Malice’s claw whistled past my head as I ducked. Midspin, a battleaxe forged from pathos appeared as he stepped into an overhead swing. A timely hop to the side left him open for a spear thrust on the chest. The spear struck home, yet did little more than scratch his armor. I teleported backwards, trying to distance myself. Try being the operative word here, as my Sentry Sense triggered.

Malice was already in front of me swinging when I warped back into reality. A panicked lightning bolt exploded from my hoof, slowing him just enough to escape with only a chipped chest plate. He was breathing down my neck with every swing of the axe, catching up even with my heightened Sentry senses. I sprang back again, then forward into a teleport.I reappeared, my blade striking air.

“Where…?” I trailed off. My Sentry Sense triggered.

The shiny glint of a battleaxe appeared above me like a guillotine blade.

I threw myself to the floor.The axe peeled the edge of my helmet off like a razor blade. I rolled away and bounced to my hooves, only to find two battleaxes spinning towards me like discuses.

I pole vaulted over them with my spear, nearly losing grip as it was cut apart. Too late did I catch Malice flying towards me at breakneck speed, pathos exploding from his feet. His hardy gauntlets shattered the armor on my barrel and sent me flying past the spinning axes and toward the rocky end of the chamber. More importantly, still in their path.

Panicked wing beats eased my collision with the wall. With a kick I bounced off it to avoid the flying axes.

That is, until Malice outsped and caught them mid-flight. I was at best a meter or two into the air as he jumped at me with both axes in hand. My heart sank as I caught the grin of a tactical battlemaster.

My lightning strike was no more successful at stopping him than a faint breeze would have been. He swooped in before I could react and slashed in an X-shape.

The sharpened pathos sliced through chestplate and muscle like it wasn’t even there. My instinctive wing beats and Sentry Sense were the only things stopping those blades from goring my ribcage completely.

Hot needles of agony exploded in my chest as the blow launched me upward. I was sent spiraling at a dizzying pace, fighting to regain aerial control and push through the mind-numbing pain. I recovered just as Malice jetted towards me with pathos-powered sabatons. A swift teleport evaded disembowelment from Malice.

I reappeared closer than he expected and let loose a screaming electric blast at point-blank.

His head reeled back, stopped cold. Righteous fury guided my hooves as I pummeled him back into the ground where he belonged. The moment his back slammed into the dirt, something plated snaked around my hindleg. His armored tail whipped me away before I could respond. Mid hurl, Malice had already sprung to his feet and dashed for me.

Good.

Malice had almost reached me as I teleported and reappeared behind him. Momentum empowered my tackle into his back as I smashed him into the wall instead.

My lightning charged hoof rushed forward to crush his skull. His head pivoted just enough to avoid the shattering blow and catch my foreleg in his teeth.

His fangs sank through the ice armor and pierced my foreleg. The agonizing sensation of torn flesh and muscle jumped through my hoof and into my spine as I repeatedly punched at his face with my other hoof, screaming bloody murder in protest. Whether out of fear or instinct, I hooked my other foreleg around his throat and poured a monstrous burst of electricity through the hoof in his mouth.

Sparks of electricity danced all over his body like a stormcloud. Malice peeled himself off the wall and shook his head, growling like a feral beast, still not letting go. I hung on for dear life and kept blasting away, flashes of orange and blue lights squeezing between his fangs and my hoof. Sparks and smoke slipped through his mouth as he bellowed in surprised rage.

But Malice had enough. When shaking me loose didn’t work he spun himself like a top, and by association me. He whirled faster, and faster, until the world around me turned into a blur. Just when we reached stomach-churning speed, nearly tearing off my leg in the process, he flung me half across the chamber at Twilight’s barrier.

I braced my working foreleg for the worst, prepared to be the fly pitted against a train’s windshield. Instead, I sank through a soft, gelatinous-like veil and collapsed next to Twilight.

My heart jumped into my throat when Malice’s battleaxes crashed against the shield near my face.

“Come out and face me!” Malice screamed, slamming against the barrier with enough force to rattle nearby debris. I gulped, my life flashing before my eyes.

“You need—agh—to rest!” Twilight’s knees threatened to buckle with each blow against the barrier. Light and dark magics shortly fought an arcane battle of their own as part of the axe bit into and almost through the dense shield. The barrier refused to yield though, and in turn began eroding the blade in a spectacle of tiny explosions.

In the end, the shield won. Malice yanked the blade back out, and a last crackle of clashing magics manifested across the dome like cracks in a glass bowl, before the shield quickly repaired itself.

The strain not just on Twilight’s magic reserves, but on herself as well, was terrifying.

Giddy up, soldier! Your princess needs you now more than ever!

“I can’t rest. Not while he’s still breathing. Just focus on keeping yourself and Chrysalis safe.” I picked myself off the floor with the grace of a walking corpse. My bloodied foreleg, somehow still attached, was riddled with fang holes and white swirls of magic. Even with the numbing effect of pathos and combat adrenaline I could barely move. The axe wound on my chest was doing me no favors, either. Every time I redirected pathos from healing to combat the wounds ruptured back open, strength and blood gushing from them like a busted floodgate.

“Chrysalis, please tell me you’re almost done!” I pleaded with restrained anger.

“If you want to surgically dismantle the mental network of hundreds of changelings and vassals without getting caught, be my guest!” Each word was forced out in a hiss, said between labored breaths. “We will support you the moment I am done. Just stay alive until then!”

“Don’t you dare,” I gasped, sucking in air while clutching at my chest wound. “We can’t let you two be captured again. I’ll figure something out. Just leave the first chance you get.”

*Stop whining,* Inner Malice scoffed. *You have plenty of fight left. Don’t allow your wounds to drag you down. Fight the pain back.*

Why does every solution end up being violent or aggressive with you!?

I paused. ...Nevermind. Dumb question.

The better question to ask was how exactly I would fight my own wounds? I needed to figure that out and heal faster before Malice broke the shield. On the bright side, at least the amount of pathos wafting through the chamber kept me fueled with magic for days.

Fuel… fight… that’s it!

I didn’t have to work just with my meager supplies of pathos. The entire cave was both our field of battle and our supply carriage. I took a deep breath of the icy air and let my instincts take the wheel.

Magic filtered from the air and through my lungs. I directed it towards the nastiest of the wounds first, the levels of pain being a very good compass to work with. I grunted, heaved, stomped at the ground with my other forehoof to pump myself up.

“I don’t have time for this! Heal, damn you! Heal!”

Scalding pain melted away as I ‘encouraged’ my spark. The bleeding eventually ceased. Stamina drained and surged all at once between intaking pathos and channeling spark. Had so much pathos not been in the room I would’ve ran dry in seconds. Wounds sufficiently patched up and with a final deep breath, I caught my second wind plus interest.

*Now get back in there and tear him apart!*

“Gladly…!” I growled. With a hop, I teleported back into the ring.

Malice turned aboutface, ready turning to cut me down. When my Sentry Sense triggered, I channeled spark through my hooves and slammed them into the ground.

The blades whistled above my head as conjured ice spears erupted under Malice’s feet. I darted forward and forged a new blade staff while he stumbled and lost his balance. Charging electricity through it, I thrusted at the exposed armor joint on his arm pit.

Malice roared in fury and staggered further back. I ripped out the spear before he could break my grip with his wild axe swing. I swooped around and rammed the spear into his heel.

“You insolent little bastard!”

Timely flight saved me from his tail swipe. Mid turn, Malice forged an axe as large as my own wingspan and hurled it. Tips of several primaries disappeared as I twisted in the air.

I flew just above him and darted at him like an arrow shot. I rammed the spear with full might into the soft spot between his shoulder and his neck.

As the blade got buried deep in his ethereal skin, I chased lightning down the spear.
Malice collapsed to his knees, then dropped onto his back. Too late did I realize it wasn’t because of the lightning sizzling over his scales.

Malice rolled over, freeing himself from the spear tip that had dropped him. Just as I conjured another spear and tried to ram it between his ribs, his legs bucked upwards and shot me into the cave’s ceiling.

An axe followed. I let myself fall and twisted mid-air to avoid it. Before ever reaching the ground, his fist crushed into my temple.

The helmet saved my life, cracking like an eggshell as the punch flung me across the arena. I’d barely touched the ground and rolled onto my hooves when I found him behind me, pinning my spear to the ground with his foot.

His mouth opened.

Shit!

I released the spear and raised my forehooves in defense.

Black flames roared from his lungs, blasting through the earth around me and at my ice shield like a molten fire hose. My shield barely lasted a second before getting swallowed by fire.

More than enough time to teleport behind him.

He was already half-turned towards me, destructive flames tearing through the landscape. A well-timed lightning bolt to the mouth stopped him just before the flames could reach me. His jaw snapped shut and he reared back, cheeks full and flashing blue. I used the opportunity to dive in and yank out my spear. Malice smiled.

When his mouth opened again, several bolts of black lightning screamed out all at once. Muscles turned rigid as it struck and stunned me, frying me to a crisp. Thunder boomed, sheer force blasting me off my hooves. I collapsed into a twitching heap, parts of my coat singed. Malice jumped high and came down with a stomp aimed for my head.

Panic and Sentry Sense kicked into overtime, giving me an opening to force through spark healing to recover motor control. I raised my hoof to counter his kick.

A purple barrier fell between us and blocked his attack. Malice’s predatory glare slid from me to the culprit.

A switch clicked behind his gaze as Malice kicked off the barrier and planted himself between Twilight and I. He slammed his battleaxes together in an explosion of pathos. A greatsword as tall as himself emerged from the blast.

Malice turned one-eighty and sprinted towards Twilight and Chrysalis.

Oh no you don’t!

I jumped into a teleporting tackle, shoving him to the side before he could strike. He tripped and nearly fell, saved by plunging his sword into the ground. Momentum worked as leverage as he lifted his legs for a push kick. I vaulted off him just in time, flying upward, and then down with my spear. He opened his mouth, fire gathered in his lungs.

Another, shorter range teleport allowed me to beat him to the punch, thrusting the spear down his throat. At least, I would have if he didn’t grab it with his other hand.

Dark flames ignited on his hands and traveled down the spear. I was forced to part with it before the melting spear took my hoof with it. With a strong flap, I darted past the spiraling flames spewing from his lungs and took flight.

I rained down a storm of bolts from above, all focused on his face. Cutting off his flames, he ripped the sword out of the ruptured ground to guard his face. He stepped towards me, then swung his blade. The lightning filling his blade leapt at me, forcing me to evade and stop my barrage. Malice seized the opportunity with a mighty leap and shot towards me. I dropped down a bit to evade his blade swing, realizing too late his true aim.

Malice forward flipped towards the ceiling, landing with a crunch before kicking off towards me again. I twisted and worked my wings to dodge, escaping with a graze down my hind leg. Malice had barely touched the ground and he bounced just as he did earlier and rushed at me. This happened again and again. Faster and faster. I could not get in a solid hit without risking my neck. Literally. His movements were soon a blur of movement and sword swings, pushing my Sentry Sense to work overtime just to keep up.

A yelp from Twilight nearly broke my focus. As Malice bounced all over the cavern, leaving a small crater wherever he landed, I caught him bouncing off Twilight’s shield. Every other bounce towards me he rebounded to Twilight, slamming his sword against it before coming after me again.

...Sonuva bitch!

Malice’s blade cut a little close to home, nicking my neck. For a moment, when he landed, I caught his laser-like focus aimed at Chrysalis.

As long as I draw breath...

Malice kicked off, blade raised over his shoulder. My Sentry Sense activated.

All that matters…!

The sword cut through the barrier, shattering it into starry shards of magic. Twilight reared back and gasped as the blade continued towards her, stopping just above her head.

My hooves pushed against Malice’s wrist, body shaking under the weight of the aggressive tyrant.

...Is getting everypony home alive!

“Twilight,” I hissed through my teeth, “Get Chrysalis and your friends out of here! Now!”

Malice pulled back his blade and went for a horizontal swing. I moved again to strike at his wrist, saved by Twilight’s magic restraining him

“I’m not going to leave you behind!” Twilight growled.

“This will all be for nothing if you and Chrysalis die! Don’t fight me on this!”

“But—”

I glared at her. “Now!” I thundered, echoing with a hint of Inner Malice’s voice in it.

She reared back with a gasp. The hurt left as quickly as it came, replaced with hardy determination. “I’ll figure something out and get everyone to safety.” While not convinced she would leave me alone by a long shot, she seemed at least compliant with my lofty demand. “You don’t have my permission to die. Understood?”

“Yes ma’am!” I shoved Malice’s arms with all of my might, somehow causing him to stumble back. Spark in my chest heated up, pouring electrified energy into my limbs as I dove at him with wild fervor.

I swung my hooves with everything in me, swift blows hammering away at him faster and faster. He tried to swing his sword, but I slipped under his swipes and continued attacking until he was forced to forego the blade in favor of going hand-to-hoof.

Malice’s body burned of fiery pathos aura, surging with intensity as we exchanged lightning fast blows. Sentry Sense allowed me to barely keep up with him as he got faster and even more aggressive. I could barely get more than a glancing blow as he parried my moves like foal’s play.

I spotted Twilight and Chrysalis at the corner of my vision, rushing for the ice pods at the base of the tree. With each glance in my direction they increased their frantic pace to free the others and steer clear of Malice’s warpath. I was no different, doubling my efforts if Malice so much as twitched in their direction.

Come on, damn you! I need to hit harder! Faster!

I crouched low as his claw neared my head. My talent triggered. He carved air as I vanished before his eyes.

If I don’t stop him, everypony will die!

A flurry of tail stabs coming at me hot and ready. I somehow parried each attack, nearly overwhelmed by the sheer speed. Malice suddenly spun into a roundhouse kick aimed at my head. Another trigger. Another disappearing act.

No matter what...

I popped out of teleportation behind him. Punched at the back of his knees, then teleported before he could catch me with his overhead claw swipe.

I have to win!

When I reappeared above his head, he caught my punch. All momentum slammed into a halt as I spotted Malice’s frown.

“...Is that it?”

The disappointment in his voice pissed me off to no end. With a growl, I teleported at his feet and rose into a leaping uppercut, only for him to catch it again.

He regarded me with pure disgust like I was the world’s filthiest cockroach. I let loose the strongest bolt of lighting I had in me while he was still guarding.

A thunderous boom ripped through the chamber, nearly deafening me as the blast knocked me back. When the blinding flash faded, Malice still stood strong, burn marks all over his armor as the only evidence of damage I’ve done.

“For a weakling like you to push me this far…”

He closed the gap before I could so much as twitch my limbs. One hand grasped my head, his roar rooting me to the floor.

“IS UNFORGIVABLE!”

His knee rushed to my face. The blow nearly threw me to the floor as he released me, nose broken and bleeding. I scrambled back to my hooves instantly and jumped at him, only to catch a punch to the face. Then another. And again and again.

“GIVE ME A REAL FIGHT!” Malice screamed into his rapid-fire punches.

I couldn’t move or even lift a hoof without catching a leg to the gut, backfist to the head, or sweeping strikes that slapped me all over the battlefield. My lightning bolts refused to do more than charcoal his armor as he charged me down, furious swipes maring me with gashes. He broke through my ice barriers and reformed armor like it was nothing.

I teleported backward to distance myself and attempted a teleportation flank. Only to fall right into his claws as he grabbed my throat and squeezed. That’s when a terrible realization hit me: my talent hadn’t triggered during this beatdown.

…He held back, I realized.

I clawed at the hand, kicked at him with my hind legs, all for naught. His cold grasp got even colder, as did the spark in my chest. Darkness edged my vision, starved of oxygen and magic which he drained through his grip.

“You do not deserve my gifts…!” Malice seethed. “You deserve only death…!”

Purple and light blue magic bolts suddenly rained down his face, drawing his attention.

Now!

I thrusted both forehooves at his face and discharged a massive bolt with everything I had left. His grip loosed as he stepped back and snarled. In a panic I turned to run and put distance between us. This was a fatal mistake.

Malice grabbed a fistful of my wing. I glanced back in muted horror as he lifted his foot and kicked full force into my back.

An unholy shriek ripped out of my throat and throughout the cavern as my limp body was flung across the chamber like a rubberband. Paralyzing pain shot up my spine and spread across the rest of my body like wildfire. All control on my left side ceased. I was left convulsing and wailing at the unfathomable pain echoing in my back. Through blackening vision I spotted Malice casting my bloodied wing aside and rushing me with merciless abandon. I couldn’t move or even think straight, let alone fight back.

As a member of the Royal Guard, I’ve had to face all sorts of threats. Wandering dragons. Diamond dogs. Basilisks and chimeras. Changelings and manticores. Even Discord and Tirek, who overpowered us with their immense magical prowess. All of them were terrifying and dangerous in their own way.

But nothing, and I mean nothing, compared to what had just transpired.

All I could do was await the inevitable.

Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Applejack slammed into his side with just enough force to throw him off balance and stop his charge.

“Miserable pests!” With a roar and arm sweep, he tossed them aside like frisbees. Green magic reached me before his claws could, yanking me out of his clutches while Twilight screamed bloody murder and rained down magic bolts with the force of a Typhoon barrage.

For the second time in my life, I found myself clutched in Chrysalis’ hooves, albeit more cradled in her long leg than hugged. Any amount of gratefulness I had crumbled between the searing pain of torn muscle and cartilage and seething anger that they weren’t miles away from Malice by now.

None of that could compete with the mild heart attack I had when Malice’s greatsword cracked against Chrysalis’s hastily made shield.

“Fluttershy! Grab Flash and get out of here!” Chrysalis grunted with each blow to her shield.

“O-of course!” Fluttershy hurriedly snaked her trembling hooves under my neck and back, wincing at the amount of blood soaking my back. “I-I-I’m sorry Flash—Eep!” Another explosive spark of steel on magic rocked the barrier. Poor thing was in tears but still trying to put up a strong front. “I-It’s going to hurt, so please bear with me a little while.”

I tried to say something reassuring, or even smile to give her some encouragement. What came out was barely restrained screaming as the lack of cartilage in my back was more than a little distracting.

Fluttershy turned to leave, freezing solid when the blade swung her direction and crashed into the cracking shield. Even with Twilight and Rarity blasting at him with magic, even with Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rainbow Dash attacking him from behind, they were little more than pillow fighting foals with what little attention he paid them. His glare, however, aimed squarely at Chrysalis.

The contempt he had for me fizzled to the sheer hatred he felt for her.

“I gave you every chance!”

Malice shrugged Applejack off his shoulder so hard she nearly crashed past the entrance. His claw slammed onto the shield.

“You had every chance to save yourself! Even when I allowed you to leave with your miserable life to kill Flash Sentry!”

Black fire erupted off his body, breaking Rainbow Dash’s futile headlock and Pinkie’s arm bar by blasting them away. Cracks formed on the shield.

“After everything I’ve done for you and your pathetic hive, you spit in the face of your merciful god?!”

Heat from Malice stifled the air like an overheated sauna. Pathos rolled off him in powerful waves, nearly throwing any pony outside Chrysalis’ barrier off their hooves. A tiny ball of condensed black energy shimmered in his palm.

“You’ve crossed me for the last time, CHRYSALISSSS!”

Brilliant streaks of light cracked through the sphere. Fluttershy shielded me mere moments before it detonated. The barrier shattered instantly, swallowed by the white-hot flames. Had Twilight and Rarity’s shields emerged a second later, we would’ve been roasted alive. The concussive impact still managed to cut through, sending Fluttershy and I scattered across the chamber floor.

As the dust settled, Malice was the only one standing, palm still facing Chrysalis, who was in bad shape. She was slumped against the tree of harmony, a circular indent left on the tree’s surface where she had crashed from the force of the blast. Chrysalis groaned as her head lolled, cracks streaked all over her carapace. The rest of us were in only slightly better condition, lightly charred in black soot and struggling onto our hooves, an option well beyond my grasp.

Malice traversed the broken battlefield. Quiet. Focused. A long sword spawned in his hands. The grip on his blade had never been tighter, denting the metallic handle.

The look he gave Chrysalis could freeze Tartarus. He was done. Judging the expression on Chrysalis’ face as she slowly looked up at him, defiance and dread etched into her wide eyes, she was as well.

She knows…

Ice dropped in my stomach.

She knows she’s going to die.

I tried to pick myself up, only to collapse back onto the ground and barely stifled a scream from landing on my wounded side. The fact I wasn’t dead, let alone conscious, was a miracle. To do anything but watch Chrysalis perish was arguably worse.

After all my attempts and efforts. All the obstacles and monstrosities faced.

All the bloodshed. All those lost along the way.

Did it really all add up to me watching Chrysalis die?

...I failed my squad. Failed Shining. Failed Twilight. And now, Chrysalis and Noble?

Malice stopped right in front of her. He lifted the blade above his head. Time slowed.

I had failed them just like I had failed Wind Stride.

No… no…! Not again…!

My heartbeat quickened.

I didn’t come this far to roll over and play dead. I didn’t take on the armor and spear to let evil win.

My body tensed up.

And I sure as shit didn’t just save Chrysalis so she could die to her bastard of an ex now.

Fire rushed through my veins like a furnace. Indignant rage exploded from the depths of my soul. Pathos-filled air rushed into my lungs and delivered the boost I desperately needed.

Celestia be my witness, I won’t let you kill anyone else, Malice!

A well placed teleport brought me right next to Chrysalis. Malice was already well in his swing. Perception still delayed by my Sentry Sense, I shoved.

There was no time left for another teleport. His blade was sharp, heavy, and cold. My armor gave way in an instant. Malice compensated for my intrusion a second too late, driving his blade forward instead of across.

My Sentry Sense remained active the entire time, letting me witness the brutality of the moment with unexpected clarity as the blade plunged into my flesh.

I was shook to my core by the sword’s momentum. Frozen air was driven out of my lungs even as I wanted to gasp in shock.

Halfway through the blade’s length, and completely through me, it apparently ran into the tree itself. It was stopped dead, pinning me in place. Using what strength I had left, I managed to glance up.

Malice gaped as he realized what had happened.

A high-pitched scream resonated through the cave. Something small zipped through the air, leaving a hole where Malice’s wrist had been moments before.

More followed just as my vision lost focus. I wanted to look up again. Couldn’t move a muscle or open my eyes. Screams, curses, and bone-rattling roars were the last indications of what was transpiring around me, but they soon faded into a soft ringing.

Then there was silence. I tried to keep my vision focused on the ground as it narrowed, but darkness quickly overtook those efforts, too.

One last thought remained as all else was lost to darkness.

I saved Chrysalis.

A surreal satisfaction overtook me.

I kept my end of the deal, Noble.

I relaxed, content in the knowledge I had thrown one last wrench into Malice’s plans.

See you all on the other side—

*Such a witless, overconfident fool.*

The absurdity of Inner Malice’s comment cut through the darkness around me. Even in death, Inner Malice failed to not be an asshole. I’m dying, and you’re choosing this time to mock me?!

*You’re not dying today, so drop the dramatics.* His manner of speaking so matter-of-factly like I was being an idiot irritated me even more. *More importantly, you’re not the source of my ire. He put us exactly where we need to be.*

...This might be a new concept for you, but being stabbed by a giant-ass sword is pretty much the end for us mortals.

Inner Malice sighed heavily. I didn’t need to see him to know he was rolling his eyes. *Mortal? You gave up such excuses when you finally accepted your calling. Accepted me. Now stop trying to think like one and use your head. Think. Where are you right now?*

I couldn’t have been more confused. I’m in the chamber of the tree of harmony. Have you not been paying attention?

*Be specific. Where. Are. You?*

I’m at the tree of harmony. Well, more like pinned to… to…

I couldn’t believe I missed that. How could I have been so blind?

The tree is full of pathos…!

*Do my eyes deceive me? The colt can use his head after all!*

Could you not be a dick right now?

*If I stopped, you wouldn’t be irritated enough to passively absorb the pathos keeping you conscious.*

That caught me off guard. I was fading away moments before he made that smart-ass comment. Though the pain of steel splitting through flesh and bone was still present, I hadn’t noticed until now it was numbed enough to let me think straight.

Did… did you save my life by annoying the shit out of me?

*Stop dawdling and start eating. They won’t last long without you.*

That was more than enough motivation to pull my head back into the game. They were still fighting out there, and if I wanted to put an end to this once and for all, it started here.

As if reacting to my will to live, pathos coursed through the icy blade and into me. Soothing chill fought against the tide of agony paralyzing me, overcoming it little by little. Sounds of combat gradually returned to me, as did the light of exploding magic and Malice’s flames. My limbs twitched with life, fighting for movement.

This was not enough.

Though strength was returning to my broken body, that burst of power I felt the first time I absorbed pathos did not reach me. Like molasses filling a plate of pancakes, progressing too slow for my taste.

Come on…! Come on! Why can’t this go any faster?!

*Flash, if there’s any advice I offer that you heed, make it this one. You have the ability. The most ability I’ve seen since Chrysalis. The issue is not with pathos. No amount of force or technique will save you if you can’t acknowledge the real problem.*

The underline accusation hit me like, well, a sword to the chest. The depth of the cut was outweighed by the truth that dwelled within it.

Chrysalis’ magic lesson jumped to the forefront of my thoughts. How magic was interwoven with the heart. The nature of pathos and emotions tied to it.

The body absorbs magic. The heart processes and releases...

That drove the point home. I didn’t want to believe it. I couldn’t bring myself to admit what was truly at fault and the lives it cost. Yet no other answer came to mind. All facts pointed at the true source of weakness.

...It’s me, isn’t it? Even with everyone being in grave danger, something’s holding me back.

*Fear.*

His ingenuity hit me harder than any of his punches. It was decidedly worse than him belittling me, especially when I realized he was right.

Even with so much on the line, why can’t I break through?!

*It would be irresponsible to believe you would overcome your failings overnight. No matter what weapon you carry or what power you possess, you’re just a pony. A pony with an edge who is now realizing how far out of his depth he truly is. Reckless courage suppresses the fear, but never truly eliminates it. Fafnir had struggled with similar failings during his early years.*

Fafnir?

*My first champion. My... legacy.*

As those words rolled off his incorporeal tongue, a bottomless wound revealed itself. No snark or deceit settled in his tone. This was more than a confession of weakness: it was a leap of faith. Pure honesty.

Back when you were trying to take over me, was he the ‘something important’ you lost because of Discord?

*Kill the false Emperor, then we can go down memory lane while breaking bread over a campfire. Beside the point, the core problem he had is not all that different from your own. The answer you seek, the same conclusion Fafnir arrived at, you already know.*

An answer I already knew…

When my eyes opened, it drew to the sword plunged through me.

...the reason I got this far...

I looked up at Twilight and Chrysalis, pushing against streams of black fire.

...And somehow pulled off the impossible.

Gazing down at the blade again, heat flooded through my limbs as I grasped the blade.

Thank you, Malice.

*You can thank me by doing your duty. What you were born to do.*

Lightning coursed wildly around my hooves as I fought to pull the sword out.

*You’re more than a pegasus. More than a soldier.*

Streaks of lightning grew stronger and faster, sparking dangerously through the sword and into my limbs.

*You are a warrior!*

“No,” I growled. “ I am… A Royal Guard!”

White lightning turned gold as I pulled the sword out and dropped to the ground on my hooves. A sharp crack of electricity rippled from me as I landed, wound fully closed before I drew my first breath. Any pain and exhaustion from earlier was washed aside, replaced with a surge of invigorating inspiration and drive governed with purpose. Such overwhelming power threatened to burst out of my chest like a supernova.

Never in my life had I felt so powerful. So ready...to tear this sonuva bitch apart!

“NO!”

Malice’s wrathful cry brought me back to reality in the form of a raging dragon racing towards me. I dashed at him without a second thought.

Malice was as fast. But now, I was faster.

A burst of gold lightning exploded on impact. Malice’s body crashed through the ceiling seconds before an echoing boom rocked the chamber.

Silence filled the room, save for strangled gasps coming from several ponies and one changeling, followed by the clattering of a dented draconic helmet.

“Flash, you’re alive!” Twilight finally spoke. “How on—”

“It’s not over.” I hurried over to the blade Malice stabbed me with and picked it up.

“Flash,” Chrysalis started, “you don’t have to worry about the network. It’s done. Now I—that is, we—can take that bastard out together.”

“Don’t.” I threw a cold glance at Chrysalis and the others. “Your daughter is out there fighting to save Ponyville alongside the Crystal Guard. I need everypony here to be away from this place and out there keeping everyone alive!”

As if to prove my point, a distant boom rocked the foundation of the chamber. Dust and small rocks rained down from above, moments before a strong gust howled past the hole in the ceiling. I’d guessed it was Malice’s doing at first, but the lack of pathos involved brought a new world of concern involving a certain changeling and the amount of artillery I left at her disposal.

Somehow, I just knew Noble was involved in some weird way.

It was the catalyst I needed to galvanize everyone to reorganize their priorities. I was thankful for their consideration, but the guards on the frontline needed every hoof they could get.

“Chrysalis, make sure Twilight and the others get as far from here as possible. Run, see what’s going on in Ponyville, and don’t look back!”

“Don’t do this, Flash.” The strength in Twilight’s voice wavered. I didn’t dare look at her. “You almost died back there! Again! You’re strong. Different. That much is clear. But this is not a fight to do alone. It never has been.”

After everything she’s been through, all the horrors I subjected her to through my failure as her guard, she was still willing to fight beside me. I expected her at the very least to withdraw me from combat after my crushing defeat in round one. The thought of pampering me due to my failures hadn’t crossed her mind once.

I couldn’t have asked for more from my princess.

“I know.” Renewed resolve and purpose swelled in me as I hopped into the air. “That’s why I’m not going alone!”

Whatever Twilight yelled out faded as I flew through the opening carved through Malice’s exit. Her magic threatened to wrap around and pull me back, belayed by a faint green barrier protecting me from it. Some twisted part of me couldn’t help but smile.

“Thanks for understanding, Chrysalis,” I muttered.

*Your princess had a point. We could use that kind of firepower on our side. Do you fear they will hold you back?*

“I wouldn’t be able to go all out if I kept worrying about them.”

*Choosing me over your precious little princess. Careful, the mares will get jealous.*

“Cadance always did say mares love a stallion in uniform, but let’s worry about that after I ripped Malice a new one.”

*Haha! Knew I picked the right soldier for the job. Let’s finish this, Flash Sentry!*

“Right!” With a mighty beat of my wings I zipped into the clouds where I sensed Malice’s violent pathos pulsating.

The war raging in Ponyville came to mind during my flight, specifically the explosion from earlier. I snuck a glance at the town, only to nearly lose my flight balance.

Entire portions of Everfree were obliterated. Smoking clearings filled several gaps near the Ponyville border and travelled towards a much, much bigger crater. It took me a moment to realize this was where the town hall had been.

Majority of the town was in complete ruin. Thick columns of smoke ascended from burning buildings and collapsed houses. I was forced to stop upon seeing the state of Twilight’s castle, my jaw dropping.

*...Damn.* Inner Malice muttered in awe. I could only nod in agreement.

Noble, what did you do?!

I would have immediately sought out Noble for answers had the battlefield not been so quiet. Whatever had transpired, the fight was obviously over. There was just one giant angry lizard left to put into the ground.

Finding the pathos signature of Malice was simple despite how thick the atmosphere was with it. I made for the cloud closest to the source at maximum speed and tightened the grip on my blade.

Malice had stood on one of the passing clouds, arms crossed and expression hard. I breached the clouds and closed the distance in the blink of an eye. My blade sliced into his armguard, biting into the metal. His arm trembled with effort as he held me off.

“...I see it,” Malice snarled, black smoke wafting out of his lungs. “You’re finally serious.”

“I’ve always been serious, Malice. Just had to do a little soul searching.”

Malice smirked. “I know from personal experience how easy it is to get lost within yourself.” I flew back just before his other claw could catch me and landed on an adjacent cloud. “I should be more surprised to see you alive and flying, and yet I couldn’t be happier.”

Everything about his demeanor changed as he assumed a fighting stance. Black flames of pathos coated his massive frame like a bonfire. “I acknowledge your worth, Flash Sentry. Rest well knowing I will visit and honor your gravestone.”

“That’s our line, Malice.”

“Our…?” Confused dawned on him, shortly followed by a disapproving grunt. “Cute.”

“Bitch, I’m adorable.”

He appeared at my side in a flash. I reared back and used both forehooves to block his fist with my blade. “Underestimating us will be your undoing!”

I shouted in thunderous unison as I pushed off Malice and lunged through the air.

“THIS ENDS NOW!”

The electrified blade cleaved into his armored ribs, tearing through chainmail and scales. He brushed off my follow-up cut and raked my face with searing claws. He froze upon realizing that was not enough to stop me. Such pause cost him several deep gashes on his chest and stomach from my flurry of blade strikes. One of my strikes bit his shoulder before his palm strike knocked me back.

I sank into the cloud to avoid his lunge. While under it, I struck the cloud with my hoof.

Pegasi magic shot into it and exploded like an overloaded lightning vane. Malice’s roar echoed throughout the endless blue sky. I darted through the clouds and slashed upward. I struck air. A fireball sailed at me a few clouds to the left, dispelled with a clean cut with my Spark-infuse blade.

“Not bad,” he huffed. Fine trails of smoke still rose from his scales and armor.

An idea struck me. Looking around, I spotted more than enough raw material. “Bitch… you haven’t seen half of it.”

Spreading my wings, I created strong gusts of wind. Not at him, but at the clusters of clouds around us. Malice prepared himself, armor regrowing from pathos twice as thick as before. He knew I was up to something, but he had no way of telling what was about to come.

Trapped by his curiosity, he watched as the cloud cover began to encircle us.

Static soon began to pull at my feathers as the clouds rubbed against one another, amplified pegasus magic working hoof in hoof with ancient weather phenomena. As the clouds darkened and small lightnings began to dance across their surfaces, Malice finally understood.

He came at me like an arrow, determined to interrupt me before my work was done.

Too late, sucker!

My fur stood on end as more and more arcs connected with my hooves: A sign the clouds were ready to discharge their bounty. Time slowed around me as his fist headed for my face, giving me an extra second to admire the blend of fury and trouble etched into his face.

A fraction of a second before he reached me, I extended my hoof. The sky erupted with blinding light as a thunderbolt unprecedented in power arced over the gap and into his fist. Time accelerated back to normal just as a record thunderclap boomed across the landscape.

Malice was tossed into the distance like a pebble, every cloud in his path torn apart by the impact energy and the hot furious arc of electricity that followed him.

He caught himself on a distant cloud dozens of meters away. Bolts of energy zapped from his smoking scales back into the clouds. Wisps of pathos remained where his zapped arm had been. Within moments surrounding pathos was absorbed into the stump, quickly reforging a new arm, armor and all.

I took a breath, tasting prickly static in my mouth. When I spoke, Inner Malice’s voice joined in deep unison. “It’s showtime!”

I reached out for the cloud underneath Malice and yanked my hoof upwards. Lightning obeyed my command and bathed him in another powerful discharge. I dashed forward before he recovered. Arcs connected with my body as I moved across the charged-up clouds.

Malice crossed his arms in defense, not realising he wasn’t my target. Instead, I dove into his cloud just short of his feet and punched upwards from underneath him. The thunderbolt that followed blasted the entire cloud apart. Malice was hurled into the air like a ragdoll; even the god of war was but a plaything compared to the powers of nature.

I was already back in motion before he started falling back down. Zipping around him in a spiral, all the clouds I had previously used were sucked into a single giant hurricane. Tossed around by the powerful winds, Malice was zapped more than once by the clouds around him.

I was about to deliver the final punch when the clouds, hurricane, and even the air in my lungs suddenly froze to painfully low temperatures.

The tornado that had held Malice trapped was blasted apart by a wave of icicles. Several of the deadly missiles nearly got me.

Too busy dodging them, I had no way of stopping Malice before he propelled himself towards me.

“ENOUGH!!!” his voice boomed across the battlefield.

I swung my sword towards him, but he simply dashed into it. Ignoring the blade biting his bicep, he grabbed my hindleg. With a mighty spin he yanked me towards the earth like a cannonball.

He was in hot pursuit long before I had a chance to decelerate.

Pushing aerial recovery aside, I was forced to clash with the giant dragon spirit while in freefall.

Blade clashed against claw as we fell at terminal velocity. Whenever I tried to fly up he clawed me back down. His attempt to recover ended with my blade biting into his flesh. We twisted in the air in a chaotic aerial deathmatch equally matched in speed, finesse, and power.

A swift headbutt knocked me back. With a roar he dove in for the kill and cleaved with his claw.

Fire met frost as my ice clone melted in his grip. He glanced over his shoulder and noticed my hoof too late.

A thunderous boom ripped through the sky as the furious war god plummeted into the ground like a meteor. Trees and rocky debris exploded into the air. Dirt and black smoke from the pathos flames masked his condition. I teleported down and readied my blade.

Malice was gone.

The debris had just started falling back down when I sensed a burst of pathos to my side. I turned and sliced. My sword cut only smoke. The parted smoke swirled and shifted into a flying dark fist.

I stumbled back, dazed from the surprise attack, and fell into another smoke strike that clawed my side. I dashed to escape from the smokescreen ambush. My exit was blocked by a flurry of nigh-invisible attacks coming rapid fire from all sides. I twisted and turned, blocked and struck, dipped and dodged the onslaught of this bizarre assault. If he thought this would do me in, he was about to have a rude awakening.

A burst of magic wind from my wings foiled the assault and parted all the surrounding smoke. On cue, the smoke pulled itself together to reform the fallen Emperor himself, an enflamed longsword in hand alongside reforged armor. I followed suit and conjured ice variant Royal Guard armor.

Four pulses of pathos erupted from behind me. I turned and readied my blade, reminded of Malice’s vassals who had been guarding the entrance to the tree of harmony. They charged at me—

“Halt!”

They stopped as if frozen in time, eyes on the fallen emperor who regarded them with dirty looks.

“This is my quarry. I have a better use for you.” Malice beckoned them with his hand. The vassals zipped around me and towards Malice, diving into his body. Their pathos signatures faded as they were absorbed. He answered the question before I could ask. “The honor of killing you is for me alone!”

With a thunderous warcry we charged in.

When our blades clashed, Malice’s blade ignited like dynamite. Black fire roared from the explosion and threw me out of the clearing and into a grove of trees. I recovered to a giant claw made of pathos flames rushing me from afar. I dove at the fire and, fueling my blade with spark magic, split the flames apart. The trees around me were not as fortunate, set ablaze by the pathos flames and severed by my eviscerating wind.Malice charged at me while making a grabbing motion with his free hand. This was mirrored in the flames as animated fire lurched out to grab me.

I flew at Malice while twisting in the air, simultaneously spinning my blade to part the flames like a wave funnel. My blade barely pierced his chest before his right hook caught my cheek.

With a battlecry rivaling Malice’s, I channeled my healing factor and shot after him. Fire and lighting swords met in a blinding flash of magic. Malice screamed into his attacks as I did with my blade strikes. Some of his blows were allowed to connect, earning burning claw marks and blade gashes along my face and barrel, if only to ensure my sword connected with his chest, face and limbs in kind. Pathos whipped around us as rivaling storms, healing and fueling us just as fast as we ate through our energy reserves.

The landscape was devoured in the inferno. More and more of the forest fell victim to Malice’s fiery attacks, transforming the world around us into the blazing pits of Tartarus itself. An advantage I planned to make use of.

I vanished just before his blade touched me and reappeared behind a wall of burning bushes. Channeling Spark into my wings, I fanned the flames toward Malice, throwing boiling mists of steam into the mix. All was going well until a torn down tree was hurled through it. I ducked in time to dodge, but due to the thick smoke failed to notice the angry dragon riding it until he fell upon me.

Hot sparks had melted his armor and flesh away, yet he tackled me to the floor regardless of it, knocking the sword out of my hoof. His blade dropped at my neck like a guillotine, held back only by spark-empowered hooves. Slowly but surely his blade drew closer to my throat.

When it was close enough to touch my fur, and when the steam had soaked his body enough, I ignited myself with gold lightning.

It traveled through the blade, the armor, and his soaked body to deliver a shock powerful enough to paralyze him. It also gave me just enough of a window to shove him off and squirm towards my blade. Malice rolled away, staggering from the shock while I seized the opening to strike.

Only to catch a familiar black sphere floating in his palm.

“Shi—”

The hastily crafted shield wall saved my life against the pathos bomb. Though I was not blown to bits, I was sent hurtling and tumbling through the trees and deeper into the forest. Rising to my hooves, I attempted to catch my breath when I found a lack of Malice. Instead, another pathos bomb appeared next to my position.

I darted away just in time to avoid the detonation unscathed, only to find even more spawning in my running path. Explosions followed my every step while I hunted around for Malice’s whereabouts, forced to take into the sky and avoid a trail of deadly detonations.

Malice greeted me the moment I broke through the treeline and grabbed my throat. Instincts guided my blade to stab his chest, stopped by a tail wrapped around my forehoof. My hoof couldn’t move.

As he realized a second too late, neither could he.

I poured Spark into my blade-wielding forehoof as if loading a spring. Just as Twilight had done with those rocks, I focused it all into a point between my hoof and the blade hilt.

Just before his other hand could unleash a point-blank pathos bomb, I released the power and blade.

A shockwave erupted between us like the firing of a Typhoon cannon. Unspeakable pain echoed through his expression as he let go, dropping me back into the forest. I wasn’t sure where my sword had ended up, my only evidence being the hole in the distant cloud cover behind Malice, which I could see through the gaping void in his chest.

Several branches broke my fall as I plummeted back to the ground. Similar sounds echoed in the distance where Malice would have fallen. An uncomfortable pause followed as I used the chance to recharge using the thinning supply of pathos floating in the air.

“We burned through more pathos than I expected.” I pondered quietly between labored breaths. “But that should’ve done the trick and took him out.”

*Take the hoof out of your mouth. It’s not over yet,” Inner Malice warned.

Are you serious? He had a hole in his chest!

*So did you, and yet here you are whining. Not so different for a spirit, though no doubt still a critical blow.*

Whatever argument I had in mind faded in the face of such an obvious fact. If I could survive that, no doubt he could as well. That just begged the question. What in Tartarus does it take to kill him then?

The most uncomfortable pause followed. It took a moment for me to realize why; it would work on him too. No way he would give me that much ammunition against him.

Nevermind. I’ll figure it—

*Crush his will.*

Malice…?

*Pathos is living, conscious magic. We are living magic, shaped and emboldened by our will and conscience. Without will, without consciousness, we cannot maintain physical form and function. Outside some exceptions, the pain we suffer must exceed our will of existence for us to truly be defeated.*

So I’m not killing him, but killing his will to exist…?

The lack of snark or vagueness in his words matched the weight of this guarded secret.

*Your victory is close. Any other foe would’ve fallen then and there. Unfortunately, you will have to deal with what comes next now that he’s all too aware of his approaching ruin.*

On cue, a tidal wave of pathos washed over the forest and towards Malice. I drank in what I could to top off my reserves. What followed was a howl so shrill and loud it drilled down to my bones. Primal instincts screamed at me to run and hide under the biggest rock I could find. But I was long past running.

*Be wary of one thing, Flash,* Inner Malice started. *What you just heard is the beginning of the end. This creature is no longer the fallen Emperor, but fury given life and purpose to do one thing: kill you.*

Through the forest depths, beyond the roaring flames, piercing red eyes cut through the fog of war and locked onto my own.

*What you face now is the fallen Emperor’s madness weaponized: a true berserker.*

The grip on my blade tightened. I readied myself into a fighting stance and braced for what I imagined was the final showdown. As the mad Emperor stared me down, I stared back.

I beckoned him with my hoof. “Bring it.”

A trail of fire blazed behind Malice as he closed the gap in a single leap.

Freight-train force rushed past me as I pivoted his claw strike. Pathos followed the shadow of his swipe, upheaving several yards of earth. I moved to stab his chest again, only to find the hole was still there, wisps of pathos bleeding from his wounds and maw. I went for his stomach instead. Tendril pathos flames leapt from his body and caught my blade.

I let go and darted back as his claw missed and slammed the ground. The fires of tartarus erupted where his claw landed, dirt and black flame rose into the sky. I made for the forest, Malice hot on my tail.

Better try harder than that to catch me…!

My wings beat harder than ever, zipping around the trees and through foliage. Heightened reflexes turned the twisting vines and thick branches into my own personal jungle gym, bouncing off trees to quickly change direction. I twisted my body in mid-air to throw a rapid series of ice javelins and empowered golden bolts to chip away at him with every opportunity.

Trees and boulders broke away to the stampeding whirlwind. His leaping footfalls struck the ground with the force of a comet. Malice’s pathos aura slung him around like an agile spider while his claws dug into whatever they could to drift him around tight corners. Somehow he was still faster than me. My saving grace was my unmatched agility and throwing chunks of sharp glaciers at his face.

*Please tell me you have a plan better than running away.*

I’m not running from him.

I kicked off a tree just in time to avoid a rain of molten pathos fireballs bathing the area in fire.

I’m pulling him along for the ride.

With a mid-air front flip I shot a two-hoof thunderbolt at his face. The force of the blast flipped me around without much loss of momentum. Good thing, as I narrowly evaded Malice’s lunging slash that threatened to split Everfree in half.

I can’t beat his pathos absorption. Can’t overpower him either. Killing him only makes him angrier. But one thing I can do better than anyone else is piss him off!

Molten fireballs launched out of him and rained down my position. I channeled spark into my ice armor, enough to stave off the sweltering heat from the inferno the forest was transforming into. What he had gained in pure destructive power he lost in accuracy, a weakness I fully planned on exploiting.

*...Yes, I can attest to that. I’m surprised that isn’t your cutie mark talent.*

Malice slid in front of me, poised to strike. I sped up even faster and tackled into his chest. Trees and rocks were blown away as we barreled dozens of meters through the trees, clawing and punching at each other like animals. After getting in a good hook to his jaw, I threw up an ice shield between us. The ice wall shattered in a single blow. I repaid him in kind and shattered his expectations with a flying buck to the back of his head.

Malice stumbled forward. By the time he regained his balance, the chase was on as I ran further into the depths of the trees. Judging from the ear-piercing roar, he was not a fan of the slip I gave him.

That anger and pride is his greatest weakness. The more pissed off he is, the more energy he uses. More careless opportunities he leaves open for me to kick his face in.

Towers of magma erupted all around me, twisting and forming claws as they rained down on me. Combined with walls of black ice popping up to block my path, Malice tried his damndest to warp and twist every bit of nature he could grab just to catch me.

He’s sucking up the well of pathos floating around dry. I’ll give it a few minutes at most before he cleans up his plate.

*So that hasn’t been lost on you after all. When did you realize this?*

Before I even stepped into the tree of harmony I knew the key laid somewhere in dealing with the overabundance of pathos. What you said about willpower and seeing his resilience for myself confirmed everything I need to know. As long as I stay efficient with my Overspark, I’ll win the long game and leave him high and dry.

*If he decides you will have anything left in the long game.*

Inner Malice’s haunting words planted a seed of doubt in my attrition plan. That doubt grew when I realized Malice was no longer chasing me… then blossomed when I saw he had jumped high into the sky.

The floating pathos in the air swirled faster and faster until it funneled towards Malice like a cyclone. Alarms rang loudly from the back of my mind as he pulled the surrounding pathos into himself, brimming like a second sun while the world around us grew darker each passing second.

*...Oh no.*

When Inner Malice got spooked, I knew I was in deep shit.

“What… what’s he... No, don’t tell me…” I didn’t dare put that idea into the universe.

Malice threw his hands in the air, palms facing up. A large pathos bomb formed above his head. It grew bigger.

And bigger…

And bigger…!

All the while Malice laughed like a lunatic.

“He’s not serious…! Please tell me he’s not serious!”

*I…* Inner Malice trailed off, lost for words. *His mind is truly gone. He would rather glass this entire region than lose his pride.*

Judging how the sheer power wafting from the eclipsing sphere made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, I had no reason to doubt this.

I grabbed my shaking hoof and forced it still, glaring up at the extinction-sized pathos bomb brewing in the sky.

“I have to stop him before that sphere grows bigger.”

*Wait!* Inner Malice screamed in my head just before I could take flight.

If I wait, he will kill us all!

*It’s already too late to interrupt him. If you rush in like a fool now, you will trade your life for nothing.*

Explain. Now.

*He chose that spot for a reason. He wants you to see him. Wants to bait you into attacking. It appears like a trade; your life for everyone else’s. But the moment you’re gone, nobody will be left to stop him. He’ll drain the pathos from your obliterated corpse and head to town to do it again.*

Gravity seemed to pull into the whirling orb of pure magic growing in his palm. The flaming tornado rising from the forest, I realized, was a by-product of the magical devastation being conjured in his hands.

Inner Malice continued. *Anything touching that sphere will be annihilated. Even you. However, there will be a single window of opportunity to strike him down. You can probably guess when.*

“...When he throws it, isn’t it?”

*Powerful as he is, even he will need his full focus to throw it. That single instant is your chance to land a decisive blow.*

“Right… and what about the Celestia-damned ball of death?”

*Too late. Unless you have a weapon as powerful as the false Emperor himself to counter it… I suggest praying for a miracle.*

“Helpful as always, Malice,” I rolled my eyes. Where the hay could I find something as powerful as Malice himself on such short notice? I doubt even Discord could deal with this in his weakened state.

Something as powerful as Malice… as powerful as…

I stared up at Malice, then the enormous ball of death looming overhead, casting a shadow over the entire forest.

...I got it!

*Impossible.*

A pause followed. He must’ve sensed my determination. *Wait, what crazy scheme did you cook up this time?*

I grinned.

“A miracle.”

I teleported atop the tree of harmony’s cave in clear view of Malice.

“MALICE!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. “I’ve let you live long enough! Let’s finish this fight once and for all! Give me all you got!”

The widest of maniacal grins spread on Malice’s face as the death sphere swelled in size and density. I could feel it now, the pure malevolence, the hatred and pain of a thousand creatures and soldiers, channeled and trapped inside the spell. With so much power, I couldn’t sense a drop of pathos anywhere else. This really would be the end of everything it touched.

With a deep breath, I gathered every drop of power I could muster, spark within as well as the nearby streams of pathos energy. Golden electricity wrapped around me, flashing and sparking like the world’s most volatile thundercloud.

“No fear… yes I can…”

While Malice’s absorption of power ravaged the world around him, I followed suit to fill myself with as much Spark as I could harness. Power radiated off me like an exploding star, uncontrollable electricity ripping out of me and tearing apart the landscape.

“No fear… yes I can…!”

I steadied my breath. Braced my racing heart.

*Ready…!*

“No fear!”

And prepared to deal the final blow to that arrogant bastard.

*GO!*

“YES I CAN!”

Malice roared as he hurled the death sphere at me.

I fired myself forward like the sword I threw earlier. Spark wrapped around my bones, protecting them from shattering like eggshells. The pathos sphere approached me at many times the speed of sound. I closed in on it so fast, even my sentry sense barely changed my perception of coming doom.

The moment before the sphere and I connected, I vanished in a teleport.

The heavens trembled as I reentered the atmosphere behind the sphere.

Behind it, and in front of Malice.

He didn’t even have time to look surprised before I tackled into him. His claws moved around me in slow motion while I triggered another teleport.

Golden Spark exploded from our bodies as we appeared in the same spot from which I had vanished - right in the path of the sphere.

Time nearly stopped as his mouth opened for an anguished cry of surprise he’d never manage to voice out before he slammed back-first into his own creation.

Streaks of light and darkness pierced through his body. The sphere was both burning hot and ice cold on touch.

His face was frozen in horror as we plunged into complete darkness together. Last thing I remembered was an icy veil of blue coating my golden form and Inner Malice screaming my name.

“...tay with me…”

A voice reached me through glimpses of flickering consciousness. My body weighed like lead. So heavy I could only open my eyes for scant moments at a time, catching a bluish figure through the haze. Through the ringing in my ears I listened for the voice again.

“Don’t you dare…” The voice’s owner grunted and growled with effort. “Die on me, colt! Stay with me!”

With a mighty roar something huge was heaved to the side from above me, landing with a hefty clash of stone against stone. Whoever moved that rock off me rapidly lost opacity and fell into me, voice losing strength as fast as I did.

“You… owe me—”

His words continued seamlessly in my mind, still fading.

*—again, Flash Sentry…*

I awoke with a dried-out throat and thunderous headache. Turning on my side, dust and debris rolled off my bloodied and singed fur.

It was hard to even catch enough breath for a cough. Pain pierced through my fetlocks as I tried to pick myself off the ground. With so much dirt and dust clouding my vision, I could only make out my immediate surroundings: rocks and sharp edged boulders lay all around me. A layer of dirt and burnt grass covered everything.

I stepped forward and slipped, noticing too late I had been laying on one such boulder myself. Tumbling over the ground, I was soon stopped by a rock between my ribs. I tried again while muttering curses at that particularly sharp rock jabbing my sides, this time rubbing the dirt out of my face first.

My eyes were greeted with nothing but greyscale. I had little orientation; rugged cliffs in all directions restricted my view. I coughed again, this time spitting out the dirt I must have breathed in while unconscious. A few drops of blood came with it.

I tilted my head, trying to stretch and straighten myself. A look to the sky revealed nothing but dust clouds; not a single ray of sunlight in sight, as if they were hiding from what had happened.

What… had happened, exactly?

I carefully wandered through the broken landscape. Some boulders were the size of myself. Others were way taller, restricting my view. For a moment it crossed my mind to spread my wings and fly atop one to see more, but I couldn’t find the strength to even try.

Tartarus knows if my spellcraft wing was even there anymore. My skin was still numb, the only evidence of my legs still being in one piece were my slow but steady steps across the scene of devastation. I couldn’t even find the focus to just turn my head and look at how the damn stub was doing.

I wasn’t even sure if I was awake. Was this just another dream? A hallucination caused by some overload of my Spark?

Or… maybe I just hadn’t made it. That was a valid enough option, too.

I had wondered if there was a way to find out, and the best thought that struck me was to shout out for someone. Unsure what answer I even expected, I gathered all my breath.

“H-hello?”

The supposed shout manifested as barely a whisper. Throat still dried out, jaw aching, I was spooked how hollow my voice sounded.

“A-anyone here?”

I was met with silence. If this was the afterlife; the welcoming left a lot to be desired.

M-malice?

Even in my own mind my voice sounded faint. Distant, and quiet. There was no answer.

I slowly proceeded through the dead, silent, dusty wasteland. The only sounds at all came from the occasional pebble I accidentally kicked away; the clattering of rock against rock way louder than I was prepared for.

It was only when I passed by a boulder easily three times my size that I stopped my exploration. Behind it, a rugged and pointy grey monolith reached high up into the sky. Its tip was spliced, like a tree struck down and ravaged by lightning.

A tree…

Something slowly surfaced in the back of my mind.

A tree…. The tree?

The tree of harmony?

I carefully approached the monolith. Its round shape, its surface…

My hoof extended to touch its charred exterior. It was still warm.

A piece broke off where I had touched it, shattering on the ground like glass. The high-pitched clanking echoed through the cave like a whiplash.

The cave. I was in the cave of harmony.

I eyed my surroundings with newfound realization. Those tall cliffs all around me… those had been the ice-covered walls of the cave of harmony not long before.

Or… maybe it had been long before. Had no idea how long I had been unconscious.

A horrifying possibility struck home. I couldn’t have been gone for more than an hour or two, else somepony would’ve come looking for me by now. As long as there was still somepony out there to make a search and rescue effort.

A lead weight dropped into my stomach. Inner Malice had spoken of the possible devastation of the spell, but this…?

Was anyone in Ponyville still left?

Something icy grabbed my chest and squeezed. Was anyone in Equestria still left?

“M-malice?” I caught my breath. “Malice?! Answer me!”

Silence. Rage surged through my veins. “MALICE, ANSWER ME!”

“Answer me!”

“Answer me!”

“Answer me.”

“Ans—”

Only my fainting echo cared to reply. Pain and uncertainty and anger all gathered in my chest. My vision grew blurry as tears slowly ran over my dusty face.

“MALICE!!!”

*Ugh….*

Malice, you dirty, rotten, no-good bastard! You’re alive!

I was overjoyed, at least for the moment. Just knowing I wasn’t alone in this, whatever this was.

*Quiet…* he groaned. *What… what happened?*

What do you mean, ‘what happened’? This was your spell, I mean his spell, I mean… “Gaah!”

Frustration took hold as I shouted. What in Tartarus had happened to him? This was miles beyond the Inner Malice I had fought with just moments ago.

Where the fuck have you been?

*Where was I supposed to go, you ignorant fool?!* he hissed back. For some weird reason, I welcomed his biting anger way more than his uncertainty. *I’m still here, evidentially.*

“I think we’re in the cave of harmony. Or…” My voice broke. “Or whatever’s left of it.”

*Ugh, I can see that. We survived where that stupid tree failed, I guess.*

Malice!

*What? We have bigger problems right now than a lack of magical forestation.*

I hated him for it, but I had to agree. The long-term consequences of this would have to wait. Right. What now?

I sensed his racing thoughts. Yet he didn’t answer. Malice? What now?! How… How big was this explosion?

There was a harrowingly long pause before he answered. *I haven’t the slightest idea. I don’t think a spell this size has ever been cast before.*

Didn’t you bring ruin to entire armies before? You must know this spell better than anyone!

*I took those lives by sword and claw. I never had the need to channel so much power at once, save for my fight with…* He paused.

With Discord. And let me guess, he stopped you long before you could even try something like this.

His silence was answer enough. So… how do we...

*Make your way to the edge of the crater. I will try to gather our strength from within until then. You cannot replace your wing with what little power you have left, and the walls are too steep to climb.*

And then?

Silence. Then again, I already knew what would come next. We’d have to head to town and see for ourselves how far the devastation reached. The thought alone almost made my legs give in underneath me.

My heart pounded as I traversed the final stretches of the rocky wasteland. Dust and shattered rock crunched under my hooves at every step, and my fetlocks began to ache again from the uneven paths I had to take.

Moments before reaching the cliff ahead, an icy shock rooted me in place. I knew it came from my inner companion, but I couldn’t tell why before he shared his realization with me.

*He’s… not dead yet…!*

WHAT?!

*The false Emperor lives! Do I need to spell it out for you?*

How in the world could he have survived that!? Actually, nevermind. I’ll see for myself!

I gathered what little strength I had left. No time to ponder on the why or how. There were no two ways about it; Only one of us would leave this crater.

My focus was subconsciously drawn towards the far left of my vision; opposite of the tree from where I had awoken, essentially.

*Good. You still have some fight left. You’ll need it.*

An ice spear manifested in my forehoof. Using that much energy nearly stole my consciousness. Not a lot of power left. It would have to be enough.

With every step I took towards him, doubt and worry fell off my shoulders in waves.

For once in my life, nothing else mattered.

Not Ponyville.

Not Equestria.

Not even my own fate.

Determination embraced me like warm rays of sunlight breaking through an ancient, endless cloud cover.

Inner Malice didn’t say a word. There was nothing left to talk about. Waves of spark rushed into the tip of the ethereal spear. He was just as eager as I was.

I knew I had almost reached him. His signature was weak, as if he was trying to hide his presence. Yet I could sense him behind the final boulder as clear as day.

I stepped around it. Muscle memory kicked in as I lifted the spear above my head, its blade shivering with power.

I was met with terror.

Malice laid splayed on the ground, one working eye wide open as he inhaled deep gulps of air. Half of his face was little more than a ghostly wisps of pathos trying to repair itself. Large sections of his arms, legs, and torso had gaps all over them; his pathos fighting an uphill battle against the damages. Shock was frozen on his face, mouth ajar. His armor was in tatters, fitting for what was a shell of his former self.

I stared at him for a long, quiet moment.

“...the fuck is this?”

*End him!* Inner Malice pressed with urgency. *End him now!*

I stared at the hapless, hopeless, pathetic shell with nothing but disappointment.

Slowly, I lowered the spear. “This is a fucking joke,” I whispered, before absorbing the magic back into my soul.

Malice tried to scramble onto his feet. He teetered, and tripped onto his face. Muffled cursing and groans were pulled out of him. He could barely stand, let alone fight.

All his fight, his struggle… all this devastation and bloodshed…

I had no words to describe the emptiness that hit me.

Malice’s glare sharpened. His efforts doubled as he scrambled onto his feet, stumbling backwards and away from me in the process.

I extended my hoof and fired a blast of Spark into his chest, flipping him back onto his ass like a tossed coin.

“Sit,” I commanded.

A snarl ripped out of his throat. He rose back up, a clawful of dirt barely hidden behind his back. “You do not command me!”

He threw the dirt at my eyes, followed quickly by an attempted punch to my muzzle. I sensed his fist coming even with my vision blurry and disturbed. I caught it halfway and pulled, yanking him into my throat punch.

He dropped to the ground with a wheeze.

“Still feel like an Emperor, Malice? Were all of those sacrifices worth it?”

No answer.

“You ruined so many lives. Caused all this destruction and madness. And for what, some Celestia-damned revenge?!”

He scrambled again, caught between hatred and despair. The fact he refused to answer even now got to me like nothing else.

“WHAT FOR?!” I shouted.

Energy built up in my chest. I aimed my forehooves at the boulders left and right of us and discharged it; blasting them to smithereens with the gesture alone. The ground trembled underneath us as a fine hail of hot gravel rained down across the scene.

Malice laughed, bitter and spiteful.

“Revenge? This coming from you?” He staggered and wobbled where he stood, no amusement reaching his eyes. “Fucking rich.”

Every word dripped with venom as he sauntered towards me.

“I don’t answer to you, colt. Go ahead, hate my methods all you like. Curse me till your voice runs as hollow as your future. I will not stop until I drown this land in war and hate. As long as Discord still breathes, my claws will be ready to tear him limb for limb along with you and—”

“This won’t bring Fafnir back, nor honor him.”

He stumbled. A savage growl leapt out of him. “You will not speak his name!”

With a shaky breath he stumbled into a right hook. It took almost no effort to block and counter with a haymaker to his face. He nearly fell to the floor again, hanging onto his fragile existence by a thread.

*Stop toying with him and be done with this farce! Kill him!* Inner Malice screamed.

I’m not doing this to toy with him. Even now, he has not lost his spirit. And I don’t plan to kill him. I plan to finally undo him. Now be quiet.

“In your world, might makes right. As the stronger fighter here, I’ll do whatever I damn well please, so shut the hay up and listen.”

Malice reeled back, trembling with bottomless fury. “You dare…?”

“I had a good talk with your ex-vassal when he tried to take over my mind. Discord took Fafnir away from you. Betrayed you and locked you away for so many millenia. But every day, every minute of your existence, you had to live with that shame. Live knowing you would never see him ever again. Suffering in the knowledge that you had failed him.”

Malice tensed, what little pathos he had left pulsing violently.

“It’s just like how I will never see my comrades again because of Chrysalis! Because I failed to protect them and have lived the shadow of a life since then!”

“What are you…?” Malice muttered quietly to himself.
“You faced all of that pain, that shame and humiliation, alone. Hatred didn’t fuel you, Malice. It consumed you. You spent so much time scheming and suffering that you never learned how to heal. How to move on. That is why you lost: you gave in to fear!”

“Weak…? Fear?!” Fury returned in full force to his trembling fists. “Even at a fraction of my full strength I had you backed into a wall and nearly crushed the empire’s army! Your friends were mine to do with as I pleased! You dare call such exploits weak? Fearing?”

I made a broad gesture across the crater. “And how did that turn out for you? Your squads of changelings, bullied into obedience. Your hordes of monsters, blinded by rage. Your army of vassals. Where are they now? You’re all alone again. Bested by me and the one vassal you considered a ‘failure’.”

“You spout nonsense! Even now, there is no enemy I fe—”

“Discord!”

One word, a single command, froze the air solid. All of his facade crumbled as he frantically searched for his nemesis. I swore he stopped breathing.

The longest pause of his existence stretched as the weight of his actions left him stunned. It confirmed the final blow to his unshakeable pride.

“Enough!” He rushed me, screaming bloody murder into every punch. “I!” Left hook. Blocked. “Will not!” Right hook. Blocked. “Let you!” Left hook. Dodged. “Mock—”

My cross-counter to the face cut off his rant and dropped him on one knee.

“Mocking you is the last thing on my mind, Malice. Killing you is at the top of my list. Letting Discord lock you up forever is a close second. It would be all too easy to pop you out of existence with a single bolt of magic.”

My forehooves itched at the opportunity. A gnawing instinct biting at the back of my mind. I could kill him. Just obliterate him, right now, and be done with all of this. Locking him up via Discord would be merciful. Throw away the key and don’t look back. After everything he did, all the lives he took, the urge was all too alluring.

Somehow, against all odds and urges, I resisted the temptation.

“But I’m not you, Malice. I saw where your path has led you, and I have no intention of following. Hate fosters war, war fosters hate… look where it brought you. This vicious cycle needs to end.”

“Stall your blabbering.” Every ounce of frustration and agony burst forth from his lungs. “Get to the point!”

“We will find a way to stop this cycle for good. We have to. That’s going to start with both of us. For that… I will teach you.”

His head tilted slightly to the left, gaping as if unable to register what he was looking at. “What did you just say?”

“I will teach you how to start healing. How to use your powers for more than just devastation. How to draw power from more than just suffering and hatred. There is another way Malice, and I’m the living proof.”

Malice tried to stand, only to collapse back onto his knee. Crumbling limbs struggled to keep opacity, fading in and out, repairing and decaying simultaneously. “...You jest.” He wheezed, clutching at his chest. “Speaking nonsense just to stroke your ego. Gloating as if you think you’ve actually won this war.”

I expected such doubt from him. Thankfully I knew the right angle to strike from. “Get this through your non-existent skull and listen real damn good: I’m the only thing stopping Discord from throwing you back into your prison. Is that what you want?”

Malice froze, stunned. That got his attention.

“You seem to forget we’re pretty chummy with Discord. I can command Discord to send you back into the lifeless void for the rest of existence on a whim. Trust me, I really want to lock you up and be done with your bullshit. However, if you agree to my terms, to redeem yourself through atonement and be willing to learn, and I mean truly learn, I’m willing to spare you that fate.”

After a moment, his expression morphed into bitter rage. “So you want me to be your slave, like that failure of a warmas—”

I slapped him so hard he spiraled into the dirt. “My victory is just as much his as it is mine. You will respect my warmaster as your superior!”

Malice slammed his fist into the ground as struggled to get up. “He is NOT yours to claim!”

“You should’ve thought of that before you labeled him a failure!” I snapped. “Neither I or he kicked your ass alone! We did it together! Far as I’m concerned, you’re not fit to claim anything but the decision you need to make in the next few seconds!”

“You insolent little colt…!” For all his blustering, he was mighty hesitant to come any closer.

“Speak out of line again and I’ll throw your ass at Discord so hard it’ll shatter the rest of your miserable body!” My tone could freeze Tartarus from the utter shock that gripped Malice. “Disrespect my warmaster again. Go on. I dare you.”

He bared fangs, absolutely seething. Malice must’ve been in actual physical agony to bite his tongue. I was admittedly shocked to find him silent.

“As I was saying, If my warmaster—” a snarl slipped past Malice’s fangs “—taught me anything, it’s how much can be accomplished if you can stop being an absolute bastard and work with others.” He opened his mouth to snap— “And before you come at me with some ‘pony nonsense’ bullshit, remember your time with Fafnir. Think back to that connection, why you allowed him into your life in the first place. It’s not all that different from us, albeit fewer casualties. If that time with him, those memories, meant nothing to you, then go ahead and renounce us ponies.”

Malice grew sullen. Obviously furious to the point of conniption, but finally quiet. Listening.

“Back to what you said earlier, don’t put words in my mouth. We didn’t enslave Discord, and I have no plans in forcing you into slavery either. All I want from you is to learn from me. Walk with me. Face your sins like I had to. I only have one stipulation.” I placed a forehoof on my chest. “You stay inside my soul and observe.”

“As your prisoner.”

“No. As my student and charge. I won’t let you walk free just yet, but I won’t let you be alone. I will protect you from Discord in exchange for your repentance and cooperation. You have my word as a member of the Equestrian Royal Guard. One day, when I see you are ready, I will set you free.”

He studied me hard, a scholar deciphering a mystery beyond his understanding. A lengthy pause followed.

“...Why?” Genuine curiosity rose above indignant anger. “Why would you, of all ponies, wish to show me mercy? Why go this far for an enemy who caused you nothing but suffering and pain?”

“Because I’ve learned to be better than that. The most important thing I learned was how to give others a chance, even if I cannot forgive them. If Discord, Chrysalis, and even my warmaster, a literal part of you, could change for the better when given a chance… why not you, too?”

Silence stretched between us like a canyon. Tension slowly drained from his decaying shoulders as he rose onto his feet. Gears turned in his head. Whatever crossed his mind as he looked at me stole whatever fight he had left in him. His age began to show through his unguarded expression: Malice was exhausted. Lost and defeated.

“Join me, Malice.” I offered one last time. “Your hatred, your warpath has caused you to lose everything. Twice. Had you not forced my hoof, I wouldn’t have learned and would’ve made the same mistakes you did. Hatred is just a crutch holding you back. There’s another way, and this is your only chance to see that. Let me show you what true strength is. The right way.”

“My only chance, huh?” That glimpse of tiredness I caught suddenly evaporated. He glanced between the entrance of the shattered cave and myself. Did he think he could escape me in that condition? “...You, who hugs his mortal enemies and sings his opponents into submission, has the audacity to demand a god to be your student.” He shook his head, chuckling lightly. “I can’t fathom if you’re the wittiest or dumbest warrior I’ve ever had the pleasure of facing in combat.”

Malice sobered after a few more chuckles, pure amusement on his face. “Consider my curiosity piqued. I can only imagine what else you’re capable of if given time...”

Pathos swirled into his palm, forming a dense ball of magic. A pathos bomb.

“... and proper motivation.”

I couldn’t help staring at him. Must’ve truly cracked. “Really, Malice? That’s all you got? That couldn’t kill me on an off day with a hangover as you are now.”

Malice’s smirk unsettled me.

*Flash…!* Inner Malice’s warning tone supplemented the sensation at the bottom of my gut.

“You’re right,” Malice agreed with a haughty understone. “It’s not enough to kill you. But it’s more than enough for her.”

“Flash!? Flash, are you here?”

My head snapped up to the edge of the crater. All the way across the field of devastation, a group of several ponies was carefully making their way into the expanse of rubble.

Twilight was spearheading them.

She was halfway down the incline, perfectly exposed. Her eyes were focused on the tricky terrain, unaware of the danger that lured amidst the rubble.

I spun towards Malice as fast as my muscles would allow me. Time slowed. Every tenth of a second felt like an eternity. The time dilation made it feel like punching through molasses.

My hoof extended. My fur and feathers stood on end.

*Flash, wait—*

His words fell on deaf ears as power surged through my limb.

The air between us ignited as my arc connected. Malice’s pathos bomb faded from existence like a fly tossed into a fireplace. His body became both evaporated and blown apart at the same time.

It was done in an instant. As the remnants of the arc melted the boulder behind him to glass, all that was left of Malice was his sadistic grin burned into my vision.

His grin, and a thousand fine streams of pathos energy bursting into all directions like fireworks. A brilliant spectacle of reddish lights danced all over the crater before quickly dispersing into the sky. I could still hear his laughter echoing the silent cave.

Exhaustion dragged me into the dirt before I could gather what had happened. My legs collapsed underneath me, leaving my vision locked on the spot where Malice had just been.

Malice? What… what…?

An angry huff left Inner Malice. But he didn’t reply right away.

*...It doesn’t matter now. For the moment, rest. You will need your strength for the battles to come.*

The edges of my vision slowly faded into darkness. W-what—

Before I could finish my question, a pair of mismatched talons and paws picked me up from the ground. Lacking the strength to do so myself, my head was gently lolled to face an extremely drained Discord.

He shouted something into the distance, but I couldn’t make out individual words.

He said something to me as well, but all I could hear was blood pulsing through my head. His broad—albeit tired—smile spoke volumes, though: we won.

I relaxed. About damn time. I could use some shuteye.

One voice managed to reach me before consciousness slipped out of my hooves.

*Sleep well, my champion. You’ve earned this.*

Author's Note

What's up, my fellow paladins?

The mad tyrant has finally been taken down! Ponyville, the mane six, and even Chrysalis has been saved thanks to the efforts of Flash and friends. What happened to the crazed emperor and the aftermath of this mess is another story...

"It's almost done." I said. "Editing should be quick." I said.

15K words later...

But finally. FINALLY! We reached the climax of this monumental battle! Despite the rewriting hell these last few chapters put me through, it was well worth the sacrifice. If I had any regrets, it's keeping you guys in suspense for so many months. But we did it. We freaking did it.

Next chapter will be the last one for this tale. Whether I have an epilogue chapter or not is still being deliberated, but look forward to the concluding chapter of this massive project. Big thanks to you all for sticking with me all these years and my editors for putting up with my nonsense in equal measure. Look forward to seeing all of you in the concluding chapter coming... eventually (not even gonna pretend to promise a strict deadline this time. Just gonna do my best and get it out there asap).

Until next time, stay classy, my paladins!