Four Horsemen Come to Equestria

Chapters

New Challenges
Thwarting my plans?
Strife in the Ranks
New Identities
All Hell Breaks Loose

New Challenges

Author's Note

Contains a crossover with https://www.fimfiction.net/story/435776/new-dragon-in-town by Deltorix

New Challenges

As the residents returned to their homes after what transpired Celestia decided to teleport Twilight and the others straight to the castle; much to Pinkie’s confusion.

“But I was going to start on a cake,” Pinkie pouted

“You are permitted to use the castle’s kitchen,” Luna offered

“Why don't we all help out,” Fluttershy suggested "That way it gets done faster."

“This will be the first time either of us have attempted to bake a cake,” Celestia mused

“You've never tried to do this,” Pinkie asked in disbelief

“No. Our servants did everything for us,” Luna said

“On behalf of Bloom, Sweetie and myself,” Scootaloo started “We're going to leave the baking to all of you.”

“Yeah. The last thing we'd want is to destroy the castle,” Sweetie Belle chimed in “Let alone; the pain from my injury still lingers a little.”

FOUR HORSEMEN

“Well; I suppose we should be on our way,” Strife commented

“I'm not in too much of a hurry, though,” Fury retorted

“Something's bothering me,” Death stated

“What's wrong,” War asked

“It's what that creature said,” Death replied

“He said ‘the others will have their revenge’,” Strife pointed out “The question is who are they and how many are there?”

“Well now that one is dead; the rest should show themselves,” Fury said “Let's get going before they get restless.”

With that; each of them summoned their horses as they prepared for the trek to the castle. Despite being able to get there in a few minutes if they desired; they instead arrived at the destination nearly half an hour later.

“It's hard to believe this once busy castle is now completely dead,” Strife thought out loud

“I'm lost as to where to go,” War said

“Check this out,” Fury called

The other three gathered around a glass window that seemed to depict the battle Death read about between Celestia and Nightmare Moon. After seeing the end with Luna being banished; another image showed an enflamed Celestia.

“Let's get to searching,” Death stated “I need some answers.”

“I'll save you the search. The dining room is down this hall,” Strife said “I'll lead.”

Upon reaching the door to the room; Death decided to use the back of his Harvester scythe and pounded on the door.

“It's open,” Celestia called, as they filed in

“Welcome,” Luna said “We'd like to thank you for eliminating Tirek from causing any more problems.”

“There's something I'd like answered,” Death stated “Explain what happened in the glass murals; specifically in this hallway.”

“Those show Luna becoming Nightmare Moon and me subsequently banishing her to the moon,” Celestia simplified

“A story everyone here knows well,” Dash added sarcastically

“And the last one,” Death pressed

“Daybreaker,” Celestia said in a low voice “My darkest point after losing my sister. I thought I managed to purge her from me.”

“Don't tell me that it gained sentience,” Twilight asked in shock

“Indeed. I don't know what happened afterwards,” Celestia finished sadly

“Nothing good,” War stated

“Enough of that,” Pinkie decided “We should be happy right now. Spike; would you do the honors?”

“I'm on my way,” he called

As he emerged from the kitchen; two carts were being held together in Rarity’s magic as Fluttershy, Dash and AJ gently pushed. Situated on top and taking up all the room was a gigantic chocolate cake with the words ‘Thank You Horsemen’ written on top in purple lettering. Looking closer; the writing was situated inside Fury’s whip, designed to resemble a banner attached to Death's scythe like a flagpole. Both the ‘T’ and ‘Y’ were also designed to look like the outlines of War’s sword and Strife’s pistols respectively.

“I gotta hand it to you on the design,” Strife offered “You managed to fit our weapons into the design.”

“It wouldn't be fitting not to have them on there,” Rarity replied “The four of you did save us from further destruction.”

“It wouldn't have been right to sit by and watch,” War said “No one deserves to be destroyed like that.”

“Demons were going to continue to plague this world unless we did something,” Death added

“Let's get this cake cut and enjoy,” Pinkie said enthusiastically

Before they could decide which of the four would do the honors; a rainbow blur proceeded to slice the cake into four pieces designed for the Horsemen and twelve pieces for everyone else. As Death received his piece; an unseen smirk crept under his mask as he figured someone would do that.

“I couldn't wait any longer,” Dash stated

“Um princess; what's going to happen now,” Fluttershy asked in a whisper “There's no guards.”

“We'll have to initiate a mandatory draft for the males,” Celestia said with a large sigh “I'll send the message to all towns. They'll be turned into a reservist military on call whenever the need arises.”

“Who was the figure in the jacket that arrived earlier,” Twilight asked, changing the subject

“What we tell you is to be treated as secret,” Death stated “No one outside this room should ever be told anything about this conversation."

“I speak for everyone here when I say that I promise not to say anything,” Celestia replied, as the others nodded in agreement

“The four of us aren't exactly who we seem,” War started

“We're from an entirely different world and were sent here by that being called the ‘Merchant’,” Strife added

“We're what's known back home as the ‘Displaced’. Humans that dressed up as a character and were sent to different versions of Equestria usually by the Merchant,” Death simplified

“How can we tell if you aren't pulling our hooves,” Applejack questioned

Just as she asked that; a small portal opened up and an object fell onto the table. As Death picked it up; he noticed it was a piece of wood carved to look like a game controller. A voice in his head spoke to him.

I am Deltorix the Gamer. If you seek a friend, ally, or simply wish to train skills, simply say 'Send Invite' and I may come. What you want to do with the skills I teach will determination what skills I will teach you

“Send invite.”

After saying that; they waited for a minute before a golden screen pooped up with an image of a door. The doors started to morph from its two dimensional shape into three- dimensional and opened to reveal a red dragon about twice as tall as Spike. He looked at each person muttering something and had a thick book in his claw before he smiled and waved.

“Greetings to you; princesses and my fellow Displaced. I am Deltorix, the Gamer,” he said with a bow

“Where are you from,” Twilight asked

“I am from another Equestria,” Deltorix answered

“You're from another Equestria,” Pinkie echoed “How am I there? Oh who am I kidding; I'm great anywhere!”

“As an offering of assistance; I'd like to give you four something useful,” Deltorix said, tapping in mid-air “Well this is awkward.”

“What happened,” Strife asked

“I don't have the money,” he answered, rubbing a claw behind his head “I'll have to take you to a dungeon. But first…”

In front of each Horseman a small screen popped up only visible to them. To answer; all they needed to do was tap the screen.

Accept invite from Deltorix?
YESNO

Guessing there was only one option to have him help; each pressed ‘YES’ in order to continue.

“Thank you and welcome to the party,” Deltorix said “Now I can take you to an Instant Dungeon.”

“Two requests with that,” Death asked “One: Unlimited enemies and two: all enemies are available for summon.”

“I can do that,” he replied “Just need to make a custom dungeon. And speak of the Devil; I just received a message that says I can.”

With that; Deltorix set to work rapidly tapping in midair on his screen setting the parameters for the dungeon.

“Gather around, you four,” Deltorix said “Link hands with one another and that should make this easier. Instant Dungeon Create.”

Once that was finished; the five were sent into a huge chamber with a long hallway for enemies to spawn and had to wait to begin.

“Everything has been set. All the enemies can spawn and will continue until you decide to stop. Between each round will be a thirty-second break to collect loot. And speaking of; the loot will have to be turned over as the money earned here will not count as physical currency in your world,” Deltorix explained “I'll stay here in the corner in the meantime. One last thing; there will be a boss after the fiftieth wave.”

“Try not to die,” Strife joked

As they watched; a small horde of twenty zombie-like ponies shambled down the hall and were promptly shot down by Strife. Fury raced ahead and collected the piles of items left over as they disappeared into her in-game inventory.

“And now we just repeat until we're done,” Death mused

“I'm for waiting just a bit longer,” War chimed in “Let them come to us before destroying them.”

“Wave two,” Strife pointed out

With that; each readied their weapons and resisted the urge to attack while the room started to fill up with zombies and a couple timberwolves. Deciding they waited enough; Death had his Harvester scythe in its single blade form and used the increased size to spin it by the bottom of the handle and destroyed all the zombies, while War picked off the timberwolves.

“This is fun,” War mused “I'll have Chaoseater and the other weapons leveled up easily.”

“So far; these others were the toughest thing here,” Fury said, having destroyed the wolves

CANTERLOT CASTLE

“Um; where did they go,” Fluttershy asked

“I don't know; but I hope they are alright,” Twilight replied

“Whoever that dragon was; napped them,” Pinkie said “Kid? No; that's not right. Uh, Horsenapping? No; that sounds dumb; even to me.”

“Ridernapped,” Rarity offered

“Yes,” Pinkie exclaimed “They were ridernapped by that dragon!”

“His name is ‘Deltorix’ just so you know,” Spike pointed out

“At least we know they was tellin’ tha truth,” AJ mused

INSTANT DUNGEON

“Now this is what I'm talking about,” Strife said cheerfully “Come at me, you bastards!”

“I think we need to say thank you,” Fury said “You said your name was ‘Deltorix’; right?”

“Yes. I'm a Displaced like all of you but under different circumstances,” he replied “And you're all welcome. I'm glad I can help you out.”

“What are we up to now,” Strife called

“This should be the fiftieth wave,” Deltorix stated “The boss should be arriving any time now.”

“My weapons are finally done,” War stated

“Looking at the prices of a few gifts I wanted to get you; I don’t have the 175,000 bits necessary,” Deltorix said

“What do we have collected up till this point,” Strife asked

“I don't know. I can't see how much each of you have,” Deltorix countered

“Well; I'm up for slaying more,” Death stated

“This looks promising,” Strife mused “A huge horde of zombies approaches. I'll leave it to you.”

“Sis; why don't you take these instead,” Death offered

“About time I get a turn,” she joked

With that; Fury stood at the front of the hallway with her whip at the ready. As the horde started coming down; the whip was tossed from side to side, easily destroying everything. Trailing behind was a series of loud pounding as a big creature started to enter.

“That’s going to be a problem,” Strife mused

Much to their surprise; a slightly smaller version of Tirek had just entered the room. Realizing they were going to lose room to maneuver soon; War decided to wait underneath the centaur and attack his underbelly, slicing it open.

“Damn,” Death offered “That's gruesome; even to me.”

“It does the job and took down a boss,” War countered “Besides; it’s not the real thing.”

“Perhaps we should call it,” Deltorix suggested “It has been a while and you did collect a lot of items.”

“You're right,” Death replied “Mind sending us back?”

“Not a problem,” Deltorix answered “Instant Dungeon Escape.”

To their relief; the dungeon started to shatter as the dining room reemerged.

“Welcome back,” Celestia started

“I hate to break up what I'm sure would have been a nice reunion; but the four of you have been summoned,” Discord said, opening a portal

“The Charred Council wants us,” Death asked

“Yes. Now let's get going,” Discord stated

“I guess I'll wait here,” Deltorix offered

“Nope. You're coming too,” Discord corrected, grabbing him “Otherwise; I fear what Twilight would do to you.”

“Hey,” Twilight complained “It's not like I was going to dissect him or anything.”

Once through the portal; the location changed immensely. Instead of light walls and paintings; rock and lava pools were everywhere. Just a little ways in front of them were three carved totems; the representation of the Charred Council and four recognizable beings; the actual Horsemen. Standing, or rather floating; along side them was a six-eyed creature that looked like a black ghost known as a Watcher.

“What? Do my eyes deceive me,” the Watcher asked “EIGHT Horsemen?”

“SHUT UP,” the eight Horsemen ordered simultaneously

“Why is there another group here,” the actual War demanded “What manner of trick is this!?”

“I sense these four are not entirely like us,” Death mused “Nephilim bodies; with purely human souls.”

“Hold on,” Discord offered “I'll make things easier on everyone.”

Discord snapped his fingers and the four Displaced Horsemen saw their figures start to alter. Their faces started to lengthen to look more pony-like as their feet shrunk into hooves; all the while keeping their armor. Horns started to grow out their foreheads with Fury and Strife having a normal spiral design. War’s was curved, while Death had a twisted and gnarled design. Wings were growing as well with Fury and Strife having regular designs. War and Death had thestral wings with the latter’s being aged and torn in places; but still functional nonetheless.

“There,” Discord announced “Four pony Horsemen against the real thing. Unfortunately; there is one major change.”

“What's that,” the Displaced Death asked

“You can no longer summon your horses,” Discord replied “Being ponies now; you can see how wrong and improper it would be.”

“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS? EXPLAIN YOURSELVES,” one of the figures demanded

“The four of us are Displaced along with our friend here,” the Displaced Death said quickly “War and I were originally sent to a world known as Equus by a being known as the Merchant.”

“While we were there; demons attacked under an agreement made by a being called Tirek,” the Displaced War added

“Apparently; Tirek had escaped from a place known as Tartarus,” the Displaced Death clarified

“WHAT IS YOUR ROLE IN THIS? FURY AND STRIFE WILL SPEAK.”

“We were sent to a different world originally; but taken to the same as War and Death by the creature called Discord here with us,” the Displaced Fury answered

Standing off to the side and minding his own business; Deltorix had started to open an invisible window and look for a few items to purchase for his fellow Displaced. Thankfully; his appearance was largely unnoticed by the rest.

“YOU SAID HE ESCAPED FROM TARTARUS!?”

“What exactly is this Tartarus,” the real Death asked “I have no recollection of that name.”

“TARTARUS WAS A SPECIALLY BUILT PRISON TO HOUSE THE MOST DANGEROUS OF ALL; THE ORIGINAL DAEMON. IN ORDER TO KEEP IT SECRET; IT HAS BEEN WITHHELD FROM ALL RECORDS.”

“If I may ask; why is Equus so young a world,” the Displaced Death asked

“IN ORDER TO PREVENT ESCAPE OF THE DAEMON; EQUUS WAS BUILT ON TOP. A WORLD OF HARMONY SHOULD HAVE HELD THEM.”

“Was this Tirek one of them,” the real War asked "A Dæmon, I mean?"

“NO. HE WAS DEEMED A THREAT TO THE WORLD AND WAS BANISHED THERE.”

“Before he died; Tirek did mention the others would have their revenge,” the Displaced Death commented “Do you have any idea as to who he was talking about?”

“I hate to interrupt,” Deltorix started hesitantly “But do you mind if I borrow the four ponified Horsemen for a moment?”

“WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM THEM?”

“All I'd like is to be able to collect the items they earned earlier,” he replied “There were a few items I wanted to buy for them.”

“VERY WELL. MAKE IT QUICK.”

“Let's step into a side chamber for a moment,” Deltorix offered “We'll be back shortly.”

With the permission granted; the five of them entered the room and were quickly sent into an empty Instant Dungeon.

“Let's get this over with,” Deltorix said “Access your inventories and just hand me everything and I'll sort it out.”

“Alright. We're not going to regret this; are we,” Strife asked

“No. Besides; with some of the money that was earned I promised you I'd get you a few things,” he replied “Wow. From all that was over 500,000 bits; six spell books and a hundred potions. Alright we're done. We go back and you'll get your stuff.”

Having made short work of the loot; they returned to the original chamber. The four items Deltorix bought for them materialized on the floor.

“Death; you have a fully useable Soul Eater Evans scythe from Soul Eater and an enchantment allowing you to turn your existing scythe into the same. War; your Armageddon blade and an enchantment to duel-wield both,” Deltorix explained “Strife; a new set of pistols from the game Batman Arkham Knight and an enchantment allowing your existing guns to become them as well and finally; Fury. Your gift is a charm containing the four Hollows of Flame, Force, Stasis and Storm from the Darksiders 3 game and the ability to switch at any time.”

“Thank you for the gifts,” Death replied

Each of them grabbed their items and hurried back to the main chamber. The next thing was to ask Discord to help store them someplace.

“Finally,” the real Fury commented “We thought you got lost in there.”

“Odd looking scythe,” the real Death said “Harvester is better in every way.”

“There is no reason for that blade to ever be used,” the real War chastised “The Armageddon Blade was reserved for use against one person.”

“Nice pistols,” the real Strife commented as the other three turned to him “What? I know what I like. Mind if I see them for a moment?”

“Not at all,” the Displaced Strife replied

Once they were passed over; the real Strife had started to check the weight and feel of the pistols his counterpart now had. He started to feel giddy with something new.

“Do I detect that these can combine,” the real Strife asked hopefully

“They do indeed. They become a sniper rifle together,” the Displaced Strife answered

“Dragon,” the real Strife addressed “How did these weapons come?”

“They came with an additional enchantment to allow the existing pistols to transform into them,” Deltorix explained “And my name is ‘Deltorix’ in case you need it.”

“My counterpart can keep the enchantment; as I claim these for myself,” the real Strife declared

“WE'LL RETURN TO THE TOPIC AT HAND IF YOU DON'T MIND.”

“This ‘Tirek’ mentioned a group of others,” the real Fury commented

“THIS GROUP IS KNOWN AS THE SEVEN SINS. THEIR NAMES ARE: TIREK, COZY GLOW, CHRYSALIS, SOMBRA, DAYBREAKER, GROGAR AND THE BROTHERS FLIM AND FLAM. THEY REPRESENT THE SINS OF GLUTTONY, ENVY, LUST, GREED, PRIDE, WRATH AND SLOTH. YOU FOUR ARE PERMITTED TO DO ANYTHING TO PROTECT EQUUS.”

“These sound nothing compared to the Seven I fought,” the real Fury retorted

“DO NOT TAKE THEM LIGHTLY. YOU; DRACONEQUUS; WILL WATCH OVER THE HORSEMEN AND THEY WILL BE THE GUARDIANS OF EQUUS."

“Yeah, yeah,” Discord replied sarcastically “‘Watch over them’. What do you think I've been doing? Sitting on my backside with my thumb stuck there? Rather uncomfortable if you ask me.”

“DO NOT TAKE THIS AS A JOKE. YOU WILL SEVERELY REGRET DOING SO.”

“What do you think you can do,” Discord retorted “Turn me to stone? Been there, done that; was bored for years in the process.”

Instead of receiving an answer; Discord started to contort himself in agony. The Charred Council decided to punish him by burning him without the flames.

“That's enough,” the real War demanded “This punishment has gone on too long.”

“WAR; YOU WISH TO TAKE HIS PLACE?”

“I'll…do…it,” Discord said through breaths “Watch…over…Horse…men.”

“DISMISSED.”

“Discord; do you have a moment,” the Displaced Death asked, as they left

“Of course,” Discord replied, before snapping his fingers “Your new scythe has been added to your hammerspace and War has his mounted on his back. And War, the non-pony War, I mean; thank you.”

“You're not the first that went through that,” the real War replied “Death did once.”

“Since you're me; have you managed to summon Rampage by any chance,” the real Fury asked

“I have. Is that a problem at all,” the Displaced Fury questioned

“My Rampage was killed by Angelic weaponry and later devoured by Gluttony,” the real Fury explained sadly “He was my closest companion.”

“I'm sorry to hear that,” the Displaced Fury offered, hugging her

“I'd hazard a guess that we aren't entirely like you,” the Displaced Death mused “I did see a moment where the four of you were here, while War and I were in Equestria.”

“Watch over that world,” the real Death stated “You are the Horsemen; after all.”

“It's time we return home,” Discord said “Hopefully; we don’t have to do this again. No offense; of course.”

“Well; I for one have one stop to make,” the real Strife mused “I need to see Ulthane about making these have unlimited ammo.”

Without further issue; Discord opened a portal that the five stepped through before he zipped it shut. Another opened up back in Canterlot Castle’s dining room where Celestia and the others were still waiting.

“Where have you been,” Pinkie demanded “That dragon Ridernapped you. Then you were sent someplace else.”

“Pinkie; let them rest for a moment,” Twilight cautioned

“It's time for me to head back to my world,” Deltorix said

“Thanks again for the weapons,” Death commented “Now unfortunately; our contract is complete.”

“You're welcome. Just attach the enchantment to your person and it will activate,” Deltorix replied “Thank you for summoning me.”

After saying that the same golden screen and door from before opens behind him. Taking one last look, he smiles and waves at us just before he walked through. Finally; the door closes and the screen starts to disappear in a shower of pixels.

“That was some exit,” Applejack said in awe

“Um; isn't anyone going to mention the new appearances,” Rarity asked

“How'd you change like that,” Twilight asked

“I did that,” Discord stated “Eight Horsemen was confusing so I altered them. At least now the guardians of Equus look the part.”

“Even as a pony, you are still scary looking,” Fluttershy commented nervously, looking away from Death

“You said new weapons,” Dash pointed out “Can we see them?”

“We were meaning to test them out anyways,” Strife replied sarcastically

“The courtyard is probably the best place to work,” Celestia offered “And the four of you are hereby granted rooms in the castle.”

“Thank you,” Death replied

Celestia led everyone through the castle and down to courtyard so none of the Horsemen would get lost. Death made sure to change the smaller scythes into the larger version before attaching the enchantment to his waist. The new blade consisted of a red and black triangular zigzag design traversing the length of the blade ending in a simple metal pole shaft.

“That's so cool,” Pinkie said “New design of your scythe.”

“That's just the beginning,” Death replied “Let's see if this works. Kishin Hunter!”

To his surprise; the scythe did change into a jagged design that still had a angular curved shape.

“Went for the big one right away,” Strife asked “Didn't even want to try the original?”

“I'm about to do that,” Death retorted, as the scythe split back into two “Witch Hunter! Genie Hunter!”

Once the scythe was split in two; one blade was solid red, while the other became black. Again; both followed his command as one altered into a blade with an extreme curve while the other seemed to change into a rounded edge on one side and a straight opposite.

“Not bad brother,” War complement

“Definitely nice,” Strife chimed in

“What about you,” Dash asked impatiently “What do you have?”

“Does anyone happen to have a spare glass,” Strife asked

“Here you go,” Pinkie answered, pulling a glass cup from her mane

“Since you can fly,” Strife started, pointing at Dash “Could you fly up and toss the glass into the air?”

“Let me get this this straight; I take the glass and just toss it in mid flight,” Dash questioned

“Yes. I'm going to use my pistol and shoot it,” he stated

“I can't believe I'm going to do this,” Dash said with a sigh "This is crazy; even to me."

Dash grabbed the cup and took off into the air at high speed. Strife drew both pistols and started connecting them to form a single rifle. After reaching the clouds; Dash decided to keep going through before tossing the cup. Looking through the scope; he waited for the glass to start falling through and found the sign. A glint of sunlight hit the glass, creating the reflection that was necessary for sight. Strife pulled the trigger and waited as the glass shattered. With the job done; she carefully headed down to the castle, making sure not to get hit by any falling shards.

“That was impressive,” she complimented, punching Strife lightly in the arm “Not something I intend to do again, though.”

“Don't worry; I know what this can do now,” Strife replied

“What about you; War,” AJ asked

“Another sword,” War answered “This is the Armageddon blade.”

“Scary looking,” Pinkie offered

“Fury; it's your turn to show off your weapon, darling,” Rarity chimed in

“Fire Hollow activate,” Fury said, touching the red portion of her charm

To everyone's surprise; Fury’s appearance changed as her normally purple hair became a fiery orange color. Drawing out her whip, Scorn; instead turned into a pair of medieval flails.

“Hot,” Pinkie joked “You're on fire.”

“Alright, Pinkie,” Dash warned “No more jokes.”

“Next up,” Fury said “Storm Hollow activate.”

Her second transformation resulted in gaining yellow hair and a lance. Following that; the section for the Force hollow had her with purple hair and a giant mallet. Finally; the Stasis hollow granted cyan colored hair and a sword to use in combat.

“That's interesting,” Twilight commented “Four different changes in one medallion.”

“It makes fighting against me a lot harder,” Fury mused “I can switch at any time.”

“Well; with what's going to be happening soon, our new weapons will definitely help out,” Death added

“What do you mean by that,” Luna asked

“That creature we fought, Tirek; wasn't alone,” War answered “He was one of seven.”

“What can we do about this,” Celestia asked

“You; not much,” Death answered grimly “The four of us should be enough to take care of them.”

“But why you,” Twilight protested “We should help as well.”

“If this group is as much of a danger as we were told, we will have to deal with them the hard way,” War added “By killing whoever disrupts the Balance.”

“You seem to be valuable to this area,” Fury offered “My brothers and I have fought the worst and emerged.”

“I guess we don't have much a choice,” Dash muttered “I hate sitting around doing nothing.”

“As much as I agree with you, Rainbow,” Rarity mused “They do have a point. We aren't prepared to truly defend Equestria, even if we are the Elements of Harmony.”

“There has ta’ be a way,” AJ argued “We can't just sit n’ do nothin’. We were given the Elements for a reason. Why can't we help protect our home?”

“It's not a matter of just protecting this area,” Strife chimed in “We were tasked with Equus as a whole. No matter how much power you have; the six of you need to stick together to use it. The four of us have taken on enemies both together and more often than not; by ourselves. We cannot fail. Hell; I can damn sure promise you we won't fail.”

UNKNOWN LOCATION

“That big oaf still hasn't returned yet,” a voice complained

“What do you care; Sombra,” a feminine voice asked

“Chrysalis. Tirek said he had business to take care of and headed to the other location. I just wanted to know what was so important not to let any of us in on,” Sombra answered

“Golly, wasn't that personal,” a child-like voice added “We wouldn't want to upset the wittle guy by snooping in his business.”

“I hate it when you use that tone; Cozy Glow,” Chrysalis spat “It's disgusting to hear. And what about you two? Aren't you going to do anything!?”

“Brother, do you hear anyone,” one asked

“My dear Flam I suppose it was the wind,” the other answered

“Flim old boy; the old windbag does love to hear herself talk,” Flam mused

“That settles it,” Chrysalis stated “I'll pound some sense into you!”

“Which do you want to start with,” one of the brothers taunted

“Whichever will cause the most pain to the other,” she replied sadistically

“My money's on Flim getting hit,” Sombra whispered “Five bits.”

“Golly. I'll take that bet,” Cozy replied “Ten bits on both getting it together.”

“Deal,” Sombra said

Sombra and Cozy dropped their respective bits on the floor of the cave and waited. Chrysalis proceeded to create a duplicate of herself as they transformed into Flim and Flam. Both proceeded to pick the opposing brother and started hitting him.

“I'll take those five bits,” Cozy said proudly

“What is with this infernal racket,” another demanded

“Explain yourselves,” another demanded

“Master Grogar,” Chrysalis answered “I was attempting to beat some respect into those lazy idiots.”

“My dear, we are not lazy,” Flim started

“We prefer the term ‘Differentially Motivated’,” Flam finished

“Call it what you like,” Grogar mused “It's still laziness.”

"It has been a while since Tirek started his personal crusade. Despite being the Sin of Greed; this shouldn't have taken so long,” the last said

“Mistress Daybreaker; what do you propose,” Sombra asked

“Someone goes back to the other cave to start looking for Tirek,” Daybreaker stated “Any volunteers?”

“I'll do it,” Chrysalis said, disguising her voice to sound like Flim

“I'll join my brother,” ‘Flam’ added as Chrysalis mimicked his voice as well

“It's settled,” Grogar stated “Both of you will leave and report back to us.”

“But I,” Flim stuttered

“Nor I,” Flam attempted to add

“Get going,” Daybreaker demanded

“I don't know how’s youse done it, but I know youse done it,” Flam said, turning to Chrysalis

“I have no idea what you're talking about,” Chrysalis said, feigning innocence

Not wanting to anger either of their leaders; the brothers immediately teleported away. Instead of heading to the cave; they instead landed in an old workshop of theirs. Scattered around the room was bits and pieces of various projects along with a huge covered object in a corner.

“It's been so long since we were here,” Flam mused

“Indeed it has. Maybe now we can get project ‘Super Squeezy’ finished,” Flim added

“I'm glad we can be alone.”

“Agreed. Despite us being considered one of the Sins; I don't want anything to do with taking over anywhere.”

“Well; let's get the old girl uncovered and get to work,” they decided

UNKNOWN LOCATION

“Chrysalis; thank you,” Grogar offered

“Whatever for,” she asked

“I know it was you who spoke for them. Honestly; those two idiots live up to their Sin,” Grogar replied

“It's better to get rid of them while we work on planning our attack on the princesses,” Daybreaker added

“I hope we don't run into any problems,” Cozy added sarcastically

“I'm going to be attacking the Crystal Empire,” Sombra stated “We get rid of them and one less ally disappears.”

“With any luck; we could bring that pitiful country under our control,” Daybreaker said “The guards in the castle are more ceremonial than actually useful in combat.”

“What reason do you have for getting rid of them,” Sombra asked "You've never told us."

“I'm returning the favor Celestia gave me,” was the answer, albeit vague

FLIM & FLAM

“Having not seen this in quite some time; it's looking so much better,” one commented

“Indeed, brother. Now that we're rebuilding it; I'm starting to remember what we were trying to do.”

“I just hope we aren't run out of town like last time.”

“We aren't doing anything wrong; just making things easier for others.”

"True; very true. I'd like to stay in peace for once."

Thwarting my plans?

Author's Note

Contains a crossover with Deltorix
https://www.fimfiction.net/story/435776/new-dragon-in-town

Thwarting my plans?

Currently; Celestia, Luna and the Four Horsemen were sitting in the throne room. Twilight and her friends had just left to return home to Ponyville.

“With how long it's been from your trip,” Celestia started “I just realized you four have been completely altered.”

“That point was already made,” Luna stated

“It has; but now that Twilight and her friends have left, it's just the six of us alicorns,” Celestia replied

“Well; not entirely true,” Discord said, entering the room

“What do you mean by that,” Celestia questioned

“Easy, Celly,” he said with a chuckle “They have the appearance; but none of the abilities to go with it. Besides; there's three ruling alicorns with you and Lulu along with the one in charge of the Crystal Empire.”

“Mi Amore Cadenza. It's been so long, I've forgotten about the Crystal Empire,” Luna answered

“If I remember correctly; their guards were nothing more than servants,” Celestia chimed in “It'd be too easy to eliminate them; especially when Cadence was always the weakest alicorn.”

“Perhaps it's better we aren't the same,” Death offered

“As Nephilim; we never had a need for magic spells in the same way as you do. To top it off; Death and I were the only ones that used some semblance of flight,” War added

“Not entirely true,” Strife interjected “I can manifest the same phantom wings as you. They're mostly for gliding down from raised areas, anyways.”

“As much as I don't like her; we must not let Cadence fall,” Celestia decided “That puts our enemies too close to our kingdom.”

“On the idea of guards, I have something that might help,” Luna started “Death; I will need your assistance to complete this.”

“Lead the way,” Death said

“Where you're going; we're coming with,” Fury stated, leaving no room for argument

“I suppose I should go as well,” Celestia muttered

Luna led the six of them out of the throne room and down the hallway towards a door hidden in the hall. Once through; they continued down a staircase ending at a chamber. Inside was various vials on the shelves; along with a covered object laying on a table, and a suit of armor on the floor. War, Strife and Fury turned their backs to everything; hoping for plausible deniability.

“On…off,” Strife muttered “On…off. Off works.”

“What are you doing,” Fury hissed

“Trying to see whether or not my charm should be kept on and which looks better,” he answered

Luna removed the cover to reveal the unarmored body of a guard strapped to the table. Looking closely; the section between the neck and torso revealed the body had been decapitated. To add further injury, the body was also sliced around the waist. Stitches were used to hold the wounds closed.

“Welcome to my workshop,” Luna announced

“Lulu, what is all this,” Celestia asked in disbelief

“After the massacre of the guards by the demons, I had to do something,” Luna started “I took one of the bodies and sewed the pieces together.”

“This is unethical,” Celestia complained “What would anyone say about this if they were to find out?”

“Well; what would you do,” Luna retorted “Draft all the males in Equestria? Most of them wouldn't be able to hold a weapon and it would be next to impossible to get them here to train; let alone actually training them in a short amount of time. The next best thing is to use an already existing guard.”

“What do you need me here for,” Death questioned “He has already passed through the Well of Souls.”

“I know you can summon creatures to help you,” Luna pointed out “Twilight wrote that in her letter to us after seeing them as she and Spike entered.”

“And you want me to summon a ghoul,” he asked “For what purpose do you need one?”

“I had hoped to mix your ghoul and some necromantic magic to resurrect the body,” Luna offered “They would automatically be instructed to obey our orders, regardless of which of us gives them. Even better, is the fact they will continue fighting in the event they are decapitated. They'll just pull themselves together to continue.”

“Your plan is turn that body into a creature known as a Wicked,” War asked “In layman's terms; a zombie?”

“Yes,” she said with a sigh “Desperate times calls for desperate measures.”

“Even if you manage to turn this deceased guard into a zombie; it's just one,” Celestia argued “What do you plan on doing to remake the legion?”

“Let me worry about that,” Luna offered

“I can't do that,” Celestia replied, shaking her head “I have to know.”

“I'm sure you're aware of the cave deep in the Everfree Forest,” Luna started

“You're going to the Mirror Pool and making copies,” Celestia finished

“Yes.”

“Let's get this over with,” Death stated

Concentrating for a moment to get used to the new body; Death felt his Nephilim power flow through him as a single Ghoul was summoned and emerged from the ground. Once it was there, Luna let her horn glow when the Ghoul was close to the body. Both princesses and Death watched as the corpse started to glow before the Ghoul started to fade and flow through the body. The guard opened its eyes to reveal completely white irises, without any pupils.

“Where did you learn how to learn necromancy,” Celestia demanded “It's not in any book in the castle.”

“I learned by doing,” Luna answered casually “Besides; what else was I supposed to do for a thousand years?”

“That explains the ‘when’ but now I need to know ‘how’ you did it,” her sister pressed

“I made friends with some creatures that already occupied the moon. They would watch as I would practice with one of the younglings,” Luna answered simply “After quite a while, I was able to kill and resurrect a creature at will.”

“Let me help with your next problem,” Discord offered, popping out of nowhere and summoning a portal “This leads directly to the Mirror Pool. Take the body and send it through and have the others return here. It'll last as long as you need it.”

“If we're going to do this, I'm changing the armor,” Celestia stated “It needs to be different as I don’t want to be associated with this.”

“If you don't mind; we'll retire to our rooms,” Death declared

A quick blast from her horn changed the gold armor into silver as any trace of sun symbols vanished. The body was given a spear to hold before being unstrapped. Luna levitated the body and stepped through the portal.

“And into her own reflection she stared, yearning for one whose reflection she shared, and solemnly sweared not to be scared at the prospect of being doubly mared,” Luna recited

After finishing the incantation; Luna gently lowered the body into the water and waited a moment for the duplication to happen. Just as promised; an identical clone popped out of the water.

“You; return through the portal,” Luna ordered

Without question the freshly arrived clone followed the order as another was on its heels.

“The start of our new guard,” Discord joked

Another portal was opened to the castle’s courtyard as Discord closed the one leading to the room. Over the next three hours, more soldiers filed through the portal and automatically formed ranks; leading to an estimated two-thousand five hundred guards in total.

“That's enough,” Celestia called

“You're right,” Luna answered, heading through the portal “How many do we have?”

“Our total is 2,500,” Celestia said as she joined her sister before the portal closed behind her “More than we had previously.”

“Princess Celestia,” a voice called “Are you here?”

“Dammit. I forgot about him,” Luna muttered

To the surprise of the sisters; Shining Armor was standing outside the gates to the castle. After the incident with Tirek; he decided to spend the time with his parents.

“What? How? When,” he asked dumbfoundedly

“It's not something you need to worry about,” Luna offered “What is important is we have a guard.”

“Whose orders will they follow,” Shining asked, switching back to ‘Captain’ mode

“Mine; along with one other,” Luna answered vaguely

“As long as we don't have a repeat of what happened before,” he muttered

“I doubt that will be the case; but at least we have protection,” she replied

FLIM & FLAM

“Well, brother; I do declare Project Squeezy to be complete,” Flim declared

“Tomorrow we will take it into the nearby town of Ponyville,” Flam decided “See whom might need help.”

“Indeed. A small town like that is a bit easier to work with. We might be newcomers there and they probably haven't heard of us.”

PONYVILLE

The next day; Applejack was setting up her booth for selling the barrels of apple cider that were made after Tirek’s attack on the town. Her friends had been split with Pinkie, Dash, Fluttershy and Rarity waiting in the line and Twilight trying to keep everything orderly.

“You know what I love about August,” Dash asked

“What is it,” Fluttershy asked

“CIDER SEASON,” Dash announced to a cheer

A loud rumbling headed down the street caused everyone's attention to be turned. As it got closer; the rumbling was revealed to belong to a train-like vehicle with multiple tanks on the back, being driven by two ponies.

“Mares and stallions; fillies and foals of all ages. Allow us to introduce ourselves,” a voice called

“I am Flim and this is by brother Flam,” he added

“What do you want,” Twilight demanded

“What we want is to help out,” Flam replied “Making cider by hoof is too troublesome.”

“And we would like to help you,” Flim mused

“And how do you plan to do that,” Applejack asked

“With the help of the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000,” Flam announced proudly, gesturing towards the vehicle

“That doohickey can't replace the tradition of hard work,” Granny Smith argued “We've been doing it this way for generations.”

“This ‘doohickey’ as you so termed it can remove the apples from a tree and juice them in seconds flat,” Flim answered

“Sis, Granny, Mac; you got a minute,” Apple Bloom asked

“What's on your mind, Bloom,” AJ asked

“Let's talk on the side,” Bloom said

Each of them headed into the orchard a few trees down from the road to have a private conversation that wasn't likely to be overheard.

“If that machine is as good as they say it is; why not use it,” Bloom asked in a low voice

“Nope,” Big Mac stated “Tradition.”

“AJ, could I offer an unbiased opinion,” Twilight asked, heading to join them

“Whatcha thinking, Twi,” AJ asked

“Why not accept the offer,” Twilight started

“But,” Mac started, only stopping when she help up a hoof

“As I was going to say; perhaps you could use the machine to actually create the cider, but still harvest the apples by hoof,” Twilight concluded

“I don't like it,” Granny reiterated “It ruins our legacy of hard work.”

“If we use it; we're still doing half the work,” Bloom offered

“I support it's not too bad,” AJ added “Unfortunately; this can't be put to a vote as it's two for and two against.”

“Have you come to a consensus,” the brothers asked together as the Apples and Twilight returned from their huddle

“Just a question before we answer that,” AJ started “How much do you get out of this if we work together?”

“Perhaps we do a 75/25 percentage in your favor,” Flim suggested “This is your land and apples. We're just assisting.”

“I guess that's fair,” Granny commented “It still needs to be made official.”

“Very well. We'll wait until the end and head to Canterlot to get the princesses to sign an official document,” Flam decided

“Cider season is officially open,” AJ proclaimed

A few hours later; the line had reached the halfway point before running out of cider. Twilight had taken down the names of those remaining to make sure they received some the next day.

“Alright girls; are you ready,” Twilight asked “For our trip to Canterlot; that is?”

“It has been a few weeks since we've seen them,” Dash pointed out

“And I need to have witnesses in regards to the contract as Mac and Bloom aren't able to represent the Apple family,” AJ added

“I'm guessing you're all ready to go,” Flim asked

“I'd have suggested taking the Squeezy to Canterlot; but I'm not sure such a long drive is recommended,” Flam commented “It only seats two.”

“Train it is,” Twilight decided

With that; the group headed down to the station and paid for their tickets. A little while later the train pulled into the Canterlot station. After the walk up the hill; they were stopped outside the castle gates.

“We're here to see the princesses. Open the gates and let us pass,” Twilight announced before a guard shook his head

“What's wrong this these guys,” Dash asked “He shook his head for the wrong answer. You're supposed to nod and let us in; stupid!”

“Insulting him isn't going to let us in faster,” Rarity chastised, before turning towards the gate “Do be a dear and let us in; won't you?”

Once again, the guard seemed to ignore any pleas from the group regarding letting anyone inside.

“Um; has anyone noticed their appearance,” Fluttershy asked

“Ooh, I know,” Pinkie started, sticking her head through the fourth wall

{DON’T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THAT. LET THEM FIND OUT ON THEIR OWN.}

{OKIE DOKIE.}

“Never mind,” a defeated Pinkie replied

“Well; this isn't good,” Flim mused

“I've never seen the princesses deny anyone before,” Applejack added

“That's because they're new guards,” Luna said, heading outside “Let this group in.”

Following the order of their creator; the guards grabbed the gates and opened them as Twilight led everyone inside. Once past the gates, Luna led the group to the throne room before taking a seat at her throne. Flanking the thrones were not guards as originally designed, but the Four Horsemen. Each had their weapons within reach as they stood there.

“They look menacing,” Flim muttered

“Indeed,” Flam confirmed

“Greetings. What brings you here,” Celestia started

“We noticed your new guards,” Dash said “They seem to be idiots not to recognize us.”

“They also seem to have different appearances,” Pinkie chimed in

“How did you get new guards so quickly,” Twilight asked “Shining said they were killed when the demons attacked.”

“That isn't something you need worry yourself with,” Luna countered “Why did you need to visit us? Not as if we don't mind the company; of course."

“We came here to write a contract between the Apple family and these two stallions,” AJ said, returning to the topic

“Flim and Flam at your service, princesses,” Flim stated as the two bowed

“Why would you girls work with these snakes,” Strife asked

“We haven't done anything,” Flam argued

“Why would you insult these two,” Fluttershy asked “What have they done wrong?”

“They're members of the Seven Sins,” Strife replied

“We do admit we are the Sin of Sloth; but we don't have anything to do with the others,” the brothers said in unison

“We'll give them the benefit of the doubt right now,” Rarity decided

“If they do decide to do anything wrong; we'll turn them over to you,” Dash added, as the girls nodded in agreement

“I’ll help keeping an extra eye on these two,” Discord stated, popping out of Twilight’s mane

“Why would you do that,” she demanded

“I've sworn to help protect Equus,” Discord said “What? Would you rather I came out from someplace else?”

“Just drop it,” she said with a sigh

“Let's get this started,” Celestia decided “Applejack; you're representing your family, right?”

“Yes, princess,” AJ replied

“This agreement is between the Apple family and the brothers Flim and Flam,” Celestia dictated as a quill wrote “With the Apple family being represented by Applejack Apple.”

“My brother and I wished to help out the Apple family with a device known as the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000,” Flim explained

“The profits are to be split seventy-five percent to the Apple family with the remaining twenty-five percent going to Flim and I,” Flam added

“All profits of cider production are to be split 75/25 in favor of the Apple family by use of the machine known as the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000,” Celestia continued “Would both parties sign here?”

Applejack headed to the throne and signed her name as the only available representative for the family before the brothers did the same.

“Perhaps; those here as witnesses and I'd guess your bodyguards should sign as well,” Flim offered

“I agree to do so,” Twilight said “Let's go girls.”

“I speak for my siblings when we decline to sign,” Death stated firmly

Following Twilight’s lead each of the girls signed the contract under the section for witnesses with Pinkie’s being the biggest signature. Once everyone had signed; both Luna and Celestia added their wax seals to finalize the contract and make it official.

“We never did get your names,” Flim mused, addressing the Horsemen

“Not important,” War grunted

“Despite what you think of us; we really aren't the same as the others,” Flam offered reassuringly

“I haven't heard anything that convinces me otherwise,” Death retorted

“Since there are plenty of witnesses here; we can tell you everything we know,” Flim suggested

“Go on,” Luna pressed

“In regards to the rest of the seven; we are led by a pair known as Grogar and Daybreaker,” Flam started “The others are Cozy Glow, Sombra, Chrysalis and Tirek; although the latter hasn't returned.”

“My siblings and I know who they are. What we'd like to know is what they are planning,” Death asked “As for Tirek; I saw to his death with my siblings assisting.”

“Unfortunately; we can't be of any help,” Flim replied sadly “None of them trusted us to actually let us in on anything.”

“Where do they meet at,” Strife asked

“Multiple locations. One's in the Badlands that belongs to Chrysalis and her hive. The others I'm not sure of,” Flam offered

“Not sure of? I suppose a few ounces lead wouldn't help jog your memory faster,” Strife retorted, reaching for a pistol

“They're out of the area of Ponyville,” Flim said quickly “Supposedly near the dragons is the main cave where they meet. It was the last place we were before getting sent away.”

“Anything else you're neglecting to mention,” Fury asked

“Nothing I know of,” the brothers answered

“What do you plan to do with the others,” Twilight asked

“We were instructed by the Charred Council to protect Equus,” Death answered “The best way to do that is to eliminate them.”

“Considering how much you've revealed to us; I'm not taking any chances,” Luna started before a dark blue glow enveloped the brothers

“What did you just do to them,” Celestia asked

“Simple. They are unable to reveal anything to the other members,” Luna answered “If they try to do so, the results are more than likely to be grisly.”

“I don't think we have much a choice,” Flim muttered in a whisper

“We can't go back or they'll probably torture us,” Flam added

“Looks like we're staying here,” they said together aloud

UNKNOWN LOCATION

“Where are those two lazy idiots,” Grogar demanded

“Golly, master Grogar,” Cozy started “Are you sure about those two?”

“I'd say they aren't coming back,” Sombra offered “Good riddance to them.”

“With Tirek gone for so long; we have to assume he was defeated somehow,” Daybreaker stated “Sombra; it's your turn now. Take over the Crystal Empire.”

“Of course my mistress,” he said with a bow “Watch for my letter soon.”

CRYSTAL EMPIRE

Having been given his orders; Sombra teleported himself directly to the Crystal Empire. Without any hesitation; he headed to the center of town where he'd more than likely find the current ruler. To his astonishment; any stained glass windows with his image were removed and replaced with images of Mi Amore Cadenza.

“It's been too long,” he said in awe “Thanks for keeping my throne occupied in my absence.”

“This throne was never yours and will never be,” Cadence argued

“My dear princess; don't you recognize me,” he asked with a hint of sadness in his voice

“That's impossible,” she replied shaking her head “You disappeared so long ago.”

“Back when you were barely in training over a thousand years ago,” he confirmed “And since I never abdicated the throne; I should still be considered the rightful ruler.”

“It was decided that I would become ruler to fill the vacancy,” she countered, before levitating a scroll over “The law was changed to reflect that.”

Taking a look at the scroll; Sombra was able to confirm that Cadence was indeed correct. Further into the scroll under laws was one that brought a slight smirk to his lips.

In the event of marriage to an eligible suitor; whichever has the highest title shall become ruler of the Crystal Empire.

“My dear Cadence,” he started

“Cadenza,” she corrected “You are not permitted to use such a friendly tone of voice with me.”

“Mi Amore Cadenza; I wish to ask for your hand in marriage,” he stated formally

“What are you playing at,” she demanded “What trick have you pulled?”

“Nothing. You wound me with that remark,” he answered sincerely, putting a hand over his heart “I have always admired your beauty. It just took an absence of a millennium to realize that.”

“Leave me for now,” she decided “I will be keeping an eye on you to see whether or not the so-called ‘Dark King’ is worthy of marriage.”

“Well; she want to keep an eye on me, it's only fair I do the same,” he thought

As he left; Sombra allowed a small black droplet to fall onto the floor. The drop made its way towards Cadence without being noticed. He decided to head into the library and let the others know while the drop did its work.

Mistress-
I have successfully made my way to the Crystal Empire. Phase two of the plan consists of marrying the current princess. Will inform you of my future success.
King Sombra

The note was sent to Daybreaker with a simple flash from his horn. Sombra knew the attack on Canterlot couldn't happen until he had taken his rightful place as king; regardless of how long it would take.
In the throne room; the black droplet made its way into Cadence’s body by making its way into a nearby drinking glass. Once ingested; Sombra would be able to implant her with darkness that would change the Crystal Heart into a receptor for spreading his darkness into everyone else.

UNKNOWN LOCATION

“Looks like Sombra is successful,” Chrysalis mused, reading the letter

“This puts us closer to our goal of conquering Equestria,” Grogar said

“If it wasn't for the impatience of Tirek; this would have been further along,” Daybreaker retorted “Now we have to start all over again.”

“Speaking of; Cozy and Chrysalis will be the next part of the plan,” Grogar decided

“Golly; what do you need us for,” Cozy asked curiously

“You two are going to sneak into Canterlot and cause distrust in the population,” Daybreaker instructed “We'll tell you when to get ready.”

CRYSTAL EMPIRE

After sending the letter to his conspirators; Sombra decided to grab a history book and see what transpired in his absence. Other than the agreement to retain boundaries with Equestria; Sombra found himself written out of history. Wanting revenge; he'd have to take over and make the changes himself.

“What have you been doing,” Cadence questioned, looking at the materials

“I sent a letter to a friend of mine,” he answered simply “I let them know I arrived safe so they didn't worry. After that; I gave myself a history lesson.”

“If that's the truth,” she accused

“I have no reason to lie about a simple letter,” he admitted “Nothing I have said has been a lie; either.”

“I've made my decision,” she announced

“Oh? That seemed quick for an important decision.”

“I have agreed to marry you,” she answered

“When would you want to hold the ceremony?”

“Around Hearth’s Warming. Given this is such an important day; the ceremony should ideally be held where a large gathering of love could be used to continue to power the Crystal Heart,” she explained

“That is reasonable,” he agreed “That way we would have time to finalize the guest list and get the city decorated.”

“And with a few months ahead of us; we can solidify our relationship,” she finished

TIME SKIP

PONYVILLE

“It's hard to believe it's been nearly six months since the Horsemen got here,” Twilight mused

“Not only that, but Hearth’s Warming is also approaching,” Rarity added “I still need to get my gift for them finished.”

“How'd everything go with Flim and Flam,” Pinkie asked

“They've kept to their contract from months ago and together we've managed to speed up cider production,” AJ explained “We may even buy the machine from them and pay them back in full.”

“What'd you plan on getting Death and the others,” Fluttershy asked

“Robes like the one I originally made for Death when he and War first arrived,” Rarity answered “I just simply used the model dimensions for Princess Celestia.”

“You know the four of them actually are bigger than Celestia; right,” Dash asked rhetorically “Nearly head and shoulders in height; not counting War’s bulky armor.”

“That makes it better,” Rarity countered “The height differential works in their favor.”

“I don’t get it,” Dash commented dumbfoundedly

“Since it doesn't reach all the way to the ground; they don't have to worry about stiffness when moving around,” Twilight simplified

“That sounds reasonable when you put it that way,” Dash admitted “What about colors?”

“I'm reusing the purple for Death,” Rarity decided “War’s will be red; but the other two I'm not sure of.”

“Strife feels like silver would fit him,” AJ mused “Especially with his pistols.”

“Ooh, ooh,” Pinkie started “What about orange for Fury?”

“That would work well and complement her hair,” Rarity agreed “Thank you both for the suggestions.”

Having the spark of inspiration assisted by her friends; Rarity raced back to the boutique to get started on the projects. Levitating the necessary rolls of fabric; three identical templates were drawn before the fourth was made bigger by a quarter. Over the next few days; each of the three robes were finished as Rarity worked on them simultaneously. With those out of the way; the last one was started.

“That was a workout,” she said out loud “Both magically and physically. Sweetie Belle; could you grab the boxes for me?”

“Got it,” Sweetie called

With her younger sister's assistance; Rarity folded each robe as Sweetie Belle placed them in the boxes and sealed them. Before either could react; the door was opened with a rainbow blur following behind.

“Took you long enough to finish,” an impatient Dash stated

“This was a special order that required finesse,” Rarity countered

“Let's just get these to Twilight’s castle,” Dash muttered “You take two; and I'll get the others.”

A few minutes later; they approached the library as Pinkie wrenched the doors opened and dragged her friends inside.

“We should be on our way by now,” Twilight chastised “You cut it a little close.”

“It couldn't be helped,” Rarity said “The gifts are done and we’re here. That's all that matters.”

“Bye, Spike,” Twilight said “Take care of the library while we're gone!”

“Yeah, yeah,” he muttered “What else am I supposed to do when you leave?”

A few minutes later; the sound of a carriage was heard as a pair of guards pulled it to the door. Rarity climbed in first and took one of the boxes; followed by Applejack, Fluttershy, and Pinkie. Once Dash and Twilight took their respective seats; the guards were ready for departure.

CANTERLOT

“Death; would you and your siblings follow me please,” Celestia asked

“Where exactly are we going this time,” Fury asked

“That's one question taken care of; but how's about 'why' are going somewhere,” Strife chimed in sarcastically

“It's a surprise,” Luna answered “We'll be heading to the dining room.”

With that; Celestia led the group down the hall into the designated room. The tables in the center of the room in which the Horsemen reluctantly took their seats had a Christmas tree in the middle. Each weren't sure what to make of what they were looking at.

“Our guests should be here soon,” Luna added cryptically “The guards are under orders to let them in.”

Due to their orders to get there as soon as possible; the guards took off at a quicker pace and arrived fifteen minutes later. Unfortunately; the occupants were in for a very rough ride in the meantime.

“That was fun! Do it again,” Pinkie exclaimed

“Let's not,” AJ countered “That was rougher than it should have been.”

“Come on. They're waiting for us,” Twilight stated

“Where? I can't read minds last time I checked,” Dash asked sarcastically

“Where would you think it would be held,” Rarity asked

“Where there's plenty of room for people to gather,” Pinkie answered to the other's confusion “The dining room, duh.”

“Let's get going then,” Dash stated impatiently

Twilight took the lead with Rarity and the others in line behind her; each keeping the boxes behind their backs as Fluttershy trailed behind. A simple knock at the door gave them the reason to enter.

“Death; on behalf of my friends and the princesses; we'd like to give you these,” Twilight announced, as the girls handed the boxes over

“What's the occasion,” Strife asked

“HAPPY HEARTH’S WARMING,” everyone said together

“What is this ‘Hearth’s Warming’,” Death asked curiously

“A day to celebrate the joining of the three tribe of ponies,” Celestia answered simply

“Don't you have any holidays you celebrate,” Pinkie asked

“No. Since our creation; there hasn't been anything to celebrate,” Death said

“Well; consider this a gift to you as a way of saying thanks,” Rarity offered

“Thank you,” War said “It fits perfectly.”

“I gotta admit; I do look good in silver,” Strife mused

“It's a bit different than the armor; but it works,” Fury added

“Thank you again for the robe,” Death added

“Why don't you invite your dragon friend,” Pinkie asked, removing the wooden controller

“Why not,” Strife mused “I know something we could use.”

“Care to answer,” War asked

“You'll see.”

“How'd you get that token,” Death asked

“It's my secret,” she answered vaguely

“Strife; why don't you take the honors,” Death offered

“Send Invite,” Strife stated

For the second time; a golden screen popped up with an image of a door. The doors started to morph from its two dimensional shape into three- dimensional and opened to reveal a slightly familiar red dragon holding a staff pointed towards the Horsemen.

“You could put down the wee pointy stick,” Strife offered “We're friendly here.”

“Good to see you again,” Deltorix said, wiping his brow “I thought I was going to be attacked. What can I help you with?”

“We have been celebrating what they call ‘Hearth’s Warming and I figured there was something we could use,” Strife explained

“I have to thank you and War,” Deltorix replied “I won't get into the complicated details; but your tokens really saved my ass.”

“Good to hear,” War said with a smirk

“You mentioned me buying you an item,” Deltorix started “What were you thinking of?”

Strife walked over and whispered what he wanted. After a nod of recognition; Deltorix got to work tapping a screen only visible to himself. Soon after; a red box started to manifest itself out of pixels before completely solidifying.

“Here you are,” Deltorix announced “Happy Hearth’s Warming.”

“What was so important you couldn't tell us,” Fury demanded

Strife opened the box to reveal four orange crystals that featured a spiral design on one side. He casually tossed one to each of his siblings in turn as they caught them in mid toss.

“Crystals,” War stated simply

“Wrath crystals to be precise,” Deltorix explained “Just hold it in your hand and concentrate and it will help you reach your ultimate forms. Even better; is they're rechargeable. You'll have to wait twenty-four hours between uses, though.”

“Similar to what Vulgrim gave us before fighting Tirek,” Death mused “Thank you for these. Our contract is complete.”

“Hope they help you on your mission,” Deltorix called before departing through the door

CRYSTAL EMPIRE

“My lady,” Sombra started “Are you ready?”

“Of course,” Cadence replied “The town’s decorations are finished and my dress is the last thing to put on. Allow me to send the an invitation to Princesses Luna and Celestia.”

“I doubt my friend would be able to join as they are too far away.”

CANTERLOT

“Lulu; a message just arrived from Cadence,” Celestia announced

“What's it say,” Luna asked

“She invited us to the Crystal Kingdom for a wedding between her and Sombra,” Celestia answered

“Let us go in your place,” War offered

“If this Sombra is a member of the Sins; he must be eliminated,” Death stated

“Can't we go with,” Pinkie begged “It's Hearth’s Warming after all.”

“I'd like to see the architecture there,” Rarity added

“It would be nice to see this mysterious kingdom,” Twilight chimed in

“I suppose I could let the six of you go along with a few guards,” Celestia relented “Death; the four of you will go in our stead to the wedding. If this Sombra is as dangerous as you say; kill him if you have to.”

“Consider it done,” Death replied with a bow of his head

Celestia led the group towards the carriages as two guards were hooked up to each carriage to pull them and another two climbed inside to actually protect the girls. Twilight and the girls climbed into one while Death and the others moved towards the other.

“Just a minute you lot,” Discord directed

“What's the holdup,” Dash demanded

“The four of you can't have your weapons visible,” Discord stated “I have the solution.”

Six clear crystals were summoned by Discord as each floated towards the weapons. With a snap of his fingers; the weapons vanished as the crystals changed. A purple one with the shadow of a scythe fell into Death's hand as an orange one with a whip went to Fury. Strife’s pistols Mercy and Redemption were sent into individual clear crystals that were labelled with an ‘M’ and ‘R’ respectively as War’s Chaoseater and Armageddon blade did the same in red crystals with a ‘C’ and ‘A’ instead.

“There now; all done,” Discord announced

“How do we get them out,” War demanded

“Simply hold the crystal in your hand and concentrate. The same goes for storing them as well,” came the answered “This way; no one knows about the weapons and only you can summon them.”

“Let's get a move on,” an impatient Dash called

“Come on,” Death directed

With no other interruptions the carriages took off as the guards drove through Canterlot and further past the snow-covered mountains near the boarder of the Crystal Empire. Once inside the area proper; the guards slowed to a regular pace before stopping to let their passengers out.

“Wow,” Rarity exclaimed “Look at that architecture.”

“That's why it's called the ‘Crystal’ empire,” Dash pointed out sarcastically

“All that crystal is flawless,” Rarity retorted “That can't be carved without leaving some kind of tool mark behind.”

“It's time to get going,” Twilight said “The wedding will be held outside the castle in the center of town.”

“Keep your crystals within reach and try not to cause excess casualties,” Death said in a low voice as the others simply nodded “Don't use that crystal if at all possible.”

“Amazing,” Rarity continued “Even the residents are crystal ponies.”

“Look at that,” Twilight added “The infamous Crystal Heart I've read about.”

“I don't see much in the way of crystal,” Dash pointed out “It's just black.”

Currently on a pedestal in front of them was a huge heart made out of crystal. Coming up from the ground was black material that covered over ninety percent of the heart, leaving just the round top exposed.

“That doesn't look good,” Fluttershy whispered “Nor does that.”

As the group continued towards the center of town; two black spires were positioned by each entrance of the main plaza.

“I'm disappointed,” a feminine voice stated “Princess Celestia couldn't be bothered to show up to my wedding.”

“Princess Celestia sent us as diplomats,” Twilight replied “Sorry for my rudeness. Allow me to introduce myself and my friends. This is Applejack…”

“Howdy your highness,” AJ offered

“Fluttershy,” Twilight continued, who could only offer a wave in recognition

“Pinkie Pie.”

“Hi there,” she said “May this wedding be happy.”

“Rainbow Dash.”

“Hey,” Dash started, before getting an elbow from Rarity “I mean, hello princess.”

“And finally; Rarity.”

“A pleasure to meet you, princess,” Rarity said with a curtsy

“And who are the four of you,” Sombra asked

“Name's ‘Hotshot’,” Strife answered quickly, improvising on the spot “This hotheaded sister of ours is…”

“Finish that line brother and you will regret it,” Fury threatened

“My sister's name is ‘Hothead’,” Strife answered hastily, before taking a moment to think “The big guy's name is ‘Warren Peace’ and finally we have ‘Gore Grimskull’.”

“That actually fits,” War muttered

“Nice to meet you all,” Sombra said dismissively “We hope the representatives of Canterlot enjoy the wedding.”

Not caring to continue further conversation; both Cadence and Sombra headed to a podium erected in the center of the plaza as a clergyman followed behind them to begin the ceremony.

“We are gathered here today to join Mi Amore Cadenza and the ‘Dark King’ Sombra in holy matrimony,” the clergyman started to applause “Joining us are representatives from neighboring Canterlot. Now; do you, King Sombra, take Mi Amore Cadenza as your lawfully wedded wife?”

“I do,” Sombra announced confidently

“And do you; Mi Amore Cadenza, take King Sombra as your lawfully wedded husband,” the clergyman continued

“I do,” Cadence replied in a slight monotone voice

“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride,” the clergyman finished

Sombra watched as the last portion of the black material spread over the Crystal Heart, completely covering it. To go with the newly blackened Crystal Heart, the sky overhead started to darken ominously.

“Finally,” Sombra said cheerfully “Hail to the king! Long live King Sombra!”

“What did you do,” Twilight yelled

“I'm taking what's mine,” he answered “None of you could ever begin to understand!”

“You really do live up to your Sin,” Strife joked “You're one greedy bastard.”

Twilight and the others watched as Sombra lit his horn and all nearby crystal ponies had their eyes turn black and made their way towards the visitors.

“What are they doing,” Rarity asked

“Simple. They're going to stop you from interfering in my plans,” Sombra retorted “Now that I am in charge of the Crystal Empire; I will take my forces and head to Canterlot. Afterwards; my friends will defeat the princesses and we'll rule all of Equestria.”

“You four,” Death ordered “Protect them!”

Each of the four undead guards took their place surrounding the girls as they; along with three of the Horsemen; were crowded together. One of the crystal ponies struck one the guards, causing it to double over before a second kicked it in the head; seemingly breaking its neck as it was turned backwards.

“He's dead,” Fluttershy said sadly

“What the hay is it doing,” AJ demanded

“What it was told to do,” Death answered

The girls watched as the injured guard started turning its head back to the correct position with sickening accuracy. In the meantime; War removed his robe and tossed it towards his brother and moved just as Sombra created multiple black spikes to form a cage that prevented any further escape.

“Warren, was it? Your friends are going to die,” Sombra taunted “Not right away, mind you; but they are going to suffer in the meantime. How long do you suppose they will last without oxygen?”

“Just ‘War’ is fine,” War replied simply “My siblings will be fine; but I want you to know one thing. I will kill you.”

“That's actually funny,” Sombra said wiping an eye “What can an alicorn like you do against the Dark King!?”

“You believe yourself to be powerful; but you have no idea what real power is,” War argued

“Do tell,” Sombra retorted “What do you think real power is?”

CAGE

“We're doomed! Do-hoo-hoo-hoomed,” Rarity choked through sobs“We're not getting out of here!”

“Can't you three do anything,” Dash demanded

“Not in a confined space,” Strife answered

“Just stop,” Death and Twilight stated

“Fighting is just going to expend more oxygen,” Death elaborated “Just remain calm. War will figure a way to get us out.”

“What did you do to the guards,” Dash demanded

“We'll save the explanations for another time; if you don't mind,” Strife stated

WAR

“I'll give you one chance,” Sombra taunted “Hit me as hard as you can with your best spell. Not quarter strength or half strength. As. Hard. As. You. Can.”

“I don't need magic to destroy you,” War replied

“Do you really believe you can beat me without a sword,” Sombra continued, drawing his claymore

War reached towards his belt and removed one of the crystals Discord gave him to hide his swords. Wanting his signature blade, Chaoseater; he allowed the blade to be summoned, much to Sombra’s shock.

“Where did that sword come from,” Sombra demanded “What kind of spell did you use!?”

“Why should I tell you anything?”

“You're a funny guy,” Sombra taunted “It's a shame I have to kill you.”

“I've heard the same taunt from many others in my lifetime; and none of them are alive.”

Both readied their swords as the bewitched Crystal ponies formed a perimeter around them to allow an area to fight before Sombra charged at War. The side of Chaoseater was brought up to block before a wild swipe was taken in retribution as Sombra moved.

“Too slow,” Sombra taunted “Do you really think you can beat me with a cumbersome blade?”

“You talk too damn much,” War stated

War drove Chaoseater into the ground, allowing blades to shoot out in a circular formation. The force of the eruption caused the Crystal ponies surrounding them to be thrown backwards. Without any room to maneuver; Sombra allowed a black spike to lift him up just as the blades passed.

“Nice trick; but there won't be a repeat,” Sombra stated

Before War could remove his blade from the ground; Sombra charged in and slashed at War’s chest; only for stone to cover his body in response.

“What are you,” Sombra demanded, repeatedly slashing War

“Your doom.”

Sombra stopped his assault and gave a wide berth as War finally yanked the blade free from the ground. Before the former could react; War summoned his chain on his forearm and started to drag the Dark King to him while holding Chaoseater at his side.

“Go to Hell,” War stated

With that; the blade was thrust into Sombra; killing him. The black material surrounding Twilight and company; along with the rest of Crystal Empire shattered onto the sidewalk as the Crystal ponies returned to normal.

“What happened? Where’s Sombra,” Cadence asked, shaking her head “I just had a really weird dream. I dreamt I was under some kind of control.”

“It was no dream,” War replied “As for Sombra; he's dead.”

“What was the last thing you remember,” Twilight asked

“The last thing I remember was meeting him months ago,” Cadence answered “Everything from that point until now is just a blank.”

“Looks like this marriage has been annulled,” the clergyman stated “Hail Princess Cadence!”

“That's two down,” War mused

“How do we figure out who's next,” Strife asked “They're going to be more protected now than ever.”

UNKNOWN LOCATION

“Get going,” Daybreaker ordered

“What about Sombra,” Chrysalis questioned “He hasn't contacted us for a while.”

“We need to split up. The last thing we need if for whoever killed Tirek to catch us unaware,” Daybreaker stated

“Cozy will continue from the Badlands into Equestria properly. Keep your head down while there,” Grogar stated “No need to draw unnecessary attention to yourself.”

“Yes sir,” Cozy answered

Following a bow of acknowledgement; the two stretched their wings and took off from the cave. Despite being on dragon territory; agreements were made not to result in violence between them. One of the dragons that was already in flight lowered itself to allow Cozy Glow to land while a second assisted Chrysalis. Although both could probably fly the distance; the assistance across the ocean was appreciated.

“I hate this,” Daybreaker muttered as a tear dripped

“It had to be done,” Grogar offered reassuringly

“And yet it feels wrong,” she said

“Good thing everyone left,” he stated as his original demeanor returned “They'd see their leader go soft!”

“Never,” she stated, wiping her eyes defiantly “I can't afford to show weakness."

Strife in the Ranks

“How did the wedding go,” Celestia asked curiously as the Horsemen entered the throne room with the girls in tow

“Princess Cadence was under control of someone named Sombra,” Twilight simplified

“I fought and destroyed the Sin of Greed, Sombra,” War added

“One of the guards had his neck broken,” Dash chimed in “He actually fixed it. How the buck is that possible!?”

“Nopony should have survived such an attack,” Twilight said “It's not scientifically possible.”

“I guess it can't be helped,” Luna started with a sigh “Sister, would you mind silencing the room?”

“Of course,” Celestia replied

“I'm not going to tell you everything; but the guards aren't normal,” Luna continued

“What's that supposed to mean,” Dash questioned

“They're undead,” Death stated “In simple terms, they're zombies.”

“That's why they didn't recognize us that day,” Applejack realized

“When you told them something, they listened only to you,” Pinkie added “The two of you created them.”

“And my brother doesn't know,” Twilight questioned “Don't you trust him?”

“It's not that we don't trust him,” Luna offered “I decided it was better the guards listen to Death or I as Shining doesn't need to be reminded of the guards lost under his command.”

“If you don't mind; there's something I'd like to do,” Strife started, attempting to change the subject

“What's on your mind brother,” Fury asked

“Just something personal,” Strife answered as Discord popped up “I might tell you later.”

“Ready to go,” Discord asked, summoning a portal

“Damn straight,” Strife stated before stepping through “See you in a while.”

FOUR HORSEMEN STRIFE

The actual Horsemen Strife was currently sitting on the edge of a cliff on an unknown world with a heavily armored horse; Mayhem; to his side. Below them was a battle between demons and angels that had been going on for a while; judging by the amount of corpses. A zipping sound was heard behind as the Horseman casually removed one of his pistols and rested its barrel on his shoulder upside down in preparation of an attack.

“Don't shoot,” the Equestrian Horseman said “It's me.”

“Damn. Ain't you a sight for sore eyes,” Strife joked, turning around “What brings you here?”

“I wanted to talk.”

“Oh? What about,” Strife questioned

“History and your past.”

“What don't you know?”

“When I was Displaced; I lost most everything about myself,” the Equestrian Strife started “I know that I am supposed to be you and that I am one of the Four Horsemen; but that's it.”

“Put simply; even when the Nephilim were alive; I was a killer. That's probably the reason the Charred Council picked me,” Strife answered “Death might have the name; but I've always been the mercenary. What brought this about?”

“Curiosity.”

“Alright; cut the crap,” Strife ordered “Why are you actually here?”

“I have to do something at home. The others have done more in taking out enemies then I have.”

“When did you see action?”

“When I first arrived in the world, looking like you; Fury and I headed to the ruler’s castle to kill the demons there. Other then that; I hung back when Vulgrim gave us some crystals.”

“Hold on; how the Hell did that demon get to your world,” Strife demanded

“Portals? You know how he is. Voldy’s everywhere you want to be.”

“Serpent holes would be my guess. I've used them before a long time ago and forgot. I wouldn't be surprised all the places they could go and never thought of him like that before. So; you want to be useful? Do you have Mercy & Redemption or the other design,” Strife asked

“Individuals. I thought they looked better in terms of appearance.”

“That helps. I'm sure you already know Mercy is the four-barreled unlimited machine gun-like pistol; while Redemption is basically a ten round single barrel shotgun disguised as a pistol,” Strife simplified “Normally; you'd have to physically switch the ammo generated; but your Watcher might be able to help.”

“What can I, Discord; Equestrian Lord of Chaos; do for you,” Discord asked

“Do you mind setting up the pistols of my counterpart here for different ammo types,” Strife directed “Specifically: beam, lava, static, gravity, nature and charged shots?”

“Done,” Discord stated, snapping his fingers “All you have to do is think about which type of ammo you need and your pistols will automatically alter themselves to fire it.”

“Depending on your location; I'd recommend static shot against multiple targets. It'll be your best friend. Shoot one and the charge will hit other nearby enemies as well.”

“And the others,” the Equestrian Strife pressed

“Never used them much to be honest. Lava is best for completely destroying enemies; although it has a tendency to damage the ground as well. Other then that; you'll have your Anarchy mode if you can access it.”

“If you remember the dragon that was with us that day; I asked him for four rechargeable wrath crystals that will allow us to use the ability if necessary.”

“Save that as a last resort as it'll more than likely destroy everything in your way as well. On a different note; how's the hunt coming for your Sins?”

“Two have already been killed; although the pair of brothers are still under watch.”

“Why aren't they dead,” Strife questioned

“They are apparently helping a few of the residents out. I'm hoping they keep to their word about being good.”

“Best of luck on that,” Strife joked “Now; how's about testing out the new ammo?”

“What targets do we have?”

“I see plenty down there,” Strife answered “Besides; they're ruining the quiet I hoped for to build a home.”

Having been given something amounting to permission; the Equestrian Strife dropped to his belly and readied the pistols set up with lava shot. With both sides busy fighting amongst one another; they were too slow to react to the concentrated lava as an unlucky demon was killed and an angel had his wings roasted at the same time.

“Horseman,” one of the demon yelled “Attack!”

As the remaining demons charged up the nearest path towards the Horsemen; the angels collected their dead and tried to find some form of shelter.

“Why would a Horseman target any of us,” an angel demanded “I ought to crucify them for destroying my wings!”

“Just help me get the others moved,” another ordered

“Well; there's plenty of targets for both of us,” Strife said cheerfully

“What's this,” a demon muttered “There's two of them!?”

“What is that other thing,” a second demon demanded

“Just kill them both,” a third demon ordered

“You're in luck. We've got twice the firepower for your ugly asses,” Strife countered

Both Horsemen continued firing as the Equestrian Strife stuck with the lava ammo while his teammate used regular shot. A few minutes later; all of the demons had been destroyed as the angels completely retreated.

“You'd best get going,” Strife offered “This attack won't go unnoticed by the Council.”

“Shouldn't I be there as well,” the Equestrian Strife asked cautiously “I was one of the participants.”

“Nah. It was my idea anyways.”

“Thanks for the help. It was appreciated. Discord; what are you doing?”

“Just looking at the weapons left behind,” he answered casually, picking a sword up “I’m debating whether or not they could use them.”

“I don't think they should get involved. You know how much those six mean.”

“That's precisely why I was thinking about it,” Discord argued “Besides; if it weren't for the four of you being there; they'd be the ones doing the work. I swear; they're the Royal Cleanup Crew at times.”

“Just grab some damn blades,” the Equestrian Strife muttered “We'll figure this out later. What about the others?”

“The pigeons will more than likely retreat,” Strife simplified “The one was an unfortunate victim caught in the crossfire.”

Two portals opened up around them as Discord and the Equestrian Strife headed home through one before it disappeared with the same zipping sound as it entered with. Strife knew there was only one place the other portal could lead and decided to get it over with.

CHARRED COUNCIL

Once on the other side of the portal; Strife was standing in front of the Charred Council’s totems and hoped to talk his way out of the incident. If he couldn't; some form of punishment was almost a guarantee with the Council.

“How's it going,” Strife asked casually

“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS,” one of the figures demanded

“WHY DID YOU INTEND TO START A FIGHT,” another added

“I was minding my own business on the planet, thinking about where to build my house when I had visitors show up,” Strife answered calmly

“WHY WERE THERE TWO OF YOU THERE,” the third head asked “YOU KNOW THEY ARE NOT TO BE SEEN BY ANYONE ELSE.”

“The other Strife came to talk to me about personal matters. During which; the demons attacked us, and we shot back. A stray angel might have ended up with roasted feathers; but he's still alive, just flightless. Any deaths to them were solely caused by demons.”

“WHAT SORT OF PERSONAL MATTERS DID HE ASK ABOUT?”

“I believe that is the definition of ‘personal’. He asked and I answered. Besides; that doesn't seem important to repeat.”

“BE GONE HORSEMAN,” the trio order together before Strife left

EQUESTRIA

“My business is done,” Strife announced upon their return

“What was so important you had to leave,” Celestia asked

“Sorry; but that's just for my siblings to hear,” Strife retorted

“I come bearing gifts,” Discord announced as the weapons were dropped on the tile floor

“Angelic and demonic weapons,” Death muttered

“Is that blood on there,” Fluttershy asked, pointing to red spots on a blade

“It was like that when I got them,” Discord said flatly

“How did you get these,” Twilight asked, picking a golden blade up “I've never seen anything like these before.”

“You'd rather not want an answer,” Strife answered, as Twilight hesitantly set the blade back down instead

“Why bring these weapons to my little ponies,” Celestia asked

“Celly; you know as well as I, these girls are your cleanup crew for the world,” Discord started, putting an arm around her “If it weren't for the Horsemen; they'd be hunting the Sins down. I thought I'd give them something to use as a last resort.”

“These are awesome weapons,” Dash offered, grabbing a demon’s axe “I’m keeping this one. The blood adds a ‘well-used’ touch.”

“I hate to say it; but Discord is right,” Luna chimed in, as Celestia scowled at her

“Excuse us please,” Death said “We'd like to talk in private.”

“All of you are dismissed for now,” Celestia announced

Instead of heading upstairs towards the bedrooms with Twilight and company; Death lead his siblings down to Luna’s workshop before blocking the door from any prying eyes.

“Spill it,” War demanded, choking Strife “Why'd you leave!?”

“You…know…why,” Strife rasped as War released his grip

“That doesn't answer the question,” Fury countered

“I left to learn from the real Strife,” Strife said rubbing his throat before pointing in turn to War, Fury and Death in turn “You're the muscle of the group. You're completely unhinged and unchained, pun intended; and Death of course is slaughter happy. What am I; chopped friggin’ liver!? Look at the fight with that bastard Tirek. All of you took him down while I stood around hoping not to play medic! I'd bet the real Strife has a higher kill count than the real Death.”

“I never thought about that,” Fury muttered “We never gave you much in the way of helping out.”

“What do you want,” Death asked

“Let me at least take care of the next Sin,” Strife begged “Let me be useful to our cause.”

“Fine,” Death muttered after a moment of silence “You'll take the lead in the next fight.”

“Who's next,” Fury asked

“Chrysalis,” Strife decided

“What about the others,” War asked “Why not go after the leaders?”

“They'll more than likely come here to finish us off,” Strife said with a chuckle

BADLANDS

“Cozy; head back to Equestria,” Chrysalis stated

“Are you sure,” Cozy asked hesitantly

“You're not safe here. Whoever is attacking the rest of us will have to get through the hive,” Chrysalis replied

“Be safe Cryssi,” Cozy said hugging her
“And you. You don't deserve this."

Cozy Glow started making her way out from the maze of tunnels they were in towards the entrance of the massive cave the changelings called home. Once outside, a gust of wind started up and stirred up the dust in the area. Despite being a pegasus; she knew it didn't pay to fly in a dust storm so the next best thing was to start walking and see about flying when it was clear.

EQUESTRIA

“Celestia; do you happen to have a map we could temporarily borrow,” Strife asked

“What do you need it for,” she questioned

“If we trust the information gleaned from the brothers; one of the Sins resides in a place called the ‘Badlands’. We're going there and eliminating them,” he answered

COZY GLOW

After getting far enough away from the storm; Cozy turned around for a final look at the hive as a tear fell. She wouldn't call Chrysalis her best friend, but it was nice to have some support from the others.

“No. I can't dwell on that. I have places to go and ponies to visit,” she muttered, shaking her head

EQUESTRIA

“If you're heading there, perhaps you should be better clothed,” Discord pointed out

With a simple snap of his fingers; four dark brown cloaks were summoned along with goggles for the Horsemen that fell onto them.

“It's not perfect; but they'll do,” Discord muttered

“How are we supposed to get there,” Fury demanded “Without our mounts, specifically.”

“The nearest stop via train is a place known as Dodge City,” Celestia answered “After getting off, you'll have a long walk to get through the Badlands before finding your destination.”

“Let's get this over with,” War stated

“Take this,” Luna said “Show it to the ticket counter and they'll let you on our royal car. I’ve used it once in a while for a free ride.”

A coin was levitated into Death's hand. Looking closely at it revealed a blue coin with a moon on one side and a sun on the other. He simply attached it to his armor for safe keeping.

“Be safe,” Celestia mused

With the coin attached; Death led his siblings out of the castle and towards the train station.

“Four round-trip tickets for Dodge City,” Death stated, showing the coin

“Here you are,” the cashier replied, handing over four tickets “Take the private car in the rear. Trip will take two-and-a-half hours to destination.”

“So; where’re we sitting,” Strife asked

“In the back,” Death answered

“Good. I'd rather not have to deal with anyone,” War muttered “Don't need unwanted looks.”

“All aboard,” the train’s conductor called “Your destinations will be announced.”

Death lead his siblings towards the back of train. Attached to it was a another carriage which he opened the door to as the others climbed in. The interior consisted of multiple comfortable chairs and couches situated against the walls.

“Nice digs,” Strife muttered “Best I've seen since the castle.”

“Not bad,” Fury added

“How long is the trip,” War asked

“Long enough,” came the answer

“Eh; no big deal,” Strife countered

True to the word of the cashier; the train did indeed arrive to Dodge City on time. After departing; the four made sure to have the goggles on before starting the long walk.

“Could this walk be any longer,” Fury asked sarcastically “All I've seen is dirt and rocks.”

“Of course it could,” Discord jokingly answered, popping up “It's not too bad.”

“Can't you open a portal and get us to the front entrance,” she demanded

“Oh very well,” Discord relented with a sigh “If it stops unnecessary complaints.”

On cue; a simple portal opened up with it's exit facing a rock wall. A single entrance led inside to whatever lie beyond and hopefully the next Sin. Inside consisted of various holes in the rocks, followed by ramps leading to upper areas.

“Hello,” Strife called “Anyone home!?”

Not to his surprise, but a series of black bug-like creatures emerged from the holes. Strife opened his cloak and summoned Mercy and Redemption from the crystals.

“I feel a song coming on,” Strife said cheerfully

“Seriously,” Fury retorted “What are you thinking!?”

“🎵We…ellll
Creepy little bugs, won't you come out tonight? (BANG)

Come out tonight? (BANG)

Creepy little bugs won't you come out tonight...and die to this old Horseman

RATATA…TA…TA

BANG

BANG🎵”

Each line was enunciated with a shot from Redemption as one of the bugs fell before Mercy took a few shots as a total of ten were killed.

“I hear an encore coming,” Strife announced “Second verse, same as the first.”

“ENOUGH,” a voice called

“That's all it took to get your attention,” Strife questioned

“Stop killing my offspring,” the voice pleaded “They're innocent.”

“I take it you're Chrysalis of the Seven Sins,” Fury demanded

“I am,” Chrysalis answered “And to whom am I talking to?”

“Someone who was ordered to eliminate you,” War countered

“And why do I deserve to be killed,” Chrysalis questioned “I haven't done anything wrong.”

“Our orders were to eliminate the Sins. You're a Sin deserving death,” War stated

“That I am; but should you really follow orders blindly,” she continued

“They instructed us to carry out this mission,” War retorted

“There's no arguing with the dope,” she muttered under her breath

“Before we decide your fate; perhaps you could explain what your fellow members were planning,” Strife offered

“Grogar wanted our help in taking over Equus. Tirek went rogue with his own plan; while I joined in order to protect my hive,” Chrysalis explained “Grogar promised they would be spared if I agreed to participate.”

“Let's go,” Strife said with a loud sigh, while the others followed reluctantly behind

“What was that for,” War demanded “Why didn't you kill all of them!?”

“She was doing what she felt was right,” Strife answered “Who could fault her for protecting family?”

“Family? I don't recall you caring when you helped slaughter our own kind,” War retorted “Or did you forget all about the Nephilim?”

“Was that a threat little brother,” Strife asked, drawing his swords

“Do you really think you could actually beat me,” War taunted

“Both of you knock it off,” Fury demanded “Fighting amongst ourselves solves nothing."

“Let them go,” Death offered “If it help them to calm down and put this matter behind us; then go for it.”

“With pleasure,” War stated

“You wouldn't mind holding these, would you,” Strife asked

Each of tossed the cloaks and goggles towards Fury; landing in a heap by her. Both allowed the energy from their Wrath crystals to channel their powered up forms. A circle of flame signified War’s transformation into a large flaming demon armed with a sword.

“Now that's what I've been waiting for,” Strife yelled “Let’s have some fun!”

Strife’s Anarchy mode was triggered by an explosion of pink energy. It consists of a large black horned goblin with a scorpion-like pony tail capable of unleashing destructive energy and a mini-gun as replacement for a left hand.

The sand kicked up, causing the area to lose visibility down to nothing. This did nothing to hinder to the Horsemen as War started to swing wildly in an attempt to hit his brother. On the other hand; Strife had used the flaming body as a target and maneuvered out of range. A series of shots from his mini-gun let loose altogether were partially deflected into the surrounding rock face as passed by their sister.

“Watch it you idiots,” Fury called

Two small columns of smoke appeared around Strife and Fury as the energy from the Wrath crystals wore off. Despite that; they fought against the sand to try continuing their fight.

“That's enough,” Death ordered, scythes drawn against them “This is over. Now get walking.”

Without a word; both put the fallen items back on and began to trudge through the desert and road back to Dodge City. Once at the train station; they were in luck that it was only a five minute wait for arrival.

“I'm just going to ask,” Fury started, breaking the silence “Where in the name of the Creator did you learn how to sing?”

“That? I was just making it up as I went along,” Strife answered with a laugh

After those comments; the four sat in silence as none of them knew what to say that wouldn't reopen old wounds. Even in Canterlot they didn't want to talk. Waiting in the throne room was Twilight and the others.

“How'd it go,” Luna asked

“It didn't,” Death stated “Chrysalis was spared.”

“That's good. Right,” Fluttershy asked hesitantly

“She joined to save her offspring,” Strife answered

COZY GLOW

“Finally,” she panted “I am far enough away from the sandstorm to stretch my wings.”

Despite what Grogar instructed her to do; she decided to just head straight ahead towards the castle. If the plan wasn't successful; she could always go back to a nearby town to stay.

CANTERLOT

“How dare you threaten my friend,” a voice cried

To the shock of everyone gathered in the room; an expected visitor in the form of a pink pegasus with light blue curly hair barged inside.

“Who's the flying pest,” Fury demanded

“My name is Cozy Glow,” she answered “The cute and only won.”

“Want to see something funny,” Strife whispered to War

“What do you have in mind,” War asked

“Just wait,” Strife answered

“Very well,” War muttered

“Drop the cuteness act,” Strife stated, addressing Cozy “No one's going to fall for it.”

“In three…two…one,” Strife whispered, counting down on his fingers

“I AM CUTE,” Cozy yelled "I AM NOT ACTING EITHER!”

“I'd recommend you start trying to calm down,” Fury offered

“Golly, where did these Alicorns come fwom,” Cozy asked, returning to the cute tone of voice, before lunging towards them “I was told there's ownwee two.”

“I'm not telling you again,” Fury stated

Before anyone say it coming; Celestia teleported everyone in the room outside by the front gates. Once they got their bearings; Fury activated her Storm Hollow.

“Ooh, scawey,” Cozy taunted

“I'm going to destroy her,” Fury yelled “Sin or not!”

Fury lunged at the pegasus with her spear as Cozy flew into the air at the last second.

“You're an awicorn, wight,” Cozy taunted “Just fly after me.”

Concentrating for a moment; Fury stretched her wings and jumped up trying to fly. Unfortunately; she ended up lowering to the ground via burst of wind. Instead; her spear was thrust upwards as lightning bolts struck the area.

“I'm a pegusus, duh,” Cozy stated in a sarcastic tone “I'm immune to lightning.”

Just as she taunted Fury; a bolt of lightning struck Cozy; causing her to land. Not wanting to let up; Fury summoned a trio of tornadoes to surround Cozy.

“Horseman,” Celestia started, getting her attention “Fury; stop.”

“Why,” Fury asked, dismissing the tornadoes

“Cozy Glow is,” Celestia hesitated “Cozy is my daughter.”

“WHAT,” the main six asked in unison

“How is that possible,” Twilight asked

“When a mare and stallion love each other very much,” Celestia jokingly answered

“I know about biology and reproduction,” Twilight countered “When did it happen?”

“A little over a thousand years ago,” Celestia said with a sigh

“If you're that old; why the appearance,” Dash asked rather crassly

“I don't have an answer to that,” Celestia answered “It could be due to being an alicorn, or a number of other possibilities. As for the hair color itself; that was what mine looked like before using the Elements of Harmony. I do have a question for you Cozy; why did you leave?”

“Why else,” Cozy retorted angrily “I had to hear you banish aunt Luna to the moon. I left because I saw other families have what I envied: a life. I joined Grogar and Daybreaker to have a family. They knew the truth about my envy and sheltered me until I was ready to return.”

“You're back where you belong; but I am going to put you in time out for a little while to cool off,” Celestia said reassuringly

UNKNOWN LOCATION

“Get ready,” Grogar stated

“You're going to teleport us there now,” Daybreaker asked

“I'm not taking any chances. We strike when they're unprepared and we'll have the advantage,” he answered

“What about the others?”

“If they were slain; then they had better gone down fighting.”

CANTERLOT

Celestia led her daughter inside the castle and down the steps on the way towards Luna’s lab. Instead of continuing downward; they turned down an unmarked hallway towards a row of cells.

“Mom; is this really necessary,” Cozy asked

“I'm afraid it is,” Celestia answered sadly “You were a member of the Seven Sins and knew of their plot to take over Equus.”

“But I wasn't part of it,” Cozy begged “Please don't do this.”

“This is just temporary. I'll let you out in a little while.”

Celestia opened the cell with her magic as Cozy very reluctantly stepped inside. The door was closed as another burst of magic locked it. Celestia had to wipe her eyes as she didn't want to imprison her daughter; but knew it was for everyone's safety. Being over a thousand years old in the body of a filly; there was no telling what her daughter could be capable of if provoked.

“I'm sorry,” Celestia said in a whisper to herself “I'm sorry for everything.”

A ring of fire appeared on the ground in the courtyard as two occupants emerged. The first was a white alicorn similar to Celestia; although a mane and tail of fire differentiated them. Accompanying the alicorn was a four-legged blue ram with white hair and mane that stood the same height. Attached to the collar around his neck was an oversized cowbell.

“CELESTIA! COME OUT, COME OUT WHEREVER YOU ARE,” the newcomer yelled

“Who are the two of you,” Twilight asked

“I am Daybreaker,” she answered “You may call me ‘Mistress’.”

“You are not aware of Grogar, the Father of Monsters,” he demanded “Such a shame the education is lacking if I'm no longer being taught.”

“What is your purpose here,” Celestia demanded, teleporting from the castle

“I plan on destroying you; but I want a challenge,” Grogar stated “Give me your strongest warrior. Defeat me and you'll never see me again.”

“I'll take you on,” Death stated

“May I have your name,” Grogar asked “I like to know whom I am killing.”

“You don't know my brother,” Strike asked in mock shock “This is the legendary Gore Grimskull.”

“Can't say I've heard a name like that before,” Grogar said with a laugh “Good luck."

“Hold on a moment. If we're doing this; and we ARE doing this; I want your best,” Daybreaker stated “Not ‘Pwincess Cwestia’ the ruler who sits on her flank eating cake. I want the Celestia who was a ruthless warrior. Bring that version out or I kill everyone here until you do.”

“Hold a minute; my little ponies are innocent,” Celestia countered

“Than I suggest you get them out of here,” Daybreaker countered

“Luna; take the six and head into the castle,” Celestia instructed

“Very well. What about the rest of you,” Luna asked, turning to the Horsemen

“If he's fighting; than we're staying,” War answered

“Well said, little brother,” Strife chimed in

“No. All of you go with Luna. Your job is to protect the others,” Death retorted

“Fury can take War,” Strife countered “I'm staying here. I don't care if I'm on the sidelines or not.”

“Suit yourself,” Grogar answered “When he dies; you're next.”

“Is she alright,” Daybreaker asked

“Cozy’s in her rightful place,” Celestia confirmed

“You mean locked in a castle cell before being banished to Tartarus,” Daybreaker spat, before charging

CELESTIA

Daybreaker created a gigantic mace from her magic as Celestia created a claymore and shield to defend. The mace was swung towards Celestia only to meet the shield instead. A small dent was made due to the force as Celestia attacked in retaliation.

“Good to see you haven't entirely became a slouch,” Daybreaker taunted “That would have been a mistake.”

“I've made enough mistakes over my lifetime,” Celestia said “Loosing my sister and daughter being the two biggest. I should have seen it. Ponies never gave Luna a chance to see how much the night is needed. Cozy envied what I never gave her; what you gave instead: comfort.”

“At least you have confessed. Does it make you feel better?”

DEATH

“Kishin, Witch hunter,” Death muttered

Death did not want to take any chances with his opponent and thought to use the scythes to test his skill. Despite the age; Grogar was quick enough to dodge each swing before a small burst of energy was sent towards the Horsemen.

“I thought you'd use magic to beat me,” Grogar taunted “After all; alicorn are the strongest magic users.”

“I like my way better,” Death stated “It gets the ‘point’ across better.”

“Let's see if this old ram still has it in him,” Grogar muttered

A series of hooves started to break through the ground in the courtyard as multiple bodies pulled themselves up and turned towards Death. Without caring; a single slice was enough to end all the zombies.

“That was unimpressive,” Death offered “Let me show you how it's really done.”

Death concentrated for a moment and allowed a trio of ghouls and a small murder of crows to manifest themselves and attack Grogar. The latter could only summon a shield of magic to try and block the onslaught from both groups. In the meantime; Death decided to dismiss the abilities of both scythes and remove the enchantment, returning to his original Harvester scythe.

CELESTIA

“I see you have tried to change,” Daybreaker started “I have one request.”

“What is it?”

“Take care of Cozy Glow. She sought me out in anger; but wanted a family. She doesn't deserve to be punished for her actions when she really wasn't par of them,” Daybreaker finished sadly “Promise me you'll do that Celestia.”

“I promise.”

DEATH

“It's time to get serious,” Grogar stated

He tapped the bell, causing a ring of magic wave to emanate from it along with the dismissal of Death's summoned minions. A second tap caused Daybreaker and Celestia to be stripped of their magic.

“I always knew she was soft,” Grogar taunted “I'll save you the trouble and finish off the traitor myself before I get to you.”

“You rat,” a weak Daybreaker muttered

Another ball of magic was tossed towards Daybreaker causing her to fade away into a trail of smoke just as Celestia reached Daybreaker’s hoof one last time.

“Goodbye,” Celestia said quietly

“Now; it's time I take care of your magic,” Grogar continued

The bell rang for a third time as the Horsemen were targeted. Both Strife and Death felt a little uneasy; but neither really had magic to care about losing it.

“Any last words Grimskull before you meet your doom,” Grogar asked

“You call yourself the ‘Father of Monsters’ but you've never the monsters I have. You think you’ve taken my magic; but there’s only one group that has the ability to do so,” Death started, “I've been known by many names over the millennia and I'm the last person you'll meet. Let me properly introduce myself. I am the Kinslayer; the Grim Reaper. I. Am. DEATH!”

Death removed a Wrath crystal and allowed the energy to flow through him. To Grogar’s shock; the pony in front of him turned into a winged being wielding a giant scythe. The last thing the ram saw was the blade heading towards him as the bell was all that remained. Once his task was complete; Death forced himself to return to return as Celestia used the bell to return the stolen magic.

“It's done,” Death panted

“That was so totally awesome,” Dash cried as she tackled Death “I've seen awesome and that tops everything. You turned to that beast.”

“How were you able to do that,” Twilight asked

“As you know; the four of us are the enforcers of the beings known as the Charred Council. What you saw is the ultimate form of Death; the true Grim Reaper,” Strife answered

Before any celebration or rest could take place; a fiery portal opened up by them.

“No rest for the wicked,” Strife joked

“Where are you going,” Pinkie asked sadly

“We have to report to the Council,” Death stated

“Come back, ya hear,” AJ demanded "You have a home here."

“We promise,” Strife replied

With that; the four stepped through and headed into the lair of the Charred Council.

“What can we do for you,” Strife asked

“YOUR MISSION IS NOT COMPLETE,” one of the totems stated “MULTIPLE MEMBERS STILL LIVE.”

“Let's see; one happens to be the daughter of one of the rulers,” Strife said, ticking them off on his fingers “Another was a mother worried about her hive and the last were actually trying to better themselves.”

“OH YEAH? SEE FOR YOURSELVES ABOUT FLIM AND FLAM.”

A scene from a warehouse in Equestria was shown as the brothers Flim and Flam were working on the Cider Squeezey.

“You know brother; I don't believe we've heard anything about the others,” Flim started

“I concur. If I'm not mistaken; we're the Sin alive,” Flam added

“You know what means; right?”

“We can finally take over Equestria for ourselves.”

The two paused in thought for a moment before answering simultaneously, “Nah.”

“It's too much work, anyway.”

“Agreed. Besides; it's nice to finally help others out for once.”

“WHAT DO YOU PLAN ON DOING WITH THE REMAINING SINS,” the middle totem demanded

“They plan on helping out,” Strife answered “They'll be left alone.”

“AND WHAT ARE YOU PLANNING ON DOING NEXT?”

“You have the original Horsemen take care of the rest of the universe and we'll return to Equestria and guard it against all threats,” Death answered

“BE GONE HORSEMEN.”

With that; the four headed back through the portal. They didn't have any idea what might be in their future; but they knew their promise to defend Equestria would always be kept.

New Identities

1st P.O.V. Earth

“Whew,” I say, wiping my brow as I put my Xbox controller down “That was one hell of a challenge.”

“You know; Jay; why don't we try to create a pair of costumes for SDCC? I mean we have th8e tickets and money to go.”

“Troy; are you serious? What would we make in a month's time? Especially for the biggest gaming convention.”

“You could easily make Death,” he joked “I mean you literally just finished the game; on the hardest difficulty no less.”

“And I'm guessing you'd be War? You do have a better build for him.”

“Why not? I could probably put something together. Who knows; maybe we'll see if the rumors are true,” he mused “And possibly found out what happened to JP.”

“The Merchant? For all we know; those that disappeared could have had a darker fate. That unfortunately includes Jonathan.”

“We could see for ourselves,” he argued, putting a hand on my shoulder “And if; and I do stress ‘if’ it's true; I'm not going down without a fight.”

“I should slap some sense into my brother; but I suppose you have a point.”

“Good. Let's get down to business.”

I shut the Darksiders 2 game off and pulled up the internet on the system and grabbed a sketchpad. Looking at an image of Death; I began to lay out a basic idea on design. With any luck; this would be finished to wear to the San Diego Comic-Con. While we worked on the costumes he decided to start watching My Little Pony for background noise.

I used to ridicule him for watching a show designed for adolescent children; namely girls; until he pointed out adult-oriented aspects, such as an on-camera funeral. Troy and I would scour episodes to see what other references could be found and share a laugh on some of them.

After a long month we were finally ready for the Comic-Con. I decided to wear a white bodysuit with the pauldron on the left shoulder and loincloth. He decided to create the hood and armor; and although neither costume was perfect; they could be read as a vague representation of the character.

“Let's take a lap around before we see if he's here,” Troy suggested

“Great. Let's see the items you should have brought your bank account for,” I added sarcastically

“Very funny. Allons-Y,” he replied with an equally sarcastic laugh

As we looked around; quite a few booths had items that were amazing. Scale replicas of Star Wars lightsabers; helmets and even exclusive trading card boxes would have been on my list for purchase; but sadly we were only looking for a specific booth and I'd never see those goodies again.

“Over there. I thought I saw something,” he pointed out

Approaching our destination; I noticed something off. The conversations started getting quiet; as if a bubble was placed around the area.

“…see games tomorrow...”

“Yeah; we'll get lunch at…”

Wanting to test a theory; I walked backwards the way came to confirm my suspicions. Even turning around revealed the outside area to be fuzzy; similar to opening one's eyes underwater.

“That’s odd. At least I know why no one sees anything happen.”

“Come on Jay,” my brother called

“Greeting visitors. What can I do for you,” the Merchant asked

“First off; you can confirm that you are the being known for taking people and sending them to the world known as Equestria against their will,” Troy started “Including a friend of ours by the name of Jonathan.”

“You come into my realm and accuse me on baseless accusations,” the Merchant yelled “How dare you!? Had I not been the man I am; I'd send you both to the depths of Hell!”

Looking at the table in front of us; I could see four distinct grooves where his fingers actually dug into the wood. I knew I had to play peacekeeper or else something bad would happen; mainly to us.

“Take it easy; both of you. There's no use getting wound up; sir. My brother and I have read the stories and wanted to see whether or not they were true. I hope we didn't offend you too much.”

“Thank you for that; young man,” the Merchant said, calming down “Seeing your costumes gives me an idea. Perhaps I could tempt you both with your sword Chaoseater; the Harvester scythe and your mask? Maybe I'll give you some extra gifts once there?”

“I have just one request. Could you at least send me to the same world at the same time as my big brother,” Troy asked

“Fair enough. Anything you'd like to add,” the Merchant mused, looking at me

“Could the world be anthro ponies? I'd like to be able to look them in the eyes without looming too far over everyone.”

“Done,” the Merchant said before morphing into a blue demon

“Vulgrim. So; you are the merchant?”

“Not entirely. I can take the form of anything to interact with a buyer; usually based on what their costume is,” the Merchant explained “Have fun in Equestria.”

The last thing we see is a blinding flash of white light as the area fades away and we are no longer on Earth.

3rd POV Equestria

Two distinct humanoid creatures landed in the middle of the desert and found themselves buried in sand. After getting out of the mound they were in; their appearances were revealed. One was the definition of skin and bones with long purple hair and a bone-white mask covering the face. His clothing looked more like rags as it hung on his body attached with a pauldron on the shoulder. The other one stood taller than his counterpart and had a red hood covering his long white hair. Covering his body was a set of armor whose weight alone would crush a mortal man.

“Where are we,” the taller of the pair asked

“Where do you think,” the other answered rhetorically “This is what is known as a ‘desert’; War. You know what that is; don't you?”

“Do you always have to be so sarcastic; Death? We are nowhere we recognize and completely isolated from our siblings,” War answered

“Perhaps I could be of assistance,” a disembodied voice called

“Show yourself; Watcher,” Death demanded, gripping his scythe; Harvester

“I take that as an insult. I am the Lord of Chaos, Discord; not some common creature,” he replied sticking out his tongue “I'd like to welcome you to the world of Equus.”

“What are the residents,” Death demanded

“Let's see: a few thousand ponies, an unknown amount of dragons, griffins, zebras and various other creatures,” Discord answered, counting on his fingers

“Why did you come here,” War asked

“I actually came here to give you some advice,” Discord commented

“What kind of advice,” Death inquired

“I do not know who you were at home; but I do know that you are not who you claim to be. You are not War and Death of the Four Horsemen; but two normal humans sent to Equestria,” Discord replied, stroking his now elongated beard “I wanted you to know that no one but the three of us knows that fact.”

Discord walked over and placed a hand on them before removing it.

DEATH P.O.V

As this mess of a creature; aptly named ‘Discord’ put a hand on me; a strange feeling went through me. It felt like everything in my body was torn open all at once.

WAR P.O.V

I still cannot describe what was going on. A creature just put a claw on me without meeting my blade. A feeling that resembled the shock from a lightning bolt ran through me.

3rd P.O.V

“What did you just do to us,” Death demanded

“What I just did was give you your own hammerspace. It will summon any weapon from the game your character could use,” Discord explained

“And the other abilities,” War asked

“Your Chaos and Reaper forms will not be able to be utilized for a while. Think about it in terms of the game: you can't activate the forms until you've gained enough experience first,” Discord added “And unfortunately; your portal hopping and time manipulation will not work in this world.”

“Fair enough. One more thing. Which way towards a town,” Death asked

“Ponyville is about 75 miles that direction as the crow flies,” Discord answered, pointing towards the northwest before disappearing

Just as Discord finished his ironic comment; a black crow with gold eyes appeared flew down and landed on Death's shoulder. It started squawking at its master in a conversation only they understood.

“It's good to see you too; Dusk. No the creature known as Discord was not talking about you,” Death replied “Despair; mind giving me a lift?”

“Ruin; time to go old friend,” War added

Two horses materialized from out of nowhere and took shape. Ruin was a stocky red horse with a black mane and tail with his hooves on fire. Situated on his flank was a crescent-like mark the same as War’s. Despair looked a lot like Death with an emaciated body with the skin rotting all over. A green haze was emitted from his eyes and body. Each bowed their heads in respect of their masters before the Horsemen climbed on their mounts.

As they rode off through the desert; two trails were left in their wake; one of fire and the other of a green mist. Despite the distance towards Ponyville; Ruin and Despair made it there in short order without ever tiring out. As they got closer; the Horsemen slowed to a normal trot; unnecessarily drawing attention to themselves at the same time. Most of the residents averted their eyes as they covered their children's as well. Dust gave a quick squawk before flying off as they dismissed their horses.

DEATH

I suggest this is the usual reaction we get. Looking around; the architecture does seem to resemble simplistic work; although they don't seem to mind.

WAR

I cannot fathom why such a reaction is common. We did not do anything to deserve such treatment. These beings must be poor by the looks of their shoddy living quarters. A strong gust of wind would easily destroy this town; let alone Chaoseater.

3rd P.O V.

“We have company,” Death stated

“HOW DARE YOU! YOU THINK YOU CAN COME HERE AND DO AS YOU PLEASE,” a voice yelled “YOU WILL BE ELIMINATED!”

DEATH

A being in golden armor that was reminiscent of an Angel’s flew down and stood in front of us with a sword on her shoulder. Next to her was another dressed in black armor wielding a scythe; not too unlike my own. I do not have fear; but I honestly do not like what is going to happen.

3rd P.O.V.

“You think it wise? Fighting amongst the residents in town,” Death questioned “Casualties should be avoided when necessary.”

“Perhaps it is for the best to head there,” the one in black commented

“Very well. We will finish it there,” the other agreed “It is; after all a sacred place.”

Both Horsemen and the armored guests disappeared as they were teleported from the city. Looking around; they saw that they were inside the remains of an old castle with a dense forest surrounding that.

“What do you want with us and how did you get here,” the black armor asked

“Perhaps introductions are in order,” Death asked

“I'll save it for your corpse,” golden countered

With that; Death drew his scythe and blocked an attack from his opponent. Wanting to change tactics; he decided to allow Harvester to become a sword; much to his opponent's surprise. War lifted Chaoseater up and stood ready to charge to his brother’s aid.

“Stay out of this,” Death demanded

“If you insist,” War replied

Despite not much experience with swords; Death managed to parry his opponent's strikes. He flipped the sword around to counter a blow aimed for his back. Seeing the bigger opponent calmly deflecting the blows; the golden armored warrior started getting reckless.

“I'm going to kill you,” she exclaimed

“Many have tried,” Death replied calmly “All have failed.”

The female started to hack away at Death's sword, before the latter changed Harvester into a smaller blade. Using the element of surprise; Death managed to score one blow on the unarmored cheek of his opponent. The cut was deep enough to open a wound; revealing its owner to have golden blood.

“Why do angels inhabit this world,” Death questioned

“We are not angels. My sister and I are alicorns,” came the response

WAR

“Why are they fighting?”

“My sister believes the two of you to be dangerous.”

“What about you? Why do you not attack?”

“I don't see the same way she does. That battle is for her alone. I never did get your name.”

“War. My brother Death is the one your sister is fighting.”

“I'm Princess Luna. I am in control of the moon while Celestia controls the sun,” Luna answered

“I have never heard of a creature controlling the movement of celestial bodies.”

3rd P.O.V

Without warning; Death reached behind his back and allowed a long barreled pistol to materialize. After knocking his opponent to the ground using Harvester in its scythe mode; he pulled the hammer back and aimed directly at her head.

“Stop,” a voice cried “Don't kill my mentor!”

Death lowered the pistol; commonly known as Redemption; before stabbing his scythe into the ground. Looking at the newcomer; he noticed it was a female with purple skin and hair with a pink streak. She had on a blue blouse with a pink sweater on top followed by a black skirt. Accompanying her were five other females in various clothing that assisted the fallen opponent to her hooves.

“Twilight; what are you doing here,” Celestia questioned

“We saw you confront these two and came to find you,” Twilight answered, before turning to Death “Why did you attack her?”

“I merely defended myself. She wanted to kill me; and I wanted to stop her,” Death answered

Dust returned from his hiding place and flew back to his master. He looked around and wanted to hide again, seeing the commotion and started squawking.

“Um; excuse me. I can normally understand any creature; but I cannot with him,” a shy voice commented “Do you know why that is?”

“You'd rather not want to understand Dust. Doesn’t really have anything nice to say,” Death joked “Only two can understand him anyway; myself and a being known as the ‘Crowfather’.”

“If that's the case; then why don't we just feed it to one of Fluttershy’s animals,” a rainbow haired female commented “I'm sure Harry wouldn't mind the snack.”

“Harm my bird and there will be no place in all of Creation that will keep you safe,” Death threatened, summoning his scythe

“What are you talking about,” the rainbow one questioned “There are no other worlds besides this one.”

“Isolation brings on ignorance. There's plenty you don't know.”

“Say that again and I'll show you what I know,” came the threat

“Don't try what you can't back up,” Death countered, drawing his now twin scythes

“Put it down; brother,” War warned “That's the last thing we want.”

“I'll ask you again mister. What. Did. Your. Bird. Say,” the shy one demanded, enunciating the last few words

“You'd better answer or she's likely to use ‘The Stare’ on you,” an orange pony mused

“You don't need to know. Foul mouthed commentary of what's going on.”

“Oh my,” the yellow one squeaked, before blushing

“Why are you here,” Twilight asked “And who are you two?”

“Why we're here; we don’t know. As for who we are; that can be answered. We are two of the Four Horsemen; War and Death,” War announced

“Four Horsemen? That cannot be possible,” Celestia said in disbelief “That was a story to scare foals and fillies.”

“I assure you we mean no harm. In fact; we'll stay here,” Death added “The remains of this castle will provide adequate shelter.”

“I'd like to ask you both some questions later,” Twilight asked “It's for research purposes of course.”

“I will try to answer what I can,” Death said “Within reason.”

“What about the big guy,” the rainbow haired female asked, jerking a thumb towards “Can't he answer anything?”

“I can; but he's the oldest,” War answered “There are things he'd know that I don’t.”

“I cannot command you to do so; but I'd like you to answer my student's questions,” Celestia decided

“As I said; I will answer what I can within reason,” Death reiterated “Now; I have a question for you six. What manner of creature are you?”

“The two of us with horns are unicorns; the winged ones are pegasi and the remaining two are Earth ponies,” Twilight answered

With that; Celestia and Luna led the group of ponies out of the ruins and back to the city. Death summoned a group of undead minions using his necromancer abilities to patrol around the perimeter. They would alert him to anyone or anything that comes near. Due to the combination of not using his powers and an unfamiliar world; Death rested his scythes against a wall as he sat down. After closing his eyes for a while; War watched him jerk awake.

DEATH

“What am I seeing?”

Scenes unknown to me play before my eyes. I see two humans conversing with one another without sound; although I seem to take the place (and vision) of one of them. I (the human) look into a mirror to see a very crude representation of me. For some reason; something that creature Discord said pops into my head:

‘You are not War and Death of the Four Horsemen; but two normal humans sent to Equestria’

A different scene flashes and I'm now looking at a view of myself and my siblings in the realm of the Charred Council. I now understand what happened.

3rd P.O.V.

“He was right,” Death commented

“What is it,” a concerned War asked “What did you see?”

“The truth. Us. Or; rather, all of us.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You remember what that creature Discord said? We're not who we are and he was right. I saw two humans dressed as crude representations of us before seeing the four of us with the Charred Council.”

“So we were Displaced to this world,” War asked as his brother nodded “Then between us; we will keep up the act.”

“Of course. No one should ever know except those that were there; namely us and Discord.”

“On another topic; what are we going to do about shelter? These ruins aren't waterproof,” War asked

“From what I can tell; this was the site of battle for what I'd guess was the two sisters. As for shelter; a little water won't hurt us,” Death mused

ELSEWHERE

“I will not have those goody-two-hoof princesses run this country,” a voice cried “I will remove them any way possible; even if I have to summon demons to kill them!”

A spell book was removed as the owner began the ritual. Words in multiple foreign tongues were recited; as a ring of fire opened on the ground in the chamber.

“Who dares summon me,” the demon demanded “One of the commanders from Hell!?”

“It is not important to give you my name. I'd like you to destroy the rulers of this world.”

“What purpose do you have for destroying these rulers,” the demon inquired

“I should be the rightful ruler. Instead; I was defeated by a weakling thousands of years ago.”

“General slaughter will not make anyone a ruler. But of course; I'll send some demons to take over the surrounding areas just for fun,” came the response

“I'll take it. The death toll is of no consequence to me.”

“As payment for this; I will be taking your soul to Hell,” the demon promised

The demon stepped back into the portal as it closed; leaving the chamber silent.

“Insolent fool. The name ‘Tirek’ will be feared once again in Equestria. These puny ponies will regret defeating me those thousands of years ago. There is a reason I am a member of that group.”

EQUESTRIA

3rd P.O.V.

Hours later; the two realized it was some time late at night; due to the appearance of stars in the sky. One of the ghouls returned as a pair of visitors drew near. Out of instinct; War had his blade readied as Death had the scythes in hand.

“Speak or else,” Death demanded

“I am Twilight Sparkle; student to Princess Celestia; here with my assistant Spike. I am here to interview you on behalf of the princesses,” Twilight said hastily

“What she said,” Spike added quickly “Please don’t kill us.”

“Put them down brother,” War said “It's okay.”

“Sorry to bother you Mr. Death,” Twilight apologized

“What do you wish to know,” Death inquired

“First off; where exactly do you live,” Twilight started, pulling out a scroll and quill to start writing

“That is hard to answer. Where we reside does not have a definite location.”

“You mentioned being two of the Four Horsemen,” she mused “How many siblings do you have?”

“That question has two answers. First: the other two are our brother, Strife and sister, Fury. As for the second part; there were thousands.”

“What happened to them all,” Spike asked

“They were eliminated,” War stated

“I don't understand what happened,” Twilight added

“One of the many names I've been called was ‘Kin-slayer’. I will let you figure out what it means,” Death said coldly

“You mean to tell me you killed them,” she asked in disbelief

“Yes. The four of us killed them.”

“Why would you do such a thing,” Spike asked

“I'm sorry to say; but I refuse to answer that.”

“I guess that's okay,” Twilight decided, changing the subject “How old are the two of you?”

“Ancient. Only the race of beings known as the Makers are older.”

“Do you have a job or purpose of some kind?”

“The four of us serve to protect the Balance under orders of the Charred Counsel.”

“What do you have to do?”

“I believe some of that information should be told to just the princesses. That information is not for anyone else to hear.”

“I understand,” Twilight said “Spike could you send this to the princesses?”

“You got it,” he said, burning the letter

DEATH

I have seen many things over the millennia since my creation; but I haven't seen a dragon sending a letter by lighting it on fire before.

WAR

This is a strange world. Creatures that have multiple body parts and dragons that can somehow breathe fire to send messages are here. What did we get ourselves in to?

3rd P.O.V.

A few minutes after Spike sent the letter to the princesses; the Horsemen watched as he basically coughed up a letter.

“This is addressed to the two of you,” Twilight said, handing it to Death “The two of you have been granted an immediate audience with the princesses. All you have to do is show the guards the letter. I could teleport you if you'd like.”

“Thank you for the offer; but we'll ride.”

“Um; it's ten miles to the city of Canterlot,” Spike pointed out “How are you going to get there without taking the train?”

“Ruin; Despair,” the brothers said together, calling their respective mount

TWILIGHT

I honestly don't know what I just saw. Two four-legged horses just appeared from out of nowhere! I can't make illusions become real like they can! Just who are these two!?

3rd P.O.V.]

Twilight sat there with her jaw dropped as she and Spike watched the brothers mount their steeds and rode off from the Everfree Forest to Canterlot in a full gallop.

“What was that,” Spike asked “That's not natural. Flaming hooves?”

“I know! That's what makes it so interesting,” Twilight replied cheerfully

Less than ten minutes later; the two Horsemen slowed their pace as they approached Canterlot Castle. Standing in front of them was a wall that rose nearly twenty feet tall with a golden gate at the center. Surrounding the other side were nearly fifty guards; each in full armor and wielding spears.

“Halt! You are not permitted to enter this area,” one of the guards stated

“I have a letter of invitation from your Princess Celestia. Open up willingly or we will enter by force,” Death replied coldly

“Your destruction will be imminent if you don't heed his warning,” War added

“Hold on,” a guard said stepping forward “I am Shining Armor; Captain of the Guard of Canterlot military. You said you're in possession of a letter from the princess? Would you mind if I take a look?”

“If it get us in without any unnecessary deaths; then so be it,” Death answered, somewhat calmly

Death handed the letter through the bars as Shining skimmed over the contents.

“It bears the seal of Celestia,” Shining proclaimed “Open the gates and let them in.”

“But,” one soldier started

“Do it; or you'll find yourself court marshaled and in the brig,” Shining ordered

“Yes sir,” came the response; albeit hesitantly

Without further incident; the gate was opened as two lines of the soldiers formed upon their entry. The two Horsemen proceeded towards the castle before dismissing Ruin and Despair right at the doors. Shining had two guards open the doors before leading them to the throne room.

“I'm going to have to ask you to leave your weapons out here,” Shining said, with a hint of nervousness

“You dare ask me to remove Chaoseater,” War demanded, grabbing the handle

“Our weapons aren't leaving our possession; so just open the door,” Death stated

A very reluctant Shining opened the door for the guests to enter before closing it behind them. After doing so; Shining headed back to the barracks before grabbing a small glass of cider to try to forget what happened. Very few things could intimidate him; and the two armed creatures did that easily.

“You called us here. What do you wish to talk about,” Death asked bluntly

“First; we require privacy,” Celestia said, turning towards the guards “Leave us alone.”

Both guards standing by the thrones walked out the doors as Luna lit up her horn and allowed a privacy spell to hit the doors. The room was now completely sealed off against intruders and soundproof as well.

“Now we can get to why we asked you here,” Celestia mused

“Twilight wrote in her notes that you killed your siblings,” Luna started “Would you tell us why?”

“The four of us; Strife and Fury included; thought our race of Nephilim was too power hungry in taking over realms and threatening the Balance of Creation,” Death simplified

“And what is this ‘Balance’,” Celestia asked, raising an eyebrow

“Nephilim were born from the mating of angels and demons. The Charred Council is supposed to prevent the two races from battling each other. The four of us became their enforcers to carry out their will,” he clarified

“What exactly is this 'Charred Council',” Luna questioned

“A group of unseen beings that speak through three carved totems,” Death answered vaguely

“If you serve this ‘Charred Council’; why were you sent to Equus,” Celestia asked

“We aren't sure why we were sent here. The Council has no knowledge of us being here,” War stated

“While you mentioned it to Twilight; just how old are you,” Celestia inquired, hoping for clarification

“As compared to this world; we have lived millennia longer. The Makers were one of the first races to come into existence as they started construction on the two kingdoms. One other world I know of; the third Kingdom has a longer lifespan than Equus by nearly ten thousand years,” Death said

“You mention these Three Kingdoms,” Celestia asked before Luna added “What are they?”

“Heaven, Hell and Earth. Now I have a question for the two of you. What exactly did you mean the Four Horsemen were a story?”

“Originally; the four of you were thought to be equated to the Boogeyman,” Celestia answered

“Sister; why don't you tell the real reason,” Luna chastised “It's not right to lie to them.”

“I sensed the presence of a strong energy and though you were here to cause problems again and had hoped to stop that from happening,” came the answer

“And that would explain some of the looks we were getting from residents,” Death asked sarcastically

“It was more of the fact two beings were riding on a horse so casually,” Luna corrected

“What does that have to do with anything,” War questioned

“We're two-legged ponies as I'm sure you've noticed,” Celestia pointed out, stating the obvious “Seeing a horse being ridden isn't going to be liked by residents.”

“What did you mean by the phrase ‘cause problems again’?”

“Over a thousand years ago; my sister Luna was changed into the being called ‘Nightmare Moon’. Something had influenced or infected her to take on a much darker appearance,” Celestia started “I thought the source was possibly demonic and your energies felt similar to that.”

“What are we going to do now,” Death asked

“That was what we were going to ask the two of you,” Celestia countered

“Perhaps you could help if a problem arises,” Luna offered

“In the meantime; maybe I could be of service,” a voice called

A small blue spiral appeared on the ground as a thin demon made his way out of it. Seeing the intruder; Celestia immediately summoned her Claymore.

“Vulgrim. What are you doing here in this realm,” Death demanded

“I am but a humble merchant,” the demon replied “I can give you things you'll need.”

“Not in our throne room,” Celestia retorted “Filthy demon.”

“I will take up residence in an unused room,” Vulgrim offered “Look for my sign.”

“What is this sign of yours and what happens if a pony walks by,” Luna questioned

“A wind chime by the area and only the Horsemen can summon me,” was the demon’s answer

“I don't think we have much a choice,” Celestia added with a sigh

“If we're in the ‘giving out gifts’ phase,” a voice added “Than I have one for you both.”

“Discord; what do you think you're doing,” Luna asked

“I've already told you,” Discord answered

As he touched each of the Horsemen; a similar feeling went through them from when they were given the hammerspace.

“For you both; I've given you the ability to level up your weapons,” Discord said “You'll know how to do so.”

“War; I start with you,” Vulgrim added “A talisman to increase your weapon damage.”

“Thank you,” War commented

“And for Death,” Vulgrim continued “A set of possessed claws.”

“Thanks,” Death added “These will definitely be useful.”

“I am sorry to bother you in your chambers,” Vulgrim commented, with a bow “I will retire to the empty room.”

“In the meantime; we'll make sure to keep any unwanted visitors from the room,” Celestia decided

“Thank you again for the gifts,” Death said “My brother and I will retire to the castle in the forest.”

“I will be visiting you in your dreams,” Luna stated

With that; the two returned to the entrance before summoning their mounts for the ride back home. Upon returning; they noticed Twilight and Spike left; some time after their summons if they were to guess.

“Well; that went well,” War mused

“We have the ability to level up our weapons and I have a possessed claw,” Death added “This went extremely well.”

Wanting to relax; Death found himself leaning against a nearby wall as War did the same on the opposite side. Both eventually fell asleep; as Death entered the dreamscape. Luna looked around the Horsemen’s mind; not seeing anything. In front of her was Death himself sitting motionless in a meditative trance.

“Why is there nothing here,” she questioned

“I don't dream. I have been alive for countless millennia and have slaughtered nearly the same. I block out the memories of each one and just move on. Death is just a guarantee in life; no pun intended.”

“Your brother dreamt of your siblings. It seems he misses them.”

“As do I; but we have no idea as to how we got to this world or where they are. If we see them; than so be it. Otherwise War and I will have to adjust.”

The next morning, after getting a vague semblance of sleep; Death was awoken by a repeated pounding on his arm.

“Wake up,” the voice demanded

“What do you need,” Death asked coldly

“Finally. I've been trying to wake you for a while,” she said, with a sigh

“Who are you; and what do you need to wake me for,” Death asked again

“I'm Rainbow Dash. I was asked by a friend to summon you,” Dash answered vaguely

“That's so important? Why didn't you decide to wait until later to do this?”

“She said it was important,” Dash offered

“Is anyone being attacked,” Death asked bluntly

“No. It's something else,” she said

“Then it's not of dire need. Come back later when I might care.”

“That's it,” she decided “I tried to be nice and let you go on your own; but now I'm going to drag you there.”

Drawing back a fist; Dash punched Death square in the mask and immediately regretted her decision. Despite the mask being made of bone; it was sturdy enough to absorb the blow and unintentionally shatter her hand.

“Ow. I broke my hand,” she whined

“Let me see it,” he offered

Reluctantly; she held her out to him as it began to swell from the pain. He gently set both hands around it and allowed his magic to repair the shattered bones in her hand.

“I'd suggest taking it easy and getting some ice,” he offered

“What did you do to me,” she asked “Why? I attacked you.”

“I repaired the shattered bones in your hand. As to why; you didn't deserve to be injured for that.”

“I guess I'll be going too,” War added, speaking for the first time as he rose to his feet

“We'll walk,” Death decided “The forest is too dense to ride through.”

“Um,” she started hesitantly “Could you protect me? There are dangerous creatures here in the Everfree Forest.”

“They can't be any worse than the things we've fought,” War commented

With that; Dash reluctantly led the two through the forest before a timberwolf jumped out from a bush. War casually drew Chaoseater and sliced the head off before continuing the walk. She had to cover her eyes at the gore and couldn't believe what happened.

“We're in Ponyville,” she said with a sigh

“Couldn't stand it; could you,” Death asked

“You just killed the timberwolf like it was nothing,” she replied

“It attacked me,” War pointed out

“I know; but stuff like that never happens,” she argued, before changing the subject “Your destination is that building over there.”

After gesturing towards a carousel shaped building; both horsemen headed there while Rainbow Dash went to the hospital to get her hand looked at.

“You've finally arrived,” a voice inside called “Mr. Death; in here please.”

War looked over at his older brother and slightly shrugged. Death handed over his Harvester scythe and headed inside.

“Do you mind telling me what was important to force me here,” he questioned “Along with your name, please?”

“Considering your appearance; I thought it might be best to give you this,” she replied, gesturing to a purple lump of cloth on a chair “And my name is Rarity Belle.”

Upon picking the cloth; he noticed it fall open as a purple robe. Once it was entirely on and tucked in; the length was just above his boots but still allowed plenty of movement.

“Thank you very much; Miss Belle.”

“I did have to guess on your measurements. Unfortunately; I wouldn't be able to create anything for your brother,” she admitted sadly “I doubt I'd have cloth long enough to cover the armor.”

“I don't think he'd wear it anyways,” Death joked “It would get in the way during battle.”

“So; Death is now a monk,” War joked, as Death left

“Unfortunately this monk does not preach peace,” Death added

“Death; thank you again,” Dash said, with her hand now in a sling

“Darling; what happened to you,” Rarity asked in shock

“Broken hand; but he fixed it,” Dash answered

“It's better you don't know,” Death chimed in

“I'm glad to have found a few of you together,” Twilight said, running over

“What happened now,” War asked

“I just received a letter from the princesses,” Twilight answered “Myself and the girls; along with both of you have an invitation to attend the Grand Galloping Gala.”

“I'm not interested in attending,” Death stated “Nor is my brother.”

“She sent a second letter saying the two of you are obligated to attend,” Twilight countered “Princess Celestia would be here to force you otherwise.”

“He might have something to wear to this gala of yours,” War mused, gesturing towards his brother “But I'm staying in my armor. It's not coming off for anyone.”

“The event is tonight just so you know,” Twilight said “Would you like us to pick you up?”

“We'll ride to Canterlot,” Death decided “You get there how you'd like.”

“I can't believe we're attending the gala,” War mused

“Well; I'm going to just say that the night will end horribly,” Death added

“You really believe the pattern will continue,” War questioned

“I have no reason to believe it won't.”

As night fell in Equestria; everyone was getting ready for the evening's events. Death removed the robe he was given and handed it over to War during the ride to the castle. Twilight and company were awaiting the chariot Celestia would be sending for them. Inside Canterlot Castle; Celestia’s nephew Blueblood; the so-called ‘Untitled Prince’ was going over last minute preparations.

Unbeknownst to anyone; Blueblood had a list of names in a journal of females he'd raped over the years and planned to add another that evening. The only reason he'd gotten away with it was due to his status as a noble as nopony would dare challenge him.

To signal the official start of the Grand Galloping Gala; Celestia and Luna would fire off a series of magical blasts that would be visible for miles away. The Horsemen slowly started their ride after summoning Despair and Ruin.

“This must be a first,” War commented

“And what is that,” Death sarcastically asked

“You giving in so easily.”

“It would better to just go along. Besides; something bad will happen tonight.”

“Any guesses as to what?”

“Have you noticed this world, by any chance,” Death asked, as War shook his head “It's too peaceful and demons love worlds like this to create havoc.”

“This evening might not be a bust after all,” War mused “I'll get to have fun.”

After finishing their conversation; they had arrived at the gates of the castle as carriages were just starting to arrive. The horses were dismissed as Death put his robe back on before walking up the road to the front doors.

“Took you long enough to get here,” Dash commented, tapping her hoof impatiently

“Considering we were forced to be here; you're lucky we showed up at all,” Death countered

As they headed inside the castle; the girls went to enjoy themselves while the Horsemen stood against a wall trying not to look as intimidating to the attendees. Blueblood had also managed to convince one of the female to follow him up towards his room.

After finishing up his sexual activities with his victim; the room was cleaned to remove any traces of semen that could be traced back to him. Unbeknownst to Blueblood as he wrote his latest entry in the journal; a red portal opened on the ground as a female-like creature with horns in a bone-like outfit and twin swords emerged.

“What the buck,” he started to say as he closed the book

Having been noticed; the creature turned and used one of the swords to decapitate Blueblood. As the journal fell to the floor; the creature stabbed it with one blade and his head with the other.

“Please spare me,” the mare begged

“Spare...Lead,” the Wraith hissed

Not sure of what the creature meant; the mare slipped out the room and tried to make it back to the ballroom. The creature followed its guide to the destination. Upon entering the room; a collective hush went out as the head and book were thrown towards the crowd.

“Blueblood,” Celestia muttered

“Seriously,” Rarity chastised, picking up the closed book “Rape book? He willingly admitted it?”

“Um; isn't anypony going to care about the thing that was holding the head,” Dash asked sarcastically

“What is that thing,” Twilight asked

“A Wraith,” Death answered “And I'm guessing it's not alone.”

True to his word; more portals opened up as two more Wraiths joined the room along with over a dozen minions. As the guests started to head for the doors; a black spiked wall shot out of the ground; barring any chance to escape.

“What do we do,” Fluttershy asked frantically

“Get everyone towards a wall and form a barrier,” Death directed

“And what are you going to do,” Luna questioned

“We're going to eliminate the problem,” War stated, drawing his blade

“I'd recommend using the chain,” Death mused

Both Horsemen concentrated for a moment as everyone saw an object form on their right arms; resembling large gauntlets. With those at the ready; the brothers charged into the horde of demons. Many of the ponies had to shut their eyes as demons found themselves without torsos or heads; as blood spilled around the room.

“I hate these things,” both thought independently

“Die…Horsemen,” the Wraiths hissed

Once the minions had been dispatched; the Wraiths decided to attack. All three charged in with their blades flying through the air towards the Horsemen. War slammed Chaoseater into the tile floor as a series of spikes popped up to attack the trio. Death took the hint and summoned a trio of ghouls to assist in the fight.

War used the chain on his arm to spear into one of the Wraiths and drag it towards him; while Death summoned a skeleton hand to do the same with a second. Meanwhile; the ghouls mindlessly attacked the remaining Wraith, before finally bringing it down in defeat as the ghouls disappeared.

“Ah’m mighty glad we didn’t hav’ta join in,” an orange pony commented in the shield

“We'd only get in the way,” a pink pony replied “They make it look so easy.”

“If I'd been there; this fight would have been finished in ten seconds flat,” Dash proclaimed

“More like; you'd be dead in ten seconds,” the orange countered

“Dash, AJ; knock it off,” Twilight stated “War and Death are handling those creatures.”

“Having fun brother,” Death taunted

“Of course. I did kill seven of the minions,” War answered

“I wasn't counting.”

Death allowed a bit of his Reaper energy to manifest as two giant skeletal arms holding a much bigger version of his scythe and used it to destroy the second of the Wraiths. Not wanting to be beaten; War stowed Chaoseater on his back and summoned a near identical scythe and finished the last enemy off. With everything destroyed; the barriers by the doors retracted as the bodies disappeared. Once Celestia removed the shield; many of the guest took off in a stampede.

All Hell Breaks Loose

“What the hay just happened,” Applejack questioned “The creatures just attacked us.”

“Should we forget the fact that Blueblood was a rapist,” Rarity questioned, motioning to the book

“Rarity; your name was in here,” Pinkie mused, flipping through the book

“Then I say good riddance,” Dash stated “He got what he deserved.”

“What's with the chest,” Luna asked

“What chest,” Twilight questioned

“That one,” Dash retorted

All eyes turned as a chest with a scroll design for a lid emerged from a portal in the center of the room. An actual scroll manifested itself out of nowhere.

INTERLUDE

A figure in a long coat sat in a room surrounded by countless screens. On each was a view of different versions of Equestria the being had brought people to.

“Let's see,” the Merchant mused “they need a gift.”

Concentrating for a moment; the list of screens changed to show a pair of Horsemen. After watching the pair destroy a bunch of enemies; he got a devious idea on what to do. A simple letter was written along with a box to be sent into the world.

EQUESTRIA

Congratulations Horsemen on your victory. As a reward, I've sent you something you might like
-M

“Any idea what's in there,” War asked, handing back over the scroll

“No. I leave the opening to you,” Death answered

War casually slammed an arm into the lid of the chest; causing it to indent in the center and lift at the ends; before tossing it to the side.

“What's that,” a hyperactive pink pony asked, sticking her head inside

“I don't know,” War stated “I haven't even looked.”

War removed two objects from the chest. The first was a tri-barreled pistol and the second was a sword that should never have been able to fit inside. Once removed; it was revealed to be a narrow-bladed sword almost as long as Death is tall with serpentine filigree running up its center. Upon seeing the two objects; Death felt his eyes widen behind his mask.

“Discord! Show yourself,” Death demanded

“What can I help with; your Deathness,” he asked casually

“Remove these two objects. I don't care how; but they can't exist,” Death stated

“Ooh, nasty,” Discord said, looking at the pair, before snapping his fingers “Done. They have been rendered obsolete from our reality.”

“What was the problem with those weapons,” Twilight asked curiously

“They're Abominations,” Death stated

“They didn't look that bad to me,” Twilight countered

“These weapons should never have existed.”

“What happened,” Celestia asked

“Simply put; those were created from a now dead race of people. If I tell anything more; you'll have nightmares for life,” he stated

“Nightmares be damned; I need to know,” Luna argued, before correcting herself “We need to know.”

“The Grand Abominations, as they were called; were created from the bodies of a race known as the Ravaiim. The first born of our race known as the Nephilim massacred them and turned their remains for fuel for those weapons,” Death simplified

“You mean,” Rarity started “Those were alive!?”

“They were. The pistol you saw was Black Mercy; it could kill anything with even the smallest nick once fully active with blood,” Death answered with a sigh

“And the other,” Twilight pressed

“Affliction. Any wound will start to become necrotic instantly.”

“Um; what does that mean,” Fluttershy asked

“Necrotic means dead. I know of only one person to survive the damage he took,” Death answered

“Who could do such a thing,” AJ asked

“Abaddon; a former Angel. He was stabbed in the eye with Affliction, but managed to contain the damage to his eye by will alone,” War explained

“You mentioned first born,” Celestia started “I'm guessing you had some role.”

“I was one of the creators,” Death admitted

“How could you do such a thing,” Twilight demanded “Making weapons out of the dead!?”

“What's done is done,” War stated “It was long ago before this world was ever thought of.”

“What drove those things to attack us,” Dash asked

“I'd almost guess a combination of items,” Death guessed “First; this world is peaceful and demons would want to cause havoc. Second; someone may have attempted to summon a demon to actually start this.”

“Someone can actually summon them,” Fluttershy asked

“Not recommended; but possible.”

With a disastrous Grand Galloping Gala now over; everyone headed back to Ponyville for the evening as the Horsemen returned to the castle as usual.

“You were right,” War commented

“I can't believe the Merchant sent us two of the Abominations,” Death growled

“Good thing you know about them,” War joked “So; what's next?”

“I'd guess we're going to be in for hell; literally.”

“Great. A chance to level up my blade.”

Hoping the day would be uneventful; Death decided to spend some time away from War as they headed in two different directions.

DEATH

Despite his age; there was plenty of things that he didn't know and decided on going to the library. Although the town's buildings were unknown; one area seemed to stand out. Hoping for the best; he made his way towards the giant tree and knocked on the door.

“What brings you here,” Spike asked, opening the door

“And where is your brother,” Twilight added

“War didn't want to partake in reading and headed elsewhere,” Death answered “As for why, I would like to study this world.”

“Come on in. There are some books about history against the back wall,” Twilight directed “I don't know how much they'll help. While you're studying that; I'd like to ask you about your weapon.”

“Harvester? What do you want to know?”

“What exactly is it, and how does it work,” she started

“Harvester was created by a race known as the Makers and are individualized to each Nephilim. As to how it works; it can take the shape of whatever I want it to,” he explained “Mostly; I just prefer the dual scythes.”

“How many have you killed,” Spike asked

“I never keep a count.”

Reading through some of the books; he found out the two princesses had fought in the same location he and War we staying. Besides that; minor attacks on the world were mentioned.

“What happened with these incidents?”

“I honestly don't know. If I remember correctly; Tirek was banished to Tartarus after attacking the town,” she answered

“Out of all the realms I've been to; I do not know of this ‘Tartarus’ you speak of.”

“It's supposed to be a prison in the underworld; or so I hear,” she answered

“I can assure you it is not part of Hell. As to anything more; I cannot be sure.”

“I'd be relieved; but it brings up more questions about why you were there.”

“I am sorry; but I will not answer that. Thank you for letting me use the library.”

“That is what Golden Oak Library is for,” she joked

“Indeed. Libraries are the best place for knowledge. The Kingdom of Heaven is said to have the best library in all the realms,” Death added

“I'd love to go there,” she said dreamily

“Unfortunately; I doubt you would ever be able to do so.”

WAR

Not wanting to be cooped up indoors; he decided to stay out and try to help with farm work. After entering Ponyville; he tried to keep towards the edge of town to find the destination.

“Care for some help,” War called

“We definitely could use an extra set of hands. Name's Applejack, by the way,” she added “Over there's my brother; Big Macintosh.”

“How do you get the apples off the trees,” War questioned

“Kicking the trunk with one leg is how we do it,” AJ answered “Before we do that; you have to be inducted in the apple bucking tradition. Follow us.”

War was led deep into the orchard towards a heavily wooded area with one lone tree that seemed to stand out from the rest. It was taller and much wider than the others.

“Here we are,” AJ declared

“So; what's the point,” War demanded

“This tree is older than most everything in Equestria,” she answered “The bark has resisted all attempts to buck it. Your challenge is to knock the apples off with one blow.”

“That's it? I've had bigger challenges in other worlds than this.”

“Well; this is our challenge. Many have tried to do this, only to fail,” AJ retorted

War drew Chaoseater much to their horror, only to drive it into the dirt. He walked over to the tree and punched it with as little force so as not to destroy the tree; but still managed to knock off every apple onto the ground.

“I never thought I'd see the day when someone managed to beat the bark,” Dash mused

“Congratulations War. You can now officially help on the farm,” AJ proclaimed

“Eeyup,” Big Mac said simply

“Two questions. Could you point me to the exact center of the orchards? And two; could you put baskets under each tree?”

“I'll have the baskets down in ten seconds,” Dash bragged

“Do what you want,” he said simply

“What do you plan on doing,” AJ asked

“You'll see.”

As AJ led War towards the center of the field; Dash had finished up her part of the offer. Once there; he concentrated for a moment to summon a different gauntlet than the chain used the night before.

“I'd recommend you not stand,” War mused

Reluctantly; both girls and Big Mac dropped to the ground between baskets as War drove the gauntlet into the ground. The force that emerged from his Tremor Gauntlet radiated outwards, striking every tree. To their surprise; every tree found itself releasing all the apples into the baskets.

“That's the fastest harvest I've ever seen,” a female elder commented, as she hobbled over

“You're welcome,” War replied

TOGETHER

After finishing up his harvest; War decided to start heading towards the town as Death was leaving the library. Before they could get together; a pink blur grabbed them and hauled them towards a bakery.

“You two need something to eat,” she stated

“Care to give us your name,” Death questioned

“Pinkie Pie,” she answered “Here you go. A dozen specially made cookies and I won't take ‘no’ for an answer.”

Reluctantly; War grabbed a cookie and ate it as his eyes started to grow slightly in delight. Seeing his younger brother's reaction; Death slid one under his mask. In the time since the Nephilim were created; there was no time that Death was ever seen without his iconic mask so no one knew what his face looked like.

“This is the best thing I've ever eaten,” Death said

“These are beyond anything in all the realms,” War added

To Pinkie’s delight; the entire tray was finished, leaving just a few crumbs left. Before they could truly enjoy the food; screams rang out in town. Once outside; the Horsemen noticed multiple portals open as countless minions poured out along with an Abyssal Rider; armored demons, similar to the Horsemen.

“Let the slaughter commence,” the Abyssal Rider commanded

“What do we do,” Pinkie asked

“Hide. We'll take care of them,” War offered

“Growing a soft spot, are you,” Death asked with a chuckle

“I'll help,” Twilight decided

“What weapons do you have to defeat them,” Death questioned

“Magic,” she replied confidently

“No. We don't want anyone getting in the way,” War stated

Both drew their blades as the minions charged to attack. Some ponies found a stray rock or piece of wood to try to repel an unaware demon. While a few might have gotten lucky; at least two were slower and found themselves killed. Seeing this; many of the citizens headed towards the town hall and barricaded it for safety.

“Let's get rid of these pests,” a determined Dash said

The brothers started eliminating the little minions as fast as they could while Twilight and the others were attempting to use the Elements of Harmony to destroy the demons. Much to the surprise and delight of the girls; the minions found themselves fading from Equestria; leaving just the lone Abyssal Rider.

“Brother; allow me to take care of him,” War offered

“I'll get him,” Death countered “Keep watch over them.”

Despair was summoned as his master charged at the demon armed with a double bladed scythe-staff. The Rider countered Death’s attack and sent him off the horse, causing Despair to disappear.

“Done already Horseman,” the demon taunted

“Not even close.”

A second try of summoning Despair resulted in different tactics. Instead of the ‘staff’; Death changed Harvester into a lance and charged. The surprise attack against the demon brought it to the ground as Death dismounted his horse and managed to use the momentum to drive the individual small scythes into the chest; killing it.

“We did it,” Fluttershy commented

“Don't be so sure. There's more that can arrive,” Death corrected

Just as he said that; another portal opened up. Instead of a horde of minions; a lone demon crawled out. Standing taller than War; it was a bipedal creature with cracked arms that burned with magma. Rainbow Dash started to get into a running position to take down the creature.

“All of you stay back,” War commanded
“That thing will crush you easily."

“What the buck is that thing,” AJ asked

“A Gholen.”

“For once; I'd rather not know anything more,” Twilight mused

Everyone watched as the Gholen slammed one arm through the schoolhouse, causing it to instantly collapse.

“My sister Sweetie Belle was in there,” Rarity realized, rushing towards the remains

“Destroy that thing,” Death stated

“With pleasure,” War replied

As she reached the ruins; Rarity tried to grab a large piece of wood, only to struggle to lift it. Death tapped into his Reaper powers and allowed a pair of skeletal arms to manifest before tossing the wood aside. Underneath was the formerly white body of Sweetie Bell, now red with blood.

“Broken bones, possible nicked lung,” he muttered “Nearing the Well.”

“You can save her; right,” Rarity asked desperately

“I need an anchor.”

“A what?”

“Anything to keep her here.”

Rarity placed her hands gently on her sister as her horn lit up to try to connect the two together. Hoping it would create an anchor to the world; Death started chanting. A tug was felt as he realized the soul was his. A gentle nudge was all it took to return it to the body.

“Done,” he said through breaths

“Thank you,” Rarity said weakly, hugging her sister

“What happened,” Sweetie Belle asked in a whisper

“Try not to talk. You've suffered broken ribs.”

“My reflection. I saw it,” Sweetie added

“You were at the Well. That’s not good.”

“Twilight; help me heal my sister,” Rarity begged, as the latter arrived

“I've never tried to heal bones before,” Twilight replied “What is this well you speak of?”

“The Well of Souls. In simple terms; it's the gateway to the two Kingdoms,” Death answered

Seeing the demon in front of him; War started to smirk. The hordes of minions were a nice warm-up; but the Gholen was a challenge. As he charged in for an attack; the demon just raised an arm and deflected the blade with ease.

War allowed a four-barreled pistol emerge and started firing. Despite the shots not doing much in the way of damage; it did distract the Gholen long enough to attack. Sensing it was time to finish the fight; War drove his blade through the demon’s left hand, pinning it to ground before throwing a few extra punches to stun it. Finally; he jumped off the back of the demon and drove Chaoseater through its neck, killing it.

“They're gone,” Fluttershy said “What do we do now?”

“We need to carefully get your sister to the hospital,” Applejack answered

“What about the demons,” Pinkie asked

“I'd recommend leaving the town,” War mused

“We can't leave our home,” Dash argued

“Let's take care of your sister,” Death stated, changing the subject

After summoning Despair; Death gently lifted Sweetie Belle to his lap and took off towards the hospital with Rarity running along side. Instead of dismissing the horse outside; Death allowed himself to enter the building before carefully dismissing Despair to avoid further injuring his passenger.

“Get this female into surgery now,” Death demanded

“And why should we listen to you,” a nurse retorted

“She has multiple broken bones and is just above the limit. Why don’t you tell her sister you won't admit someone.”

“Get this patient into a room now,” the nurse yelled over her shoulder “What limit do you refer to?”

“If you don't help her; she will be dead.”

Once there; Sweetie was immediately rushed to a room to take of her broken ribs. Wanting time alone after dropping the two off; the Horsemen headed back to the castle as Death summoned ghouls to guard the perimeter.

“What do you think?”

“These demons have to be here as a way of wearing us down,” Death replied

“If we weren't who we are; I'd have said it was working,” War added “What happened with Sweetie Belle?”

“That Gholen bastard crushed her. She was right at the Well of Souls when I brought her back.”

“Out of curiosity; who do you think is behind the attacks?”

“You're the expert; not me. I wouldn't be surprised if it was an ancient enemy they've seen before.”

“Grogar, Chrysalis or Tirek. Take your pick.”

“That Grogar wasn't mentioned in any of Twilight’s books and Chrysalis sounds like an insect. Maybe Tirek; but he supposedly was sent to Tartarus.”

“Well, whoever did it; I have a feeling we'll be seeing them soon.”

After the previous incident with the Gholen; the pair lost count of how many more skirmishes they fought in the days afterward. With the boost Discord had given them; Chaoseater was nearly leveled up. One night saw a cloaked visitor enter town and drain the energy from a few ponies before leaving.

“Who did this,” Twilight asked

“I saw them,” Pinkie stated “They were wearing a cloak but they had four legs.”

“Anyone know who fits that description,” Applejack asked

“Check your legends,” Death offered

“What good would that do,” Fluttershy asked

“It's worth trying,” Twilight decided “It could be Tirek, Chrysalis or Grogar; but I don't know anything about any of them.”

ELSEWHERE

“At least I've gotten a small bit of strength back,” Tirek mused “Maybe I'll return and repeat the process.”

“Have you forgotten our deal,” the demon commander taunted “I destroy these princesses in exchange for your soul.”

“And that hasn't been achieved,” Tirek countered “Maybe a handful of casualties; but none are of importance.”

“And what have you done,” the demon taunted “Nothing.”

“Perhaps I head back and finish them off myself.”

“I will have my end of the deal no matter what.”

EQUESTRIA

“Incoming,” a disembodied voice stated

Both Horsemen saw a portal open in the middle of the city as three familiar beings exited. One was noted as having a helmet on that covered him along with two pistols mounted on his sides. The other was a red-headed female that carried a whip on her side. Both were wearing armor not too unlike War’s.

“Strife, Fury; welcome to Equus,” Death stated

“We know,” Fury countered “This thing told us.”

“What brings you here,” Twilight asked

“They're here for the same reasons,” Discord answered, before turning to War & Death “And they're just like you two gents.”

“We heard you've had a demon problem,” Strife taunted

“Nothing we couldn't take care of,” Death said “But; we certainly welcome the extra help.”

“Well; there have been a few bodies that were drained,” Twilight added

“Dead or what,” Fury asked

“Alive; but drained of their magic,” Twilight clarified

“Let's get back to the shelter,” Death offered

“Where is this shelter,” Strife asked

“Everfree Forest. It's the ruins of an old castle.”

“See you later,” Dash called, as Horsemen left

“Let's just set things straight,” Death said “We're all Displaced.”

“Isn't that obvious,” Strife asked sarcastically “We're in a new world.”

“I mean the four of us were humans that were sent to this world.”

“Damn,” Fury muttered “I don't remember anything about that.”

“I remember buying my guns and your whip; sis,” Strife said “After that; I've got nothing until Discord showed up.”

“So; what do we do,” she asked

“My brother and I have just been playing our roles for a while now,” War answered

“I guess we'll do the same,” Strife and Fury said together

“The only thing I hated was getting a chest with two of the Grand Abominations in there,” Death commented

“Seriously? I've never heard of them,” Fury commented

“It's better you haven't. Although your current persona would know about it.”

“You said we were all Displaced; right,” Strife asked

“Yes. What about it?”

“Well; why don't we each make an individual token to summon us,” he suggested

“I can't believe I'm going to say this but you're right.”

Each of them decided to grab something personal to them as they started their creed. War drew his Chaoseater and held it in his hand before starting.

“I am War of the Four Horsemen from Darksiders, for those who seek my aid, stab Chaoseater into the ground and I will come. Be warned if you try to use me to upset the Balance then I will end you.”

“I am Fury of the Four Horsemen from Darksiders. Crush my eye in your hand; but if you call me you better have a good reason to summon me. Be warned if you try to use me to upset the Balance I will end you slowly and make sure you feel every second.”

“I am Strife of the Four Horsemen from Darksiders. If you are in need of a sharp shooter or just want to shoot the shit; fire my gun while calling my name and I'll come. But I'll have to kill ya if you try to upset the Balance.”

“Your turn brother,” War stated

“Give me a minute,” Death answered while turning around

“I am Death of the Four Horsemen from Darksiders. If you have need of me to slay your enemies, wear my mask and call my name. Be warned if you try to use me to upset the Balance I will kill you and your allies.”

“I don't think I've ever seen you without your mask,” Strife mused

“And you NEVER will,” Death retorted

Having finished their oaths for summoning; each threw the respective items into the air as a portal manifested itself. A few seconds later; each item dropped back into their hands before the portal disappeared as quickly as it arrived. Death quickly replaced his mask before facing his siblings.

Growing impatient with the demons; Tirek headed back to Ponyville and drained the energy from more ponies. Over the next few days; he drained all but nine ponies. The remaining six Harmony bearers and the members of the Cutie Mark Crusaders were currently at Sweet Apple Acres discussing plans.

“This isn't good,” Fluttershy said

“We're all that's left,” Pinkie added sadly

“When I looked in the library; I found a centaur named ‘Tirek’ that was banished to Tartarus for trying to steal energy,” Twilight said

“Then we have to stop him,” Dash decided
“Agreed,” Applejack stated “We are the Elements of Harmony.”

“What about Death and the others,” Rarity asked

“Let them be the first defense,” Scootaloo offered

“That's not nice, Scoots,” Dash chastised “They're better as backup.”

“Really, Dash,” Fluttershy asked

“Why not? If we can't use the Elements; they could kill him,” Dash offered “I mean; War did kill a timberwolf not too long ago.”

The next day; Twilight and the others donned their respective Element of Harmony and headed out to the center of town to wait for Tirek to arrive. Death and the others, along with Spike agreed to hide and wait.

“Well; isn't this a first,” Tirek mused “A group of puny ponies trying to stand up to me.”

“We're going to stop you,” Dash said confidently

“I've heard that before. Your precious princesses said that before banishing me to Tartarus,” he refuted “What makes a pair of unicorns think they are any better?”

“We've got this,” Twilight stated

As the girls were getting ready to use the Elements; Tirek made the first move and drained their magic entirely. Spike quickly wrote a letter to Celestia letting her know the bad news.

“What do we do,” Spike asked himself “Everyone's magic is drained.”

“That was too easy,” Tirek mused “Before I move on; I'll allow some demons to eliminate the residents.”

“Discord,” Spike begged

“What can I do for you,” he asked

“Save the residents,” Spike answered “Please. Tirek is going to kill them.”

“Done,” Discord said, snapping his fingers “Send me a message or call me before you defeat him so I can return the people to get their magic back.”

At Tirek’s command; hordes of demons showed up and started attacking Ponyville. Other hordes decided to attack Canterlot in preparation for Tirek to completely destroy the princesses.

CANTERLOT

“Princesses; creatures have been,” a guard started

Before the guard could finish his thought; Luna and Celestia saw for themselves what he was going to say. A demon attacked and decapitated the guard before being dispatched by Luna.

“Grab Twilight Velvet and Night Light and bring them here. Have Shining round up whatever guards he can to defend the castle,” Celestia said, turning to her sister

“Bad news on that,” Shining interrupted, bursting into the throne room “I'm the last guard alive.”

“I just sent my sister to grab your parents,” Celestia said, before a scroll manifested “Oh no. Tirek is back and drained the energy from everyone in Ponyville.”

“What are we going to do,” he asked hopelessly

“You are Captain of the Guard. I don't care if we're the last group in Canterlot,” Celestia argued “We will protect this to our dying breath.”

A few seconds later; Luna returned with Shining’s parents. Two swords were summoned and handed to them as the five prepared to kill the incoming demons.

PONYVILLE

“Since they're destroying the town; let's spoil the fun,” Strife suggested

“What about Canterlot,” Spike asked

“We're just going to have to hope they can hold out,” War replied

“In the meantime; go to the castle ruins and stay put,” Death ordered

Before Spike could give a response; he ended up belching out a letter from Celestia.

“Canterlot castle guard has fallen. Only remaining members are Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet, Night Light, Luna and myself. Will gladly accept any help you can give.
-Celestia,” Spike read aloud

“Strife; Fury get to the castle and help out,” Death said with a sigh

“I'm not sure about that,” Strife retorted “Firearms don't work well in enclosed spaces if you haven't noticed.”

“Take these and get going,” Death said, handing over the Possessed Claws “Fury; use any version of your weapon that's not the whip.”

“Take care of the castle and we'll take down the demons here,” War added

“Um; be safe all of you,” Spike added meekly

With that; the two summoned their horses Mayhem and Rampage and raced off to help the princesses. War and Death drew their pistols in the hope of distracting the huge centaur in front of them.

CANTERLOT

“Let's get in there,” Strife said

“Well brother; I see free target practice,” Fury joked

Standing on the other side of gate surrounding the castle was a horde of demons waiting to attack. As the Horsemen rode by; Fury’s whip was unleashed and cleared a path in front while her brother finished off any stragglers.

“Dammit,” she growled

“What is it,” he asked

“I can't change my whip into anything else.”

“Here,” he offered “Use the claws Death gave me; and I'll take my swords.”

“Thanks.”

The interior was no better with countless more patrolling the corridors. Without a map to get around; the pair of Horsemen made their way through the castle checking for any demon they might have missed. Finally; they made it to the throne room nearly half hour later.

“Looks like we came just in time,” Fury mused

“Our apologies for being late; but there was a line,” Strife joked

“How many more are there,” Luna asked

“None. As to how many we cleared out; everything save the already deceased bodies,” he replied

“Thank you for getting rid of the stragglers,” Celestia said with a bow

“What's going to happen now,” Velvet asked “We can't stay here.”

“Well; you could find shelter in the town.”

“That's where Tirek is. Are you seriously suggesting we kill ourselves,” Night Light added

“Actually; that's exactly what we're going to do,’ Celestia decided “I'll teleport us to the ruins of our old castle that way we're nearby if needed.”

“Needed; definitely not. But we'll at least be able to protect you. These demons were obviously intent on killing you,” Fury countered

“We'll teleport there and you get back as soon as you can,” Luna said

With that done; they raced back to join their brothers, hoping to get a chance to fight.

PONYVILLE

“Greeting Horsemen,” a voice said

“What does a demon like you want,” Fury asked

“Merely to help you out. This is an enemy you haven't faced before. In here are three Wrath crystals and four Health crystals,” Vulgrim answered, handing over a bag

“Thank you,” War replied

“Why only three Wrath crystals,” Strife questioned, looking in the bag

“I cannot answer that,” Vulgrim mused

“How'd it go at the castle,” Death asked

“By the time we got there; just a handful of survivors were left,” Strife answered “Other than that; we had free target practice.”

“FORGETTING SOMEONE,” Tirek boomed

“I'm sorry; did you say something,” Death asked sarcastically

Looking over at Tirek; the Horsemen finally noticed the massive size increase of their opponent. He now stood over the tops of trees in the Everfree Forest and could have used one as a toothpick if he wanted. All three of the males drew their pistols and let loose with shots.

“And what good did that do,” Fury asked as they temporarily stopped

“Well; pissing him off always works,” Strife retorted “Unless you have a better idea.”

“Why not dodge,” she stated

Tirek brought his right front hoof sending shockwaves out; causing any structure that was still standing to finally collapse from the force. Death found himself having an unseen smirk at an idea he just thought of.

“I'm going to need everyone's help.”

“What do you have in mind,” Strife asked

“You keep him busy, while Fury is going to climb on.”

“Is that really a good idea,” War asked

“It's more than we had before,” Death retorted

“How'd you plan on doing this,” Fury chimed in

“You scale the behemoth and attack from above while War takes out the legs.”

“Give me one of those Wrath crystals. I'll use it on his back,” she decided, accepting a crystal

“I'll use one to add some assistance in taking his legs out,” War added, taking the next

“And the last will allow me to truly finish it,” Death added, taking the last

“Good luck to you all,” Strife said “I'll play medic for anyone that needs it.”

Rampage, Ruin and Despair were summoned as the plan was started. Fury had her mount gain a little more speed to avoid a hoof as Tirek attempted to squash them. Her final destination was behind his tail as her whip was used to latch onto the appendage before starting her assent.

“Ah. I'll get you for that,” Tirek howled

“Not likely,” she muttered to herself

Once at the top of the centaur and sensing an irritant; Tirek attempted to buck Fury off. In response; her whip was altered to claws and sunk into the skin to hold on. Due to his massive size; Tirek may have felt barely a pinch from the claws despite them being embedded.

“Yee Haw,” Strife called “Ride ‘em Fury!”

After believing the creature to be gone; Tirek stopped bucking. Sensing now was her chance; Fury grabbed the crystal out and crushed it in her hand, allowing the energy contained inside to flow into her. Tapping into her ability; she grew twice the size and gained a second blade. The attack began as she started to lash the centaur’s back and torso, creating major gashes.

“I'M GOING TO KILL YOU,” Tirek screamed

As he reached around in an attempt to grab her; one of the swords was swung at his hand, resulting in the amputation and cauterization of the wound.

PRINCESSES

“Is that good,” Spike whispered “The yelling?”

“I don't know,” Shining answered

“Hopefully that means the Horsemen are doing something good,” Luna offered

“Well; I always figured they would be the last line of defense,” Celestia added “Plus; they aren't afraid to kill if necessary.”

HORSEMEN

With the gashes on Tirek slowing his reactions; War decided to continue the attack and activated his Wrath crystal. After turning into a flaming creature; he started slicing into the legs to further damage the giant centaur.

“You'll pay for this,” Tirek threatened “I'll send you to Tartarus.”

“You'll be there long before we will,” Death retorted

PRINCESSES

“Should we check on how they're doing,” Spike asked

“Why would you need to do that,” Velvet asked

“When I asked Discord to save the citizens; he asked me to notify him before Tirek is defeated so the citizens can get their energy back,” Spike replied

“I suppose we should,” Shining mused “Stay behind us Spike. You're too young to see the carnage.”

“I saw plenty during the Gala,” Spike stated “I'll be fine.”

“Let's get going everyone,” Celestia said

HORSEMEN

As Strife heard movement coming from behind him; he repositioned one of the pistols behind him in case an attack was imminent.

“Don’t shoot,” Spike exclaimed “We're friends.”

“Wow,” Shining mused “You four weren't playing around.”

“So that's the power of the Four Horsemen,” Luna muttered

The group saw the decimated body of Tirek as Shining had to turn his parents away from the carnage. War had just finished hacking through the massive rear legs of the centaur as he stood on the verge of death. Before Death could finish off their opponent; a portal opened up as a demon emerged.

“What do you want,” Death demanded

“Easy, horseman,” the demon replied “I'm just here for his soul. He made a pact to destroy a few creatures for his soul.”

“Wait a few moments and you'll have it,” Death offered

“Very well,” the demon decided

“Discord,” Spike called “It's time.”

With that; Discord stepped out from a portal as the rest of the residents were brought out and landed near Celestia on the side.

“Is…that…Tirek,” Twilight asked weakly

“You'll want to look away,” Death offered

“Do you really think you can destroy me,” Tirek demanded “The others will have their revenge!”

For safety; Celestia and Luna summoned a black curtain to surround the ponies. Death removed the final Wrath crystal and used it to tap into his true nature of a bigger version of a Grim Reaper. The scythe was brought down through Tirek’s neck; finally killing him. All the magic that was absorbed was returned to its rightful owners as the demon took his soul and the curtain disappeared.

“It's over,” Pinkie asked

“That's Death,” Dash asked “He looks so cool!”

“Where are we going to live,” someone asked “The town was destroyed.”

“I'll fix that,” Discord said, snapping his fingers “All back to normal.”

“Congratulations Horsemen,” another visitor said, before changing shape to the Merchant “After the hard work you four have accomplished; I'd like to off you a chance to return home.”

The Horsemen decided to step off to the side for their discussion as the Merchant summoned a portal on the ground.

“What do you think,” Strife asked

“A chance to go home,” Fury added

“Hey girls; any of you know who that is,” Twilight asked

“We was ‘bout ta ask you tha same,” AJ countered

“We might not know the being is; but Death and the others certainly do,” Rarity added

“What do you think they do,” Fluttershy asked

“That's their decision alone,” Dash said

“Well, if they decide to stay; then I need to work on a party,” Pinkie mused, starting to run off

“Wait a minute Pinkie,” Twilight offered “Let's wait and see what happens before you run off for nothing.”

“Okie dokie Lokie,” Pinkie said, sitting down

After having made their decision; the four headed towards the gathering to reveal their answer.

“On behalf of my siblings; we're going to have to turn down the offer,” Death stated

“Very well. Good luck in this world,” the Merchant said before disappearing

“You're staying,” Pinkie asked

“That is what he said,” Strife clarified

“I'm going to get started on the cake,” she called

“How does she do that,” Fury asked

“It's better you not know,” Twilight offered “Although we don't know how it works anyways.”

“Nor do I,” Pinkie added, her head poking out from Fury’s arm

“Don't do that again,” Fury threatened as Pinkie’s head disappeared

“What are we going to do about the guard,” Shining asked

“What happened to them,” Twilight asked

“They were killed when Canterlot Castle was attacked. Mom and Dad are the only other survivors,” Shining said, hanging his head

“I'd like to have this party in the castle if you don't mind. Twilight; you and your friends and their younger siblings will join us,” Celestia stated “The four of you can get there how you'd like.”