound as he moved along the walls. Funny how something so childish could be so useful, he mused.

His alertness heightened when he realized how smoothly the journey had been thus far. I'm never this lucky, he thought, something must be about to go wrong. A glance at the sky told him he was running out of time. It would soon be morning.

Quickening his pace, mindful of any noise he made, and of the fact that the residents of any one of these houses might be early risers, he hurried around the edge of town. Mustering his courage, he made one last dash to the place where he would finally be able to rest.

Slowly, carefully, he climbed the massive tree, thankful for the handholds provided by the various additions made by turning it into a library. Eventually, he made his way into the leafy boughs at the top of the tree, moving into a promising looking patch of branches thick with foliage. Beneath him was only the wood of the tree, so nopony looking up would see him, and above and around him were branches and leaves, obscuring the view of anypony who might seek for him from the sky or some high window. Nestling in for a rest, he reclined in a cradle formed by the boughs, and closed his eyes, listening to the sounds of Ponyville as it began another day. A warm stillness had settled within him, a feeling of ease and contentment that had long, long been denied. For a time, he struggled to think of the word for the feeling that bathed him.

"Ah yes," he whispered to himself, "peace."

Chapter 2

"The soul is a marvelous thing, functioning like a motive force that never runs out and never dies, unlike the flimsy bodies it often inhabits." -the Necroequicon

As he waited for the last moments of twilight to fade, he contemplated his next moves. He knew that Twilight Sparkle would be up late tonight, having heard her say as much to Pinkie Pie when the bouncy mare had stopped by. While he didn't much like the idea, it seemed that his best bet would be to stay put, delaying the return of his nanobot systems. It simply wouldn't be worth the risk to forage for food...

The door to the library opened, and he heard Twilight galloping away,

"I know that Spike, but I have to ask Rarity before it gets too late! I can't afford to include such secondhoof information in a report to the Princess!" He heard Spike grumble some sort of response, but was much too far away to make out the words. This changed everything! Wasting no time, he slipped from his hiding place and carefully made his way down the tree. He lowered himself down, hanging from his fingertips, and dropped a few feet to the balcony, immediately laying flat.

He should have stayed still for longer, but he couldn't risk wasting this opportunity! Balance in all things, after all, included risk. The door, surprisingly, considering his recent run of luck, was locked. Glancing around, he reached up and plucked a promising looking branch, and then plotted his escape route in case she had some sort of magical alarm system set up. The branch slid, with some effort, between the two doors, and allowed him to trip the latch on the other side. Quiet as a breath, he pulled one of them open, and slipped inside.

After a minute or two browsing the shelves, his fears were confirmed; whatever system she used to organize the books, it was one only she and Spike were privy to. Books that seemingly had nothing in common sat next to each other, like Basics of Manticore Anatomy, surrounded by texts containing neither manticores nor anatomy! Taking a deep breath, he decided to test his luck once more, choosing a blind search over an attempt to crack the code of Twilight's System.

Almost an hour had gone by, and he had yet to find anything close to what he was searching for. Fortunately, a pattern seemed to be emerging in his mind. It seemed almost as if books relating to magic were nearer to top shelves, and more mundane topics were closer to the bottom. Craning his head back, he activated his night vision, risking the increased energy expenditure for the benefit of not having to read each title from two inches away.

With his nanobot systems in such a poor state, just a fraction of the rods in his eyes experienced the increased sensitivity, making only a marginal difference in his vision. Still, it was enough to allow him, with some slight squinting, to read most of the titles while standing on the ground. After another hour or so, he saw it! The Power Within: A Guide to Basic Magic. Heart hammering in his chest, he pulled himself up to the shelf and retrieved the book. As desperately as he wanted to stay and search for even just one more, he knew he had already stayed too long. Whatever story she'd needed from Rarity couldn't possibly have taken this long to retrieve, and she was probably already on her...

He heard the sound of hoofsteps approaching the door.

Stupid! he berated himself, of course she wouldn't be galloping back after getting the story. She'd walk, making much less noise! In a panic, he scanned the room, looking for someplace, any place to hide. Noticing one shelf that seemed just far enough away from the wall, he dashed over to it. Shimmying sideways, he slid behind the bookcase, until he was wedged between it and the wall. He tried desperately to focus on his breathing as he fought feelings of claustrophobia.

The door opened, jingling the bell inside once, and again when it closed. There was a quiet, sparkling sound, and light bloomed in the middle of the room. He heard what sounded like gentle snoring, and the sound of hoofsteps as they made their way upstairs. After presumably depositing the sleeping dragon in his bed, Twilight returned downstairs and continued her report. Hopefully she didn't have much farther to go, and he'd be able to escape soon...

As the window silently closed behind him, he carefully began his climb back to his hiding place. With dawn only minutes away, he had little time to waste.

"How," he bitterly mused, "how could she possibly write for that long about stitching!?" Struggling to keep his voice down, he quietly grumbled to himself as he made his ascent, stopping at one point near the top when he thought back to Spike's grumbling when he and Twilight had left the library. It was a good minute before he felt safe resuming his climb, still fighting down fits of suppressed laughter. By the time he was nestled in his crook, the first rays of sunlight were peeking over the horizon, and the deep warmth he had begun to love had returned. Cracking open his... unofficially borrowed book, he began reading.

The outset wasn't promising. There was a lot about intuition, and "feeling your power", and recalling the feeling that had accompanied feats of unintentional magic performed in the past. None of which was particularly helpful for someone who had never done any such thing. Fortunately, the next chapter was designed for individuals who had some sort of learning disability. The book phrased it much more pleasantly, but he knew that was the gist of what it meant. It described, in admirable detail, steps to use to search for that seat of power within oneself.

After carefully reading the chapter a few times, he began to test the various exercises. He tried to feel within himself, he tried imagining a box, or a bag, or a treasure chest which contained his power. He tried some of the other exercises designed to work for unicorns who were exceptionally thick. Nothing seemed to help. The warmth had gone, and was being replaced by a bitter cold deep in his gut.

Frustration. The greatest rival of his entire life, and it seemed he was losing another battle to his old foe.

Fighting back tears, he took a deep, calming breath. I did not come all this way to give up the first time something went against me. I've had extraordinarily good luck thus far, and it was only a matter of time before something went wrong. With his jaw set, he opened the book again and began reading the next chapter.

"Of course, it is possible that some foals' magic will be buried so deep that they are seemingly unable to touch it. The simplest way to circumvent this problem is to have another unicorn who can access their magic assist the foal.”

“Well that's out of the question.” he muttered bitterly.

“Another, though this is definitely not recommended, is if the foal is put into a seemingly life-threatening situation, they will oftentimes find themselves capable of reaching their latent magical powers.” He sat and pondered that. How could he put himself in a seemingly life-threatening situation, without actually endangering himself? It seemed to imply that he needed to believe he might die for the trick to work, and that was all assuming he even had any magical ability to tap into in the first place.

If he could just ask Twilight to help him... No no no, that would never work. While she would probably jump at the chance to perform the experiment, and the opportunity to study an actual human, he knew he'd never be able to convince her, nor would he even want to try, to keep his presence a secret from her friends or the Princess. He could never ask her to betray them that way.

He was growing restless and fidgety. Carefully, he got up and stretched, moving around to work out his frustrations. He took a step to the side onto another branch, or at least, that's what he meant to do. He had already begun shifting his weight when he realized his foot had failed to encounter the expected resistance. Looking down, he saw the branch he had meant to step on, sitting just beside where he'd placed his foot.

“Really?” Had he not been about to be exposed to all of Ponyville when they saw him dangling from the library, he would've laughed at the absurdity of the situation. In that moment, he relived his entire journey. All the stealth and patience. The careful planning and execution. Standing behind that bookshelf for SIX HOURS while Twilight wrote about stitching, then successfully escaping when she went to sleep, not to bed, she was still sitting at the desk, just to sleep. All so that he could buck it all up by stepping into thin air like a buffoon!

He was very much surprised, therefore, when his descent was halted by something solid underfoot. His eyes snapped to the branch, which, a split moment ago, had been up and beside his leg, and was now supporting him. As the faint bluish glow receded, the branch groaned back to its original position, nearly offsetting the balance he had only just regained.

He stood stock still for a full minute. Breathing deep breaths, trying to calm his thundering heart. That just happened, he thought. Finally getting control of himself, he returned to his cradle. He tried a few of the exercises, and was met with resounding success. Heart hammering, and a grin threatening to cramp his face, he resumed reading, intent on internalizing every word in the text.

Chapter 3

"I remember. And because of that there will always be a part of me that is prepared to do violence." -Secret Seeker

The rain poured down, soaking him, and forcing him to maintain a shield over the three books. Two lay nestled in his cradle, the third open in his lap. The storm, from what he had heard while the pegasi flew overhead, was supposed to last the rest of the day. He hoped that the magical lightning rod Twilight had installed protected him...

Over the past few days he had managed to gain a firmer control over his magical abilities. He hadn't been able to experiment much beyond feats of telekinesis, primarily due to a lack of resources. Twilight rarely left the library, oftentimes studying or writing reports until the early hours of the morning. But, even with Spike's considerable assistance, sometimes she just had to go somewhere. Yesterday, as luck would have it, happened to be Twilight and her friends' weekly pet play-date, causing her and Spike to be out of the library for most of the day.

He had snuck inside shortly after they'd left, now having a much less circuitous route which enabled him to stay hidden better, and browsed the books, once again in new locations. Sometimes he seriously considered the possibility that Twilight might have obsessive compulsive disorder. As he had browsed a bookcase on the ground floor he had found himself staring at Basics of Manticore Anatomy, and had been tempted to take it, since it seemed to be one of the first books he noticed every flipping time he broke in!

“Like it's taunting me...” he had muttered in a moment of uncharacteristic superstition, imagining the library itself plotting against him. Shaking his head to clear the thought, he had moved on, finding three promising-looking texts. It had been quite a struggle, the decision to abscond with all three, since he was sure that Ms. Sparkle would need one of them while he was still using it, and would cause a ruckus when it couldn't be found. In the end he had elected to take them all, thinking that, if such an event did occur, he could drop the sought after book on the table on the balcony, and she might think she'd left it there.

Food had been something of an issue as well. While he should have been up to almost full capacity by now, he instead was barely beyond the state he'd been in to begin with. It was a long trek to the orchards, and a long one back, taking most of the night to make the trip one way, meaning he'd had to stay hidden amongst the trees. He'd only made one trip back to the orchards since arriving, and had availed himself of a couple of sacks at the Apples' farm, adding its value to the value of the numerous apples and vegetables he'd already... procured. The tally of his debts was starting to get large.

Lost in the book he was reading, A Foal's Guide to Runecraft, he'd failed to notice how much the branches of the tree were swaying. Protected as they were by his shield, the books were completely safe. The same could not be said, however, of the two sacks of apples he'd lashed to the branches. While the boughs were sturdy, and should have held the added weight with little trouble, lightning blasted through the tree just as a strong gust buffeted it. The combined affronts were too much for one of the poor branches, and, with a resounding crack, it broke free, tumbling to the ground.

He stared at the branch where it lay, the sack, still intact, tightly lashed to it.

“Okay,” he muttered to himself, “nopony is around. I can just untie the rope...” Sending his magic sense down to the bag, he tugged on the strands, loosening the knot. SLAM! The door to the library, caught in a gust, had crashed open!

He dropped his focus, letting the light blue glow of his magic fade from the rope just before Twilight, wrapped in a brown cloak, came around the bend of the tree. She stood over the branch, and poked the bag with a hoof. A lavender glow enveloped the sack, and he saw it open, saw her look inside. Then she looked up, staring right into his eyes as lightning flashed behind him.

His heart stopped. For what seemed like an eternity he gazed down into the light lavender eyes, illuminated by the glow of the lightning bolt.

She saw him.

She was looking straight at him. Any moment now her jaw would drop, and she would run inside, locking the door and scribbling a letter to Celestia. His thoughts raced in a million directions at once, trying to figure out his best course of action. Before he could decide upon anything, the lightning vanished. He saw her blink, then rub her eyes with a foreleg. Looking down again at the bag, her lips formed a smirk, and she muttered something. Something that looked like “Spike.” With a smile, she leaned down, grabbed the sack with her mouth, picked it up, and turned to walk back inside.

For minutes afterwards he stood there, heart pounding in his chest. Why hadn't she seen him? She'd looked right into his eyes! Finally, a strong gust knocked him from his musings, and he stumbled down to a sitting position in his cradle.

“Think!” he chastised himself. “Okay, she heard the branch break and came outside to investigate. Saw the sack and looked up. She should have seen me because the branch was missing and she had a clear line of sight.” A rumble of thunder shook the tree. Thunder, because lightning split the air and caused the two bodies to crash together. Realization dawned on him. He saw, in his mind's eye, Twilight rubbing her face with a forehoof. Not to get rain out of her eyes, but because she had just looked directly into a flash of lightning!

With a sigh he rubbed his hand down his face, futilely wiping away some of the rain, as he recalled the way the lightning had illuminated her eyes. He was safe, for now. Spike might believe he'd stashed them and forgotten, but they'd be too fresh for that. He might keep it all hush hush and enjoy the boon of a free sack of apples. But more likely he'd deny that they were his, and the two of them would investigate.

Grabbing the other sack, he untied it and stuffed the books inside, burying them among the apples. After looping the drawstring over his head, securing the sack on his back, he began his descent, dropping the last twenty feet, softening his landing with a bit of telekinesis. Low to the ground, he scanned the empty streets and skies. It was going to be risky, but he couldn't stay here any longer. He had the books to learn what he could from this library, but his many searches had yielded nothing related to the problem that nagged at his mind.

Facing north, he began the journey to Canterlot. In the archives of the regal city, he would find, if it were anywhere, the text that would either allay his fears, or confirm them. Regardless, he had to know.

Chapter 4

"Even the most virtuous of souls will have a weakness. Find that weakness, and the soul is yours. To control, to banish, even to destroy." -the Necroequicon

The trip to Canterlot was slow going. Being denied the conventional methods of train, pegasus or taxi carriage, his only choice was to walk. Though the questions burned in his mind, it was impossible not to revel in the beauty of Equestria.

The scents of the day were almost suffocating at times, their intensity threatening to overwhelm him. Dirt, grass, trees, flowers of all kinds, he'd sit in some hidey-hole or tree, and struggle to discern each smell, oftentimes giving up and simply basking in the glory of it all. Birdsong assaulted his ears, and he thought at times he could hear all the fowl of the mountains, as if distance had no effect on sound.

Food was no issue on this sojourn. He had found that the foothills through which he traveled contained an abundance of nuts, roots, and edible plants he had learned to recognize when he'd borrowed Super Naturals from the library. He also stocked his sack with some herbs useful for making potions against a handful of common poisons and venoms, in case his nanobots couldn't analyze and combat them. Lastly, he'd found a specimen of a rare plant that could be chewed to give a burst of energy and increased alertness, prized among professional athletes, hard workers, and scholars studying for exams.

The night, however, had quickly become his favorite time of each day. Not only because it was the only time he could travel, but the subdued nature of the night was less of an affront to his senses. He found he could breathe easier, see farther, and hear better. Plus, the night sky was gorgeous! It had been... why, he didn't think he'd ever seen so many stars in the sky! Looking up at it, he was sometimes reminded of the Shift, specifically the beginning, when the splotch had materialized. If he had known then how similar the two were, perhaps he would have taken some comfort in seeing that blob of sky appear.

Thinking of the Shift, however, always brought back the questions. Which brought with them the pit in his stomach. He didn't have a real reason to feel this way, not anything he could put into words. Yet it drove him on nonetheless. This yearning, this need to know.

“Why am I so afraid?” he'd asked himself one day while resting. Unable to focus on reading Teleportation: From Here to There with Nary a Care!, he'd begun contemplating his unease. Eventually he decided that it was because he didn't know. He didn't understand what the crash entailed, and what adverse effects his Shift to this dimension may have. He needed to be sure, and if anyplace would have the information he was seeking, it would be the Canterlot Archives.

It took him three nights to travel to the base of Canterlot, bringing his grand total to nine days spent in Equestria. During this time he had been able to get a grasp on the basics of teleportation and telekinesis, though his ability to perform the former was virtually nonexistent, and a very detailed understanding of a basic rune for protection against adverse spells. With all the food he'd been able to scavenge, and the fact that he spent most of the daytime resting or reading, his nanobot systems were fully operational again, giving him access to increased hearing, night vision, both everyday and combat HUDs, maximized regenerative capabilities, and the complete absence of the need to eliminate waste from his body.

Since the sun was about to rise, he took refuge in a promising looking cave, sitting just inside the entrance, so as not to disturb any inhabitants, and pulling out his book on teleporting to see if there was some crucial element he had missed that was making the task so unbelievably difficult. But after a short time he grew frustrated and put the book away, turning instead to look inside the cave. Activating his night vision, he saw that it was no small hole he had wandered into. After a moment's hesitation, he ventured forth. “Nothing gained.” he muttered, as he took his first steps.

It soon became apparent that night vision alone wasn't going to cut it; there simply wasn't enough light in the cave, extra sensitivity or not. With a sigh, he pulled out one of the two strange, rod-shaped fungi he'd collected. He'd hoped to save them for the archives, but it seemed unlikely he'd need both, as, according to Super Naturals, they'd glow for almost twelve hours once cracked. He gave it a twist, and heard a series of small pops. Soon, the cave was bathed in a soft green glow.

With his night vision still active, he had to hold the fungus behind his back lest it blind him, but the combined effect was that the cave appeared to be bright as day. Just greener. As he ventured deeper into the cave system, he kept in mind the strategy of a game he'd loved back in hell, and followed his left wall.

It lead him to a few dead ends, and a few yawning chasms which, in defiance of all he thought he knew about physics, he could not see across, as though the light were being absorbed by some physical shadow. Over the next few hours, he became cognizant of the gradually increasing incline of the cave system. Apparently, he was heading up.

Finally, after about six hours of wandering, he made his way into a large chamber which, upon entering, caused his jaw to nearly drop off his face. Piles, massive piles of gold and gems. A horde of treasure so tremendous that his heart was slamming against his ribcage. He temporarily tried to calculate its value, but quickly abandoned the idea. He'd have to come back and...

A cold dread settled within him as two thoughts struck simultaneously. Either he was standing in the Canterlot Treasury, which he sorely doubted, or this was a dragon's horde. He had to know. Cursing his curiosity with each step, he gingerly bypassed the mounds of wealth, heading towards the back of the room, where it curved to the left. As he got closer, the sense of dread increased, until, just before he rounded the corner, it was so thick he was struggling just to breathe. Fighting back the urge to run, he marshaled his resolve, and stepped around the edge.

Had his nanobots not recycled all his waste, he would've soiled himself.

He'd been wrong. The chamber he just came from was nothing. A trifle. Probably just some little nook that some errant piles of gold had been accidentally swept into. For a few seconds he tried to think of something to compare what he was seeing to, until it finally popped into his head: The Colosseum.

He stood in what would have been the middle row, with rank upon rank of “seating” above and below him. There were piles of gems, just gems, as big as the room he had just exited. But nothing, nothing in the whole, massive, gargantuan amphitheater compared to the thing in the middle. The thing which had begun stirring the moment he had entered. The thing which was, even now, raising its head, and opening one green eye to look at him.

I'm going to die. It wasn't so much a thought as it was something engraved in the very fiber of his being, as if his entire existence had been a journey to this point, and he now understood that his purpose in life was to be consumed by this monstrous dragon. It's scales were blacker than anything he had witnessed before, seeming to absorb any light that hit them. It was more like picking out the place where there was nothing than discerning the location of the beast. It took a long sniff, the pull of air nearly offsetting his balance, seeming to suck the very strength from his blood. At that point, action became impossible, he knew, just, knew, that his only option was to hope for mercy.

“Hmmmm,” the dragon rumbled, the sound bouncing off the rock, hitting him from all directions, shaking his bones, “it has been a long, long time since we last saw your kind.” Even through the terror that gripped him, he was struck by the words. It knows what I am! It's seen humans before!

“Hmm hmm hmm hmm.” it took him a moment to realize the sound was the dragon chuckling, “Oh yes, we know your kind. There were many before you.” Each time it spoke, the sound robbed him of all ability to think or act, and he spent a few seconds recovering his faculties. Finally, he managed to speak,

“What happened to them?” he squeaked, his voice cracking in fear.

“They died.” it stated bluntly, pausing for a second before continuing, “You are frail creatures. You last only a blink, then you are gone...” It paused then, and leaned its head closer, the eye scrutinizing him. The massive lid moved up, and its serpentine orb was revealed in full.

He thought that this might be what it felt like to stand naked before the fury of the unobstructed sun. It felt as if everything was laid bare. His dreams, his goals, every thought and memory he had ever had was known to the dragon. He thought he stood there for a lifetime, being consumed by the draconian gaze, before the lid finally lowered halfway down again, and the massive head pulled away.

“Hmm, you are different. You will last. Interesting...” It drew out the last word, pondering. He waited, standing still for seconds, then minutes. An hour had elapsed before the dragon spoke again,

“We will aid you in two ways. The first, a gift of knowledge.” He struggled to pay attention past the relief flooding through him. “What you seek, was once sought by a pony. Starswirl, he was called. The second, a gift of protection. A rune you know well, and another you do not.” The head came close again, drawing in a breath as it approached. The dragon's mouth opened slightly as it exhaled, its breath coming out as a thin, wispy trail of the same voidstuff the dragon itself seemed to be made of. When it hit him, no amount of resolve in the world could've stopped him from screaming.

He had gotten a tattoo once, right over his heart, of a caved-in hole. He had liked it, but later on, around the time he was getting his implants, he'd opted to have it removed. It just, hadn't seemed to matter anymore. This felt similar to getting that tattoo, but similar only in the sense of the type of pain, not the magnitude. If the tattoo had been pricking his thumb on a rose thorn, this was having his eyes gouged out with a hot spoon.

It probably only lasted a second or two, but he would forever remember it as a tiny eternity of blinding agony. When it ended, he collapsed in a heap, breathing heavily, the faint taste of iron in the back of his throat. While he lay there, trying to recuperate, the dragon returned to its resting position. After a few moments, he finally felt he had the strength to stand up.

Looking around for his glowgi, he reached the conclusion that, at some point, it had gone out. How long have I been here? he dimly wondered. Looking around, his gaze was drawn to a tunnel he hadn't noticed before, from which emanated the green light of the fungi. Careful not to disturb any of the immeasurable wealth that littered the chamber, he made his way to the light. As he set foot in the mouth of the cave, the dragon spoke,

“Take one with you, you will need its light. When you have found what you seek, allow yourself to be discovered.” He wanted to ask what it meant by that, but something told him that his visiting time had come to an end. Instead, he asked something else, a question he'd been pondering since he first laid eyes on the incredible monster,

“How old are you?” He waited a long time, but no answer came. Finally, he moved to continue his exit.

“We do not know of a time before we existed.” The silence that followed the statement was deafening. That doesn't tell me much, who remembers before they were born? He bent down and plucked one of the fungi, causing it to go dark, and tucked it into his sack. Turning to get one last look at the Colosseum, he found himself facing a blank stone wall.

Reaching out, he pressed on it, then gave it a sharp knock with his knuckles, but it was solid. With a steadying breath, he turned and headed out of the cave into the night. He appeared to have emerged from a crypt near the palace. Instinctively crouching low, he surveyed his surroundings, but it seemed to be an empty night. He didn't see or hear anypony around him as he made his way out of the cemetery. In fact, he didn't see another soul as he walked right up the front steps to the Archives and slipped inside.

Somehow, as he looked down the curving hallway, he knew where he needed to go. As he took his first steps, the dragon's words echoed in his mind. We do not know of a time before... He stopped in his tracks. No... it couldn't be... But the thought was firmly planted in his mind. Ur-dragon.

Chapter 5

Careful to make as little noise as possible, he crept along the dimly lit corridors. Unable to utilize his night vision thanks to the flickering light of the magical torches, he was forced to scrutinize each nook and cranny for hidden guards and obstacles. Twice he nearly stumbled over some stool or small bench, his attention focused on a shifting shadow in the distance. It was after the second such encounter that he remembered the plant he'd found.

While chewing it up, he felt more alive, as if all his faculties were enhanced even more than they already seemed to be. Afterward, the going was easier.

The temptation to stop at each section of the archives was palpable. Shelves and shelves of books, any one of which might teach him what he wanted to know, but there wasn't time. Plus, something nagged at the edges of his mind. Some prompting to continue, that what he sought lay still farther ahead.

So far, he had only encountered one guard, and had remained hidden by propping himself in a doorway, and shimmying up to the ceiling. Whoever it was, they seemed thoroughly bored with the assignment, giving a mighty yawn as they had continued down the hall. It was unnerving.

Why am I getting so lucky here? he wondered, slinking past yet another gate guarding what must have been two thousand books. It's like all the luck I missed out on in hell was waiting for me. A small laugh very nearly escaped him, choked off at the last moment. On and on, room after room, until he was sure he should have been standing at the edge of Canterlot. Some kind of spatial distortion, he mused.

Finally, the nagging feeling moved to his gut, and he knew he'd reached his destination. Pressing his eye to the keyhole, he activated his night vision, and used a bit of telekinesis to manipulate the locking mechanism. With a satisfying click, the door swung open. Noting the large window across the room, he carefully shut the door behind him, as the nagging feeling abruptly vanished.

The Starswirl the Bearded wing. How very convenient for me! he cheered. Moving out of sight of the door, he began browsing the titles. They seemed to be organized based on the time in Starswirl's life that they focused on. Which would have been a great help if he'd had any idea when the pony had started studying inter-dimensional travel.

There were probably over one hundred biographies, and he grabbed a few here or there, checking the table of contents for anything eye-opening. After the sixth or seventh one, he finally found a text that seemed promising.

It was a poorly written book, held in a shabby cover, the words slanting on pages, or becoming cramped up in corners when the author ran out of room, but evidently didn't wish to continue on the next page. Honestly, he was surprised it even had a table of contents, seeming more like somepony's journal rather than an actual biography.

Whoever had written it had obviously been keeping an eye on the wizard. There were many little details regarding everyday activities that were just too mundane to have been fabricated. The end of the book contained a short chapter titled “Starswirl's Final Quest”, which spoke of the unicorn's interest in crossing dimensions.

Apparently, the wizard had performed some kind of mega-spell, utilizing a series of specially crafted gems for storing energy, and had disappeared for two weeks. When he returned, the writer explained, he seemed convinced that his journey had left part of him anchored in Equestria, and that a tunnel between worlds had opened as a result, dragging him back. He also seemed to be extremely anxious about the effect the tunnel may have had on the place he had visited. He apparently seemed to keep mentioning something about souls, that he needed to find a way to anchor his soul if he was going to spend any extended time in another dimension.

The nagging feeling returned full force, so suddenly that he spun around, expecting to see somepony standing behind him. The room was empty. Carefully stuffing the book into his bag, he hefted it over his shoulder, and moved to the gate. After he had it shut and locked again, he resumed his journey, trusting in the strange, prompting sense that had guided him thus far.

This time was a much shorter journey. Apparently, the Starswirl wing was one of the most restricted sections, and, after a brief trip, he found himself at the end of the line, the feeling once again nestled in his gut. This one, he realized, he would not be able to pick.

Two massive, gilded doors, engraved with images of ponies standing guard, spears crossed to bar the way down a path which led to a massive, three-headed dog. Behind that was a gate, closed and criss-crossed with chains, which seemed to be holding back some kind of horde. Gnarled, clawed fingers reached between the bars, grasping for anything that might come too close. The gate itself was covered in spikes, and, now that he looked closer, it seemed that the chains more closely resembled barbed wire, the brambles doing nothing to dissuade the beasts within from reaching through.

As he looked, the image seemed to grow clearer, and he leaned in to see better. The gate loomed larger, the guard ponies no longer visible, and he could see now that the path was nothing more than a dirt trail through a gigantic pool of lava. Cerberus shook its heads behind him as he gazed up at the black gate, seemingly pulsing with malicious energy. A claw, its green so dark it was almost black, had poked through between the chains, and curved up, beckoning him to come closer. Some faint buzzing in the back of his mind pestered him for attention, but he ignored it, unable to tear his eyes away from the beckoning finger.

A burning sensation grew in his back, like all the muscles were stretching. He seemed to be floating closer, and the stretching got worse. Finally, the pain burning through him was enough to shake his enthrallment, and he turned his head... and looked into his own dead eyes.

Standing behind him, was him! Faint blue tendons stretched from where he stood, or floated, back to his body. Glancing down, he saw that he was an ethereal projection of himself, translucent blue, floating an inch or so off the ground. Turning back to the gate, he saw the finger beckon again, and felt the pull, like a ratcheting chain, tug him still farther from his body. His tendrils were strained to their limits. Another tug and they would snap, and all would be lost.

The claw beckoned one last time. Snap! From his chest burst a stream of voidstuff. The jet of absence shot through the air, slamming past the beckoning appendage and, he guessed from the otherworldly scream that followed, crashing into its master. The claw was yanked back through the gate, already beginning to crumble apart, as the whole place seemed the shudder with the force of the blow.

Looking down, he saw the rune of protection, etched into his soul, begin to fade away. That, he thought, would explain the pain. Like taffy resuming its original shape, he felt himself being dragged back into his body. Unlike when he had been excavated, returning was a noticeable affair, his vision tunneling to tiny pinpricks of light before the halls of the Canterlot Archives came roaring back to him.

He stood again in the hallway, facing the massive door. There was a sound like a gong, if there had been a gong sixty feet tall directly in front of him, as the doors began to swing open. Unlike the rest of Canterlot, the doors seemed to see little use or care, groaning in protest as they slowly revealed the secret they'd concealed.

With the gong still ringing in his ears, he entered the pitch black room. Once he set foot inside, a light appeared from above, shining down on a pedestal which held a large black book. With a rising sense of excitement, he walked swiftly forward, wresting the text from its resting place.

It wasn't black, strictly speaking. It looked as if it had been painted one color, and then again over top. When the light caught just right on one of the ridges in the cover, it would shine with a deep, eerie green. The title letters were written in a dark, brownish red and framed in fine gold wire. The Necroequicon.

Upon reading the words, he felt a tug at his soul, as if some bond had been formed by learning its name. Suddenly, inexplicably, he knew. This was a book of incredible power. As snippets of knowledge thrilled through him, he leaned his head back and shut his eyes.

Images flashed before them, of a group of unicorns in black robes, working underground with two beings of extraordinary evil. Of meetings in the dark, pooling their knowledge of life and death. Of one of their number being ousted as a dark magician. Of placing the corpse on a stone table, and slamming a diamond the size of an ostrich egg into his chest. Of the gates of Tartarus closing, the barbed chains winding through the rods, sealing the two beings behind it. Before the book could show him more, he was brought back to the archives by a voice.

“Somepony is seeking secrets best left buried,” it said, a warm congeniality in the sound that was totally at odds with the memories burning within him. When did I kneel? He placed the book in the sack before him, and turned as he rose to his feet, slinging the bag over his shoulder. The light above him came back on, and he saw Princess Celestia lower her gaze from the light, to him.

Her eyes widened for an instant, then looked over his shoulder at the empty pedestal. She returned her gaze to his, as her eyes became narrow slits.

“Who are you?” The voice was barely recognizable as belonging to the majestic alicorn. This was not Celestia the loving mentor, speaking to one of her students. Nor was it Celestia the benevolent ruler, addressing her beloved subjects. This was Princess Celestia of Equestria, defender of her home, protector of all those she loved. The hard edge in her voice made it clear she would brook no lies or games. That she only asked out of courtesy, and that any false move would spell his demise. It was a voice that, had he not spoken with the Ur-dragon just one day prior, would have stilled his heart with fear, and rendered him unable to think or act.

In the future, when he looked back on this moment, he would be at a loss as to what prompted the idea. Perhaps it was the influence of the Necroequicon, eager to taunt its jailor now that it was free. Perhaps it was the Ur-dragon’s rune, ensuring she would do something to activate it.

Perhaps he was just a troll.

Whatever the reason, it occurred to him the irony of using a dimensional gate to Tartarus, to protect a book that would likely hold the key to free the beings within. How many had they stopped from gaining the artifact that would have probably led to their release? Unbidden, and before he could even think to fight it, his face moved, and sealed his fate.

He smirked.

Celestia's eyes snapped open, the pupil and iris in each fading to white as she unleashed her magic. An aura of power bloomed behind her, slamming the doors closed and surrounding the alicorn in a corona of blinding light.

He had been wrong before, in his analogy for the Ur-dragon’s scrutiny. As he stood, facing Celestia's wrath, he thought, This, is what it's like to stand before the fury of the unobstructed sun.

Snap! A sound more felt than heard, as he seemed to be yanked in a trillion different directions at once. For a fraction of a second, he had the distinct impression that he didn't exist. Then, he was standing at the edge of a forest, facing an apple orchard.

Taking a moment to regain his senses, he surveyed the land and saw that, sure enough, he was standing southwest of Sweet Apple Acres' Apple Orchard. From somewhere within himself, he felt a thrum fading away, and knew that the second rune of the Ur-dragon had been responsible for his escape.

It was still night out, so he hadn't lost too much time. Checking the panel in his wrist, he saw it was 8:14am. That can't be right... Even as he thought it, he saw the sun rise in the east, and the moon hastily set. It was quite a sight, watching the sun move through almost three hours of daylight in less than a minute. She'll have to come up with a good story to explain that little slip up. He thought, chuckling darkly at the thought of her discomfort.

Turning, he began heading into the Everfree Forest. It was the only reasonable choice, and, somehow, he knew that nothing there posed a threat to him now. As he was swallowed by the shadows of the forest, he froze. I laughed? He was suddenly aware of the book in the bag on his back. This thing is dangerous, he thought, I'll need to keep my guard up. Taking a moment to gather his thoughts and focus on his plan, he resumed his trek to the moon castle.

According to Starswirl's research, he had less than three days remaining to find a way to anchor himself in Equestria, or else his dimension would come looking for him. And with the uncertainty surrounding what had happened to the world Starswirl had visited, and the crash during his Shift here, there was too much at risk for him to fail.

Chapter 6

"We've been at war with ourselves for over ten thousand years. You're woefully outmatched at this sort of thing." -Secret Seeker

Sweat dripped from him as he made a mad dash for the dilapidated castle.

"Deceitful little...” he muttered at the Necroequicon. No danger indeed! A score of fresh scars, wounds that had only been sealed enough to stop being a threat, crisscrossed his back and arms. The timbrewolves had taken him by surprise, the trio of manticores, on the other hand, were just insane. As he ran, his thoughts drifted back to the book in the Ponyville library that had taunted him. Should've grabbed that when I had the chance, he mused.

The roar from the beasts had fallen behind, indicating that, at least in this, his suspicions had been right. Slipping past the open doors, he turned and watched as the manticores retreated back into the trees. Even the creatures of the Everfree Forest shied away from this place.

After shutting the doors, a largely pointless effort considering the crumbling walls, he walked past the pedestal that had held the previous manifestation of the Elements of Harmony. Even with them having taken up new residence in the mane six, a powerful presence lingered at their old resting place. He experienced a sense of nausea seeming to emanate from the Necroequicon. Makes sense.

Moving on, he entered another room, then another, and finally another before finding what he had been looking for. The yawning mouth of the staircase heading underground seemed eager to swallow him. He could recognize now when the book was prompting him, as he felt the push to head downstairs. His battle HUD wasn't detecting anything dangerous, but it had failed him before, not being programmed for the denizens of this world, and seemingly having detection issues due to the vibrancy.

With a sigh, and a slight tingling of excitement, he began his descent, cracking his last glowgi. This time, the book had his interests at heart, as he entered a large chamber filled with cracked and crumbling bookcases, and all the makings of an arcanist's laboratory. Remarkably, many of the texts were still legible, and had seemingly resisted the ravages of one thousand years.

He set the Necroequicon on a large table in the middle, preparing to take a seat, when a feeling of repulsion washed over him. Stumbling backwards at the ethereal push, he scowled at the book, thinking this some game it was playing. Then he saw half a dozen lights on his HUD. Three books in front of him were outlined in a light blue glow, similar to the one he saw when he moved something telekinetically. Two other texts were highlighted behind him, and a sixth on the far end of the room.

Grasping each in turn, he levitated them to the table, then tried to sit down again, this time succeeding.

He opened the first book on the table. “Oh what the hay!?” The text inside was a mishmash of shapes, utterly undecipherable. As he stared at it in a vain hope of understanding, another book began to glow again. Flipping the cover back, he saw it was filled with words he could read. Telekinesis.

“Clever girl.” he muttered. Closing the book on telekinesis caused the text in the translator to disappear, and opening any of the other books made new text show up. Intent, shapeshifting, teleporting, and runecraft. With a grin on his face and a light in his eyes, he dove in.

The opportunity to learn something that had been denied him so long by his own dimension was not to be squandered. Voraciously he devoured the information in the books, finding new ways to wrap his mind around the techniques. He realized he'd been thinking about teleportation completely wrong, and was soon able to warp around the room with little trouble. The book on runecraft proved one of the most intriguing.

Allegedly it was supposed to be an extremely complicated and dangerous type of magic. If Twilight hadn't been Celestia's protege, he seriously doubted he would've been able to find a text on the subject when he had. Not that it helped, he thought darkly, upset by how weak he was in this world. Even with his increased strength and regeneration, it seemed he was continually encountering creatures that could kill him as easily as look at him. Luck, as much as it galled him to admit it, was at least as responsible for his continued survival as skill. Well that's all about to change!

Under the Necroequicon's tutelage, he made short work of all the subjects. As he was reading one book, another might light up mid-chapter, which he would find contained topics of relevance to what he was studying. His HUD guided him to some preserved ingredients used to make dyes for runecraft. They contained gems which had been altered to be able to hold and collect magical energy, which then had to be crushed into powder and mixed in with the other ingredients.

With the Necroequicon's assistance, he was able to trace a complicated rune onto his chest, which would gather sunlight, converting it into energy to strengthen and rejuvenate him, and form a bond between his mind and his nanobots, allowing him to continuously update their programming simply by his thoughts.

By the morning of his twelfth day in Equestria, he was starting to feel like his old self again. Powerful. A force to be reckoned with. He could teleport with ease, lift almost four tons telekinetically by transferring part of the strain to his body, and construct basic magical machinations. Machines inspired by those he knew in hell, but built of magic, capable of running at hitherto impossible efficiencies so long as they had a power source to draw from. Finally, as he finished reading a chapter on shapeshifting which had explained some of the more sordid details of molding flesh, another book lit up on his HUD.

The Necroequicon.

Closing the text, he pulled the black book to him, and set his fingers on the edge of the cover. His heart was pounding in his chest. This thing is treacherous. I don't understand its motives or methods, and that puts me in a dangerous position. Though it has taught me much so far, I dare not be drawn into trusting it. Remember the primary edict.

“Never trust anyone,” he muttered. When he opened it, he was confronted by more strange symbols unlike any others he had encountered. Looking upon them filled him with a sense of power. Deep beneath that sense, like a silver thread in a rushing river, he could feel danger as well. Faint, but definitely there. He jolted upright in his seat! Looking at each symbol individually, they made no sense. But when he relaxed his focus, and looked at a section of the page, the meaning became clear.

Images swam through his mind as clarity came to him. He could read it! He could learn it! A dark grin spread across his face.

“It's mine...” he whispered to no one in particular.

Princess Luna sat atop the tower of her old castle, trying to stop the shivering that was hitting her in waves. Coming back here had triggered old memories of the Nightmare, the fight with her big sister... With another shudder, tears trailed down her cheeks, falling to the vine-covered stone. She had hoped that visiting this place might help her cope, but these last two nights had been the worst so far. After one last bout of vibrations, she spread her wings and took flight, hoping the feeling of the cool air rushing along her feathers would help calm the storm within. She'd need to speak with Celestia about demolishing the old palace...

Princess Celestia paced in her royal quarters. She'd had several of her best scryers working tirelessly trying to locate the human who had stolen the Necroequicon. The signature of the magic that had transported him disturbed her almost as much as his procurement of the book. What did you see in him? she wondered.

She wanted to trust the dragon's judgment. Wanted to believe that everything would be fine. That the mighty beast had foreseen this and knew nothing bad would come of it. But that smirk! It had stilled her heart to see somepony... no, some human clutching one of the most evil and powerful artifacts she had ever come across. Unbidden, the memories of those days returned to her.

Of her, Luna and Discord, working together to stop the dark cabal. The battle to seal Carryion, Lord of Death behind the black gates of Tartarus. And later, the second battle, during which the seed of Discord's downfall had been planted by Mephistopheles, Lord of Deceit. A single tear trailed down her face as she remembered her failure to recognize the nature of the spell he had wove.

Without Discord's help, they had lacked the power to destroy the book. She and Luna had tried, oh how they'd tried to break it. To free their cherished friend from the clutches of madness, but to no avail. Eventually the Elements of Harmony had made themselves known to the princesses, and they'd been able to stop Discord, but with the Necroequicon still in this world, he could never truly be free of its spell.

And now it was in the hands of a human. She knew of only two others of that species that had come to Equestria, and not even by name. But both had been responsible for the deaths of many. The second, more recent one, had been almost single-handedly responsible for the great pony wars, stirring up dissent and hate, his mere presence breeding resentment and fury among ponykind. She shuddered to think what one under the influence of the Necroequicon could accomplish.

Her first hope had been to speak with the dragon about it, but when she entered the caverns beneath Canterlot, she quickly found that he did not wish to discuss it, as evidenced by her inability to locate his chamber. Initially she had been angry, but now... a cold dread was settling in her gut, especially since the scryers were unable to locate the human, even with her assistance. It could only mean that the book was shielding him, and that meant it was winning.

“Unless the dragon thinks he could master the book...” she mused aloud as she sank into her luxurious bath. The idea did not comfort her. With a bitter sigh she resigned herself to happier thoughts. Her sister had returned and been cured of the Nightmare. Her protege was growing rapidly, becoming a talented and wonderful mare. And the dragon, possibly the oldest, most powerful being she'd ever encountered had assisted the human. Maybe this will all turn out to be a good thing. The thought lacked conviction.

In the basement of the moon castle, the man hunched over the book, enraptured by the secrets it possessed. Secret Seeker she had called him. It seemed as fitting a name as any. His work through the Necroequicon was much slower. Each page contained numerous ideas, each hidden by a pattern of the images. Each corner, a square in the middle, three bars, three columns, other strange patterns would emerge that he would never have thought to notice, but somehow came to his attention.

Seeker knew the book was responsible. Why, however, was a mystery. That's okay though. He thought in his fervor, I am wise and powerful. I survived more than a century in hell. I've made it this far only drawing the attention of a single pony, albeit a princess. I can unravel this conundrum, and master the magic within.

He felt, somehow, Luna depart the castle. For a minute he had sat, unmoving, when her presence had become known to him. He had thought she had figured out his hiding place, but inexplicably he now knew she had not. The book protects me, he mused, returning to his studies. I just need them to leave me alone until I can figure out how to bind myself to Equestria. Then we can make peace and be friends and all that good stuff. A humorless chuckle escaped him.

As he read, he realized he needed a book from the archives. In his mind's eye, he could see the room, and even the shelf on which it resided. The thought of risking another sojourn into Canterlot, knowing that Celestia was likely on high alert, was more than a little unnerving. An involuntary shudder coursed through him as he remembered her assault. He was not yet nearly strong enough to face her should she choose to fight him.

The shapeshifting book lit up on his HUD, and he scooped it up. Opening to the set of pages which were glowing, he flipped open the translator. As he read the passages about establishing the pattern in your mind, and then molding the flesh to fit that pattern, the Necroequicon lit up again, and he flipped it to the pages near the back.

Here there were spells regarding the staying of death, and the resurrection of dead flesh. Secret Seeker remembered the images from when he'd first acquired the book, of the dead unicorn being placed on the table, the gemstone slammed into his chest, his eyes opening as the lifeless corpse became living once more. Something was glowing behind him on his HUD.

Crossing the room, he lifted the lid of a stone trunk. Tucked in the corner, was a large, round diamond. Even from here, he could see the runes etched inside. A soul gem, he thought, unsure of how he knew. With a burst of understanding, he went back to the mixing table where he had put the rune dye together, and picked up the knife he'd used to chop the ingredients. Instructing his nanobots telepathically to deaden the nerves in his left leg, he used the knife to remove a large chunk of the meat from his thigh. The sight of the damage threatened to nauseate him, even as the blood flow ceased, and the telltale threads of the nanobots' spun fibers began closing the wound.

It would take some time to heal, and he was starting to run out of food, but the sun would rise in six hours, and he'd be able to increase the strength of his energy capturing rune. The Necroequicon had shown him how to make rune circles, binding the runes together like words in a sentence, allowing for much more powerful enchantments than a standalone combination rune could hope to achieve.

Placing the chunk of flesh on the floor, he poured his magic into it. Not fully understanding, moving more by instinct than knowledge, he traced a small circle of runes on the blade of the knife, and held his left hand up before his eyes. With careful precision, he stuck the blade through his wrist. It passed through the skin without damaging it, but the pain he felt brought with it distinct memories of the Ur-dragon.

Feeling like he was watching his body rather than moving it, he sawed through his wrist, then speared his hand with the weapon. When he withdrew it, he recognized the light blue glow of the orb impaled on the tip. That's a piece of my soul, he marveled, the fact that he hadn't even gasped from the pain eluding him. With a steady hand, he plunged the knife into the diamond, watching the orb be absorbed by the runes. Sticking the blade into the table, he picked up the gem, his left hand hung limp at his side, and slammed the sharp edge into the hunk of meat laying on the floor.

An eerie green glow emanated from the mess, and Seeker grabbed it in his magic, firmly holding an image of his body in his mind. He felt the magic pour out of him in a rush unlike anything he had experienced before.

The control! It was so perfect! He'd never realized before how wasteful all his attempts at magic had been. His was like using a bear hug to grab a glass, where this was like holding it gingerly between three fingers. It was exciting knowing he had so much farther to go. That there was so much more he had yet to learn.

In moments a perfect replica of himself stood before him. He felt his consciousness shift slightly, like his awareness expanding, and the other him opened its eyes. Suddenly, he was back at the helm, in full control of his body. It felt alien, after the fluid, precise movements the Necroequicon had used, his own attempts were bumbling and sluggish. His left hand was now searing with agony as his spirit essence expanded to fill the void, his left leg still numb to prevent the pain of the healing wound.

Stumbling, he sat down at the table with his books, and shut his eyes. It took him a moment, but he was able to shift his perception into the other body. It had begun stretching, levitating a curtain over to fashion some basic clothing. It seemed like a very, very simplified version of him, only having a drive to get into and out of the archives unseen. With a mental shrug, he unhitched his consciousness from it, and returned to himself.

The golem finished its preparations and departed before he returned to his studies. It shouldn't take the creature too long to return, and he could always check in on it to make sure everything was going according to plan. With an eager grin, he wolfed down the remainder of his food, and resumed studying. He had some ideas for the runes, and was determined to find out if they were possible.

Once it exited the sphere of influence the Necroequicon perpetuated to protect Secret Seeker, the golem stopped. Consciousness poured into it, filling the gaps left behind by using such a simple template and tiny fragment of a soul. New plans flooded its mind, and it turned to the Everfree Forest with a wicked grin. It needed some blood, there were runes to make. After all this time, it had the perfect vessel. Finally, it could succeed where all its creators had failed. With a light, bouncing step completely at odds with the expression it wore, the Necrogolem bounded into the woods. This was going to be fun.

Chapter 8

"Honestly? No. I can't bring myself to hate any of them. Even the worst among them would be worthy of glory and praise in hell.” -Secret Seeker

Canterlot was... peaceful. The surprise on Luna's face was obvious. Slowly though, a creeping realization dawned on her. It wasn't peaceful, it was dead. There were no ponies moving through the streets. All the doors and windows were shut, and the whole city was utterly silent. Since her return from the moon, Luna had come to enjoy how active the city had been, even at night. To see it like this reminded her of the old days, and the reason the Nightmare had been able to take over.

The clopping of their hooves on the cobblestone roads echoed off the buildings, so loud in the silence that it seemed as if an entire army were marching to war. Good, she thought bitterly, maybe he'll think we brought one to fight him. Though she knew the foalishness of that hope.

As they entered the palace, memories of the scream she had heard before her link to Celestia had been cut returned to her. She shuddered to think what torture had been able to elicit such a cry from the goddess. She had seen her sister take mortal blows, spears that had pierced through her, with nary more than a grunt, then snap the shaft, pull the object out, and return to the fight. One such event had actually ended a battle in the great pony wars, with the entire enemy contingent falling to their knees to surrender after witnessing the impossible feat.

The memory made her heart ache for her sister. All the horrible things she'd had to deal with... Sealing Discord away, banishing her, she deserved so much better than this. Luna remembered some of the sessions she and Celestia had shared, reading Twilight's, and the other mares' letters on the magic of friendship. They had been so happy in those moments, recapturing that lost sisterly bond. With cold resolve, Luna returned to the task at hoof.

She knew the creature was a golem, recognizing the telltale signs in the eyes and movements, meaning it would heal quickly from any physical wound, and enjoyed increased resistance to magical assaults. Furthermore it seemed to have inscribed its flesh with seven circles of runes, three of which had been designed specifically to counter and trap Celestia. One she had recognized as a circle for control, which puzzled her.

Wresting control of a golem away from the creator would require implanting part of your soul inside. Not the kind of thing even remotely likely to be encountered in battle. But then why protect against someone else taking control?

“Princess,” Twilight whispered, “I think I might know.” Luna stopped, startled, and turned to the pony. When Twilight hesitated, she smiled,

“Please, I'd like to hear your thoughts.” She hadn't realized she'd been muttering hers aloud, but was now glad for the slip. Twilight's eyes lit up at the chance to explain her reasoning.

“I'm not very familiar with golems, but they're kind of like puppets you control with a piece of your soul, right?” Luna nodded. The description was basically correct, and she didn't want to interrupt the explanation with pointless nitpicking.

“Well, you said the Necroequicon was manipulating this... thing. It sounds like it may have tricked the creature into making the golem, and then took over. The runes could be to ensure that, if the actual creator were to try to take over...”

“Then the Necroequicon could remain in control.” Luna finished.

“Which would imply that the original creator might be held captive, or might not even know what the golem is doing.” The idea certainly had merit, and she'd be foalish indeed to disregard the thoughts of her big sister's protege. If he doesn't know, then maybe he would be opposed to this. If I can reach him somehow... Luna grinned, causing the other ponies to take a reflexive step back. She had a trick under her saddle that she very much doubted the Necroequicon expected. Something she learned a long, long time ago, back in the great pony wars. Without another word, she turned, and the group resumed their progress, albeit slightly unsettled by the malevolence in their princess' smile.

The Necrogolem stood from the floor of the royal bedroom. Its runecraft was finally complete, just in time for it to deal with these pesky intruders. How nice of them to all gather in one place for me. It would be paramount that it kill at least one of the six bearers first. They were much weaker, much easier targets than the moon princess, and if even one of them fell, they all became meaningless. Without being able to bring the Elements of Harmony to bear, it would just be a battle between it and the princess, and in that fight, it would be impossible to lose.

It knew the moon princess would be expecting traps. It also knew that not setting any would shake her confidence. If she thought it felt so secure in its victory that it didn't even bother to try to gain the upper hand, she would begin to despair, and her imagination would go into overdrive, trying to puzzle out the source of its confidence.

Secret Seeker was elated! His plan was working! He had struggled for a while around the equator, but now that he was past, each rune he added strengthened the hold of the others, making his power even more secure. At this rate, he'd be able to finish before Celestia raised the sun, and then he'd be able to anchor himself in Equestria forever!

In Ponyville, the citizens were gathering in concern. This was the second time in a week the sun had been late in rising. Many felt a cold dread settling in their stomachs. Something, it seemed to say, was terribly, terribly wrong.

The doors to the royal bedroom glowed with a midnight blue before slowly opening. Luna and the others entered cautiously, peering around the dark room for any traps or creatures laying in ambush. The princess' nerves were on edge as she probed the darkness. They had made it all the way here without any interruption or trouble. Why? Wasn't the golem concerned at all that she had brought the Elements to bear against it? The thought made her terrified for her sister.

Suddenly, Luna vanished in a puff of midnight smoke, and Twilight and Rarity combined their magic to form a shield. Just as she'd said it would, the golem moved against the young ponies first. It struck the shield, its fist crackling with black and green lightning. The force of the blow put a small web of cracks in the ward, but it held, long enough for Luna to strike at the creature with a blast of violet light.

It dodged, leaping backwards off the shield, flipping to its feet, and charging the barrier again. But just before it reached them, it changed direction, causing Luna's attack to go wide. Or so it seemed. The beam of violet energy ricocheted off the shield, blasting the creature in the back. At least, it should have. Instead the beam phased right through the golem, cutting Luna's glee short as she dove to the side to dodge her own attack.

With a flash of green and black lightning, the creature appeared behind the mares, and struck another vicious blow against the shell. This time the web of cracks was larger, and Rarity winced under the pressure, her legs wobbling with the strain. Twilight pushed harder, a third layer of over-glow appearing on her horn as she poured her strength into the shield. My friends, my mentor, and Princess Luna are counting on me to keep this shield up...

Her thoughts were cut short, however, when the beast, with a flurry of motion, landed a hail of punches and kicks on the webbed section, causing the barrier to waver, then crumble apart. Before she could think to react, the thing came through, charging her. Its hand was held flat, and a cone of energy had formed around it, crackling with black and green lightning, forming an electric blade.

Too scared to move, too scared to think, Twilight could only watch as the creature came closer, coming to murder her. Her life flashed before her eyes as the creature reached her, thrusting its arm towards her face. She was surprised to see it suddenly move to the side, as the room tilted and the floor rushed up to meet her. With a sickening squelch, the weapon made contact, punching through the sky blue pegasus.

Without missing a beat, the thing leapt through the air, dodging another blast from Luna, and their battle resumed, while the other five ponies could only stare at their dying friend. Blood soaked the plush carpet beneath Rainbow Dash, as she struggled to breath past the fluid gurgling in her throat and lungs.

“Rainbow...” Twilight whispered, pulling herself along the floor to her friend, too weak from shock to stand. Despite the severity of the situation, Rainbow Dash smiled, before trying to suppress a cough that sent blood speckle onto Twilight's face.

“Couldn't let him get you...” she managed, each word painful to speak, tears streaming from her eyes, “you have to stop him. Help Luna. Don't make me haunt you...” she shook with a small chuckle, the effort causing a new wave of blood to pour from her wound. With another shudder, Rainbow Dash went still.

The others looked on in horror, tears running freely down their faces. A bitter, inpony snarl burst forth from Applejack, and she charged towards the two combatants, screaming in fury. Inflamed by her courage and rage, the others joined the charge, wrath in their eyes as they pounded across the room. All except Twilight, who still lay before her friend.

Her friend who would never smile again. Her friend who would never join the Wonderbolts. Her friend, who had given everything, everything to protect her. Loyalty.

Twilight rose to her hooves.

“Loyalty.” she said, a calm, cold fury in her voice, as a deep violet glow, much thicker than her usual nimbus, formed around her horn.

“Loyalty.” she said again, louder this time, her eyes finally rising from the lifeless form before her. A second layer of the dark glow formed, and her pupils and irises began fading to white.

“LOYALTY!” she bellowed, her voice magnified by the power coursing through her, bringing the fray to a temporary halt as all present turned to look at the terrifying spectacle.

Fluttershy hovered above the creature, just preparing to dive bomb it. Rarity stood beside Luna, having been adding her power to the princess' strikes. Applejack had a nasty gash on her side, her hat had been knocked off, and blood flowed past her left eye from a cut on her forehead. She didn't seem to notice, or care about her wounds. Pinkie's hair was flat, and she wore the cold, mirthless smile of a mad pony. Of somepony who had seen too much, lost too much too quickly.

With a brilliant flash, Twilight stood before the golem, its hand, fingers wreathed in arcing magic, turning them into wicked claws, already beginning its descent to swipe at her. But when it reached her, she simply wasn't there. No flash, no puff of smoke, no indication whatsoever. She stood beside the thing now. On both sides. The two Twilights' horns glowed with a deep purple as perfect lines shot out, creating a cube around the beast.

“Perfect Method's cuboidal inflection,” the two Twilights' said in unison. The golem seemed to be struggling, the ring of runes Luna recognized as an energy receiver was trying to activate, but only some of the runes were lighting up, then going dark. Like a series of randomly blinking lights. A pyramid formed inside the cube, and Luna noticed that fewer runes on the ring were lighting now, and they went dark faster.

“Raging Bolt's dampening pyramid,” the Twilights said, “mirrored within each other,” the shapes began replicating. Each forming just inside the confines of the other. The golem, always trapped in the center, kept getting smaller and smaller, and with each iteration, there was a puff of black and green smoke, as energy was annihilated from the creature.

“Creates Twilight Sparkle's Compressing Infinigon.”

One of the Twilights faded, and the power receded into the remaining one. She stood for a moment, then slid to the ground, and cried. The other ponies, except Luna, who couldn't tear her eyes from the Infinigon, slowly regained their wits, and gathered around her in a group hug, weeping bitter tears for their friend.

Chapter 9

“So long as the object is sufficiently imbued, anything can be turned into a storage vessel for the soul. While a living vessel provides the most inherent freedom, inanimate objects can, if enchanted strongly enough, provide just as much capability.” -the Necroequicon

The five ponies huddled together, consumed by grief. Fluttershy and Rarity bawled openly, wet rivers pouring from their eyes. Applejack and Pinkie stood stoically, silent streams flowing down their cheeks, dripping to the carpet. Twilight lay on the ground, forehooves clasped over her head, shaking with her sobs. Luna walked up beside them.

“Come my little ponies. There will be time later to grieve, but we haven't won yet.” The mares looked up at her, incredulous. Hadn't won yet? Impossible. Luna explained,

“My sister has not yet been returned to us. Whatever sorcery he used to ensnare her is still active, still being fed by his will, so his bond has not been totally broken.”

As if on cue, the Infinigon burst.

The creature stood before them, smoke rising from wicked burns in his skin. His breathing was labored, and all but one rune circle had been broken. Only the receiver remained intact, and, to Luna's eyes, it burned with activity. She reacted instinctively.

In her thousand year imprisonment, she had trained extensively for the battle between her and her sister that would inevitably occur upon her return. Her reflexes were honed to a warrior's edge, and she could sniff out weakness a mile away. She, of course, hadn't had much use for those skills since her return, but now? Perhaps her banishment wasn't such a horrible thing after all.

The golem was weakened, but replenishing its power from the receiver. Replenishing itself with her sister's power. She vanished in a dark puff of smoke, an identical one forming behind the beast. It spun to meet her, and found itself facing empty air. As Luna's horn pierced the creature's back, she gathered her power, and cast the spell she had learned all those long years ago.

Twilight had been right, there were two souls in the golem. One a sickly, blackish green, like a bruise gone septic, she recognized immediately as belonging to the Necroequicon. The other was a gorgeous sky blue, and was only a tiny fraction the size of the other. Though she was tempted to throw everything she had at the other soul, she very much doubted she could destroy it, or even seriously harm it. She knew little and less about necromancy and soul-to-soul magic, but she knew how to send a leyline pulse, and grabbed the sky blue soul fragment in her will.

With a shot like lightning dancing through the clouds, her message was off, tracing the soul fragment's tendrils back to its owner. Luna heard a snap, like a tree branch breaking, and came back to reality to see the creature fading into the distance, some black rod clutched in his grasp, as she flew across the room. She flapped her wings a few times, stopping her flight, and landed on the carpet. The princess reached for her magic to launch another volley at the human. She just needed to buy some time...

A wave of vertigo hit her, and she fell to her knees. Something was horribly wrong. The omnipresent sense of the magic in her horn was glaringly absent. Shaking, she raised her hoof to her head, feeling the tiny stump where her horn used to be. Her eyes welled with tears.

It was too much.

Luna slumped to the ground, one hoof still on her head, as she watched the ponies' futile attempt to fight the golem. Applejack was swept aside, another gash appearing along her ribs. Pinkie was sitting against the wall, struggling to remain conscious. Twilight hadn't moved, and still lay on the carpet, hooves over her head. Rarity and Fluttershy were still in motion, but she could see the monster was toying with them. It was only a matter of time.

“I'm so sorry dear sister,” Luna wept, her vision blurred by tears, “I've not only failed you, but doomed the bearers of the Elements as well.” In her mind, she tried to remember Celestia's laughter, but the sound was more like a rusty wheel, grating against itself. As the noise grew louder, she shut her eyes, squeezing them tight. The horrid squeal rose to a crescendo. Then, the entire room exploded.

A man stood in the center of the blast. None of the ponies seemed to have been affected, but the walls of the royal bedroom were scorched, and the entire wall where the balcony had been was obliterated, open to the night sky. Chunks of smoldering stone rolled across the floor, large bricks coming to rest before their smaller counterparts. The golem was embedded in the rock, seemingly unhurt, but temporarily dazed.

The ponies were enveloped in a blue glow, and levitated across the room to Luna. As they were moved, their wounds began to heal, and, by the time they were deposited on the soft carpet, they were all looking around as if with new eyes. Eventually, their gazes all turned to this new creature, identical in appearance to the other one, and yet... somehow completely different.

As he walked towards them, his face remained placid. He didn't smile, but there was no harshness to his features either. He moved with an effortless grace, using careful steps and just the right amount of sway in his balance. Genuine, Luna thought, where the other is a mockery, he is the embodiment.

He knelt before the inert form of Rainbow Dash, and placed his hands on her. The soft blue glow emanated from her, seeming like an extension of her coat, and her wounds closed. The spilled blood was pulled up from the floor, returning where it belonged. He placed his hands over her heart. Her body jerked as they heard the sizzle of electricity. When she stilled, he waited a few seconds, then did it again.

After the fourth try, he lowered his head, placing his ear against her chest. With his eyes closed, he listened. Whump-whump, whump-whump, whump-whump. A smile crept onto his face, and he opened his eyes as he straightened, effortlessly lifting Rainbow's limp form in his arms. With the same measured, careful steps he strode to the ponies, and gently set the pegasus on the ground.

Luna stared in disbelief. The others were watching the slow rise and fall of R.D.'s breath, wearing broad smiles as silent tears rolled down their faces.

“Who are you?” Luna asked the man, her voice barely more than a whisper. His gaze flicked to hers, and she was struck by an intense sense of love and devotion. The similarity to Celestia was uncanny, and the sudden reminder made tears well in her eyes again. He gave her a soft smile,

“I am Secret Seeker. I'm here to protect you.” Without another word he turned as he rose to his feet, and strolled across the room. The Necrogolem had extricated itself from the wall, and stood facing this new opponent. The two humans stared at each other for a moment, then charged.

A long, thin sword fashioned of green-black lightning appeared in the hands of the golem, while shorter, thicker sky blue blades appeared for Seeker. Where the weapons clashed, sparks flew, and tiny bolts of electricity danced through the air. The battle was unlike anything Luna had ever witnessed.

As it progressed, the weapons changed. Swords to hammers. Hammers to bows. Bows to crossbows. Then much stranger things. Longer, more slender versions of Pinkie Pie's party cannon that they held in their hands, firing balls of lightning. Then smaller versions, held in one hand. Then back to the longer version, but this time firing a scattering of projectiles. Soon, all weapons had been abandoned, and the battle became an exchange of punches and kicks.

Whichever arm or leg they were using to attack or block would flare up with their respective lightning, seemingly signifying that they couldn't just coat themselves in it perpetually. Luna couldn't tell what the lightning was, or why it would pose a threat to the seemingly invincible titans, until Secret Seeker made a clever move.

When their arms met in another clash, at the moment of impact, Secret Seeker reached his other hand forward to grab the golem's throat. However, when the golem reached up to grab the advancing limb, its hand passed right through it. The move had been a mirage. Too late it realized its mistake, as Seeker's lightning fist slammed into its gut.

Literally.

Where it should have hit flesh for a meaty impact, instead it vanished through the skin, leaving him up to his wrist in the golem's stomach. When he jerked his fist back, it was encased in a swirling, black-green glow. Clever, thought Luna, he pulled out a piece... He opened his hand, and the glow pooled in his palm where, when his fingers closed upon it, it burst into wisps and vanished.

Luna went cold. She hadn't just seen that. Couldn't have just seen that. It was impossible. Even Discord in his heyday couldn't destroy a soul. Yet, if there had been any doubt, it vanished when she heard the blood-curdling roar of the golem. Later it would haunt her, but for that brief moment, Luna reveled in the creature's suffering. For all it had done, it deserved no better. She remembered her sister's scream.

The shriek had another effect. Rainbow groaned, and opened her ruby eyes. She found herself surrounded by her friends, tears welling as they smiled down at her. With a cry, Fluttershy threw her forelegs around the pegasus, squeezing her tight. Too tight. Cursing her blue coat for hiding the signs of her strangulation, she tried to signal the others to her plight. Fortunately, Applejack caught her meaning, and placed a calming hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder.

“Alright sugar cube, we just got 'er back, les not strangle 'er to death.” The yellow pegasus gave a small squeak of apology and released her friend, though it was obvious she was fighting the urge to hug her some more.

“What happened?” R.D. asked, “I remember getting hit by that... thing, and I thought I was going to die. Then everything kinda went fuzzy, and dark.” The ponies stared at her in silence, unable to bring themselves to tell her the truth. Twilight was the first to snap out of her daze.

“Did you see a bright light? Or any relatives? What do you remember from the other side?” Dash leaned back from her exuberant friend.

“What are you talking about? I just passed out or something, right?” a slight panic had crept into her voice, but she was managing to hold back the rising front.

“Rainbow, darling, you... you've been... well...” Rarity struggled to say the words, Applejack interposed,

“You died hon. You were gone for a good ten minutes.” Dash stared at them, sure this was some kind of sick joke. But their faces had all turned serious, except Pinkie Pie, who was excitedly talking about throwing a Welcome Back From the Dead Dashie Party, her hair back to its usual poofyness.

She struggled to come to grips with this new development. I died? But I don't remember anything. She racked her brain, trying to recall. I got stabbed by that... whatever it was. Then I started getting really cold. And I said... what did I say? “Don't make me haunt you.” Then there had been darkness. Slowly, she recalled something else.

It was dark. And I was so alone. But then I heard that voice. Or thought it anyways.

“Stay here,” it had said, “stay a while my little pony, your time has not yet come.” It had sounded like...

“Celestia...” she muttered, causing Luna to jerk her head around.

“What? Do you remember something?” she asked, struggling to contain her excitement. Rainbow nodded slowly,

“Uh, yeah, I remember a voice. Or, I think it was a voice, I don't really remember hearing it. It didn't work like that.” She started to get frustrated, unable to express herself properly. I need to read more, she thought, I bet Twilight doesn't have this problem. With a small shake of her head she continued,

“Anyways, it told me to stay and wait, that something was coming to take me back home. I dunno, at the time I didn't notice, but now that I think back on it, it kinda reminded me of Princess Celestia.” Luna breathed a sigh of relief.

“Then she's still alive.” she whispered, a single tear forming in her eye. The others were looking at her now,

“I thought you two were immortal...” Twilight said, concern evident in her tone. Luna nodded,

“While that is true in most senses, we, like any other sentient creature, have a soul that contains the essence of our being. If that is destroyed, we would, presumably, cease to exist.” The others seemed unconvinced,

“But isn't that impossible? I've never heard of anypony destroying a soul.” Luna nodded her head in the direction of the battle, causing Dash to notice for the first time that her horn was broken.

“They can.”

The battle had raged on while the ponies had talked, with neither side landing any more hits. The Necrogolem was becoming concerned. It had stopped paying attention to what Seeker had been doing while it battled the others, and was now regretting that decision, as it wondered where he was drawing his seemingly endless power from.

It had to pace itself. Since Celestia was constantly having to heal, her power generation was limited. Fortunately, it had nearly perfect magic control, wasting no energy in the spells it used. All other things being even, it should have won this battle long ago. But the sheer volume of power Seeker had at his command was causing it to have some considerable difficulty dispatching him. It was becoming annoying.

The golem decided to reduce the frequency of the knife, to give itself a mild boost in energy. It took only a moment, and it had set up a small onslaught to distract Secret Seeker, but to no avail. When it froze for a split-second to make the adjustment, the man pounced. Like a manticore he swiped, two crushing blows across the golem's chest, while a wall of force from behind had appeared, preventing any sort of retreat.

With an unearthly howl, the Necrogolem leapt away. There was no choice now, it would have to drop the knife's spell entirely to fight him. This needed to end.

Power poured into it through the receiver. All of Celestia's strength, a mountain of it, funneled through its tiny frame. A wicked grin stretched across its face. Victory was inevitable. The surging power was so great, it manifested itself as glowing waves of black-green chakra, like an underworld fire radiating from the construct up to the ceiling. It could only imagine how terrifying it must appear, as it snarled in anger. So why was Secret Seeker smiling!?

An easy smile had indeed slid into place on Seeker's visage, his head tilted down, eyes closed. He seemed to be contemplating something. Or rather, he had been, and now had come to a conclusion. As he opened his eyes, he looked up at the Necrogolem, and laughed. A genuine laugh, filled with love and mirth, like a male counterpart to Celestia's own.

As it ended, he shook his head in disbelief, still smiling.

“Of course,” he said, “I'd been trying to figure out how you did it, how you'd moved so well, moved your energy so efficiently.” His hand crackled to life with sky blue lightning, “At first I thought it was just practice, but you don't have much practice, do you? Having been trapped in a book and all.” His smile took on a more sinister edge, morphing into a dark grin. “But I think I figured it out now.” Suddenly the lightning became subdued. It no longer flared and flashed, but stayed close to his skin, like a sheet of writhing power.

“Which is good.” he muttered, though his voice still carried across the room, “because it seems like you've finally dropped the spell on the dagger.” The Necrogolem's eyes went wide. He shouldn't know! He couldn't have been watching! At the flash of panic, Seeker barked a short laugh.

“You foal,” he said, righteous wrath making his voice sound like it was being scraped across rocks, “trapped in a book and you failed to realize that knowledge is power. All that time my mind was open to you, and you never peeked inside, did you? You just looked into my hate, never the waving fields of my love, for if you had, you would've realized you could never have turned me against these ponies.”

He gestured to the huddled group,

“They're the only things I've ever loved! Them! This world!” As his anger grew, the chakra fields he'd been keeping hidden slipped out, becoming visible to those gathered. It looked as if the sky itself emanated from him, roiling waves of power flaring out, filling the space between himself and the wall behind him. Where the two fields of energy touched overhead, they sparked and writhed, green-black and sky blue, warring while their masters spoke.

Tears burned in his eyes as he continued, his voice strengthened by the magic coursing through him,

“You would have seen that I'd rather die than let you set even one blade of grass out of place here!” In a blink, his hand held a long, thin sword. The blade was virtually two-dimensional, so thin that, if you tried to look straight at the edge, it would be invisible.

Dash had risen shakily to her hooves.

“We should help him! Use the Elements, right?” she looked around at her friends. Their eyes were half-lidded, and Twilight seemed incapable of moving. Their wounds had been closed, but their strength hadn't returned. At her words however, they began struggling to stand, all except Twilight.

“We can't,” she murmured, causing the others to turn their heads to her, “you need to have a minimum threshold of strength to utilize them, and with the waves of interference being generated by their battle,” her horn nodded towards the combatants, “that threshold is much higher.” She gestured towards their necks, where the elements had been when they'd arrived, all now absent.

“You can try,” she went on, “but I doubt any of us have the power to recall our Element.”

After a few moments of futile effort, they had to agree. There was indeed something preventing them from manifesting their Elements. Turning back to the battle, they silently prayed for Secret Seeker's success.

The two humans moved. Only Luna was able to follow them, each step hitting the floor with enough force to nearly crack the stone. They met, and the sword arced, bisecting the golem. As the blade passed through, it shrieked, the body crumbling to dust as they saw the telltale wisps of green-black fire dissipate into the air. Secret Seeker straightened, turning to face the ponies. Fluttershy jumped into the air,

“He did it! He did it! Woohoo!!” she yelled, while the others could only stare, slack-jawed. He smiled at them, as a blade burst through his chest.

The cheering stopped.

There were three of him in the room now, the Necrogolem, Secret Seeker, and the light blue image of him that was his soul. The image's eyebrows knit together as it considered the weapon punching through it, mouth hanging open in surprise.

“No...” it whispered, as a pulse of energy went through the blade. A green-black stain spread across his soul, like an ink blot expanding in water. When it encompassed his entire torso, his head came up, and he looked at the group of ponies, a deep sorrow in his eyes. Then he burst into a thousand wisps of sky blue fire.

Secret Seeker had failed. The ponies stared in horror as his body fell lifelessly to the ground. A puppet with no master.

The Necrogolem laughed.

Chapter 10

"Love is vital to fighting properly. If you have no love, not even for yourself, you will be fearless. But fearlessness and bravery are not the same. Bravery is noble. It will let you accomplish great things in the face of danger. Fearlessness will get you killed." -Secret Seeker

Something nagged at her mind. In her corner, something buzzed insistently at the shield she had erected around her consciousness. Her body. Telling her to come back and do something no doubt. There had been a slight lull in the signals, but she would not be fooled.

The buzzing persisted.

After a while, she began to wonder. Is the curse just triggering nonstop? That didn't make any sense. Celestia tried to rally her resolve, but when she went to lower her shield she hesitated. The pain! She shuddered. It had taken her so long to make this haven through the agony, was she willing to risk the full brunt of the suffering again if she was wrong?

Whatever it was continued buzzing at her shield, sending irritated flicks of power. Still she hesitated. It could all be a trick. No, she wouldn't fall for it! But before she could bring the barrier back to full strength, one of the flicks came through.

She saw an image of her little ponies, cowering behind her beloved little sister. Luna's horn had been broken nearly at the base, leaving her virtually defenseless against the golem towering over her. Was it taunting her now? Another flick came through.

This time she saw the golem through different eyes. She could see the waves of power, her power, funneling into it. Its body was suffused with the black-green glow that signified the Necroequicon's will. But in the center of that, there was a glowing patch of sky blue energy. Two souls? she wondered. Another flick, and she saw an image of the man who had taken the book.

Though he looked identical to the golem, somehow, he didn't. With the image came a voice,

“We can save them.” She didn't want to believe it. She knew it was all a trick. Some diabolical scheme to get her out of her shell to subject her to some new horror. Yet... Her resolve shifted. If there was even a chance, even the slimmest hope that this was real, that there might be a way to rescue them, she had to try. With a pulse of her will, the ward fell.

The man stood before her, his soul faint and ethereal, barely opaque enough to be visible. He had lost a great deal of himself.

“We don't have much time, so listen carefully.”

The Necrogolem advanced on the huddle of ponies. Luna stared at it defiantly, ready to fight with everything she had, to try to buy them some time to escape. If she could at least get the Element Bearers out safely, she could pass into oblivion feeling at least somewhat accomplished. A thick ward sprang up in the doorway, effectively obliterating her hopes. They'd have to make it all the way across the room, through the blasted wall. There simply was no way.

“One last charge, my little ponies. We may die here today, but we won't go down without a fight!” she said, hoping to inspire some courage in the young mares. They may have been adults, but, in her eyes, they were still only children. It was too cruel that they should fall here today, having lived only a fraction of their lives. How quickly things can change, she mused bitterly.

The golem raised its blade-arm, preparing to charge. The ponies hunched down, ready to spring into action. For a second, they sat, staring each other down, poised for the fight.

The blade on the golem's arm shorted out.

With a panicked look in its eyes, it gazed down at its own chest, seemingly struggling with some internal conflict. So surprised was Luna, that even her finely tuned warrior's instincts failed to kick in. The golem took a step back, then another. It fell to its knees, its body convulsing and shaking. With a gasp, it locked rigid.

In a burst of sky blue fire, two souls erupted from its chest, the body falling face down on the floor. The Necroequicon's soul looked monstrous.

On its shoulders were two unicorn skulls, worn like pauldrons. Around its neck was a string of unicorn horns. It was naked to the waist, where a skirt of tails hung, the fleshy bases of each stitched to the next. From its back flowed a cape of cutie marks. The marks from both thighs had been collected and stitched together, making the symbols visible from the back and front. Each pair of marks was crudely stitched to the surrounding ones, and the marks themselves had been sloppily harvested, giving the whole thing an even more gruesome, haphazard appearance.

It looked like the very avatar of death and suffering.

The other soul stood in stark contrast. It wore nothing but a pair of loose pants, cinched at the waist and at the ankle of each leg. The cloth, if it could be called that, seemed to have been made of a starry night sky, and which stars were visible shifted as the angle of view changed. From its back jutted two pairs of wings. The top pair was a glossy black, like finely groomed raven wings. The other was an ivory white, like the wings of a dove, and both sported beautifully, perfectly arranged feathers.

In the center of its back was an ouroboros, but twisted so that, rather than eating its own tail in a circle, the serpent formed the symbol for infinity. Behind the snake, was a gorgeous tree which seemed to be alternately leafing, then shedding, in an endless cycle of life and rebirth.

Each of the ponies had tears in their eyes as they gazed upon Secret Seeker's interpretation of his soul. He raised his arms, holding his palms up to the sky, and spoke in a calm voice,

“Come to me.”

The ceiling was smashed in as a beam of sunlight blasted through, arcing, though they couldn't see it, across the horizon. It slammed into Secret Seeker, and he glowed with a brilliant radiance. With the combined power of the sun, and the sun princess, his ultimate technique would be almost possible. He pointed at the space between them, and turned his head to the ponies, tears leaking from his eyes.

“Goodbye my friends...” he whispered, “we're not all evil.” Before the Necroequicon could move away, a pitch black sphere appeared, engulfing the two souls. Immediately there was a loud pop, as Celestia reappeared where she had been captured. She was laying on the floor, looking weary, the bone knife still embedded in her ribs. The other ponies gasped when they saw her.

Normally the picture of health, the alicorn now looked to be sickly thin. Her skin seemed to be stretched over her skeleton, her muscles conspicuously atrophied. She reached over with her mouth, and pulled the offending object from her side, dropping it to the floor. No blood stained its blade, and the wound sealed shut as soon as it was withdrawn.

The black sphere had instantly started shrinking, and was now only the size of a large closet. In a few more moments, it would be gone. Celestia rose shakily to her hooves, and was entangled in a pair of midnight blue forelegs. Tears flowed into her mane as Luna pressed her face against her big sister's neck.

“I was so scared,” she sobbed, “when I saw him destroy that piece of the golem's soul. I thought I might lose you!” Tears slid down Celestia's cheeks at the heartfelt admission. The expression of her sister's love, coupled with the knowledge that her faithful ponies were alive and well was too much for her, and she slid back to the floor, Luna lowering with her.

Soon all the ponies had gathered round in a massive group hug, crying and laughing, and, in the case of Pinkie Pie, yammering incessantly about how many parties they would need to have to celebrate all their good fortune.

“It was so scary and it looked like everything was going wrong but then he showed up and fought the bad version but then he got exploded...” She went on for a while, alternating between gesticulating to emphasize her points, and administering bone-crushing hugs.

“But then everything turned out okay!” She stopped then, her cornflower blue eyes welling up with tears as she turned to the tiny black sphere, now no larger than a chicken egg.

They all turned their heads to watch as the orb vanished with a tiny pop.

Pinkie sniffed,

“Almost everything...” she said quietly, as the tears began to drip. In silence they mourned the loss of the human they hadn't even had time to know. They had caught a glimpse, a tiny flash of his love for their world, of all the joy he wanted to bring and experience, and now he was gone.

Fluttershy had buried her face in Rarity's mane, both struggling to stifle their sobs. Applejack's hat was in her hoof, held in respect and admiration over her heart, a salute to his noble sacrifice. Luna and Celestia both closed their eyes, offering silent thanks, though they both knew he would never hear it, his soul having been obliterated by the crushing power of the singularity he'd created.

Pinkie and Twilight Sparkle had both sat on their haunches, silent tears flowing, hurt evident in their eyes. But Rainbow Dash's pain was the worst. He hadn't just saved her, he had literally given her her life back. Her eyes were red as she fought the sorrow coursing through her. He had saved her life twice, and she hadn't even gotten to thank him.

-----One Week Later-----

Celestia stood at the podium, a huge cloth draped over something behind her. She looked much better now, her goddess' metabolism allowing her to put the weight she had lost during her imprisonment back on in short order. And with more than a little enjoyment, she thought, remembering the veritable dragon's horde of delicacies she had consumed to do it. She pushed the thought away before her mouth started watering.

Luna stood beside her, a solemn look on her face, appropriately setting the tone for the rest of the congregation. Everywhere, ponies mimicked her visage, though most were unsure of the reason for the melancholy. The Bearers of the Elements of Harmony were also on stage, flanking the two princesses. Twilight, Fluttershy and Rarity beside Celestia, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Pinkie Pie beside Luna.

Resplendent though they were in the gorgeous gowns Rarity had designed for them, each outfit made of a rich black silk, except Applejack's hat, which had needed to be made of stiffer material, their faces were not those of mirth. Celestia cleared her throat, and the gathering's chatter trailed into silence.

“Today, we honor the sacrifice of Secret Seeker. A being not of our world, who came here to find peace, and love. What he found instead was an ancient, and powerful evil. An evil so great, even my sister and I were powerless to stop it.” At this, many in the assemblage gasped, unable to believe such a thing could exist.

“When it seemed all hope had been lost, and that the demon would cover all the world in suffering, he came to me.” A week's practice had served her well, and she was able to keep the tears from her eyes. Keep her voice steady as she recalled their conversation.

“'Help me,' he said. 'I will trap the demon in my spell, and we will both go to oblivion.' 'Why?' I had asked, 'Why would you be willing to make that sacrifice for a world you barely know?' He told me.

'Mine is a world of slow decay,'” the words echoed in Celestia's mind, as she heard him say them yet again, “'There is no magic. Love and friendship are hard to find, harder still to maintain. Your world is beautiful. You are not flawless. You have your faults and vices, but you are diligent. You pour yourselves into whatever task lays before you. To me, that is perfection.

You strive, despite your inadequacies, to get as close to perfect as you can. And that mentality is the norm, not the exception. That is why. In my two weeks here, I have known more joy than I experienced in one hundred twenty years in my own dimension. That is something I'm willing to die defending.'”

There wasn't a dry eye in the field. Even Celestia, with all her practice, still felt the cool wetness slip down her face. She paused a moment to let the words sink in, and to collect her thoughts.

“And so, we dedicate this memorial to Secret Seeker. Let it serve as a reminder of the precious joy we have in this world, that beings from another would come here, and fight to the death, to protect it.” At her nod, a trio of earth ponies picked up the lines attached to the cloth and pulled. When it fell away, the gathering gave a collective gasp.

Carefully carved of beautiful white marble, the statue stood fifteen feet tall. Its arms were held in front as if offering up the world, while its face, etched with his gentle smile, tilted up to the sky. The pants had been made of thin sheets of onyx, with hundreds of indentations into which tiny pearls had been set, causing them to glimmer in the light like a gorgeous starry night. Luna had overseen the placement of the pearls personally, making it an accurate portrayal of one of her favorite segments of the cosmos.

On its back were the two pairs of wings, one carved of pure, black jet, the other painstakingly shaped from real moonstone, by Princess Celestia herself. In the center of its back, was a replica of the infinity-ouroboros before the tree, magically enchanted to grow tiny leaves of shaped emeralds, which would then shift into amber gemstones and fall to the base of the tree before vanishing, starting the whole sequence over again. Lastly, though none present would see it until later, the statue had been enchanted to glow very softly with a sky blue aura.

Several of the ponies present were struck motionless, staring slack-jawed at the sculpture. Some were crying at the beauty of it, wide smiles on their faces even as tears rolled down their cheeks. Some were shocked by the sight of it, this strange, hairless monkey that had, apparently, saved them all.

Lyra had her right foreleg hooked in a death grip around BonBon's neck, forcing her to look at it, saying “I told you so!” over and over, while the poor yellow mare's eyes rolled in her head.

The Bearers and the Princesses had all turned to face the statue. They'd been crying so much lately, hopefully these would be the last tears they shed for a while. Silently, they each thanked him in their own ways.

Celestia and Luna especially, knowing that much of the danger of the Necroequicon had been destroyed. Without the power to seek out and poison the minds of Equestria's inhabitants, it was just a book of dangerous magic, no longer an artifact of apocalyptic risk. Still, after the party tonight, they would need to go retrieve it. For now, it was safe, nestled deep within the moon castle of the Everfree Forest.

The party that night was one Ponyville would talk about for years. Pinkie Pie had gone absolutely overboard for the combination Welcome Back From the Dead Dashie / Thank You for Saving the World Secret Seeker Party. She'd wanted to include a few other titles, but, as Rarity had tactfully pointed out, it already took two banners to hold the words, and what good were all her decorations if nopony would get to see them for the banners all over the place?

Cakes, pies, tarts, muffins, and six different kinds of cider were absolutely everywhere. Pinkie tried to greet everypony as they arrived, but the party was on for barely an hour before Sugarcube Corner was packed to the rafters, and the festivities began spilling into the streets. Ponies arrived from as far as Hoofington, many claiming to have been personally invited by Pinkie Pie. But whenever she was asked about it, she'd manage to change the topic, or some distraction would arise, and she'd slip away without answering.

The Princesses made appearances as well, Celestia arriving just after sundown, departing when Luna arrived just before sunrise. Still the party persisted, some ponies leaving to go to work, while others arrived from the night shift, ready to get down. In the middle of the afternoon, when Celestia had a break in her royal obligations, she and Luna, both drowsy from not sleeping since they'd arisen the previous day for the unveiling, made their way to the moon castle.

It felt good to fly beside each other, the warm air rushing past their wings. When they were far enough away from prying eyes they began playfully swooping and diving, performing various acrobatic feats, laughing like they had back in the good old days. This delayed their arrival somewhat, but it was well worth it.

“Besides,” Luna said, when Celestia mentioned the extra time the trip was taking, “it's waited this long. Even if we're a few minutes late, it'll still be there.” When they arrived, Luna looked down at the forest below.

“It's gone!” she exclaimed. Indeed she appeared to be right. A conspicuous clearing in the trees was all that remained of the crumbling fortress, as if the decay of the masonry had been agitated into action by recent events, advancing several millenia in just a few short days. The two princesses cautiously descended, probing with magic for any field that might be hiding the castle, finding nothing but empty space.

When they landed in the clearing, they nodded to each other, and fanned out, searching for some clue as to what had happened. After a few minutes, Luna called out to her sister, who appeared by her side. She lowered her horn to the ground, and a dark blue glow illuminated a square patch of turf. With a groan, the slab of ground opened like a trap door flap, revealing an elegant staircase. Horns glowing, the princesses descended into the earth.

Soon they found themselves in Luna's old laboratory. It was clear somepony, or someone, had been here recently. There was no dust to be found, and several books had been carefully laid out on the table. Glancing at the titles, Luna muttered,

“It's like a crash course in basic magic...” They searched high and low, every book on every shelf, inside every trunk, but to no avail. The Necroequicon was gone. In silent dread, they prepared to leave, but a breeze streamed down the staircase, causing the cover of the empty journal on the table to flip open. It wasn't empty anymore.

Hidden here. The only words on the page, and indeed in the entire book. After examining it for a while, Celestia touched her horn to it, performing a simple revealing spell. The plain brown journal morphed into the black-green splendor of the Necroequicon. Relief flooded through them. She checked the book with a few other spells, but it appeared to be devoid of any life force. Disheartened, she slid it into her saddlebag. It had been a foal's hope, but still...

They'd have to research it closer, to find out what had happened to the old palace, but they had the book, and it could be safely locked away in the archives. With a slow gait, and one last, forlorn glance at the empty laboratory, the two princesses departed.

Epilogue

“What are you talking about? Just write that I found a magic fridge or something that can create snacks! How could that possibly not make the story better!?” -Pinkie Pie, breaking the fourth wall

Deep in the bowels of the mountain beneath Canterlot, the Ur-dragon stirred. An intruder had entered its abode once again. Perhaps this one it would eat... It watched with mild amusement as the white unicorn unsteadily made its way into the cavern. It smelled no fear, the creature was just incredibly uncoordinated. It gave a snort when the pony's flank came into view.

A cutie mark of a storm cloud with a clear spot in the middle framing the outline of a question mark. What the fire was that supposed to signify? It narrowed its eyes, sniffing again. Golem. When the stallion entered the colosseum, the Ur-dragon reared, intending to scare the little thing. Much to its chagrin, the tiny pony mimic merely smiled up at it, and waved a forehoof, as if in greeting.

Intrigued, the great beast leaned down, setting its eye level with the unicorn, and took its measure. Its great crescent pupil narrowed in surprise.

“So, we were right again. How boring. We had thought that, perhaps, this time, our inclination had been misguided.” The pony laughed, a clear, refreshing sound.

“Afraid not, you were quite right to believe in me.”

“Hmm,” the dragon chuckled, “what will you do next, then?”

“Well, I was planning on going to Ponyville. Got something of a home set up in the forest near Sweet Apple Acres, and I need to start making lots of memories if I'm going to replenish my soul.” Shifting its vision, the dragon looked into the pony, and saw that its soul was indeed stretched extremely thin. It seemed to have lost the vast majority of its essence. The stallion had paused a moment, anticipating the dragon's reaction, and now continued.

“But first, I had a bit of a favor to ask. You see, I think I might have given Mephistopheles and Carryion the means to escape Tartarus when that rune of yours punched through the gate...” A huge grin broke out on the Ur-dragon's face. This one is good. it thought, After all these centuries of peace, things might finally be getting interesting.

Noting the look on the beast's face, the pony sighed.

“Yeah... that's kind of what I was afraid you'd do.”

The End
(for now...)

Chapter 7

“The pain stems from the loss of possibility. Loss of the chance to get to know them. If you've known them their whole lives, it won't hurt so bad. If not, or if they're young...” -Secret Seeker

As Celestia was about to climb into bed, there was a faint knock at her door.

“Come in Luna.” she said, turning to face the door and taking a few steps away from the bed. Luna entered, a look of concern clearly etched on her face.

“We are sorry to interrupt, but we have something to ask of you.” Celestia gave a long blink to hide how she rolled her eyes at Luna's continued use of the royal We.

“Of course little sister, I'll always have time for you.” A little light stress on the “I” to make her point, which went completely unheeded by Luna. For a while the dark sister didn't speak, trying to put her thoughts in order. She'd attempted to reason out why she wanted to demolish the castle, but couldn't seem to come up with anything better than “Because it makes us feel uneasy.” However, that sense of unease was far too strong to be ignored. Whatever the reason, she would be a foal to ignore her instincts.

“There seems to be some lingering evil in the moon castle.” she said at length, “When we are there we feel a, deeply unsettling sense of disquiet. We know we sound foalish,” this last bit muttered towards the floor, “but perhaps we could make arrangements to demolish the old palace? Or at least investigate?” Celestia had started smiling while her sister talked, and opened her mouth to speak.

She had intended to say something like, “Worry not Luna, in the morning we will both go and try to discern the nature of this disturbance that troubles you so.” or something similar to allay her sister's fears. But before she could speak, a sense of foreboding settled in her gut. She and her sister had always been close, and since her return, they had been growing closer. Reading Twilight's letters together, and teaching Luna about running Equestria so that she could take part in the management of the country had both served to strengthen that bond.

What she felt now was undeniable. This was not some silly filly's fear of ghosties in the dark. This was royal premonition. There was indeed something evil in the moon castle. Her mouth snapped shut as her eyes went wide, and Luna's expression went from shocked, to grim determination.

“You feel it too, don't you?” Luna whispered, as if the source of the feeling were listening. Celestia nodded. Without another word between them, the two sisters galloped to the other end of the room, throwing open the doors to the balcony, ready to leap into the night sky. They needn't bother.

Standing on the railing of the balcony was the man Celestia had seen steal the book. Or at least, it looked like him. His body stank of necromancy, and, as she looked closer, she could almost see wisps of black magic trailing from him, like smoke from a fire. His face transformed with a horrid rictus, as he lightly bounced to the floor.

“Celestia.” he said, his voice suffused with false geniality, like he was greeting an old friend whom he no longer liked. In fact, everything he did seemed a caricature of the action itself, like he was the embodiment of mockery of life.

Not waiting to see what tricks this abomination had in store, Celestia reached for her power, ready to finish the job she'd started just days prior.

“Sister no!” Luna cried, leaping backwards away from the two of them. Too late Celestia saw the runes etched into his skin. Circuitous engravings on his body flared to life as she activated his defenses. With an inaudible crack her body went limp, unresponsive to her attempts to move, though she could still control her eyes and mouth. Nine hundred years of peace was too long, she thought bitterly, I've gotten soft.

The energy that came from the monstrosity was a mishmash of life forces, stolen from various creatures in the Everfree Forest. Celestia was silently thankful that she didn't notice any pony essence in the magic. Locking eyes with her sister, she said, with the barest hint of a tremor, “Go get them.” The mockery turned to Luna, preparing a spell for her even as his other spell still worked on Celestia. She had to respect his control, but she wasn't out of the game yet.

A blinding flash erupted between the creature and her sister, catching him by surprise, though Luna had noticed the telltale glow of the spell and shielded her eyes at the last moment. With the thing blinded, she made her escape, pained as she was to leave Celestia behind, she knew her sister wouldn't be in any serious danger. They were immortals, she would still live when Luna returned with the Elements, and they would set all this right. With the sound of a breath of wind, Luna dissipated into smoke, and vanished from the royal quarters.

It took only a second for his vision to be restored, but that had been long enough for the moon princess to escape. It annoyed him, but there was nothing to be done about it now. Turning to face Celestia, he smiled again, slowly walking up to her as the barbs of his disabling spell finally finished sinking in, and she was left utterly helpless. He crouched down, his face only inches from her own, as he withdrew a long knife, made from the thigh bone of a manticore, covered in runes.

“Funny thing about being immortal,” he said, his voice still perfectly cheery, bringing unbidden memories of Pinkie Pie to Celestia's mind. He slipped the knife between her ribs, causing the runes to activate. The pain seared through her, but it was nothing she couldn't handle. She'd suffered millions of injuries in her lifetime, and had long ago learned that, especially for her, all pain was temporary. No matter how much it hurt now, it would end, and she would recover.

“Lets you experience all the pain of dying over,” the knife vibrated, striking a resonance with her bones, shattering almost her entire skeleton in an instant. The pain was unimaginable. Her resolve wavered, cracking already. As her body healed itself, it rapidly faded. But just when her last rib was repaired, it was pulled into contact with the knife again, triggering the spell.

“and over,” she was dimly aware of the pitch black sphere that enveloped her, hiding her away somewhere nopony would find her. Her bones healed again, triggering the spell to repeat.

“and over.” The voice came from a great distance. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered. She would spend the rest of eternity dying. The spell paralyzing her slackened somewhat, just as the knife triggered a fourth time. Celestia screamed.

Twilight Sparkle was peacefully asleep, having gotten ahead in her studies, and was looking forward to taking a day off tomorrow to see her friends, when the door to the library's balcony slammed open. With a cry of surprise, she leapt from her bed, or tried to anyways, but her legs became entangled in the blanket and she crashed to the floor in a heap.

“Twilight!” the royal Canterlot speaking voice bellowed, Luna's control having slipped away in her panic. Through some vile sorcery, she'd heard the exchange between the Necroequicon's puppet and her beloved sister. Heard the final scream, a sound so awful, so rife with pain her teleportation to Ponyville had almost faltered.

“YeahwuzitPrincess?” the purple mare mumbled as she struggled to extricate herself from the blankets ensnaring her. Luna's horn glowed, tearing the sheets away and throwing them aside.

“We need the Elements! As quickly as possible! Our sister...” her voice cracked at the last word, and the desperation in it roused Twilight more quickly than a bucket of cold water. Looking up at Luna's face, she saw the trails of tears, flowing freely, and a cold dread stole through her chest.

“Alright.” she said, her voice hardening with resolve. Twilight was a mare of planning. She had plans for all sorts of contingencies, and an emergency gathering of her friends was top of the list. Well, second, beneath my secret stash of backup quills and parchment, unless you counted each of those separately, then it would be third... She shook her head. Looking up at Luna again, she nodded.

“You can teleport farther than I can, go get Rainbow Dash first, send her to get Fluttershy. Then get Applejack. I'll get Pinkie and Rarity. We'll all meet back here as soon as possible.” Through her tears, Luna nodded, a small smile forming. She was about to teleport when she turned and nuzzled Twilight,

“Thank you.” she whispered, her voice heavy with gratitude. Before the little pony could respond, Luna was gone. Twilight's smile vanished, replaced by a firm line. Her princess, mentor, and, if truth be told, second mother was in trouble. It was time to act. With a puff of purple sparks, she was gone.

“Grackt.” Spike snored, rolling onto his side, drool escaping his mouth as he dreamed of eating a big, juicy diamond with some kind of special filling.

Rainbow Dash stood in the center of the young flier's competition arena, the crowd cheering her name as her friends were lowered safely to the clouds. She'd done it again! There was no way those jerks were going to convince everyone I was lying this time! Her rainbow contrail was only just starting to fade, and she still had a slight ringing in her ears from the Sonic Rainboom.

“Rainbow!” Shocked, she turned to her right and saw Luna standing beside her, a grim look on her face. Why was she upset?

“Wake up!” With a start, the rainbow maned mare jerked upright, and found herself looking into the face of the midnight colored alicorn.

“Please listen. You must go get Fluttershy and bring her to the library in Ponyville. I will go fetch Applejack. Please hurry, our sister, and all of Equestria are in grave danger.”

Rainbow Dash gulped and nodded, unable to consider doing anything else. There was no arguing with the princess, and the very notion that Luna was convinced that Celestia was in trouble was unsettling enough to cause her to shiver. Without another word, the blue pegasus flexed her wings, stretching out the last of her waking stiffness, and vanished through the window. With a swirl of dark clouds, Luna too, was gone.

Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Spike all sat in the bottom of the library, sipping cups of coffee the baby dragon had made for them. The tension in the room was thick, and nopony was ready to break the silence just yet. A puff of starry skies, and Princess Luna appeared with a very drowsy, and apparently unstable Applejack. She wavered for a moment before collapsing to the ground.

“Yeah, les not do that again,” she mumbled, as she struggled to rise to her hooves. Just then they became aware of a high-pitched sound coming from outside. The sound grew louder until it burst through the upstairs balcony, a screaming Fluttershy, eyes shut tight, being pushed by a sweating Rainbow Dash.

“Fluttershy!” R.D. yelled, getting no response. She tried again, shaking the yellow pegasus vigorously with her forehooves, finally getting the screaming mare to open her eyes. When she saw they were no longer careening over the countryside at breakneck speeds, she stopped, a deep blush reddening her cheeks.

“Oh,” she whispered, “sorry.” With all of them present, Luna spoke, having regained some of her control in the intervening time.

“Please listen,” she said, as she struggled to keep the tears from her voice, “a monster has captured my sister. She, and the rest of Equestria are in great danger. It uses an ancient, dangerous magic. The Necroequicon.” Only Twilight gasped, the other six wore confused looks.

“I'm sorry, but, what is that?” Rarity asked.

“The Necroequicon is a book created by a cabal of dark unicorns united under Carryion, the Lord of Death, and Mephistopheles, the Lord of Deceit, two ancient, godlike beings.” Twilight rattled off, having learned about the secret in her fervent admiration of her mentor.

“Yes,” Luna chimed in, arching an eyebrow at Twilight's knowledge of what she had assumed was supposed to be secret, causing the purple mare to blush and lower her ears, “Discord, Celestia and myself all worked together to banish the two Lords, one at a time. By the time we had the book in our possession, Discord had been twisted beyond redemption by Mephistopheles' meddling. Though the Elements of Harmony revealed themselves to us, enabling us to imprison Discord, we lacked the power necessary to destroy it. So we locked it away, sealed in an ultra-secure location, that even we could not access alone.

“For whatever reason, the Ur-dragon saw fit to enchant this being with runes that let him bypass our defenses, unless my sister was deceived by some spell. Regardless, he has become a puppet to the book's will. A vessel, filled with all its malevolence and hate. And he is very,” here Luna's visage transformed into a scowl, “very, strong. You must let me fight him first. I will try to discern the nature of his powers, and his limits. It will be your responsibility to look for the opportune moment to strike.” She stared straight at Twilight as she said this last part. Twilight nodded, giving a firm solute. The faces of the other ponies had hardened into grim masks of determination. These were their Princesses, their goddesses, and this was their home. Failure, was not an option.

“I will teleport us to Canterlot. Steel your resolve my little ponies, I know not what horrors we will find. Fortunately, we seem to have some luck on our side. We are all together and well. And the night,” Luna's appearance shifted into that of Nightmare Moon, her voice taking on the Royal Canterlot volume, “is my domain!” As she spoke the last word, a swirling dark blue cloud engulfed them, and they vanished from the library.

In the basement of the moon palace, Secret Seeker stood tracing runes in the air. His finger glowed with a brilliant white light, and when he finished each sigil, it would vanish. He had forgotten the Necroequicon, focused as he was upon his own experiments, and it lay dormant on the table. If this worked... if it truly worked the way he thought it should... His finger paused mid-glyph as a shiver of excitement ran through him, then resumed its steady, careful motion.

Surrounded in blackness, Celestia's body writhed and shook, each trigger of the spell wracking her with pain. But her eyes were empty, and she didn't scream anymore...