Eclipse

Eclipse

Chapter 5

The Brother She Loved

“What do you mean by harvested?” Cadence asked quizzically.

“I mean I was harvested, like an apple from a tree, only in my case a soul from the in-between.”

“In-between?” Cadence echoed, it had a disturbing ring to it.

“Yes, a place where souls like mine go when we are not dead, but not alive, some where in-between, that's where it gets it's name. It is usually referred to in necromancy, that is where they get the souls to reanimate the corpses.”

“But where do all the souls come from?”

“Nopony knows, I have very little memory, I can remember only bits and pieces of the in-between, but from what I can remember it was hell, eternal suffering, but I don't know why I our anypony else was there to begin with.”

“That's terrible!” Cadence said, appalled by the thought of such a place existing.

“It was, but the souls there are always taken out eventually, either through some form of necromancy, or by finally being excepted either back to the living, or to heaven. If you are drawn out by necromancy, when you die you go back into the in-between, you are eternally linked to it, so you will always be drawn back after a certain amount of time, that's why necromancers have to constantly summon more souls, they keep getting drawn back. This is also the reason why it is illegal, every time the necromancer has to summon a new soul they need a fresh corpse.”

“Wait... does that mean...” Cadence thought, her mind slowly connecting the dots, “Does that mean you will be drawn back as well?”

“Not quite, you see, the souls are used to keep the corpse running, in most cases this lasts only a few hours, stronger magic equals more time, but I was different, I was placed in a still living body, a body much older then my soul, which caused....problems.”

“Problems?”

“Well, my soul was younger then Constellations body and soul, you already have problems from the fact that he still had his soul, I remember fighting with him over his body, I didn't want to steal his body, but I was being forced to by Mothers magic, forcing me to take over his body, I didn't want to, you have to believe I didn't want to...” Eclipse said as tears started to form in his eyes as he remembered the pain both he and Constellation were forced to suffer, obviously not a fond memory.

“You were forced, it's not your fault.” Cadence comforted, noticing Eclipse starting to cry.

“I know, it's just... I wish I could have stopped it,” Eclipse said before trying his eyes and continuing the story, “Since he was older he had the advantage, but with magic both restraining him and helping me, I eventually took over, for a time every now and then he came back, he never truly left the body, I just learned how to stop him.”

“So... What does all this have to do with why they hate you?”

“Well, when they were casting the spell they didn't know that I would replace him, they didn't know they would loose him, they found that out only after it was too late and I had taken over. N taking over the body not only did I gain control, but the body also changed to hold my much younger soul, I was essentially reborn. A foal once more, they couldn't figure out why, but eventually figured out that I wasn't Constellation, and they thought that I had deliberately killed him, even though they forced me too. Ever since then they hated me, but they couldn't abandon me, they had to raise me like one of their own, nopony could ever know what they had done, but they still hated me.”

“That's it? They hate you because of something they did to you?”

“That's all I know on the subject, as far as they're concerned I killed the son they loved.”

“Have you told them it's not your fault?”

“I tried, but they never listen, they pretend like I don't exist, that's why they tried to get me killed, they wanted to get rid of me, like a mistake they can just erase.”

“That's terrible!”

“I know, but I can do nothing about it.”

“Wait, but what happened to Constellation?”

“He's still in the body, though he no longer has the strength to take over, and I am bound to this body, so I cannot leave and give him his body back, he can do nothing but wait until his soul is forced out of the body, probably when it dies, when we are both released, I will go back to the in-between, an he will go to heaven, I can do nothing to stop this.”

“How do you know he's still in there?”

“Before I met you he was my only friend.”

“What?”

“He can communicate with me, he understands that I didn't want to take over, he understands what I was forced to go through, so he kept me company through the lonely years of being ignored and hated. He knows what I do, he helps me make decisions, he has a say in everything I do, though sometimes he goes silent, his soul is still week from his illness. He knows neither of use can do anything, so he has excepted that and decided to help me, he helped me live.”

“So, is he with you now?”

“I... I don't know, ever since I met you he hasn't said anything, I can feel him, but just barely, it's odd, he normally tells me when he rests for a while.”

Before Cadence could ask another question they heard somepony open the door to the apartment.

“What was that?” Cadence said, quickly looking down the hall to make sure they weren't coming down it.

“Hold on.” Eclipse said as he started to reach out his magic, trying to use magic made his head hurt and his vision swim but he had to find out who it was, he  had just barely made it to the living room when he knew who it was.

“C..e...a” Eclipse mumbled, not able to form full words after exhausting himself to see who it was.

“Who?” Cadence asked, not able to hear him.

“Celestia.” Eclipse said again, this time managing to make his word audible.

“Quick, in the closet!” Cadence said, hoping to hid like she had from the police.

“There's no time, she's already walking down the hall, we have to get out. NOW!”

“But how? There are no doors, no windows, and I can't teleport us out, I'm not strong enough, and you are to injured to even attempt multi-pony teleportation.”

“No, not multi-pony.”

“What? Eclipse, you-” Before she could offer another word in protest she felt magic slowly wrapping round her, Eclipse's magic, before a sudden flash of light when she found herself on the roof of a building. From her location she could see the abandoned apartment building and the jail. “Eclipse, what are you thinking?” Cadence asked herself  before beginning to make her way through the building, it wold be a long walk back to the apartment, not skilled enough in magic to have learned teleportation. So she walked, but it would be to late.

“Where did he go!?” Celestia thought to herself as she walked through the old apartment looking for the two she thought had been there. After making sure the living room was empty she began to make her way down the hall to the bedroom. At fist she didn't see anything, but then she noticed a few sparks showering down to the floor, evidence a spell was cast, recently.

“They got away!?” Celestia bellowed, unable to control her rage any longer. She started stomping around the room, crushing anything she could find, though she would much rather be taking out her anger on Eclipse.

“Not they, Celestia, she.”

“You.” Celestia's words were dripping with hatred. She quickly spun around to see Eclipse stumble out of the kitchen adjoining the master bedroom.

“Yes, me, she had nothing to do with it, leave her out of this.”

“Oh, don't worry,” Celestia said, her tone suddenly becoming very sadistic, “You're the only one I want...”

“What do you want with me Celestia?” Eclipse said as he took a strong stance, though still very weak.

“I think you know, I think you know exactly what I want.”

“Why do this? Why not just take me to the police station yourself?”

“Oh, I wouldn't dare, it was only because of Crystal that I let you live the first time, but now that you an I are alone, well, lets just say I'm not holding back.”

“Don't do it, If you kill me Ponies willstart to challenge our mothers rule, and you don't want that.”

“She is not our mother! She is mine and Luna's mother! You will nave have a mother!” Celestia yelled, growing angry at Eclipse for constantly calling her mother his, though she never really thought about it until today. A day she was going to make sure blood was spilled.

“You know that's not true,” Eclipse said, backing down into the kitchen as Celestia slowly stepped forward, “You did have a brother once.”

“Yes, I did, but not anymore, do you know why?” Celestia said, becoming very quiet. The change was enough to unnerve Eclipse, but not enough to stop him.

“Yes, I do, but it is not the reason you think.”

“Oh really? Well, let me tell you what I know, I know YOU KILLED HIM!” Celestia shouted at the top of her lungs, jumping at Eclipse. He just barely managed to step out of her way and continue to try and calm her down”

“No, I did not kill him, your mother did!” Eclipse said, trying to make Celestia listen to him.

“LIES!”

“I'm telling you the truth, you helped with the spell, his blood is on your hoofs as well.”

“Now I know you're lying.”

“I'm not.”

“You really think I'll believe you? I... I loved Constellation, I w-would never h-have killed h-him.” Celestia stuttered out as she started to cry, remembering how much she had loved Constellation, and how he had been ripped from her life without so much as a goodbye, and she was staring at the only pony who could have done it. Taking a few steps back to prepare herself, Celestia charged forward at Eclipse, this time she managed to hit him square in the chest.

Eclipse looked up as the ceiling spun, slowly looking over to the white and pink blob that was Celestia, crying in the middle of the room, wishing for her brother to somehow come back.

“I loved him.........” Is all Eclipse heard before his world went black for the second time that day.