Spirit of Vengeance

"Is that everything you wanted to say?" Twilight asked Flamewave, the pony sitting in a small cell confined in glass. The alicorn placed a spell that could nullify magic in a specific region, which ensured that he would not escape. But Twilight noticed a lack of resistance from him, which she was glad for.

The stallion nodded, "Yes, Princess.... It's all I can remember. I wish I could tell you more."

Twilight gave him a soft smile and sighed, "I see... Are you at least able to explain more about this Dark Army?"

Shaking his head, Flamewave spoke, "Sorry, Princess. Whoever performed the spell ensured that we knew next to nothing other than what he wanted."

The princess hummed, "Hm. Very well. At least we're making progress." she said.

"I hoped so... Everything I did i-in that cult was b-beyond my control. I-If I could stop myself... I would've." Flamewave whispered to himself, a tesr rolling down his eye.

Twilight stood up from her chair, "I'm glad you're telling me all this, Flamewave. We'll make sure whoever did this is brought to justice and have you at least pardoned as a result of mind control."

"Thank you..." he whispered.

Twilight walked up from her cellar, a temporary living space for Flamewave while she gets information and aided in his reformation. The alicorn sighed, rubbing her head, exhausted after a lengthy few days of working. 'This Dark Army... The Servants of Darkness... This is new... But why are they showing up now?' she asked in her head, questions running rampant in her brain.

Finally in the library, the alicorn hoped to sit down and read a good book for the rest of the night. She used her magic to levitate a novel out of its shelf and opened it, using her horn as a makeshift flashlight to see the words better. 'At least I can rest for the night...' she exhaled slowly, content for the night.

The door to the library slammed open, and Spike and Starlight walked in as fast they could. "Twilight!" the young dragon called out, taking a glance at the paper Starlight was levitating with her magic, showing the headline first.

"Yes Spike, Starlight?" Twilight wondered.

"You may want to take a look at this..." muttered Starlight, putting th newspaper on Twilight's table.

The alicorn pursed her lips in confusion, taking a look at the newspaper Starlight gave her. "This just came in today." the unicorn explained, the dragon nodding.

"News kinda travels fast." Spike added.

Twilight took a close look at the paper, seeing the sketch made. "What in Celestia's name..." she whispered. It was a picture of a skull with fire surrounding it. She read the article as fast as she could, seeing it was a report from Fillydelphia.

"It's strange..." Spike muttered, "What the heck is it supposed to be?"

"Dark Army... Cult... Hostages." Twilight gasped, recognizing a few words in the articles. "But who is this skull pony supposed to be?" she wondered aloud.

Starlight shook her head, "I'm not too sure if it's even a pony. They call him the Ghost. He showed up to fight that cult and then left before anypony else can learn more. Only the hostages he saved spoke. He's bipedal and his head just changed into a skull."

"It's a little creepy." Spike added.

"It says he... maimed and killed each and every single one of those cultists. All of them dead, and one..." Twilight gagged, "Egh... This is too far."

"What are we going to do?" Spike asked, "I mean, he's called the Ghost! He just faded away and it was like he was never there!"

Shaking her head, Twilight answered, "I'm not too sure, Spike. But if Flamewave can at least draw us to the Servants of Darkness's next location, we can beat the Ghost there and learn more from there as well as stopping this cult."

"How much did you learn from him anyway?" Starlight wondered.

"Not too much, the mind control affected his mind so that he wouldn't remember too much." Twilight explained, "But I think I can reach out to him tomorrow for answers."

Starlight raised a brow, "Do you want me or Spike to do anything?"

Twilight shook her head, "Not right now. Once we learn where the Servants of Darkness are striking next, we'll go to stop them and this Ghost."

Robbie cracked his knuckles, finding himself walking on the edge of a forest. A chain was strapped to his belt and dirt covered parts of his clothes. 'Servants of Darkness... Dark Army... Sounds like I never left home.' he mused, focusing on what was ahead. Realizing it was getting too dark to see, Reyes had an idea.

The man bent down and grabbed a lone branch. He used his powers to light it in a small flame, giving him light to continue his journey. 'I've been walking for two days, only food being water from a river and any animal that thinks they can stop me. I need a place to stay.' he thought, putting the branch in front of him.

Robbie paused, hearing a strange sound. "What the hell was that?" he wondered. He swore he heard a small explosion and slamming. Tuning the atmosphere of the forest out, Robbie turned left, going in the direction of the sound.

Nearby, he saw a small shack, "In the middle of nowhere..." he muttered, leaning on a tree, turning his head and getting a closer look at the place. "Why would a place like this have ponies make such a loud noise?"

"Grr. Help me!"

Robbie heard a scream and he squinted, dimming the flames on the branch he held to hide himself better. He saw a pony getting dragged by another, this one wearing a business suit. There was no horn on their head, meaning that whoever this was, they had no connection to the cult. 'As far as I'm aware...' he thought, seeing the kidnapper walk backwards into the house with their victim, slamming the door once he entered.

The man took a look at the shack, seeing it rundown and ragged, looking unused for years. Robbie clenched his fists, "Can't leave anyone behind." he grunted, hearing another grunt. Turning again, Reyes saw a pony drag an unconscious pegasus into the house as well, opening and closing the door as they entered.

"No one else is here... I have to save them. Maybe I can get answers..." Robbie muttered, walking forward. He decided it was time to protect the innocent. 'If only I had the car. Things would get done a lot quicker. But it's just me for now.'