Beatrix Belladonna Versus the Vampiric Planet

For the moment the Crystal Empire remained relatively peaceful, aside from the ongoing festivities. Once in a while there would be a drunken brawl or arguments, but the moment a crystal guard stepped in, let-alone a dragon, the situation was usually quickly diffused. A dazzling array of sound and music continued wherever the band toured with their mobile stage. Market stalls now swamped nearly every street as the Crystal Fair was overseen by Princess Blueblood and Diamond Tiara.

Banners that represented Shining's force fluttered about. The heralds that emblazoned them were placed as runes upon armaments woven under Cherry Jubilee's team, but with Rarity and Suri out of commission they were slow to produce more, and what they could craft lacked the same fine quality. They'd barely managed a few dozen before the army had moved out.

Tree Hugger would routinely check on the hospital, then on Jubilee who was still tirelessly at work, before she return to the main room where the most broken mares often lounged. She'd shared some of her artwork with them, mostly abstract pieces she displayed in hopes it would soothe them. She also started to teach them yoga. “Just follow me.” She stood on her forelegs, forehooves raised while she posed. “That's ti. Just chill and take it easy. Slowly breath in and out, feel the vibes.”

These exercises when on for some time. She tried to clear their chakras, taking it slow, fearing that if they poured out all those toxins at once, she'd ultimately do more harm than good. Afterwards, she headed out back of the retreat.

“Don't worry boy, I wouldn't forget about you!” She trotted out to meet the shrunken Ursa Minor, who still towered over her, shuffling out from the makeshift burrow she'd made for him out of blankets. “Sorry I have to hide you, but like, you want to hibernate anyhow, don't you?” He nuzzled with her, his powerful bulk shimmering.

She was about to feed and water him when his tongue traced her barrel. “H-hey.” He poked his snout around her hind end, sniffing her nethers. Her cheeks heated. “I mean, I do kind of miss old times with Mr. Bear, but...”

He nibbled on the nape of her neck. She tensed up, warmth rushing through her entirety, her flower swelling as blood filled it until it was inflamed. He continued to nip and nibble on her, and her marehood started to wink, dripping with need that slid down her inner thighs. Her dock raised her tail reflexively, her puckered asshole gripping at the air.

“Uh...o-okay. You convinced me,” she admitted lowering her chin to the ground and raising her posterior. “You can understand me, right? Rut me, you big stud. And you don't have to, like, worry about being too careful. I can take it, you know?”

Settling his weight atop the mare, he positioned himself to mount her, claws digging into her shoulders. His hot breath fell on the back of her neck as his penis poked between her shapely buttocks. She pushed her rump back into him, until it was glazed in his precum, impatiently huffing. “It's not cool to tease too much, man. Just choose a hole already, I don't care which!”

It didn't surprise her when he plugged her ass with a savage thrust and a grunt. Isn't that what most guys did when they were offered a chance to penetrate that most taboo part of the anatomy? While it wasn't usually her first choice, a crooked smile crossed her snout while she sighed in contentment, her eyes almost closed and her hanging breasts knocking as she moaned.

He licked and nipped at her ears, her face coloring further. “You're a...a surprisingly attentive lover,” she admitted while the plunge of his dick reshaped her bowels. By now her lower lips were contracting like mad, the force of his humps nearly sending her skidding face-first across the cold ground. “Don't...hold back,” she urged sensing he still feared hurting her.

Resting a claw atop her skull, she laid her cheek to the dirt while he claimed her. Her frame shuddered under the intensity of his pounding. “P-put it in my pussy,” she begged not worried about infections. Sure, it would hurt like a bitch, but there were potions to deal with that later, right? Her mind was practically numbed with pleasure, or tongue lolling from her snout.

He withdrew and slammed into her glistening twat. She howled in appreciation, her insides stretching to accept him, as he battered against her cervix entryway. It flexed and oozed feminine goo around his tip. “A-all the way in,” she demanded, remembering how Sombra and Bellatrix had invaded her innermost part, and wanting to reclaim it for her own.

Breaking the last barrier, he bottomed out in her womb, his shape distending out her stomach, hammering into her so brutally the area shook. He growled and grunted, her lashes fluttering rapidly as her eyes rolled into her head, She milked his cock for all she was worth, opening her maw and yowling as she squirted upon his crotch, splash-after-splash matting his fur.

“Good boy,” she whined while he continued to fuck her stupid. He released himself inside her core, packing in his spunk which spattered into her slimy walls, which contracted as multiple climaxes dulled all rational thought from her.

After he'd finished he rested atop her, still locked in her innermost portion. She heaved with him and basked in her tingly afterglow, thankful she'd finally taken a little time for herself. After all, she'd drive herself crazy if she didn't do something for herself once in a while. Was Fluttershy watching over her, even now? She liked to think so, settling into a dreamy slumber.

*****

Despite the best efforts of Smolder and her army, they proved unable to halt all the tendrils which lashed out from Megiddo, the coils hurtled beyond the pegasi in their white armor and the fire-breathing drakes, crossing the void between dimensions as they wormed their way back to the Crystal Empire. “Damn it, there's too many! All of you, form a vanguard with me!”

She raised the Bloodstone Scepter, clad in her rune-covered ensemble, and they closed ranks around her. The skies twisted overhead while they unleashed a concentrated barrage of flames, torching a number of the invaders, which writhed and cooked as they nuked them. The ponies focused on the threats below, pegasi scooping up the grounded soldiers whenever holes threatened to open below them. But by this point they'd lost a number of them, and many who survived had begun to tire.

Determined to somehow save everypony by her lonesome if necessary, Flurry Heart teleported from one place to the next, unleashing a storm of spells which lit her surroundings. While she was potentially the most powerful creature in Equestria, she still lacked the discipline and practice needed to have mastered any magic, her shots a wild mish-mash of unfocused energy.

Nevertheless they proved effective as even Megiddo itself seemed to shudder under the onslaught. “If Sombra's become linked to the planet it makes sense!” She shook away her tears, doubling-down with reinvigorated determination.

However despite her efforts it was impossible to be everywhere at once. For every creature she saved another one was lost. A grim reminder that like her father, no matter how noble one tried to be it didn't always produce the best results. Worse still the Crystal Heart barely resonated in her bosom anymore. While her parents had saved her and Beatrix, it had weakened the ancient relic, and she feared that unless there was some way to renew its power the Crystal Empire would soon dwindle too.

*****

And in the Crystal Empire those that managed to slip free shot outward. The coils attached themselves to stragglers in the scattered mobs and siphoned the essence from them. They pulsed and drained out the color, bodies collapsing and falling still, like they'd been frozen in time. “That's our cue,” called Vinyl Scratch as their stage rolled up, clanking as it rapidly transformed into a mobile fortress. “At your stations, everypony! If we have to go out I'd rather do it in style!”

Fuschia whipped out her synthesizer which was strapped around her. “Ready, Lavender?”

“Hope this works!” Her partner leveled a similar instrument, both of which they infused with their special magic.

“Wild,” called Lyra while she watched in wonder as the witches unleashed a weaponized form of music. “I want one!”

“It's still in the beta stage,” admitted Fuschia as the music screamed out, nearly rocking them off their hooves.

“We'll try it on your harp sometime!” Lavender jumped as her synthesizer crackled and exploded. “Crap!”

“Needs a lot of work,” lamented Fuschia as her own tool melted and stank. “What a waste of bits!”

“Maybe I can make it functional!” Vinyl settled into her chair and fired the turret-like speakers. “Fuck yeah!” She punched the air with a forehoof as the shrill sound waves rippled out and reduced the nearest tentacles into sludge.

With a shake of her head Octavia primly worked her controls and helped the DJ and Lyra lay down cover fire. She tuned her sound to something less discordant than her partner's but no less potent. “Such a lovely melody,” she mused as the air rippled under the twisting cone of harmonized sound which Lyra helped her work, their styles well-suited to each other.

While they were hardly known for offensive spells, Fuschia and Lavender lit their horns, and fired small beams at the protrusions. They took up the unicorn horn crafted wands from the treasure chests, using them to enhance their natural magic.

*****

From the hospital wing Pinkie peeked out a window and pointed. Muffled cries escaped the bandages wrapped around her snout. At her insistence Rarity reluctantly abandoned Suri's bedside and wandered over. Her eyes widened to see the Crystal Empire once more at war, this time with a sea of tentacles that were crashing down like a tsunami to siphon the magic from any creature it could grasp. Ponies were fighting back with aid from the dragons, struggling to keep the mass at bay.

It reminded her of when Lord Tirek first attacked. Or that strange town they'd visited once which had lost its color. But the fallen were still like they were frozen in time, and she wondered if this could be reversed. “Here we are, trapped while the capital falls. Is this how Equestria ends?” Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks as she slumped over.

Pinkie shook her head. She nearly stumbled when she wandered over to reclaim her sheathed sword which glinted.

“No, Pinkie. You're still hurt, darling.” She stroked her curls. “If only I'd been born a warrior, rather than an artist. Applejack or Rainbow Dash are far more suited to this new Equestria...so of course they were two of the first to fall.”

Laying her head on the fashionista's shoulder, a solitary tear rolled down Pinkie's face. She patted her back with a sad smile. Would Suri ever wake up again? Maybe it would be better if she didn't? She looked over at the twins who skulked in the corner, aimless and despondent, so still it barely seemed like they had any 'life' left in them. Cherry Jubilee simply couldn't bring herself to euthanize them despite how many times she'd withdrawn her six-shooter, checked the bullets, and cocked it.

The door flew open. “I've barred the place down the best I could on short notice,” called Jubilee. “But I reckon it won't keep those critters out for too long. We're pretty much helpless here. Tree Hugger and the Ursa Minor are watching over the place, but all it'll take is a stray tentacle and they'll be put out of commission. After all the work we've done...” She slumped down and cried, forehooves raised to cover her face. Normally she kept it all in for the sake of her patients, but her last hopes were dying.

“Perhaps...perhaps Shining's force can stop Megiddo in time.” Rarity practically prayed they somehow could. She could see the hippie outside, riding atop the bear who's coat swirled like the cosmos, its claws rending the extensions which split and thrashed while they dripped clear fluids which ran across the shiny streets. It roared, one of its eyes sealed and scarred.

Hugs had taken up an old rifle she kept in storage, a bandolier strung over her. It would have been a comical sight if not for the reminder even a pacifist was driven to take up combat. But hadn't they all had to make similar sacrifices?

*****

At this point Beatrix Belladonna's body shimmered black and flickered, the cosmos swirling inside her, the entities trapped within her attire thrashing. She struggled to maintain herself, fearing her psyche would be shattered, gazing into the depths of the Necronomicon as she sought to seize control of it from Sombra. “It's...it's too much!” Tears rolled down her cheeks.

Growls escaped Sombra who felt the dark tome pulse within his chest. “I won't be denied!” He dropped Bellatrix Primadonna who slid off his stallionhood and landed in a puddle of his foalbatter. “Look!” He waved a forehoof and a window into Equestria materialized in the void. “Bear witness as the Crystal Empire falls once more!”

Starlight continued to zap tendrils with lasers and blinked about when needed to evade them. “But weren't you trying to save it? What's the point of ruling over a ruined world? What are you really after?! Just revenge?!”

“I'll build a better Empire on the ashes! You've shown me the truth, Beatrix!” He stomped a hoof on Bellatrix's midsection knocking the wind form her. “Why bother to rule over a single country when I can have the world? But no, my ambitions were still too petty! I'll not only dominate this universe, but the heavens themselves, and even every other plane of existence!”

From their vantage point it was obvious their forces were losing. With each creature he drained the sorcerer-king became even stronger, and further synced with the forbidden book. In turn it was even easier for him to summon and manipulate more abominations. The Sphinx continued to batter the barrier with her paws, actually starting to crack the magical shield.

“Damn! There's no way we can keep them at bay forever!” Trixie snarled and continued to fire a light show from her palms. “All that practice, and this is still the best Trixie can manage! If only she'd taken up offensive magic much earlier!”

“You're doing well,” assured Glimmer. “Just keep the pressure off Beatrix!”

However no matter how much Belladonna strained she couldn't quite tap into the Necronomicon fast enough to overwhelm his hold over it. It felt like her mind and body were splitting in an infinite number of directions, and a bleak truth dawned on her; if she failed to overcome his will she'd be reduced to Prima Materia like her other half, completing the key to the Necronomicon, and with it he'd be able to easily unlock the rest of its potential. With that his will would be the sole one left in the universe.

Below him Bellatrix weakly struggled to rise. Messy curls fell around her shoulders and she blinked several times. “You're not...alone...sister,” she cried raising a palm towards her former master. She added her will to Beatrix's.

“Traitors. You shall be the first to fall.” With a roar of triumph the Sphinx slammed down with both paws and the barrier shattered like glass with a deafening crackle. She dove towards the dark stallion, plucking him up his a claw. Flesh ripped as he was torn from his throne. Staring at her prey like a cat with a mouse, her slit eyes studying him with a lick of her chops.

“Mmm, now what to do with you? Simply bite your head off? Or...” She licked his face, toying with him, not satisfied with delivering a quick death, especially after he'd tried to control and sacrifice her. With a devilish smile she snapped away his horn. He screamed, and she kept his hooves pinned, shoving his head in-and-out of her large cunt as she used him like a living dildo. She writhed happily with wet schlicks, her nectar soaking him, dripping down the tyrant. “We've won!”

“Not until the Necronomicon is contained!” Beatrix continued to flicker.

“I'm with you!” Bellatrix had risen to her feet.

“Ah...yes...” The Sphinx lolled her tongue and rolled her eyes into her head, creaming all over Sombra as her pussy constricted around him. Her clit throbbed and she toyed with one of her breasts, slathering the teat in her feminine honey. “What...?!”

Somehow he'd slipped from her claw. He crawled up her, forced open her gooey cervix, and wiggled into her slimy womb. Her belly distended and she writhed with nausea. Hisses escaped her, then a long scream, her stomach exploding out in a shower of guts as Sombra ripped himself free. She snapped her jaws, and he hurtled away, trying in vain to hold in her guts.

He cackled while she collapsed with a thud. “Did you think it would be so easy? I played possum!” A fresh horn jutted out from his skull. “Now, for you!” Wisps rolled from his hateful eyes which turned on Primadonna.

Stampeding towards the succubus with his head bowed, he aimed at her crotch, ramming his curved horn right up her twat. She screamed and was lifted off her feet, lifted up, blood and juices dripping down his face. He licked them off with a slurp, holding her in the air, the tip exiting between her breasts. “S-sister,” she whined choking on a mouthful of crimson.

“No!” Beatrix screamed in frustration, doubling-down on her efforts, no longer concerned with whether she tore herself to shreds. He stared down at his torso, which quivered as the Necronomicon was torn between them.

His chest burned as the tome started to tear free. In a last desperate ditch effort, he fired up his horn, Primadonna's body reduced to giblets that showered around him as he took aim and fired a wave of darkness at Belladonna. Starlight tried to deflect the laser with one of her own, but it easily swallowed hers up, empowered by the black grimoire.

She teleported away with her riders, but the zap diverted paths, homing on Belladonna. No matter how many times she blinked away it followed, edging ever closer, and Starlight discovered that she was unable to transport from Megiddo's core. “It won't stop until its struck its target! Damn it!” She tried to increase her speed, the black waves closing over them.

“Trixie refuses to lose you again!” She threw herself over her daughter as the laser closed in. She cried out as it ripped into her back, skin smoking and sizzling as it melted. Beatrix mouthed her mother's name but she couldn't hear it, smiling with teary eyes. “You...okay, baby? Mommy'll take care of everything...” She closed her eyes and slumped over her lap.

The Necronomicon was ripped from Sombra. With that act it was a simple matter for Starlight to contain the weakened Sombra in a pillar of crystal, but Belladonna barely paid attention, slowly returned to her normal self as she summoned the book to her. They were teleported onto the floating island in the midst of the void, the tentacles paused as if they accepted Beatrix as their new master. She sniffled as her tears fell on her mother, wrapping her bloodied and limp form up in her cape. “C-can you-”

(Save her? I do not know.) The Smooze slithered from between her thighs. He bonded to the terrible wound, attempted to seal it. (She appears to be stable, for the moment. But I cannot promise she'll survive.)

“You'll answer for all your crimes,” swore Starlight who narrowed her eyes at the encased stallion.

(We have another problem. Without Sombra to hold Megiddo together it may soon collapse.)

Beatrix pressed the Necronomicon to her bosom. “Maybe I can...? No, I don't think I can control it that well.” Her shoulders slumped. Maybe if she had more time to practice? With a pained look she stared at the messy remains of the Sphinx and Bellatrix. “Starlight, can you take us out of here now?” She tucked the book under an arm and carefully lifted Trixie up.

They were transported back to the surface of the fleshy planet. Their allies were busy with clean up duty, quite of number of them fallen, but without Sombra and the Necronomicon most of the abominations now easily fell before Flurry's and Smolder's combined armies. The two leaders raced to meet up with them, hovering in mid-air. “Oh no,” cried Flurry.

“Everypony, we have to leave! This place could collapse at any time!” Glimmer pointed at the nexus.

“We'll do whatever we can,” promised Flurry who was shaking as she stared at Trixie's limp form. “Everypony, move out!” She lowered herself to let her half-sister mount her. They rode back in silence, and Beatrix stroked her back in appreciation, any spats between them all but forgotten. No, that was all put behind them, their sole concern for Trixie's safety now.

*****

The massed numbers of Shining's force reappeared in the capital. Under the direction of Blueblood and Diamond Tiara, the last of the coils were neutralized, easily finished off when more dragons came to their rescued. Fires burned across the Crystal Empire and clouded the sky in gray smoke. The sound stage was reduced to a ruined mess that stank of well-fried circuitry, but fortunately the musicians had survived, lying atop the ruins and breathing heavily as they slumped about covered in sweat.

“What a show,” said Vinyl who tossed aside her cracked shades.

“I'm simply thankful it's over.” Octavia squeezed the DJ's and Lyra's hooves.

“You said it! I'm pooped! Plus, I'd rather not think of how many died...” Lyra chewed on her lower lip.

“Could've been worse.” Fuschia assessed the damage and deemed the charred machine a total loss.

“Looks like our luck held out. Hurray!” Lavender squeezed her. They tossed aside the spent wands, reduced to blackened husks after having fired off so many offensive spells aided by their magic. “I wonder how Trixie's doing?”

“She'll be okay. She has to be.” Fuschia pulled her friend tighter.

Further in Tree Hugger stroked the cheek of the Ursa Minor who was slumped on his side. Unable to siphon all the magic from the best, a tendril had pierced his midsection instead, and he slowly bled out in her forehooves. “Thanks, boy.” She nuzzled her cheek with his and let the tears come naturally. “We couldn't have done it without you.” Gradually he went still.

“I have to check on my citizens! I'll come back soon,” swore Flurry who set her passengers down.

Beatrix knelt and placed her mother before her, wrapped up in a bloodied cape. “Is there any hope to save her?”

(I have an idea. Admittedly it is far-fetched, but...)

“Whatever it takes, I'll do it. I already lost Bellatrix. Not sure I can stand to lose another, especially mom...” She rubbed her snout on the back of her glove. “Thank you, Smoozy.” She realized he'd placed Trixie in stasis. He was pumping her with chemicals to dull the pain and provide her with a restful sleep, almost in a catatonic state.

(I devoured an entire planet. That is something I can never take back. But I have been trying-and-trying to duplicate the elixirs that Sunburst created ever since your other self expired. Yet no matter how many I save, it won't balance the scales. There's no way I could return those lost to life. At best I could try and amend my mistakes at your side, Beatrix Belladonna.)

She scrunched her snout. “That's nonsense. You told me not to feel sorry for yourself! Well, it works both ways!”

(It's not meant to be self-loathing. Merely logic. I can save Megiddo. But in order to do so, I shall need your help. Collect Trixie, the twins, and every other fallen ally on the verge of death who is unlikely to make it here. Ask Flurry, Starlight, and Smolder for aid.) She nodded, so desperate she'd do almost anything at this point. But she kept the Necronomicon close and stared at Sombra. His eyes darted about, enshrouded in a chunk of crystalline, seeming to stew in his own bitterness.

Maybe she should've hated him. Instead she simply felt empty. She tried to take solace in the hope Trixie could still be saved...