Twilight trotted away from the housing for the Ponyville ponies, a pair of large buildings within the Canterlot barrier. The ponies were settling in, her friends working their hardest to keep the peace among all the confusion and depression. Three days, and things were still terrible.

Twilight let out a light sigh, eyes flitting to the barrier, shimmering over the city. She saw the outer city, moving slightly with the undead. It made her skin crawl that, just a few days ago, things were as peaceful as they’d always been.

Starting towards the castle, Twilight remembered Luna’s instructions for finding Casius Blackhoof. With her every step charged with purpose, the purple princess made her way into the underbelly of the castle.

The dank, musty catacombs beneath the castle were home to the parts of Equestrian history best left forgotten. Dark things lurked here, and Blackhoof studied these things with a grim interest. Luna would rather forget the stallion even existed, but Twilight understood Celestia’s urgency. If anypony knew about this phenomenon, it would be Blackhoof. However, under no circumstances did Twilight trust him; his special talent revolved around magic fueled by corruption and suffering after all.

Stopping before the wooden door Luna had told her about, Twilight lifted a hoof and knocked. “Casius Blackhoof? Are you in there?” There was a long pause, but eventually there was an answer.

“Yes, who is it?” The voice was low, crisp and made Twilight shiver. She had expected a crackling, aged voice or something sinister, but not something so normal. Oddly, that in itself was a little unnerving. Then again, wasn’t that the nature of the dark arts; to be deceptive?

“Princess Twilight Sparkle. I was sent here by Princess Celestia-“

“-About the Risen. I understand the situation quite well.” Casius interrupted, locks clicking open on the other side of the door. “Yes, I imagined she’d send somepony soon. I expected either her or Luna, truthfully. Come, I’ve got tea.” The door creaked open. Casius was a young unicorn, but still older than Twilight, with a black mane and a crimson coat. His cutie mark caught her eye as he turned, a black sphere, wrapped in lines of purple, black and green energy that hurt her eyes to try and follow. His eyes shared the unusual color, but they didn’t flow with energy, like when casting dark magic. Instead, his sclera had turned black, his left iris green while the other purple. He looked perpetually tired, with large black bags under his eyes. He faintly reminded her of Sombra; a grim and fitting comparison.

Twilight followed him into his lab proper; a solemn place, full of artifacts and trinkets of highly questionable origins. Twilight caught sight of at least one of Sombra’s crystals and what she thought was a fragment of his horn.

Sitting at a small table, he levitated a pair of cups into sight, pulling a seat over. His magic swept a few odds and ends aside, making room for the princess. “I see you are interested in my experiments. I heard you were quite the mare of science yourself, Princess Sparkle.” He sipped his drink, his magic lifting the teapot and offering it to Twilight. “Would you like some? It is a rare, draconic tea, - oolong, or black dragon tea is it’s name - flavored with strawberries, roses, grapes, vanilla and some champagne.” He takes another sip, pouring after Twilight nodded to him.

“You are doing a lot of research on dark magic. I understand that’s your specialty?” Twilight lifted the glass up in front of her with her magic, but didn’t drink.

“Oh yes, quite so, just as your calling is in magic, mine is in dark magic. You and I, we are two sides of the same coin, one could say. The great pony philosopher, Sallust, once said, ‘the renown which riches or beauty confer is fleeting and frail; mental excellence is a splendid and lasting possession.’ Wouldn’t you agree?” Casius smirked, lifting his glass in a toast, which Twilight copied with a small nod.

“Naturally, Princess Twilight, you must understand, all magic, especially the dark and dangerous kind, must be studied. It’s the only way to understand it better and prevent it from being used in harmful ways.” He sipped his tea calmly. “I am but a vessel to aid others into a state of enlightenment on the dangers of dark magic. I like to say that magic itself is never black; only the uses to which it is put. But time and time again, it seems my words are proven false.” He chuckles slightly, closing his eyes. “But, that’s just a silly saying, and not a very good one, I might add. The story you want to hear is certainly more concerned with the rotting flesh of the dearly departed, correct?” Twilight winced at how casually he spoke of such terrible things.

“Yes… I need to know all I can about these creatures. They’re obviously the product of dark magic. I just-“ Twilight scowled as Casius interrupted her again. This stallion really loved to hear himself talk.

“-Shhhhh shh shh shh.” The black magician smirked, putting a hoof to his lips to call for silence. “This is story time, princess. Sit back and enjoy your tea.” He set his glass down, levitating a book down from a high shelf. “Now, I imagine you’re well versed in the story of Hearth’s Warming Eve, correct? It’s the tale of the founding of Equestria and the story of the windigo?”

“Yes. I performed the play a few years ago with my friends.” Twilight smiled at the fond memories of a simpler time, before even her princess-hood got in the way of things.

“Did you ever wonder about what happened before that? Before everything came together? What if I told you those were much darker times, Miss Sparkle? There were times where war and chaos controlled everything.” Casius flipped through the book with his magic, skimming for something specific. “In my studies, I learned about the time before those events; When the Pegasus, Unicorns and Earth Ponies were at war. It’s no coincidence nopony knows about this time. Books were destroyed, giving Equestria a ‘new start’ and letting the soothing story of Hearth’s Warming Eve be the groundwork for a future of peace, love and tolerance. I have the last copy of those books, saved by Starswirl the Bearded and kept here, in the darkest corners of the castle to be forgotten.

“You’re a smart girl, Princess. I’m sure you’ve wondered, at some point or another, how such small squabbles as a hunt for food or water summoned things such as the windigo. That’s because it wasn’t the bickering, but something far worse. Far worse indeed.”

Casius found his page, setting it on the table and turning it to face Twilight. “It was a dark day when the plague hit. Magic and science, brought together into a disease catered specifically to Earth Ponies. Pegasi machines mixed with Unicorn magic, brought down like a hammer of justice onto those unwilling to ‘bear the mantle’ of the future. It would weaken the strong, sicken the weak, and then raise them as walking corpses, to terrorize the living. Ponies had to kill and struggle to survive. It was truly a time of great strife.” Casius sipped his tea, pausing for a moment to add emphasis to the news.

“It was the chaos from this magical disease that brought the windigo. Ironically, it was their very appearance that brought about the end of the plague of walking dead.” A sparkle flashed in Twilight’s eyes.

“The cold…” She whispered silently, but not silently enough.

“Exactly, Princess. I knew you were a perceptive one. The Risen have no body heat. They freeze into blocks of ice, if it’s cold enough.” He smiled, chuckling an eerie chuckle. “You have your method of defense. And look on the bright side; should we fail, the windigo may come back and clean up the mess before we all go extinct!”

He laughed more thoroughly this time, making Twilight’s blood chill. She’d never met anypony like him; so disillusioned with the concept of pacifism and friendship. The more she thought about it, the more she realize, a person like him stood a far better chance in a world like this. Friendship could only do so much and death, as taboo a topic as it was, truly was the great equalizer. The situation on the train proved that to her.

Suddenly, Casius set down his glass, leaning forward towards her. “That great pony philosopher I mentioned had another saying you might like, Princess; ‘a good pony would prefer to be defeated than to defeat injustice by evil means.’ You and I, we aren’t good, nor bad, you see. Magic is what the magician makes of it. Don’t limit yourself, Princess. You’ve got a good head on your shoulders.”

As Twilight went to leave Casius’ lab, the stallion walked along behind her, talking. “Canterlot won’t last long, Princess. We’ll need to move to a different, safer location. And remember; darkness only makes them stronger.” He stopped at the door, letting her wordlessly walk ahead.

A smile crept across his face once she was out of sight. “So that was Princess Twilight Sparkle, eh? Not bad. Not bad at all.”

Twilight headed back towards the housing for the Ponyville residents. Her mind fluttered with ideas about frigid cold and how it could be used to their advantage, but it also churned with Casius’ parting words. “The Crystal Empire; a city far to the north, surrounded by snow. It’d be the best place to defend.” Twilight was so lost in her contemplation, she didn’t hear the pony up ahead calling for her.

Neon Lights shouted to the Princess, who was walking with her head down, deep in thought. “Princess! Hey Princess! Twilight!” After about the third call, Twilight lifted her head.

“Hm? Oh, hello there, Neon. What’s the matter?” Twilight asked, tilting her head a bit. “You look pale. Are you sick?”

“It’s Vinyl! She wandered off a little after you left and nopony’s seen her since. I think she might’ve gone out to find Octavia!” Twilight snapped from her thoughts at the prospect of danger. If Vinyl had left the barrier, she could already be hurt. Twilight turned quickly, heading in the direction Neon pointed to, rounded a corner and nearly smacked face first into the missing pony in question.

Vinyl’s white coat was dyed with splotches of crimson, her blue hair dripping with thick, red blood. Twilight felt her voice catch as she went to scream. Vinyl seemed to just ignore Twilight, staring forward with an empty gaze, walking like a construct with no purpose. Neon rounded the corner behind Twilight and froze, looking at his friend in a mixture of horror and relief.

“Vinyl! Oh man, Vinyl, are you alright! You’re covered in… Oh sweet Celestia, please tell me you weren’t bitten!” Neon shouted, panicked, but Twilight made room so he could get by to his friend. Vinyl didn’t react much, simply muttering that she wasn’t bitten under her breath.

Twilight walked over, reaching out a hoof. “Vinyl, is everything oka-“

“Don’t you dare touch me!” The shout made Twilight stumble back, electricity dancing off of Vinyl’s horn, warding the princess away. Twilight felt a throb in her hoof where Vinyl had shocked her. Twilight had no idea Vinyl was so skilled with lightning magic. Neon backed off, staring with wide eyes. Vinyl continued, screaming at Twilight wildly. “It’s your fault this happened! It should’ve been me on that bed, not Tavi! But you; This is entirely your fault!” Twilight twitched impulsively.

Neon lights regained himself, moving forward towards Vinyl again. “Vinyl, calm down… Princess Sparkle was just-“

“Don’t side with her, Neon. You have no idea what I just did! I just had to… I just…” She trailed off, looking down slowly. Her face sank and her posture collapsed. “Tavi is gone. And she’s the one who gave those things a chance to do it!” Vinyl motioned to Twilight faintly. “You fooled everypony else with your lies. ‘My magic wouldn’t get me there. My wing is hurt.’ Hah!” Vinyl mocked the Princess, waving a bloody hoof in the air dismissively.

Twilight stumbled a bit backwards, trying to find a foothold. Her mind screamed for her to run. She didn’t want to hear this. She didn’t want to be here.

“How the hay do you expect me to swallow that yak crap? You’re the Element of Magic, right? You could’ve gotten here easy, and you know it! But you stopped to save what you knew and wanted, you selfish little-“

“Vinyl!” Neon shook his friend a bit, turning her to look at him. Without warning, he slapped her, giving her a small shake afterwards. “Vinyl, calm down… It’s okay now. It’ll all be okay.” Vinyl paused as Neon pulled her into a hug. Slowly, she puts her forelegs around him and cried into his neck.

“She’s gone… Neon, Octavia is gone. It won’t be okay. It’ll never be okay.” She wept, collapsing against her friend. Twilight backed up slowly, eyes wide and body trembling. Vinyl had been right about her lying.

Why did she have to be so right?

Author's Note

Ah, the introduction of Casius Blackhoof. He was my first OC and a real jerk. He's not so much a villain as he is creepy as hell and is manipulative to everyone, even his allies. He's not really on anyone's side and prefers it that way.

-Inkheart