Diamond's Evil Journey

Leon and Diamond exited the elevator to find themselves in a rocky cave. There was a camp set up with the merchant waiting for them. They walked up to him as he waved “Stranger, it's always a pleasure. Would you like anything?” he asked.

Leon nodded “Yeah, we might need more ammo. Maybe a few grenades too.” he said.

While they started dealing Diamond heard a voice coming from her saddle bag “Hello? Hey, are you there?” the voice called.

Diamond sighed “I have to take this, I'll be back.” she said to Leon before walking slightly away. She then took out the mirror and laid it on the ground in front of her. She saw the face of Rainbow Dash staring back at her.

Rainbow cringed at the sight of her “Whoa Twilight wasn't lying, you do look rough.” she said.

Diamond scowled at her “Gee thanks. Did you actually have anything important to say or did you just want to insult me?” she questioned.

Applejack pushed into view and glared at Rainbow before turning to Diamond “Sorry 'bout Rainbow, how are ya. Did ya find the cure ta yer parasite?” she asked.

Diamond shook her head “We haven't tried to find a cure since Ashley got kidnapped again.” she said.

Rainbow raised an eyebrow in confusion “Wait you have a life threatening parasite inside you, how is that not on the top of your list of priorities?” she asked.

“Saving Ashley is more important right now.” she answered.

Applejack seemed shocked by her words “Yer father is worried sick about ya. Maybe ya should worry 'bout yer own well being right now.” she said.

Diamond growled at her “If the Los Illuminados succeeds with their plans not only will Ashley die but countless others too!” she yelled as tears started to well up in her eyes.

Rainbow and Applejack were rendered speechless. Leon ran up to Diamond's side and knelt down “Is something wrong?” he asked.

Diamond quickly wiped the tears from her eyes “Everything's fine.” she then turned back to the mirror “Was that all you wanted?” she asked.

Applejack collected herself before speaking “One more thing. There's somepony here who wanted to see ya.” she said.

Diamond was caught of guard by that “What?” she asked. Instead of answering, Applejack just stepped back and Silver Spoon walked into view. Diamond lit up “Silvy!” she happily called.

Silver smiled at the sight of her “Di! I'm glad to see you safe.” her smile faltered “But I guess safe wouldn't be the right word, would it?” she asked.

Diamond frowned too “They told you about the parasite and everything, didn't they?” she asked.

Silver nodded before staring down at the ground “Um Diamond? J-just in case this is the last time we see each other, I just wanted to say-”

“Save it.” Diamond got her attention “There's no reason to get all sappy. This isn't the last time we'll see each other.” she said.

Silver's mood didn't seem to change “You don't know that.” she said.

Diamond gave a determined smirk “Remember who you're talking to. Have you ever known me to give up?” she asked.

Silver shook her head “No.” she answered.

“Have you ever known me to fail?” Diamond asked.

Silver managed a giggle “Alright I get it. I guess I'll just have to wait for you to get home.” she said with a small smile.

Diamond giggled “That's better. I have to go now but I promise you'll see me again.” she said.

Silver gave her a nod “Alright, I can't wait for you to get back. Bye.” she said.

Diamond then stuck the mirror back into her saddle bag before she frowned. Leon noticed the sudden change “You know it was wrong to make a promise like that.” he stated.

Diamond stared down at the floor “I know. I just...didn't want to say goodbye to my best friend. I thought it would be better if she just hoped for the best.” she said.

Leon patted Diamond's head and gave her a smile “Well, I guess we'll just have to make sure you didn't lie to her right?” he asked.

Diamond chuckled and smiled “Right, what was I thinking? Let's go, I've got a promise to keep.” she said. They then turned to a door that led further into the underground before walking through it.

After walking through a path that was dimly lit with light bulbs they stopped when they saw two villagers looking through some tools that were inside mine carts. Luckily they were facing away from Leon and Diamond, allowing them to sneak up to them.

They each walked behind one of them. They gave each other a nod before taking their knives out. Leon covered the villager's mouth before slitting his throat. Diamond climbed onto the other villager's back to do the same to him.

Once they were taken care of Diamond looked up to Leon “What are the villagers doing here?” she asked.

Leon glanced down at the mine cart filled with tools “They seem to be mining for something, but I can't imagine what the Los Illuminados could be looking for.” he said. After that they decided to continue on.

They came across a tunnel with a metal structure above it with tracks on it. On the tracks was an old looking mine cart. They were about to pass it by but Diamond stopped when she saw something red poking of from on the mine cart “Hey, Leon. Would you mind giving me a lift? I want to see what that is.” she said while pointing it out.

Leon noticed what she was pointing at and nodded “Alright, come here.” he said while bending down. Diamond walked over and Leon lifted her over his head. Diamond grabbed onto the tracks and struggled to hoist herself over but was able eventually. She then climbed into the mine cart to see a bundle of dynamite.

She smiled down at it “I thought so. Think we could make use of some dynamite?” she asked.

Leon chuckled “I don't see why not. Bring it down.” he said. Diamond took the dynamite in her hooves before jumping down into Leon's arms. He took the dynamite from her and let her down before continuing on.

They then came to a large room that was being split in two by a gigantic drill. It seemed that the only exit was on the other side of the drill. There was only one path that led to the other side but it was being blocked off by a huge boulder. There were also a large amount of villagers working in the area.

Diamond frowned as she scanned the area for some way past them “Any idea for getting through?” she asked.

Leon glanced down at the bundle of dynamite in his hand “Yeah, I think this amount of dynamite should be able to get that boulder out of our way.” he said.

Diamond smiled “Nice plan.” she then frowned slightly “Do you have anyway of lighting that?” she asked.

Leon rubbed his chin while thinking “I don't have a lighter. I could use two rocks to light it but that could take some time.” he said.

Diamond nodded “Alright, just do that then. I'll protect you.” she said. Leon thought about refusing but with one glance at Diamond, he know he could trust her.

He picked up two small rocks “I'll try to be fast.” he said. With that they climbed down the ladder. Leon took his handgun out and killed two villagers that were in his way. All of the villagers in the area were alerted and took whatever weapons that were nearby.

Leon ran up to the boulder and put the dynamite in a nook. He then took the two rocks in his hands and started striking them together trying to get a spark. Diamond stood protectively between him and the group of villagers.

She took out her revolver and fired in the group to take a few out while they were at a distance. One of them threw a hatchet her way but she rolled to the side as it stuck in the ground next to her. The villagers started surrounding her and closing on her. She quickly took a grenade out and pulled the pin. She then dropped it and ran through the legs of one of the villagers. The grenade then exploded, taking out a large amount of the crowd.

Only three of the villagers remained. Two of them charged her as the last turned to approach Leon. Diamond ran past the two while dodging a swing from a hatchet. She then fired a bullet into the villagers head right before he could reach Leon. She then turned around to see the last two swinging at her.

Her eyes shot open as she barely ducked under one hatchet. The other swung lower so she did a back flip to dodge before she shot both of them. She was about to take a moment to relax but instead tensed up when she heard a chainsaw revving up. A villager wearing a sack over his head and a chainsaw in his hands, entered into the room.

Her charged her with a scream and she fired her handgun into his chest. Unluckily the bullets didn't seem to be slowing him down. He reached her and swung the chainsaw down at her. She backed up to allow it to harmlessly pass by her. She then took her knife in her teeth before she bucked him in the knee. The pain caused him to kneel down and diamond used the chance to jumped and stab him in the eye. When she ripped it out, the villager fell to the ground lifelessly.

Diamond scanned the area to see that it was empty. She then turned to Leon “Are you done yet, 'cause I am.” she said.

Leon suddenly turned and ran toward her “Just got it! Get down!” he warned. They both ran a safe distance and the dynamite blew the boulder to smithereens. After the explosion Leon smiled and petted Diamond “You did well. You might not even need me anymore.” he said.

Diamond blushed a bit “Thanks, but I still what you by my side whether I need it or not.” she said. They both chuckled before walking through the new path and door.

In the next room was circular grate floor with lava bubbling right under it. In the middle of the room was a huge hatch that looked like it could be opened. Diamond had a miserable expression on her face “I hate places like this! Let's get through this quickly.” she said.

Leon nodded “Let me know if it gets too bad.” he said. He then walked over to a switch near the wall. He grabbed it and pulled it experimentally.

Diamond walked close to the middle hatch to study it. Suddenly the hatch opened up revealing nothing but lava. She yelped and backed up. She turned to Leon who was standing near the switch “I already have enough trying to kill me, I don't need you doing it too!” she scolded.

Leon gave her an apologetic look “Sorry, I'll close that back up.” he said before turning back to the switch. He tried pulling it again but it wouldn't budge “Never mind I might not be able to.” he said. Then the hatch closed automatically. Leon was slightly caught off guard “So it's on a timer.” he observed.

Diamond sighed and wiped some sweat from her forehead “Enough playing around with switches. Let's get out of here.” she said.

“Right.” Leon agreed before they both walked over to the humongous door on the other side of the room.

As soon as they got close the door opened up and two giants walked out. The door shut behind them. Diamond gritted her teeth in anger “You've got to be kidding me!” she yelled. One of the giants threw a fist down at her but she rolled out of danger. She then glanced back at the hatch in the middle of the room. She smiled and turned to Leon “Maybe we can use this lava to our advantage.” she suggested.

Leon nodded “I'll draw their attention while you get over to the switch. Don't throw it until I give you the signal.” he said before he took out his handgun. He fired at both of the giants to get their attention. They both turned to him and stomped towards him as he ran. Diamond then ran toward the switch and waited on Leon.

The giants had Leon backed into the corner. They reached out to grab him but he sidestepped their hands before running under them and towards the hatch. Once he reached it he turned and waited for the giants to catch up. Once they stepped onto the hatch, Leon took a flash grenade in his hand “Flash!” he warned Diamond as he pulled the pin and threw it into the air. The flashed blinded the giants and they held their eyes shut and stumbled around “Now!” he shouted

Diamond jumped up and bit down on the switch's handle and pulled it down. Leon jumped off of the hatch as it opened up and swallowed both of the giants. Diamond smiled but her smile fell as a giant hand rose up from the lava. The hand grasped the ledge and the giant started to pull itself out of the lava. The lava had obviously melted a good amount of it's flesh but it was still strong enough to stand as the lava started to roll down it's body.

Diamond stared wide eyed at the half melted monster “Oh come on! That's a load of horseapples!” she yelled. The hatch behind it closed, trapping the other giant to it's fate.

Leon took his shotgun out “We'll have to take this one out the old-fashioned way. It shouldn't be able to take much more. Be careful not to touch it since it's still covered in lava.” he said.

The giant threw a hand at Leon but he flipped backward out of the way. He then blasted it with his shotgun. The bullets pierced it's weak flesh and caused it to stumble back with a scream. Some of the lava on it's skin was flung off of it from it's movements. Diamond tried to dodge the burning liquid as it flew her way. She then yelped in pain as she felt a burning pain on her back. She turned her head to see a drop of lava burning at her coat and skin.

She quickly wiped it off with her hoof with another wince. She then glared at the giant “You'll regret that!” she shouted. She took her revolver out and emptied the whole cylinder into it's back. It turned to her and charged. She rolled out of the way and switched her revolver for her handgun. She then emptied the magazine into the giant.

It then fell to a knee and it's parasite emerged from it's back. Diamond knew that she wasn't going to risk climbing onto the molten monster so she took out a frag grenade instead. She pulled the pin and threw it toward the exposed parasite. The grenade exploded along with the parasite. The giant let out one last dying cry before falling to the floor.

Leon jogged up to Diamond and knelt down to her “Let me see that burn.” he said. Diamond sat facing away from him so he could see it better. The lava had burned though some of her coat and her skin had second degree burns “You'll be alright. Luckily you got it off when you did, any longer and it could have done permanent nerve damage.” he said.

Diamond nodded in relief and turned to see the huge doors opened again “Now, let's get out of here.” she said. They walked past the door to see a small hallway leading to a normal sized door. Once through it Diamond was glad to be back in a cool dank cave.

They walked though a small tunnel but it shortly opened up into a tall underground room. They saw moonlight shine down from the ceiling so they were near the surface. Near a cliff was a small shrine with an engraving under it. Diamond got on her hind legs to read it “The two lights shall shine light on a new path. Is this some kind of hint or something?” she asked.

Leon rubbed his chin “I wouldn't doubt that it-watch out!” he suddenly warned. Diamond turned to see one of the human sized insects flying towards her. She jumped out of the way causing it to face plant. She then took her knife in her teeth before stabbing it into the insect's head. Leon scanned the area and saw more insects flying in from different directions “Come on, we're at a disadvantage here.” he said.

They started running up the only path they had access to while a few insects pursued. They came to a split in the path. Since they didn't have time to think, Leon ran to the left and Diamond followed. They then ran into a tunnel. At the end of the tunnel was a dead end with some kind of picture carved into the wall. They didn't have time to examine it as they turned around to see a group of insects fly in after them.

With no other choice they took out their handguns. They shot at the incoming insects, killing a few of them but the rest charged them with their claws. Leon caught one in midair before bringing it to the ground and jabbing his knife into it's chest.

Another insect stood over Diamond and regurgitated some acid at her. She ran under it without being burned by the acid. She then jumped onto it's back. A insect came from behind her and swung it's claws her way. She jumped away and the claws split the insect's head. When she landed she used her handgun to finish off the last one.

Once they were alone Leon, turned to the cave carving. Next to it was a rectangular stone button. Wondering what it would do, he pressed it. The button the started to shine with a bright light. They both looked around for anything that changed but saw nothing. They then decided to exit to see a light was shining from one of two large stone statues that were high over what looked like an exit.

They walked up to the door and saw that it had no handle or anyway of getting it open. Leon gave up on getting it open quickly “There must be another button nearby. That has to be how we get through.” he said. They turned to a stone bridge that would bring them to another cave. They silently agreed to check it out.

Once they got close, four insects flew out to meet them. Leon dodged a swipe from one's claws before he slipped behind it. He grabbed a hold it's flimsy wings and ripped them off before kicking it off the cliff. Diamond shot one in the head and another flew at her from behind. She turned around just in time to see a knife fly into the side of it's head. Leon ran over and removed his knife from the corpse and pulled out his shotgun to blast the remaining insect.

Diamond stared up at him in amazement “How'd you throw your knife like that?” she asked.

They started walking into the cave “You hold the blade and throw with a moderate amount of force, depending on how far away your target it. Although I use my hands so I don't know if you'd be able to do the same with your teeth. It'd be better if you didn't try it.” he said.

They found another dead end with more cave carvings and a second rectangular button. Leon pressed it and it lit up just like the last one. They then walked back to exit the cave. When they exited they saw that the door ahead was almost all melted “What the hay? How did that happen?” she asked.

Leon just hummed in thought and continued walking up to the door. Once they arrived they saw that behind the door was a gate with a button in the middle. Leon pressed it and the gate lifted out of their way. Ahead was a tight tunnel with huge cylindrical stones wrapped in chains. They were being raised before crashing into the ground.

The first one took about two seconds to raise so Leon and Diamond were able to easily slip by it without being crushed. After passing by another they came to three consecutive crushers. Leon eyed it for a few seconds “I don't know if we can get by fast enough. It's gonna be close.” he said.

Diamond pointed a hoof at a lever next to Leon “What does that do?” she asked. Leon finally noticed it and pulled it. The lever caused the middle crusher to be permanently raised. Diamond raised an eyebrow “These traps are just getting lazy. That switch wasn't even almost hidden.” she said.

“We shouldn't complaining about things being easy.” Leon said. With that they quickly passed the crushers. The next room was fairly empty beside a coffin with a button in front of it.

The walked up to it and Diamond started examining the coffin “Why it this here? Where's the exit?” she wondered. Leon pressed the button and the ground around the coffin started raising up, bringing the two with it. It brought them up to the surface.

Diamond stared up at the full moon and smiled “Finally, I was so tired of being underground. It's nice to be breathing fresh air.” she said. Leon nodded and smiled but frowned when he saw a paper nailed to a nearby shack. He walked over and grabbed it. Diamond joined him and saw as his expression turned more grim as he read “Is it bad news or something?” she asked.

Leon finished reading and lowered it “It is.” he said. He then knelt down to her level “It's from Ada.” he said.

Diamond raised an eyebrow “You mean, that woman in the red dress?” she asked.

Leon nodded “It's information about how our parasites could be removed. She says that they could be neutralized using medication, but only if they haven't hatched yet. She also mentions that they might be able to be removed via surgery, but it would very likely be fatal.” he hung his head “I'm sorry Diamond.” he said.

Diamond's facial expression didn't change “As far as I'm concerned, nothing's changed.” she said.

Leon stared at her in confusion “What do you mean?” he asked.

Diamond smirked “So what if Ada doesn't know of a cure? That's why we're looking. Even if there is no cure, I see no reason to stop now. If we can kill saddler with what time we have left then he can't use us to do his bidding. We might not make it but we can at least still do some good with the time we have left.” she said.

Leon smiled at her words and petted her head “You're starting to sound like a real hero, ya know that? But you're right, as long as we're still standing there's hope.” he stood up and crumpled up Ada's letter “Let's get back to it.” he said.

They continue down the path in front of them until they saw some ruins. There were a few villagers walking around the ruins. Diamond sneaked up to one and rammed into his back to get him onto his stomach. She then stabbed her knife into his throat. She turned to see Leon slitting the throat of the other.

They continued through the ruins until they came across a bonfire that was surrounded by a circle of villagers. Immediately diamond ran forward. She rammed one of the villagers causing him to fall into the fire. She chuckled at his misfortune as the other villagers faced her. Leon ran in and started firing into the group.

A villager got close to Leon and swung at him with a hatchet. Leon caught his wrist and gave him an uppercut to the chin before shooting him in the head. He then turned to see another villager raising a hatchet for an attack. Leon was ready to counter but a knife flew in from the side and stuck into the villager's heart. When he fell limply to the floor, Diamond walked over and took her knife back. She then gave Leon a cocky smile.

Leon chuckled slightly “How?” he asked simply.

Diamond gave him a look as if it was obvious “I used my hooves.” she said.

“You learn fast.” he said. He then looked around but saw no more villagers. He walked up to a metal door with a design of a lion on it. The lion's mouth was open wide and it seemed like something round might fit in it. He started reading a inscription that was under the lion “Offer the sacrifice to the lion. Sounds like we need to find another key.” he said.

“What else is new. Well we have no choice so lets get looking.” she said. She started searching around the nearby ruins but wasn't finding much.

Leon broke through a boarded up window of an old looking shack. He poked his head in to see a crank. He turned to where Diamond ran off to “I think I found something!” he shouted to her before jumping though the window. Diamond climbed though as well. Leon started to crank the crank and a part of the floor slid away to reveal a ladder in a hole. He turned to Diamond “I hope you didn't get too used to the fresh air.” he said.

Diamond sighed “It was nice while it lasted I guess.” she said before she started climbing down with Leon following after. Once down they were in some underground ruins. Leon walked up to a stone tablet in front of them “Up ahead rests the offering to the lion.” he read.

“That's convenient.” Diamond said. They then continued through a tunnel. When they exited the tunnel they saw a maze-like area with short walls. They saw some villagers guarding the area and some were even laying down bear traps. To the left of the maze was a ladder leading up to a hole in the wall. It looked as if the wall was hollowed out.

Leon knelt down to Diamond “Be careful of the bear traps. Leave the visible villagers to me while you get up that ladder and search that area. Sound like a plan?” he asked.

Diamond nodded and waited for Leon to lead the way. Leon ran in and started attracting the villagers by firing at them. Diamond sprinted past them while shooting the occasional villager that was in her way. Eventually she reached the ladder and was about to start climbing when a villager carrying a chainsaw landed right in front of her. She backed up and readied herself but stopped when she heard Leon's voice “Leave him to me! Just get past him!” he shouted to her.

The villager charged her while wildly waving the chainsaw around. Diamond ran and rammed into his leg to trip him before quickly climbing up the ladder. She climbed into the large hole to see that it led to a room with a pedestal and stairs leading down. She jumped onto the pedestal to see a metal key that looked as if it were covered in small chains. She assumed that they would need it so she threw it into her saddlebag.

She then hopped down and walked down the stairs. Down there was a small empty room with one villager in the middle. Unluckily his head was covered in a bag and he held a chainsaw in his hands. One he spotted her, he charged her with a scream. She quickly rolled out of they way as the chainsaw was about to come down on her. She then pulled out her revolver and fired a few bullets which he just shrugged off.

He ran at her once again but she took her knife out and ran at him. She jabbed the knife into the villager's foot as she passed under him causing him to fall forward. He fell onto the chainsaw and it quickly cut straight through his midsection. Diamond just ignored the gruesome scene and turned to a door to walk though it.

When she opened the door she saw Leon “Are you finished?” she asked.

“Yeah, but the only other door around is locked. Did you see any kind of key?” he asked.

Diamond smirked “I knew we would need it.” she said before walking to the next door with Leon. When they arrived, she took the key in her mouth to unlock the door. Past the door was a small square room. When they walked into the room, the door they just came through was blocked off by a gate. They then heard a scraping sound above them. They looked up to see that the ceiling was covered in long metal spikes and it was now slowly lowering towards them.

They spotted four red spots near the four corners of the ceiling. Leon felt relieved “Oh it's just another one of these.” he said. He was about to shoot the spots when two spider like parasites emerged from the ground.

Diamond jumped in front of Leon “I'll handle them, take care of the trap.” she said. Leon nodded and focused on the trap. Diamond used her handgun to fire at one of the parasites but it nimbly dodged. It crawled quickly towards her but she finally landed a shot to kill it.

She turned to see the other one charging at her. It jumped at her but she quickly stood on her hind legs to take her knife in her right hoof. She threw the knife and it stuck into the parasite in midair. She then heard the ceiling stop and the door leading to the next room opened. Diamond took her knife back from the parasite's body before continuing with Leon.

The next room was empty except for a staircase taking them down to the next door. They walked in to see a cliff with no way past except three attached mine carts on a track. Diamond walked to the cliff and looked down to see just a black abyss “What are we suppose to do now?” she wondered. She turned to see Leon hopping into one of the mine carts “What are you doing?” she asked.

“The same thing you should be doing. Hop in, I'll figure out how to get this thing moving.” he said.

Diamond just stared at the rusty mine carts with unease “You're joking right? That thing looks like it's falling apart.” she said.

“Do you want to stay here?” he questioned.

Diamond sighed “Make room.” she said before she walked over and jumped into the cart.

Leon saw a lever close by so he climbed out and walked to it “This should do it.” he said before pulling it. The three mine carts started moving at a moderate speed and Leon jumped in before it got too far.

Diamond took a seat on the floor of the cart in the back “At least we can relax for a second.” she said.

Leon looked ahead and saw a wooden structure on each side of the tracks. On the structures were a few villagers who seemed to be waiting for them “I hope you enjoyed that second 'cause we've got company.” he warned.

Diamond sighed in annoyance “I'm not even surprised anymore.” she said. She took her handgun out and stood on her hind legs to get a better view. They both shot at the villagers and were able to kill them before they passed them.

They assumed that there were gonna be more ahead and were proven right shortly. They passed by more structures and the villagers they weren't able to kill fast enough jumped into their carts. One landed next to Leon but her quickly slight her throat before throwing her off. Diamond shot two others and they stumbled over the edge.

They had a few seconds to themselves but saw more villagers waiting for them ahead. Once they were about to pass them the mine carts stopped suddenly allowing the villagers to pile in. Three villagers crowded in a cart with Diamond. She knew that she couldn't dodge in such a small space so she took out a flash grenade and threw it in the air “Flash!” she warned.

Two of the villagers stumbled out of the cart and Diamond just shot the last one. She then looked at the cart Leon was in to see him finishing two other villagers before dumping their corpses out of the cart “Leon, how do we get this thing moving again?” she asked.

Leon saw a nearby lever and assumed that's how they were stopped in the first place. He quickly climbed up to the lever and pulled it before dropping back in the cart. After some time he saw more villager filled structures ahead. He took a frag grenade out and threw it at one of the structures. The explosion destroyed the structure and killed most of the villagers.

Two normal villagers and one chainsaw wielder still jumped into the carts. The chainsaw villager landed in Leon's cart and swung at him. Leon ducked the attack took out his knife before he stabbed him in the stomach. He took it out before getting behind him and kicking him in the back to send him over the side. He turned around to see that Diamond had taken care of the others. He decided to join her in the back cart.

Suddenly the track started picking up speed as they started heading downhill. Then they started going down a downward spiral, picking up even more speed. Diamond held onto the cart so she didn't fly out. After the spiral they were on a straightaway while keeping their speed.

Leon saw that the track ended up ahead but there was a huge gap before the next platform. His eyes widened as he thought of some way to survive “Diamond! Hold onto me tight!” he ordered.

Without question Diamond climbed onto him an hung tightly to his neck. Leon waited for the perfect moment as they got closer and closer to the edge. Once the first two mine carts left the track Leon leaped forward. With the momentum from the carts he flew far. He reached out a hand to barely catch the edge of the platform. He grunted as he struggled to pulled them up with just one arm.

Diamond started to panic since it seemed like Leon wasn't going to be able to get them up “Hold on!” she shouted as she climbed up his arm and pulled herself onto the platform. She then turned around and took Leon's hand in her fore hooves and started to pull. With her help, Leon was able to grab onto the edge with his other hand and pull himself up.

Diamond started breathing heavy but managed a giggle “You fly better then some pegasi I know.” she said.

Leon chuckled “That's a compliment I never thought I'd hear. Now let's move on.” he said. They continued into the next room which only had a stone table and a octagonal artifact. It had a design of a half naked man being stabbed through the abdomen with a staff that bared the insignia of the Los Illuminados. Leon took it in his hands to study it “I think this is our sacrifice to the lion.” he said.

“Great, but how do we get back to the door? Our ride back is kinda at the bottom of a hole.” she said.

Leon thought for a moment “We have no choice but to continue forward and try to find our way back.” he said.

Diamond nodded in agreement and they walked through the next tunnel until they came across a ladder. Once up the ladder, they found themselves on the surface near some familiar ruins. They figured out where they were once they saw the bonfire. Diamond shrugged “I guess that makes sense. I should just be thankful instead of questioning it.” she said.

They walked up to the lion door and Leon stuck the sacrifice into it's mouth causing the door to slide open. Behind the door was an elevator that seemed to lead back into Salazar's castle. They walked into the elevator and it took them up.

The elevator stopped and let them off. They walked out into the hallway which was the same style of the other parts of Salazar's castle. They walked out to the end of the hallway to find a large room. There was a towering stone statue of Salazar standing near them.

Diamond stared at the statue in disgust “He has horrible taste in décor.” she said.

“They almost made it as big as his ego.” Leon said, causing Diamond to laugh

her laughter started to die down but she held a smirk on her face “You know, I think I actually like it. It can't talk and doesn't have a superiority complex. It's just a better Salazar.” she said.

Now it was Leon's turn to laugh. After a moment they both decided to move on. They turned to a bridge that ran over water which covered the rest of the room. As soon as they were about to take a step on the bridge, it started to sink into the water. They turned around to see castle guards around the upper rooms and the Salazar statue was holding his hands out while raising and lowering his left.

Diamond growled slightly “It's almost like it's mocking us. Never mind what I said, I hate it just as much as the real Salazar.” she said.

Leon saw a ladder in the room to Salazar's right “Let's go. There has to be a way to get the bridge back.” he said before they ran towards the ladder to climb it. Once up there they were faced with three guards wielding flails.

Two of them charged at Leon. He dodged one flail before catching the other's wrist. He took the flail before throwing the disarmed guard down to the lower floor. He then bashed the other guard's head with the flail. Diamond dodge rolled out of the way of a flail strike before throwing her knife into the guard's head.

They didn't see anything else of interest in that room so they turned their attention to the statue again. It's left hand was lowering to their level before raising out of sight. With no other choice they jumped onto the hand and let it lift them up. It brought them next to a higher room, but they were greeted by a guard with a crossbow.

Leon barely dodged the arrow while Diamond jumped into the room. She got behind the guard and threw a roundhouse kick to his knee to bring him down to her level. She then shot him in the back of his head. Another guard came up behind her but Leon jumped into the room before blasting him with his shotgun.

Leon walked up to a lever that was in the room and gave it a pull. They saw half of the bridge rise up from the water “The other switch must be somewhere on the other side.” he said while looking at the rooms that were on the other side of the Salazar statue.

Diamond saw that the entrance on the ground was gated off “How do we get over there?” she asked.

Leon rubbed his chin and studied the giant statue. He then noticed a switch located on the crotch “What a weirdo.” he mumbled.

“What was that?” diamond asked.

“Nothing, there's a switch down there.” he said. Diamond looked over the edge and saw the switch. They then rode Salazar's hand down to a platform near his crotch. Leon hesitantly pulled the switch while feeling dirty. Suddenly Salazar's left hand stopped and his right started rising and lowering.

They used his hand to reach the room across from them. It held nothing interesting beside a ladder leading down. They climbed down to see a red coated guard standing in front of the last lever they needed. Her swung his flail at Diamond but she flipped out of it's way before Leon ran past and slashed at his stomach. Before he could recover, Diamond fired three bullet's into his chest to finish him.

Leon pulled the switch and the last half of the bridge rose out of the water. Then then gate blocking them opened. They walked out to the bridge. Before they could start crossing they heard the sound of stone scraping against stone. They turned around to see the giant statue take a step toward them.

“What the hay!” Diamond exclaimed.

“Damn! Run!” Leon shouted and they both started sprinting away from the statue.

Diamond pushed herself to keep up with Leon “Now it's trying to kill us! It's exactly the same as Salazar!” she yelled. They reached the end of the room and Diamond tried the door but there was a lock hanging off of the door “Come on!” she shouted.

“Move!” Leon commanded and Diamond complied. Leon then kicked the door open while breaking the lock. They then ran through the door and thought they were safe. To their dismay, the statue punched a giant hole through the wall and continued chasing.

Leon and Diamond started running across the bridge leading to a tall tower. The bridge started to crack and break under the weight of the giant statue. Leon saw the cracks catching up to them “Get ready to jump!” he shouted.

The statue started to fall forward and broke through the rest of the bridge. Leon and Diamond leaped forward at the last second. Leon caught onto the edge with one hand. Diamond barely missed but Leon caught her hoof with his other hand.

He grunted from the pain in his arms but managed to throw Diamond safely onto the ledge. She then helped him up.

Diamond tried to catch her breath “I'm getting... really bucking...tired of Salazar.” she said between breaths.

“Just now? I was the first time I saw him.” Leon said with a light chuckle. He then got to his feet and turned to the door to the tower ahead of him “Are you good to go?” he asked.

Diamond caught her breath and gave him a grin “Do you even have to ask? Of course I am.” she said before they walked into the tower.