The Diabolic Shadow Spreads

It had to have been a solid ten seconds before the wizard and witch doctor actually registered what they were seeing as real. Though to be honest, considering what it was they were seeing, it was quite understandable: two tall, human figures with equine features upon their faces, and a further aesthetic accent of wings on their backs and horns on their heads.

After that initial shock, they were able to notice a fair bit more about them. The one on the right was about as tall as Imperius, with a soft white coat and a flowing rainbow of pastel colors for a mane. A golden tiara rested upon her head, and she was dressed in a flowing garb, the top of which was held by a tie at her neck. It was a style and silk that would not be uncommon with the aristocrats of Caldeum, as Maximilian thought to himself, with the light and airy aesthetic and the open chested design. She seemed to be calm and carried an almost matronly air about her.

The one on the left, however, carried a very different air. She was significantly shorter than the other, about the size of Tyrael or any of the other archangels. Her coat was a deep blue, and her mane had an appearance of a nebula, filled with shimmering stars and other celestial things. She wore a black tiara on her head and wore a dress that could be best described as something very...industrial in appearance. It completely covered her, with a lacy trim at the wrists and neck. Folded fabric made up the center of the chest, with spiral patterned fabric adorning the rest of the blouse. The same folded fabric made up the skirt, which extended to the floor, just barely scraping it. All in all, it contributed to a dark aura of worry and uncertainty.

The white equine woman walked up to Imperius with a smile, revealing a small, bipedal dragon following close behind, with purple scales and green spines, carrying a piece of parchment and quill. Surprisingly, the least shocking aspect of what Max and Bozz were seeing.

“Salvete amici.”, she said with a regal tone in her voice and a smile on her face.

Imperius, in a rare display of respect, bowed his head and said, “Meridiem bona, filia reginae.”

She then turned to the two champions with a smile and said, “So, I believe you requested a thorough explanation, Maximilian?”

Maximilian gave a clear of his throat and said in a deadpan tone, “Well, given the presence of beings with your appearance and power are something that not even I bore witness to, yes, an explanation would be lovely.”

The mare gave a chuckle and said, “I am Princess Celestia, ruler of the sovereign nation of Equestria.” She then made a motion to the darker one and said, “And this is my dearest sister, Princess Luna.”

Princess Luna, in something of a distracted trance, shook herself free from it and said, “A-Ah! Yes, a pleasure to meet you.” She added a curtsey to it, but it was apparent from the way she carried it out that she was less than used to such formalities. As she did so, she stumbled slightly, eliciting a chuckle from Celestia as she made sure her sister didn’t bust her face open.

Celestia, who giggled in response to the look that Luna gave her, then said softly, “Though I imagine those words sound like complete nonsense without proper context. For that, I must guide your attention to Itherael.”

After a nod of confirmation, Itherael opened his book and said, “I request your undivided attention, nephalem. I am not fond of repeating myself.” He then cleared his throat and said, “Many years ago, in the time when the world was young, a great demon invasion was launched upon the land in order to corrupt the Worldstone.”

Maximilian gave a look of recognition and said excitedly, “You refer to the invasion of Baal, Lord of Destruction? The one thwarted by Tyrael and those heroes who came before us? A great victory against the demons, to be sure.” He remembered hearing whispers of it amongst those at the Yshari Sanctum, about a group of warriors going to stop Baal at Mount Arreat.

Tyrael interjected with a somber nod and said, “Yes...however, the corruption that the Lord of Destruction had placed upon the Worldstone was far too great to be purified. In the end, despite my deepest regret...I had to destroy the Worldstone entirely.”

Celestia, listening quietly up to this point, walked up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Tyrael.”, she said in a comforting tone. “You did what you needed to do in order to keep the people of Sanctuary safe.” Tyrael nodded solemnly in response to this.

Itherael gave a clearing of his throat and said, “I agree with our guest greatly, Tyrael. But as you know, that was not the end of that story.” He ran his finger across the pages for a moment before tapping an area on the next page. “Now, while the resulting explosion definitely had an effect on the surrounding area of Mount Arreat, the energy that was released caused a much more substantial wave of magical energy here and, as we later learned, the Burning Hells. It created a rift, fracturing both planes of existence in two, creating the lands that would become known as Equestria and Tartarus.”

Bozz thought for a moment, mulling this all over. After that, he spoke up with the statement, “Well, that is certainly a fascinating tale...however, all respect due to the princesses, it does not explain their existence.”

Luna gave a slightly annoyed look at the small man with the complete lack of tact. However, after a pat on the shoulder from her sister, she took a deep breath and said, “Well, we’re sure he’ll detail that as well, if you will be patient.” Celestia couldn’t hold back a giggle in response.

Itherael nodded and continued on. “When the rift was created, it sent a great number of our Heavenly Beasts through it.”, he said in his same monotone. He then noted Celestia’s raised eyebrow and added, “Or alicorns, as is their true name. We made an effort to enter the rift after it had sealed in the aftermath to find them, and succeeded after a span of six months. However, in that time, an entire century had passed beyond the rift.”

Maximilian rubbed his chin in thought. He muttered, “So the entire realm beyond the rift is a temporal anomaly. One year here would equate to two centuries there…” As he did this, Celestia glanced at him with a smile. How interesting that her pupil and this human had such similar mannerisms.

Itherael gave a nod of agreement and continued. “When we were able to meet with them, they had manifested immense magical ability and intelligence. Their magic was as powerful as ours in all cases, but was unfocused. Unrefined. Given this, we came to a decision: to remain for another century of their time to help them refine and hone their magics, and they, in turn, showed us their development and culture.”

Celestia nodded and interjected with a smile, “I remember the tales of that were passed down through the generations. It was over that time that we began to see you as Gods.” She then smiled at Maximillian and Bozz, and said, “That led to us honoring them by taking on...this form.”

Bozz chuckled and said, “A completely understandable show of faith. Even my tribe created masks in the image of the spirits of the Unformed Land, to both honor them and allow us witch doctors to welcome their strengths into our minds and bodies.”

Celestia chuckled and said, “Well, I’m sure we would have done something similar, though they would mainly consist of hoods obscuring our faces.”

After that comment, Itherael gave a somewhat annoyed grunt at the interruption. He then closed the book and said, “Regretfully, as is the case for you, Nephalem, they exist beyond the domain of Fate, and thusly are not mentioned in our records after this point.”

Maximilian gave another moment of thought, pacing the floor as he rubbed his chin. He then said, “Alright...that does explain the scenario, I will admit. It doesn’t, however, explain the Diabolic threat that we are facing. It is in this...Equestria, I would assume. What do they face given our recent defeat of Diablo?”

Celestia stepped forth and said, “That, Maximilian, is why me and my sister are here.” She and Luna then stepped into the center of the room, revealing a small dragon scribbling fervently on a scroll. He seemed to be chronicling the meeting between these two powers.

Luna and Celestia then focused their magic into their horns, altering the room and surroundings to appear like a plane remarkably similar to the Hells, if slightly darker. Celestia then said, “This is a recreation of what we saw on a routine check of Tartarus, to ensure that none of our past enemies that were sent there broke free.”

Luna nodded her head and said, “We saw this in the deepest pits, not a few of our weeks ago.” The landscape then moved fast beneath their feet, as if they were pulled along by invisible strings. When they abruptly stopped, the found themselves floating over a deep pit, with a glowing red gash in the earth at the bottom.

After a moment, the gash began to be ripped open from the other side by two massive, clawed hands. When it was completely open, a truly nightmarish image began to emerge from it. First came the head, a horrifying skeletal visage with two massive upswept horns attached to the side. It’s eyes looked up, red pinpricks in the back of deep eye sockets, in a look of pure malice.

Then came the torso, with an appearance of having been completely skinned. Many bones seemed to protrude from under the flesh, including the spine, the lower ribcage with an elongated sternum, and many fragments in the arms. Speaking of, this creature had four arms attached to it, disproportionately long and with oversized, clawed hands that were lightly caked with blood. Disturbingly, the lower set of arms seemed to have eyes placed in the palms, darting around as if trying to absorb every detail around them.

Then came it’s lower body...or rather, the lack thereof. It’s exposed spine dangled loosely below it, it’s pelvic bone attached below. As it completely pulled itself away from the rift, the elongated bottom of its spinal column dragged across the ground. All of this contributed to a visage that could best be described as horrifying. It then rose up from the ground quickly, passing the group that was observing it as it cackled madly. As it did this, Maximillian and Bozz could not help but stumble back in shock.

It was at this moment that the projection fizzled out, the former setting of the council chamber bleeding back in. The princesses closed their eyes for a moment as the energy from their horns died down before Celestia said in a serious tone, “This was when we hurried back to our world, to prepare for the contact with the High Heavens.”

Max, after recovering from the shock of what he saw, looked franticly to the angels and said, “Surely that...that wasn’t Mephisto? I thought his essence was eliminated when Diablo fell at our hands after absorbing it?”

Bozz shook his head as he rubbed his chin worriedly and said, “It would seem that was not the case, my friend. And if the Lord of Hatred has returned, we can be certain that his brothers could do the same, if they haven’t already.”

Imperius nodded his head and said, “We believe so as well. Hence the reason we...begrudgingly called for your assistance.” He then sat back on his council chair and said, “Whilst we attempt to better comprehend how to deal with this development, you must go to Equestria to help them suppress any Diabolical threat they may face. The other nephalem will take care of that duty here, due to the demons likely having more of their forces here.”

Maximillian and Bozz gave each other a glance that gave a simple message: “we’re ready.” Maximilian gave a nod to Imperius and said, “We will be more than happy to assist.” Bozz bowed and said, “The spirits would look upon me with shame if I did not help those in need.”

Celestia gave a bright smile and said, “It is wonderful to see that you are eager to help.” She then turned to her sister and said, “Dearest sister, shall we ‘open the door’ for them?” Luna gave a smile and nodded, the both of them channeling their energy again, this time reaching out their hands to focus it at a blank area of wall, a circling yellow and navy blue portal slowly cracking open.

Maximilian and Bozz, not wanting to waste any time, looked at each other one last time, nodded, and ran forth, jumping through the portal into the unknown...