Author's Note

For those of you who are curious as to what the six seals are/were, here you go.

1: One seal is broken when family bonds become irreparable - Penalty: The Crystal Heart weakens
2: another breaks when indecision leads an alicorn to take their own life - Penalty: All of Equestria suffers an earthquake
3: another breaks when the two princesses let anger rule their hearts - Penalty: The Tree of Harmony is damaged
4: one more breaks when friendship is abandoned - Penalty: The Tree of Harmony dies
5: one breaks when an Alicorn takes the life of a young pony - Penalty: The Crystal Heart shatters
6: another breaks when an innocent is slain - Penalty: The other horsemen are summoned

Chapter XIII: Heartfelt desires

When Celestia and Luna return to Canterlot an hour later, they see a massive hole in the side of the castle and investigate the damage. Finding much more extensive destruction inside, they follow the path that leads to the throne room, which makes both of their jaws drop as Celestia asks, "Just what in Tartarus happened here?! It is utterly trashed!"

Luna sees a couple of large hoofprints in the once-pristine marble floor leading from behind the dais and sighs saying, "I think that my coltfriend got a little angry when we were thrown into Tartarus, I don't understand how he managed to survive fighting Tirek."

She looks at her sister as she gazes around the room at all the damage and sees the two collapsed columns and blinks in disbelief saying, "Just who is your coltfriend, sister?"

She looks over at her older sister with a sad smile saying with a shake of her head, "Sorry sister, I promised him that I wouldn't tell anypony what I know, including you. If you want answers, you will have to make the same promise I did."

With a groan, Celestia sighs, saying, "Let's get started on cleaning this mess up sister, this will take us all night to repair."

Seven (Death) spends three months scouring the land for where Tirek might have gone, not finding any clues about his whereabouts, and decides to head to Canterlot to ask the two sisters where he might have run off.

Celestia and Luna are eating breakfast in the dining room when they hear somepony enter the room, causing them both to turn to see who it is and discover Seven Selbs heading toward them as the older sister swallows her food saying, "Ah, if it isn't the stallion that somehow survived facing Tirek and trashed the throne room in the process, I have so many questions for you."

The horseman smirks and says, "If you cast a privacy barrier and make a formal promise to me, I might answer you."

She frowns and then cocks her head asking, "Is it really that important to be so secretive and paranoid?"

He chuckles and says, "I'm not paranoid at all, but it is of utmost importance that my secrets stay secrets. So please make your choice, princess."

Celestia tries to stare him down for a few minutes before giving up with an exasperated sigh saying, "Fine, what must I say?"

Seven (Death) cocks his head asking, "Forgetting something, are we?"

She huffs in annoyance at him spotting that and casts a privacy barrier saying, "There, happy now?"

With a smirk, he nods saying, "Much better, now just state your name and swear upon your life that you won't tell another soul what I tell you during private conversations."

Celestia debates whether or not to go through with it, deciding against it as she lifts her nose into the air pridefully, saying, "I will not go through such a hassle just to get answers, I will find them another way." then takes down her barrier, saying, "If you hurt my sister, I will send you to the moon as punishment."

Seven (Death) chuckles darkly and says, "The only way I will ever hurt her is in the bedroom if she wants me to."

A fierce blush races across Luna's cheek as she spews out orange juice all over her sister's face squeaking out, "WHAT!? DON'T TELL HER WHAT WE DO THERE OR I'LL SEND YOU TO TARTARUS WHERE TIREK IS!"

Getting what he came here for, he nods and says, "Very well, I shall see you again in a couple of nights, my love." then turns and goes to take his leave when he is stopped by Luna clearing her throat.

Luna looks at him affectionately and asks, "Would you care to have breakfast with us, dear?"

Seven (Death) sees a chance to annoy her sister further and says, "I appreciate your offer, though I think your sister would be rather uncomfortable."

She looks at her sister with pleading eyes and asks, "Can my coltfriend stay and have breakfast with us, pretty please?"

Celestia sighs and then looks into her sister's eyes for a moment before turning away with a blush saying, "Yes he can, just please don't start doing it on the breakfast table. Make sure you cast a soundproofing barrier if you go to your room, you are not exactly...quiet...you know."

Luna's face turns beet red as she looks down at her food bashfully, saying, "Sorry sister, I'll remember that."

After her sister's coltfriend sits down beside her, she watches the two feed each other and even share food held in their mouths which always leads to an intimate kiss. Her jealousy slowly gives way to her getting aroused by their interactions, which in turn causes her jealousy to flare back up again.

Months pass by as Seven (Death) spends time with Luna and annoys Celestia with their affection, going so far as to actually have sex in her own bed.

Hearth's Warming Eve comes around as Luna snuggles against her lover's stomach and raises her lips to his ear saying, "I'm looking forward to giving my sister her present tonight, are you?"

Seven (Death lays beside her with his wings wrapped around her and nods saying, "I am if you are determined to do this for your sister."

Luna then nuzzles against his neck, saying, "I am, she will be so surprised at what she will be getting tonight."

After setting the sun and raising the moon, Celestia sits on the couch by the crackling fireplace with a tall tree in the corner behind her. Staring into the flames as she thinks about how lonely she has felt lately when she hears the doors to their personal living room open, causing her to look up to see her sister walk in with her coltfriend in tow and puts on a forced smile saying, "Happy Hearth's Warming, Sister, and you too, Seven. Come sit by the fire on this cold winter night." Feeling bitterness rising within her about how her sister has someone and she doesn't, she pushes the feeling aside to not ruin her sister's night.

Making her way beside her sister, she watches her lover walk toward her slowly. Using the tip of her right wing to turn her sister's head to face her, she smiles and says, "I have a present for you that I know you will love, Sister. Close your eyes and I will give it to you."

Closing her eyes, she wonders what her sister could have gotten her as her heart beats a little faster when she feels a wing lightly touch the back of her head and a pair of lips meet hers. Her mouth opens of its own accord and feels a tongue slip into her mouth, causing her to kiss back hungrily.

Luna watches with a happy smile as her sister makes out with her coltfriend passionately, grinding her own thighs together at how alluring she finds it as he pushes her onto her back, causing her to pull back with surprise and says, "Let's share, sister."

THE FOLLOWING SECTION IS UNSAFE FOR WORK, SO FEEL FREE TO SKIP IT COMPLETELY OR RETURN AT A SAFER TIME!

Celestia feels somepony lying on her chest and opens her eyes to see Seven there, causing her to blush fiercely and stammer, saying, "W-W-Wh-What is this, what is going on?"

Making her way off the couch to stand in view of her sister, she smiles down at her and whispers into her ear, "I said, let's share. Meaning that my coltfriend is now your coltfriend, so let's share him together."

Not giving her a moment to gather her thoughts, Seven (Death) moves in and kisses her more passionately while moving one hoof down her body towards her groin.

She nervously tucks her legs in against her body and feels his hoof brush against her teats. Gasping for air at the brief pleasure, she tries to say something when he returns to kissing her more deeply than before. Feeling her self-control start to wane due to her heart and body madly craving affection, her body begins to betray her and starts to relax further.

Luna watches her sister slowly relaxing to her lover's actions as he pulls away from her lips and lightly nips her neck, causing her to shudder when her wings slowly start to encircle his back. Seeing him move further down her body, she moves around to the end of the couch and looks down at her sister's face to find her fighting to regain control of herself. Chuckling, she then lowers her head to say, "Happy Hearth's Warming Eve, Sister. We both now have a coltfriend who is amazing in bed..." then places her lips over hers and kisses her as he did earlier.

Celestia's resolve shatters as her own sister slips her tongue into her mouth, her heart and body shove it into a cage and throw away the key as they take over. Soft moans start to escape her when she feels Seven suckle at her teats, slipping a hoof around her own sister's neck as she hungrily devours her mouth.

Seven tastes small amounts of milk come from each teat as he moves further down her body, kissing all the way to her lips. Running his tongue up her slit, he sucks the top of it into his mouth and teases it with his tongue.

Feeling her sister's lover, now her lover as well, eat her out, she wraps her tail around his upper body as her hooves curl inward. When her back suddenly arches, she squirts all over him as she moans into her sister's mouth.

The horseman drives her over the edge once again with his tongue before kissing back up her body with his member ready to go, lining himself up with her entrance and driving forward to hear a loud moan from her as she devours her own sister's mouth.

Celestia's body spasms at feeling him thrust into her fully, causing her to pull away from her sister with sparkles in her eyes and says in a tender, affectionate tone, "Best. Hearth's. Warming. Ever." then pulls away to kiss her new coltfriend passionately.

She smiles at seeing her lover bury himself in her sister and sees her exposed teat, causing an idea to pop into her head as she starts to suckle on it. Hearing the passionate sounds of her sister's kissing and the slapping of her lover's balls against her sister's large rear, she tastes a few spurts of milk and pulls away. Swallowing the milk, she giggles and says, "I see you have been nursing the unfortunate foals whose mothers cannot produce milk yet."

Pulling away with a gasp and a fierce blush on her face, she says, "I just cannot...hah...let them go hungry...hah...I had to do...oh buck...something to help." and feels herself climbing a peak and hooks her legs around her lover's back, shouting, "Yes! Fill me up, darling!" Moments later, she feels him thrust hard into her and stay there while feeling a hot warmth flow into her and falls over the peak herself as she squirts all over his thighs.

Luna watches her lover pull back and sit up a bit, seeing enough room for her to climb on top of her sister saying, "You've had your turn sis, now it's my turn to get filled." then pulls her sister's lips to hers and kisses her deeply. She feels him thrust into her depths and moans passionately into her sister's mouth, hearing her sister swallow the accumulating saliva and kiss her back.

Seven (Death) wraps his front hooves around Luna's flanks and drives himself into the back of her womb, saying, "You know that I've made it so I won't produce children, but do you still have that burning desire for a foal?"

Pulling away from her sister's lips, she shouts, "YES! I WANT TO BE A MOTHER, SO FULFILL MY DESIRE!" and wraps her tail around him to pull him even deeper into her.

The horseman thrusts wildly into her and chuckles darkly, saying, "Well keep dreaming of it dear." then pulls out and slams his member into her sister.

Overhearing the shouting just next door, Panoptos watches Prince Blueblood cheat on a maid as his marefriend walks into the room to see him fill her with his seed. He looks upon the mares face as it morphs into one of heartbreak, anger, and disgust as she shouts, "I'M THROUGH WITH YOU!" and races out of the room while slamming the door shut as semen drips out of the mare's entrance. With nothing else to do at the moment, an idea comes to his mind as he makes his way towards the Crystal Empire for a chat.

THE FOLLOWING BLACK SECTION IS UNSAFE FOR WORK AND CAN BE SKIPPED! IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO SEE NONCONSENSUAL SEX, SKIP PAST THE BLACK TO RETURN TO THE REST OF THE CHAPTER!

Cadence stands frozen outside her daughter's door hearing painful cries come from her lips, watching with wide, hateful eyes as her husband thrusts into their daughter one final time as Flurry Heart cries out, "Daddy, noo!"

Shining Armor finishes and gets off his daughter, then looks down at her bloody entrance as his seed oozes out of her and smiles, then kisses her cheek saying, "Sweet dreams dear." and turns to head out of her room as she sobs miserably.

Returning to her room with a null ring held in her magic, she waits with two royal guards with frowns on their faces. When her husband enters the room, she looks at him with tears falling from her eyes and disgust all over her face as she says, "Hello, you are in serious trouble now." then slides the ring onto his horn and says, "I know what you've done, and it disgusts me to my very core!" Feeling the cold ring on her own horn, she yanks it off and holds it in front of her and says, "You broke your vow to me and violated our daughter...I wash my hooves of you." then uses her magic to melt the ring into a lump of gold and hurls it at him saying, "Our marriage is through! Haul that worthless stallion to the darkest cell in the dungeon!"

He then looks to his ex-wife in shock as the guards start to drag him away, shouting, "You can't do this to me Cady, I love you still!"

Panoptos floats in the corner, steepling his fingers as the door slams shut and says, "Such a terrible thing to happen, wouldn't you agree, Your Highness?"

Looking around the room for the one who said that with a scowl on her face, she then says, "Show yourself at once, Discord, I am not playing any games with you!"

He leaves the dark corner slowly, saying, "Now, now, Your Highness, I'm most certainly not that pesky draconequus, so let's not get too angry."

Cadence looks at the shadow in shock and wide eyes, asking, "Who and what are you?!"

Panoptos giggles in his annoying, high-pitched tone and then drifts around her saying, "Let's just say I am an acquaintance of a mutual lover of yours, and that I am an observer of sorts."

She looks at him suspiciously and asks, "What do you want with me?"

He then stops in front of her and says, "Well, what I want isn't relevant here, but it is what one of your aunts wants that brings me before you."

Cadence's eyes widen slightly at hearing that her aunts want something from her and asks, "What is it my aunts need of me?"

Panoptos grins and then says, "Well, your dear aunty Luna is quite desperate for a foal, but her coltfriend is too stubborn to grant her one."

Cocking her head and looking at him suspiciously, she raises an eyebrow asking, "Okay, so what does this have to do with me?"

The watcher claps his hands gleefully and says, "Oh I do love it when I speak with an intelligent pony with a great mind! I intend to work a little magic to make her desire come true," then lies to her adding, "but unfortunately, she does not yet realize she cannot produce foals due to a minor, unfortunate birth defect rendering her ovaries purely decorative."

Drawn in by the upsetting news, she then says, "Oh how terrible, how can I be of assistance to Aunty Luna?"

Panoptos smiles and says, "Well, you need to find a stallion to breed you during your peak in the spring estrus season, then I will take your fertilized egg and implant it into her womb. Are you up to helping her find happiness in life?"

She nods happily and says, "I am, for I too was considering bringing a foal into this world. My desire can be fulfilled as she gives birth to my foal, and I know just the stallion to help me with this."

He smiles mischievously as she pays him no mind anymore and walks around the room, lost in a daydream, thinking to himself, 'I bet you do. Love and Death...what an interestingly potent combination...'

As winter gives way to spring, Panoptos finds out when Cadence's peak time for fertilization is and waits for the perfect time to return Death's body to normal, saying to no one in particular, "Soon...very soon..."

Seven (Death) rides the train to the Crystal Empire with Twilight Sparkle and the human, who has a beaming smile upon her face as Carl holds her close to him. When the train finally arrives, he notices that only Cadence is at the station as Twilight asks where her brother is.

Cadence frowns at the mention of him and says, "He was hauled off to the dungeon for betraying the empire's trust."

Twilight gasps at hearing that and says, "Impossible, my brother would never betray Equestria, that must have been a changeling!"

She sighs and says, "I'm sorry Twilight, but it was actually him."

The young princess looks up at her sister-in-law worriedly, and asks, "H-How c-can that b-be? Wha-what did he do?"

Cadence looks at Twilight sadly, then leans close to her ear and says, "He forced himself upon his own daughter, your niece, Flurry Heart."

Twilight's heart trembles at hearing that and asks, "Can...I go see him?"

She nods her head and watches her hurry off toward the crystal dungeons, then looks at Seven and Carl saying, "I will show you to your rooms, please follow me."

Twilight hurries towards where the guard said her brother's cell is and stops in front of the cell with tears in her eyes and asks, "Shining Armor, did you really do what Cadence said you did?"

Shining Armor races to the bars with a nod on his face as he says, "I did, but I only did it because I have to save her from the mean-spirited stallions out there that will treat her like a prize, and not like the wonderful mare she is going to turn out to be one day. I just have to make her mine!"

She uses her magic to examine him, finding him to be the real Shining Armor, which causes her heart to break. Hanging her head with defeat and sadness all over her face, she turns away from him and looks back over her shoulder as tears run down her cheeks, saying, "Big brother, best friend forever...I don't know you anymore. We aren't even family anymore because of what you did, you are dead to me."

The words echo throughout the dungeon as a chilly wind blows past the horseman's pony ears, carrying with it the distinct sound of a seal being broken. Following Cadence and Carl to the castle with a happy smile on his face while thinking, 'One down...five to go.'

After showing Carl and Seven (Death) to their rooms, Cadence consoles a sobbing Twilight after severing her bonds with her brother. She pats her on the back gently, saying, "My marriage might be over, but you are still like a sister to me."

Twilight sobs a half-chuckle saying, "At least I still have you, Flurry Heart, Carl, and my parents as family. You are going to be an Aunt, you know? I got the results back just yesterday, so congratulations, Aunty Cadence."

She squeals with joy at the news and pulls her into a tight hug and says, "I am going to help you and Carl through this, sweety, so don't worry."

Panoptos subtly alters the horseman's body without his knowledge and slips back into the shadows of the castle, watching curiously as Cadence leads Seven (Death) down to the dungeon in front of the cell where her ex-husband sits in a cell, desperate for a chance to get out. While she has him make passionate love to him before his very eyes, he howls out in misery and anger until the grand finale. Grinning in delight as he sees the results of his scheming and whispers to himself, "One monster, coming right up..."

Slipping into Cadence's body as she slumbers, he seeps into her to wait for the moment to arrive. When the moment does arrive, he takes the fertilized egg from her and leaves her to race toward Canterlot. When he arrives, he hastily slips into the princess as she is on patrol and uses a little magic to help it implant, enchanting her body to think of it as her own egg. When his work is finished, he departs and checks on the guard to find her in the bathroom over the toilet. A salacious smile crosses his face as the plan is nearing the fun stage and returns to Death's mind saying, 'Everything is almost set, we just need to wait a bit for the next part.'

A couple weeks pass as Seven is having dinner with his two marefriends at their insistence when Luna looks at him with a overjoyed glow about her as she says, "I have happy news for you...you're going to be a father." The surprising news strikes up a slightly heated debate about how it is possible, telling them about an errand he forgot about earlier and then shouts within his mind at the watcher, 'JUST WHAT IN THE FUCK DID YOU DO, YOU WRETCHED PISSANT!?' deeply wishing that he were outside of him right now so he could beat him to death.

Panoptos hides within his body, replying, 'Oh...just having a little fun at your expense, and fair warning to you...if you try to murder that infant Luna's carrying, I will stop you. Big Daddy Death has a nice ring to it...does it not?'

The following section is going to be a summary of events over time to help move the story forward

After paying a visit to the Well of Souls, Death uneasily confides in the Archangel Azrael and tells him his plan. He is then surprised when he agrees to help him as he begins to locate the souls that have come from that world already.

Months pass as Panoptos and Death argue (and fight) over the infant growing within Luna as Twilight is in the hospital about to give birth when the horseman uses his powers to take the infant's life, leaving Twilight to give birth to a stillborn foal. The trauma of giving birth to a dead foal leaves an opening for the watcher to slip inside of Twilight and plant a seed of corruption in her heart, which takes root and aids her in fostering negative feelings toward her coltfriend Carl.

Distraught over losing her foal, Twilight breaks up with Carl while blaming him for the death of her filly. When Luna gives birth to a healthy black filly, she is happy for her, but feels bitter about it deep down because she hasn't gotten over her loss yet.

Two years pass as tragedy leads to Flurry Heart falling to her death once she discovers she is carrying her father's child who somehow found a way to remove his null ring and torment his daughter repeatedly, causing yet a second seal to break as all of Equestria suffers an earthquake while Carl is tossed into jail under charges of murder.

Back to the time of Carl's execution

As the horseman feels the seals being slowly broken one by one over a few years, all the while playing his part in the scheme to free his brothers and sister as well as the watchers from servitude, he finds himself standing in the square beside his alicorn daughter, Faint Whisper, who he has been educating and teaching her about the delicate balance in the universe. He and she both look up to watch the blade's slow descent towards the innocent human's neck as Faint sighs and whispers just loud enough for her father to hear, "Soon, this world will be cleansed of corruption's taint, and then be made anew..."

Seven (Death) smiles genuinely for the first time in many years and says, "That is true, my little phantom. I look forward to when this charade comes to a very bloody end."

Faint looks up at her father saying, "Just make sure to leave Mother to me, okay papa? I have something special in mind for her."

He looks down at her, nodding as he hears the blade thunk into the wood, soon followed by the soft sound of a head falling into a basket as he feels the last seal being broken and appears before him.

Seeing a chance to capture a memory, she levitates a camera before her and her father saying, "Smile for a precious memory, papa."

Seven (Death) chuckles and shakes his head saying, "Alright, let's say apocalypse on three."

Counting to three, she smiles saying, "Apocalypse!" and snaps the picture, hoping that her father smiled as well. Putting the camera away, she looks down at the broken seal as the light blue moon in the sky morphs into a bloody red and raises her hood over her head saying, "The last one has been broken, let the end begin."

Raising his hood over his head, Seven (Death) picks up the seal with his hoof as he hears thunder echo throughout the gathering clouds. Feeling the cold droplets of blood beginning to fall, he then uses the broken seal to call forth his brothers. He opens his eyes and tucks the broken seal away into his saddlebag saying, "It is finally starting to get a little fun..."