The Book of Salzar

Trixie finally understood everything and it terrified her. The more she kept reading, the more that hidden truth became obvious, to the point of disturbing the young pony. But not because of the truth, oh no. She was disturbed by her obvious inability to see the world as it truly was. A world populated by thieving leeches whose sole reason for exsisting was the exact thing they stole!

"And to think that the Great and Powerful Trixie despised thieves... Trixie lived among them for all this time!"

She was angry at the world but also at herself. How could she, the greatest pony who ever lived, be so blind? What would happen if she never came in contact with that eye-opening book? Would she be blind for the rest of her life, acting as a would-be wizard for the entertainment of such a corrupted world?

Reading the book was truly a unique experience for Trixie. She felt not only enlightened, but humbled as well, to the point of seriously thinking to drop the "Great and Powerful" title. How could she still call herself like that, when she went so far as to help the ones responsible for the biggest fraud in history: harmony.

Harmony was a joke. It always was and always would be. Just like the ones who "fought" for its sake, not because they were brainwashed by it, but because they willingly accepted to spread such an evil that it was mind-boggling the enlightened ponies such as Trixie. Harmony propagated reason, love and goodness where there were none in the first place! It was an excuse to wash away the feeling of guilt for stealing that precious something and abuse of it like barbarians!

No. Such a crime would not go unpunished. She had to do something, anything to repair the damage, at least slightly. She was useless ever since she was born, but not anymore. Now she had a purpose, now she could do the right thing. Twilight Sparkle and Celestia had to pay for their crimes!

But where should she start? That was a task that could only be accomplished with the help of a group, much like, heh, the Elements of Harmony. Life had a truly strange sense of humor.

"Oh, Dead God Salzar. I beg you to give me the answer I seek through your holy book. Guide my thoughts to the right path, so that all blood can finally return to you."

Trixie sighed, opened the book and read her answer.

There was once a Diamond Dog named Jester, son of Old Bone, who was the ruler of a city known as Amethyst Peak, a city with big walls and an outstanding military force. During a war, the city could turn into a fort which was impossible to overwhelm with normal means. This ability, combined with its riches, its position on the harsh surface of the wasteland and the overall architectural beauty made king Jester a very prideful individual, proclaiming himself a god of Amethyst Peak.

One night, Jester had a dream. He saw his precious city in flames while blood rained from the dark sky above. A presence verbally tortured him about the city and how it was his fault that it ended up that way. The king woke up, scared and confused, and walked towards the balcony where he not only saw the city below, but also the night sky above. At that moment, the king spotted a blood red moon, something that should not be possible. He just dismissed it all as nothing but superstitions and nightmares.

The following day, king Jester received a message from his guards. There was a figure who wanted to talk to the king himself. The king accepted and the figure was brought before him. He could see no feature of the strager, since they were entirely wrapped in a black cloak. However, he could see that the stranger was tall, far taller than a pony or a Diamond Dog. And when it spoke, its voice was quite strange. It wasn't as sugary as that of a pony, but it wasn't as rough as that of his species either.

"Greetings, oh lord Jester." Said the figure. "I am an architect who came here in search for glory."

"Glory?" Asked Jester. "What glory could you possibly seek in my palace?"

"My lord," bowed the figure "it has come to my attention that this city lacks a temple dedicated to its supreme deity. This is simply an outrageous problem. How can a god be worshipped if there is no place to worship him?"

"I see." Jester nodded, feeling happy that a stranger recognized his might. "It is a big problem, yes."

"But I can solve that problem, my lord. I ask you to give me the permission to built a majestic temple in your name. A temple so beautiful, so glorious, that it will make the Equestrian royal sisters green with envy! A place where the citizens can bow down to a gigantic statue of their god! All of this, in less than two weeks!"

Everyone present, except the king and the stranger laughed and mocked the hidden figure. But the king, he was impressed by such bold proclamation of skill, that he immediately gave the stranger the permission they needed.

Just as expected, the temple was built in less than two weeks. It was so unique that its architecture was beyond anything present in the rest of the city. A giant building that made a mere mortal look like an ant when compared to it. But what the king didn't know, was that the temple was nothing but a facade for what lay beneath it. Indeed, below the very temple was a secret dungeon devoted to worshipping the Dead God. The most royal of followers inflitrated into the city, between the citizens, and began their practices as soon as the temple was built.

As time passed, more people were secretly converted to the cult or sacrificed on one of many altars devoted to Salzar. The new recruits would be immersed into the blood of the slain heathens, so that they could be reborn in newer and stronger bodies. At day, they would be just another bunch of ordinary citizens. At night, they would worship the Dead God with such devotion that even the most zealous members could bow their head in shame.

One night, the Dead God revealed himself to the coven of Amethyst Peak. "My devout children! This is the night where we will finally make our public appearance! No more we will hide in the shadows, fearing for our safety! It is time that we begin spreading our message through all Equus. And what better way to start than to slaughter the entire city? Go now! Show to the world what are the followers of the Dead God capable of! Let the heathens know that justice is coming to punish them all!"

That night Amethyst Peak fell to a handful of our brethren. Only two brothers were lost that night while the rest of the city was slaughtered, its roads covered in blood. Our brothers and sisters howled as the blood red moon shone above the city. As for the king, he was impaled on a stake with a technique where he would stay alive for a much as possible while the blood slowly dripped away from his body. He died three days later.

It was with that night that the Blood Moon festival was created, as an eternal reminder of the Dead God's generosity towards anyone who seeks the true path. The Blood Moon festival is also dedicated to the night when our cult made the first public appearance.

Trixie silently thanked the Dead God for revealing yet another piece of truth to her and her alone. And while the story was entertaining to read, it also gave her an idea on where to start.

"Trixie thinks it is time for the cult to rise once again." She smiled as she closed the book, ready to leave the attic.

Princess Celestia watched her sleeping sister Luna. That spell caused minor yet frightening wounds to the lunar Princess. Both the doctors and the Elements of Harmony were there with her was well. Some of them cried in fear of loosing their co-ruler and friend whiel the strong-willed hugged them and tried to calm the situation.

"This is all my fault." Celestia whispered as a tear fell from her eye. "It was my responsibility to guard that cursed book. And now not only it has fallen in the hands of the enemy, but Luna is hurt too!"

Twilight, her ex-student, tried to hug her. And while she wasn't exactly great in that, Celestia was still thankful for the attempt. Twilight was truly the Princess of Friendship.

"Thank you, my little ponies, for being here with me during these dark times. Now excuse me, but I need to... rest, a little... I feel so exhausted."

Princess Celestia left the room after the Elements swore to protect the injured Luna. As she walked towards her private chambers, she was reminded of all the evil that fell upon Equus ever since the war started. How many suffered? How many more had to in the future? Would the cursed plague ever end? More importantly, what will happen now that the Ancients have that book?

And for the first time in centuries, Princess Celestia, after closing the door behind her, finally broke down and cried the whole night. Despair won against her iron will.