Light's Darkest Formby DerpibraChaptersPreperationEnter the DarkVoidwalkersThe History of Light and DarkTaking Dragon IsleTo the TopConfrontationTeacher and StudentTwo BrothersA Mark Worthy of DragonsPreperation“Applejack, no!” A voice shot out from the bedroom. Derpibra sprung from the pillow, tears in his eyes. He looked around frantically for his dear mare, but it took him some time to realize he was in reality. He gasped rapidly as his cheeks became stained with his fear. “Applejack…” “You are safe now.” A sweet, low voice emanated from the opposite side of the sun stained room. He wiped his tears away with a hoof, his lips tensing at his nightmare. “L-Luna?” “I’ve only seen part of your nightmare. What was it as a whole?” “Darkness… Applejack died. Flurry Heart, gone… everything. The dream… i-it was all black. I couldn’t see…” Luna caressed him, and her left wing blanketed him around the back. “‘Tis okay. You are back now, to reality. Nothing happened here that would effectively resemble your dream.” “But... “ His eyes full of glistening tears looked at her in disbelief. “It felt so real…” “As many nightmares do. Do not worry, I will protect you in the darkest hours of the night.” Derpibra squeezed her in a trusting hug while sniffling in her coat. “T-thanks.” “Quickly now,” She cleaned the reappearing tears from his muzzle. “Twilight is expecting you. Today is Sunday, and she wants to head off to the ruins soon.” “Y-yeah. Let’s go.” He got up from his bed, and retrieved his trench coat and hat from the wardrobe, and headed off to the Royal Study. --->><--- “Twilight?” Derpibra called into the endless mass of books and shelves. “I’m here!” “I’m over here.” To his left, he spotted a desk with various books and tools upon it. Trotting over, he greeted her with a hoof shake. “So how’s the research going with the ruins?” “Everything seems to be in a different language concerning whatever I could find relative to the location of the ruins.” She flipped through her notes. “Luxembourgish, a language not commonly spoken in Equestria since 963. Those ruins however could be much older, predating the language its many inscriptions were written in.” “You know the name of these ruins?” “The name in Luxembourgish is ‘Ruine vun der Donkel Draach’. I am still in the process of translating the name however. There is not much on how their language works here.” “Will this stop us from going right now?” “Not at all.” She summoned a bag from under the desk. “I’m ready to go, just like everyone else. But are you ready, is the question.” “I still need to get some armor and a new sword, remember?” “Right. Erm… talk to Cadence about that. I’m sure she knows about a royal smith around the castle somewhere. Once you do that, meet us outside on the courtyard so we can get going.” “Cool. Hey Luna? Are you coming with us?” She shook her head. “My apologies, but I’m certain that these ruins would be interesting to explore, but I must remain with my sister. We still have repairs to make around the castle.” “Aw, okay. Stay safe.” Derpibra waved goodbye as she departed from the room. “Guess I should be heading out too. Alright, see you in a few.” --->><<--- Cadence, seated upon the throne, waved towards Derpibra’s approach. “Good morning.” “Mornin’.” “Did you rest well?” He acted out a stretch. “Eh… not really. Had a bad dream, but Luna came to my rescue, so I’m good.” “What was it about?” He was reluctant to share any details, especially about Flurry Heart in his nightmare. “I… heh, you know, the usual. Zombies, dinosaurs, that sorta thing.” “I dislike those dreams. It usually involves me being helpless in one way or another.” He nodded, glad he dodged the bullet. “Yeah, it sucks. Hey, do you have any weapons or armor that a stallion like me can use?” “Sure. My personal armory is just down the hall to my bedroom. I’ll show you.” She lifted herself from her throne and motioned for him to follow closely behind. Both trotting, he asked, “Personal armory? You would seriously let me get something from there?” “You deserve it. You saved the Empire, everypony inside it, including my baby. I actually have something of amazing value for you.” “You see,” He began with a smirk. “I would say you don’t need to reward me, but now you’ve gotten me interested.” She chuckled, quite cutely so. “You should be. I think you’ll love it.” She stopped at a seemingly random door amongst all others in the hall. “Right here.” Derpibra cocked a brow. “Uh, this door looks exactly like all the other ones here.” “It’s because you do not feel the magical seal on this door. Only the highest ranking guards are allowed access. Now quickly, before anypony sees.” Her horn flashed a brilliant blue, and the seal was lifted, but only for a moment. They dashed into the room, shutting the door. When Derpibra turned about, his eyes feasted on irons and steels covering the walls in the form of armor and blades. “Woah… okay, this is pretty cool.” “Look at what is in the case right here.” To the center of the large room rested a large glass display case. Inside it held a bright pink and silver longsword. The cross guard and pommel of the hilt faintly resembled a sort of heart shape. The blade was split into two colors by a straight line. Upon closer inspection, the blade seemed to have had a strange multicolored glow. Its sheath shared the same characteristics. “This is the Blade of Hearts- a longsword meant to be used with two hooves.” Derpibra retrieved the weapon from its clear sanctuary, and observed its fantasy look. “This thing is beautiful.” “Yes, even after all of these years. It’s been a family relic of ours for generations. And now it’s yours.” “Wait, but is it still usable? It’s pretty old, eh?” “That doesn’t mean it can’t be used. It is capable of much more than what meets the eye. But I’ll leave that for you to discover.” After sheathing the blade and attaching it to his belt, he trotted over to an armor stand, putting on display a suit of Royal Heavy Plate armor. Colored with various pinks and blues, it stood high and mighty as the pinnacle of Crystal Empire craftsmanship. “This armor looks heavy.” “It is. Only highly trained paladins are able to wield such armor without tipping over. Maybe you would like to try it on?” “Yeah.” He removed his duster coat and hat in favor of the massive plated armor. Buckling it into place, he stood confidently in his suit. He dropped the visor of his helmet over his eyes. “How do I look?” “Like a huge discolored mass of impenetrable steel.” “That sounds accurate enough. And this sword matches the colors.” “Glad to see you are able to wear such heavy armor without getting sore. Well, i hear you must go explore those ruins, so I’ll leave you to your devices. Shall we go?” “Of course.” Enter the DarkThere was no real trail up to the ruins. Only the rubble left behind from the fight between Derpibra and Chrysalis could be used to traverse the battle ridden mountain. The sun beamed down, and the air was refreshing and cool by nature. The day had a plentiful amount of pearl white clouds, but not enough to obstruct the sunlight. But, mysteriously so, the darkness from the crumbled ruins radiated like the subtle glow of a glow stick, causing some of the ocean blue sky to be quite literally blacked out the farther the party went. “There.” Derpibra pointed up the decreasing slope. “Those are the ruins. They gotta be.” “I agree.” Twilight replied. “It matches the various descriptions I’ve uncovered in the Royal Study.” The sediments below her hooves crackled and churned as she continued her modest pace. They came upon the black ruins, and before them was a door of solid stone as dark as night. Inscribed upon its face was the Luxembourgish language, sitting as dull letters etched in stone. “Why does this door seem familiar to me?” Derpibra muttered as he pulled in closer. “The letters… the energy…” He had a brief flashback to that harrowing dream he had. Somehow, these ruins were in a way similar to what he laid witness to in his nightmare. Although he could not pinpoint what the feeling of deja vu was originating from... He placed a hoof on the shifted stone, and kept a keen eye observing the foreign text inscribed upon it. The text blushed a brilliant purple color in response to his touch. “Amazing.” Twilight approached the entrance and traced the alien runes with a hoof alongside him. “After all of these years, and the magic is still active here. “This had to have been the works of a master wizard. If they have locks this complicated, who knows what might be inside.” Fluttershy cloaked her face under her mane. “Are there going to be… traps, in there?” “I wouldn't doubt it. And, in a place like this, we might find worse.” Fluttershy winced. Probably a bit too descriptive, Twilight thought. “But, we are quite capable of defending ourselves. We should be fine. Now, does anyone have any ideas on how to open this door?” “Our best bet is to translate the text on the circle lock.” Derpibra suggested. “It could give us a clue maybe.” “An admirable idea.” She shuffled through her messenger bag and withdrew a scuffed book with all manner of notes and papers protruding from the inner pages. “This is a long list of notes I’ve developed which should allow us basic translation of the Luxembourgian language.” “Basic?” He questioned. “Yes. Luxembourgish is not a common language in Equestria, and notes on its grammar rules and such are thusly limited, especially since I didn't have much time, with our schedule, to be able to properly finish them.” “Can’t we just blow the door open?” Optix shot from the back of the party. “Don’t be so rash.” Gaffold instructed. “These are ruins. Any major disturbance could render our journey here useless, love. Let us not bring the place down on our heads?” “I don't see any other easy way of getting in there.” “We mustn’t resort to such barbaric methods unless we need to.” She shrugged. “Alright, let's see how long we’ll be sitting out here then.” Derpibra glanced over his shoulder. “Can we not argue about this? Let's leave it up to Twilight, since she knows more about this place than any of us. Twi, what should we do?” “We should prioritize safety and tactful movements.” Twilight said. “We came here to observe and research. Who knows how fragile this ruin is.” She gave the purple text an observant eye, carefully pulling out her notes. “Give me some time. These letters don’t seem to match what I have…” The characters were astonishing to her. Her notes scarcely turned any interesting translations, but after some cross referencing and determination, she managed to pronounce the sentence. “Intelligenz ass eng staark staip. Intelligence is a strong tool. What is that supposed to mean?” Everypony shrugged. “Hmm…” The lock responded to her English translation, and rotated, the stone grinding against the door itself. Once the lock ceased its motion, cubes pushed from the door, each with a separate character. “Is this some kind of puzzle…?” “Maybe.” Gaffold said. “‘Tis just a guess love, but with those square holes in the door, maybe you should arrange them in the right order?” “It’s an idea.” She squinted at the multicolored texts on each block. “Seems I have to translate these letters and put them in the right order.” She slid the blocks around and translated them into a sentence that would hopefully make even just some amount of sense. “No, that isn’t right…” She repeated her action, curled a brow at the result. “Nope.” “Lemme see.” Derpibra requested. “Do you know how to translate this?” She asked as she handed him the book. “I think so. This door just seems so familiar to me.” “How?” “From a dream I had. I would now be so bold to say that I know what was inside of this place too…” “Hmm. Alright, try it out.” He laid a hoof on the lock and closed his eyes, opting for feeling the mysterious, ancient magic. After some time, he opened his eyes sparkling with purple, and chanted a mass of Luxembourgian words. “Dest sinn d’Wierder vunder Warrior vun der Light: emmerhin d’Muecht, an entdeckt dei Dir sidd. Stop um naischt, oder Dir waert ni wait goen.” Twilight retrieved the book, staggered by his fluent speaking of such a difficult language. She hastily flipped through her pages, until finally being able to translate the words spoken. “‘These are the words of the Warrior of Light: Embrace the power, discover who you are. Stop at nothing, or you’ll never go far.’” She looked up at Derpibra with confused eyes. “Well, that is oddly specific. What does that mean?” “I’m guessing only I can pull us through this.” The door rumbled ajar from the sensing of the translation, and everyone tried to look inside, but their eyes only met a piercing blackness that made the idea of being able to see an implausible one. “Do not worry.” Twilight assured. “I can just used an Illumination spell.” “No.” Derpibra objected with a flat voice. “It responds negatively to the Light. I remember this from my nightmare… the Darkness will kill us if we even try it.” “What? How?” He shook his head to push back the harrowing memory. “Just, don’t. Trust me.” “...Okay. Right behind you then. Lead on.” VoidwalkersThe door tremored the ruins as it shut behind the party, locking them into an infinite ink of darkness. “Derpi,” Optix called. “You sure we can’t at least light up a torch?” “Yes.” “But it’s pitch black in here! It was a dream, so it couldn’t have been totally real right?” “No. It felt too real. That’s why this place feels so familiar.” Everyone was bumping into each other recklessly, but Derpibra seemed to have a better sense of direction. “Everyone, hold on to each other’s backs.” Twilight said. “If we move as a coordinated group, we won’t be at as large a risk of getting lost. Follow Derpibra’s lead. He seems to know more about this place than we do.” “He’s movin’ from instinct and deja vu.” Applejack said. “Ah say we jus’ trust ‘em. I do.” Everypony nodded, not that they were able to see it. Their hooves latching on to each other’s backs, they walked in a sort of conga line. The idea in practice was slightly cumbersome, but was effective. Should someone spot something, at least one pony- whoever it was- could stop the train. Derpibra was feeling lucky, and decided to slap the soft mass directly in his grasp, hopefully to lighten up the mood of blindness and slight fear. “Who just did that?” Rarity called into the darkness behind her. Derpibra held his breath, realizing he got the wrong mare. “What’s wrong Rarity?” Twilight voice sounded, presumably from the farthest back of the line. “Someone in this line smacked my rear.” So that’s who I hit… Derpibra thought nervously. “Let us not stray about for too long mates.” Gaffold said. “We should stay focused on our objective.” “Well, who’s at the way front?” “Me.” Applejack called. “Well, lead on then.” “Twi, ah can’t exactly see in here ya know.” The conga line quickly dispersed, everyone figuring this idea to be useless. “That idea’s out the window.” Derpibra grunted. “Hmm… well, this room can’t be that huge. Maybe we can find a way to actually see in here without using light.” “That’s impossible.” Twilight said. “My scientific studies suggest that there isn’t a feasible way to see without producing any kind of photons.” “We’re in a ruin made of solid darkness. I’m pretty sure being able to see without light in here would be possible.” “Then what do you propose we do?” A bright black light emerged from Derpibra’s belt pouch. Somehow, the black light seemed more visible compared to the darkness the ruin itself radiated. He withdrew the suspected item and realized it was that mark that Daischtert, the black dragon gave him. The worn, rolled cocoon of metal vibrated softly. “What is the mark doing?” Gaffold inquired. “I have no idea.” Derpibra replied with a barely visible shrug. “Wait a sec,” Optix started. “Aren’t we makin’ light now?” Derpibra remained silent, unsure of how to answer that question. His feeling of dread- impending doom, loomed upon him, not knowing what might happen. His nightmare only did so much in the way of details toward the consequences. All he knew was that something bad might happen- His pessimistic thoughts were quickly abolished as the mark’s at first black glow turned to a low purple. It’s magnificent creation of photons extended to the far corners of the surprisingly sizeable room. Along the walls were even more words and literature from the Luxembourgian language. Runes about the floor, cracked, and pillars inscripted with ancient decorative etches. The ceiling had quite the odd assortment of old style suns and moons painted about the surface. The entire room was cast in the revealing purple light, making everything adopt a more mystical look. Everyone winced, expecting death, or perhaps something worse, but was met with only a slight sparkling noise from the mark. Small, shiny particles glittered about the stone room from its soothing radiance. “...Huh? Why aren't we dead?” Optix questioned. “I don’t know.” Derpibra said. “Let’s just be glad nothing happened.” To the left of the room, blue text flashed under the aura of the mark. Upon the cracked wall was another patch of the Luxembourgish language, awaiting Twilight’s translation. Twilight, curious, came up to the text with a book in hoof, and took about a minute to translate the short sentence. “...Under the caring light of the mark will you be able to see without incident.” “Maybe that’s why he gave it to you.” Gaffold said. “To make traversing this ruin a less perilous task.” “Glad for that at least.” Derpibra said with a shrug. “I’m still wondering why Magnus would be Däischtert’s mortal enemy though. He never told us why.” “Perhaps he wanted us to discover it, eh?” Turning his attention to Twilight, he asked, “Twilight, is there anything you can find on why these two dragons are the way they are?” “I will need some time.” Twilight squinted slightly into the increasing darkness to spot a lever next to an outline of a rectangle in the wall. “...Looks like a lever.” She trotted over to pull it, but the white unicorn stopped her. “Rarity?” “What if the lever is linked to a trap? We cannot use magic to aid our escape since it will make light that I presume the ruin wouldn’t appreciate.” “Well,” Twilight glanced around a moment before responding. “there is no other way to get farther in this place. We’ll be fine.” She pulled the lever in question, and observed the rectangle retracting into the floor below, revealing a dimly lit hallway. “The caution is appreciated though.” “She has a point.” Optix said. “As much as I love running through crazy ass traps, We shouldn’t be getting in trouble over a failed safety protocol. Keep your chins up.” And with that last half-inspiring statement from the freelance military mare, everyone walked into the ever illuminating hallway. Without the mark, navigation would be nearly impossible. The next room appeared before them, being much more spacious than the last. Ancient illustrations of dragons and ponies dotted the walls, along with various suns and moons, similar to the ones previously seen. At the end of the room was an even larger set of stone doors with odd protrusions. “Quite the hall I’d say.” Derpibra said. “Hm, where do we start first with these drawings?” Twilight started from the far left of the room at its corner. “Here, from left to right… maybe. Who knows if this is at all like how English is written.” Twilight spent what felt like hours translating the captions and picking possibilities of what pictures could possibly mean, before finally managing to compile a story to summarize it. She cleared her throat before reading her notes. “There was once a time in history where dragons and ponies lived in harmony together, but this was many years ago- perhaps before Equestria was conceived as an idea. But, there were many cultural and moral differences between the two species. Ponies required resources and land, both of which dragons consumed without much care. Dragons were unable to produce anything due to their relative inability to touch crops or buildings without crushing them. However, dragons made up for their mistakes by serving as guardians of ponies.” She moved to another section of picture and text before continuing. “But soon, dragons’ selfish nature stemmed from them not getting any return for their hard work, as at the time ponies were constantly at war, and dragons scarcely any time to their families. They demanded the rarest of all things- at least at the time, like gold and massive amounts of food. Ponies refused, seeing as they could not produce such things with the then-current technology they possessed. Dragons began to turn bitter, and resigned as protectors of their former allies. The numbers of dragons in Equestria lowered as the lack of food, even from areas they’ve plundered, was not enough to keep up their population. It is not much higher today, since dragons require immense nutrients and supreme conditions to raise healthy offspring.” She moved yet again, to the last text and picture. “Then, two dragons rose, both full of light. Magnus, once a low class member of the dragon clan, rose to power through speechcraft and wit. He sought strength, so maybe he can set the dragons’ rightful fear-induced grip back over ponies, so they may gather what they want, when they want. Daichtert used to follow in his ideals, but quickly became aware of his master’s plan. Turning to the opposite element for help- the Darkness, he sought to put Magnus out of his power hungry position to restore a more permanent harmony between us and dragons. That is why his name is Daichtert, Luxembourgian for Darkness. It is rumored that this was not his original name, as it’s been lost in time ages ago.” Twilight closed her book with a confident smile. “Was that informative enough?” “Now we know exactly what happened!” Derpibra said. “I can’t believe Magnus would be like this though. It’s just… so far fetched.” “That scoundrel!” Gaffold grumbled. “He meant to use us as tools for his rise to power, and he wanted Daichtert out of the way first… maybe his assassination was all but required?” “Perhaps.” Twilight half-nodded. “One thing that still puzzles me is… how did this ruin get here?” “Only one way to find out.” Gaffold pointed to the doors down the large room. “Right.” Twilight trotted to the door that could double as the actual wall to the room. Upon it’s face were several cubes and rings with square imprints. “Seems like some kind of puzzle.” Scooping up the stone cut-out with a forehoof, she spotted a symbol of a dragon’s snout upon it. Another cut-out had a minimalistic design of a pony face upon it. Then, the third being two swords clashing in another minimalistic design. “So,” Rainbow Dash began. “What’s with the boxes?” “I don’t know… maybe we need to… ah! Got it!” Inside the imprints of the rings, she spotted the same symbols, but in different colors. “I just have to match the symbols and colors. Trivial puzzling at its finest.” “Whoever made this ruin was not very smart, were they?” Rainbow snickered. “Perhaps not. But, it saves us time.” While Twilight began her working on the puzzle, Derpibra spotted a crate propped against the wall. Feeling curious, he trotted over to the wooden container, and observed it. The crate was battered and old, but looked relatively new in comparison to everything else. Flipping the wooden flap open, he dug inside and found something that felt slightly heavy. Retracting it, he apparently held to a dagger. The blade itself was not very… sharp. Blunt actually. It could serve as a form of an unconventional baton, but something about it felt useful in some other way, somehow. Deciding to not break anyone’s focus, especially Twilight’s, he placed it in his belt pouch where the mark previously was before it went floating about lighting up the place. “This puzzle is surprisingly simplistic.” Twilight said, sounding disappointed. “Even a novice school philly could solve this with minimal difficulty.” The colossal doors rumbled as the locks and tumblers as the wall’s inner mechanisms unlocked and twirled. Once the entrance was spread open, bright rays of sunlight stopped right at the entrance, almost as if it hit an invisible wall- unable to penetrate the darkness within. “Beautiful,” Gaffold sighed at the wonder. “If, a bit of a paradox in itself. How the Light cannot reach inside is most interesting. Is the Light really that lacking in strength in comparison?” “Who knows.” Twilight sighed. “These ruins had to have been enchanted by the most powerful magic. The question is who was it that did it?” She began her walk into the Light, and the closer she drew, the brighter the room got. Becoming so illuminated that her eyes were rendered useless, along with everypony else’s. But only a second passed before the brightness suddenly blinked away, leaving behind shined characters that read, when translated: “Light, the typical force that represents good, has often been used for evil. Darkness experiences the same treatment…” “So,” Derpibra began, slightly puzzled. “Does that mean Darkness can be a force of good too?” “Maybe.” Optix said. “Honestly, this place just seems too weird to take seriously.” “Are you really saying that?” Gaffold snickered. “Hey, I’m not weird, just unique. And what about you, huh? You’re some WEIRD golden griffon. Where the hell did you come from?” “Guys,” Derpibra called, marginally agitated. “Is now really the time for this?” “I jest, I jest love.” Gaffold said. “Ah, sod off Goldilocks.” Optix pouted, leaving Gaffold to his momentary laughter. Good to see every pony is getting along just fine, Derpibra thought. “Twilight, any ideas?” “Seems to be a dead end. Nothing immediately eye-catching here.” “Eye catching you say…” A deep voice rang from no location in particular. “Who said that?” She turned about and searched for the source, finding before her a set of red reptile eyes that radiated the most peculiar aura, the most familiar voice... “Daischtert?” The History of Light and Dark“How unlikely of a… visit this is.” Daischtert said in a deep tone, his dragon breath as sultry as it’s always been. Twilight gave him an abashed expression. “Eh… when did you get here?” “A magician cannot give away their secrets, Young Purple.” “Young Purple? Where did you get that name from?” “I remember my supporters back in the days of peace and tranquility… oh how I’ve always nicknamed them.” “Seems nostalgic for you.” “Indeed.” Daischtert boosted the power of his rather comforting aura, giving the large room a dim hue of red. “Digressions aside, I’m sure you all seek answers.” “Most definitely.” Gaffold agreed sharply. “We’ve been moping about in the black for far longer than appreciated.” “My apologies.” Daischtert cackled. “My former territory has always been...spacious.” “Territory?” “Yes.” Daischtert walked over to a wall and drew his red light to his index claw. There were hieroglyphics of two dragons and presumably hundreds of ponies scattered about. “A great war took place many years ago beyond and inside the borders of Equestria. Me and Magnus, we fought valiantly, and the war, known as the War of Black and White, took presence in many areas around here.” “Do you know the exact location of any of these skirmishes?” Twilight asked. “Only one- here.” “Here… this place doesn’t seem battle ridden.” “In some areas of the ruin, the signs of battle are more… apparent than others. This room just happens to be the cleanest of them.” “Can you tell us what happened here, if you remember specifically?” “Most certainly.” Daischtert cleared his throat. “The battle was fierce, moving us across the lands days at a time. Our most recent bout occurred along the coast of the Equestrian Ocean, facing north to Dragon Isle. After the skirmish ended, I retreated to the Crystal Mountains with a victory barely sewn to my belt. My army took camp into the icy mountainous regions, and that is when we discovered this ruin.” “This ruin was here like this when you got here?” “Yes. Very old. I’d wager this ruin to be within the millions of years in age.” “Interesting. Well, what happened to the camp?” “Ah, yes. Our occupying of the mountains were short lived, as Magnus proved to be far more influential than I, thusly making short work of my army. In one swift movement, he annihilated my numbers, leaving me the sole survivor who even then barely accomplished that feat alone.” “And…?” Derpibra said. “I retreated then to an island further north of Dragon Isle, called the Island of Drakes. After some time, I embraced the darkness, becoming a black dragon, I raised an army of my own magic and returned for a rematch.” “Did you win?” “Yes, if just barely. I forced him from Equestria, or the lands before, and drove him to Dragon Isle. That’s where he was at his weakest, and so as a last ditch effort, he founded the Dragon Inquisition, to serve as an impromptu army, or more realistically a crusade of sorts. But at that point… he was already doomed. I planned his demise, I knew of his ritual… it was how I was selected. He would raise his power that way, but while he would train you, Derpibra, he would be at his most vulnerable.” “And that’s when you assassinated him.” “Precisely.” “Wait, so you were chosen by the ritual?” “Yes. I was just a boy when I had to go. In the following years, Magnus taught me like he did you, but he taught me the arts of becoming a dragon instead of what you call a Super Saiyan.” “So you were a pony before…” Daischtert nodded sluggishly. “Indeed. I was once a so called ‘Dragon Rider’. An epic title forged by products of folklore. The true accountability of such things are scandalous.” He casted his aura in the form of a magical illusion, forming what seemed to be Magnus next to him. “Anyhow, Magnus yet lives.” “What? How?” Derpibra asked. “Me and Magnus are referred to as… gods. We are born in two forms: physical and, should our physical form falter, then we manifest as the element we embraced. In this case,” Daischtert summoned a lance and punctured the fake Magnus, but then the golden dragon rose again, seemingly on fire. “He was reforged in Light and Fire.” “So he’s not truly dead.” Derpibra concluded. “So what does that mean?” “He likely knows of your alliance with me. And, seeing as he forged you as a form of super weapon for his using, he will likely try to destroy you so that I cannot have you as an ally.” “Really? So I guess we gotta take him down first…” He began to adopt a sorrowful look. “I thought me and Magnus were friends. Then, just for me to discover what he truly is… it’s upsetting.” “For me as well.” “Why would it be that way for you? Aren’t you two enemies? Sworn rivals?” “Not originally.” Daischtert’s ruby eyes softened. “We were once friends. Even before we became dragons. We always used to catch fireflies and burn candles. He was like a brother to me, and look- now years later I am tasked with his murder...” “It sounds like you two grew up together.” “We did, though he was much older than me at the time. As a kid, he was always fascinated by dragons, and always said he wanted to become one. I guess not all dreams are impossible.” “How did he become a king?” “That I do not know. He never told me how he has brought himself to such a high standard. All I know is that he himself became an enemy of the ponies when his motives came to light.” “Didn’t he want to restore the pride of the dragons?” Twilight asked. “Yes. He believed the dragons should have a greater influence over ponies in more ways than just trade and commerce. He didn’t appreciate how ponies- his own kind, seemed to disrespect the dragons by supposedly withholding resources. But in truth, the dragons were consuming far too much for ponies to produce, while doing nothing besides mercenary work, but even then that deal was on loose ice.” “I see. So, where is Magnus?” “He is likely back on Dragon Isle. The reason why you may not have seen him sooner is because his reconstruction is slow, but can be made steadfast by way of a ritual called The Recalling.” “How long does The Recalling take to finish?” “Maybe just a few days. It’s been quite a few months since the incident, so he is likely ready to march upon me, destroying anything in his wake… including Equestria.” “So we gotta meet him halfway.” “Indeed.” Magnus retrieved a black great mace from radiating his aura from a nearby pedestal. “You will need this. This is the blackest form of darkness, the Mace of Anti Solaire.” “It looks wicked!” Derpibra grabbed the mace, but from its unexpected weight caused him to crash to the floor. “Woah, this thing is really heavy…!” “It carries the weight of my soul… literally. Only the truest warrior of Dark may wield it.” “But I’m Light!” “Indeed. Please, transform into a Super Sayain. I will give you the power necessary to ensure his defeat.” Derpibra did as instructed, his mane and tail turned blonde and stood tall as a flame. His eyes phased to a teal color, his eyes adopting a more aggressive look. “Okay, what now?” Daischtert laid a talon to his forehead, and turned Derpibra’s golden aura to a dark purple, and his bright hair was a purple grape color. His eyes fired up to a average red color. “You now hold my burden. The black power that has stirred in me for what would feel like the beginning of time… I will help you fight him, but first we must tear through his Inquisition, if we are to have a chance at his second life.” “So do we storm the place?” Optix said. “In it’s entirety. Ms. Sparkle, you seem well suited for tactics, so you lead the attack. Optix, you should coordinate the attack, and everyone else should follow. We will put the plan into action once we make it there.” “Yes!” Optix said. “Imma go for that Sanctus bitch first! I never liked her.” Derpibra looked blankly at her. “Wait… Sanctus? Daischtert… I don’t know if I can kill her.” “She is first-in-command of the Inquisition and is a Dragon Pastor. She will likely never reason with us. What, do you have a connection with her?” “She is kinda rude at times, but her position is stressful, and I understand. She’s just doing her job. Of all ponies, I don’t want her to die.” “We will do what we can. Okay, so here is the plan…” Taking Dragon Isle“So what’s the plan again?” Derpibra shouted above the sea winds. Optix turned about as Daischtert soared towards Dragon Isle, only minutes away. “We go in, and we launch a head-on assault. We’re dealing with Dragon Priests and Archmages, so their magic may be a tough things to combat.” She made sure to equip her M249 Light Machine Gun, slipping in the box magazine and chambering the first bullet. “But we are the perfect fireteam. Those bastards are too busy worshipping lizards to care about mounting up for an attack from us.” Daischtert cackled at her statement. “Wait,” Twilight said. “What would bullets do against mages?” “You’ll see.” She scoffed. -->><<-- Daischtert landed upon the lush jungled islands of Dragon Isle, and the fireteam dismounted. Sanctus was training within the courtyard of the castle, and spotted the group upon the final swing of her greatsword. “So… it’s you, grey pony.” “H-hi.” “Don’t greet me you fool!” Sanctus snapped. “Our King… dead! And you just suspiciously disappear afterwards, no closure! Then you show up months later alongside our own enemy!?” “Listen Sanctus, I can explain-” “Bastard! I don’t need you to explain yourself to me. My sword will paint this island red with your essence!” Derpibra gulped. She’s much better than me in the arts of the sword. And this time, I don’t have a shield this time, He thought as he retrieved his blade from the pink scabbard. Behind Sanctus appeared mages and paladins. “Alright idiots! Stand tall! Cut this filthy cur down where he stands.” Optix jumped out from behind a rock and shouted, “Eat lead, bitches!” She opened fire as both sides clashed in a flurry of blades and axes. Derpibra was engaging three targets at once. A horizontal slash from a paladin headed in his direction. Derpibra parried the blade, and shoved her back. Sanctus jumped in and took a wide swing at him with enough force to slice a boulder, but he was swift to duck. Counterattacking with a brutal uppercut, he sent Sanctus flying backwards. To his right, a huge mare charged at him with a battleaxe with a blade the size of his head. She went for a vertical slice, but Derpibra strafed to the left. He forced the axe haft down with a hoof, and chopped it in half. Then, ponies began to surround him. Feeling a sense of extreme danger, his winged flared, and his magic exploded in a torrent of white magic, sending dozens flying backwards. “You good on ammo Optix?” Rainbow Dash shouted from the sky, ready to perform a sonic rainboom close to the ground. Optix dropped the box magazine and threw her helmet to her left, knocking out an incoming enemy. She revealed her luxurious golden mane, underneath it being a… horn. “I got magic bullets! Hey, fucktards!” She shouted towards the offending crowd. “I’m a Celestia-damned unicorn!” She summoned a grenade and pulled the pin. “Fire in the hole!” She tossed the grenade, then covered her ears. *BOOSH!* “Haa!” Derpibra’s chest puffed out as he transformed into a Super Saiyan. His purple mane shook under the force of his enhanced strength. “Hehe… although the power increase is unnecessary… it still feels nice!” Holding his Blade of Hearts by the hilt, he readied it with a dark purple magic, and shoved the blade into the ground, causing the soil and sediments to erupt with a bright red aura, forcing a crevice to form along the ground. The magic sent his enemies into the sky, then coming crashing down after the crevice shut moments later. “Woah, that was sick! I can get used to that... I guess I’ll call that… Black Grasp!” “That energy was… sinister feeling, but it has a hint of good in it.” Twilight said. “Anyhow, this skirmish is done. Do you all remember what’s next?” “We hit the Inquisition at its heart. Our next stop is the castle, once we get in, we take out any in our path, and claim the castle as ours.” Optix explained as she grabbed her helmet. “Then we move up the mountain and take on Magnus.” “Good. Hopefully the fight ends as quickly as it did this time. Alright everypony! Let’s move!” -->><<-- The doors of the castle burst open in a flash of white magic. “Optix, why didn’t you tell us you were a unicorn?” Rarity questioned. “Long story! I’ll explain when we get back!” She summoned a flashbang and tossed it in. The slight clanking of the metal canister, then it flashed in a bright white color. “Breach and Clear!” Derpibra surged his magic, then fired a volley of explosive magic blasts into the Great Hall. After the assault, the furniture and structural integrity of the castle was left lackluster at best. The dust settled, and injured ponies were strewn about the floor. “We gotta empty out this place!” Optix commanded. “All the way to the top! Let’s move!” The storming of the Keep took just under an hour for the fireteam- Daischtert guarded the outside doors to prevent escapees while everyone else made short work of any encounters. There were small explosions, mostly from Optix’ flashbangs and occasional fragmentation grenades. After the deed was done, everyone made their way towards the top of a tower just barely poking above the Keep. Daischtert spotted them, then advanced toward them. Once he arrived, he planted a pole in the center of the tower with a flag branded with an omega symbol colored black on a gray background. It flailed within the winds as they picked up speed. “Perfect! New territory established.” Optix soluted. “Awaiting further commands!” “Go up the ruined mountain which used to be Magnus’ sanctuary.” Twilight explained. “We stop whatever ritual may be bringing him back, then this fight will be over.” Optix looked towards the sky, and slowly pulled off her gun range shades, muttering, “Mother of Celestia…” “What’s wrong?” “Reinforcements!” There had to be at least one dozen dragons within the sky, headed straight for the army of ten. Pegasi soared and unicorns rode upon the dragons’ backs, readying spells and incantations. “Are those guys Dragonriders?” Derpibra asked. “Perhaps. They haven’t been deployed in so long it seems. My speculations of them not existing by these numbers were wrong…” Magic bolts and lightning hailed from the sky, ready to pierce them all. “Take cover!” Optix used her magic to force everypony behind a solid stone ledge. Golden lighting flashed, then eventually turned to extravagant thunder atop the tallest mountain on the island. “What was that?” Derpibra shouted. “It must be the ritual!” Daischtert said. “That’s Magnus’ thunder!” The air was full of magical artillery fire and explosions, forcing everyone to stay under cover. Optix went out and fired her light machine gun into the air, taking out at least a few ponies. Her fire was ineffective against the dragons however, since their scales were not unlike solid metal. Soon, a magic bolt struck her helmet, sending her into a daze. Luckily, the projectile had not penetrated well enough to kill her, but it did prompt her to get back into cover. “We need some more help holding down the castle!” “I’ll do it!” Derpibra said as his power shouted above the noise of the field. “What about the ritual?” Twilight asked. “If we take too long to fend off the assault, then Magnus may be stronger if he’s fully restored! And who knows, he may come destroy us first since he might know what’s going on! And by then, we may not even be done fighting off the enemy!” “But we won’t survive long without his help!” Optix shouted above the fire. “At least we won’t have them on our tails when we do fight him! And besides, we’re under too much fire to move anywhere but inside this castle!” “Derpibra, what do you think? Stay with us or go stop the ritual? You gotta decide quickly!” Twilight demanded. Ironically, time seemed to slow down as he thought. Do I stay here and help my friends defend the castle, or stop the ritual? After just seconds passing, he made his decision. “Magnus might get us either way. If we are gonna die, we might as well do it together!” Giving his magic one last surge of energy, he jumped from cover after the fire ceased, and lifted his hooves to either side of his gray body. He began to generate massive amounts of energy in them before pulling them together to a close. Forming one larger energy sphere, it spurted black lightning that seemed to tear through the sky. “The Darkness!” A soldier shouted. “Final Flash!” The massive beam- seemingly larger than when Derpibra used it against chrysalis- swept all of his opponents away in a blink of black power. However, their enemies continued piling onto the battlefield, ready to reclaim their territory. They seemed to have come from within the forests leading to the mountain. The majority of them were equipped with fine bows, and their arrows were barbed for maximum damage. They aimed their recurve bows high with arrows in hoof, and released an artillery fire of wood and metal, straight towards the castle. “Take cover!” Optix exclaimed. Derpibra commenced a flare of energy before shouting, “Aura Burst!”. His magical aura shot out in the form of a bubble, shoving away anything in his path, in this case the arrows. He managed to deflect most of them, whilst the others simply struck the ground below. Daischtert off in the distance was combating several dragons at once, and he was having great difficulty fighting all twelve dragons at once. “Hey, you need some help?” Derpibra clamored. The golden lightning cut through the air again, this time much more potent. A faint dragon roar could be heard for what seemed like miles away. “Ugh! No! That must be Magnus’ lightning again! Go to the mountain, I’ll be fine!” Daischtert was swiftly punched away. “We’ll be fine too!” Twilight said. “There’s a lot less resistance down here now! Go, and remember that barrier surrounding the peak!” “Dang,” Derpibra muttered. “I forgot I can’t fly directly up there. Hey, Twilight! Can you teleport me close to the top?” “Good idea! Hold still!” In a flash of purple magic, he vanished then reappeared in a totally unfamiliar location. The land was gushing magma and ash, and the ground had sharp rock strewn about. “What the…?” He looked up and spotted the peak he was to reach, but it seemed farther than normal. “Twilight!” He stomped his hoof. “Where the heck did you put me?” He shook his head disapprovingly. “Ugh… I’ll scold her later. Why would she even put me this far away anyway?” Deciding to preserve his magic, he spread his wings, released his Super Saiyan form, and flew to his destination. Concerning he was about to fight a god dragon, he would need all of his available strength. As he soared, the magma shot from the ground, and pumped more toxic ash into the sky. This extreme environmental change prompted him to fly low on the ground, to avoid any heat and stray ash. Also, the opaque smoke from higher in the sky would have disallowed him a clear view of the peak. He needed to know where he was going, and the black smokescreen wouldn’t be so helpful in that. After a short minute of flight, he reached the trail. From his point of view, the golden thunder that occasionally cracked seemed much mightier and close. “Better watch my step.” He muttered before landing. He got a lay of the trail ahead, scanning for any dangers that might make short work of him. Deciding after some seconds that him standing around was pointless, he sprung open his wings, and prepared to fly, but they suddenly locked up, followed by a golden chain locking them in place. “What the…?” He struggled to break them off, wiggle them off- whatever might work. But, they were adamant in keeping his flight abilities restricted. He gave it some thought. Wait, I can fly with my magic! I don’t need these wings! As soon as he brought his magic alight, its strength augmentation was normal, but it wouldn’t carry him at all. Looks like I’m grounded… Deciding that any subsequent flight attempts were a waste of energy, he decided the only mode of transportation was his hooves. At this idea, it made Optix’ junky SUV sound like a more appealing alternative, considering the mountain seemed taller and… more volcanic than before. Was this even the same mountain? The next flash of thunder struck him out of his thoughts and pushed him upwards. The clock is ticking. If Magnus gets resurrected, that could spell doom for Derpibra and his friends. It’s all up to him now. To the TopDerpibra began his trek up the trail, moving at a moderate pace. He didn’t want to take his time, but he didn’t want to wear himself out early. The path was covered in ash, grime, and there was a bone or two here and there. They were presumably the remains of other unfortunate adventurers attempting to quest this mountain. The thought chilled his spine, but he didn’t let such scary thoughts hinder his progress. Still, there’s no telling what could be living on the trail, or how long the journey would take… or if he would even make it. “Keep it together Derpy.” He shook his head, as if trying to shake off something. As he trotted, he felt as if something was off. Sure he was on a volcanic mountain, but even that felt more normal than what he was feeling. As if something was watching him… His ear twitched. “Ha!” He front-flipped and landed about-face. A stray soldier seemed to be sprawled across the ground, coughing and wheezing. “...Who’re you…?” Her raspy voice questioned. “Don’t… go up there…” “...!” Derpibra covered his mouth. The mare was… a bloody mess. Her body was injured beyond belief, so much so that he couldn’t find a feasible way to describe it. “I… was caught in… one of the traps…” She lazily pointed off to the right, and there were indications of possible explosives in the area, judging from the black blast marks. “This… is the Path of the Dragon. If you were wondering.” “What…? Where’s the Path of the Pony? It’s easier than this I’m sure!” “It was destroyed in a flash of darkness…” She coughed up blood, and seemed to be nearing death. “I can help you! Just-” “No… I’m dead. Infections, half my body's’ gone… ain’t no helping me… if you wanna go stop Magnus, just be care…” In her final breath, she passed away. Derpibra felt tears attack his eyes. He never seen a pony die in front of him before. But he couldn’t let this set him back: he had an objective to complete. “She must’ve been one of Daischtert’s soldiers. What was she doing here though?” He muttered. Continuing his journey, he made sure to watch for any traps that may claim his life like that mare’s. The sight of her torn apart by Celestia-knows-what nagged his mind. She didn’t look as if she was taken by an explosive- more or less a savage animal twice her height may be the true perpetrator. But he didn’t have time to wonder. The mare was gone, so what could he possibly do about it now? Under short notice, he felt an odd sound strike his ears. He took a quick look around, and his eyes widened in response to a fiery energy mere inches from him. He proned, and an explosion from the offending blast occurred behind him. “What the heck was that?” He took a swift look upwards to spot a runed cube. The ancient letters of an unknown language shined bright red, about to fire again. He looked to his right and located another runed cube, this time being blue. Another, yellow, and another green. And there were seemingly dozens of them going in no pattern in particular. Considering the haphazard pattern, one could guess there could be more hidden in a corner or crevice. No point in wasting magic. I’d better just dodge them. Derpibra, without the use of his energy, was just average in strength and dexterity. His endurance wasn’t much better either, so the task of dodging dozens of projectiles at once would appear daunting now. He began doing a series of jumps and flips and dashes. So far, he managed to at worst get grazed by either a fireball or spear of ice. He merely thought he was lucky, because the projectiles did seem rather quick to end his life. Too quick, actually. Within a few minutes, he managed to clear the path with only minor cuts and burns. The path ahead only seemed hotter than the last. The source of the sweltering heat wasn’t in sight either, further frustrating Derpibra. “I’m gonna be burnt to a crisp by the time I get there.” He scoffed. This road however did not seem too different from the Trial of the Pony- minus the traps. It seems all he would need to do is make his trek up the mountain under extreme conditions, then the final fight between him and Magnus would begin. -->><<-- “Take this!” Rainbow Dash let out a battle cry as she performed her Sonic Rainboom just close enough to knock the reinforcements into the salty ocean water. “Time to take ‘em out like fish!” Optix exclaimed. She summoned a grenade and tossed it into the solid blue ocean. *BOOM* Ponies ascended to the surface with their abiotic bodies, and the water began to turn red. “Optix…!” Fluttershy squeaked. “I know what you’re gonna say! This is war! Death is all around us! Now, stand ready!” Optix materialized a box magazine of blonde magic in her hoof, then slipped it into her LMG, chambering the first bullet. “Incoming!” Bullets and magic soared through the air, making little holes in the sand beneath her boots. “Twilight! Get me some cover!” The purple princess landed down, but right before she could project a bubble of violet magic, Optix had a barbed arrow shot through her knee. She screamed in agonizing pain. Twilight erected the barrier and looked down. “Optix! Are you okay!?” “Yeah, just got the wind knocked outta me.” She said sarcastically. Twilight remained silent, staring at her wound. “Da’ fuck are you staring at? I got a stick through my knee!” She took off her helmet and slapped a red-cross sticker on it, then placed it on Twilight’s head roughly. “You’re the medic. Help me up!” “Okay, okay! Rarity! You and Fluttershy need to cover us!” Fluttershy feebly picked up a heavy rock to throw at the army, but a soldier attempted to swipe at her. She sprung upwards and accidentally dropped the stone on the soldier’s head, knocking him out. “I- I’m sorry.” Optix picked up a pebble and tossed it at her, hitting her on the muzzle. “Sorry for him tryin’a kill you? Keep it together!” “S-sorry…” Optix turned to Twilight. “Is that arrow out ye- agh!!” I never thought I’d be a Field Surgeon. Twilight thought. “Just hang tight! I know everything about pony anatomy! This should be… kinda easy! I don’t think you’ll be able to walk again though…” “To hell I won’t!” I hope Derpibra is having better luck than we are right now… -->><<-- *CRACK-BOOM* The ritual is nearing it’s end. Derpibra thought as he trudged through the final feet of dirt leading to the top of the peak. As he took his last step, a giant golden wall shot up from the ground, seemingly out of nowhere. “What the…!? Grr, I don’t have time for this!” Through the ethereal wall was the sight of a massive golden dragon rising from the ground. It soared into the air and spread it’s wings apart, flaring a great solar light that blinded everything within the entire radius of the island. “N-no…!” He shot a magic blast towards the wall, but it didn’t budge. “Damn! If only I could fly…!” At the center of the wall was a slit. Next to it was a group of words, luckily this time in English. “A piece of history, something that fought the war you threaten to end. That is what the key is. ...What?” He scratched his head, then began to dig relentlessly through his pockets. He had a hunch that something he was carrying could be the true key… “...the dagger!” He retrieved the completely dulled dagger from his short scabbard and observed it. “I remember what Daischtert said back at the ruin. Maybe this is the key!” He slid the dagger inside, then it disappeared in a flash of sparkles and comforting light. The wall faded away, gaining him access to Magnus’ resurrection grounds. It was now or never. Confrontation“Where do you think you’re going?” A mare’s voice called after Derpibra. “Huh? Sanctus? How did you get here?” “Heh. Where else would that purple pony teleport you to?” “...Smart. But you’re not gonna stop me!” “Test me.” She withdrew her heavy greatsword. “You aren’t going to kill to our King!” “I’ll worry about you later.” Derpibra soared off to face Magnus. “Oh no you don’t! Don’t you dare fly away from me!” She pursued him. “I might be a unicorn, but I can fly too!” Only seconds after the flight, Derpibra stopped suddenly. She stopped just feet behind him. They stared intently for several more seconds before Derpibra broke the silence. “I don’t want to fight you.” “You fought the rest without a problem! Don’t treat me any differently!” He grunted. “Fine, if you demand satisfaction that much… you do realize just how much stronger I’ve become over the past few months?” He briefly transformed into a Super Saiyan. His purple aura and mane spiked and waved by the force of his power. “The chains broke off as soon as the wall opened. I hadn’t even noticed... “ “You think I’m weak? You forgot that I studied the ways of the dragon already?” Her mane shined a glorious gold, and stood in a flame-like style just like Derpibra’s. “So, you can become a Super Saiyan…” “Yes! You’re the only one who pushed me this far besides the darkness. You should feel honored.” Her power is amazing! I better not underestimate her. “Now now, no need to fight him, Sanctus.” Derpibra’s eyes shot wide open. An almost unreal magic level was right behind him. “Magnus? Your Worship, this stallion deserves every bit of punishment! He comes here with the objective that requires your murder! And you would simply-” “Hush… I will not let him escape, for betraying the Light. I will deal with him myself.” “As you wish.” Sanctus scoffed. Magnus turned over to Derpibra. “Does the Dark compel you?” “A bit more than your Light. You liar…” “I see Daischtert has gotten to you. Would you really believe what he has to say?” “I’ve seen evidence of your crimes. Inscriptions, documents! They all tell against you, Magnus!” “Ponies- so weak minded and easily fooled. You really have given in to him.” “Yes, I have- to beat you. The truest form of Darkness is Darkness disguised as Light.” “Who’s to say Daischtert is the exception, on the flip side?” “He proved himself. Where’s your proof, hm? Maybe you can Time Travel and-” “Silence. I will have no more of your reasoning. You have betrayed the Path of Light, and you will be cast into eternal Darkness for it!” “And how are you going to do that if you’re a dragon of Light?” Magnus charged a yellow sphere in his mouth then launched it towards Derpibra. He swiftly dodged, then transformed into Super Derpibra. “My.” Magnus feigned a blown-back expression. “You’ve grown quite a bit since your training with me some months back.” “Yeah.” He frowned slightly harder. “And this rapidly increasing strength of mines will be your doom!” “Tell me,” He began. “What drives you to kill me? Do you even possess a personal motive for this?” “I know right from wrong. You tried to use me and my friends for your evil deeds… innocent ponies died because of you! ...We had to kill others too. I know that the more I adventure, the more of this stuff I might see and do… might as well make sure I do it to the right ones!” “You are a fool… just like the rest of them! You ponies, disrespecting the honor of dragons in such a grotesque fashion!” “So, I was right about you!” He squeaked. “You talk in a way that makes us seem lesser than you!” “You are at least set higher in observance and intelligence than the rest of your kind… no matter. Seems I will have to do away with you like the rest. A shame, a hero of my creation, and I must destroy him. Pity.” Derpibra’s magic soared. “I don’t care if you’re a god dragon or not! You’re not gonna beat me! Good always triumphs over evil!” “You will learn in time that that isn’t always true.” Teacher and Student“Haa!” Derpibra charged a blonde sphere in a hoof, shouting: “Super Derpi Beam!” Magnus leaped high in the air, dodging the attack, then charged after him. With a balled-up claw, he let out a menacing roar that left Derpibra stunned from the sheer volume. Then, he smashed him through the mountain, sending Derpibra crashing into the dense forests. He was twitching in boundless pain. He wasn’t expecting such a devastating attack. He heard a deep royal voice that seemed to surround him. “Hahahaha! Your power is fading so quickly! Even with the gift of dragons you still fall short of a weakling!” Before Derpibra could muster the strength to stand, he found himself being smashed through multiple trees one after the other. Magnus decided then that he was done, then finished him with a devastating punch that created a crevice in the ground below. Derpibra laid at the end of the trench, his purple mane long since faded to it’s original red. “Finished already? How am I not surprised?” Derpibra began to produce tears. Only barely conscious, he sniffled as his hair began to stand tall again. His muscles were growing far beyond Super Derpibra. “Hm? What’s this?” “No… I… I won’t fall easily like I did those other times. I will win!” He power exploded in a torrent of darkness. Everything about him grew many times larger than what they were before. He shouted almost as loudly as Magnus had only moments ago- a roar with the might of a dragon. His mane transitioned to a slightly brighter purple, and the pupils in his eyes vanished. “Screw the last form I was using! I’m Ultra Derpibra now!” “Your power is astonishing for a pony.” His power was coursing his body, surrounded by an aura that almost seemed black. “You’ll see that dragons aren’t the only strong ones around!” Off in the distance, Daischtert was soaring through the crisp air. “Good to know he finally showed up.” Derpibra grunted. “Now… for YOU.” “Bring it then. Let’s see how long you can last.” Magnus beckoned for him to attack with a single raise of the claw. Derpibra charged at him relentlessly, landing a deafening uppercut. He then began assailing him with a shattering combo. He kicked him into the air, then vanished, reappearing above and smashing Magnus into the ground, leaving behind a hole that looked as if a meteor hit the Earth. To finish Magnus off, he fired a swarm of energy blasts into the soil, generating dozens of explosions and leaving behind a screen of debris and smoke. He panted, just after his enraged assault ended. “Still alive?” Magnus appeared behind Derpibra and performed a magic sweep, knocking him backwards. “You weren’t even affected by that…!” “Honestly, I wasn’t using maximum strength the entire time.” Magnus said. “No way…! I…” “Am inferior? You ponies are always getting yourselves into things you cannot finish. It never fails. Ho ho ho.” Derpibra, feeling as if his efforts were futile, reverted to his skinnier, less bulky form. He turned his back to Magnus and began to walk away. “Why… why can’t I win my battles on my own?” “You do realize what you’re up against? You’re challenging one of the god tier. Of course you couldn’t win! Best you run along and go grab your friends, unless you want to die now?” Derpibra spread his wings and lifted off, gliding away to that dark dragon shadow that was twirling within the air all this time. “Hmph. Weak, AND wimpy. Why did I ever invest so much energy into him again?” Two Brothers“I can’t beat him!” Derpibra cried. “Why can’t I beat him!?” “It takes a god to beat a god Derpibra.” Daischtert said. “I will face him myself. It seems only I am the one capable of ending this war. So much death and destruction… no matter. Go and secure the beachfront with the others. I will finish this.” “O-okay.” The black dragon dashed off in the distance, leaving his gray friend to find his way toward the beach. -->><<-- The beach was littered with arrows, bullet casings, bodies, anything that could serve as a tell-tale sign of conflict. It seems that his friends have put up a flag with Daischtert’s emblem in the soft sand below. Derpibra landed and folded his wings. He observed his surroundings and judged that whatever happened here was not pretty- at least for the enemy. Twilight approached him with Optix using her as a crutch. “Hey bonehead!” Optix greeted. “You’re still alive. You look like you’re in bad shape.” “My armor is just shattered to bits. I’m starting to wonder why every time I get new armor it breaks in the first fight I get into. Guess it’s just bad luck. What about you?” “Got a arrow to the knee. Hey, why do you look so down chum?” “I couldn’t beat Magnus… Daischtert is going to fight him now. He told me to hold the beach with you guys.” “Good. We can use the extra muscle. And, cheer up. Even the best can’t win ‘em all.” “Twilight? Did the fight end well? I’m hoping there was only one injury here.” “Yes.” Twilight replied. “The fight was… bloody, to say the least. But at least we aren’t the ones that got killed. Still, it’s rather unsettling seeing this many bodies here at once.” “I’d say. Hey, where’s Fluttershy? I see everyone here but her.” “She prolly ran off somewhere.” Optix scoffed. “But with all the warfare, we couldn’t go lookin’ for her. The fight literally just ended.” “Hey, um, everypony?” A familiar, light voice called. “I found a pigeon. It looks hurt.” Fluttershy emerged from the dense forests behind the castle. “Look at her. She must’ve gotten hit by the aftershock of all of the explosions.” “Fluttershy! Where were you?” Optix growled. “We needed your help back here!” Fluttershy squeaked. “Optix, remember…” Twilight said. “Go easy on her. I don’t think she would have expected to find herself in a warzone you know.” “Okay Twinkle.” Optix remarked. “Wait, Twinkle?” “That’s gonna be your new name.” Her horn began to glow a bright blonde, levitating a small tin container from her belt pouch. She took the lid off and scooped up some sand in it then replaced the lid. She took out a purple marker and wrote ‘Dragon Isle’ on it’s face. “What’s that for?” “I like to keep the sand and dirt from different places I fought in. It helps me remember the places we- I, conquered. Ah~ good times. Maybe we can visit those places together some day?” “Sounds intriguing.” At least everypony is okay. Derpibra thought. Hopefully Daischtert will be having an easier time. -->><<-- “So, Daischtert… It’s been some time since we properly spoke without trying to kill each other.” Magnus said in such a posh fashion. “Cut the act Magnus.” “My, so sharp with your responses.” “I have to be. Especially when speaking with you, unfortunately.” Magnus sighed. “I am a silver-tongued devil afterall.” “Yes, seeing as you lied about your light to all of your followers. You have ponies worshipping you, praising you for your supposed radiance. How foolish, they were, to trust you.” “‘Tis their very nature, no? They deserve to be taken advantage of! They have no respect for dragon kind! They think us all to be treacherous beasts, always with an ulterior motive in our dealings. We, always the perpetrators of destruction and mass hysteria.” “Aren’t you proving their point?” “Yes, but that, is the point Daischtert. Have you not seen it yet? Even after all of these years?” “Seen what?” “I wanted to prove them right. They were always paranoid… never trusting, even if we meant well at one point. So, I made their paranoia truth. Their conspiracies finally breath truth, Daischtert. I want them to understand, now, that they thought right. You see, there is a plenty more history to our past interactions with ponies than what can be found on the walls of tombs and literature inscribed within artifacts. They will come to know it, now.” “You’re… insane!” “Is it considered insanity to expect respect from others?” “It is earned, not taken!” “Not true. As you can see, I took it, in such a way they wouldn’t notice. There are things that I know that not even you do. How I became a king, how I earned everyone’s respect so tactfully? You couldn’t even guess.” Daischtert remained silent. “Precisely. If I am to die this day, then those secrets will die with me. I hold the breath required. Without me around, there are some things you will just never know…” “Impossible! You’re just bluffing! What you know can’t be that seriously important. What is important now is your judgement.” “I concur, Your Honor.” Daischtert formed a ring in his claws, arcing with black lightning. “Let us begin our fight. This idle chatter is obnoxious now.” “You think killing me will end the true darkness?” Magnus’ bright gold scales turned to black, and his eyes were a brilliant blue. “I am not the only patron to the darkness. You too are one with me and the rest!” “Magnus, you…! What are you!?” “I am you, Daischtert.” “I only assumed this blighted power because I thought it would break your light, but it seems this is your true self.” “Yes. Now you understand. This, this is Light’s darkest form.” This is insane! He’s lived a lie… well, now is time for me to end it. “Dark Impulse!” Daishctert launched the ring, but Magnus dodged it. Magnus retaliated by launching a beam from his snout. “Shadow Beam!” He deflected the attack then jumped backwards, launching a volley of blasts in Magnus’ direction. With these blasts heading his way, he projected a magic shield and blocked all of his attacks. The two dragons began flying through the dense forests and magma filled lands all across the island, shooting magic and occasionally clashing together until they reached the smaller mountain ranges. “Is this all you have for me Daischtert?” “I killed you once, and I can do it again!” “Hmph, that old body was useless anyhow. This is me at my purest.” Daishctert’s snout began to glow a dim purple. “Shadow Snap!” He chomped at his opponent, doing a considerable amount of damage. Magnus had three red bite marks on his chest. “Playing dirty now? Shadow Splice!” The area around the mountains became pitch black, almost as if the Earth had a hole in the atmosphere leading into space. Then, suddenly, three neon blue scratch marks appeared within the bubble of dark, one by one, before they disappeared, sending Daishctert flying into a mountain. “I never had the chance to test that one out.” “Not bad Magnus.” “What!? No one’s ever survived that attack!” “But me. And I know why.” “Tell me. Tell me this instant! It had to be a shield or something similar!” “No. All those years you spent, pretending to be calm and unwilling to fight if not provoked first. It has had its effects on you Magnus. You aren’t nearly as strong as you were before. I dare say you even misused your technique.” “Misused!? How idiotic of you to think such a thing. I am still in the best shape as can be.” “Then let us test it. Shadow Punch!” Daischtert landed a impactful blow to his chest with a claw, sending Magnus spiraling into another nearby mountain. Grabbing him by the foot, he spun around many times before throwing him into the base of yet another mountain, bringing down the mighty stone upon his opponent. The mountain crumbled under the force of the pitch, being reduced to nothing but comically large rubble. Magnus managed to pull himself out of his bed of stones, but it seems he was crippled from the attack. “D-damn you... “ “I’m sorry it had to come to this, but this is the only way this war can end. We took so many ponies with us. But only one of us had a noble reason for it, and only one must pay.” He prepared a black beam in his claw. “Magnus, you are a brother who’s gone mad. I still think of you as family, even in our current circumstances.” “Fool! You talk as if you would kill me!” “I did it once.” “But what about the second time? Could you stomach wiping me from existence? Your decision may be final…” Daischtert was quite hesitant. His beam grew in intensity, and his thoughts raced. “Wot? Finish me! You have the chance. Or will you let me slip away again?” “...My sincerest apologies.” *KA-BOOM* The beam left behind a mushroom cloud, and once it vanished, it only left behind ashes. Daischtert began to sniffle, then eventually started to cry. “You were the only family I had since I’ve lost track of my parents, so long ago because of our bout. I know what you did was wrong, but I can’t help but feel I’m missing something now…” He felt a soft object placed on his shoulder. It was Derpibra’s hoof. “You did the right thing. No doubt he would’a came back and destroyed us all later if you didn’t put him down.” “Honestly, I don’t know what I did was even right. Sure, the fight is over, but at what cost? The cost of thousands- millions of lives. Families devastated from members going to war, and all for what? A simple disagreement.” Derpibra couldn’t forge a response. “I need time to… to think about this. I will take you all back to Equestria, but then I will have to come back here, to repair what’s been damaged. I have to right my wrongs now, in anyway that I can.” “I understand. Will you come to visit us again?” “Someday.” A Mark Worthy of Dragons“Aw, she likes you Derpibra.” Fluttershy handed the pigeon over to him. “I guess she does. I’mma call her… Pidgey. Who’s a cute little Pidgey?” The pigeon chirped. “How did you ever manage to find a pigeon out here? These animals are usually native to urban environments, right?” Twilight asked. “Yes. But, something is different about her. Maybe we’ll find out why someday.” “Hey Optix?” Derpibra said. “Wassup?” “Aren’t you gonna tell us about what your backstory is?” “When we get home chum.” Daischtert, with his deep voice, began to speak. “I was impressed by the power you were generating back there.” “Thanks Scaley.” “I have to ask: how do you grow so quickly?” “I don’t know. It just kinda comes to me.” “I’d say you have an actual talent for this.” “What? Ah c’mon, you’re just being nice.” “That’s not what your cutie mark is telling me.” “Huh?” He looked down at his flank to spot a silver kite shield encased in a golden aura, presumably magic, as his cutie mark. His eyes brightened and sparkled as he stared in awe. “Yes! I finally got it! But… I didn’t do anything to earn it, did I?” “You did. You learned that you favor protecting your friends with your magic, or any other means. Let your mark be a symbol of triumph. Now, you know your purpose is concrete.” Everyone congratulated him with claps and whistles. “Oh boy! My parents are gonna be so happy when I show them! This. is. EPIC!” -->><<-- With the war now over, and Derpibra finally obtaining his mark, him and his friends are now more curious about where they may end up next. Optix did mention she had an interesting story to tell...
Preperation“Applejack, no!” A voice shot out from the bedroom. Derpibra sprung from the pillow, tears in his eyes. He looked around frantically for his dear mare, but it took him some time to realize he was in reality. He gasped rapidly as his cheeks became stained with his fear. “Applejack…” “You are safe now.” A sweet, low voice emanated from the opposite side of the sun stained room. He wiped his tears away with a hoof, his lips tensing at his nightmare. “L-Luna?” “I’ve only seen part of your nightmare. What was it as a whole?” “Darkness… Applejack died. Flurry Heart, gone… everything. The dream… i-it was all black. I couldn’t see…” Luna caressed him, and her left wing blanketed him around the back. “‘Tis okay. You are back now, to reality. Nothing happened here that would effectively resemble your dream.” “But... “ His eyes full of glistening tears looked at her in disbelief. “It felt so real…” “As many nightmares do. Do not worry, I will protect you in the darkest hours of the night.” Derpibra squeezed her in a trusting hug while sniffling in her coat. “T-thanks.” “Quickly now,” She cleaned the reappearing tears from his muzzle. “Twilight is expecting you. Today is Sunday, and she wants to head off to the ruins soon.” “Y-yeah. Let’s go.” He got up from his bed, and retrieved his trench coat and hat from the wardrobe, and headed off to the Royal Study. --->><--- “Twilight?” Derpibra called into the endless mass of books and shelves. “I’m here!” “I’m over here.” To his left, he spotted a desk with various books and tools upon it. Trotting over, he greeted her with a hoof shake. “So how’s the research going with the ruins?” “Everything seems to be in a different language concerning whatever I could find relative to the location of the ruins.” She flipped through her notes. “Luxembourgish, a language not commonly spoken in Equestria since 963. Those ruins however could be much older, predating the language its many inscriptions were written in.” “You know the name of these ruins?” “The name in Luxembourgish is ‘Ruine vun der Donkel Draach’. I am still in the process of translating the name however. There is not much on how their language works here.” “Will this stop us from going right now?” “Not at all.” She summoned a bag from under the desk. “I’m ready to go, just like everyone else. But are you ready, is the question.” “I still need to get some armor and a new sword, remember?” “Right. Erm… talk to Cadence about that. I’m sure she knows about a royal smith around the castle somewhere. Once you do that, meet us outside on the courtyard so we can get going.” “Cool. Hey Luna? Are you coming with us?” She shook her head. “My apologies, but I’m certain that these ruins would be interesting to explore, but I must remain with my sister. We still have repairs to make around the castle.” “Aw, okay. Stay safe.” Derpibra waved goodbye as she departed from the room. “Guess I should be heading out too. Alright, see you in a few.” --->><<--- Cadence, seated upon the throne, waved towards Derpibra’s approach. “Good morning.” “Mornin’.” “Did you rest well?” He acted out a stretch. “Eh… not really. Had a bad dream, but Luna came to my rescue, so I’m good.” “What was it about?” He was reluctant to share any details, especially about Flurry Heart in his nightmare. “I… heh, you know, the usual. Zombies, dinosaurs, that sorta thing.” “I dislike those dreams. It usually involves me being helpless in one way or another.” He nodded, glad he dodged the bullet. “Yeah, it sucks. Hey, do you have any weapons or armor that a stallion like me can use?” “Sure. My personal armory is just down the hall to my bedroom. I’ll show you.” She lifted herself from her throne and motioned for him to follow closely behind. Both trotting, he asked, “Personal armory? You would seriously let me get something from there?” “You deserve it. You saved the Empire, everypony inside it, including my baby. I actually have something of amazing value for you.” “You see,” He began with a smirk. “I would say you don’t need to reward me, but now you’ve gotten me interested.” She chuckled, quite cutely so. “You should be. I think you’ll love it.” She stopped at a seemingly random door amongst all others in the hall. “Right here.” Derpibra cocked a brow. “Uh, this door looks exactly like all the other ones here.” “It’s because you do not feel the magical seal on this door. Only the highest ranking guards are allowed access. Now quickly, before anypony sees.” Her horn flashed a brilliant blue, and the seal was lifted, but only for a moment. They dashed into the room, shutting the door. When Derpibra turned about, his eyes feasted on irons and steels covering the walls in the form of armor and blades. “Woah… okay, this is pretty cool.” “Look at what is in the case right here.” To the center of the large room rested a large glass display case. Inside it held a bright pink and silver longsword. The cross guard and pommel of the hilt faintly resembled a sort of heart shape. The blade was split into two colors by a straight line. Upon closer inspection, the blade seemed to have had a strange multicolored glow. Its sheath shared the same characteristics. “This is the Blade of Hearts- a longsword meant to be used with two hooves.” Derpibra retrieved the weapon from its clear sanctuary, and observed its fantasy look. “This thing is beautiful.” “Yes, even after all of these years. It’s been a family relic of ours for generations. And now it’s yours.” “Wait, but is it still usable? It’s pretty old, eh?” “That doesn’t mean it can’t be used. It is capable of much more than what meets the eye. But I’ll leave that for you to discover.” After sheathing the blade and attaching it to his belt, he trotted over to an armor stand, putting on display a suit of Royal Heavy Plate armor. Colored with various pinks and blues, it stood high and mighty as the pinnacle of Crystal Empire craftsmanship. “This armor looks heavy.” “It is. Only highly trained paladins are able to wield such armor without tipping over. Maybe you would like to try it on?” “Yeah.” He removed his duster coat and hat in favor of the massive plated armor. Buckling it into place, he stood confidently in his suit. He dropped the visor of his helmet over his eyes. “How do I look?” “Like a huge discolored mass of impenetrable steel.” “That sounds accurate enough. And this sword matches the colors.” “Glad to see you are able to wear such heavy armor without getting sore. Well, i hear you must go explore those ruins, so I’ll leave you to your devices. Shall we go?” “Of course.”
Enter the DarkThere was no real trail up to the ruins. Only the rubble left behind from the fight between Derpibra and Chrysalis could be used to traverse the battle ridden mountain. The sun beamed down, and the air was refreshing and cool by nature. The day had a plentiful amount of pearl white clouds, but not enough to obstruct the sunlight. But, mysteriously so, the darkness from the crumbled ruins radiated like the subtle glow of a glow stick, causing some of the ocean blue sky to be quite literally blacked out the farther the party went. “There.” Derpibra pointed up the decreasing slope. “Those are the ruins. They gotta be.” “I agree.” Twilight replied. “It matches the various descriptions I’ve uncovered in the Royal Study.” The sediments below her hooves crackled and churned as she continued her modest pace. They came upon the black ruins, and before them was a door of solid stone as dark as night. Inscribed upon its face was the Luxembourgish language, sitting as dull letters etched in stone. “Why does this door seem familiar to me?” Derpibra muttered as he pulled in closer. “The letters… the energy…” He had a brief flashback to that harrowing dream he had. Somehow, these ruins were in a way similar to what he laid witness to in his nightmare. Although he could not pinpoint what the feeling of deja vu was originating from... He placed a hoof on the shifted stone, and kept a keen eye observing the foreign text inscribed upon it. The text blushed a brilliant purple color in response to his touch. “Amazing.” Twilight approached the entrance and traced the alien runes with a hoof alongside him. “After all of these years, and the magic is still active here. “This had to have been the works of a master wizard. If they have locks this complicated, who knows what might be inside.” Fluttershy cloaked her face under her mane. “Are there going to be… traps, in there?” “I wouldn't doubt it. And, in a place like this, we might find worse.” Fluttershy winced. Probably a bit too descriptive, Twilight thought. “But, we are quite capable of defending ourselves. We should be fine. Now, does anyone have any ideas on how to open this door?” “Our best bet is to translate the text on the circle lock.” Derpibra suggested. “It could give us a clue maybe.” “An admirable idea.” She shuffled through her messenger bag and withdrew a scuffed book with all manner of notes and papers protruding from the inner pages. “This is a long list of notes I’ve developed which should allow us basic translation of the Luxembourgian language.” “Basic?” He questioned. “Yes. Luxembourgish is not a common language in Equestria, and notes on its grammar rules and such are thusly limited, especially since I didn't have much time, with our schedule, to be able to properly finish them.” “Can’t we just blow the door open?” Optix shot from the back of the party. “Don’t be so rash.” Gaffold instructed. “These are ruins. Any major disturbance could render our journey here useless, love. Let us not bring the place down on our heads?” “I don't see any other easy way of getting in there.” “We mustn’t resort to such barbaric methods unless we need to.” She shrugged. “Alright, let's see how long we’ll be sitting out here then.” Derpibra glanced over his shoulder. “Can we not argue about this? Let's leave it up to Twilight, since she knows more about this place than any of us. Twi, what should we do?” “We should prioritize safety and tactful movements.” Twilight said. “We came here to observe and research. Who knows how fragile this ruin is.” She gave the purple text an observant eye, carefully pulling out her notes. “Give me some time. These letters don’t seem to match what I have…” The characters were astonishing to her. Her notes scarcely turned any interesting translations, but after some cross referencing and determination, she managed to pronounce the sentence. “Intelligenz ass eng staark staip. Intelligence is a strong tool. What is that supposed to mean?” Everypony shrugged. “Hmm…” The lock responded to her English translation, and rotated, the stone grinding against the door itself. Once the lock ceased its motion, cubes pushed from the door, each with a separate character. “Is this some kind of puzzle…?” “Maybe.” Gaffold said. “‘Tis just a guess love, but with those square holes in the door, maybe you should arrange them in the right order?” “It’s an idea.” She squinted at the multicolored texts on each block. “Seems I have to translate these letters and put them in the right order.” She slid the blocks around and translated them into a sentence that would hopefully make even just some amount of sense. “No, that isn’t right…” She repeated her action, curled a brow at the result. “Nope.” “Lemme see.” Derpibra requested. “Do you know how to translate this?” She asked as she handed him the book. “I think so. This door just seems so familiar to me.” “How?” “From a dream I had. I would now be so bold to say that I know what was inside of this place too…” “Hmm. Alright, try it out.” He laid a hoof on the lock and closed his eyes, opting for feeling the mysterious, ancient magic. After some time, he opened his eyes sparkling with purple, and chanted a mass of Luxembourgian words. “Dest sinn d’Wierder vunder Warrior vun der Light: emmerhin d’Muecht, an entdeckt dei Dir sidd. Stop um naischt, oder Dir waert ni wait goen.” Twilight retrieved the book, staggered by his fluent speaking of such a difficult language. She hastily flipped through her pages, until finally being able to translate the words spoken. “‘These are the words of the Warrior of Light: Embrace the power, discover who you are. Stop at nothing, or you’ll never go far.’” She looked up at Derpibra with confused eyes. “Well, that is oddly specific. What does that mean?” “I’m guessing only I can pull us through this.” The door rumbled ajar from the sensing of the translation, and everyone tried to look inside, but their eyes only met a piercing blackness that made the idea of being able to see an implausible one. “Do not worry.” Twilight assured. “I can just used an Illumination spell.” “No.” Derpibra objected with a flat voice. “It responds negatively to the Light. I remember this from my nightmare… the Darkness will kill us if we even try it.” “What? How?” He shook his head to push back the harrowing memory. “Just, don’t. Trust me.” “...Okay. Right behind you then. Lead on.”
VoidwalkersThe door tremored the ruins as it shut behind the party, locking them into an infinite ink of darkness. “Derpi,” Optix called. “You sure we can’t at least light up a torch?” “Yes.” “But it’s pitch black in here! It was a dream, so it couldn’t have been totally real right?” “No. It felt too real. That’s why this place feels so familiar.” Everyone was bumping into each other recklessly, but Derpibra seemed to have a better sense of direction. “Everyone, hold on to each other’s backs.” Twilight said. “If we move as a coordinated group, we won’t be at as large a risk of getting lost. Follow Derpibra’s lead. He seems to know more about this place than we do.” “He’s movin’ from instinct and deja vu.” Applejack said. “Ah say we jus’ trust ‘em. I do.” Everypony nodded, not that they were able to see it. Their hooves latching on to each other’s backs, they walked in a sort of conga line. The idea in practice was slightly cumbersome, but was effective. Should someone spot something, at least one pony- whoever it was- could stop the train. Derpibra was feeling lucky, and decided to slap the soft mass directly in his grasp, hopefully to lighten up the mood of blindness and slight fear. “Who just did that?” Rarity called into the darkness behind her. Derpibra held his breath, realizing he got the wrong mare. “What’s wrong Rarity?” Twilight voice sounded, presumably from the farthest back of the line. “Someone in this line smacked my rear.” So that’s who I hit… Derpibra thought nervously. “Let us not stray about for too long mates.” Gaffold said. “We should stay focused on our objective.” “Well, who’s at the way front?” “Me.” Applejack called. “Well, lead on then.” “Twi, ah can’t exactly see in here ya know.” The conga line quickly dispersed, everyone figuring this idea to be useless. “That idea’s out the window.” Derpibra grunted. “Hmm… well, this room can’t be that huge. Maybe we can find a way to actually see in here without using light.” “That’s impossible.” Twilight said. “My scientific studies suggest that there isn’t a feasible way to see without producing any kind of photons.” “We’re in a ruin made of solid darkness. I’m pretty sure being able to see without light in here would be possible.” “Then what do you propose we do?” A bright black light emerged from Derpibra’s belt pouch. Somehow, the black light seemed more visible compared to the darkness the ruin itself radiated. He withdrew the suspected item and realized it was that mark that Daischtert, the black dragon gave him. The worn, rolled cocoon of metal vibrated softly. “What is the mark doing?” Gaffold inquired. “I have no idea.” Derpibra replied with a barely visible shrug. “Wait a sec,” Optix started. “Aren’t we makin’ light now?” Derpibra remained silent, unsure of how to answer that question. His feeling of dread- impending doom, loomed upon him, not knowing what might happen. His nightmare only did so much in the way of details toward the consequences. All he knew was that something bad might happen- His pessimistic thoughts were quickly abolished as the mark’s at first black glow turned to a low purple. It’s magnificent creation of photons extended to the far corners of the surprisingly sizeable room. Along the walls were even more words and literature from the Luxembourgian language. Runes about the floor, cracked, and pillars inscripted with ancient decorative etches. The ceiling had quite the odd assortment of old style suns and moons painted about the surface. The entire room was cast in the revealing purple light, making everything adopt a more mystical look. Everyone winced, expecting death, or perhaps something worse, but was met with only a slight sparkling noise from the mark. Small, shiny particles glittered about the stone room from its soothing radiance. “...Huh? Why aren't we dead?” Optix questioned. “I don’t know.” Derpibra said. “Let’s just be glad nothing happened.” To the left of the room, blue text flashed under the aura of the mark. Upon the cracked wall was another patch of the Luxembourgish language, awaiting Twilight’s translation. Twilight, curious, came up to the text with a book in hoof, and took about a minute to translate the short sentence. “...Under the caring light of the mark will you be able to see without incident.” “Maybe that’s why he gave it to you.” Gaffold said. “To make traversing this ruin a less perilous task.” “Glad for that at least.” Derpibra said with a shrug. “I’m still wondering why Magnus would be Däischtert’s mortal enemy though. He never told us why.” “Perhaps he wanted us to discover it, eh?” Turning his attention to Twilight, he asked, “Twilight, is there anything you can find on why these two dragons are the way they are?” “I will need some time.” Twilight squinted slightly into the increasing darkness to spot a lever next to an outline of a rectangle in the wall. “...Looks like a lever.” She trotted over to pull it, but the white unicorn stopped her. “Rarity?” “What if the lever is linked to a trap? We cannot use magic to aid our escape since it will make light that I presume the ruin wouldn’t appreciate.” “Well,” Twilight glanced around a moment before responding. “there is no other way to get farther in this place. We’ll be fine.” She pulled the lever in question, and observed the rectangle retracting into the floor below, revealing a dimly lit hallway. “The caution is appreciated though.” “She has a point.” Optix said. “As much as I love running through crazy ass traps, We shouldn’t be getting in trouble over a failed safety protocol. Keep your chins up.” And with that last half-inspiring statement from the freelance military mare, everyone walked into the ever illuminating hallway. Without the mark, navigation would be nearly impossible. The next room appeared before them, being much more spacious than the last. Ancient illustrations of dragons and ponies dotted the walls, along with various suns and moons, similar to the ones previously seen. At the end of the room was an even larger set of stone doors with odd protrusions. “Quite the hall I’d say.” Derpibra said. “Hm, where do we start first with these drawings?” Twilight started from the far left of the room at its corner. “Here, from left to right… maybe. Who knows if this is at all like how English is written.” Twilight spent what felt like hours translating the captions and picking possibilities of what pictures could possibly mean, before finally managing to compile a story to summarize it. She cleared her throat before reading her notes. “There was once a time in history where dragons and ponies lived in harmony together, but this was many years ago- perhaps before Equestria was conceived as an idea. But, there were many cultural and moral differences between the two species. Ponies required resources and land, both of which dragons consumed without much care. Dragons were unable to produce anything due to their relative inability to touch crops or buildings without crushing them. However, dragons made up for their mistakes by serving as guardians of ponies.” She moved to another section of picture and text before continuing. “But soon, dragons’ selfish nature stemmed from them not getting any return for their hard work, as at the time ponies were constantly at war, and dragons scarcely any time to their families. They demanded the rarest of all things- at least at the time, like gold and massive amounts of food. Ponies refused, seeing as they could not produce such things with the then-current technology they possessed. Dragons began to turn bitter, and resigned as protectors of their former allies. The numbers of dragons in Equestria lowered as the lack of food, even from areas they’ve plundered, was not enough to keep up their population. It is not much higher today, since dragons require immense nutrients and supreme conditions to raise healthy offspring.” She moved yet again, to the last text and picture. “Then, two dragons rose, both full of light. Magnus, once a low class member of the dragon clan, rose to power through speechcraft and wit. He sought strength, so maybe he can set the dragons’ rightful fear-induced grip back over ponies, so they may gather what they want, when they want. Daichtert used to follow in his ideals, but quickly became aware of his master’s plan. Turning to the opposite element for help- the Darkness, he sought to put Magnus out of his power hungry position to restore a more permanent harmony between us and dragons. That is why his name is Daichtert, Luxembourgian for Darkness. It is rumored that this was not his original name, as it’s been lost in time ages ago.” Twilight closed her book with a confident smile. “Was that informative enough?” “Now we know exactly what happened!” Derpibra said. “I can’t believe Magnus would be like this though. It’s just… so far fetched.” “That scoundrel!” Gaffold grumbled. “He meant to use us as tools for his rise to power, and he wanted Daichtert out of the way first… maybe his assassination was all but required?” “Perhaps.” Twilight half-nodded. “One thing that still puzzles me is… how did this ruin get here?” “Only one way to find out.” Gaffold pointed to the doors down the large room. “Right.” Twilight trotted to the door that could double as the actual wall to the room. Upon it’s face were several cubes and rings with square imprints. “Seems like some kind of puzzle.” Scooping up the stone cut-out with a forehoof, she spotted a symbol of a dragon’s snout upon it. Another cut-out had a minimalistic design of a pony face upon it. Then, the third being two swords clashing in another minimalistic design. “So,” Rainbow Dash began. “What’s with the boxes?” “I don’t know… maybe we need to… ah! Got it!” Inside the imprints of the rings, she spotted the same symbols, but in different colors. “I just have to match the symbols and colors. Trivial puzzling at its finest.” “Whoever made this ruin was not very smart, were they?” Rainbow snickered. “Perhaps not. But, it saves us time.” While Twilight began her working on the puzzle, Derpibra spotted a crate propped against the wall. Feeling curious, he trotted over to the wooden container, and observed it. The crate was battered and old, but looked relatively new in comparison to everything else. Flipping the wooden flap open, he dug inside and found something that felt slightly heavy. Retracting it, he apparently held to a dagger. The blade itself was not very… sharp. Blunt actually. It could serve as a form of an unconventional baton, but something about it felt useful in some other way, somehow. Deciding to not break anyone’s focus, especially Twilight’s, he placed it in his belt pouch where the mark previously was before it went floating about lighting up the place. “This puzzle is surprisingly simplistic.” Twilight said, sounding disappointed. “Even a novice school philly could solve this with minimal difficulty.” The colossal doors rumbled as the locks and tumblers as the wall’s inner mechanisms unlocked and twirled. Once the entrance was spread open, bright rays of sunlight stopped right at the entrance, almost as if it hit an invisible wall- unable to penetrate the darkness within. “Beautiful,” Gaffold sighed at the wonder. “If, a bit of a paradox in itself. How the Light cannot reach inside is most interesting. Is the Light really that lacking in strength in comparison?” “Who knows.” Twilight sighed. “These ruins had to have been enchanted by the most powerful magic. The question is who was it that did it?” She began her walk into the Light, and the closer she drew, the brighter the room got. Becoming so illuminated that her eyes were rendered useless, along with everypony else’s. But only a second passed before the brightness suddenly blinked away, leaving behind shined characters that read, when translated: “Light, the typical force that represents good, has often been used for evil. Darkness experiences the same treatment…” “So,” Derpibra began, slightly puzzled. “Does that mean Darkness can be a force of good too?” “Maybe.” Optix said. “Honestly, this place just seems too weird to take seriously.” “Are you really saying that?” Gaffold snickered. “Hey, I’m not weird, just unique. And what about you, huh? You’re some WEIRD golden griffon. Where the hell did you come from?” “Guys,” Derpibra called, marginally agitated. “Is now really the time for this?” “I jest, I jest love.” Gaffold said. “Ah, sod off Goldilocks.” Optix pouted, leaving Gaffold to his momentary laughter. Good to see every pony is getting along just fine, Derpibra thought. “Twilight, any ideas?” “Seems to be a dead end. Nothing immediately eye-catching here.” “Eye catching you say…” A deep voice rang from no location in particular. “Who said that?” She turned about and searched for the source, finding before her a set of red reptile eyes that radiated the most peculiar aura, the most familiar voice... “Daischtert?”
The History of Light and Dark“How unlikely of a… visit this is.” Daischtert said in a deep tone, his dragon breath as sultry as it’s always been. Twilight gave him an abashed expression. “Eh… when did you get here?” “A magician cannot give away their secrets, Young Purple.” “Young Purple? Where did you get that name from?” “I remember my supporters back in the days of peace and tranquility… oh how I’ve always nicknamed them.” “Seems nostalgic for you.” “Indeed.” Daischtert boosted the power of his rather comforting aura, giving the large room a dim hue of red. “Digressions aside, I’m sure you all seek answers.” “Most definitely.” Gaffold agreed sharply. “We’ve been moping about in the black for far longer than appreciated.” “My apologies.” Daischtert cackled. “My former territory has always been...spacious.” “Territory?” “Yes.” Daischtert walked over to a wall and drew his red light to his index claw. There were hieroglyphics of two dragons and presumably hundreds of ponies scattered about. “A great war took place many years ago beyond and inside the borders of Equestria. Me and Magnus, we fought valiantly, and the war, known as the War of Black and White, took presence in many areas around here.” “Do you know the exact location of any of these skirmishes?” Twilight asked. “Only one- here.” “Here… this place doesn’t seem battle ridden.” “In some areas of the ruin, the signs of battle are more… apparent than others. This room just happens to be the cleanest of them.” “Can you tell us what happened here, if you remember specifically?” “Most certainly.” Daischtert cleared his throat. “The battle was fierce, moving us across the lands days at a time. Our most recent bout occurred along the coast of the Equestrian Ocean, facing north to Dragon Isle. After the skirmish ended, I retreated to the Crystal Mountains with a victory barely sewn to my belt. My army took camp into the icy mountainous regions, and that is when we discovered this ruin.” “This ruin was here like this when you got here?” “Yes. Very old. I’d wager this ruin to be within the millions of years in age.” “Interesting. Well, what happened to the camp?” “Ah, yes. Our occupying of the mountains were short lived, as Magnus proved to be far more influential than I, thusly making short work of my army. In one swift movement, he annihilated my numbers, leaving me the sole survivor who even then barely accomplished that feat alone.” “And…?” Derpibra said. “I retreated then to an island further north of Dragon Isle, called the Island of Drakes. After some time, I embraced the darkness, becoming a black dragon, I raised an army of my own magic and returned for a rematch.” “Did you win?” “Yes, if just barely. I forced him from Equestria, or the lands before, and drove him to Dragon Isle. That’s where he was at his weakest, and so as a last ditch effort, he founded the Dragon Inquisition, to serve as an impromptu army, or more realistically a crusade of sorts. But at that point… he was already doomed. I planned his demise, I knew of his ritual… it was how I was selected. He would raise his power that way, but while he would train you, Derpibra, he would be at his most vulnerable.” “And that’s when you assassinated him.” “Precisely.” “Wait, so you were chosen by the ritual?” “Yes. I was just a boy when I had to go. In the following years, Magnus taught me like he did you, but he taught me the arts of becoming a dragon instead of what you call a Super Saiyan.” “So you were a pony before…” Daischtert nodded sluggishly. “Indeed. I was once a so called ‘Dragon Rider’. An epic title forged by products of folklore. The true accountability of such things are scandalous.” He casted his aura in the form of a magical illusion, forming what seemed to be Magnus next to him. “Anyhow, Magnus yet lives.” “What? How?” Derpibra asked. “Me and Magnus are referred to as… gods. We are born in two forms: physical and, should our physical form falter, then we manifest as the element we embraced. In this case,” Daischtert summoned a lance and punctured the fake Magnus, but then the golden dragon rose again, seemingly on fire. “He was reforged in Light and Fire.” “So he’s not truly dead.” Derpibra concluded. “So what does that mean?” “He likely knows of your alliance with me. And, seeing as he forged you as a form of super weapon for his using, he will likely try to destroy you so that I cannot have you as an ally.” “Really? So I guess we gotta take him down first…” He began to adopt a sorrowful look. “I thought me and Magnus were friends. Then, just for me to discover what he truly is… it’s upsetting.” “For me as well.” “Why would it be that way for you? Aren’t you two enemies? Sworn rivals?” “Not originally.” Daischtert’s ruby eyes softened. “We were once friends. Even before we became dragons. We always used to catch fireflies and burn candles. He was like a brother to me, and look- now years later I am tasked with his murder...” “It sounds like you two grew up together.” “We did, though he was much older than me at the time. As a kid, he was always fascinated by dragons, and always said he wanted to become one. I guess not all dreams are impossible.” “How did he become a king?” “That I do not know. He never told me how he has brought himself to such a high standard. All I know is that he himself became an enemy of the ponies when his motives came to light.” “Didn’t he want to restore the pride of the dragons?” Twilight asked. “Yes. He believed the dragons should have a greater influence over ponies in more ways than just trade and commerce. He didn’t appreciate how ponies- his own kind, seemed to disrespect the dragons by supposedly withholding resources. But in truth, the dragons were consuming far too much for ponies to produce, while doing nothing besides mercenary work, but even then that deal was on loose ice.” “I see. So, where is Magnus?” “He is likely back on Dragon Isle. The reason why you may not have seen him sooner is because his reconstruction is slow, but can be made steadfast by way of a ritual called The Recalling.” “How long does The Recalling take to finish?” “Maybe just a few days. It’s been quite a few months since the incident, so he is likely ready to march upon me, destroying anything in his wake… including Equestria.” “So we gotta meet him halfway.” “Indeed.” Magnus retrieved a black great mace from radiating his aura from a nearby pedestal. “You will need this. This is the blackest form of darkness, the Mace of Anti Solaire.” “It looks wicked!” Derpibra grabbed the mace, but from its unexpected weight caused him to crash to the floor. “Woah, this thing is really heavy…!” “It carries the weight of my soul… literally. Only the truest warrior of Dark may wield it.” “But I’m Light!” “Indeed. Please, transform into a Super Sayain. I will give you the power necessary to ensure his defeat.” Derpibra did as instructed, his mane and tail turned blonde and stood tall as a flame. His eyes phased to a teal color, his eyes adopting a more aggressive look. “Okay, what now?” Daischtert laid a talon to his forehead, and turned Derpibra’s golden aura to a dark purple, and his bright hair was a purple grape color. His eyes fired up to a average red color. “You now hold my burden. The black power that has stirred in me for what would feel like the beginning of time… I will help you fight him, but first we must tear through his Inquisition, if we are to have a chance at his second life.” “So do we storm the place?” Optix said. “In it’s entirety. Ms. Sparkle, you seem well suited for tactics, so you lead the attack. Optix, you should coordinate the attack, and everyone else should follow. We will put the plan into action once we make it there.” “Yes!” Optix said. “Imma go for that Sanctus bitch first! I never liked her.” Derpibra looked blankly at her. “Wait… Sanctus? Daischtert… I don’t know if I can kill her.” “She is first-in-command of the Inquisition and is a Dragon Pastor. She will likely never reason with us. What, do you have a connection with her?” “She is kinda rude at times, but her position is stressful, and I understand. She’s just doing her job. Of all ponies, I don’t want her to die.” “We will do what we can. Okay, so here is the plan…”
Taking Dragon Isle“So what’s the plan again?” Derpibra shouted above the sea winds. Optix turned about as Daischtert soared towards Dragon Isle, only minutes away. “We go in, and we launch a head-on assault. We’re dealing with Dragon Priests and Archmages, so their magic may be a tough things to combat.” She made sure to equip her M249 Light Machine Gun, slipping in the box magazine and chambering the first bullet. “But we are the perfect fireteam. Those bastards are too busy worshipping lizards to care about mounting up for an attack from us.” Daischtert cackled at her statement. “Wait,” Twilight said. “What would bullets do against mages?” “You’ll see.” She scoffed. -->><<-- Daischtert landed upon the lush jungled islands of Dragon Isle, and the fireteam dismounted. Sanctus was training within the courtyard of the castle, and spotted the group upon the final swing of her greatsword. “So… it’s you, grey pony.” “H-hi.” “Don’t greet me you fool!” Sanctus snapped. “Our King… dead! And you just suspiciously disappear afterwards, no closure! Then you show up months later alongside our own enemy!?” “Listen Sanctus, I can explain-” “Bastard! I don’t need you to explain yourself to me. My sword will paint this island red with your essence!” Derpibra gulped. She’s much better than me in the arts of the sword. And this time, I don’t have a shield this time, He thought as he retrieved his blade from the pink scabbard. Behind Sanctus appeared mages and paladins. “Alright idiots! Stand tall! Cut this filthy cur down where he stands.” Optix jumped out from behind a rock and shouted, “Eat lead, bitches!” She opened fire as both sides clashed in a flurry of blades and axes. Derpibra was engaging three targets at once. A horizontal slash from a paladin headed in his direction. Derpibra parried the blade, and shoved her back. Sanctus jumped in and took a wide swing at him with enough force to slice a boulder, but he was swift to duck. Counterattacking with a brutal uppercut, he sent Sanctus flying backwards. To his right, a huge mare charged at him with a battleaxe with a blade the size of his head. She went for a vertical slice, but Derpibra strafed to the left. He forced the axe haft down with a hoof, and chopped it in half. Then, ponies began to surround him. Feeling a sense of extreme danger, his winged flared, and his magic exploded in a torrent of white magic, sending dozens flying backwards. “You good on ammo Optix?” Rainbow Dash shouted from the sky, ready to perform a sonic rainboom close to the ground. Optix dropped the box magazine and threw her helmet to her left, knocking out an incoming enemy. She revealed her luxurious golden mane, underneath it being a… horn. “I got magic bullets! Hey, fucktards!” She shouted towards the offending crowd. “I’m a Celestia-damned unicorn!” She summoned a grenade and pulled the pin. “Fire in the hole!” She tossed the grenade, then covered her ears. *BOOSH!* “Haa!” Derpibra’s chest puffed out as he transformed into a Super Saiyan. His purple mane shook under the force of his enhanced strength. “Hehe… although the power increase is unnecessary… it still feels nice!” Holding his Blade of Hearts by the hilt, he readied it with a dark purple magic, and shoved the blade into the ground, causing the soil and sediments to erupt with a bright red aura, forcing a crevice to form along the ground. The magic sent his enemies into the sky, then coming crashing down after the crevice shut moments later. “Woah, that was sick! I can get used to that... I guess I’ll call that… Black Grasp!” “That energy was… sinister feeling, but it has a hint of good in it.” Twilight said. “Anyhow, this skirmish is done. Do you all remember what’s next?” “We hit the Inquisition at its heart. Our next stop is the castle, once we get in, we take out any in our path, and claim the castle as ours.” Optix explained as she grabbed her helmet. “Then we move up the mountain and take on Magnus.” “Good. Hopefully the fight ends as quickly as it did this time. Alright everypony! Let’s move!” -->><<-- The doors of the castle burst open in a flash of white magic. “Optix, why didn’t you tell us you were a unicorn?” Rarity questioned. “Long story! I’ll explain when we get back!” She summoned a flashbang and tossed it in. The slight clanking of the metal canister, then it flashed in a bright white color. “Breach and Clear!” Derpibra surged his magic, then fired a volley of explosive magic blasts into the Great Hall. After the assault, the furniture and structural integrity of the castle was left lackluster at best. The dust settled, and injured ponies were strewn about the floor. “We gotta empty out this place!” Optix commanded. “All the way to the top! Let’s move!” The storming of the Keep took just under an hour for the fireteam- Daischtert guarded the outside doors to prevent escapees while everyone else made short work of any encounters. There were small explosions, mostly from Optix’ flashbangs and occasional fragmentation grenades. After the deed was done, everyone made their way towards the top of a tower just barely poking above the Keep. Daischtert spotted them, then advanced toward them. Once he arrived, he planted a pole in the center of the tower with a flag branded with an omega symbol colored black on a gray background. It flailed within the winds as they picked up speed. “Perfect! New territory established.” Optix soluted. “Awaiting further commands!” “Go up the ruined mountain which used to be Magnus’ sanctuary.” Twilight explained. “We stop whatever ritual may be bringing him back, then this fight will be over.” Optix looked towards the sky, and slowly pulled off her gun range shades, muttering, “Mother of Celestia…” “What’s wrong?” “Reinforcements!” There had to be at least one dozen dragons within the sky, headed straight for the army of ten. Pegasi soared and unicorns rode upon the dragons’ backs, readying spells and incantations. “Are those guys Dragonriders?” Derpibra asked. “Perhaps. They haven’t been deployed in so long it seems. My speculations of them not existing by these numbers were wrong…” Magic bolts and lightning hailed from the sky, ready to pierce them all. “Take cover!” Optix used her magic to force everypony behind a solid stone ledge. Golden lighting flashed, then eventually turned to extravagant thunder atop the tallest mountain on the island. “What was that?” Derpibra shouted. “It must be the ritual!” Daischtert said. “That’s Magnus’ thunder!” The air was full of magical artillery fire and explosions, forcing everyone to stay under cover. Optix went out and fired her light machine gun into the air, taking out at least a few ponies. Her fire was ineffective against the dragons however, since their scales were not unlike solid metal. Soon, a magic bolt struck her helmet, sending her into a daze. Luckily, the projectile had not penetrated well enough to kill her, but it did prompt her to get back into cover. “We need some more help holding down the castle!” “I’ll do it!” Derpibra said as his power shouted above the noise of the field. “What about the ritual?” Twilight asked. “If we take too long to fend off the assault, then Magnus may be stronger if he’s fully restored! And who knows, he may come destroy us first since he might know what’s going on! And by then, we may not even be done fighting off the enemy!” “But we won’t survive long without his help!” Optix shouted above the fire. “At least we won’t have them on our tails when we do fight him! And besides, we’re under too much fire to move anywhere but inside this castle!” “Derpibra, what do you think? Stay with us or go stop the ritual? You gotta decide quickly!” Twilight demanded. Ironically, time seemed to slow down as he thought. Do I stay here and help my friends defend the castle, or stop the ritual? After just seconds passing, he made his decision. “Magnus might get us either way. If we are gonna die, we might as well do it together!” Giving his magic one last surge of energy, he jumped from cover after the fire ceased, and lifted his hooves to either side of his gray body. He began to generate massive amounts of energy in them before pulling them together to a close. Forming one larger energy sphere, it spurted black lightning that seemed to tear through the sky. “The Darkness!” A soldier shouted. “Final Flash!” The massive beam- seemingly larger than when Derpibra used it against chrysalis- swept all of his opponents away in a blink of black power. However, their enemies continued piling onto the battlefield, ready to reclaim their territory. They seemed to have come from within the forests leading to the mountain. The majority of them were equipped with fine bows, and their arrows were barbed for maximum damage. They aimed their recurve bows high with arrows in hoof, and released an artillery fire of wood and metal, straight towards the castle. “Take cover!” Optix exclaimed. Derpibra commenced a flare of energy before shouting, “Aura Burst!”. His magical aura shot out in the form of a bubble, shoving away anything in his path, in this case the arrows. He managed to deflect most of them, whilst the others simply struck the ground below. Daischtert off in the distance was combating several dragons at once, and he was having great difficulty fighting all twelve dragons at once. “Hey, you need some help?” Derpibra clamored. The golden lightning cut through the air again, this time much more potent. A faint dragon roar could be heard for what seemed like miles away. “Ugh! No! That must be Magnus’ lightning again! Go to the mountain, I’ll be fine!” Daischtert was swiftly punched away. “We’ll be fine too!” Twilight said. “There’s a lot less resistance down here now! Go, and remember that barrier surrounding the peak!” “Dang,” Derpibra muttered. “I forgot I can’t fly directly up there. Hey, Twilight! Can you teleport me close to the top?” “Good idea! Hold still!” In a flash of purple magic, he vanished then reappeared in a totally unfamiliar location. The land was gushing magma and ash, and the ground had sharp rock strewn about. “What the…?” He looked up and spotted the peak he was to reach, but it seemed farther than normal. “Twilight!” He stomped his hoof. “Where the heck did you put me?” He shook his head disapprovingly. “Ugh… I’ll scold her later. Why would she even put me this far away anyway?” Deciding to preserve his magic, he spread his wings, released his Super Saiyan form, and flew to his destination. Concerning he was about to fight a god dragon, he would need all of his available strength. As he soared, the magma shot from the ground, and pumped more toxic ash into the sky. This extreme environmental change prompted him to fly low on the ground, to avoid any heat and stray ash. Also, the opaque smoke from higher in the sky would have disallowed him a clear view of the peak. He needed to know where he was going, and the black smokescreen wouldn’t be so helpful in that. After a short minute of flight, he reached the trail. From his point of view, the golden thunder that occasionally cracked seemed much mightier and close. “Better watch my step.” He muttered before landing. He got a lay of the trail ahead, scanning for any dangers that might make short work of him. Deciding after some seconds that him standing around was pointless, he sprung open his wings, and prepared to fly, but they suddenly locked up, followed by a golden chain locking them in place. “What the…?” He struggled to break them off, wiggle them off- whatever might work. But, they were adamant in keeping his flight abilities restricted. He gave it some thought. Wait, I can fly with my magic! I don’t need these wings! As soon as he brought his magic alight, its strength augmentation was normal, but it wouldn’t carry him at all. Looks like I’m grounded… Deciding that any subsequent flight attempts were a waste of energy, he decided the only mode of transportation was his hooves. At this idea, it made Optix’ junky SUV sound like a more appealing alternative, considering the mountain seemed taller and… more volcanic than before. Was this even the same mountain? The next flash of thunder struck him out of his thoughts and pushed him upwards. The clock is ticking. If Magnus gets resurrected, that could spell doom for Derpibra and his friends. It’s all up to him now.
To the TopDerpibra began his trek up the trail, moving at a moderate pace. He didn’t want to take his time, but he didn’t want to wear himself out early. The path was covered in ash, grime, and there was a bone or two here and there. They were presumably the remains of other unfortunate adventurers attempting to quest this mountain. The thought chilled his spine, but he didn’t let such scary thoughts hinder his progress. Still, there’s no telling what could be living on the trail, or how long the journey would take… or if he would even make it. “Keep it together Derpy.” He shook his head, as if trying to shake off something. As he trotted, he felt as if something was off. Sure he was on a volcanic mountain, but even that felt more normal than what he was feeling. As if something was watching him… His ear twitched. “Ha!” He front-flipped and landed about-face. A stray soldier seemed to be sprawled across the ground, coughing and wheezing. “...Who’re you…?” Her raspy voice questioned. “Don’t… go up there…” “...!” Derpibra covered his mouth. The mare was… a bloody mess. Her body was injured beyond belief, so much so that he couldn’t find a feasible way to describe it. “I… was caught in… one of the traps…” She lazily pointed off to the right, and there were indications of possible explosives in the area, judging from the black blast marks. “This… is the Path of the Dragon. If you were wondering.” “What…? Where’s the Path of the Pony? It’s easier than this I’m sure!” “It was destroyed in a flash of darkness…” She coughed up blood, and seemed to be nearing death. “I can help you! Just-” “No… I’m dead. Infections, half my body's’ gone… ain’t no helping me… if you wanna go stop Magnus, just be care…” In her final breath, she passed away. Derpibra felt tears attack his eyes. He never seen a pony die in front of him before. But he couldn’t let this set him back: he had an objective to complete. “She must’ve been one of Daischtert’s soldiers. What was she doing here though?” He muttered. Continuing his journey, he made sure to watch for any traps that may claim his life like that mare’s. The sight of her torn apart by Celestia-knows-what nagged his mind. She didn’t look as if she was taken by an explosive- more or less a savage animal twice her height may be the true perpetrator. But he didn’t have time to wonder. The mare was gone, so what could he possibly do about it now? Under short notice, he felt an odd sound strike his ears. He took a quick look around, and his eyes widened in response to a fiery energy mere inches from him. He proned, and an explosion from the offending blast occurred behind him. “What the heck was that?” He took a swift look upwards to spot a runed cube. The ancient letters of an unknown language shined bright red, about to fire again. He looked to his right and located another runed cube, this time being blue. Another, yellow, and another green. And there were seemingly dozens of them going in no pattern in particular. Considering the haphazard pattern, one could guess there could be more hidden in a corner or crevice. No point in wasting magic. I’d better just dodge them. Derpibra, without the use of his energy, was just average in strength and dexterity. His endurance wasn’t much better either, so the task of dodging dozens of projectiles at once would appear daunting now. He began doing a series of jumps and flips and dashes. So far, he managed to at worst get grazed by either a fireball or spear of ice. He merely thought he was lucky, because the projectiles did seem rather quick to end his life. Too quick, actually. Within a few minutes, he managed to clear the path with only minor cuts and burns. The path ahead only seemed hotter than the last. The source of the sweltering heat wasn’t in sight either, further frustrating Derpibra. “I’m gonna be burnt to a crisp by the time I get there.” He scoffed. This road however did not seem too different from the Trial of the Pony- minus the traps. It seems all he would need to do is make his trek up the mountain under extreme conditions, then the final fight between him and Magnus would begin. -->><<-- “Take this!” Rainbow Dash let out a battle cry as she performed her Sonic Rainboom just close enough to knock the reinforcements into the salty ocean water. “Time to take ‘em out like fish!” Optix exclaimed. She summoned a grenade and tossed it into the solid blue ocean. *BOOM* Ponies ascended to the surface with their abiotic bodies, and the water began to turn red. “Optix…!” Fluttershy squeaked. “I know what you’re gonna say! This is war! Death is all around us! Now, stand ready!” Optix materialized a box magazine of blonde magic in her hoof, then slipped it into her LMG, chambering the first bullet. “Incoming!” Bullets and magic soared through the air, making little holes in the sand beneath her boots. “Twilight! Get me some cover!” The purple princess landed down, but right before she could project a bubble of violet magic, Optix had a barbed arrow shot through her knee. She screamed in agonizing pain. Twilight erected the barrier and looked down. “Optix! Are you okay!?” “Yeah, just got the wind knocked outta me.” She said sarcastically. Twilight remained silent, staring at her wound. “Da’ fuck are you staring at? I got a stick through my knee!” She took off her helmet and slapped a red-cross sticker on it, then placed it on Twilight’s head roughly. “You’re the medic. Help me up!” “Okay, okay! Rarity! You and Fluttershy need to cover us!” Fluttershy feebly picked up a heavy rock to throw at the army, but a soldier attempted to swipe at her. She sprung upwards and accidentally dropped the stone on the soldier’s head, knocking him out. “I- I’m sorry.” Optix picked up a pebble and tossed it at her, hitting her on the muzzle. “Sorry for him tryin’a kill you? Keep it together!” “S-sorry…” Optix turned to Twilight. “Is that arrow out ye- agh!!” I never thought I’d be a Field Surgeon. Twilight thought. “Just hang tight! I know everything about pony anatomy! This should be… kinda easy! I don’t think you’ll be able to walk again though…” “To hell I won’t!” I hope Derpibra is having better luck than we are right now… -->><<-- *CRACK-BOOM* The ritual is nearing it’s end. Derpibra thought as he trudged through the final feet of dirt leading to the top of the peak. As he took his last step, a giant golden wall shot up from the ground, seemingly out of nowhere. “What the…!? Grr, I don’t have time for this!” Through the ethereal wall was the sight of a massive golden dragon rising from the ground. It soared into the air and spread it’s wings apart, flaring a great solar light that blinded everything within the entire radius of the island. “N-no…!” He shot a magic blast towards the wall, but it didn’t budge. “Damn! If only I could fly…!” At the center of the wall was a slit. Next to it was a group of words, luckily this time in English. “A piece of history, something that fought the war you threaten to end. That is what the key is. ...What?” He scratched his head, then began to dig relentlessly through his pockets. He had a hunch that something he was carrying could be the true key… “...the dagger!” He retrieved the completely dulled dagger from his short scabbard and observed it. “I remember what Daischtert said back at the ruin. Maybe this is the key!” He slid the dagger inside, then it disappeared in a flash of sparkles and comforting light. The wall faded away, gaining him access to Magnus’ resurrection grounds. It was now or never.
Confrontation“Where do you think you’re going?” A mare’s voice called after Derpibra. “Huh? Sanctus? How did you get here?” “Heh. Where else would that purple pony teleport you to?” “...Smart. But you’re not gonna stop me!” “Test me.” She withdrew her heavy greatsword. “You aren’t going to kill to our King!” “I’ll worry about you later.” Derpibra soared off to face Magnus. “Oh no you don’t! Don’t you dare fly away from me!” She pursued him. “I might be a unicorn, but I can fly too!” Only seconds after the flight, Derpibra stopped suddenly. She stopped just feet behind him. They stared intently for several more seconds before Derpibra broke the silence. “I don’t want to fight you.” “You fought the rest without a problem! Don’t treat me any differently!” He grunted. “Fine, if you demand satisfaction that much… you do realize just how much stronger I’ve become over the past few months?” He briefly transformed into a Super Saiyan. His purple aura and mane spiked and waved by the force of his power. “The chains broke off as soon as the wall opened. I hadn’t even noticed... “ “You think I’m weak? You forgot that I studied the ways of the dragon already?” Her mane shined a glorious gold, and stood in a flame-like style just like Derpibra’s. “So, you can become a Super Saiyan…” “Yes! You’re the only one who pushed me this far besides the darkness. You should feel honored.” Her power is amazing! I better not underestimate her. “Now now, no need to fight him, Sanctus.” Derpibra’s eyes shot wide open. An almost unreal magic level was right behind him. “Magnus? Your Worship, this stallion deserves every bit of punishment! He comes here with the objective that requires your murder! And you would simply-” “Hush… I will not let him escape, for betraying the Light. I will deal with him myself.” “As you wish.” Sanctus scoffed. Magnus turned over to Derpibra. “Does the Dark compel you?” “A bit more than your Light. You liar…” “I see Daischtert has gotten to you. Would you really believe what he has to say?” “I’ve seen evidence of your crimes. Inscriptions, documents! They all tell against you, Magnus!” “Ponies- so weak minded and easily fooled. You really have given in to him.” “Yes, I have- to beat you. The truest form of Darkness is Darkness disguised as Light.” “Who’s to say Daischtert is the exception, on the flip side?” “He proved himself. Where’s your proof, hm? Maybe you can Time Travel and-” “Silence. I will have no more of your reasoning. You have betrayed the Path of Light, and you will be cast into eternal Darkness for it!” “And how are you going to do that if you’re a dragon of Light?” Magnus charged a yellow sphere in his mouth then launched it towards Derpibra. He swiftly dodged, then transformed into Super Derpibra. “My.” Magnus feigned a blown-back expression. “You’ve grown quite a bit since your training with me some months back.” “Yeah.” He frowned slightly harder. “And this rapidly increasing strength of mines will be your doom!” “Tell me,” He began. “What drives you to kill me? Do you even possess a personal motive for this?” “I know right from wrong. You tried to use me and my friends for your evil deeds… innocent ponies died because of you! ...We had to kill others too. I know that the more I adventure, the more of this stuff I might see and do… might as well make sure I do it to the right ones!” “You are a fool… just like the rest of them! You ponies, disrespecting the honor of dragons in such a grotesque fashion!” “So, I was right about you!” He squeaked. “You talk in a way that makes us seem lesser than you!” “You are at least set higher in observance and intelligence than the rest of your kind… no matter. Seems I will have to do away with you like the rest. A shame, a hero of my creation, and I must destroy him. Pity.” Derpibra’s magic soared. “I don’t care if you’re a god dragon or not! You’re not gonna beat me! Good always triumphs over evil!” “You will learn in time that that isn’t always true.”
Teacher and Student“Haa!” Derpibra charged a blonde sphere in a hoof, shouting: “Super Derpi Beam!” Magnus leaped high in the air, dodging the attack, then charged after him. With a balled-up claw, he let out a menacing roar that left Derpibra stunned from the sheer volume. Then, he smashed him through the mountain, sending Derpibra crashing into the dense forests. He was twitching in boundless pain. He wasn’t expecting such a devastating attack. He heard a deep royal voice that seemed to surround him. “Hahahaha! Your power is fading so quickly! Even with the gift of dragons you still fall short of a weakling!” Before Derpibra could muster the strength to stand, he found himself being smashed through multiple trees one after the other. Magnus decided then that he was done, then finished him with a devastating punch that created a crevice in the ground below. Derpibra laid at the end of the trench, his purple mane long since faded to it’s original red. “Finished already? How am I not surprised?” Derpibra began to produce tears. Only barely conscious, he sniffled as his hair began to stand tall again. His muscles were growing far beyond Super Derpibra. “Hm? What’s this?” “No… I… I won’t fall easily like I did those other times. I will win!” He power exploded in a torrent of darkness. Everything about him grew many times larger than what they were before. He shouted almost as loudly as Magnus had only moments ago- a roar with the might of a dragon. His mane transitioned to a slightly brighter purple, and the pupils in his eyes vanished. “Screw the last form I was using! I’m Ultra Derpibra now!” “Your power is astonishing for a pony.” His power was coursing his body, surrounded by an aura that almost seemed black. “You’ll see that dragons aren’t the only strong ones around!” Off in the distance, Daischtert was soaring through the crisp air. “Good to know he finally showed up.” Derpibra grunted. “Now… for YOU.” “Bring it then. Let’s see how long you can last.” Magnus beckoned for him to attack with a single raise of the claw. Derpibra charged at him relentlessly, landing a deafening uppercut. He then began assailing him with a shattering combo. He kicked him into the air, then vanished, reappearing above and smashing Magnus into the ground, leaving behind a hole that looked as if a meteor hit the Earth. To finish Magnus off, he fired a swarm of energy blasts into the soil, generating dozens of explosions and leaving behind a screen of debris and smoke. He panted, just after his enraged assault ended. “Still alive?” Magnus appeared behind Derpibra and performed a magic sweep, knocking him backwards. “You weren’t even affected by that…!” “Honestly, I wasn’t using maximum strength the entire time.” Magnus said. “No way…! I…” “Am inferior? You ponies are always getting yourselves into things you cannot finish. It never fails. Ho ho ho.” Derpibra, feeling as if his efforts were futile, reverted to his skinnier, less bulky form. He turned his back to Magnus and began to walk away. “Why… why can’t I win my battles on my own?” “You do realize what you’re up against? You’re challenging one of the god tier. Of course you couldn’t win! Best you run along and go grab your friends, unless you want to die now?” Derpibra spread his wings and lifted off, gliding away to that dark dragon shadow that was twirling within the air all this time. “Hmph. Weak, AND wimpy. Why did I ever invest so much energy into him again?”
Two Brothers“I can’t beat him!” Derpibra cried. “Why can’t I beat him!?” “It takes a god to beat a god Derpibra.” Daischtert said. “I will face him myself. It seems only I am the one capable of ending this war. So much death and destruction… no matter. Go and secure the beachfront with the others. I will finish this.” “O-okay.” The black dragon dashed off in the distance, leaving his gray friend to find his way toward the beach. -->><<-- The beach was littered with arrows, bullet casings, bodies, anything that could serve as a tell-tale sign of conflict. It seems that his friends have put up a flag with Daischtert’s emblem in the soft sand below. Derpibra landed and folded his wings. He observed his surroundings and judged that whatever happened here was not pretty- at least for the enemy. Twilight approached him with Optix using her as a crutch. “Hey bonehead!” Optix greeted. “You’re still alive. You look like you’re in bad shape.” “My armor is just shattered to bits. I’m starting to wonder why every time I get new armor it breaks in the first fight I get into. Guess it’s just bad luck. What about you?” “Got a arrow to the knee. Hey, why do you look so down chum?” “I couldn’t beat Magnus… Daischtert is going to fight him now. He told me to hold the beach with you guys.” “Good. We can use the extra muscle. And, cheer up. Even the best can’t win ‘em all.” “Twilight? Did the fight end well? I’m hoping there was only one injury here.” “Yes.” Twilight replied. “The fight was… bloody, to say the least. But at least we aren’t the ones that got killed. Still, it’s rather unsettling seeing this many bodies here at once.” “I’d say. Hey, where’s Fluttershy? I see everyone here but her.” “She prolly ran off somewhere.” Optix scoffed. “But with all the warfare, we couldn’t go lookin’ for her. The fight literally just ended.” “Hey, um, everypony?” A familiar, light voice called. “I found a pigeon. It looks hurt.” Fluttershy emerged from the dense forests behind the castle. “Look at her. She must’ve gotten hit by the aftershock of all of the explosions.” “Fluttershy! Where were you?” Optix growled. “We needed your help back here!” Fluttershy squeaked. “Optix, remember…” Twilight said. “Go easy on her. I don’t think she would have expected to find herself in a warzone you know.” “Okay Twinkle.” Optix remarked. “Wait, Twinkle?” “That’s gonna be your new name.” Her horn began to glow a bright blonde, levitating a small tin container from her belt pouch. She took the lid off and scooped up some sand in it then replaced the lid. She took out a purple marker and wrote ‘Dragon Isle’ on it’s face. “What’s that for?” “I like to keep the sand and dirt from different places I fought in. It helps me remember the places we- I, conquered. Ah~ good times. Maybe we can visit those places together some day?” “Sounds intriguing.” At least everypony is okay. Derpibra thought. Hopefully Daischtert will be having an easier time. -->><<-- “So, Daischtert… It’s been some time since we properly spoke without trying to kill each other.” Magnus said in such a posh fashion. “Cut the act Magnus.” “My, so sharp with your responses.” “I have to be. Especially when speaking with you, unfortunately.” Magnus sighed. “I am a silver-tongued devil afterall.” “Yes, seeing as you lied about your light to all of your followers. You have ponies worshipping you, praising you for your supposed radiance. How foolish, they were, to trust you.” “‘Tis their very nature, no? They deserve to be taken advantage of! They have no respect for dragon kind! They think us all to be treacherous beasts, always with an ulterior motive in our dealings. We, always the perpetrators of destruction and mass hysteria.” “Aren’t you proving their point?” “Yes, but that, is the point Daischtert. Have you not seen it yet? Even after all of these years?” “Seen what?” “I wanted to prove them right. They were always paranoid… never trusting, even if we meant well at one point. So, I made their paranoia truth. Their conspiracies finally breath truth, Daischtert. I want them to understand, now, that they thought right. You see, there is a plenty more history to our past interactions with ponies than what can be found on the walls of tombs and literature inscribed within artifacts. They will come to know it, now.” “You’re… insane!” “Is it considered insanity to expect respect from others?” “It is earned, not taken!” “Not true. As you can see, I took it, in such a way they wouldn’t notice. There are things that I know that not even you do. How I became a king, how I earned everyone’s respect so tactfully? You couldn’t even guess.” Daischtert remained silent. “Precisely. If I am to die this day, then those secrets will die with me. I hold the breath required. Without me around, there are some things you will just never know…” “Impossible! You’re just bluffing! What you know can’t be that seriously important. What is important now is your judgement.” “I concur, Your Honor.” Daischtert formed a ring in his claws, arcing with black lightning. “Let us begin our fight. This idle chatter is obnoxious now.” “You think killing me will end the true darkness?” Magnus’ bright gold scales turned to black, and his eyes were a brilliant blue. “I am not the only patron to the darkness. You too are one with me and the rest!” “Magnus, you…! What are you!?” “I am you, Daischtert.” “I only assumed this blighted power because I thought it would break your light, but it seems this is your true self.” “Yes. Now you understand. This, this is Light’s darkest form.” This is insane! He’s lived a lie… well, now is time for me to end it. “Dark Impulse!” Daishctert launched the ring, but Magnus dodged it. Magnus retaliated by launching a beam from his snout. “Shadow Beam!” He deflected the attack then jumped backwards, launching a volley of blasts in Magnus’ direction. With these blasts heading his way, he projected a magic shield and blocked all of his attacks. The two dragons began flying through the dense forests and magma filled lands all across the island, shooting magic and occasionally clashing together until they reached the smaller mountain ranges. “Is this all you have for me Daischtert?” “I killed you once, and I can do it again!” “Hmph, that old body was useless anyhow. This is me at my purest.” Daishctert’s snout began to glow a dim purple. “Shadow Snap!” He chomped at his opponent, doing a considerable amount of damage. Magnus had three red bite marks on his chest. “Playing dirty now? Shadow Splice!” The area around the mountains became pitch black, almost as if the Earth had a hole in the atmosphere leading into space. Then, suddenly, three neon blue scratch marks appeared within the bubble of dark, one by one, before they disappeared, sending Daishctert flying into a mountain. “I never had the chance to test that one out.” “Not bad Magnus.” “What!? No one’s ever survived that attack!” “But me. And I know why.” “Tell me. Tell me this instant! It had to be a shield or something similar!” “No. All those years you spent, pretending to be calm and unwilling to fight if not provoked first. It has had its effects on you Magnus. You aren’t nearly as strong as you were before. I dare say you even misused your technique.” “Misused!? How idiotic of you to think such a thing. I am still in the best shape as can be.” “Then let us test it. Shadow Punch!” Daischtert landed a impactful blow to his chest with a claw, sending Magnus spiraling into another nearby mountain. Grabbing him by the foot, he spun around many times before throwing him into the base of yet another mountain, bringing down the mighty stone upon his opponent. The mountain crumbled under the force of the pitch, being reduced to nothing but comically large rubble. Magnus managed to pull himself out of his bed of stones, but it seems he was crippled from the attack. “D-damn you... “ “I’m sorry it had to come to this, but this is the only way this war can end. We took so many ponies with us. But only one of us had a noble reason for it, and only one must pay.” He prepared a black beam in his claw. “Magnus, you are a brother who’s gone mad. I still think of you as family, even in our current circumstances.” “Fool! You talk as if you would kill me!” “I did it once.” “But what about the second time? Could you stomach wiping me from existence? Your decision may be final…” Daischtert was quite hesitant. His beam grew in intensity, and his thoughts raced. “Wot? Finish me! You have the chance. Or will you let me slip away again?” “...My sincerest apologies.” *KA-BOOM* The beam left behind a mushroom cloud, and once it vanished, it only left behind ashes. Daischtert began to sniffle, then eventually started to cry. “You were the only family I had since I’ve lost track of my parents, so long ago because of our bout. I know what you did was wrong, but I can’t help but feel I’m missing something now…” He felt a soft object placed on his shoulder. It was Derpibra’s hoof. “You did the right thing. No doubt he would’a came back and destroyed us all later if you didn’t put him down.” “Honestly, I don’t know what I did was even right. Sure, the fight is over, but at what cost? The cost of thousands- millions of lives. Families devastated from members going to war, and all for what? A simple disagreement.” Derpibra couldn’t forge a response. “I need time to… to think about this. I will take you all back to Equestria, but then I will have to come back here, to repair what’s been damaged. I have to right my wrongs now, in anyway that I can.” “I understand. Will you come to visit us again?” “Someday.”
A Mark Worthy of Dragons“Aw, she likes you Derpibra.” Fluttershy handed the pigeon over to him. “I guess she does. I’mma call her… Pidgey. Who’s a cute little Pidgey?” The pigeon chirped. “How did you ever manage to find a pigeon out here? These animals are usually native to urban environments, right?” Twilight asked. “Yes. But, something is different about her. Maybe we’ll find out why someday.” “Hey Optix?” Derpibra said. “Wassup?” “Aren’t you gonna tell us about what your backstory is?” “When we get home chum.” Daischtert, with his deep voice, began to speak. “I was impressed by the power you were generating back there.” “Thanks Scaley.” “I have to ask: how do you grow so quickly?” “I don’t know. It just kinda comes to me.” “I’d say you have an actual talent for this.” “What? Ah c’mon, you’re just being nice.” “That’s not what your cutie mark is telling me.” “Huh?” He looked down at his flank to spot a silver kite shield encased in a golden aura, presumably magic, as his cutie mark. His eyes brightened and sparkled as he stared in awe. “Yes! I finally got it! But… I didn’t do anything to earn it, did I?” “You did. You learned that you favor protecting your friends with your magic, or any other means. Let your mark be a symbol of triumph. Now, you know your purpose is concrete.” Everyone congratulated him with claps and whistles. “Oh boy! My parents are gonna be so happy when I show them! This. is. EPIC!” -->><<-- With the war now over, and Derpibra finally obtaining his mark, him and his friends are now more curious about where they may end up next. Optix did mention she had an interesting story to tell...
