Verve

The chasm of the caverns began to split and grow, a bottleneck of the path carving deep under the mountain. Here, it blossomed into a massive cavern; rusted iron tracks ripped apart between the massive gorge in front of them. A dark crevice, a split in the earth - where something had been settling deep into the roots of Mount Celeste. The darkness had seemingly grown into a thick fog, a potent stench of decay sucking the very light from the ambient air.

“The shadowfell,” Celestia whispered, ripping a torn piece of her armor off to cover her snout, though the idea was quickly abandoned; the foul of death had left the air destitute of hope. And still, that sickening thump-bump echoed from the cavern walls.

“I do not understand what we are fighting; but I can feel the pain swirling around us. Calling. I hear her voice once more, echoing in my mind. Like a siren in the night; I feel weak.” Luna hid beneath her hoof; all while Umbra had fallen completely silent. Growling in frustration, a near beastial snarl.

Arin stuck close to her side, as thick tentacles churned in the tunnel behind. And within a single draw of breath, the choking vines had left them trapped in this hellish arena. Oarkin, Falon, and Vee threw their gaze back to the collapsed tunnel they came from, sharing a fearful look.

“There is… no turning back, now,” Luna whispered hoarsely, before a bone-chilling laugh began to pour out of Umbra. All eyes fell on the shadowed mare, as her stumbling body rippled with darkness. A shockwave of her red-churning power fell across Arin’s body, rattling his armor as the group were knocked back as a whole; the ledge cracking beneath her might.

“Haha… HAHAHA!”

“UMBRA!” Arin called, as the former Umbrum’s eyes shined a crimson red; this was no illusion. A murderous intent had welled within her, the shadows rolling in her majesty. Luna cried out, as Celestia seized her in her wings.

“Don’t you DARE let her win, Lulu! Hold on! Luna-!”

Nocturne lashed out at Celestia, gashing deep into the morning mare’s side. A crimson trail of blood arched in the air, the sunlit Princess falling back with a yelping flurry of wings. Umbra’s horn shimmered red, as her scythe came down hard at Arin - the blade catching into his mithril armor beneath the green dragonhide. The tool pinned his arm, hooking his left wing as he was thrown with such ferocity that he almost dropped his bow.

“ARIN!” Falon called out, as the Seraph went rolling across the far ledge and into the darkness situated far below. He jumped for the rocks in desperation to hook his son with his vine, grunting in agony as a horn caught his barrel instead. He shuddered and fell, struggling for breath as blood pooled in his right lung. The haft of Umbra’s scythe clatted against his antlered skull, knocking the reeling buck unconscious.

All of this occurred, in less than five seconds. One party member missing, one dying, and another gravely wounded. Tempest didn’t expect this betrayal, and froze - as the Unicorn and Alicorn rounded on the remaining ponies and giant Seraph.

Oarkin did not hesitate. He moved first, and without call - punched the closest corrupted pony, Luna, right between the eyes with such strength that he was surprised her skull didn’t turn into jelly. She crashed into the far wall, stunned as her magic crackling horn sparkled in a deep, familiar blue.

Vee drew her spear to fight, wide eyed from shock - but she was much too late. The coffee crazed pegasus found herself on the business end of the deadly scythe, her bracelet flashing a protective barricade in front of her.

This lasted one crazed swing, before the magic shattered into sparkling purple pieces. The scythe rounded back, crashing down into Vee with a spill of blood. She fell to the floor, terror flooding her features as Umbra went to finish the job with a final slash of her curved tool.

Oarkin had seized Luna against the wall, gripping her horn in a titan’s grip as she struggled to break free in her bloodlust. Nocturne flashed, gashing into his side - but was ignored by the massive Seraph. He simply growled in frustration, the pain simply fading into the background of the throbbing heart’s echo.

“L-Luna… p-please…” Celestia whispered, in a pool of her own blood. All at once, Luna’s eyes flashed; and her struggles stopped.

“I-I…” Luna whispered, “I-I won’t! Not again!”

With that, her barrier flashed into reality - knocking Oarkin onto his back as she fell into a pile on the floor, sobbing in fear, pain, and clawing madness.

Tempest crashed into Umbra’s side, the snarling Umbrum swirling her scythe around to catch the commander off guard - but Tempest saw this coming, and bucked the deadly tool out of her magic’s grasp. Her sparkling, fractured horn began to charge with a cascading current of voluminous light, but Umbra simply faded into the dark. Her shadows twisting through her friend, as the reawakened umbrum reappeared on the far side.

Umbra seized her scythe from the air, bringing it down hard on the trembling Pumpkin Spice just beyond. The mare yelped in agony as it cut through her chest - and she was left in a rugged pile on the floor.

Tempest cried out in terror, a pang of terrible fear ripping through her - as her glimmering fragment of a horn launched a bolt of explosive lightning at the crazed shadow.

And Umbra simply stepped to the side, as it crashed into the still recovering Oarkin - right between his shoulders, coursing through the unprotected hide with such ferocity that even his natural magic resistance couldn’t shelter him from the blow. He crashed into the fading light of Celestia - seizing as his nerves were burned with magic-fueled sparks.

Umbra whirled the back of her heavy blade into the helm of Tempest, shattering the metal to shards, as the commander fell - battered, broken, and unconscious. Bleeding from the now massive wound in her head, and likely to pass without immediate medical aid.

A grappling vine seized Umbra’s armor, as Arin reeled himself over the ledge - his left wing nearly sliced clean through. Feeling the grip on her armor, as Arin rocketed toward her with surprising speed, she once again turned to shadows. The hook snapped back at Arin, forcing him to tumble and roll to the ground, belly side up and exposed.

Umbra’s scythe raised up, and came crashing down - bashing into the struggling Seraph’s chest armor; failing to penetrate the sturdy construction. He raised his arms to defend himself, but it did nothing - as the blade cleaved right through the flesh and bone of his limbs alike, the Seraph yelping in bloody pain as a hole opened in his dragonhide - the small, heart shaped locket exposed to the dying light of magic and lantern both.

At that, Umbra’s deadly scythe slowed and stalled, seeing the gift she gave now slathered in Arin’s blood. Panting, her bloodlust came to a halt - a piece of her fighting for control. Gently, the hooked point pressed to the little keepsake, popping the lid free.

‘A thousand years of shadows could not dull your light. A thousand years more could not fade my love. I will protect you, always.’

The green magic swirling from her red irises faltered, eyes flashing green as she saw the little memory gem flickering with a vision of their past. When Arin kissed her nose, holding her elegant hooves so sweetly. His eyes full of love, of life.

And those very same eyes gazed up to her now; no fear polluted his sight, nor hate… He lacked malice for her acts of treachery, or sorrow for his fading life. Instead, there was love. And hope. Even in this endless dark, as his friends lay dying around him - he whispered to the mare he cherished.

“I still love you, and I always will, my Shadow. I’m sorry.”

Tears began to fall from her eyes, as she realized what she’s done. She lifted the scythe high into the air in swirling red magic - before throwing it as hard as she could into the abyss before them. The bloodied weapon twirled and spun into the dark, before vanishing into the void.

Arin’s gashed and destroyed arm raised up - shaking as his blood spilled to the stone beneath them. He cupped her cheek, as her eyes began to fade to a soft green once more. A sob followed shortly after, as the Seraph tried to call his distant magic.

He was so tired. So weak. Light headed from the blood loss, he felt himself being pulled away into the calling darkness.

But the light wouldn’t fade that easily.

Mending Wave erupted from his closed fist - and in these last few moments, he watched as his arms began to knit before his very eyes. His wing churning and struggling, snapping back into place before collapsing in Umbra’s hooves.

All at once, life began to surge into the ponies, seraph, and deer - Tempest snapping awake first, as her eyes settled in the dark. All sights fell to Umbra, who had ripped her own necklace from her neck - holding the two lockets together to watch the memories flick before her eyes.

Falon lifted himself from the massive pool of blood he left - panting in desperation as his own antlers flashed in a radiant light. Another Mending Wave encapsulated the souls here, filling his veins with fresh warmth.

Glimmergale cried out from the pouch on his helm, the drain being almost too much for the tiny breezie - who complained about the lack of balance in the world in Faespeak.

For several moments, the party stared on in terror of Umbra, who clutched at Arin with desperation. Seeing the threat no more, the moment could pass and the urge to fight could build once again; they could not fault each other for the cruel game of shadows they’d been thrown into.

Tempest immediately stumbled to Pumpkin’s side, grabbing her mare tight in her hooves. At every step, she has failed to protect her; no more. She was no Knight. No guardian. That would have to change, as the little mare whimpered in pain in her grasp. Soft words and sweet kisses were shared between them, reminders of what they’re fighting for.

Celestia gently seized her sister in her hooves, holding on tightly with faint whispers and promises - memories of the past to keep her sanity in check. Oarkin rolled over, aching as Vee offered him a fresh cuppa to calm his jittery body.

The buck steadily approached Umbra; there was no hate here. Only understanding, as he rested by Arin’s side.

“I’m sorry…” Umbra whispered, but Fallon shook his head.

“You did no wrong.”

“I almost killed all of you.”

“The Entity is simply that powerful,” Falon continued.

“We could have all died.”

“Yet here we stand,” the General finished, as Arin pressed his face into her chest.

“I’m just happy I didn’t lose you, my little Shadow,” he said, as their bodies mingled in a powerful hug. Feeling the light within her, his nose bumping hers before claiming each other in a soft kiss.

And yet… still…

Thump-bump. Thump-bump. Thump-bump.

Luna eventually pulled herself together, dropping Nocturne to the floor.

“I am… finished with this… nonsense! SHOW YOURSELF, COWARD! Face Us! We will tremble on our hooves like foals no more!” the lunar mare demanded, her eyes haunting the dark for the shapeless creature - the massive beast that loomed in this giant cavern.

A shuffling of stone - no… a groan. A faint, moaning billow, that picked up in strength, as hundreds of millions of voices cried out in one - the party immediately reeled, as a sick miasma of raw, unbridled terror coated their very souls in trepidation.

A flash in the dark; a wavering hum of power… as slowly, a single, massive, lake sized eyelid cracked before them. Slick mucus fell in strands as the gigantic, ebony-churning void of darkness raised, revealing a pearly blue cornea that shined with the reflections of an infinite number of trapped souls.

A pillar of darkness in reality, the ending of the light - the Entity revealed itself, in true and proper form. The black tentacles in the daylight far above found their source, as a giant, fleshy, rippled body of smooth black flesh formed in the size of a metropolis here in the caverns - resting in this grave it had claimed as home, merely a dive away from the heavenly mountain’s peak. The wriggling tentacles of the darkness clawed at the stone and earth far above, churning the castle of Canterlot to shreds as it tried to peel itself free of its earthly crypt - yet could not. Not yet.

Not while the sun still shined, and the light of hope burned within these precious few.

In this echo, the world eclipsing reflection of an endless stream of stricken astral fragments torn asunder from their bodies - a single point of light still shined within. A single star in the dark of the infinite void of space.

“Mother?...” Celestia whispered in horror.

“I feel it - the dream realm?... It… is inside of the Entity… how?...” Luna whispered, as a hesitation loomed in the air. At that, Celestia’s mind clicked.

“It’s not evil. Not intended to be evil. It didn’t start as… this. Whatever this is, its purpose has been corrupted - the Entity… it’s the result of when good intentions lead to bad results. The souls inside, look - they’re unharmed. Untouched. It has the ability to split the soul into pieces, but…”

Celestia paused, as Umbra took the conversation’s lead.

“It takes the light of a soul, and leaves the darkness. The clamoring haunted form. Our ill wills, and black hearts. This cuts the spirit in half - the light, and the dark. The light is what the Entity claims, and the shadow - is the result. Umbrum. Here, this close, the darkness around it flutters to the remnants of Luna and I’s souls, seeking refuge in plenty.”

Vee nodded sagely, recalling the books from the White Tail library on Planar Travel, and the Book of Vitalism that detailed the essence of vitae, the very same tome Aster gave Arin to study healing magic from.

“Sun-fry and Spooky-fry are both right, and there’s more to this than what even I know. But Entity-fry here isn’t intentionally trying to break worlds apart. It’s not the problem, it’s the wrong answer TO the problem. And the problem? Was death.”

“Then this thing… what is it really?” Falon pointed with worry, as Celestia thought back over their journey; specifically, to their first encounter with the Entity.

“...It’s an afterlife, I think. A magic-made home of spirits. It’s a misguided result of untested spells, a creation or… something.”

Vee blinked, as she realized much too late what this meant. “I know what the Entity is. Because I’m bound to one of its distantly related kin, Onyxinoborus.”

“...Onyx?” Pumpkin mewled, and Vee nodded.

“Onyx is his short name, yes. But you see, he is a Fateweaver. He controls destiny, through the power of the astral realm, and can bend reality to fit his whims - this is how our shop moves, it’s its own plane of existence, under his command. This is why he can exist in all planes, as well - because he can dream himself there, at any time. His kind, they come from their own created plane - they call it the Nest. They serve as guardians of souls, ferrying them to the afterlife - and hold immense power.

“But they’re not natural. Fateweavers are created by death. When a surge of souls perish in one spot, but have no planes to travel to - they float around in one place, with nothing to preen or coffee to sip. When this occurs, the astral body’s latent healing magic will spawn a new Fateweaver into reality, to lead them onwards - but each vary in strength depending on the mass of the collected soul’s energy. And in return, the Fateweaver cuts their ties to the Prime, and leaves the dark energy they bare behind. This is the Universe’s solution to excess souls, and keeping the balance across reality. This is why there’s the Feywild - an abundance of life - and the Shadowfell, an abundance of death. They exist to balance each other out.

“The Entity is a Fateweaver, far overblown beyond its roots, and now seeks an infinite amount of souls to fulfil its duty. The Carnival in Copse Vale - the Entity was intent on claiming them for itself, but their abundance of light and life energy kept it at bay, until Celestia’s magic could lead them to the stars. For what purpose it seeks new souls, I’m not sure. But it is definitely not good for the feathers.”

At that, all eyes fell between Vee and the Fateweaver, and finally understood why they were afraid. It wasn’t because it sought to destroy them - their bodies were reeling at the prospect of their own mortality.

“It exudes death, and holds life. It carries the light, by darkening the world around it,” Luna whispered, as the swirling eye faced them down. The caverns began to rumble, rocks falling to the stony floor as its massive tentacles far above squeezed at the earth. Seeking to break it.

“Then what of the corpses that haunted these tunnels? This… sickening heartbeat?” Falon asked.

“Every creature must possess a heart, even if only mimicry to represent its core. The Fateweavers take the form of creatures they find familiar; I assume this Entity saw a great, vast number of deaths all at once. Like the collapse of a planet; it couldn’t choose a form, so it became this shapeless… mass, instead. The bodies… well, they’re just what happens when a corpse is exposed to the shadowfell for too long; but it’s obvious the Entity has control over it in some way,” Vee gave her answer.

“Then how do we defeat it?...” Tempest questioned; “If it breaches the surface, it can grow and swell on life; how do we even kill this thing?”

At that, Vee dropped her head, thinking. Even as vines slowly began to gnaw at the platform they rested on, she didn’t panic. Bags under her eyes, and a distant smile, she faced the Commander once more.

“I don’t suppose you snooted away any extra banishment orbs for later, did you, Stern-fry?”