Amidst the Howling Dark

Chapters

I - Badlands
II - World of Harmony
III - Immortal Div
IV - Resolve
V - Sacrament of Blood
Intermission
VI - The Other Half
VII - First Blood
VIII - Descent
IX - The Spreading Malice
X - To Stand Before the Storm
Intermission
XI - The Howling Darkness
XII - A World at War
XIII - Neon God
XIV - Final Days
Finale - The Sword and the Shield
His Name Was De'mah
XV - The Way the World Ends

I - Badlands

Badlands

It was a peculiar world, so unlike Sanghelios. Vast, blue oceans and vast, green plains. The mountains were familiar, but not their snowy caps. Sprawling arctic tundra sent his mind reeling most, but in the midst of this confusing maelstrom were the badlands. An arid, barren desert, it reminded him so fondly of Sanghelios. Of home. It was here he touched down, gently placing his single-occupant craft down upon the dry earth.

When his booted feet struck the rock and sand it was almost like being back on Sanghelios. Pillars of stone rose into the air far from the cliff he landed on, and a magnificent natural arch shaded a winding path as it ascended up a nearby mountain. Near the cliff was its own path, winding down into depths unknown. Perhaps to the surface, perhaps to a cave, perhaps to a settlement. The Sangheili were no ignorants; it was a divine certainty that their universe held other intelligent life. The gifts of the Forerunners was proof alone of that.

But others?

There was a soft click as De'mah 'Tokam keyed the recorder built into the left gauntlet of his armored environment suit, and he brought his wrist up to his facemask. "It is day 28th of the Seventh Cycle, and I have touched down upon a world so much unlike Sanghelios. A vast desert covering not even a tenth of the world's surface is the only feature that reminds one of home, the rest dominated by trees and oceans, tundra and snow-capped mountains. That a magnificent world such as this could exist among the cosmos fills one with a sense of wonder and amazement. Were I a whelp, my mind would run away with the imaginings of what I will find. Instead, I will endeavor to discover the truth for myself, lest I fall to flights of fantasy" De'mah said, keying another button and ending the recording.

And so it was he began the trek down the winding path near his craft, the narrow path hemmed in by high walls of rock, the sounds of crunching sand echoing off the stone as he went. Though he was reminded visually of Sanghelios he had to admit the climate wasn't quite the same; it was much cooler, the air breezier. It created an unusual feeling for him, that the desert looked so much like Sanghelios but felt nothing like it. 'Alien' was the best way to put it, and certainly the most appropriate.

What's more is that it wasn't his first world. He'd been tasked by the elders of the state of 'Tokam with travelling the stars to find more of the Forerunners' blessings and inform said elders of their locations, so that they might be guarded against desecration by the greedy and ignorant. Sanghelios had never been visited by another species, save for the Forerunners, but it was common knowledge amongst their race that one did not tread upon the holy grounds of the Forerunners, lest one face their wrath*.

And so it was that De'mah had visited a dozen worlds across half that number of star systems, finding naught but barren and empty rocks and solemn gas giants. On each he'd found nothing more than exotic plant life and an all-encompassing silence that permeated their alien skies.

Unlike all of the others, though, this one held promise, for it looked nothing like all the other planets he'd seen. It was here, he was certain, that he'd find a land once graced by the majesty of the Forerunners, and with such a discovery he would return to Sanghelios, be given his suffix**, and be made a true elite of the 'Tokam state.

De'mah reached the bottom of the winding path and stared in awe at the wide expanse of the desert that stretched on unto the horizon far before him. Vast, arid plains went on without end, the countless sands interrupted only by the sparse cactus and desert bush. Finding anything of note in such a place would be a monumental task indeed.

Picking his direction De'mah stepped forward, intent on just heading straight out into the desert. A flock of unknown birds glided far above, but weren't worth noting. Surveying such a magnificent planet would take time, and De'mah knew he needed to make as much distance as he could to begin his expedition.

It would be a long day.

After several hours of walking De'mah was content to call it a day and hunker down for the night. He had his rations with him, so it'd just be a matter of finding a cave or burrow to bed down in. The sun was setting, casting long shadows across the ground and an odd purple hue in the sky that De'mah found captivating in a way.

De'mah paused as his foot struck something hard, and he looked down. The sand had ended, or at least had been interrupted, by a narrow stretch of stones, running on beyond sight to both De'mah's left and right. A road? A natural phenomenom? It was hard to say. It'd be something worth walking the following day.

"Day 28 addendum. I have begun my trek across this wide desert, and have found a stone path, perhaps laid by intelligent life. The day has ended, and I will endeavor to follow this path the next day. I have no other observations, save for having seen some bird life. Tomorrow will bring more, I'm sure."

De'mah cast his gaze around until it settled on a rock near the road, the bulk of the rock buried in the sand. A flat shelf of it extended partially into the air, and there was a burrow underneath the shelf. A perfect place to bed down for the night. De'mah hopped up onto the rock and sat down, staring out down the stony road. The desert had grown cool and quiet; it was just him and the rocks. Alone on this world as equally as he'd been alone on the others. If the desert didn't pan out he'd head back to the ship and make way to one of the forested lands, or islands, and survey their rolling hills of green and tall trees.

Those snowy mountains were of note, as well. Suppress it as I might I cannot deny my curiosity. If this world has not been graced by the Forerunners then I shall simply take note of its natural splendor. The elders might have some interest in studying it themselves.

As he prepared to climb down the rock and into the burrow De'mah became aware of a glow on the horizon, and he perked up. It was a soft light, orange in color, and wide. Curious, he hopped down and began to walk down the road towards the light. As he neared it, he began to hear some sounds and noises, suggesting some manner of commotion or excitement, and he saw the source of the light as some lamps mounted up on some large wheeled carts. Wagons, if he had to guess. Three on each side of the road, with a gaggle of some unknown life forms clustered together on the road itself.

The sound of De'mah's footsteps caught the creatures' attention, and they all turned to look at him. There was six of them, all feathered and sporting modest beaks upon their avian faces. Quadrupedal, they lied on their sides, thin tails flicking in the night air. They regarded him with wide, orange and blue eyes, their alien conversations dying on their tongues as the sight of De'mah stole their voices.

De'mah watched as one of them slowly picked up what appeared to be a spear, but made no further move. Really it seemed the lot of them were awestruck by the sight of the Sangheili before them, and De'mah struggled to decide on what to say, if anything. It was nearly a certainty that they would not understand a word of his, nor he of them, and so they'd all be able to do little more than gesture and struggle to work their way through the language barrier.

In the end De'mah decided to let them make the first move, and so he stayed silent as they all stood up and approached him. Not a one of them was a unit taller than five***, and so they all had to crane their heads back to meet De'mah's gaze, obscured by the light tint of his helmet's faceplate. They spoke to each other, in a language De'mah did not know, as expected, and stayed a careful distance from him. One stepped forward and addressed him directly, and he merely shrugged, hoping they'd get the hint. One of them came around to De'mah's side and walked behind him, and his hand gingerly touched the handle of the energy sword mounted to his hip. Their body language seemed to indicate caution and hesitance, and so it was unlikely they'd attempt to attack him, but De'mah wasn't one to take unnecessary risks.

The one circling him completed his inspection without incident, and returned to staring at him along with the others. Another one of them climbed into one of their wagons and came out carrying some things, which he then offered to De'mah. He took one such offering in his hand, a cloth bag of some type, and opened it. Inside were metallic coins, depicting images and numbers, both meaningless to the Sangheili. Next was another bag of the same cloth, this one containing colored rocks. He handed both back to the quadrupedal aliens, their expressions confused. Another of the aliens went into another wagon, and this one produced a small crate containing some metallic daggers. De'mah returned this one to the alien, as well, unable to discern what exactly these offerings were meant to do. Bribes? Gifts? Who was to say.

Finally, the first alien returned from the wagon bearing a book, and at last De'mah was intrigued. He turned the tome over, studying the alien characters written upon it, before opening it and flipping through the pages. It was a lexicon, or codex, depicting innumerable words and their meanings. A dictionary, as it were. De'mah kept this offering, intent on studying it later.

"A useful gift. I thank you" De'mah said, and the aliens looked up at him. As expected, they did not understand him, but one ventured forward to try to speak with him again. It asked of him something he did not understand. At least, it sounded like a question.

"Name?" it asked. 'Nay-muh.' Nay-muh. What did it mean? De'mah opened the dictionary, but without knowing any of the characters or letters it was useless. He flipped the book back to the beginning and found, rather helpfully, an alphabet, complete with pronounciations.

"Aah, bee, see, dee, eee, eh... Ge-- Jee... Eyech... Aych? Ai, jay, k-- Kaya. Ell, emm, enn..." De'mah sounded out, studying the characters. "Nay-muh, nay-muh." After close to ten minutes of flipping back and forth, studying the alphabet and tracking down each of the words in the descriptions for 'nay-muh'(and tracking down the words in the description of the words in 'nay-muh's description), De'mah at last figured out the aliens were asking him his name.

"De'mah 'Tokam."

Instead of sleeping, De'mah spent that night making his way through his first conversation with an alien species.

Author's Note

*Prior to the Sangheili's first contact with the San'Shyuum, the Sangheili did not use, exploit, or reverse-engineer Forerunner technology, seeing it as an affront to the Forerunners' magnificence. First contact with the San'Shyuum, who did exploit and reverse-engineer Forerunner tech, saw the two species go to war over the matter. In the end, the Sangheili resorted to using Forerunner tech just to survive, rendering the war's point moot and leading to the founding of the Covenant. This story precedes the founding of the Covenant by about 100 years.

**In Sangheili culture, a suffix denotes one's station in life. -ee was for Covenant service, -ai for aristocracy(Vadam becomes Vadamee, for example, and returned to Vadam post-schism). De'mah was born to the 'Tokam state, and so upon fulfilling his mission will become De'mah 'Tokamai.

***For the purposes of this story, a Unit of Length is equivalent to one foot(twelve inches). The Griffons were all around 5' tall. De'mah is 7'9". A Cycle is equivalent to one month.

II - World of Harmony

World of Harmony

Equestria was the world's name, its species numerous. De'mah learned that he was in the presence of members of the Griffon species, of the state of the Griffon Empire, and that they lived in mutual benevolence with the people of the Kingdom of Equestria, populated also by a species of quadrupeds. Beyond them were the dragons of the Badlands, and at last De'mah was interested.

"Tell me of them" he asked his interpretor, a Griffon by the name of Gernhar. Over the course of the night Gernhar had helped De'mah through a crash course of their language, and De'mah had learned quickly. He would still need to study, but his grasp of their tongue grew more confident by the hour.

"A devillish species. Brutes, really. They'll fight one another at the drop of a hat."

"Dropping one's hat is such a sign of disrespect?" De'mah asked, and Gernhar shook his head.

"It's an expression. You'll learn in time. The dragons are fighters; they want to fight all the time. I really must advise you to stay away from them, should you see one. I always hate travelling through these badlands with those scaly devils flying about."

A warrior race? Intriguing. Despite Gernhar's warning, De'mah found himself wanting very much to talk with these dragons. "Have they any settlements? Any states? Allegiances?"

Gernhar scoffed. "Hardly. They're wanderers, nomads. They have their little hordes and hideouts, but you'll rarely find a group of them unless they're fighting. The sooner we're far from this desert, the better."

"And what of the Equestrians, this world's namesake?"

"A race of pacifists. Nothing like those dragons, the ponies all preach the ideals of peace and harmony. They're not without their strength, however. They're currently recovering from the reign of some twisted madcreature. Discord was his name, I believe. He ruled the Equestrians for years, perpetuating his chaos and disharmony. Nasty business, that" Gernhar said.

A race of weaklings. They could be safely ignored, De'mah was sure. "Tell me, have you ever heard of the Forerunners" he asked, and Gernhar looked at him.

"'Forerunners'? I'm afraid not. Are they your race? Come to think of it, I haven't asked where you are from yet."

"Worry not about it. If you've never seen the magnificence of the Forerunners then I'll not bother you with the details. Perhaps, in time, you'll come to learn about them another way."

After another few hours, Gernhar's caravan got back under way, parting with cordial goodbyes and leaving De'mah with the gift of their language. It was time for him to get on his own way, and seek out these dragons. If they lived in the badlands, as Gernhar had claimed, then it wouldn't be a particularly difficult matter to find them.

As De'mah went, he ruminated on what Gernhar had told him about his world, and how it had never known of the grace of the Forerunners. De'mah's instructions had been clear: if a world has no presence of their magnificence, it is worthless, but De'mah wondered about Equestria. Here was a whole planet teeming with intelligent life, some of them seemingly proud warriors. Would it not be beneficial to Sanghelios and the state of 'Tokam to learn about them? It might be that the Sangheili could benefit greatly from knowing the dragons.

Certainly they'd learn nothing from Equestria's other 'great' species. Its namesake. The ponies. Gernhar had talked at length about the kingdom and its princesses, and the idea that a state could be led to greatness by females was insulting to De'mah. Females were undoubtedly the lifeblood of a species, but they knew nothing of marshal prowess, and De'mah was convinced a state could not stand without strength. That they had created a state of their own could be explained by nothing more than circumstance and luck. It would fall, De'mah was certain of that.

The dragons, however, had no state, and De'mah found this most interesting. No state, no allegiances, no governance. He could only surmise that they survived on their strength and power, which begged the question: why did they not subjugate the other races? The strong always conquered the weak, it was a fact the Sangheili had learned long ago, and how their civilization had survived for so long.

A great shadow passed over De'mah in a flash and he looked up, catching sight of a magnificent and massive winged creature, soaring along the open sky. It hadn't seen him, or if it had it hadn't paid him any attention, and De'mah knew then he was laying eyes on his first dragon. Its scales were a brilliant topaz color, reflecting the day's high sun as it went. De'mah watched it until it disappeared from sight, his curiousity piqued.

"Day 29 of the seventh cycle, and I have made contact with an alien species. They call themselves Griffons, and their world is home to numerous other intelligent species. Most interesting of these are the dragons, a nationless race of proud warriors. I am currently endeavoring to seek them out, to understand how an intelligent race can survive without a state, and why such a strong people have not sought to crush the lessers of their world" De'mah said into his recorder. There was a copse of hills and small mountains not far ahead, with narrow passes and valleys strewn throughout. A perfect den for a dragon, if Gernhar's description could be trusted. De'mah picked a pass at random and entered, his gaze wandering along the high walls.

It was always a curious thing, the difference between the blazing heat of the expanse and the cool shade of the passes. It was one of his fondest memories of a whelp, navigating the cliffs of his native state, hunting the small vermin common to Sanghelios. The distant calls of some exotic creature, the invigorating relief from the scorching sun as he first entered a canyon, the sound of his breathing and the echos of his footfalls along the canyon walls. It was home, and he appreciated that this desert was so alike it.

The pass soon gave way to a secluded open space, gently sloping up. A few other passes led to destinations unknown, the opening populated only by some rocks and lizards. De'mah took a moment to pause, sitting upon one of the rocks and cracking open one of his ration packs.

He'd scarcely taken a bite when there was a sound of pebbles scattering, and De'mah turned to look. Loose rock and gravel skated down the face of a nearby wall, bouncing as they hit the ground. De'mah's gaze turned to see where the rocks had fallen from, and saw nothing. A lizard? A bigger creature? Simple shift of the earth?

As it was, De'mah didn't have time to postulate, as a creature almost as big as him dropped to the earth just beside him, and in a flash De'mah stood and ignited his energy sword, drawing his sword hand high and keeping the tips of the ethereal weapon pointed towards the ground. The blade's glow cast him in a haunting blue light as it reflected off the walls.

His mystery creature stood about the same height as him, covered in bronze scales from tip to toe, and at once De'mah recognized the creature as a dragon. Its eyes were a sharp ruby, and it bore what appeared to be a rather bemused expression, its body relaxed. Not an assailant, it seemed, and De'mah relaxed.

"Otdus, jeel nah oto badlands" the dragon spoke, its tone deep, bringing its clawed hands together. De'mah watched him warily, unsure of his intentions.

"Do you speak the Equestrian language?" De'mah barked, and the dragon nodded and smiled.

"Not a true outsider, you are. I ask, what brings you to our unforgiving badlands? You seem a hardy sort, but this land can catch one...unawares" the dragon said. "You come from Equestria?"

De'mah shook his head. "I come from a land much farther away, seeking the mighty dragons, to learn of their ways. I wonder how such a strong race could live without a state. I come to find answers about their supposed might."

"You seek the high lord? The high lord may not see you. He hasn't the time to entertain wanderers and outsiders" the dragon said.

"He will find the time, I am sure. I'll not leave without an understanding of your kind; the call of my honor demands it."

The dragon scoffed. "'He will find the time' says the outsider. Such an arrogance will bring a curse upon you, do not doubt it. Greater beings were struck down by the gods for lesser transgressions, outsider."

"Spare me. If you'll not aid me then I will simply find another, or find him myself. I'm a persistent Sang, it'll be an inevitability."

"Across this magnificent desert? Hardly. There are more caves across this land than there are stars in our heavens. If you are so insistent, then I will take you to the high lord. There's still no guarantee he'll see you, outsider, but that is your problem, not mine. Come" the dragon said, beckoning with a hand and turning to walk away.

The blade De'mah thought, casting his gaze upon his sword. A drawn blade cries for blood. To stow it without answering that call is a great dishonor. Whose blood would satisfy its cries, though? De'mah's? The dragon's? It would hardly do to bloody his new-found guide, but lightly pricking himself would not satisfy the blade's demands.

De'mah silenced the sword and returned its handle to his hip, shame welling up through him. He owed it a blood debt, and he swore then to repay it tenfold.

III - Immortal Div

Immortal Div

It had been quite a trek, and De'mah was told it would go on for some time more. As he and his dragon guide, Tolmirak, went the two spoke both to pass the time, and to fill in the overpowering silence of that wide desert.

"Tell me of the high lord" De'mah asked.

"It would be better to see his grandness in person, but I'll tell you what I can. Jilnarok took the reigns of our species many centuries ago, and it is under his guidance we have expanded as a proud species, through the Ages of our being. All dragons follow the Ages, even if they do not adhere to their tenets" Tolmirak explained.

"The ages?"

Tolmirak nodded. "Yes. There are five, and they form the basis for our faith in the high lord. The Age of Peace, the Age of Aggression, the Age of Subservience, the Age of Prosperity, and the Age of Deceit. At the end of the Age of Deceit, the current high lord is killed and replaced, the new one entrusted to lead us down a more golden path."

"How does this work? What does each Age entail, usually, beyond their namesakes?"

"It's a simple matter. Each era begins at the Age of Peace, where all dragons are calmed under the guidance of the new high lord. After this comes the Age of Aggression, when our new high lord's vision becomes known and our species undergoes an aggressive change into disciples of this new vision. This quickly transforms into the Age of Subservience, when all dragons come to understand the nature of our high lord's reign. It is with this understanding we enter the Age of Prosperity, a golden age, and advance our understanding of the world. At last is the Age of Deceit, a period of doubt and dissent marked by an event fitting the Age's name. Deceit from one of our own, or from an outsider. This deceit leads to the death of the current high lord, and thus the cycle starts anew. Each age can last for many hundreds of years, or for mere months. We are a constantly evolving and changing people, despite the world's impression of us."

Interesting. "How many of your kind are there?"

"It's been a long time since a wise one took count of our numbers, but it is certain that we would all blot out Celestia's sun were we to rise into the skies. We are currently in the Age of Prosperity, so we have no reason to take to the skies. It is always a question of some interest to our scholars as to what the Age of Deceit will be" Tolmirak said.

"And this Celestia? What of them?"

Tolmirak smiled. "She and her sister rule the Equestrians, who I'm sure you've heard of. The two of them are Alicorns; fast and powerful, but kind and benevolent. They are a weak people, currently struggling to recover from the chaos of some mad demon's reign."

"Discord, I was told" De'mah commented. "If they are such a weak people then I must wonder how they've survived as long as they have. That is a question I will see answered some day, after I have learned of your kind. You said that Jilnarok took his place as the high lord many centuries ago. How long does one of your blood usually live?"

"Oh we are immortal, my friend. It is only by the hand or hoof of another that we die. Otherwise, we live forever, unmarred by the passage of time and the ages. It is both a gift and a curse, and it is why we have developed the tenets of the Ages, so that we might better understand our place in the universe, and answer that question of 'why?' Why are immortal, when none of the other races are? We haven't found an answer" Tolmirak said.

An immortal race of warriors, one that waged no war, and ruled no lands but their own. De'mah was dumbstruck. Here was a race that could rule every corner of the world if they wanted, but instead they kept to themselves and their own interests, theorizing about philosophy and the nature of their own existence. They could have it ALL, they could satisfy the 'why' of their existence if they exerted their power and prowess over the other races, and find purpose in seeking their subjugation.

Instead, they contained themselves. Their high lord wasn't a grand being, he was a WEAKLING. He kept these dragons from realizing their true potential, when the answers they sought to the questions they asked were RIGHT THERE, in the lands beyond their borders. The Equestrians were weakened, why wouldn't the dragons crush them? The Griffons, little though De'mah knew of them, likely couldn't stand against the might of the dragons either. Were there any others they'd likely fall within weeks or months to the might of the dragons, and yet...nothing. It was here, in these badlands, they stayed. Isolated from the rest of the world.

De'mah had to know why.

It was nearly dusk when the two of them arrived at the mouth of a mammoth cave, stretching more than 50 units into the air, its maw a howling darkness. Tolmirak gestured for De'mah to step forward, and so he did, the drake close behind. The cave winded into a mountain without peak, and the darkness soon gave way to the lights of torches along the stony walls. De'mah plodded deeper in, certain that he was entering the den of the dragon high lord, and certain he would get his answers.

De'mah rounded a bend in the cave and paused, feeling the earth shake beneath his feet. He continued on a bit slower, a great cavern ahead illuminated by innumerable torches, hills and piles of gleaming metal inside. He and Tolmirak entered the cavern, stretching on for eternity, and again De'mah could not find his words. The artificial light mixed with the natural glows of some exotic fungus along both the floor and ceiling, mingling with the stalagtites and stalagmites. The hills of gleaming metal were revealed to be great piles of golden coins and colored rocks, the same De'mah had been shown by the Griffon caravan, the piles clustered at random.

A distant rock formation rumbled and shifted, and as it unfurled De'mah was again dumbstruck by what he saw. It was not a rock formation, but rather a great dragon, five times as tall as De'mah was. He watched in awe as the magnificent wyvern thundered slowly toward him and his guide, black smoke billowing from his snout as he came. His scales were a bold and vibrant red, and they shined in the light of the cave.

"Iln otdus, il vele..." the dragon growled low, probably the equivalent of a whisper, but the walls shook all the same. De'mah had never been afraid of another being, but it was here, in this cave, that he finally understood fear. This dragon, if he was the high lord, was no doubt a weakling mentally, but there was no doubt he commanded fear and respect simply through his size alone. "Lu trem auo silnek tortrumuh."

"Er otdus neki vildu oto Div, hih lar. He speaks the Equestrian language" Tolmirak said, and the mammoth dragon cast his gaze upon De'mah.

"An ignorant tongue for an ignorant. What would compel you to seek our wisdom, outsider? We could hardly teach one of your size anything of value. Knowledge is all you'll gain from us, I assure you of that" the dragon declared.

"Knowledge will be more than sufficient. If I seek anything more than that, then I will find it on my own" De'mah said, and the dragon scoffed, black smoke once more billowing out and rising into the air. He craned his neck down the ground until his head was level with De'mah's, and his brilliant green eyes bored into the Sangheili.

"Knowledge is hardly sufficient. Because when one finally attains that knowledge, they seek to act on that knowledge. The question we will come to see, in time, is just what you will do with what I teach you. I am Jilnarok," the dragon said, raising his head back up into the air, unfurling his titanic wings and throwing them up. "Er Hih Lar oto Div. The High Lord of the Dragons."

IV - Resolve

Resolve

"Tolmirak told you the basics, but only that. Of course I killed the last high lord, but he was no fool. He was a strong one, a mighty one, but he led us astray. That is how the Ages work. Their names are more esoteric than descriptive, more symbolic than depictive. The last high lord did not deceive us, nor did an outsider, he simply led us down a path that I felt spelled failure for the Div, and so I put an end to it. Had he won, it would've affirmed the strength of his vision, and put to rest the doubters. As it were, he fell, and my victory proved the frailty of his vision for our people."

De'mah had spent the night speaking with Jilnarok and learning of dragon lore and culture. The basic gist of the Ages being the dragons' religion was more or less true, but it wasn't exactly accurate. It seemed, to De'mah, that it was less about the 'why' and more about the 'how.' The dragons had no god, just the high lord. They had no spirituality, just the Ages and their tenets. It was a cycle that defined dragon culture, and formed the basis of their loose society. They sought only to answer the questions surrounding the nature of their being, and to strive towards a better understanding of life. Even, De'mah noted, as they fought and killed each other.

"So in killing him, you proved yourself the stronger dragon, and thus the one who should lead your kind" De'mah said, falling back on what he'd learned growing up. The strong always consumed the weak; it was the way of Sanghelios and the Sangheili. And, it seemed, it was the way of the dragons. They talked at length about their 'Ages' and presented themselves as intellectuals, but really they were a warrior culture through-and-through.

"Indeed, outsider. All dragons fight one another for dominance. Control of land, of hordes. If only the weakest of us die, the strongest will go on to advance the nature of our being, and perhaps it is those offspring who will find the answer to the great question of 'why are the Div, the dragons, immortal?'" Jilnarok finished.

De'mah took a moment to think on it when another question came to him. "The Ages, you claimed they are more complex than I was led to believe. Tell me more."

"Peace, Aggression, Subservience, Prosperity, Deceit. The five Ages, each belonging to the Cycle. Tolmirak told you what he did, but that was only half of it. He spoke only of when dragons are involved. The other half is when one of the other species is involved. Or when we involve ourselves with the other species. We all start in Peace, but in Aggression we come to understand our current place in the world. Most dragons consider Deceit the final age, but I believe Aggression to be the final Age" Jilnarok said.

"Elaborate, please."

"In the Age of Aggression, we are either victims or perpetrators of that aggression. Whether we win or lose, Subservience follows. Either of ourselves, or of our enemies. If it is us who come to be subservient, we strive to make amends with our conquerors, and eventually enter into Prosperity through mutual understanding and the guidance of the other race. Once that occurs, inevitably one of our own becomes restless, and they challenge our conquerors. The ruler of the species who subdued us is killed, and we become an independent species again. You see, under the tenets of Div Kora, the dragon code, the being that kills the high lord becomes the new high lord. Any being, dragon or no. This is how the other races play into the Ages."

"And when the high lord is dead, the new high lord takes over, and the cycle begins anew with Peace. Once peace has been attained, you or one of the other races plays into the Age of Aggression, and history repeats endlessly" De'mah said.

Jilnarok nodded. "You are wise for an outsider, it would seem. I can't help but wonder about you, and your kind, now. Sate a drake's curiosity, won't you?"

"Our history would take as long as it has occurred to explain it. We are not so different from your kind: strength through strength. The weak all fall under our boot in the end. That is how the Sangheili have lived for eons. If one cannot defend their honor or their blood, then let it be spilled upon the earth by the stronger. Blood, kin, and honor are how we ascend, and through this ascension we come to understand the magnificence of the Forerunners" De'mah explained.

"The Forerunners? Tell me of them."

"They are ancient gods, and in their grace and wisdom sought fit to gift us with their presence. None of our kind has ever seen them*, but they left signs of their presence behind. We dare not to tamper with their gifts, lest we profane them with our ignorant touch, so we resign ourselves to worship them, and hope to one day rise to their level" De'mah said.

"Fascinating. Tell me, where do your travels fit into this? Do you seek to spread the glory of these Forerunners to the other races, or to perhaps find a greater understanding from the other races?" Jilnarok asked.

De'mah shook his head. "Neither. I seek to find more of the Forerunners' gifts, and to find more planets graced by their touch, so that their gifts might be guarded against heretics. It is a vital mission, given to me by the elders of my state."

"More planets? You are from the cosmos? Tell me how this is possible" Jilnarok said, leaning forward. The two had sat upon the stones of Jilnarok's cave for many hours, and De'mah was only too happy to explain the accomplishments of his species.

"We achieved space-flight long ago, through the work and wisdom of our ancestors. We build and enclose great ships to soar among the stars, to spread our influence to other worlds, and seek out the gifts of the Forerunners, as I said. Myself, I have touched foot upon a dozen planets. Yours was the most recent. I've never seen another world such as this one; my home world looks nothing like the great forests and oceans of this planet."

"Amazing. Truly amazing. I can only imagine what it is like to visit an entire planet so unlike your own, nevermind to do it dozens of times. It is my earnest hope that one day one from our own world will be the visitor on your world" Jilnarok said.

"It's hot there. Much hotter than it is even here, in this desert. It's a beautifully dangerous world; a testament to both the nature of the universe and the strength of the Sangheili. Nature is the ultimate foe, and nature is how we came to understand that only the strong survive in this universe."

Jilnarok was silent for a moment, his great reptilian face unreadable. "I'm not so certain that it is only the strong who survive. Obviously one must have some strength, and it is how we dragons see the world, but there are other races who survive and even thrive on other tenets and ideologies. The Equestrians, for example. A strong race, but total pacifists. They survive on the strength of their ideals. Peace, harmony, tolerance. Compassion and friendship. Dragons understand kinship, but we do not subscribe to these other ideals. They seem to work well enough for the Equestrians, however."

And now they were back to this. The Equestrians. Everywhere De'mah went, it seemed, it always seemed to lead back to the Equestrians. Harmony? Compassion?! Friendship? These were the cornerstones of an entire species' culture?

"I've heard of them, but I struggle to understand how a species of pacifists could survive long enough to found their own civilization. Perhaps you know" De'mah said.

"I'm afraid I know little of the Equestrians beyond what little news trickles back to us. I know only of their rulers, Celestia and Luna. Sisters who guide their race in an unending Age of Peace, or the Equestrian equivalent. If you wish to know, you'd have to seek them out" Jilnarok explained.

"This is my final question. You've explained to me the nature of the Ages, and the tenets of dragon code, so now I must ask you, as the high lord, why do you not seek to crush the other races? If you wanted, your kind could easily stamp them all out, or at least subjugate them into servitude. Why have you not?" De'mah asked.

Jilnarok shrugged. "Why would I? We would gain nothing from their subjugation. They have nothing to offer us, be it knowledge or resources, and we have nothing to offer them. Our two species leave each other alone because that is what benefits us most. Because there is no reason to do otherwise."

De'mah was bewildered. That such a species built upon a warrior culture and the philosophy of the strong conquer the weak would simply sit by and do nothing but proselytize to each other about the nature of life was bizarre. Alien. That the strong would conquer the weak was a divine certaintiy, as sure as the sun rising in the morning and as sure as the great trees blooming to breathe life into the world. De'mah may have been afraid of this 'high lord' at first sight, but now his words only confirmed what De'mah had first suspected. He was a weakling.

Something had to be done about this. De'mah had never once questioned Sangheili culture. It was what made them the Sangheili. The might and pride of their world, that gave them the right to name their world after themselves while so many other species of fauna wallowed in their states of ignorance and non-sapience. Strength, HONOR, pride in one's name and BLOOD.

These dragons...they could be so much more. They could reign over all that their sun's rays touch. They CHOOSE to sit here. Why would they do this? 'We would gain nothing by subjugating the other races'? They GAIN NOTHING by DOING NOTHING De'mah thought.

They could serve us, too. They could serve the Sangheili. Just because something is, doesn't mean that's how it has to be. The high lord can be replaced, and if I kill him, I shall become the new high lord. All of dragonkind would swear fealty to De'mah 'Tokam, to the state of 'Tokam. If I returned to Sanghelios with these dragons under my control 'Tokam would become the ULTIMATE state of SANGHELIOS. I would just have to prove my strength to them all.

I would have to kill Jilnarok.

This he would do. He would take the reigns of this great species, and lead them to a glorious future under the guidance of the Sangheili and the state of 'Tokam. This was his promise. THIS was his rite of passage. His worth as a warrior and his service to 'Tokam. It was this that would prove himself, and earn him his suffix, he was sure of it.

He would not back down.

Author's Note

*In the years before the Forerunners fired the Halo array they preserved many specimens of the Sangheili on Installation 00(along with specimens of innumerable other species), and these specimens were returned to Sanghelios by the Librarian following the array's activation. It is not known, however, whether these ancient Sangheili were evolved enough to be sapient, were cooperating with the Forerunners, or were forced onto Installation 00 to ensure their species' survival. For the purposes of this story, these ancient Sangheili were not yet evolved enough to be truly intelligent, and as such retained no records of the Forerunners when they were returned to Sanghelios.

V - Sacrament of Blood

Sacrament of Blood

With the blood of my kin, let me be born again.

With the guidance of my kin, let me rise again.

With the honor of my kin, let me venture forth again.

And with the blessing of my kin, let me journey into the next life again.

It was a quiet morning, and De'mah found himself stood upon a cliff once again, looking out beyond the endless horizon once more. A Sangheili oath on his mind, he ruminated on how this day would end, for it was this day that would see him challenge the high lord of the dragons. Would he triumph? Would he fail? It was wise for a warrior to reflect on himself before any great battle, lest he go into the next life with regrets. If he triumphed, what would happen would be a defining moment for the young Sang. If he failed, then let his kin pray to the Forerunners.

If he did triumph, though, there was the matter of what would come next. Of that, De'mah was not certain, but he knew more than anything he wanted to learn what he could of the Equestrians, and then turn his sights on them. His triumph over Jilnarok, should it come to pass, would prove his strength, and the subsequent conquest of the Equestrians would prove the divine certainty that the strong would always prevail over the weak. The other races would follow after them, and then he would return to Sanghelios a truly mighty warrior.

De'mah turned his head left and right and rolled his shoulders, stretching his limbs. He plucked the handle of his energy sword of his hip and turned it over in his hand, inspecting the runes on the hilt*. It was a beautiful, magnificent weapon, but all De'mah could think of was the blood debt he owed it. Killing Jilnarok would not satisfy that blood debt, but it would be a significant start.

De'mah turned on his heels and started heading back to the cave, energy sword handle gripped tightly in his hand. The time had to come to prove the strength and honor of his name.

Or venture forth into the next life.

De'mah's boots thudded sharply against the stone and rock of the cave as he plodded down it, past the countless torches that lined its walls and cast him in their orange glow. He entered the great cavern that marked Jilnarok's den, and saw Tolmirak speaking with the high lord. There were several other dragons present too, perched or lying on slate rocks and curled around the stalagmites. Jilnarok took notice of the Sangheili and nodded, and De'mah nodded back.

"If it isn't our otherworldly outsider. Tell me, what do you wish to learn today?" Jilnarok asked, Tolmirak stepping aside to let De'mah forward. De'mah nodded curtly at the much-smaller drake, and took a look around at the other dragons present. Some had turned to watch him, but still others paid him no mind. That would soon change.

"In the name of the honor of the state of 'Tokam and the people of Sanghelios, in service of my blood and my kin, and in the sight of the gods and those present as witness I, De'mah 'Tokam, CHALLENGE Jilnarok, High Lord of the Dragons, to single combat for the position of HIGH LORD of the DRAGONS!" De'mah thundered, all eyes turning to him.

The cavern was silent, and Jilnarok regarded him with cool eyes and an unreadable expression. Tolmirak cast his gaze to his lord, but the titan dragon remained resolute. He rose to all fours and stalked over to De'mah, looking down upon the comparitively small Sang. De'mah tensed up, but Jilnarok made no sudden moves.

"For what purpose do you make this challenge?"

"The dragons currently live in passivity, in timidity. It is time for the world, indeed the GALAXY, to know of their STRENGTH and POWER! I will show the mighty Div the true nature of their existence!"

Jilnarok was silent for a moment before he nodded. ""Jilnarok, High Lord of the Dragons and guiding strength of all his kind, accepts this challenge. Let the two great warriors have their space, and may their skill see them prevail through this fight" the mighty drake declared, and Tolmirak scurried away. Some of the nearer dragons also pulled back, and Jilnarok himself stepped back into a much more open space of the cavern.

De'mah ventured forth and ignited his energy sword, raising it into the air with the tips pointed at the ground, as was customary for Sangheili warriors fit to wield the beautiful weapon. He hunched forward and kept his left arm tense at his side. Given Jilnarok's size, De'mah would have no hope of deflecting any of his attacks, and so would have to rely solely on dodging and swinging at any openings the drake gave him.

It came as a great surprise to De'mah when Jilnarok beared his teeth, poured black smoke out of his fearsome maw, and with a flick of his neck and tongue sent forth a mighty stream of fire and magma down at De'mah, who silenced his blade and leaped forward into a mighty roll as the terrible inferno obliterated the stone he'd just stood upon. He ignited his sword once more and found he'd ended up by Jilnarok's left hind leg, and he lashed out, the dual ends of his blade blitzing through the mammoth leg as if it wasn't even there. Jilnarok stumbled forward, knocking De'mah back and sending him reeling. He hadn't severed the leg, and so it was an inconsequential wound, but he'd drawn the first blood.

De'mah scrambled out from underneath the giant dragon as he turned to kick him, and Jilnarok's gaze found him again. The high lord turned in place as he tracked the Sang, his maw glowing again. Flames licked out through the gaps between his teeth, sending dark shadows dancing across the dragon's face. He sent forth the stream of hellfire again and once more did De'mah tuck and roll forward. The brilliant flame practically lasered a cluster of stalagmites into dust, the remains dripping globs of lava.

Jilnarok next jerked the hand De'mah had landed near, hurling a cloud of dust and stones at the Sangheili, who staggered back. As De'mah recovered he saw Jilnarok bringing a mighty fist down on him, and he scrambled back as it came down, smashing the flood beneath it to pebbles. De'mah took the opportunity and darted forward, striking with the sword at the limb. it clipped Jilnarok's wrist and it gave out, forcing the dragon to catch himself with his other talon. He huffed but recovered, and De'mah began to pace, the adrenaline flowing.

As Jilnarok lowered himself to De'mah's level the Sangheili spun and tensed, but the dragon was faster. He charged forward and hit De'mah with a glancing blow, the strike enough to send the Sangheili spinning. He stumbled and fell to the ground, his energy sword digging into the earth with a horrible symphony of crackling and popping. De'mah scrambled back to his feet and drew his sword, and Jilnarok turned back face him. Jilnarok lowered his head again and as his mouth began to glow De'mah tensed, and charged to the right as Jilnarok let loose his inferno. He caught sight of De'mah running wide towards him and turned his head, the blazing stream swallowing up the earth and air in De'mah's wake. He reached the dragon's head just as he could turn it no more, and struck, the blade lashing up the side of Jilnarok's face to his ear, leaving a terrible gash but doing no serious damage.

In response to this Jilnarok jerked his head towards De'mah, inflicting a heavy blow that caused the Sangheili to bark in pain and surprise and stumble back. His armored environment suit saved him from the worst of it, but another blow like that would be grievous.

De'mah looked up just in time to watch as Jilnarok opened his mouth and lunged forward to bite De'mah in half, and the Sangheili darted under the dragon's head and ran forward, forcing the dragon to turn. He lifted his left arm just as De'mah swung, and the blade slashed naught but air, leaving De'mah exposed. He turned in a flash and saw Jilnarok's other arm swinging towards him, talons clenched in a fist. De'mah sidestepped and swung, the blade lancing along the length of the dragon's arm. Another meaningless strike.

Again did Jilnarok bring a hand down to try to crush the Sangheili, and at last De'mah saw an opening. He lunged forward and plunged his sword into the dragon's arm, the flesh warping and corrupting at the touch of the blade's searing heat. Jilnarok growled and lifted his arm, and De'mah pulled down, causing his blade to slash down the length of Jilnarok's arm as he lifted. He growled long and low as the powerful weapon tore his arm apart, and at last did it pull free, the sudden jerk sending De'mah stumbling forward. He looked up at Jilnarok, who took a moment to inspect his mangled right arm. He beared his gritted teeth as he struggled to flex his mighty talons, and he drew the arm up, keeping his weight off it.

Jilnarok's mouth began to glow again and De'mah tensed, prepared to dodge, when instead of a constant stream of fire a giant fireball erupted from the drake's mouth and sailed towards the Sangheili. He barely leapt forward in time to avoid the impact of the fireball against the stone, but the explosion's shockwave was more than enough to push De'mah off his feet.

De'mah rolled as Jilnarok tried to crush him underfoot, and was back upright in seconds. He rushed forward, underneath the dragon, and struck at the creature's soft underbelly. Jilnarok growled and leapt high into the air with a beat of his wings, putting De'mah in the middle of a brief sandstorm. The dragon landed with a tremendous BOOM! and De'mah charged at him, Jilnarok preparing his fire attack again. He coughed out a fireball and as De'mah dodged, let loose a jet of flame to try and keep the Sang penned in. With another deft roll De'mah came up next to Jilnarok's head, and swung upward, the blade lashing the drake's next. Jilnarok flicked his neck again, and De'mah scrambled aside. The Sangheili swung at the dragon's left arm, twin gashes appearing where the tips lanced the scales. A jerk of Jilnarok's arm hit De'mah square in his body, and he fell back onto his rear.

"You're a quick one, outsider. This is a good fight" Jilnarok said, no doubt trying to distract De'mah with conversation. The Sang had learned at a young age not to fall for such trickery, and when Jilnarok reared up onto his hind legs and prepared to incinerate De'mah the Sangheili rushed forward once more, his blade striking true at the dragon's left hind leg again, this time severely cutting it. The mighty dragon collapsed, nearly crushing De'mah as he came down. With the base of Jilnarok's tail above him De'mah slashed at it, and the high lord howled.

With a twist of his abdomen Jilnarok spun, missing De'mah by inches, and swung his good arm at the Sangheili, who ducked. De'mah swung at the limb and cut only air, and he was forced to roll again as Jilnarok unleashed flame at him. When he came up he was by Jilnarok's right side, and he plunged his blade deep into the drake's shoulder. Pulling it out and rushing forward as Jilnarok tried to turn he struck at the high lord's left arm, burying his blade deep into the wrist. The dragon barked, staggered forward, and turned his head towards De'mah. His hearts** thumping intensely De'mah darted forward and slashed at Jilnarok's head, the sword grievously slashing the left side of the dragon's mouth, leaving a horrific opening. Black smoke poured out of the hole and Jilnarok's nose, and he looked at De'mah with an equal fire in his eyes. He opened his gaping maw and attempted to devour De'mah again, and De'mah rushed forward.

At last he had his opening, and De'mah struck. With a great heave he sank his blade into the high lord's throat, and the dragon growled in agony. De'mah withdrew the blade and as Jilnarok's wounded body limped to face him he struck again, stabbing into the dragon's jaw. Jilnarok collapsed completely to the ground, his remaining teeth gritted and smoke billowing out with each breath, and De'mah climbed up his thick neck, a hand on one of the dragon's horns.

"FOR SANGHELIOS!" De'mah thundered, and he plunged his blade down into the high lord's head, obliterating the great drake's brain, and Jilnarok went completely limp, his body thundering against the stone as his limbs gave out. De'mah jumped off Jilnarok's corpse, staggering as he landed, his limbs trembling and legs unsure. He had won! He had triumphed!

"Pass into the next life with honor, mighty warrior" De'mah commented, silencing his blade. He looked up expectantly at the dragons present, who all stared at him with unreadable expressions. Tolmirak approached the Sangheili, whose grip tightened on the handle of his energy sword. The young drake stopped and bowed, and every other dragon present did the same.

"We pledge ourselves to the service of you, De'mah 'Tokam, for it is under your guidance as the new High Lord we look towards a better understanding of life and the world" Tolmirak said, and De'mah returned his sword's handle to his hip. He took in the moment, his gaze wandering across the numerous bowed dragons assembled in the cavern.

"Bury the former High Lord, if you would, and tell one of the dragons present to spread the news. De'mah 'Tokam pledges to bring the dragons into a new age of glory and might, and to demonstrate our power to the rest of the world" De'mah said, and Tolmirak rose.

"At once, High Lord. Have you any other commands?"

De'mah thought about it a moment before nodding, bearing his teeth in a grin. "Bring me all the knowledge you can about the Equestrians, and their rulers."

Author's Note

*In Halo canon, the energy sword was not invented until some time after the founding of the Covenant, and so is technically anachronistic for this story. For gameplay purposes, the energy sword has a limited charge, which will not be represented in this story. Being that the energy sword is a Sangheili creation, consider this one a protoype.

**Sangheili have two hearts.

Intermission

"This is their nearest village, High Lord. A rather miserable hamlet. A logging village, I believe. We stand ready" Tolmirak said to De'mah as the two stood on a small hill overlooking the said village. It was a small affair, not much more than twenty houses, plus a sawmill on the bank of a modest river. It was barely worth mentioning, but it would be a start.

"We will go, the two of us. Have the assembled dragons encircle the village, but to let a few of their kind leave, so that they may spread the word" De'mah said, and Tolmirak nodded and scurried off. He returned quickly, and the two of them stepped forward.

It'd been a few days since Jilnarok's defeat, and De'mah had spent those days learning of the Equestrians. He studied their culture, their history, and their anatomy. They were puny things, an average specimen barely high enough to be eye level with De'mah's waist, but they had more variety to their kind than the dragons. Some of their kind could fly, same as the dragons, and some could even wield what was termed 'magic', some manner of corporeal energy that allowed them to manipulate the world. The last of their kind could do neither. An unremarkable race, an unremarkable species.

De'mah and Tolmirak entered the village just as half a dozen dragons began to near, circling overhead. A few of them came down and landed around the perimeter of the village. A mild commotion began to build at the sudden arrival, but none yet dared to run. The sawmill was the largest building in the village, and so De'mah approached it. A few of the Equestrians, 'ponies' as they called themselves, had assembled there, unease painted across their small faces.

"Find me your leader!" De'mah barked. "This village is now under the control of De'mah 'Tokam and the mighty dragons."

"S-Sir, I am the leader of this hamlet. S-surely we can come to some manner of understanding? I can't imagine what your mighty dragons would want with our...modest life" the small pony, in the center of his two compatriots, said. His coat was a cream color, and there was some kind of tattoo on his flank. A 'cutie mark', De'mah was led to believe.

"There will be no understanding beyond what we demand. There will be no negotiation."

"S-sir, we have guards here. They won't agree to this. Come, let us talk" the village leader said, and De'mah looked over his shoulder. Sure enough a small assembly of 'guards' had arrived and were standing, spears ready, at the base of the ramp to the sawmill. Their 'armor' was hardly more than chain tunics. Pitiful.

De'mah turned, approached the guards, and ignited his energy sword. At once they darted forward, steel spear tips glancing harmlessly off De'mah's suit. He swung his sword up, the blade lancing up the chest and through the head of one. He fell to the ground with his head split in two. The remaining guards swarmed him, and De'mah lashed out. His sword flashed through the neck of one, decapitating him. Another rose onto his hindlegs and tried to spear De'mah, and the Sangheili stabbed the small creature through the stomach. A light blow hit him from behind and De'mah spun, his blade slashing across the back of the pony that had struck him, severing his spine and killing him. The last guard backed away slowly, and before he could run De'mah was on him. The Sangheili bent one knee and crouched as he lunged forward, and he sank his blade into the pony's chest. He dropped his spear and as De'mah drew his sword out the pony's corpse fell to the dirt.

With one last slow look around De'mah took count of the five 'guard' ponies he'd killed before he looked back up the ramp to the sawmill at the village leader, who looked stricken and horrified at the gruesome display before him. De'mah silenced his blade and ascended the ramp once more, taking heavy, plodding steps.

"W-w-w-we accept th-the terms o-of your oc-occup-pation..." the village leader said, and De'mah grinned wickedly.

"A wise decision."

VI - The Other Half

The Other Half

It was a quiet morning. Calm, serene. For this, Princess Celestia was grateful. Signs of Discord's chaos still lingered, and they were all still recovering, but even as the efforts to rebuild continued Celestia appreciated more each day the quiet stillness.

Deep in the beautiful Everfree lied the castle she shared with her sister, Luna, the modest palace rising above the treetops. Celestia stood atop one of the towers, looking out at the nearby hamlet of Ponyville. The castle hadn't been damaged much during Discord's defeat, and so efforts to rebuild had focused on the towns and villages that had suffered most from his madness.

The years had been horrible. Discod had been truly insane, twisting and altering the very fabric of reality on a whim, with no purpose or justification for it all. He simply ran amok as he desired, leaving a trail of suffering and madness in his wake. Lives lost, lives ruined, it mattered not to the King of Chaos. Sealing him away had brought Celestia great satisfaction and relief.

"My sister, is all well with you this day?" Celestia heard from behind, and she turned to find her sister before her. Luna's expression was unreadable, but Celestia could see the concern in her eyes. Many thought her sister implacable, enigmatic. Nothing could be further from the truth, Celestia knew. Her sister was a caring and empathetic soul.

"Yes, of course, Lulu. Everything is fine. I was considering paying a visit to the nearby village, if you'd like to accompany me" Celestia said, and Luna nodded. Together the two of them descended the stairs of the tower, down to the winding halls of the castle, and out to the grassy fields.

"Tis another of your fine days, Tia. Not so beautiful as my midnight canvas, of course, but a certain charm to it" Luna said, a barely perceptible smile upon her face, which Celestia returned.

"Yes, well, it would hardly be fair to steal all the light from you" Celestia replied. "If I did, how would one see once the sun has gone down? They'd all blunder about. Hardly anything would get done at night if we had to spend all our time during it apologizing to each other for bumping together."

"Hmm, of course" Luna said, her smile widening. She wasn't a laughing sort, Celestia knew, but her smile was more than enough. She only wished more ponies would take note of her sister's beauty, rather than heap all their praise upon the day Princess.

The pair quickly reached the small farming hamlet, their subjects bowing as they passed. Apple farming was Ponyville's economy, along with spending from travelers on the way to the Castle of the Two Sisters. Ponyville's Apple Inn* was said to be one of the homeliest inns in all the land. Celestia tended to agree, though she couldn't publicly endorse any private business, lest it lead to an unfair edge for the inn.

As the two Princesses neared the town square Celestia took note of some worried expressions and hushed conversations, and she began to grow concerned. Had it been just a few ponies she'd have believed it to be private matters, but as she began to see more and more she began to believe it was something more serious than whispers of a bad harvest or impending weather.

"There seems to be something afoul, Lulu" Celestia whispered to her sister, who nodded and leaned her head in closer.

"I've taken note of it as well. Perhaps we'd do well to find a publication, or speak to the town's mayor. Mayhaps they know something of the concerned looks that plague their residents" Luna said. The two turned in the direction of town hall, at the center of town square, their pace increasing. Town hall was one of the village's largest buildings, and so it wouldn't have been hard to find even had Celestia not already known where it was.

Entering into the town square Celestia saw a few ponies crowded around the stall for the town's newspaper, the shelves and racks nearly barren. There was some shouting, though Celestia didn't catch what was said, and she nodded to her sister for the two of them to check it out.

"You've sold out already?! If what you've published is true you'd best get more printed! We've got families out there on the frontier; we need to know what's going on!"

"My daughter lives in Logger's Vale, I need to know if she's alright!"

"I'm sorry everypony, I truly am, but I'm all out! I don't have any more papers and I don't know anything more! If'n-- Oh stars, thank Celestia that, well, Princess Celestia is here" she heard the stallkeeper say, and all of the ponies present turned to face her. None even dared to bow before they were crowding her, crying out.

"Princess, Princess, there's this awful news going around that Logger's Vale has been attacked! The paper says it was dragons, can you tell us anything?! We've got family there!" one of her subjects said.

"I heard it wasn't just dragons. I was told there was this horrible creature among them, leading them all!" another declared. "He attacked the town's guard. Killed them all!"

"That's not possible you old geezer. Not even a Minotaur could take on all of a town's guard at once!"

"He could if there were a bunch of dragons to help! And who you are calling a geezer, you harpy?"

"Everypony, please, calm down! My sister and I have not heard of any such dragon attacks, but I promise you we'll get to the bottom of this and get everypony the peace of mind they deserve" Celestia said, her voice rising above the crowd. She watched as the stallkeeper produced a newspaper for her, and she took it in her magical grasp.

"So you did have more papers stashed back there! How many more are you holding out on us?!"

"That was the last one! If I had more to sell, of course I'd sell them! What kind of businesspony would hold back his stock, you harpy?!"

"I'M NOT A HARPY!"

"ENOUGH!" Princess Luna thundered, and the crowd fell silent. "Nopony here is a harpy, a geezer, or anything of the sort! Now be STILL! So that my sister and I might better understand this commotion."

Celestia nodded and unfolded the newspaper, the first words alarming her.

Frontier Village Attacked!

In a shocking and horrible display the frontier village of Logger's Vale, on the border between Equestria and the dragon badlands, has been attacked! Details are sparse from what few ponies managed to escape, but all tell the tale of countless dragons descending upon the hamlet in the morning hours of last Tuesday, their numbers led by a violent and mysterious creature. The survivors tell of this creature, who called himself "De'mah 'Tokam", KILLING the town's guard and enslaving the entire village! As we all struggle to recover from the aftermath of Discord's rule, this author must question what this means for the future of Equestria.

Celestia showed the article to her sister, who looked grim. Searching through more of the paper Celestia found what was apparently a testimony from one of the village's escapees.

"It was horrible!" cried one mare, scuffed and dirty from days of running from Logger's Vale to the next nearest town, Hurricane's Respite, to tell the tale of the attack. "Those brutes all came down from the skies and surrounded the village, and when the guard tried to confront them this...this...CREATURE killed them all!"

When the young mare was asked if she could describe this 'creature' what she had to say chilled this reporter to his core.

"He was tall. Twice as tall as any of the guards he... He k-killed. Their spears just...BOUNCED off his armor, and he... He chopped them ap-apart... He was a demon, a monster. His... He... It was horrifying... He couldn't be stopped! NOTHING anypony did mattered! He danced among them and his sword just... SLASHED through those poor bucks' bodies with a terrifying flash of light. I... My sister..."

One of our secretaries had to console the troubled mare, readers. Whatever happened to Logger's Vale, it is this journalist's hope that it is put to rest quickly.

Celestia shared a look with Luna, alarmed by what they'd just read. Whatever it was, they needed to do something. It was clear they wouldn't be able to send a detachment guards. They'd probably have to go themselves, and confront this 'De'mah' the same way they confronted Discord.

"This...is a troubling development indeed, my little ponies. My sister and I are going to speak with the town's mayor, and then we're going to come up with a plan to deal with this new threat. It's clear that whatever this creature is, he's not from Equestria. We're going to do everything we can to put an end to this, quickly" Celestia said. "In the meantime, I'd like for everypony to remain calm and--"

"LOOK, UP IN THE SKY!!" a mare screamed, and Celestia turned to look. What she saw chilled her, and made her heart leap.

Dozens of dragons. Hundreds, even, soaring across the skies of Equestria, beating their wings towards the numerous villages, towns, and hamlets that dotted the kingdom. One dragon dove down towards Ponyville, his wings tucked against this body. He neared the ground and threw out his wings to slow his descent, and he perched himself on the town hall with a tremendous BOOM, ponies everywhere scrambling in panic.

"STAY YOUR HOOVES, AND HEAR THE VOICE OF KONVORNAK!" the dragon thundered. "I COME BEARING THE WORD OF THE HIGH LORD, DE'MAH 'TOKAM, SO THAT ALL MAY HEAR OF HIS MIGHT! A NEW AGE IS DAWNING, AND THE RACE OF THE DIV WILL RISE ABOVE ALL OTHERS! THE HIGH LORD, DE'MAH 'TOKAM, DEMANDS OF THE KINGDOM OF EQUESTRIA TO SEND BEFORE HIM ITS RULER, SO THAT HE MAY CAST JUDGMENT!!"

Celestia once again shared a look with her sister, her coat no doubt pale, and she was about to step forward when the dragon rose into the sky and took off, ascending into the heavens and leaving naught but a cloud of dust and dirt that slowly settled over the town square of Ponyville.

Celestia's fears then hardly prepared her for what was to come.

Author's Note

*This is a reference to Resident Evil: Outbreak, and the hotel in-game of the same name.

VII - First Blood

First Blood

"The Elements worked on Discord. Won't they do the same for this De'mah?" Luna asked of Celestia, and the day Princess nodded in agreement. After speaking with Ponyville's mayor they'd returned to the castle to discuss how best to handle the situation, and after some deliberating Luna had brought up the idea of using the Elements.

"Discord's defeat proved that the Elements, when properly used, can eradicate even the darkest of evils. Or, failing that, contain them. If the Elements do not purge this De'mah of his wickedness, then they'll at least seal him away in stone forever" Celestia said. She hoped it would be the latter, so that they might study this unknown creature and perhaps learn as much as they could from his physiology. Were there more of his kind elsewhere on their planet? What was their government? Would they retaliate? These questions and more lingered on Celestia's mind, all to be answered once 'De'mah' was dealt with.

"What of his dragons, sister? Will they need to be dealt with as well? The Elements are powerful, but to use them against on all of his followers is something I'm not sure we could manage" Luna said, and Celestia nodded. She hadn't thought of the dragons, but if anything they were likely just following De'mah, and not his ideals. She didn't know much of dragon culture, but had to figure if a non-dragon had swayed them then once he was out of the way, they would capitulate.

"We won't need to, I'm sure. Once this De'mah falls, the dragons that serve him will give up their ambitions. This whole affair is a grave thing indeed, but I'm confident that we can handle it, Lulu. If we could defeat Discord, then we can defeat this new creature" Celestia assured her sister.

"Then let us get to it."

As Celestia had come to realize, the village that De'mah had attacked was indeed on the frontier. Intrepid ponies had established villages and towns all across the wide expanse of Equestria, and Logger's Vale was one such village, being on the border between Equestria and the badlands. True to the words of the newspaper the town had been enslaved by dragons, half a dozen of them perched on buildings around the village. Celestia looked to her sister, who nodded, and they stepped forward. It'd taken them a few days of flight to reach the little hamlet, and as Celestia took in the sights she wished that they'd have been able to come sooner.

Juvenile dragons, each barely a few feet taller than Celestia, stood watch over dozens of ponies as they labored for one purpose or another. A few houses had been burned away, their remains still smoldering. Celestia could only hope that no ponies had been inside those houses, but if the newspaper article could be trusted, then she supposed it was naive of her to think that way. One juvenile dragon took note of Celestia and Luna, and stalked over to where they were trotting, dark eyes regarding them with malice. "The Equestrian Princesses. De'mah will wish to see you. Follow me, now."

Celestia and Luna did as told, falling in behind the dragon as he led them towards the sawmill. As they neared the structure Celestia took in the sight of a creature she'd never seen before, and she gasped silently. He was about as tall as the juvenile dragons, but clad in some manner of white armor that sealed his entire body from head to toe. He was bipedal, but that was the extent of features familiar to Celestia. He was no dragon, certainly no Minotaur, and so Celestia had to ask just where this thing could've come from.

A land far away, to be sure. Far beyond any known land or island, perhaps even from the entire other side of the planet.

"Stay" the dragon commanded, and he ascended the ramp to the sawmill to speak with the creature, who turned around to face the Princesses. Celestia nodded to her sister, and from the saddlepacks on their backs they floated out the Elements of Harmony. With a charge of their horns the Elements began to hover around them, and Celestia watched the creature carefully. He folded his arms over his chest but otherwise stood still, and Celestia swallowed the lump in her throat.

Here goes nothing.

"With our call upon the great Harmony, we send forth these Elements of that magical force to cleanse the wickedness of the creature De'mah 'Tokam, and to free this village from his bonds of cruelty" Celestia exclaimed, and the Elements rapidly charged up. Celestia closed her eyes as the gems ascended into the air, and when she and her sister opened their eyes the magical buildup discharged and a magnificent beam of magic ascended high into the afternoon sky before careening down towards the unknown monster. The magical energy slammed into him and he vanished in a maelstrom of color and light.

As the Elemental gems came back down the two sisters returned them to their saddlebags, and the dust and light began to dissipate as they approached the sawmill. The silhouette of the tall creature stood amidst the dust, and Celestia believed him to have been sealed in stone, immobile as the silhouette was. In the time between when they'd been charging the Elements and when they'd gone off the creature had lowered his arms, the two limbs hanging at his side. Celestia strained to see into the cloud of dust, and waved a hoof to try and dissipate it. With the creature sealed away in stone he'd have to carted bac--

From inside the cloud there was a terrible flash of light and a sound unlike anything Celestia had ever heard before, and twin blades slowly came to light, emanating from some manner of handle in the creature's hand. Celestia's eyes went wide and she stepped back with her sister as the creature stepped forward out of the dust cloud, utterly and completely unharmed. The demon leered at them from behind the tinted glass of his visor, and he raised his magical sword into the air.

As Celestia and Luna backpedaled the creature stalked toward them, and Celestia nearly tripped as her hooves hit the ramp to the sawmill. How... she thought. Luna leapt backwards off the mill, her own eyes wide with bewilderment. She landed next to Celestia as the day princess reached the ground, the heavy boots of the monster thumping loudly against the wood of the sawmill's ramp. "Nice try" the demon commented, and the two Princesses paused.

"You... You should've been defeated... I don't understand..." Celestia breathed, the demon chuckling darkly.

"You will. RISE, my dragons!! Take to THE SKIES and RAZE THEIR SOCIETY TO THE FOUNDATION!!" the demon, De'mah, bellowed, and the assembled elder dragons took flight, rising into the sky. "You'll all understand, before you all die. In the name of Sanghelios, in the name of 'Tokam, and in the name of DE'MAH!"

With a great lunge the demon darted forward and swung his sword, and Celestia lit a shield around her body. The sword strucked the shield harmlessly and De'mah recoiled, growled, and stabbed at the shield, his sword again bouncing off it.

Celestia and her sister scurried backwards, away from the creature, who tightened his grip on his mysterious sword and approached them. "You tremble before my might, the might of my power and the strength of my dragons. You are right to fear me, for I will soon rain upon your entire planet a horrific inferno, the likes of which you've never before experienced in all of your years."

"Luna... R-run!" Celestia yelled, and with a beat of her wings she rose into the air, her sister right beside her.

"STAY YOUR HOOVES, so that I might slash them from your BODY!" De'mah shouted after them, but Celestia paid the wicked monster no mind as she and Luna flew as fast as they could away from him, the wind whipping hard against Celestia's ears.

"Sweet mother why did it not work, Tia?!" Luna called out.

"I don't know!! Just fly, Lulu! Fly far and fly fast!" Celestia answered, and somehow found within her the speed to fly faster as the two Princesses raced away from Logger's Vale and back towards Ponyville and the castle. As she went Celestia couldn't help but ask herself the same question. Why didn't it work? Why didn't the Elements work?! What IS that thing!?!

She could find no answer, and so all that remained was survival.

De'mah clenched his free hand hard, his sword hand gripping the handle of the blade hard enough for his hand to shake, as he watched the coward Princesses fly away. If only he'd kept one of his dragons around, so that they could run those weaklings down. As it was, all he could do was watch them escape.

This would not do. What kind of COWARD would run from a fight? No TRUE warrior, no TRUE leader, would back down from a challenge. That they refused to meet him in a fair fight enraged De'mah, and as he thought about it more the more furious he felt. How DARE they run! How DARE they try to strike him down with their sorcery! They DESERVED to SUFFER.

"Rrrg, grrraah" De'mah howled, and he turned back towards the village, his head whipping around as he searched for something to kill, to obliterate. "RrrrRRRRGGH, TOLMIRAK! FIND A SACRIFICE FOR MY BLADE!!" he thundered as he stalked through the hamlet, his blade trailing little wisps of steam as the cool air passed over the superheated plasma. He focused in on a random hut and smashed the door in, hearing mixed yelps of fear and surprise. A few of the ponies had huddled in the small home, and De'mah wasted no time on ceremony as he cut them all apart, his blade flashing and blood and limbs and fabric and wood flying through the air. With their bodies little more than ribbons he took his rage and directed it to their house, the blade passing through tables and chairs and potted plants and windows as he hacked and slashed away.

After a time the rage died, and he was left standing in the ruined house, energy blade humming deeply in his hand. He turned away from the carnage and found Tolmirak standing outside, holding in his hands a squirming and struggling pony. She was a small one, smaller than the others. She screamed and cried for her mother as De'mah snatched her from Tolmirak's talons, and he ran his blade through her torso, silencing her. Her lifeless eyes bored into De'mah's, and with a flick of his wrist he tossed her limp body to the dirt beneath his feet. De'mah stood there, his blade still crying for blood, but there was no more to spill. It was another few moments of standing in silence before De'mah quieted his blade, and he pointed to the sky in the direction that the Equestrian Princesses had flown, and gave Tolmirak one simple command.

"Find them."

VIII - Descent

Descent

There was an earth-rumbling and tremendous BOOM as an elder dragon hit the ground, and in a blinding flash of light and heat four houses of the town of Hurricane's Respite were obliterated in an instant. The dragon took to the skies and howled a roar that echoed for miles as he traveled to another part of the town and repeated the destruction and chaos there. A dozen more dragons came down all across the town and the black smoke quickly bled into the evening sky.

De'mah 'Tokam rushed into the blazing city, his sword lit and free hand clenched. He charged into a house and cut down the ponies hiding within, kicking open the back door and stalking down the street. He silenced his sword and activated the voice amplifier built into his suit, calling out to his dragons.

"BURN THEM ALL TO CINDERS! LEAVE NONE STANDING!!" he bellowed, and ignited his sword once more. A group of pony guards rushed into the street ahead of him, and De'mah charged forward. They took note of him and raised their spears. "PONY WARRIORS, FIGHT ME WHERE YOU STAND, FOR IF YOU RUN YOU SHALL ONLY DIE TIRED!!"

He reached the group of guards, six of them in total, and slashed out, his blade decapitating one. A guard stabbed at him with a spear, and the primitive weapon glanced off his suit harmlessly. De'mah grabbed the spear and wrenched it out of the guard's hooves, and with an upward swing of his sword bisected the hapless pony. Another swung a sword, and the blade clattered against the Sangheili steel without effect. De'mah plunged his blade into the pony's chest, and as he withdrew another stabbed at him. He spun and struck the dimunitive creature with the back of his free hand, sending the pony reeling. De'mah decapitated the pony with a downward swing, and succumbing to the rage he swung wildly at the remaining two. The blade's tips catching one with a wounding blow and his foot breaking the bones of the other. De'mah pinned the pony underfoot and lanced him, and the Sangheili fell upon the last pony, lashing recklessly and reducing the guard to ribbons.

"THEY WILL ALL KNOW OF DE'MAH BEFORE THEY DIE!! AS MY DRAGONS TURN THEM TO ASH AND AS MY BLADE TAKES THEIR HEADS MY NAME WILL BE THE LAST, WORDS, ON THEIR TONGUES!!!"

Charging into another house De'mah chased down the ponies hiding inside as they ran, catching one by the tail and stabbing him through his entire body from behind. He kicked another as it scurried by, and smashed its head underfoot. Two more fell to his blade and he was back out into the street in a flash, running through ponies as they ran through the streets, a wake of flying limbs and splattering blood trailing behind him as he went. Another group of guards ran into him, and they all charged en masse.

"NONE HAVE YET CHALLENGED THE MIGHTY DE'MAH!! YOU CHOOSE ONLY THE SPOT YOU WILL DIE IN!" De'mah shouted, and set to work. The first pony fell by decapitation, the second to bisection. The third to stabbing. Fourth to slash, fifth to slice. Swords and spears and hammers clanged and scraped and scratched against him, but none drew his blood. He was a wind, a typhoon, unstoppable and unavoidable. The only hope was running, but none were able to run far. De'mah chased them down all the same, his sword taking their limbs and their heads and reducing them to bloody remains.

He charged down another street, and another group of guard ponies came out to challenge him. They formed an even line, and all lit shields in front of themselves from their horns, forming a phalanx. At last. Practice for the Princesses De'mah thought, and rushed forward. Spears stabbed forward from beside the phalanx, and De'mah leapt to the side. The left-most pony turned to face him, breaking his side of the phalanx, and De'mah stabbed at his comrade, the sword deflecting off his shield as he turned. With De'mah's arm outstretched the first pony produced a shortsword, and attempted to cut the Sangheili's limb off. De'mah withdrew his arm and the steel blade cut naught but air.

With the pony exposed De'mah swung his sword upwards, and split the stallion in two. The remaining guards all turned to face him, and De'mah charged straight into their midst. He managed to spear one with his blade before the group split into two, each side turning to face him and keeping their shields lit. De'mah turned to his right, towards the one group, and as he dashed forward he was hit in the back by some manner of blast that sent him stumbling. Growling, he turned to find one of the ponies had dropped their shield, their horn glowing. The magic-user let loose another bolt of energy, hitting De'mah in the shoulder. The Sangheili howled in rage and charged at the pony, whose shield failed to come down in time to save his forelegs from De'mah's sword. The pony tipped forward, and De'mah split him in half.

"Your feeble sorcery delays only the INEVITABLE!"

De'mah kicked one pony's magical shield and the buck stumbled back, his head turning, exposing his side. De'mah stabbed the pony's torso lengthwise, and his body dropped to the ground. There remained only three foes. Three victories, waiting to be claimed.

Hardly fulfilling victories, but they will suffice De'mah mused. The true triumph will be eradicating their Princesses. When I hold their heads in my hands is when I will have succeeded.

Within another few minutes De'mah had felled the remaining guard ponies, their blood staining both the earth and his armor. Even with their magic it'd hardly been a fair fight for them all, and though he had won De'mah was left unsatisfied. He longed to face their Princesses again. They would be a true challenge.

A group of flying ponies soared overhead, took notice of De'mah, and dove down to attack. They held in their hooves some odd contraption, and all aimed at him. With a chorus of sharp cracks narrow rods of wood tipped with steel flew at the Sangheili, few finding their mark, but the ones that did punching holes in his suit. One even managed to drive through deep enough to penetrate his flesh, though the wound was inconsequential.

"Aim for his glass helmet, flyers!" one of their number shouted, and De'mah tensed, prepared to dodge their next salvo. As it was, he never had to. A shadow passed overhead with a rumble, and De'mah and the flyers turned to look. "DRAGON!" the pony shouted, and as they all turned to fire on the wyrm he let loose hell, incinerating the flying ponies, who all fell to the earth shrieking in agony. De'mah nodded to the dragon, who flew off in search of more ponies to eradicate.

Another town, struck down before the might of De'mah 'Tokam.

"He's slaughtering them all, sister... Everywhere he goes, destruction... So many brave stallions challenged him, and he just...cut them all down... How do we beat that?" Celestia asked her sister, the two of them standing far from the burning town of Hurricane's Respite. Celestia lowered the telescope in her magical grasp and looked to her sister, who shook her head.

"I do not know, Tia. If the Elements will not, then perhaps an open confrontation will be in order. I'm sure the two of us could defeat this beast" Luna commented.

Were it so easy Celestia thought. Her and Luna were almost as tall as the creature, and had the advantages of flight and magic, but would it be enough? Celestia couldn't be sure. "Maybe we could enlist the help of the Griffons and the Minotaurs. If they see what's happening to us, they might think it wise to help strike down this De'mah, before he turns his sights them" Celestia said.

"Mayhaps, but surely it won't come to that? If we could just challenge De'mah by ourselves, with none of his dragons to interfere, we could defeat him without incident."

"But how to get him away from his dragons, to fight him alone? And what of the dragons, anyway? How did he get them to pledge loyalty to him? Why do they destroy and massacre in his name?!" Celestia exclaimed, and Luna shook her head.

"I do not know, sister."

Celestia lifted the telescope back to her eye and peered through it, catching sight of De'mah just as he finished rampaging through another house, the demon flinging a door off its hinges as he came out. He paused and stared straight at Celestia, so many miles away, and the day Princesses's heart jumped. The warrior just stood, staring her dead in the eyes even though he couldn't possibly see her, and his mandibled jaw contorted into a leer.

The scope glint!

Celestia lowered the telescope, feeling stricken. "Let's go, Luna" she said simply, and the two of them rose into the air and flew away, leaving the burning ruins of Hurricane's Respite behind. As she went, Celestia couldn't help but feel sick to her stomach. Both at the carnage De'mah wrought, and at herself for running away.

IX - The Spreading Malice

The Spreading Malice

"We've taken half a dozen of their cities, my lord" Tolmirak told De'mah as the two stood together deep in the badlands, in the cave that had once been the lair of Jilnarok. De'mah's ship was parked outside, awaiting the mighty warrior. "And I've assembled the mightiest of our kind for you to inspect."

"Very good, Tolmirak" De'mah said. He turned and walked deeper into the cave, into the cavern of the lair, and found six elder dragons waiting for him, the lot of them lined up. He approached them, and folded his arms over his chest. "Their names?" De'mah asked, and Tolmirak handed him a sheet of paper with six names written on it.

"Vinturaak" De'mah declared, and a bronze dragon with golden eyes bowed his head to the stones. De'mah ignited his sword and, using the tips, gently carved the sigil of 'Tokam into the dragon's scales. He stepped back and the dragon kept his head bowed, and De'mah looked to the list.

"Kilmeenak" the Sangheili barked, and a cobalt dragon with gray eyes bowed. De'mah repeated the marking with the drake, his head remaining bowed.

"Jormanuk." Another dragon marked. This one red with orange eyes.

"Trevaynak." Another. Green with blue eyes.

"Zornorak." Grey with green eyes.

De'mah looked to the last dragon, black as midnight with a light brown underbelly, his eyes a light cyan. "Aldurmaax" De'mah said, and the dragon bowed. He was noticeably larger than the other dragons, and De'mah marked him. The Sangheili stepped back from the six dragons, who all opened their eyes and looked to their high lord.

"I've summoned you here for am I told you are the strongest and mightiest of your kind. That you are the fastest, most powerful, and most committed. In the name of Sanghelios, in the name of the state of 'Tokam, and in the sight of the gods and Tolmirak as witness, I christen the six of you to be my Zealots! I call upon your honor as mighty Div to serve me as my guards and arbiters of my will! Carry with you the message of De'mah 'Tokam, that ALL who STAND BEFORE MY MIGHT will SUFFER!!" De'mah exclaimed, and the six dragons rose.

"Out there is the Kingdom of Equestria. Theirs is a society built upon falsehoods, a culture of weakness and cowardice. At their helm are two Princesses, two FEMALES, who pollute the minds of their subjects with stories of compassion and harmony! Their existence stands in DEFIANCE of the natural order of the UNIVERSE, and the cosmic TRUTH that the STRONG WILL ALWAYS DOMINATE THE WEAK!! Their 'kingdom' does not deserve to exist. REDUCE IT TO ASH AND CINDERS, in the name of DE'MAH 'TOKAM!!"

The six dragons bowed and set forth, the ground shaking beneat De'mah's feet as they all thundered out of the cave and rose into the midnight sky, spreading out as they headed for Equestria. De'mah followed them out, with Tolmirak close behind, and approached his ship. "There is no room for you. You will have to stay behind. I will have need of your services again, soon" De'mah said, and he climbed into the single-occupant vessel, bringing it to life and ascending into the air.

Equestria awaited.

It was the largest town De'mah had seen in the kingdom, and Ponyville was its name. Near it, he was told, was the Castle of the Two Sisters, his target. To reach it he'd have to fight his way through Ponyville, to ensure it was properly subjugated to prevent any reinforcements from coming to the castle, and to prevent any escape from the castle.

And so it was that he piloted his craft towards the sprawling town, his six Zealots barreling down on it. Already he could see the ponies within scattering and fleeing in the face of the might bearing down on them. The sight of their running sickened De'mah. Were they ALL such cowards? Even their warriors, try as they might to challenge the Sangheili, were hardly honorable.

It dawned on De'mah as he set his craft down that yes, they were all indeed cowards. A society's character was reflected by its rulers. Strong rulers, strong society. Put two creatures like the 'Princesses' in charge, and it would only be an inevitability that a stronger people would erase them from history. This was De'mah's intent. His purpose. Erase the weak, and strengthen the strong.

De'mah leapt out onto the ground, lit his blade, and stalked into the town. He caught sight of one of his Zealots, Aldurmaax, as he smashed apart the roof of the town's largest building, shoved his head inside, and obliterated the entire building with a single blast of his inferno. He rose into the sky and took off in search of another target, and De'mah himself set to work.

Wandering through the streets De'mah set out in search of any pony 'guards' or survivors attempting to flee, eager to cut them all down. He made his way towards one of the few houses not currently aflame, and kicked the door open. The first room was empty, and so De'mah slowly crept through the abode, breaking down every door he came across. Every room was empty, and so he ascended the narrow staircase to the second floor. At the top of the staircase was a room to the left, and a hallway to the right. The room was empty, and so De'mah stomped down the hall. Another door, another room, empty, and at the end of the hall was the final door. He snatched at the handle and yanked.

It was locked.

Grinning, De'mah obliterated the locked handle and the door gave way, the wood around the frame and handle smoldering. He pushed the door open, and there he found his prey. Two ponies, a male and a female, cowering together beside the bed.

"I've often wondered why you won't fight back" De'mah said, approaching them. "A cornered animal is often the one that fights most tenaciously, after all. Now I know." He paused before the couple, the tips of his energy blade mere inches from their faces, their eyes locked on it. On him. "You're all cowards. In the truest sense of the word. Cowards, weaklings. That your society has lasted as long as it has is not a coincidence, it's an injustice. A grave injustice. And I? I am the judge."

With a flick of his wrist De'mah cut the two ponies down, his blade lancing their torsos. He kicked their limp bodies aside and searched the rest of the room, finding it empty. He paused by their corpses, and grew curious. They'd been huddled on the floor beside the bed. Why not on it? This was not the only room with a bed in it, either.

Silencing his blade De'mah gripped the flowery mattress and tugged, yanking it off the frame. He pulled and the mattress slid free, and he flung it aside. There, cowered beneath the frame, was the answer to his question. Another pony, one of the truly small ones. A whelp. She whimpered as her gaze flicked from the corpses of her parents and the Sangheili towering over her, glowing in the light of his blade. De'mah took a moment to think of what to say, and it occured to him 'why say anything at all?'

Why indeed?

De'mah was about to strike the pony whelp down when the whole house was rocked by a tremendous explosion, the floorboards and walls splintering and cracking. The window to the room shattered, and De'mah growled. He'd spent too much time in the house and now one of his dragons was about to obliterate it. He stalked over to the window just as one of his dragons soared overhead, and he craned his neck to follow. He watched as the dragon, Vinturaak, set himself down on one of the town's houses and let loose hellfire into the sky. A dozen pony flyers, maybe more, circled around him, firing arrows. A few of their magic types ran down the street towards Vinturaak, and De'mah frowned.

The mighty Sangheili turned back to look at the pony whelp and thudded across the floor to her. He wasted no time on words or ceremony, running her through like the animal she was. His work done, the Sangheili climbed into the broken window and leapt out onto the ground, finding himself behind the magic ponies as they formed a shield phalanx and approached Vinturaak. The mighty drake had incinerated the flyers harassing him, and he took note of De'mah has the Sangheili stalked down the street towards the magic ponies.

De'mah nodded and Vinturaak moved, distracting the ponies as much as he could. He clambered down from the house an into the street, and lowered himself, his tail high. He swung the agile limb, smashing it through a house and sending debris towards the magic ponies, where it was deflected by their shields.

"Stand firm, bucks! We'll fell this dragon, and then do the same to his kin!" one of the ponies yelled, and De'mah grinned. Such false bravado, it was amusing. He reached their group and swung his sword, the blade flashing through two of their number, killing them instantly. The remainders panicked and spun.

"HOLY CELESTIA, it's their High Lord!!"

De'mah struck again, his sword recoiling off the pony's shield, and they all backed off and grouped up again. Focused on him. Vinturaak darted forward and bit down on the pony nearest to him, chomping the hapless stallion in half. The few ponies remaining scattered, and the two warriors went after them. De'mah chased after a pair, while Vinturaak rose into the sky with a beat of his mighty wings, and roared as he soared towards the other pony. The ponies De'mah was chasing skidded to a halt as he closed in on them, and they spun to face him, shields lit. De'mah swung early, on purpose, missing the first pony's shield by inches. With the false opening the pony dropped his shield, and De'mah swung back the other way, his blade plucking off the top half of the pony's head.

The Sangheili spun and was about to descend upon the other when he fired, hitting De'mah square in the chest. De'mah barked and staggered back, and the pony fired from his horn again, this time hitting De'mah in the shoulder. The shots hit hard, but couldn't penetrate his suit. He growled and lunged forward, his swing off-mark, the blade's tips instead raking the stallion's flesh. He yelped in pain but was otherwise unharmed. He fired again as De'mah struck forward, the shot glancing the Sangheili's side, and he stumbled to the side.

"Rrrr, enough of this!" De'mah barked, and he lunged forward again, his blade flashing upwards and cutting only air as the pony dodged to De'mah's left. His horn charged again and, although the angle was awkward, De'mah swung. This time the blade found its mark, lancing across the stallion's back and killing him.

De'mah rolled his shoulders and growled at the resulting pain. The hits had been little more than the equivalent of blows from a blunt weapon, but it was proof that their kind could harm him. He'd have to be more wary of magic types and crossbow wielders in the future.

He paused and looked around the burning town, catching sight of Vinturaak as he came back. The elder dragon landed before the High Lord and bowed before he spoke. "Their town burns, my Lord. We Zealots stand ready for your next command."

"Very good, Vinturaak. It is time we descend upon the pony castle, to destroy their Princesses. I will return to my ship and we will all fly on the castle in the nearby forest. None will escape, and before this day is done I will stand upon their castle with their Princesses's heads in my HANDS!" De'mah exclaimed, and Vinturaak grinned.

"It will be as you say, my Lord."

X - To Stand Before the Storm

To Stand Before the Storm

At last. Judgment.

De'mah directed his craft towards the pony castle as his six Zealots descended upon it. Scores of pony defenders ran about the battlements and turrets, firing heaps of arrows into the evening sky. A few even fired at De'mah's craft, the primitive arrows clattering harmlessly off the Sangheili steel. The drawbridge to the castle had been raised, to which De'mah had to laugh at. Such naivete. Even if he hadn't had his ship, he'd have just rode one of his drakes across the gorge that separated the castle from the rest of the land.

The Sangheili lowered his craft to the ground just outside the gates to the castle and disembarked. A few ponies on the wall fired down at him, but he paid them no mind. The gate to the castle was recessed, providing an arch in which De'mah took cover from the ponies on the wall. He ignited his energy sword and buried the twin prongs into the thick oak, the wood cracking, warping, and catching fire. The steel reinforcements melted and gave way, and the padlock on the other side cracked. De'mah withdrew his blade and kicked the heavy door open.

The room inside the gate was grandiose, but devoid of any defenders. De'mah stepped into the grand hall and took note of the many doors that lined both the first floor, and the second floor balcony. Finding the Princesses would be a tall order, assuming they hadn't already fled from the castle. De'mah liked to think they were somewhere in the castle, waiting for him, but knew it to be unlikely.

Taking the castle would be victory enough the Sangheili told himself. It wasn't true, but taking the castle would be a serious blow to the morale of the kingdom. Especially if he had his dragons raze it to the ground.

Picking a door at random De'mah flung it open and peered in at the room on the other side, finding a nondescript dining hall or meeting room. The door at the other end likely leading to a kitchen. De'mah huffed and picked another door, the room beyond it another dead end. He repeated this process for all the doors on the first floor, quickly growing agitated.

At last he ventured beyond the grand staircase, and saw that built underneath the staircase was another staircase, leading down. A dungeon? A keep? Hidden rooms? It was worth inspecting, and so De'mah ventured down the stairs, the damp walls lined with torches. The stairs soon gave way to a long hallway, lined with thick wood doors, an open slit on each. Prison cells, indeed. Before long the hall ended, and De'mah was forced to head back.

As he was about to ascend the stairs back to the grand hall he looked up, and what he saw at the top of the stairs gave him pause. For at the top of the staircase stood the white Princess, Celestia. De'mah raised his sword, his face bathed in its glow, but the coward Princess simply floated away. Intrigued, De'mah rushed up the stairs, and saw the pony as she flew through an open doorway on the second floor. She was taunting him!

De'mah growled and charged up the stairs, chasing after her. He caught sight of her form as it turned and winded through the corridors of the castle, just out of reach, and he grew more furious by the second. If only this coward would face him. But he knew the Princess knew she was a coward. That's why she wouldn't face him. She knew that she was a coward, she knew that she could never hope to match De'mah's strength.

At last De'mah rushed out into a large chamber, the high ceiling arched and made of thick glass, allowing the rapidly fading evening light to stream into the room. The room was devoid of many features, save for two doors, one at each end. Celestia and her sister, Luna, stood together at the far side of the room, and De'mah raised his sword at the sight of them.

"At last. Judgment" De'mah said.

"Just...tell me one thing. Who are you?" Celestia asked, and De'mah paused. That the coward wished to know of her foe before a fight gave De'mah hope that maybe she was a true warrior indeed.

"It would take long to tell you it all. I come from a planet far, far away from this one. And from a planet very much unlike this one. I came in search of gifts of the Forerunners, but what I found instead was something that sickened me. A race of warriors, content to sit by. A race of pacifists, standing in defiance of the natural order of the universe. In the name of my honor, my name, and my gods, I will correct this injustice" De'mah said.

"You're...from another planet? Tis a LIE!" Luna exclaimed, and De'mah huffed.

"What would an ignorant know of the cosmos? Were you a stronger race I would show you all the magnificence of Sanghelios. As it is, I can only show you the next life!"

"Wait, stop! The dragons... Why?" Celestia asked.

De'mah growled. "I killed their high lord, and they pledged their loyalty to me. That is how dragon code works. Whoever kills the high lord becomes the high lord, and it is under my guidance that the Div will finally learn their true place in this universe."

"Sweet mother... When you first appeared I thought... That's why the Elements didn't work... You're not from Equestria, you're not even from our own planet!" Celestia said, horrified. "Their magic was never going to work on you..."

"No, and I'm glad Tolmirak knew that, so that I could let you cast the first strike. I really must thank you for that, Princess. It gave me more reason to punish your species" De'mah replied. "Enough talk, now. FACE ME!"

De'mah rushed forward and the two Princesses lit their shields, and as he swung his sword recoiled off the magic. Luna's shield dropped and she discharged a great beam at the Sangheili, who ducked to dodge. Striking out he swung at the dark Princess, who vanished in a flash of light. Celestia was about to fire on him when he swung back at her, and her shield came back up. Luna reappeared in a flash and fired again, and again did De'mah dodge the attack. He rushed at the night Princess, who lit a shield around her just as De'mah struck. He heard Celestia charging her horn from behind him, and Luna again teleported away. The day Princess unleashed her terrible beam and De'mah rolled to dodge, the attack obliterating the stones of the far wall.

Luna appeared next to her sister, and De'mah charged at them again. He slashed out and both Princesses disappeared in a flash, reappearing beside him. He turned to swing at Luna and Celestia fired a powerful beam at him, knocking him to the floor. He scrambled back to his feet and lunged at the two ponies once more, his sword deflecting off their shields.

"You run like cowards, and you FIGHT like COWARDS!" De'mah thundered, keeping his sword raised. He again swung and the room quickly became a maelstrom of flashing lights. Sword struck shield, beam struck Sang, Equestrian disappeared and reappeared. De'mah swung and his sword's tips raked Celestia's shield, Luna fired at him and he dodged. He swung at Luna and Celestia fired, and he dodged. They fired in unison and he dodged. He swung and missed Celestia by mere inches, and she bucked him. He swung and his sword flashed against Luna's shield, and he turned on her. He howled in fury and repeatedly slashed at the dark Princesses's shield, and Celestia fired at him.

"ANCESTORS GRANT ME NEW WIND!" De'mah bellowed as Luna teleported away, and he turned to face Celestia. "ANCESTORS GRANT ME STRENGTH." He swung and his sword dragged across the Princesses' shield. He swung again and the sparks and thaums flew. "ANCESTORS GRANT ME THE POWER TO STRIKE DOWN THESE MEANINGLESS CREATURES!!"

Luna shot De'mah in the back and he stumbled away from Celestia, who winked out and blinked back in by her sister. Once more De'mah threw himself into their midst, swinging wildly. His sword grinded over Luna's shield, and Celestia fired at him. He dodged and swung at her, and Luna fired. He dodged, and Celestia teleported. De'mah swung at the day Princess and she teleported again. And as he swung his blade back towards Luna the day Princess reappeared, and the tips of his sword flicked across her chin, an inconsequential wound. She shot him in the shoulder and he spun around, and as she flashed away her sister Luna fired again, her shot slamming into De'mah's helmet, shattering the glass of his helmet's visor.

"ARRGH!! You WILL SUFFER!" the Sangheili thundered, and stabbed at the night's avatar. "ALL WILL SUFFER IN THE NAME OF DE'MAH 'TOKAM!!"

De'mah had just swung at Luna again when there was an earth-shattering boom, and pieces of the room's glass ceiling began to fall down upon them. The two Princesses lit their shields and De'mah was forced to roll away from the falling debris, lest he be hit. The stones near the ceiling began to break away and fall, and the building shook.

"My dragons come, Princesses. My faithful. My ZEALOTS!" De'mah shouted. "They will pluck EVERY STONE FROM THIS CASTLE, and you will fall here as it ALL - TUMBLES - DOWN!!"

Again did De'mah throw himself at the two Princesses, and again did they light their shields. The mighty Sangheili could tell from their sluggish movements and flickering shields he was beating them down, and that he was so close to his triumph. He would be victorious, the same way he'd been victorious over Jilnarok!

He swung at Luna and as his sword struck her shield it flashed out of existence, and he was about to strike her down when Celestia flew straight into him, knocking him over. He swung blindly, hoping to hit the cursed coward, but she scurried back from him. He stumbled back to his feet just as the building shook again, and half of the room's upper walls were blown inward, sending chunks of stone flying. De'mah looked up to see one of his dragons, Kilmeenak, shoving his head into the chamber, black smoke pouring out of his maw.

De'mah looked back to the Princesses to find them staggering around the floor, unsteady on their hooves. Celestia was nearest, and so De'mah rushed at her, howling in fury and defiance. "FOR SANGHELIOS!!" he thundered once again, and he drew his sword back and to the left, his arm crossing in front of his body as he prepared to strike. Time seemed to slow as his blade neared his face, steam rising from the plasma, and he swung out as Celestia as she began to turn towards him.

"SISTER!" Luna roared, and shot forward. De'mah watched as she rammed into her sister's side, entangling the two of them, but it hardly mattered to De'mah which one his blade killed. His arm reached full extension just as Luna passed in front of it, and the twin tips of his beautiful sword lashed across the dark Princesses's side as she knocked her sister out of the way.

Another victory!!

The two Princesses hit the ground together and tumbled across the stones, and De'mah stood, staring at their bodies as they lied atop each other. Celestia stirred first, coughing as she looked around. She saw De'mah standing not twenty feet from them, and the Sangheili simply leered at her.

"L- ...Lulu..." Celestia breathed, and De'mah rolled his shoulders. He would watch the anguish descend upon her, revel in her suffering, before she too would be snuffed out by his blade. The day Princess rose on shaky hooves, nudging her sister, who rolled over. "Y-You're...a m-- Monster..." she whispered, directed at De'mah.

The Sangheili had nothing to say to that, and was about to step forward when the room shook again. He looked up at Kilmeenak, who turned his gaze to the sky. The room shook more and more, loose stones falling to the floor, before it began to come all tumbling down.

"Grrr, KILMEENAK! What is the meaning of this?!" De'mah shouted up at his Zealot, who reached out with his talons and began smashing away what remained of the glass ceiling. De'mah looked back to the Princesses to see Luna standing upright, leaning against her sister for support. Celestia cast one last look at De'mah before she lit a shield that covered both her and her sister, and they began to limp away.

"NOT SO FAST!!"

De'mah was about to rush after them when the ground began shaking tremendously, and he staggered to the side. He hit the wall and pushed away from it, wheeled his arms for balance, and tried to rush after the Princesses again. "WHAT IS HAPPENING?!" he roared. Kilmeenak quickly crawled into the chamber, his massive body hardly fitting, and he lowered his head to the stones.

"We must leave, my lord!"

"Not until I've had MY VICTORY! I MUST strike these cowards down!" the high lord exclaimed, turning to face the Princesses. He watched as they stumbled through the door at the opposite end of the room, and was about to give chase when the floor split, pieces and chunks of it falling away all around him and the elder dragon. He roared in anger and climbed onto Kilmeenak's neck, and the dragon rose into the air. As they hovered up and out of the room De'mah saw the entire castle coming down on itself, great clouds of dust and stone and rock kicking up into the air. Kilmeenak dropped De'mah next to his ship and the Sangheili rushed to power it up. He snatched at the control yokes and the craft rose into the air, and with a flick of the sticks he turned and raced away from the castle, Kilmeenak trailing behind him.

"COWARDS!! GUTLESS COWARDS! THEY DESERVED TO SUFFER! THEIR WHOLE RACE DESERVES TO SUFFER! They think they know TERROR?! My dragons will BLOCK OUT THEIR SUN!! They will BLANKET THEIR SKIES IN THEIR FORMS, AND BATHE THEIR CITIES IN FIRE AND BLOOD!!" De'mah roared to himself. "I will NOT REST, and I will NOT DIE UNTIL ALL OF THEIR NUMBERS HAVE BEEN EXTINGUISHED BY MY BLADE ALONE!!!"

All he could do now, though, was fly away.

Celestia limped as far away from the castle as she possibly could, deep into the Everfree forest, her sister at her side the whole way. She stopped only when she felt it was safe, gently leaning Luna against the trunk of a tree. Her sister panted almost as much as she did, but she was alive. Celestia was tremendously grateful for this. "Lulu! Lulu, oh mother, are you alright?!"

"The wound...tis but a flesh wound... I will live" the night Princess breathed, and Celestia used the last of her stamina to charge her horn, doing her best to close Luna's cuts. She was exhausted, they both were, but Luna's needs came before her own. "That thing... Tis unnatural. He truly is a demon."

"Hush Lulu, just rest. We need to get moving again soon, but I want you to get your strength back before we do" Celestia said, keeping one eye on her sister and one eye on the direction of their castle. What remained of it, anyway. It would need to be rebuilt. They would rebuild it. They would defeat De'mah and they would rebuild their castle. They'd rebuild all the towns the dark monster had burned to ash.

And, Celestia realized with horror, all the towns and cities he would go on to reduce to cinders.

Intermission

De'mah's craft had barely touched the ground when he stumbled out of it, growling in fury and frustration. He'd landed outside the cave that had been Jilnarok's lair and immediately stalked into it, huffing in rage as he went. His environment suit was ruined, of that there was no doubt. He would need new armor forged for him. He was sure the dragons could do it.

"High Lord!" he heard Tolmirak exclaim, but he paid the young drake no mind.

"Those COWARDS yet live!! I will need to track them down, and I will stop at NOTHING until I put my blade to their necks!" De'mah exclaimed. He began to strip pieces of his suit from his body. His helmet, utterly destroyed. His recorder and all the logs, ruined. The plates and pieces all scorched and singed and split. "Find a smith, NOW! I have need of new armor."

"At once, High Lord" Tolmirak said, and he scurried away. De'mah finished stripping the last of his suit, energy sword handle gripped in his hand, and was left to stand alone in the cavern, silently enraged.

"We made it... We're OK, Lulu" Celestia said to her sister. The two of them stood outside the coastal city of Manehattan, the most modern of their cities. Taxi ponies pulled their carts to and fro across the cobble streets, and a few modest office buildings rose four- and five-stories into the air. A shopkeeping mare caught sight of them, gasped, and rushed over to help the two of them.

"My stars, Princesses, are you two alright?!" the shopkeep yelled, a few other ponies taking note and rushing over to help.

"We are fine... Please, take us to the mayor's office. We have grim news" Celestia said, her sister still leaning against her.

"Oh there'll be none of that until we have a doctor see you both. Type Setter, find a taxi!" the mare exclaimed, pointing to a stallion near her, and the stallion raced off. "You'll be OK you two, you're safe here."

"Th-- Thank you, my little pony" Celestia said. Before long a taxi rushed up the street, and Celestia helped her sister climb into the cart. She hoisted herself up into it and collapsed onto the seat next to her sister, and the taxi took off into the city. Celestia closed her eyes and took a moment to breathe, relieved to finally be off her hooves. "You're s-safe now, Lulu... We're... We're safe now..." Celestia whimpered, and began to cry quietly.

"Do not... Do not cry, my sun" Luna said, her eyes fluttering open. "We will... Will come back stronger, and we will vanquish this horrible demon."

Celestia wished she could share her sister's confidence, but after seeing how he had attacked and attacked and attacked without ever relenting made her too unsure to think otherwise. Luna was right; he was a demon. There was no other explanation. He'd swung and lunged and leapt and never paused to rest. If it hadn't been for their magic, they'd have never survived as long as they had. "I love you, Lulu. I love you so much" Celestia finally said.

"We...l-love you...too, Tia" her sister breathed, and passed out. Celestia buried her face in her sister's mane and let the tears flow. And flow. And flow, and flow, and flow.

And flow.

Three weeks later.

De'mah's bare feet plodded down the sand and stone of the lair. His lair. Tolmirak walked at his side, his expression cheerful. "Not much further, High Lord. The smiths have been hard at work, and I'm sure you will love your new clad" the whelp declared.

The two entered the massive cavern and De'mah saw a young elder dragon standing on all fours, his side facing De'mah, his head turned away. At the sound of De'mah's footsteps the dragon turned, bowed to his High Lord, and backed away, revealing a wooden stand in the general shape of a Sangheili. Placed upon the stand's limbs and racks was a beautiful armor unlike any De'mah had ever seen before. It was a deep crimson, and looked perfectly suited to his frame. He stepped up to it and took in its features. The helmet, while not providing a full-seal, was masterfully crafted, the fringe coming up in spiked points. A tapered point came down in front, over where the front of his face would be, and it looked sturdy.

The rest of the armor was much of the same. Spiked shoulder pauldrons and smooth gauntlets that ended in four curled spokes that would curl into the spaces between the Sangheili's fingers. The thigh plates extended past the knees by several inches, ending in tapered points. But the crowning achievement of it all was that, in certain places along the thigh greaves and chest plates, were glowing blue gems shining out from narrow rectangular slits, illuminating the red armor in an ethereal glow that amazed the Sangheili. He stepped up to the stand, plucked the helmet from it, and slid it down onto his head. It was a perfect fit. He turned to Tolmirak and grinned, and the drake grinned back at him.

"Here is an armor fit for a High Lord. Come, help me put the rest of it on" he said, and Tolmirak stepped forward. When it was all said and done De'mah had Tolmirak find the smith, who pushed out a large mirror. De'mah peered into the reflective glass at the mighty and powerful Sangheili that stared back, clad in a blood-red armor, leering face grinning back at him.

Nothing more would stand in his way.

XI - The Howling Darkness

The Howling Darkness

It had been months, and it had all fallen apart. After Ponyville, after the castle, it all came crashing down. Baltimare, Trottingham, Buckston, Manehattan, they all burned. And in each, De'mah roamed. Celestia and Luna had retreated to the lands of the Griffons, and she spoke with adviser after adviser, read headline after headline. Everywhere she turned she saw his name. De'mah 'Tokam. The nightmare. The monster from beyond the cosmos, and his justifications never changed. To him, it was his divine purpose to erase the Equestrians from the world, and every day he did just that. With every city annihilated their numbers fell and fell, and Celestia began to grow very afraid for the future of her people.

At least, in all of this, there was Luna. Her sister. The night's avatar had indeed survived, for which Celestia was tremendously grateful. She hadn't even scarred. It was as if De'mah's blade had never touched her, but as gone as the physical scars were, Celestia would never forget the mental ones. Defeating Discord let Celestia believe that she and her sister could handle anything. That they were fit to guide their little ponies into a safer, saner future.

De'mah did more than take lives. He took away their peace. He stole from Celestia's ponies their futures, their homes, their society, and only then did he take their lives. Everywhere Celestia's guard tried to challenge him, he came through unharmed. It wouldn't be long, Celestia was sure, before they were all extinct. A year, maybe two. De'mah's dragons numbered a million strong, and he himself was nearly as powerful. His strange hovering craft, small as it was, allowed him to travel anywhere, completely protected. His new armor absorbed all but the most crushing blows and deflected all arrows and spears, and his sword...

Celestia was sure she'd have nightmares about his blade for the rest of her life. The sight of it, the glow of it, the hum of it. The way the steam would rise from it, the sound of it as it passed across her shield. Sweet mother, the sound. Like the sound of a hot sword being dragged through a block of ice. It haunted Celestia.

The worst of it all, though, was De'mah himself. He was clearly intelligent, profoundly so. He spoke of culture and society, and Celestia could only imagine what his home world was like. That such an intelligent race would reduce itself to such cruelty and barbarism as De'mah displayed shook her.

"Tia... Is all well, my sister?" Celestia heard from behind her, and she turned to face her sister. Celestia's eyes watered at the sight of her sister, but she remained seated.

"No... No, it is not."

"Explain to me, Tolmirak, why you have not yet found their Princesses" De'mah declared, and the young drake smiled worriedly.

"Forgive me, High Lord, but it would seem as though they've disappeared. Most of their cities have fallen to our mighty brothers, but the lands of Equestria go on beyond much of the horizon. Numerous caves dot the mountains, and the Princesses could have any number of hideouts secreted away in places we'd never find."

"I hardly have patience for excuses, Tolmirak. Find them" De'mah threatened, and the juvenile dragon nodded.

"Of course, High Lord. If it pleases you to know, we have some truly extravagent gifts in store for you, to honor your contributions to the Div" Tolmirak said. "Mighty gifts, fit for a High Lord. I feel as though I speak for all of dragonkind when I say we could never properly thank you for what you've done for our kind."

"Bribery now, is it? Tell me, what is it, beyond this armor I wear, that you could all possibly offer me?" De'mah asked, and Tolmirak grinned.

"How about your own city? Work has come along nicely on it, and I do believe the palace alone is ready for you. If you'd like, we could pay a visit right now" Tolmirak said, and De'mah was intrigued. A city built in his honor? The time would come when it would be expanded to honor all of 'Tokam and the Forerunners, but it wouldn't hurt to survey it in its current state.

"Let us go, then."

The two of them walked out to De'mah's craft, which the Sangheili had modified recently to accomodate him and Tolmirak. He took the sticks in his hands and, at Tolmirak's directions, began to fly out in the direction of this city built for him. It was far away from the badlands, it seemed, a fact that confused and displeased De'mah. He'd have preferred for it to be built in the arid desert that so reminded him of home, but perhaps it'd have merit.

As they ventured deep and deeper into the Equestrian homeland De'mah saw all the cities he'd conquered thus far, too many to really count, their names irrelevant and childish. He had started to realize that crushing this species of weaklings was hardly fulfilling. Few, if any, ever put up a fight, and the High Lord was beginning to turn his attention to the Griffons. Perhaps they'd at least offer a true challenge.

As they neared the forest that marked the still-burning castle of the coward Princesses the city came into view, and De'mah marveled at the engineering that had to have gone into it. Not far from the forest and its nearby town was a large mountain, its peak near the clouds, with a waterfall cascading down one side. It was on this mountain that the city had been built, perched on its slopes and faces like some child's story. The stonework was typical of dragons, gray and black, but the architecture reflected their true might. Sharp towers and battlements circled the palace's walls, and little spires glowed with purple fires. It was modest in size, but magnificent in design.

"We've tentatively called it 'Tokamelot, but you are welcome to name it what you like, of course" Tolmirak said from behind De'mah, who nodded. He directed the craft towards a small pad erected for such a vehicle, and the two creatures disembarked. The towers of the palace loomed over them, and De'mah took a moment to appreciate their scale.

"'Tokamelot will suffice for now, but in the future I will see it renamed. The architecture will need to be altered, to better reflect the Sangheili, but that too can wait until I inform the rest of my kind of this world. I'm sure that one day this city will reflect the magnificence of the Forerunners, and the strength of the Sangheili" De'mah said, and Tolmirak nodded.

"I'm very eager to learn more of your grand people and the Forerunners, High Lord. Are you waiting for this business with the Equestrians to be over with before then?"

De'mah nodded. "Yes. Come the day of our final victory over the Equestrians and their allies, I will pass along a message to the elders of 'Tokam bearing the coordinates of this world, and tell them of the mighty Div, so that they might come out to see for themselves. Soon, 'Tokam will become the most powerful state on Sanghelios, and all of the Sangheili will bend to the will of 'Tokam and the Div."

"Why not tell them now, High Lord? Perhaps they could help against those wretched cowards" Tolmirak suggested, and De'mah scoffed.

"I'll not ask the elders of 'Tokam to inconvenience themselves, particularly when we are winning. The Equestrians have no hope, no chance at survival. They will only see but one of my kind, and that is me, and in their dying moments, as the last of their species falls to my blade, they will fear for the rest of the universe should it fall under the collective might and power of the Sangheili" De'mah said. "For now, I will pass along only a small message to inform them of the Div, and the glory of my mission against the Equestrians."

"Very good, High Lord. Now, shall we head into the palace proper? I suspect you'll want to see the rest of it before declaring any changes" Tolmirak said.

"Lead the way" De'mah said, and the two of them stepped forward into the castle. As they ventured into its halls De'mah began to reflect on the Equestrians, and it filled him with wicked glee to know that, soon, by the work of his very own hands, their race would be no more.

XII - A World at War

A World at War

De'mah touched down just outside the town, but this one was not Equestrian. He looked to his assembled Zealots and nodded, and they took to the skies. With Equestria thoroughly repressed, their leaders in hiding, De'mah had turned his attention to the Griffons. The species whose members had been De'mah's first taste of extraterrestrial life would now play part to his vision for their world.

He ignited his energy sword and began his trek into the mountain village, his dragons circling overhead. At once the Griffon warriors came out, and De'mah rushed forward. A squad of them took note and moved to intercept him, and he raised his sword. Lunging forward he swung, and his blade flashed through the neck of one. A Griffon swung a sword of his own, and the steel raked harmlessly along the steel of De'mah's armor, sending sparks through the air. The Sangheili turned and ran his blade through the bird's torso.

As De'mah withdrew his sword he was struck in the back, and he stumbled forward. Spinning around he saw another Gryph preparing to stab him, rearing up onto his hindlegs and angling his sword downwards, towards the earth. De'mah leapt back as the Griffon stabbed down, his blade sinking into the ground. De'mah swiped the bird's forelimbs off and quickly did the same to his head.

With the Griffons down De'mah rushed deeper into the village, coming near a house just as one of his Zealots, Aldurmaax, landed upon it. "Take not names, brothers! Take not count! Take only their LIVES!!" the mighty dragon thundered, and smashed open the house he was upon. De'mah watched as the dragon let loose the inferno and the house outright exploded, wood and straw and body parts being flung across the stones.

De'mah nodded to the drake and he took off, leaving De'mah to focus on contending with whatever came his way. As it was, it was another Griffon warrior, this one armed with a club. De'mah charged at him and swung, and the bird dodged. He swung again, and the Gryph ducked. As he came up he swung his club, hitting De'mah in his helmet and knocking him astray. The Sangheili growled and moved to slash again, cutting only air.

"Hold STILL, won't you?" he called, and thrust his blade towards the Griffon, who sidestepped and gripped the Sang's wrist. He swung his club and De'mah ducked, and responded by punching the bird in his beak. The creature let out a surprised squawk and staggered back, and De'mah stabbed forward. His angle was off, though, and his blade only lanced the bird. The Griffon swung at him again, and De'mah pulled back. Now here was a challenge!

De'mah took a moment to recover, the Griffon doing the same, before he launched himself at the avian once more. He swung wide at the Griffon's midsection and he leapt back, and De'mah rushed him again. He swung high and the bird ducked, and swung his club into De'mah's leg. The Sangheili's leg was swept out and he fell to one knee. The Griffon swung down at him and De'mah went as low as he could, and swung his sword at the Griffon's ankles, swiping them off. The bird squawked and fell back, and De'mah climbed back to his feet.

With the avian warrior wounded De'mah was prepared to finish him off, and was about to stab down at him when the Griffon rolled aside, and De'mah's blade sank into the earth. The Griffon, his teeth gritted, swung his club again and hit De'mah in the ankle, and the Sang stumbled away, struggling to keep his balance.

"Rrr, ENOUGH of this!" De'mah roared, and leapt onto the Griffon, keeping the creature pinned under his boots. The Griffon squawked in rage and defiance and De'mah buried his sword into his chest. The creature at last fell limp and De'mah stepped away, and rolled his shoulders. "If only more of this world's creatures could fight as well as you did."

He turned back towards the village and saw nearly all of it aflame, only stragglers remaining. "CRUSH THEM ALL, ZEALOTS!" De'mah bellowed, thrusting his sword high into the air. He thudded forward, towards the last remaining group of Griffon warriors. A few of them took to the sky, crossbows in talon, and a few of the Sang's dragons immediately descended upon them.

Three Griffons remained on the ground, and they scattered. There was a muted *CRACK* and a crossbow bolt hit De'mah in his shoulder, the arrow shattering harmlessly against the dragon armor. The Sangheili charged into their midst and swung at the archer, who scrambled back against the ground. A Griffon near De'mah produced a sword and charged at him, and the bird collided against the Sangheili. He stabbed the sword forward as hard as he could, the blade harmlessly scratching against the armor. De'mah shoved his knee into the Griffon's midsection, put his hand on the avian's shoulder and pushed him back, and ran him through.

With one Griffon down, De'mah turned back to the others just as the archer fired again, this time the bolt nicked one of his mandibles, and De'mah hardly missed a step as he flicked away the purple blood with his free hand, the archer retreating again as he reloaded. The Griffon ran into one of the few remaining houses and De'mah charged in after him.

Immediately as he entered De'mah was struck in the head by the archer's crossbow, and he staggered forward. He growled, enraged, and spun. The archer fired again, and at point blank range the bolt buried itself in his chest piece. De'mah gripped the bolt's shaft and snapped it away, and as the archer attempted to duck past him De'mah kicked him, sending him to the floor. With the Griffon lying prone De'mah straddled the avian and swung down, bisecting him cleanly. Only one Griffon remained, and the Sangheili stepped out into the midday hell of the village to strike him down.

De'mah caught sight of the Griffon as he cowered behind a pile of barrels, as De'mah stalked towards him the Griffon rushed out. "Alright wait, wait! I... I surrender!" the Griffon yelled, and threw his sword into the dirt. De'mah approached the bird as his Zealots landed all around.

"I haven't respect for cowards. Pick up your blade, now!" De'mah barked, gesturing his own sword at the iron blade as it lied on the ground. The Griffon took a step back, watching De'mah carefully.

"You... You wouldn't strike down an unarmed warrior, wouldn't you? That's hardly honorable!"

De'mah scoffed. "I'll not have my honor questioned by a coward. You would have to offer me something substantial to justify your continued existence."

"What about the Princesses? The Equestrian Princesses?! I know where they are! The Emperor put them in a safehouse at the peak of the mountain, this very mountain! They're there right now! They won't even know you're coming! The path up to them is quite treacherous, though, but I can take you up to them! I know the way!!" the Griffon reasoned.

De'mah put his hand to the bird's shoulder, his sword at his side. He looked up to his Zealots, who all watched expectantly. "I can find my own way, I'm sure." Before the bird could respond De'mah drove his blade into the creature's chest, the tips piercing through his back, the fur and flesh cooking away. He slid the blade out and the Griffon's corpse fell to the ground, leaving the village destroyed and empty.

De'mah turned to look at his Zealots, and he thrusted his sword into the sky. His Zealots responded by throwing out their wings, and De'mah howled triumphantly. "ZEALOTS, let us ASCEND TO THE MOUNTAIN PEAK and, at last, EXTERMINATE THIS PLAGUE OF COWARDICE!! There will be NO SURVIVORS!! FOR 'TOKAM, FOR SANGHELIOS, AND FOR THE FORERUNNERS!!"

XIII - Neon God

Neon God

Everywhere Celestia looked, ashes. Ashes, bones, debris. Countless plumes of smoke darkened the midday sky, and the raging fires all around cast the land in a Tartarus-like glow. Bodies, limbs, dropped and broken weapons. It was horrific. It was her world. At least, it used to be. Before De'mah stole it from her.

She wandered aimlessly, her hooves trudging through the ash like it was fresh-fallen snow. Every so often her hoof would hit a skull, or a leg, and she'd scurry away from it, a lump in her throat. What city she was in, she couldn't even tell. Once De'mah was done with them they all looked the same.

That she was even still alive was a miracle. No, not a miracle. She knew the truth. That she was still alive was because she was a coward, just like De'mah said. She was a coward, a weakling. She and her sister only played at power, played at conflict. Discord's defeat was now a distant memory, for it proved what she had come to realize as the truth. The chaos god was a trivial foe. All of Equestria's terrestrial foes were trivial. De'mah was proof of that. All of their world's conflicts were little more than two species playing around. Little whimsical fairytale battles, like a children's play. De'mah was the crushing reality. He had showed Celestia the truth.

Really, Celestia had to thank the alien invader. He'd shown her the frailty of the power she and Luna held. As fast and mighty as they were, they could hardly touch a creature like De'mah. Did he ever sleep? Did he ever eat? Did he ever rest at all? Celestia couldn't be sure. She knew absolutely nothing about his species beyond what traits De'mah displayed. Was he even killable at all? She'd never seen him sweat, she'd never seen him bleed, she'd never even seen him struggle or slow down.

Perhaps they should just surrender to De'mah. Celestia was sure that if she offered herself up to the twisted alien, then maybe he'd spare the rest of her kind. Was slavery preferable to extinction? Even in servitude, would they survive? De'mah talked of bringing his entire species to Equestria. Was this their future? A future of subjugation and repression? Would the world remember their kind at all, once De'mah was done, or were they doomed to be erased from both the world and history itself?

Celestia heard that horrible sound once more, and turned to find De'mah standing before her, lit sword in his hand. He merely stared at her, and Celestia struggled to find anything to say. He approached and began circling her, the tips of his sword not an inch from her flesh as he went.

"It had to be this way, you know. Your existence stands in defiance of the way the universe works. You are an affront to the natural order of life that the Forerunners dictated to the galaxy. Strength, might, power, honor. All alien concepts to you and your kind. There was no alternative; I had to cast you all down, in the name of the gods and my honor" the alien said.

"These Forerunners...tell me of them..." Celestia asked.

De'mah scoffed. "What's the point? You won't understand their wisdom, their magnificence. Their majesty would blind you, and their wisdom would render an ignorant like you insane. When your world has been reduced to ash, and you stand amidst the howling dark of the void, feeling naught but your own flesh, seeing naught but the abyss, the lone blade will light the way to your damnation."

He placed a hand on Celestia's back and forced her to the ground, the Princess's legs folding underneath her. She shakily turned to look up at De'mah as he stood beside her, and brought his sword closer and closer to her face. She stared into the light of his blade until her eyes began to water, the arcing and crackling tips close enough for her to feel their heat, and she waited for the blow that would kill her.

The blow that never came.

Instead, De'mah and the city and all of the world faded away into an empty void, the all-consuming darkness surrounding Celestia. Her breath quickened and she began to hyperventilate, but before the panic consumed her she became aware of a faint blue glow. Intrigued, she began to venture towards it, stumbling and staggering on unsure hooves.

As she neared the faint glow it was revealed to be her sister, standing elegant and regal amidst the darkness, her horn alight, her eyes closed. Celestia opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She watched as Luna's eyes opened, and her wings slowly unfurled and raised into the blackness, and she stepped forward. Celestia tried to turn, but found she could not move at all. Her sister came up next to her, placed her mouth near Celestia's ear, and spoke.

"I am the darkness, and you are the blade."

Celestia awoke in a cold sweat, Luna's words echoing in her head as the last of the dream, the nightmare, faded away. It was quiet, she was safe, and still alive. After retreating to the Griffon lands the Griffon Emperor had been more than welcoming, and had shown Celestia and her sister to a safehouse high in the mountains that they could use. It was very early in the morning, and Celestia slowly climbed out of bed.

There was a gentle knock to the door of her room and Celestia trotted over to it, finding her sister on the other end. "The night approaches its end, Tia" she said.

"Thank you, Lulu. I was already awake, so I'll go make the transition." Celestia stepped past her sister and made her way through the halls and out to the front of the safehouse. The peak of the mountain was more bowl-shaped than pointed, and it was in this caldera that the safehouse was located. A winding path went down the mountain, opposite the safehouse's front door, to a village built along a cliff and, eventually, to the surface. With a flick of her horn Celestia guided their sun along as it neared the horizon, beginning the dawn and the day proper.

Will this be my last sunrise? Celestia thought. Contrary to popular legend the sun and moon can rise and set just fine on their own, we just help them along as a show of our power. Will this day be my last? Will it be Lulu's last? How long can one pony live on borrowed time?

Celestia remained out in the courtyard, eyes unfocused, lost in thought. They needed to come up with some plan to deal with De'mah, but what? They'd tried the Elements, they'd tried an open confrontation, hundreds of her guard had tried to fell the alien beast, but nothing worked. As she wracked her mind Celestia began to grow desperate, wishing she could find some answer to the question that was De'mah's existence.

Finding none she turned and headed back into the safehouse, her sister in the kitchen tending to their breakfast. "We live like fugitives, like outlaws, on the run, in hiding. We live on borrowed time. How do we face the demon that has crushed our entire world, and taken everything from us?" Celestia asked of her sister, who was expressionless and unreadable.

"We take it back" was Luna's answer, though it didn't exactly inspire confidence in Celestia. She sat at the kitchen's table and put a hoof to her chin, and waited patiently for Luna to finish.

"I...had a dream last night. A horrible nightmare. A city burned, like so many have already, and De'mah was there. He told me that it was always going to end this way, that nothing we could've done would've changed his actions. He was always going to exterminate us, from the moment he learned of our existence. He said to me that, in the darkness, the lone blade will light the way to your damnation. It was only a dream, but... How does one respond to that?" she asked, and Luna did not answer. She was about to turn around, to face her sister, when she felt Luna's hooves on her shoulders, and she froze.

"I am the darkness, and you are the blade."

Before Celestia could say anything there was a tremendous boom from outside that shook the entire safehouse, a few loose dishes clattering to the floor and shattering. She looked to Luna and the two of them rushed outside, and what Celestia saw froze her in her tracks. Perched along the rim of the caldera were six dragons, all looking at the two Princesses. Celestia's blood ran cold when she saw the familiar figure of De'mah coming up the trail and approaching them, lit sword in his hand.

Another nightmare, it has to be... How could he have found us?!

"This is a pleasant development. I wonder what were the odds of the first Griffon village I attacked being below the safehouse of this world's most despicable cowards. At last, we can settle this, permanently. This time, there will be no escape" the alien stated matter-of-factly.

"We will not go without a fight, of that you can be certain" Luna said, and the alien grinned.

"Good. I wouldn't want it any other way. All this might, all this magic, and you've accomplished nothing. Discord or not, yours and all the other races of this world should've accomplished so much more by now, even without the gifts of the Forerunners" De'mah said.

"You know of Discord... I just want to know why. WHY are you doing this?" Celestia demanded.

"I have already explained myself, Equestrian. The Sangheili learned long ago that only the strong survive. It is a fact of the cosmos, one imparted by the wisdom and magnificence of the Forerunners upon this universe. It is how the Sangheili have prevailed over all the other creatures and dangers of our planet."

"But doesn't the fact that we've survived as long as we have, even having established our own civilization and society, prove our strength?" Celestia asked.

"Hardly. Even cowards can survive. It is strength that allows a people to thrive. Strength, might, and honor. You could never understand" the Sangheili explained. "Now, enough of words! Let us END this!"

At once De'mah charged forward, and Celestia and Luna lit their shields. The day Princess watched with gritted teeth as De'mah's sword flashed across her shield, producing that horrible sound she so hated. Celestia dropped her shield to fire an attack spell and was grabbed by the throat by the alien, his grip nearly crushing her windpipe. He was about to stab her when Luna shot him, and he released Celestia, who put her shield back up. He rushed around to Celestia's side, putting her between him and Luna, and he struck again. Luna teleported behind De'mah, and he swung back at her, giving Celestia another opening. She hit him in the side with a powerful beam attack, and he was flung to the ground.

In less than a second De'mah was back on his feet and he rushed Celestia again. He can't be stopped. He truly can't be stopped she thought. He turned his sword and lashed out, the tips shrieking across the magical field. Luna was on the alien in seconds, and jumped onto his back.

"RELEASE yourself from me, you putrid coward!" De'mah roared, and swung his sword errantly. Celestia watched in horror as Luna's horn crackled with dark magic, a profaned spell powering up. She was about to release the spell when De'mah bent forward and flung her off him, sending the night's avatar to the dirt. De'mah was about to plunge his sword into her when Celestia fired again, using a light spell to pepper the alien with magic bolts. Luna rolled to her hooves and joined Celestia at her side once more, and the day Princess took a moment to recover her magic.

"You were about to use dark magic..." Celestia whispered to Luna, who looked grim. Her horn glowed darkly once more, inky tendrils of black trailing from it as she powered up another profaned spell. "Luna, don't! Don't do it, we don't need to use such spells!"

"Survival necessitates all one can muster. We'd do well to learn this lesson now."

"I won't reduce myself to such darkness! Survival means nothing if you can't retain who you are!"

"Pathetic that you are afraid of your own power! If you'll not fight me with all you can manage then I will enjoy striking you down" De'mah said, and rushed towards them again. Celestia lit her shield and galloped forth, and as De'mah swung the day Princess ducked and rammed him. De'mah dug his feet into the earth and slashed and hammered on Celestia's shield to no avail.

With De'mah distracted Luna rose into the air and unleashed a powerful black beam at the Sangheili, knocking him away from Celestia and sending him sprawling across the ground. Celestia looked to her sister who gently floated down to her side before turning her attention back to De'mah. She watched in horror as the alien warrior staggered back to his feet, head in hand. He growled and swung his sword at the air and began to stalk towards them. "Your kin is providing a fair challenge. Why won't you, coward? What being would be afraid of their own power?"

"Equestria was built and founded on the tenets of Harmony. Friendship, compassion, love and tolerance for all! I wanted to leave all of our darkness in the past. The wickedness, the cruelty. Profaned arts and barbarism" Celestia said, eyeing her sister even as De'mah approached them both. "Our unification marked a new era for ponies everywhere. A promise of unity and companionship."

"And look where it has gotten you" De'mah said, right next to Celestia. She turned to face him, the alien warrior mere feet from her. "At the end of my blade. Your cowardly ways simply opened the door for a stronger people to crush you into DUST." The Sangheili turned, took a few steps away, and spun back to face the Princesses.

The alien silenced his blade, tensed, and leapt forward into a roll, coming up in the middle of the Princesses. He ignited his blade and swung just as Celestia put her shield back up, and she squeezed her eyes shut as the sword slashed across her shield. She watched as Luna dropped her shield and fired, hitting De'mah in the shoulder. He spun to face her and Celestia dropped her shield. De'mah spun and swung, and Celestia dropped to the ground. The alien kicked her in the face, and she scrambled back as Luna distracted the demon.

With a beat of her wings Celestia rose into the air and opened fire on De'mah who rolled in her direction once more. She rose higher into the air just as De'mah swung, the tips of his blade passing only inches away from her belly. She saw one of the dragons unfurl his mammoth wings but he remained perched on the caldera's rim, his eyes locked onto Celestia's. She tore her gaze away from the wyrm and looked to Luna just in time to see De'mah reach her. He swung his sword and Luna ducked. She scurried to the alien's side and kept her body low to the ground, her horn crackling and sparking. She fired a beam and De'mah barely dodged it in time. He rushed at Luna, who teleported behind him and flew straight into the alien creature, knocking him to the ground.

As De'mah lied on the dirt Celestia charged up another spell and unleashed it on the Sangheili, who rolled aside and jumped back up to his feet. Luna took flight and the two of them began firing at De'mah, forcing him onto the defensive.

"ZEALOTS!! SCORCH THEIR SKIES, SO THAT THEY MIGHT FIGHT ME LIKE TRUE WARRIORS!!" De'mah roared, and the six dragons rose into the air at once. Celestia watched as they began to circle the caldera, one of them breaking away and barreling straight towards her and Luna.

"DOWN!!" Celestia screamed, and the two Princesses dropped to the ground, the dragon soaring overhead, black smoke trailing from his gaping maw. Once they were back on the ground De'mah rushed them again, his sword streaking through the shadows cast by the numerous wyrms above. Luna fired a spell that hit the Sangheili in his waist, and he stumbled forward on momentum, one hand catching himself on the ground as his blade sank into the dirt. He recovered almost instantly and continued to charge at them, and Celestia was struck by indecision. She was convinced he couldn't be killed, but what they could do? They could not run, they could not fly, they were trapped.

They were dead.

A great sense of panic and desperation welled up in Celestia and she scurried back from the rapidly approaching monster, who swung his ethereal sword at her. She groaned in terror as she tried so desperately to get away from the unstoppable demon, firing spell after spell at him. Beams, bolts, needles, nothing worked. They all bounced and glanced off his armor harmlessly, or at best only slowed him. He struck and swung and stabbed and slashed and ran about in a flurry of fury and malice as Celestia and Luna tried everything they could.

"MAY ALL THE FORERUNNERS WATCH AS I CLAIM MY VICTORY OVER THESE COWARDS!!" De'mah thundered as he stabbed at Celestia, whose shield deflected the blow. "MAY ALL OF 'TOKAM WATCH AS I PROVE THE STRENGTH OF OUR NAME AND OUR HONOR!!" he roared as his blade raked across Luna's shield, little globs and sparks of thaums flying off her shield as the mysterious sword clashed across it. "AND MAY ALL OF SANGHELIOS WATCH AS I PROVE THE STRENGTH AND MIGHT OF OUR ENTIRE SPECIES, FOR ALL OF THE GODS AND THE UNIVERSE TO WATCH WITH AWE AND WONDER AT THE GLORY OF THE SANGHEILI!!!"

He's insane. He's absolutely insane. Discord was NOTHING compared to this NIGHTMARE!! Celestia thought, horrified. She tensed hard as De'mah drove the tips of his sword straight into her barrier, the magical field warping and bending as his blade pushed into the thaums, a horrific screeching and rising hum filling the air as the ethereal weapon grinded into the shield, blinding flashes sparking off and leaving harsh spots in Celestia's vision. Her eyes watered deeply, her gritted teeth threatening to crack, all while De'mah showed not even a hint of strain.

"THE DAY HAS AT LAST COME, MY ZEALOTS!! IT WILL LIVE FOREVER AS THE MOST GLORIOUS DAY OF YOUR SPECIES' HISTORY! A THOUSAND YEARS AFTER I HAVE FALLEN, EVERY TONGUE OF THE DIV WILL STILL SPEAK MY NAME WITH HONOR AND REVERENCE, AND LOOK FOREVER TOWARDS MY IMAGE AND THE IMAGE OF THE SANGHEILI AS THE GREAT HAND THAT LIFTED YOUR SPECIES OUT OF COMPLACENCY, AND INTO THE HALLS OF LEGEND!!"

All of De'mahs assembled dragons thundered a roar that threatened to deafen Celestia, and shake her apart like a toy. The sky quickly became choked and blanketed in thick black smoke from the maws of the dragons, and amidst the smoke the orange glow of the dragons' fires fluttered about as they flew in circles over the caldera, their eyes on De'mah. On Celestia. Embers and globs of magma and napalm began to rain down upon the ground all around them, and as she looked into De'mah's eyes Celestia swore to her mother above that they too burned with an inferno of their own, crying out with glee and mirth for the death of her and her sister, and Celestia was terrified. Deeply terrified, to her core, of this otherworldly demon.

"LUNA!" Celestia shouted. "LUNA, we must go!!"

"YOU WILL GO NOWHERE, COWARD! YOU WILL FALL WHERE YOU STAND!!" De'mah roared, and Luna landed next to her sister. De'mah charged at them once more, roaring the entire way. His feet hardly touched the ground as he came, it seemed, and Celestia swore his entire armor glowed with malevolence and unearthly rage.

"Teleport, Luna! It doesn't matter where, let's just get AWAY FROM THAT THING!!"

Celestia charged her horn and galloped as fast as she could away from De'mah, her sister right at her side. "AFTER THEM!!" De'mah screamed. "SCORCH THEIR BONES INTO NOTHING!!!"

Celestia dared a look over her shoulder and saw a titan black dragon screaming straight down at them, his maw wide open and billowing black smoke. His tongue sparked and brilliant orange flames began to lick at the sky as he came down, and Celestia's world turned white as she flashed away from the caldera, the raging inferno of the dragon's fire and the fury of the nightmare De'mah never ceasing their pursuit, even as she and Luna winked out of existence and into safety.

XIV - Final Days

Final Days

It had been just days since the fight outside the safehouse, and Celestia felt there was nothing more she and her sister could do. Already Griffon cities were beginning to burn, and while the Griffons were able to fell a few dragons in each, they too could not stand before the onslaught. Celestia and Luna had again retreated to another safehouse, courtesy of the Griffon Emperor, this one buried deep in a tropical jungle and far from any hint of civilization. It was here, Celestia was convinced, that they'd spend their last days.

How few of those we may have, I do not know. Will we see another week? Another month? Will we see even twilight this day?

There was a sound of wood scuffing against wood as the ratty front door opened, and Luna trotted in with purpose, looking terse. She'd gone out to meet with a Griffon ambassador at some location undisclosed to Celestia, though it hardly mattered. The conversation was all that concerned her. "I'm told, at best, some 20,000 of our little ponies remain, scattered across the land. At this rate they'll all be forced to take to the seas and seek refuge in the lands of the Minotaurs, or worse, those Spiderlings that live in the northern isles" Luna said, and Celestia sighed.

"Both are hardly appealing prospects, but at least the Minotaurs don't live strictly in caves and trees like those little creeps, so at least they'll have a chance with them. Assuming De'mah doesn't target them next. Or worse, ally with them" Celestia remarked, putting her chin to the floor and shutting her eyes. "It's over, Lulu."

Luna snorted derisively. "Hardly. Is this what you have become, Tia? A quitter? You will content yourself to lie on this dirty floor and await a pitiful end?"

"WHAT MORE could we have done?!" Celestia barked, her whole form bursting with heat and anger. "This... BUCKING MONSTER is killing us by the thousands!! If those estimates you told me are true, we'll be extinct within MONTHS, even if De'mah stopped with 10,000 of us remaining. Age, disease, and famine will do the rest!"

"I'll not give up, and the sister I once knew would not do the same! Regrettably, she has been replaced by this coward lying on the ground before me. Your inaction only proves what that beast has claimed, and had you not stopped me, he'd be lying dead and decaying already" Luna said.

Celestia stood and approached her sister. "Had I not stopped you, you'd have tainted yourself through the use of those profaned spells you once swore to me you'd forgotten and no longer studied. I meant what I said to that FREAK, that our unification would ensure our species would never return to the days of savagery and witchcraft that plagued our ancestors."

"And look where it has gotten us. At the end of the demon's blade" Luna replied, paraphrasing De'mah. Celestia was torn. She wanted to scream, she wanted to cry, she wanted to hit Luna, something she'd never once considered in all her years. This is what De'mah has done to us. We now claw at each other's throats for want of clawing at his Celestia thought, and she hung her head. "What do we do, Lulu...?" she asked, her voice thick and tears welling up. "What else can we do... We've tried it ALL! What if dark magic doesn't even work?! What if it's not enough to kill him?"

"Then we make him work for his victory. We never relent, we never give up, we strike back and attack him at every chance we get, even if it only manages to distract him. I'd prefer to die on my hooves, with wings spread and horn alight, than cowering at his feet" Luna said.

"And I'd prefer that you not die at all. I promised mother that I'd protect you, that I'd look out for you, and assured her that you would do the same for me. That's all we have left, Lulu. Each other..." she trailed off, sat down on her haunches, and began to weep. "I l-love you, Lulu..."

She felt Luna wrap her wings around her and nuzzle against her, and she eagerly returned the gesture. "And I love you, Tia. Now, more than ever, I am committed to you as my sister. We will do all that we can, all that we can manage, and if it proves to not be enough, then we shall pass into the embrace of Harmony with pride in all that we accomplished, and knowing that we did all that we could to not go quietly into darkness."

Celestia nodded, and it was there that she resolved to do what needed to be done. She began to think about what they could do to stop De'mah, but after a time she realized that the answer was simple. He would need to be killed, but there was only one way Celestia knew to do that. She had hoped to avoid it, hoped to not do it, but in these dark hours she began to think that there was no other way.

She would confront De'mah one on one.

De'mah 'Tokam was in a foul mood, even surrounded as he was by the walls of his magnificent palace in 'Tokamelot. Those cowards had yet again escaped him, eluded him, and he had ordered all of the Griffon Empire be scorched in order to root them out, a process that would take time. He was tired of waiting. He was tired of chasing these weaklings down, only for them to run away. He wanted nothing more than to bleed them dry, but at this point he'd be satisfied with hearing one of his drakes had crushed or eaten them. At least then he could focus on the rest of their miserable planet.

In the days since the last battle De'mah had stewed in fury every waking moment, stalking the halls of his palace with clenched fists, shouting orders at every passing dragon, both whelp and elder. Tolmirak had accompanied him every day, but De'mah was rapidly growing tired of the juvenile's complacency. He truly was a stooge, a moron. De'mah was convinced of it, and wished that he had made a much stronger dragon his aide.

Of course, it was at this moment that Tolmirak chose to appear, entering De'mah's throne room with hands folded behind his back. He smiled and bowed to his High Lord and approached, and De'mah eyed him with contempt. The Sangheili was certain that the juvenile was useless now, utterly incompetent. He could only imagine what inane questions the drake would ask today, or what vapid remarks he'd make.

"High Lord, you'll be pleased to know that I have some news of the coward Princesses" Tolmirak said, and De'mah hardly paid attention.

"Unless the news is of their deaths, or better still, their heads, then it will not please me at all" he said, and Tolmirak's smile widened. He's a moron. Is he mocking me? What could possibly have him smiling this much?

"Well, I'm afraid that the news is not of their deaths, but it might please you all the same. A Griffon ambassador has passed along a request from none other than Princess Celestia herself. She wishes to face you in single combat, alone, at a location of your choosing" Tolmirak said.

De'mah scoffed. "I'm meant to believe this? It's more likely I will arrive at this location and be ambushed by the coward and her sister."

"And what of it? Since you get to pick the location, you can make it one that's advantageous to you. Or, you could wait for the coward to arrive and ambush her yourself. This is a chance to prove your strength, High Lord."

"I've aleady proven my strength, you whelp! I'll not fight as a coward would, and strike from the shadows, and if she thinks I'll fall for this apparent trap then she is sorely mistaken" De'mah declared.

"But, High Lord... If you accept this challenge and defeat the coward, then you will have won your ultimate triumph. You will have proven to the universe the might of the Sangheili, and the strength of your name before the Forerunners as witness" Tolmirak said.

What would this ignorant know of the Forerunners! He ought not to dare speak their name, let alone try to appease me with it. "I'll not accept this challenge, you moron. She's a coward and a weakling, and I'm certain she'll meet her end soon. By my hand or by another's does not matter now."

"I think that you should accept, High Lord. If you don't, then... Perhaps it is you who is without strength. After all, what warrior would decline a challenge from a weakling?"

At once De'mah rose, and his hand plucked the handle of his sword from his hip. He approached Tolmirak, but the juvenile dragon only stepped back slightly. "I'll not have my honor and strength questioned by a whelp. If you value your life, you'd do well to watch your tongue" he threatened.

"I value the honor of the Div more than myself. If you'll not crush this coward yourself, then perhaps I shall do it. In the name of the Div, the flames of our ancestors, and in the sight of our sun as witness, I challenge De'mah 'Tokam to single combat for the position of High Lord of the Dragons!" Tolmirak yelled, and stepped back. A few juveniles passing by the throne paused and stepped in, curious.

SURELY he cannot be serious De'mah mused. Tolmirak was not a warrior. He was a moron. A lackey. De'mah had never seen him so much as lift a sword, much less swing one. He was about to decline this challenge too when it occurred to him that it would make him look exceptionally weak to do so, as if he'd become afraid of challenge and was content to sit idle, same as the last High Lord had done for so long. "Hrmph, fine. De'mah 'Tokam, High Lord of the Dragons, and uplifting hand to all of their kind, accepts this challenge. May the skill of the best warrior see them emerge victorious from this fight."

De'mah waited as one of the juveniles that had arrived to spectate produced a steel sword and handed it to Tolmirak, and De'mah ignited his energy blade, rolled his shoulders, and raised the weapon. He lowered himself into a combat stance as Tolmirak gripped his sword with both hands and gave it a few test swings. The juvenile stepped forth and swung the blade at De'mah, who sidestepped and lashed out with his blade. Tolmirak ducked and swung again, the blade scraping against De'mah's armor.

The Sangheili thrust his blade forward and Tolmirak stumbled aside to dodge, hobbling in place to keep his balance. De'mah was about to strike again when Tolmirak beat him to it, his blade's tip swiping across De'mah's chestplate, gouging the steel and flinging sparks to the floor. De'mah swung and his blade lashed off Tolmirak's left ear as he ducked down. Tolmirak grimaced, but was otherwise unharmed.

The young drake stood and swung again, this time aiming high for De'mah's head. The Sangheili leaned back and swung his blade up in response, lopping Tolmirak's arms off at the elbows. The steel sword clattered loudly to the stone floor as Tolmirak howled in pain and shock, and De'mah quickly silenced his wails by running his blade through the dragon's belly. His body fell to the floor as De'mah withdrew, and he shut down his blade.

"What an idiot. Toss his body off the balcony, and find a scribe. I have a message I must deliver to the Equestrian coward" De'mah said, and stomped out of the throne room. Whatever Celestia had in mind, De'mah was sure it would end with his blade in her back, and so it would be and at last he would emerge victorious.

Finale - The Sword and the Shield

The Sword and the Shield

It's been a few years and... We won, we did, but I can't help but dwell on it.

After I...murdered...De'mah, Luna and I set about rebuilding our world. I was technically the High Lord of the dragons, but I relegated the title to Aldurmaax and guided him on how best to lead his species in the aftermath of De'mah's zealotry. It was a long process, but eventually we rebuilt. We rebuilt the towns and villages, the cities and hamlets. We rebuilt the castle, and we began moving ponies into 'Tokamelot. We studied what we could of De'mah's spaceship and his ethereal sword, but learned next to nothing. Things were looking up, and then...

Something happened with Luna. She was taken, corrupted, lost. I don't know if it was the dark magic, the rage and anger at De'mah, the fact she wasn't able to strike him down along with me. I never told her the truth of how I murdered him, and so she was left to believe that she'd been left behind, unable to exact revenge upon De'mah. She blamed me, accused me of wanting to exclude her from our kingdom's affairs. She...attacked me... I'd had no choice but to use the Elements. She sleeps now, interred in her beautiful moon. For how long I don't know. A thousand years? More? Less? It will take a strong and pure soul to cleanse her of her wickedness, but I know it will not be me. My heart has been too tainted by the poison of De'mah 'Tokam.

With Lulu gone I had our castle boarded up and sealed off, and I moved to 'Tokamelot, renamed it Canterlot, and settled in. I had De'mah's ship destroyed, its pieces reduced to cinders, and had a mausoleum built for him, deep in the underhalls. I placed his sword in with his body, and it is often that I stand before his sarcophagus, staring at the blank stone, lost in thought. It is less often that I slide off the tomb's cover and stare at his skeleton, encased in his now-dull armor. I stare at the empty eye sockets of his skull, at the jagged hole in his armor's chestplate, at the runes and sigils the dragons carved into the plates and greaves and pauldrons. Were they dragon runes? Or Forerunner? Would I ever know the truth about his species and the Forerunners?

Did I want to know?

...Life goes on, though. I am alone, in a hollow city, not more than a ten minute trot from my con, my lie, my sin. Aldurmaax governs the dragons, and they swear loyalty to the Kingdom of Equestria and our peaceful ideals. It alarmed me to learn that they still worship De'mah, but there is nothing I can do about this. I am left to just believe in Aldurmaax's assurances that they respect and revere him only as a mighty warrior, and are committed to upholding their new ideals of peace and harmony.

Doubts still linger.

As we begin to move on from the shadow of De'mah 'Tokam, though, I stare at the pale moonlit sky, the Sangheili's bones entombed beneath my hooves, and pray to mother that I will one day see my sister again, and that together we will build a brighter future for all of our planet.

One can only dream.

Far from Equestria, from its star and moon, its lush fields and blue oceans, was Sanghelios. Arid, dry, as dangerous as it was beautiful. Among many of its states was 'Tokam, the third most powerful. Its elders, wise and aged, had convened, as they had many times before, to once again discuss their kin.

It had seemed intriguing. A world so unlike their own, verdant and green, yet ungraced by the Forerunners' magnificence. What's more, it was home to numerous alien species, each with their own culture and customs. Their kin had waged a righteous war in the name of the Forerunners and 'Tokam, but it had been long since he had been heard from.

"There is nothing. There is no name to this planet, its star system, its coordinates. It is without description beyond that which could be seen by one's own eyes, and it has been many cycles since we have been graced by one of De'mah's messages. We have come to accept that he is lost to us, and we must now accept that it is unlikely we shall ever again see him" one of the elders said.

Another nodded. "A grim but pragmatic attitude. Still, what he told us was of great interest. That a world of numerous intelligent species had emerged without the influence of the Forerunners is worth seeking out, if only to learn more of how this came to be. Imagine what we could learn."

"De'mah insisted there was nothing to learn but that it was plagued by cowards and weaklings. This may be, but that is but one perspective. I regret that De'mah did not see fit to tell us of this world's location, so that we might appreciate it for ourselves."

"I've no doubt in De'mah's assessment of this planet. If he declared it to be a world of Doarmir's, then I trust his judgment and agree with him: we'd have learned nothing from them, and without any gifts of the Forerunners to guard the world would've been little more than a scientific curiosity" said yet another elder.

"We cannot retain ourselves to Sanghelios forever, brother. The Forerunners' gifts proved to the first of our kind that we had once been graced by a wise and benevolent race, and De'mah's discovery proved that we are again not alone in this universe. De'mah insisted it was a world of cowards, but he also spoke of these Div creatures, a warrior-culture, as honorable as our own. Unity with another powerful intelligent species would be nothing but beneficial to the future of the Sangheili, particularly if they truly were as powerful as De'mah indicated" the first elder said.

"Whatever we may think, the point is moot. There are no coordinates, no navigation charts, nothing. De'mah, his Div, and his verdant world are now lost to us. In time, his word will spread to the other city-states, 'Tumai, 'Vadam, and the others, and perhaps one day, far from now, our kind will once again set foot on this unknown planet and judge, for ourselves, the merit of its native peoples. Whether we judge them well or judge them ill is a decision for our descendants. We can only hope to guide their thinking, and hope it is through their wisdom and honor that they make the right decision."

"One can only dream, brother. One can only dream."

Author's Note

So full of hate were our eyes that none of us could see.

Our war would yield countless dead, but never victory...

And so it ends! This journey has reached its destination, and I very much hope that you enjoyed riding along. What is next for me I do not know, but I enjoyed writing this story. It felt so...cathartic, to write out the tale of De'mah 'Tokam, to depict the nightmarish terror he inflicted on Equestria, once a story relegated to vague flashbacks and the opinions of those who survived his malice, now properly fleshed out. It is true what Princess Celestia said: sins never die, but that is another story for another time. For now, I thank you for reading this, and hope to see you again in the future for more!

His Name Was De'mah

It is often said, 'desperate times call for desperate measures.' Nothing could be nearer to the truth, but what is not often considered is the aftermath. The survivors deal with that aftermath, and they learn how to better deal with future calamities.

But how could anyone better handle what we did?

De'mah 'Tokam was an alien name for alien tongues, but through some cruel stroke of fate we learned his name, and the Tartarus that followed in his wake. He arrived on our world one day, I'll never know exactly when, and when we learned of him... What followed after, what we suffered through for months... Desperate times may call for desperate measures, but what could one be expected to do when their entire species faces extinction at the hands of a creature against whom every attack failed?

In the end, I did the only thing I could do, to ensure our species' survival. Though we may have learned how to better deal with an extraterrestrial threat, I pray to mother that we NEVER again see another of De'mah's kind, for I am not certain we would survive again.

My name is Celestia. I'm a Princess, a divinity, a mother and leader to all of my species, and though I may be able to wash away the stains of the blood from my coat, the mark that blood left on me will never leave me, and I will never forget the sins that bathed me in that blood.

For sins never die.

XV - The Way the World Ends

The Way the World Ends

De'mah had waited so long for this day. The day that'd finally see the grievous injustice that had been wrought upon this world corrected. The following day would dawn upon a cleaner, purer world. He took a moment to reflect on what he had accomplished thus far. The first encounter, learning the language, Jilnarok and the dragons. His dragons, now. The Equestrians, the Griffons, someday soon the Minotaurs and all the rest. At least with them all, there'd be resistance. True challenges. The Equestrians had become a chore. A righteous chore, but a chore nonetheless. They hardly fought back at all, hardly resisted his might and the power of his dragons. The work was important, but De'mah found it tedious.

It ends today, however he thought. It wouldn't truly end today, he knew. Their race would still exist, but with their coward Princesses dead it'd be a simple matter to extinguish the rest. Killing their Princesses would be more than just a message to the rest of their pathetic species, it'd be the one fight against their kind that De'mah would truly enjoy, assuming the cowards would meet him in a fair fight and did not run again. He'd tasted a bit of their strength, but knew they were holding themselves back. He so longed for them to provide him a true trial.

In the end, it would not matter. De'mah knew that, of course. Whether they held back or not, fought with all the power they could muster or not, it wouldn't matter. They would fall, and De'mah would erase the rest of their species from the pages of history. It was clear now why the Forerunners had never graced this world with their presence; they had seen the creatures that lived here and had despised them as much as De'mah did. The Equestrians, the Griffons, the Minotaurs, they were nothing to the Forerunners. De'mah could only surmise that the dragons hadn't existed at the time, or the Forerunners would've took note of them.

De'mah took note of a vague shape, flying in the distance, and he ignited his energy sword. The cowards would soon approach, and at last he'd have his triumph. His victory. He would earn the right to become a true aristocrat of 'Tokam and take his place among the others, and with his dragons 'Tokam would go on to become the most powerful state on all of Sanghelios. It would be a glorious new age for the Sangheili, and his name would forever be on it as its herald, its champion. Honor, kin, and blood: De'mah would satisfy the demands of each, and forever be remembered as 'Tokam's mightiest warrior. The warrior who compelled an entire species to swear loyalty to the Sangheili, and with their help extinguished an entire world's vestiges of cowardice and weakness.

And it would all begin on this day.

Princess Celestia approached the flat mountaintop, the glow from the seven pillars of purple flame guiding her in the midst of the rainstorm that fell all around her, her heart thumping. She had resolved to do all that she could against De'mah, to finally put an end to this genocide, and restore peace and safety to the world once more, but doubts lingered. What if she failed? What if De'mah had already told his people of Equestria's location, and soon their entire sky would be filled with alien spacecraft? Defeating him then would have no purpose, for then thousands of his kind would descend upon Equestria and all of ponykind would be extinct within weeks.

In the end, she had come to agree with Luna: she would not give up. She would not relent, she would not capitulate, but what she did plan to do made her afraid. Very afraid. It made her hooves tremble and heart race, and made her queasy with worry. It could go so wrong, so quickly, and then there'd be no hope left.

She reached the mountain, stopping just short of the flat peak, and descended. There were a number of stone staircases carved into the mountain's steep faces, wrapping around and heading up to the peak, and Celestia set her hooves to the stone. She ascended up to the flat peak, the falling rain turning to steam as it fell upon the purple flames atop the seven pillars, arranged in a circle around a sigil carved into the stones. In the middle of this sigil stood De'mah, the rain producing the same steam as it fell upon his blade. His dark eyes regarded Celestia with contempt and scorn, and his free hand was clenched in a fist. The blue gems inserted into his armor glowed, helping his blade cast his whole form in what was truthfully a beautiful light, but Celestia couldn't appreciate it. Every inch of him reminded her of what he'd done to her kind, and what he was planning to do to the rest of their world. Her world.

But only if she did not stop him.

For one horrific year he'd set himself upon Equestria, and his dragons had scorched every one of her towns into ash. This day there were no dragons to be seen, per Celestia's request. She wanted no one to bear witness to this. She reflected on that first day, at Logger's Vale, and all the horrible memories came back. The failure of the Elements, his immunity stealing every last scrap of confidence Celestia had placed in those majestic artifacts, and everything that had transpired since then. City after city, village after village, pony after pony. He'd eradicated every last one that he'd come across, and now it was up to her to put an end to it all.

"I wish that I could understand this" Celestia began. "You, the Sangheili, the Forerunners. Maybe one day I will. Maybe I don't want to understand. I've long wondered what our first contact with extraterrestrial life would be like. We could've learned so much, you could've learned so much. We learned nothing... No, that is not true. We learned what fear is."

"Where is your kin, coward? Sneaking up on me, I'm sure" De'mah barked, and Celestia shook her head.

"It's just us, De'mah. No Luna, no dragons. This is how it will be. This is how it should be. This is how it'll end, regardless of who wins, and who dies. Tell me, have you ever once considered what this is like for us? Do you understand what you've done? The fear and horror you've caused? Do you even understand fear at all?!"

De'mah was quiet for a moment, the only sounds that of the rain hitting the stones, and Celestia was sure he wasn't going to answer when he spoke. "When I first arrived here, I was shown to the High Lord of the dragons, Jilnarok. He was a titan. Five times my size. He towered over me, and I understood then that all he had to do was look upon any foe, and that foe would turn and run, or bow at his talons" De'mah said. "When I first laid eyes upon him, I was afraid. In time, however, I came to learn the truth: he was a weakling. It's why I killed him. It's why I succeeded, and he did not. It's why the dragons then swore loyalty to me, for I had proven the strength of my name, and their code compelled them to bow at the feet of the creature that killed their current High Lord. Jilnarok's death proved to them, and my work will prove to the rest of your world, the truth about the Forerunners' universe. That a coward, a weakling, might reign for a time, but it will not be long before a stronger being casts them down. That is how it should be."

Celestia looked to the stones, silent. Such a waste. A senseless code followed by senseless killing. "I guess that's it, then. There's nothing more to say."

De'mah scoffed. "So this is it, then? This is where I am finally to do battle with you, in single combat? Do you think you will win, or I? My dragons are a MILLION strong, and they have wrought upon your miserable species a terrible inferno. They will rain fire upon this entire planet, until none remain but them and I. They have even built for me a magnificent city, on the mountain not far from your castle. It is there that, one day, thousands of Sangheili will look out upon a world no longer tainted by your presence. You and your kin, though, are strong. I have seen it. Even the rest of your kind could be strong, if you would let them be, but you are afraid of power. Afraid of violence. You are a contradiction of yourselves, a paradox that, if allowed to remain, would destroy the universe and all that the Forerunners struggled to achieve."

De'mah cracked out of his stillness with a roll of his shoulders, and he began to pace, his sword leaving trails of steam in the air. Celestia shut her eyes and let out a breath, preparing herself. "Enough, De'mah. I no longer have the energy or desire to fight you. I will submit myself to you, and let you do what you will to the rest of my kind. We can't muster any more strength; we've given all that we have, and now I understand that we could never hope to defeat you" Celestia said.

"Hmph, you really are a coward. I don't know what you expect, but this will end only with your extinction. If all of your kind surrenders then at least it will speed it along. Hmm... Perhaps you think that this is wise. That since you no longer have hope, that you have never had hope, that you ought to get it over with already. You disgust me, truly, but a victory is a victory, particularly when it is all said and done all of your kind will still be dead, and I will still remain. Whatever you think, it hardly concerns me: it's your funeral" De'mah replied, and silenced his blade. "Do follow me."

De'mah turned to walk away, and as his back faced Celestia she began to charge her horn, her tip crackling with dark green magic and a thin film of it being wicked off her horn by the passing rain and air. The sound alerted De'mah and he spun, ignited his sword, and lunged at Celestia. The day Princess gritted her teeth as the monster neared and discharged the profaned spell in a brilliant flash of midnight black and arcing green fire, and the spell hit De'mah in the chest. He was blown back, away from Celestia, and hit the stones hard.

Celestia looked on in horror as De'mah lied on the wet ground, a burning hole in his chest. He scrabbled at Celestia's hooves, coughing and sputtering, and the Princess scurried back from him, feeling like she was about to throw up. He looked at her with vitriol and malice in his eyes, and purple blood leaked from both the hole in his chest and his mandibled mouth. "Your cowardice is abhorrent... That you would... Would... Would dare to strike at a warrior when his back is turned, reprehensible. I die here, now, by the hands of a coward, leaving my Dragons... To face whatever your treachery has in wait for them... I die now know-w-ing that..... That I will... Have my revenge. Even if... If it’s only in my n-name. My n-name, the name of the Sang-- Sangheili, and...in the name...of the F-Foreunners..."

De'mah faded away and his body fell limp, and Celestia stared at it with wide eyes. His blood pooled under his body and began to run thin in the rain, the purple fluid running across the stones to Celestia's hooves and staining her porcelain fur. She let it pool around her, never once tearing her gaze away from De'mah's lifeless body even as his cold eyes stared into the sky, and his final words haunted her.

She stayed that way for a long time, simply staring at the lifeless body of the creature that had visited so much suffering and misery upon her species, upon her and her sister, and upon the world they shared with all the other species. Would they ever know the full extent of De'mah's horrors? The total death count? The lasting damage to the minds and bodies of the few who had survived? Even with De'mah dead, were they all doomed anyway? It would take so much to come back that Celestia wondered if they'd be able to manage it at all.

"I will have my revenge, even if it's only in my name."

Celestia was about to get up and trot away when a dark shadow passed overhead, and she turned to look up at it, the sound of fluttering wings and whooshing wind blowing by her. A dragon, scales as dark as midnight, banked and slowed to a hover, descending down onto the stones of the shrine amidst a cloud of dust and a deep *boom.* Celestia tensed, but the dragon seemed more interested in De'mah's body.

“De’mah, vork ahn toro. Liu’kun aro... You felled the High Lord De’mah? You faced him in fair combat, and triumphed?” the dragon asked. “This is most impressive, Equestrian. Tell me, what is your name?”

“Princess Celestia.”

“Mmm. You lead the Equestrians, with your sister? You have much fire, if you defeated De’mah fairly." The dragon tucked his wings against his body and lowered his chin to the stones. “Dragon code dictates that I must abide by you, and answer your beckon. All dragons shall be told, and all shall heed; the Div, the dragons, are now in service to the Equestrians.”

Celestia remained silent, unsure of what to say, if anything. She certainly wasn't going to admit that she murdered De'mah in cold blood, and the dragon rose hesitantly, as if he'd expected Celestia to say something. He shifted on his talons, watching the Princess.

"I...see. Who is the high lord now, then?" she asked.

"There is none. The High Lord is dead, and one has not yet been selected to take his place” the dragon said. He reached out, picked up De'mah's body, and cast it aside without care. Celestia's eyes went wide as the Sangheili's corpse slumped against one of the pillars, and a terrible fury spread through her. That the dragons had waged genocide in De'mah's name for over a year, only for this dragon to toss his body aside as if he meant nothing, infuriated Princess Celestia. De'mah had been their high lord, had compelled to murder ponies by the thousands in his name, and now that he was dead this dragon cared nothing for him.

But there was nothing Celestia would say about this. "OK, then... As De'mah's slayer, I select you as the new High Lord. I expect that you will...perform to the highest of...standards" the Princess declared, unsure of her words and the guilt of lying piled on top of the unease of having murdered De'mah. This mammoth dragon towered over her, instilling a great fear, but he was her charge now, and she would have to set the example for him and his species.

"Of course, my lord."

"I...must return to Luna. We must begin to rebuild, and let the world know of the...peace, that I have brought" Celestia said, and she turned away. "There is much to do."

"Here, allow me" the dragon said, and lowered his head to the stones again. "Walk or travel not, I shall fly you to your kin, and show you to the royal city we built, 'Tokamelot."

"I see. Thank you." Celestia clambered onto the drake's nape and he spread his wings, about to take flight into the warm skies. "Tell me, what is your name?"

"Aldurmaax, my master. High Lord Aldurmaax."