A Random My Little Pony Fan Fiction Story 3: John's Kingdom

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Chapter 5: Terra

The Fire of Fate dimmed as the Eternal Night started to settle back into its place. The chirping of crickets could be heard once again as they returned to their right spots in nature. The heat had died down and there was now a cool, calming breeze flowing in from the East. Even an owl could be heard giving a slight hoot off into the far distance.

And without one creature killing another it was almost a peaceful night. It was all calm as it was once before under the full moon. John was looking upward, looking up at its bright and glowing nature, reminding of what was at stake if he did not achieve his goal. Granted, his mind was somewhere else like eating Tom Hank’s legs, yet the moon somewhere in his sub-conscious mind was reminding him of his love for his dear wife Luna; even if he didn’t realize it, let alone recognize it.

As John was busy staring off into the deep abyss of the Eternal Night, the others took their time to bury of what was left of the old pony that had accompanied them on their journey, even if it was just for a few minutes. TK stood by the sidelines however, keeping a look out while having his arms crossed as his cape flowed through the breeze gently.

TK was also not the one for funerals; not because he got emotional, but he mostly did not care for the dead. To him, they were not strong enough. And unless they were very close to him, he would rather let the corpse rot out in the hot sun and let mother nature decompose it for all to see. If anything, he was annoyed having to wait for the others paying their respect for the dead. The other four however gathered around the six inch hole that Ignis had dug up and hanged their heads in shame.

To some of them, they felt like they were to blame for the old stallion’s death. If it wasn’t for them, he would still be alive. However Glacio had learned that life is life, and as long as they tried their damnest, they were never to be the ones to blame. However what they buried underneath the Earth was still a tragedy in their eyes; even if they barely knew him and was just some pony from some other universe. Ventus was even shedding a tear or two for the dead pony. Terra looked over to him and gave him some slight comfort by holding on to him so he could feel some kind of touch.

Glacio bowed his head as he laid his sword out horizontal on both of his palms, “May the Gods look after you in the land in the beyond. Even if you’re from a different world, we pray that your soul finds peace here and in ours. May we recite our oaths and forevermore find a light that all guides us to the very end of existence. And may we all find our serenity in our lifetimes. And may you find yours as well old man along with your family as well. We wish you well on your journey to the Land of the Beyond. May the Gods bless you.”

Ignis looked up with a bit of sorrow on his face while placing his left hand on Glacio’s shoulder, “That was well said…”

TK then could be heard giving a loud and noticeable grunt from a distance. All four had heard it and Ignis was the one angered the most by it.

He yelled out towards TK, “What’s your problem you asshole!?”

Ventus who rarely spoke out at these kind of times, “Yeah? Can’t you have respect for the dead? At least a little bit?”

TK while still keeping an eye out for anything suspicious grunted heavily towards them, “The dead are not worth my time. They lived their lives so leave them be. There are more important things to worry about than to bury the dead.”

Terra then exclaimed in annoyance, “How dare you! How would you feel if nobody buried you after you died!?”

TK only looked back slightly over his shoulder while keeping his arms tight to his chest, “Hmmph. I couldn’t care less about being buried. I don’t even care if it gives me a one way ticket to Hell. It only gives me the excuse to seek out the devil himself and rip and tear him apart.”

Ignis rolled his eyes and said, “Yeah, you sound so tough right now.”

TK continued on, “But I would though. Unlike the dead, I’m not weak. Even if it’s in the next level of existence, I seek to survive. If this pony here died and went to Hell, he wouldn’t do nothing but burn in a lake of fire. For me though, I look beyond that and seek to remain on top to survive. And if it means having to be worse than the devil himself, then so be it.”

Ignis could only grunt back to him and say, “We’ll see about that then.”

Glacio stepped in between them and said, “How about we get going? We did all that we could and we are only wasting time.”

Ventus said calmly to everyone, “He’s right. We should get going.”

Ventus then looked over towards John and yelled out to him, “Come on John, it’s time to go!”

John quickly looked over towards him while snapping his neck, “Snicker bar in a bitch!”

TK started to head out first as the rest followed in line with John being last. They continued their journey and headed in the direction where they were going in before their little detour. As they walked away from what used to be the cabin, John looked back as he was walking away.

He just gave a simple blank stare as if he was unsure if there was something that they were leaving behind. An ominous feeling was starting to build up within John and he did not like it one bit. Before it could eat up inside of him, John looked away and just kept moving forward, keeping his mind off of what once was, and what will never be ever again. It was a feeling that he had felt before in his sub-conscious when he was not his usual self and spouting out coherent words when usually it was all just random.

It was as if a Ghost was staring at him when he wasn’t looking. And since he was the last one left behind, he felt rather vulnerable, as if he was going to be taken next by something. However nothing happened other than leaving an abandoned, destroyed area with a dead body nearby that was six feet under along with a monster still in the dirt. Eventually they all walked away far enough to where it was merely a speck in the distance; and anyone could do was wonder what was once there as memory allows it to be in the moment.

As the silence started to settle in however in the now deserted area and there was no living creature in the vicinity to even chirp; what was once Lord Chernobog opened his eyes and breathed a sign of life.

CANTORLOT:

Lord Chernobog still had a tight hold over the kingdom. Ponies were still chained and caged. The lifeless corpses of what used to be living ponies scattered the once glistening streets of Cantorlot as their flesh rot and maggots started to fill their innards. There was some smog in the air as darkness filled the void of what was left.

It was closer to Hell than it was to heaven in the kingdom. Ponies from nearby was starting to get the message that something terrible had happened and all was lost as their new king had went missing. For the heartless, all was well in the world. It was almost paradise for them. Yet Lord Chernobog was not happy in the slightest has he grew impatient waiting on Custos’s return.

He wanted to hear the words of victory and how all six of the group had perished and were crumbled into dust. Yet his ears were lacking of any such precious thoughts that he so desperately wanted to hear. He still held Luna in a firm grip in his right hand, holding on to her tightly. However, she was weak and exhausted by this point. She felt like she couldn’t breathe and was just barely hanging on to any life that she had left. She was sick to the stomach and couldn’t feel much else throughout her entire body.

She was half awake, yet half passing out by the hour. She was starting to lose hope, especially for her loving husband. Yet somewhere in her soul, she knew that there was still hope to be had. She wanted to smile and anticipate of being saved and being loved once more. But she was too much in a cruel place to be even thinking of such happiness.

Her world was as dark as Lord Chernobog’s paradise. She wanted to believe she would be ok in the end and that she would have her own home again. And perhaps if all was well she could have a family with John and raise a boy and a girl. And then they could raise their children and watch them grow as both of them age well into their years. And once they retired from their position as King and Queen, they could walk off into the sunset, looking back on their offspring knowing they their legacy would continue in some way.

And then both her and John could live together in peace with love in their hearts and smiles on their faces. Yet it was all just a dream; a hopeless, pointless dream as reality brought her back to her nightmare once more as he yelled out in anger and tightening his grip, harming her as she screamed out in pain.

Lord Chernobog yelled out in anger and annoyance, “WHERE IS CUSTOS! HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN BACK BY NOW!?”

Yet there was no black bird in sight. Not even a chirp or a screech from the nearby sky could be heard; only the moaning of pain and agony from Luna could be made clear.

To Lord Chernobog’s ears, there was only silence. And the silence angered him underneath as it only built up and angered him even more. One could say he was started to become unhinged as little mice compared to him got away from his grasp. A subject of his would not be worried due to his stature, yet in his mind, he was worried. He was starting to fear what could happen and the possibilities if Glacio and the others get their hands on The King’s Crystal.

While he was strong as he ever had been up until that point, he was still fragile in more ways than one. He could not let weakness into his heart and mind. So he cleared those minds of doubt quickly and focused deeply on the problem at hand; ready with a plan that will surely win him the war with the humans.

So with his monstrous might, he raised his head high and let his vocal cords ring through the air, “Katas! Come here right now!”

Within a matter of seconds, a flame of shadow and darkness appeared right in front of Lord Chernobog’s presence; to the point where even Lord Chernobog was even confused for a fraction of a second.

Katas said in a pleasant and polite tone as he bowed before his master, “Yes my highness. What is that you need of me?”

Lord Chernobog quickly shook his head and looked sternly towards him.

He commanded with his powerful voice to Katas, “I demand you look for Custos. He has yet to be back to bring me the news of his mission.”

Katas looked towards his master and questioned while giving him a curious side glance, “Are you sure you should be sending a spy to spy on another spy master? Surely Custos will be back any time now from his humble quest to give you the good news.”

Instead of back slapping Katas, Lord Chernobog could only look to be reasoned with at that time, “That is just it. It has been what feels like days. It was a simple task that I gave him and yet I still feel no closer to my goal; the feeling in the air that I have won; the presence of my reign upon this pathetic little world that these creatures call home to! I have the power that flows within me, yet I don’t see the blood that should be on my hands. And that worries me… I need results.”

Katas looked at his master curiously as he titled his head to the side just a tad, “Are you sure you want to get your hands dirty my master? I think it would be easier to let nature do it for you, would it not?”

Lord Chernobog only melted into his throne more, looking a little stiff at the same time, “I know of what it means to get one’s hands dirty. I have seen my fair share of it and caused it myself. And it feels good knowing what I have had; knowing that anyone that opposes me is dead and long gone; allowing me to move freely of my choosing. Yet I feel no blood. I do not even taste blood. I only taste bitterness and desperation; and it’s not from them. I only require the blood of the innocent and the heart from the pure to keep me going, yet Custos has yet to deliver. Keep an eye on him for me for I wonder if he is the one that I should have his blood on my hands…”

Katas did not argue back as he simply bowed his head once more and said almost gentlemanly, “Then I shall see it that it will be done my lord. May your reign forever more and your kingdom rule the highest of them all, my master.”

And in a blink of an eye, Katas was off to see the sights and to spot Custos and his progress. Lord Chernobog saw the flame of shadow and darkness fly across the sky and could only give a low grunt in response to it all. He was not happy, and it only pushed him even harder than ever before.

MEANWHILE, THE BAND OF HEROES….

After leaving the rubble and the litter of destruction behind them, the group of heroes could only move forward and to see the future in front of them. They were starting to lag behind in time. The amount of precious seconds they had spent back at the cabin only pushed them backwards; not forwards as some of them would have hoped.

Only one could imagine and tell how much more time left they had before Lord Chernobog went after The King’s Crystal himself. But in all fairness, it was just one of many possible scenarios in their head. They still had a ways in their journey in order to retrieve their prize and glory; yet with every second not holding The King’s Crystal was a second wasted and given to the enemy.

They may have the strength needed to reach it, but they began to think they did not have the time. One could no longer tell when the sun was high in the sky and when it was the break of dawn anymore. The moon was always high and the stars did not move from its spot any longer. And with no mechanical clock nearby, no one could tell how long it had been.

To a couple of them, it may have well been days since they set out on foot to their destination. Ventus however felt a little hopeful and merely assumed it was only a few hours since they started walking. Yet TK knew time all too well. Time was the ultimate magician and how easily it can slip right by you without even noticing. TK knew how much time had passed, yet he wasn’t telling a single soul about it.

Where he was from, it was everyday life with everyday consequences. Time only moved forward with him. There was no turning back the clock as many would wish to believe they could. However time was stagnant, immovable unless you were time itself or knew some backdoor means of manipulating a state of reality.

Regardless, TK remained silent to keep the other’s minds sane. If they knew how much time had passed, they would all give up hope and would refuse to give in to help. And yet, he speculated that John knew what time it was as well, only giving him suspicion as to who John was and why he was so special.

As the others followed suit and continued on to the trail, John continued to fall back like usual. Ignis kept looking back with a slight worry, wondering why John was not up front with TK leading the pack. If John was a king, why not lead his own group to begin with? It made no sense as he had seen Glacio even lead his men into battle even if it was miles deep into the woods and everyone was scattered across the lands. Ignis with a heart considered for once to ask if he was ok. Ignis slowed his pace and kept an eye on John was not paying any attention to him or anyone for that matter.

As soon as Ignis was about even with John’s pace, Ignis looked worried in his eyes and said with care in his voice, “Can I ask you… something? Is there… something wrong John? You seem to be a bit behind?”

John only tilted his head and looked a little funny to Ignis, but he could only look back with concern on his face. Ignis decided to keep looking forward and not to make eye contact with John; thinking it may lead to uncertainties that he may not want to deal with at that time.

However, his voice was as true as was his heart as was towards John as he spoke from inside his soul, “Well… whatever it is, I just want you to know that I have your back. Whatever you need, just ask. And I’m sorry for doubting you back there. I thought you were just some idiot who just happened to be king and that you couldn’t lead a pack of rats to food without them getting killed. But you proved me wrong john.”

Ignis started to smile a little bit as he looked towards the sky and the beyond.

Ignis continued to ramble on, “I never expected for you to do what you did back at the cabin. I always thought I could take care of myself, like a lone wolf on my own. And of course I can, but… I wasn’t strong enough on my own to face my doubts. I failed the first fight and I just couldn’t let myself let that happen again.”

Ignis lowered his head almost as if he was still ashamed from his past and was going to let it linger over him for many years to come. “And because of that, I almost died and failed again. I almost let everybody down. I almost let everyone back home down. I almost let my kingdom down,”

said Ignis with a sad tone in his voice with a whimper look on his face.

However, he then perked his head up with energy and looked towards John with hope inside of him with a small smile to top it off, “But then you came. And you didn’t have to too, especially after what I said about you. Yet you helped me anyways. And I couldn’t thank you enough for your courage and bravery. So if there is anything that you may need, all you have to is ask. And John…. Thank you….”

John only looked at him with his crossed eyes with no words coming from his mouth. Ignis on the other hand didn’t need a response. All he needed was to look at him straight in the face to know that John got the message loud and clear. Ignis then slightly nodded towards John as he started to pick up his pace once more.

Meanwhile up at the front of pack, things weren’t looking so good. TK kept his pace up, leading the group ahead of them. He was moving fast enough almost as if he wanted to get away from all of them. And the only one who saw a hint of this was Glacio himself while the others minded their own business. Glacio didn’t look too pleased when he saw TK acting a little weird.

He only had a look of curiosity, yet anger inside of him as he was starting to see TK’s true colors starting to come out. It was one thing for him to be a total stranger who was only out for his own gain, yet to disrespect the dead was not something you did back in his kingdom. Glacio started to pick up the pace just slightly just so he could trail behind TK enough to where he can talk to him, even if TK wasn’t looking at him directly; he only wanted some answers.

To start off his curiosity, Glacio asked simply to him, “TK was it? What does it stand for?”

TK simply continued walking forward with his back straight and his eyes concentrating on the path ahead; he simply did not care.

So TK said with a slight groan in his throat, “It’s none of your business.”

Glacio kindly accepted his answer and respected his wishes to keep his name private, but only because he wanted to keep up his standards.

Glacio however pushed further and got slightly closer to TK and asked him, “So can you tell me why you need the crystal? If I am going to give it you, I must know your true intentions.”

TK only responded to him with, “It is to find someone.”

Glacio got slightly closer as he said to him with a slightly higher tone in his voice, “I know, you said that back at camp. But I don’t believe it, at least not with who you are.”

TK only continued to look forward with a stern tone to talk back with, “What is there to believe? What I said is what I meant. If you have a problem with it, then that’s for you to figure out.”

Glacio started to get a little annoyed by TK’s disrespect towards him as he fired back, “I don’t think you understand who you’re talking to.”

TK shot back with his normal, gruff tone of voice, “I know who you are. You are just like anyone else here. You are a living organism that lives to survive for as long as you can. And that is it. You are no different than who I am. And if you expected me to say that you’re a king, then you have another thing coming. As far as a king goes, you’re the weakest of the ones that I have seen.”

Glacio started to lose patience with him as he rushed by his side and started to look more aggressive towards him. TK on the other hand kept his head held up high and just moved forward without him looking back.

Glacio with a slight anger in his voice exclaimed, “I’ll have you know that even though that you’re from a different universe, it doesn’t give you the right to throw me to the side like that. We are supposed to be working together as we agreed upon. And if we’re going to find the crystal, we must be able to trust each other. And as a king, it is my duty to ensure I get it back safely; especially if I plan on letting someone borrow it for a while. I must know who you are and what your intentions are. That is all that I ask of you!”

TK almost ignored him; couldn’t care less what words that he had to say. He could stand right in front f him and scream his lungs out and kill himself of exhaustion just by doing it and he still wouldn’t care.

TK replied to him with no care in the world other than to himself, “What is there to know. I am who I am. What you see is what you get. And what you don’t see, you’ll never know. Only I know what lies underneath my armor. Only I know my name. Only I can look in the mirror. Anyone else will just have to guess, including you. So answer me this, who do you think I am?”

Glacio started to grit his teeth as he was almost fed up with him.

He blurted out very unprofessionally towards him as they kept walking at an unusual pace, “What do I think? I only see someone who is shellfish and only cares about himself! You don’t even have respect for the dead back there, let alone anyone who you’re supposed to be helping! So far you’ve just stood by and did barely anything to help us! The way you acted back there makes me question your motives and what you even do! My question for you is who are you!?”

TK didn’t say anything back for a brief few seconds. He simply let a gust of wind whirl by them as one or two of the others looked towards their direction, simply watching them as they wanted none of the conversation.

TK then blurted calmly out, “Who am I? I am someone who was created like anyone else has been. I serve my purpose and protect those who matter most. But even beyond that, I am nothing and am without being. Yet I am someone who will move forward while others will stop and rot away as if they were nothing. However I am something. I can feel. I can touch. I can think and see. I hear what I see and I see what I hear. And I hear and see is that in order to survive, I must go beyond. And that is exactly who I am, someone from beyond your own comprehension of reality and your own sense of being. But even then, I am more than that, but that part is for you to figure out.”

After his little monologue, Glacio wasn’t satisfied with his answer, but would kindly accept it for now. All Glacio could do was give a similar groan that TK usually gave back as he slowed down his pace and let TK remained in the front of the pack.

However, Glacio was determined to get more information out of him. He needed to know who he was. To him at that point, he was still a stranger that he happened to meet upon by chance. While he didn’t believe his intentions were evil or misguided, he was certain he was hiding as to who he was underneath all of that armor and clothing. He simply believed that he was more than he was letting on.

As John squandered in the back of the pack and TK lead the way forward at the front of the pack, the brother and sister lingered in the middle. Ventus was casually moving his head left and right, taking in the sights of the new world that he was in. However on the corner of his eye, he noticed his sister was a little anxious. She held her head down while tingling with her fingers. Her back was slightly hunched over as she was starting to shake very nervously.

Worried for her health, Ventus gently placed his right hand on Terra’s left shoulder and asked with all the kindness in his heart, “Is everything alright Terra?”

Terra could only give her brother a side glance while she shivered as if she was freezing. She had the look of death in her eyes, almost as if she had seen some kind of ghost. She wasn’t thinking straight and her mind was wandering elsewhere. She wasn’t even paying much attention to Ventus’s concerns for her. She was barely hanging on in her mental capacity. Something was eating inside of her and Ventus could see it in her eyes.

However, Terra didn’t want her brother to worry about her so she forced a little smile on her face as she tried to think happy and calming thoughts to make it more believable what she was saying.

She expressed to her brother with a look that everything was fine, “Yeah… of course Ventus. I’m ok. You don’t need to worry about me at all.”

Ventus with still a look of worry on his face then asked her again, “Are you sure Terra? You were… trembling… And you don’t look so good either.”

Terra then started to get a little concerned as she looked down at her arms and noticed the color. She looked a little pale, almost as if her mind was starting to take a toll on her body. She started to think she was going insane almost, but she caught herself and just tried to move around the question of her own health.

As she put on another smile, she lightly punched Ventus’s shoulder and said lightly to him, “It’s nothing to worry about, nothing at all. It’s probably just this new world we’re in, I’ll be ok. If anyone should be worried, it should be me. You’re not exactly the strongest one out of all of us you know?”

Ventus then looked a little offended but quickly accepted as he was always the one to be pushed around at times.

Ventus however asked his sister, “Wait, what’s the supposed to mean? I know I’m not exactly as good as you are, but I can still fight. Kind of….”

Terra playfully teased to Ventus, “Oh yeah, sure Ventus. And then the next thing you know you need my help to bail you out like all those other times. If you weren’t the older brother here, I’d say it would make sense. But you’re supposed to be the older sibling here! You must be embarrassed deep down every time I have to save you.”

Terra didn’t have the greatest acting skills, and even Ventus, as weak as he was could tell she was forcing her way through the conversation. As much as he cared for her, he also knew not to get on her bad side and figured it would have been best to play along with it; even if it did seem that she needed some kind of help. So Ventus forced a smile and a laugh of his own as he tried to look away from his sister.

However Terra knew that her older brother wasn’t buying her façade; but as long as it kept him off her back for a while, that’s all that mattered. She wanted to figure out her own problems. She was strong enough for it. And on the side, she didn’t want her brother to worry about her. She didn’t want to hold him back anymore than what he was as he was already timid as is.

The pack continued their trail deeper into the forest and their journey through the night thickened. As the group walked, they were all broken in some way, yet all coming together slowly as the Eternal Night threatened their quest. As the band of heroes traveled, through wet weeds and thick sections of bushes and trees; almost getting themselves lost and loosing the light of the moon to guide their way.

They almost started to run in circles, but soon found their footing once more and found a nice open area of the woods. After a while, they came across a wide open area where there was nothing in sight but rocks and grass with a small abandoned shack and a small water tower off by a corner.

The water tower was reasonably sized and still had some drinkable water in it; while the small shack looked sad and depressed as it sad with no one to take care of it. The story of the place seemed mysterious to them as they came upon the little area. What pony built a shack out in the middle of nowhere? Why was there a water tower? Was it just one pony or more who was in the area? And most importantly, why there of all places?

It had seemed eerie to be there, almost as if a ghost was watching them nearby; haunting the nearby woods and the shack itself. If the trees could talk, they would share a story that was either innocent or sinister.

But all they could tell was that there was some kind of struggle there and perhaps at one point a poor soul that had passed on at some point, yet with very little evidence to back that theory up. Despite the bleakness of the deserted, small wooden shack, it was a small place for rest. As small and as disturbing as it was, it offered a brief moment of safety and serenity before having to go back out to face the horrors of the Eternal Night.

While the rest of the pack relaxed for a bit by the water tower, TK offered to look through the wooden shack to see if anything of note was there or if there was anything dangerous inside. With his sword in hand that he pulled from his back, he slowly opened the door to the small shelter to find it mostly empty.

There was an old, ruffed up bed that probably hadn’t been changed for years, yet still suitable for sleep. There was a small, warm glowing lantern that was left on a simple desk and looked like it had been on for years without going out. There were some old books that hadn’t been opened for centuries lying about, and some food and medicine passed their expiration dates left in a small chest with some old spare clothes.

TK looked at everything else though as he looked at the old wooden floorboards and walls with tally marks and the words “HELP ME” etched into the wood itself, along with some dust covering the bed and desk.

He even noticed there were cobwebs covering the corners near the ceiling with corpses of a couple of dead spiders that thought they could catch a meal, but never did. The place was a mess, but with a little fix, it could look like a nice little place to retreat to if there were ever monsters roaming about. TK looked and confirmed there was nothing of value, although he had the weird feeling that some kind of ghost haunted the shack.

Regardless of what he felt or even saw, he moved back to the group, putting his sword away for the mean time. As he walked back to the group, the four relaxed, rested their aching feet and throbbing legs. Glacio and Ventus were starting to sweat as the aroma of the foul order from the human body could be smelled from just a couple of feet away from them. Ignis had yet to tire out and was simply leaning his back against an L shaped rock just about his height. John on the other hand simply sat on the ground, looking out into the trees that surrounded the open area, almost as if he was watching someone or something from far away. However, Terra was the one who didn’t look too good. Her head hanged to the ground as she collapsed to the ground, tired and all.

She was starting to breathe a little heavily more than usual, and had looks of worry and terror in her eyes. The others simply brushed it off as just fatigue from their travels and that she would get back on her feet in no time; ready to fight if ever needed. Ventus however was the only who remained worried about his little sister, but did not want to disturb her either.

For all he knew, his sister was just having a bad day that would pass with time itself. And sometimes he was afraid to just talk to her. Yet he still wondered what she was thinking and concerned for her overall health. As TK made it back to the group, Glacio moved to the water tower to open up a small hanging faucet to gather some water, even if it was dirty and filled with germs, it would have to do for their journey. He took out a small container that was hidden under his clothes and attached to his belt to gather the sweet flavor that the water provided.

As he was doing so, TK said to the pack, “Nothing is here. We’re safe for now.”

Ventus had a bit of look of worry on his face as he lay completely on back on the ground, “Are you sure we’re safe? I mean… what if we’re not? This could be a trap.”

Ignis looked a bit curious towards Ventus and asked, “What makes you think that?”

Ventus laid there, his muscles bit tensed with a look of dread on his face, “Well just look around. If anyone wanted to ambush us, they could easily do so. It’s just… too good to be a place to sit down and take a break.”

Glacio looked over to Ventus with confidence and a small reassuring smile on his face as he bottled his water up, “Even if that was that case Ventus, we really don’t have a choice. We need a break after all and so far this is the best place to rest for a moment. Besides, if there is anything to worry about, we can face it all together as one.”

Ignis, as he snubbed at Ventus and closed his eyes while exhaling a long breath, “Well I don’t know about you guys, but I think I would rather just sleep it off. The rest of you can handle it.”

Glacio placed his hands at his hips with a certain gesture and looked annoyed, “Ignis, this is serious! We can’t take this lightly. Lord Chernobog could still come after us and for all we know he could be only half a mile away from us as we speak. We just need to focus and work together on this or else all those back will have died in vain!”

Ignis then mockingly smiled towards Glacio and looked at him smoothly, “Relax your majesty. Where ever he is, he isn’t getting through me again, I can guarantee you that.”

Glacio started to fume a little bit, even starting to understand why Terra was annoyed with him at times as well.

TK then spoke up once more, “Well, what’s the plan? Are we staying or are we moving? And if we’re staying, there isn’t much resources here. There was only a bed and a desk with a lamp over in the shack.”

Glacio looked over at John with a bit of doubt and wonder in his mind. He questioned what John was doing a few feet away from the group, just minding his own business almost as if they weren’t there.

However he just let out a little sigh and looked back at the others, “Well we are in no condition to continue moving. We’ve all been through so much as it is. And the night sky will not be turning into day anytime soon.”

Glacio looked up with awe in his eyes as he looked up at the stars and the moon.

His eyes then came back down to the others once more, “I suggest we just get some rest.”

Ignis with a big fat smile on his face quickly agreed with him, “Sounds good to me. And just to make sure ol’ scaredy cat over there is safe, we should take turns keeping watch.”

Ventus with a smile got up from the ground slightly and looked towards Ignis and said, “That actually sounds like a good idea at least.”

Ignis then looked over and pointed towards Terra who was shaking to the bone, “How about Terra? She should go first. She WAS our eyes back home after all. If anything happens, she can alert us. Isn’t that right Terra?”

Terra didn’t respond. She kept her head low without a peep.

All eyes were on her. Ignis perked up his eyebrow, “Terra? You hear me?”

Terra didn’t respond again. Everyone looked at each other, wondering if there was anything wrong.

Glacio spoke out this time, “T-Terra?”

Still no response from her. She wasn’t looking good.

And so Ventus with all the care in his heart got up and slowly moved towards her as he tried to reach out for her, “Little Sister…. Are you o-”

Before Ventus could finish, Terra had a small panic attack, screamed a little, and moved far away from the others, going as far as the edge of the opened area. But in a brief moment she raised her head, Ventus saw nothing but fear and regret in her eyes. Something was wrong, and he needed to ask her.

He was starting to get sad too and wanted to help her. The others looked on as John continued to keep to himself.

Terra managed to sprint far away from them, constantly gasping for air as she breathed heavily in and out. She went as far as the edge to the entrance of the forest and she found a nice big sized rock to hide behind. As she got behind it, she sat down and went into a fetal position, trying to calm down and think clearly. But she couldn’t though, as her memories started to haunt her.

Ignis’s words is what put her over the edge as she remembered what happened back home and what she did. She could never forgive herself. And she was alone in it. She tormented herself, saying it was her fault that they all died. It was her fault for not trying hard enough. It was her fault for falling. It was her fault that she didn’t make it back home in time.

As she tried her best to repress the bad memories, she closed eyes and tried to make it all go away. However she was not strong enough and could only keep thinking of the bad thoughts more and more with each passing second. She was then startled as a hand reached out for her and placed gently on her shoulder. She looked up and it was Glacio. She looked up towards him with sad, puppy dog like eyes as tears started to flow down her cheeks. Glacio could only give her pity and sorrow towards her and he looked as gloom as she was.

He kneeled down and asked kindly, “Terra…. Why did you run away like that?”

Terra tried to push Glacio away as she slightly backed up, “I-I-It’s nothing! Don’t worry about it!”

Glacio was surprised and taken back as he asked with concern, “It’s nothing? Well it surely can’t be anything!? Something is eating up at you. Just tell us. You can trust us.”

Terra kept pushing him back as she wanted to look away as tears rolled down her cheeks, “No! I told you it’s nothing! Now go away!”

Glacio exclaimed with a small welcoming smile on his face, “Come on Terra, we’re your friends? Can’t you just tell us what the problem is?”

Terra looked back and saw the warm smile on his face. On one side of her, it was tempting and she wanted to let it all out. But on the other, she didn’t deserve that friendly smile of his. She was not worthy of it or his forgiveness for what she had done. Both sides were going back and forth until ultimately, the side of guilt won and took over her.

Terra quickly hid her face in her arms and yelled at Glacio, “Go away!”

She sniffled a bit as she hanged her head in shame.

Glacio tried to reach to her again, “Terra….”

Terra did not want to hear it.

She pushed him away once more, “I SAID GO AWAY! AND LEAVE ME ALONE!”

Glacio backed off a bit, not wanting to overwhelm her. He was unsure what was happening; all he wanted to do was to fix it.

Meanwhile, John saw more than a couple of ghosts hiding in the trees. He saw something else too; something that was watching back at them that had been following them from the very start.

He did not say anything though and only thought to himself, “A black bear riding a pogo stick while fucking a chimpanzee.”

Terra continued to cry her eyes out, wanting to be left alone and isolated. However, Glacio wasn’t going to give up on her and was not going to leave her side until she came back. He was trying his best to find the right words to talk to Terra with; but it all seemed effortless in the end.

So he dug down into his soul and tried to speak up, “Terra, I….”

With no warning The Fire of Fate returned in a flash. It had surrounded the opened area completely as everyone inside it was taken by surprise except for John ad TK. The rest frantically looked around, knowing exactly what was happening, but not as to why it was happening. Ventus and Ignis stood by TK, ready to fight whatever came from the flames. Glacio however got closer to Terra whether she wanted it or not and was looking around, seeing if anything was there.

Then they heard a familiar, yet concerning sound in their ears; a malevolent voice spoke to them, “My, oh my, what a wonderful day it is today to see the once great Terra finally broken. It’s about time you pathetic, meaningless, excuse for a living thing.”

That voice alone made them shiver. It sounded off, it wasn’t right. The words were evil, but the sound of the vibration as it hit their ear drums did not correlate right with their minds. Even Ventus and Ignis could hear from far away as they saw from a distance as to who it was: Terra.

However this Terra didn’t look right. She looked off, unbalanced, the opposite of what she usually looked like. Her clothing was of that of dark colors and Glacio saw a burning passion that could be seen from her eyes alone. Then it hit everyone but Terra: This was an evil clone of hers; and a sign that Fate had it out for them. The Evil Terra paid no attention to John or the others, only to Terra herself. It looked like she towered over the two by the rock, even though she was the same height as the real Terra. Terra caught a glimpse of her evil doppelganger and was struck with immediate fright.

She jumped backwards into Glacio’s torso as he caught and held on to her tightly. Glacio on the other hand only could look on with shock, yet a drive to fight whatever evil this was. Terra couldn’t speak, she was too afraid to say a single word as tears continued to flow from her tear ducts.

Glacio while looking straight into the Evil Terra’s eyes, “What do you want? Are you here to test us again!? Do you want Terra? If so, then you can’t have her! You’ll have to go through me first!”

The Evil Terra simply laughed it all off as she gave a wicked grin across her face as her voice echoed through the burning air, “Oh Glacio, you brave yet idiotic waste of life. And you’re supposed to be a king? Well daddy surely chose the wrong mate to have an offspring with, that’s for sure.”

Glacio was becoming intimidated by the evil fiend as he was ready to draw his weapon, “I am king! And no one even the likes of you will deny me of my right of that title! Quit wasting our time and tell us what you want or be gone!”

Meanwhile as Glacio was conversing with the enemy, John continued to stand by himself as the other three stood by each other, patiently waiting for things to escalate as much as they expected. Ignis wanted to help, but something in his gut told him that there was nothing that he could do for what would come next. TK stood there as the Fire of Fate reflected off his helmet and a slight breeze in the wind brushed against his cape.

Ventus looked worried yet sad as he told Ignis, “The Fire of Fate again? What could it be this time? Why here? Why now?”

Ignis then exclaimed as he kept an eye on the two over by the rock, “I’m not sure, but something tells me we all know exactly why it’s here.”

Glacio tried to stare down the Evil Terra as Terra remained like a weak little creature, unable to defend for herself. Glacio knew she was stronger than this, but for the time being he would need to speak for her. The Evil Terra just stood there, menacingly eyeing the two down, almost as if she was trying to drive them insane with her looks alone.

Glacio was starting to become unhinged as he spoke out once more, “What do you want!?”

The Evil Terra decided to finally speak up as she pointed a finger towards Terra as she cowered in fear, “Her.”

Glacio looked at how scared Terra was and was preparing mentally if he had to die for her if it came to that possibility, “No! You can have me instead you Welch!”

The Evil Terra laughed once more, this time emphasizing her devilish nature that exhumed off her face, “You don’t get it do you? This isn’t about you. This isn’t even about any of the other low lives in your little pack. This is about her and what she did. And for what she did…. Well…. She needs to be ‘punished’ you could say for it.”

Glacio calmed down just a bit, yet frustrated at the same time.

Glacio kept looking back and forth between Terra and the Evil version frantically, “Why? What did she do?”

The Evil Terra only waged a finger at him as she shook her head very mockingly, “Oh no no no no. That’s for you to find out and for Terra to admit. I am simply here to tie any loose ends and maybe once she is dead and gone… replace her. We do need to keep a sort of balance after all. Who knows, maybe I could be your best friend and we can all work together to find that little crystal of yours? What do you say Glacio? Do you want to get rid of this sinner and get out of this dump heap of a world?”

The Evil Terra still with an evil smile on her face looked around the place; pestering Glacio, “I mean why even come here to this world where there is nothing but talking little ponies, am I right?”

The Evil Terra then turned to Glacio very much disturbed and suggested, “Hey, why don’t we just make your kingdom here Glacio? We can just get rid of all the ponies here and set up shop here. You did say you’ve earned your title after all. Why not prove it?”

The Evil Terra then got uncomfortably close to Glacio’s face while hovering over Terra, “I’ll even be your lover under the sheets too if that’s what you want.”

Glacio grudgingly pushed her away as he told her strictly, “Never! I would rather die than to have the likes of you join my ranks! You are no more than a simple devil in disguise! And I will strike you down right here and now if that’s what it takes!”

The Evil Terra put her right index finger to her lip while keeping her evil gaze on him “Awww… that’s too bad Glacio. What a pity. Guess I’ll just have to settle for taking Terra then. Don’t worry, once I’m done, I’ll be on my way. No one else would need to get hurt. All you need to do is simply hand her over to me.”

The Evil Terra held her hand out to him, waiting for him to give into her demands.

Glacio however was quick to subdue the tempting thought of simply giving up and scoffed at the Evil Terra, “You may be able to tempt others with your lies, but you will never convince me or any of the others! We will gladly stand side-by-side by each other and die for one another if that’s what it takes!”

Terra started to have more tears fall from her eyes. She felt like what she had done wrong could be forgiven if her friends were willing to stick by her. Yet at the same time, an ounce of doubt entered her mind and convinced her that was not enough. Instead however, she came up with another idea that would hopefully save the others at the very least; it was the least she could do to make up for her mistakes.

She quickly closed her eyes, held in all of her emotions and forced herself to stand up and push Glacio away. She still looked afraid and helpless, but she had at least the will to do something right to make up for her past.

She stood toe-to-toe with her evil counterpart and looked her in the eye, “Wait! What if I fight you instead? If you win, y-you can have me, but if I win, you’ll leave me and my friends alone.”

Even though she didn’t have the face of a warrior at that moment, her mind and body was prepared at least to take whatever was thrown at her, even if it meant certain death.

The Evil Terra chuckled and looked directly at her, “Fine.”

For a second, Terra smiled before it was quickly wiped as the Evil Terra rose 44 FT above her as the Earth formed a pillar of rock and dirt beneath her feet. Everyone except for John and TK looked up in awe as they were taken aback by this surprise, especially Terra herself.

The Evil Terra simply looked down as if she was a giant towards Terra, “But it won’t be easy though! Why don’t you come up here and face the music Terra darling!”

Terra gulped, but knew what must be done. She concentrated with her soul and body and felt the Earth beneath her feet start to move and form whatever she had thought. Glacio quickly backed off, wondering what would happen next and if Terra would survive as a similar, equaling pillar of Earth rose from the ground below.

Everyone, especially Glacio looked up towards the sky as Glacio became afraid for Terra, wondering if she would make it even. Things would have been different if she had just simply spoken to him about her problems, but it was too late.

The two Terras were high above the ground. The Evil Terra looked at the other with a smug look on her face with a slight hint of grace to it. She carelessly stood on her pillar without fear, devilishly staring at Terra, taunting with just her looks alone. Terra however still looked weak and fragile. She was not ready for this, but she had to push herself and was ready to give what was left of her for it even if it came to it. She swallowed her fear the best she could and tried to stare down her evil clone the best she could, but many would say the Evil Terra was winning by a mile.

The Evil Terra looked on with such confidence, “So, you think you’ll be getting out of this one alive huh? You know it would be so much easier if you just accepted your fate as it is instead of fighting against it. Just embrace the struggle; you’ll go out easier that way.”

Terra could only shrug off her worries as she looked back with a fire in her eyes that were dimly lit, “I-I won’t let you do it, I have to try at the very least.”

The Evil Terra brushed her little words away while placing her hands at her hips, “Oh please, you won’t be walking away into the sunset. We all have debts to pay and yours is the biggest of them all. And all debts must be paid one way or another. Yours just happened to be the worst of them all where you must give even more than just your punishment, but your soul. Face it, you can’t out run of what that you did. You will burn for your failures and all will see who was behind their demise.”

Terra started to get flustered, “That’s not true!”

The Evil Terra gave a glare to Terra with a pompous look on her face, “Oh yeah? Then go ahead and give it your best shot.”

Terra’s body started to vibrate rapidly as both her arms were held out, lowered towards the ground. Her eyes lit up like lights from a distance as she concentrated on her own mind. From within, she tried to control her feelings and regrets and to only focus on fighting her evil double.

With a scrunched up face, she was able to collect as many rocks as she could all the way from the ground. The others down below saw bits and pieces of rocks; slowly levitating from the ground as if it was being beamed up by an alien spaceship. Glacio could tell this wasn’t going to be good.

All of the rocks and dirt started to rise as Terra lifted her arms up high slowly. The Evil Terra continued to stand there, unphased by her actions. When Terra was ready, she clinched her fists, signaling all of the pieces she had gathered to come together and form into several balls of Earth, making a grand total of four boulders of Earth. Each were equally sized and in weight too; being about as twice their size.

The balls were tightly packed and could not be undone so easily, making each one a deadly weapon of sorts. Once Terra was ready, she let it all go and opened up her fists, quickly pushing the boulders of dirty rock towards the Evil Terra at fast, harmful speeds. She pushed the boulders all at once towards the Evil Terra, each landing a direct hit one after the other.

With each hit caused an explosion of debris as the rock crumpled and the dirt back to its rightful place on the Earth itself. Dust and particles of rock covered the air with Terra breathing heavily in and out, wondering if that was enough to stop her. However, as everyone at the bottom waited in anticipation and Terra eagerly waited to see the dust clear, she became disappointed with the news that she did not win. The Evil Terra just stood there unscathed; not even a small scratch even.

The Evil Terra could only put the most evil grin towards her, “Oh that was cute. You did your little magic thing with the Earth. So adorable when they think they can win, but really I just pity you. I almost feel bad. It’s like you think you can live when really you know you’re going to die. Honestly I feel really bad for wasting your time like this. I should have just taken you right there with no warning, but I’m too kind I suppose. Still, this fight won’t even last four minutes I can see. Well…. My turn!”

The Evil Terra smiled so happily towards the real one that it almost seemed genuine and that of a different person altogether. In the blink of an eye, The Evil Terra quickly raised both her arms up in the air, gathering twice the amount of rock and dirt twice as fast as Terra did. Terra started to panic on the inside as she took a slight step backwards after seeing this. The debris from the previous attack was being reused again, but this time against Terra.

The pieces of the Earth started to all gather itself, forming a straight line that looked like an arm and then into form of a pair of hands. Once both arms were completed, the Evil Terra moved her arms in timing with the rock formations, controlling her movements to the one that she created.

She looked at them as if she was proud of her work like if it was some kind of art painting. She squeezed her hands, getting the feel of her new toy to play with. She then looked towards Terra deep into the eyes, as she filled it with nothing but terror and fear.

The Evil Terra yelled out, “Time to finish what should have ended a long time ago!”

The Evil Terra raised her arms up, making both arms into a fist as Terra gazed upon it in horror, wondering how much pain was about to come her way. The hands hovered above her for a few seconds just like a cloud.

Terra was trying to think of a fast way to get out of this mess; but then soon became distracted as she heard Glacio say to her from a faint distance, “GET OUT OF THE WAY TERRA!”

Terra wanted to look back and look at Glacio, but in a blink of an eye, the Evil Terra stated to pound on Terra non-stop. She kept slamming in her body like a rag doll straight into the pillar. Terra had collapsed and was on her back as she took the hits from the front. The pillar itself didn’t show any signs of it coming down, but Terra was just barely keeping it all together.

The others except for TK and John from down below had no other choice but to watch in dismay as their best friend was being pummeled by giant arms of rock and dirt, constantly hitting her and not showing any signs of giving up.

Each thud could be heard from a mile and even shook the ground beneath the other’s feet and hooves. It was a tremendous yet horrifying feeling with every blow that Terra took. Blood started to drip from her nose and mouth as part of her skull was starting to crack and a bone or two was probably already broken.

The Evil Terra didn’t let up, as she kept going and going with a psychotic look in her eyes. She wanted her dead and wanted to make sure she wasn’t getting up. Once the Evil Terra thought she had won, she stopped and let the rocks fall into place down below. It seemed like she had became the victor in the battle, but Terra was just barely hanging on by a thread has her body ached and felt nothing but pain all around.

She laid on her back as she stared up into the sky and started to wonder if any of this was worth it. Was life worth living through this pain? Did she only exist to suffer a reality that only gave her nothing but of a guilty feeling to hang over her head? She was starting to ponder in her head if it was just best to lie down and die from it all.

Glacio then called out to her, “Terra get up! You can do it! We all believe in you down here! Don’t let her win!”

Terra started to moan and groan from the pain, but she did her best to think through the agony. He was right; she needed to keep going no matter what. Out there was her home beyond the space and stars and she needed to fix it the best she could. Yet deep down she was not ready to forgive herself for her mistakes.

Terra slowly got up, pushing herself up from the ground. The throbbing pain in her joints were a little too much to bear, but she pulled through and got up while trying to maintain balance. The Evil Terra however could only continue to give an egotistical look towards her. Sure, she took a huge beating, but she was on the brink of collapse. She liked the idea and wanted to play with it one last time.

She teased to Terra, “Not giving up huh? Well ok then, I guess you’ve earned another chance to hit me then. Go on… try it again. And maybe this time you could hit me and win. Unless of course you don’t have it in you? It’s ok to give up now. There’s no shame in surrendering to your fate of death. Everyone eventually has to come to terms with it, even you.”

Terra only looked like she wanted to fight even more now and to keep pushing herself so she can see the end to this clone of hers.

She tried to straighten out herself and to stand mighty and tall, “No… not yet. I’ll lie down and accept death, but not now. I’ll let death take me some other day, but until then…. I’m not done….”

The Evil Terra folded her arms and waited patiently for Terra to strike back next. Terra once again tried to concentrate as her body started to vibrate including all the air around her too. The pieces of Earth and dirt all started to rise, this time slightly faster than before. Terra was giving it her all this time. The others down below watched as the debris from before was all gathered into a ball, but this time into one giant ball.

It was four times the size as the last one and looked like a bomb waiting for it to explode. Terra then raised her arms up, raising the huge glob of mud and grime as high as she could. And she made sure to put it right over the Evil Terra’s head that was standing perfectly still. Terra wondered if this was going to work, starting to give herself some doubts.

Perhaps it wouldn’t work she had thought, but then again, she had to try at least. As the object of stone was as high as she could take it, she let go. The giant sphere that was made of Earth hurled towards the Evil Terra at fast speeds. Terra then quickly took out her bow and a glowing arrow that held a special property.

She took aim over the Evil Terra’s head, pulling back the string as far as she could and holding it there for the right fraction of a second to let go. As the ball came falling down from the heavens, the pressure was building and the others became almost unhinged as to what would come next. Glacio looked towards Terra, knowing that she was strong enough to win this fight. Right when the ball was only four inches above the Evil Terra’s head, Terra released the arrow as it flew through the air, hitting direct center of the big rock. And in a fraction of a fraction of a second, it all exploded like a small bomb going off in a building.

It may not have been big to take out an army, but it was sure big enough to have been seen a far as the arrow helped add a little bit of a fiery explosion to the mix of granite and mud. And for a brief second, Terra smiled thinking she had won. But as the dust settled and the air cleared the fumes of the small fire, the Evil Terra continued to stand there unharmed by her tactics despite her best efforts.

The Evil Terra stood there, bored as she yawned. “Are you done yet?”

The Evil Terra mocked towards her. And with this, Terra’s spirit was broken as she fell to her knees. She hanged her head down, waiting for what was to come next. However the Evil Terra didn’t say anything as the pillar of Earth beneath her cracked and crumbled away. Glacio was in shock as Terra started to fall, yet not trying to do anything about it. Terra wanted to die, and was going to let it all end right then and there as the Evil Terra looked on with a smile.

Glacio yelled out to her in desperation, “Terra!”

He started sprinting towards, thinking that he would have a chance to catch her in time, but sadly he was mistaken by his way of telling time. Ventus and Ignis tried to go after her too as John simply started to walk towards her. Terra fell on to the ground below and was now back at square one.

She hit the ground with a loud thud, almost nearly killing her in the process. The destruction of the pillar didn’t help either as it covered the air with dust. She could barely just see just a few feet in front of her.

She was done, she was finished, just let death take her now she had thought. She closed eyes and waited for the worst. And for a brief moment of silence, she heard nothing but the thoughts of her own and why she deserved this. She then started to hear the sounds of clopping in the nearby distance as emerged first was John himself. She did her best to look to see him, yet with no words to even ask as to why.

John calmly walked towards her as the dust started to settle a little bit. John stopped a foot away from her and sat down, staring blankly at her and beyond. Terra however could not bear to look him as the amount of shame that she had for herself weighed her head down; low to the ground where her eyes could not be seen.

She mumbled towards John, “Why are you even looking at me? Can’t you see that it’s best that I’m left alone? I’ve failed.”

Without warning, not even making a sound, John quickly latched on to Terra and wrapped his hooves around her; giving her a big, warm, blissful hug. Terra opened her eyes and was left with no words but to feel the embrace of John’s arms. She froze in place, her mouth agape and not sure what to say. Her arms then slowly closed around John’s entire body and she borrowed her head into his pony sized body.

She then started to shed a small tear, “I’m not sure what to do.”

John then let go and placed his right hoof on her left shoulder while continuing to have his disfigured eyes, “Stop beating the chicken! Chickens don’t beat chickens! Only Horses eat the chickens and twinkles! But the pickle man or the chicken can never beat the chicken!”

As most would express, Terra wasn’t sure what to make of John’s comments as she stared back with confusion, “What?”

John took a step back and exclaimed once more, “Stop beating the kitty cat. You are a kitty cat! Not a bad kitty cat!”

John started to take a few steps back slowly as Terra wanted to reach out. However, before she could, John quickly turned around and galloped back to the others. Terra was now again left all alone with only John’s words to think about. She looked down and tried to comprehend the message.

The moment her eyes went bright, she could hear some footsteps from behind her with expression of relief, “Terra, is that you?”

Terra quickly got up to find Glacio behind her. She then without hesitation gave him a hug and held on to him tightly. Glacio was taken by surprise by this but only gave a warm smile to her as he returned the affection.

Glacio asked her, “Are you ok?”

Terra started to sob, “I’m not ok Glacio. I-I’m not.”

Glacio gently took her hands as Terra removed herself from him. They both kneeled on the ground to briefly rest for a moment.

Glacio with a look of concern asked, “Then tell me. Tell me what has been bothering you.”

Terra didn’t want to say it. She was too afraid to. She knew that she would be hated if she told the truth, but she couldn’t hold it back any longer.

As she trembled and her hands began to shake and tears overflowed her eyes, she wailed out in grief, “I’m sorry Glacio. I should have told you. We could have prevented the attack back home if it wasn’t for me.”

Glacio remained a bit curious, “Whatever do you mean Terra?”

Terra looked away as sadness overtook her and her words became freely, “Back home, I was sent out to scout by the king to Lord Chernobog’s fortress to know if and when he was going to attack. Your father never told you because he didn’t want you to worry about me or else you would have done it yourself and probably gotten yourself hurt. I was right for the job… well at least that I thought I was. When I got word that he was going to surprise attack the kingdom, I had enough time to make it back to warn you. But…. I failed. I accidentally injured myself because I couldn’t keep up. And by the time I was able to make it back, it was already too late. Most were already dead and I couldn’t help but blame myself this entire time. If it wasn’t for me, we could have saved our people and we wouldn’t be in this mess. I-I-I’m a failure. And you have every right to be angry at me, even if that means banishing me from the land forever.”

Terra hanged her head low as she continued to cry in anguish. Her mind was unease as many thoughts ran rampant, thinking only of the worst. If she was exiled, there was no other homes to go to.

Perhaps John would be willing to take her in into the land of ponies if John didn’t know her mistakes? It was all overwhelming for her. However Glacio couldn’t help but smile at her. He hugged her once more and let go as Terra looked back in shock.

Glacio looked back at her with bright eyes, “Was that it? It’s ok Terra… we all made mistakes that day.”

Terra was starting to pull herself together, yet not quite as she said to Glacio, “Yeah…. But…. If it wasn’t for me…”

Glacio interrupted her, “It doesn’t matter Terra. It’s ok. Even then I forgive you. And your friends do too. There’s no need to be ashamed, even if it’s the biggest mistake of all. There is always hope for us if you look for it. And there will always be brighter days no matter what, you just need to go out and find it.”

Terra started to smile again as they both brought their heads together in silence and in bliss. For once, Terra’s mind was at peace. After a few seconds of holding their heads together, they both got up in union and Terra looked upwards. She knew in her mind what she was looking for all this time. She then looked back at Glacio with a happy smile. The dust had just about settled and she looked back towards the other way to look at John who was off to the distance looking back. And there she could see her friends that were relieved to see her alive still.

Glacio then whispered in her left ear, “Go get her Terra.”

Glacio moved out of the area as Terra moved her arms out and the Earth vibrated underneath her until once again a pillar of Earth rose to the sky and towards the Evil Terra. Once Terra made it to the top, she was ready for the next and final round.

The Evil Terra looked back and teased, “Oh so you’re not done yet huh? I was sure you would have been finished. Oh well, I sure do love playing with my food.”

Terra then yelled at to her with a smile filled with hope, “No…. not this time.”

The Evil Terra looked a bit baffled by her remarks. Terra repeated her first trick that she tried to from before again. She spread out her arms as she concentrated on her body and mind as all the small rocks from beneath her rose high into the sky; but this time it rose even higher, covering the sky as if they were replacing the clouds.

All that was missing was the sound of thunder. Glacio and the others below looked up in awe and amazement, knowing exactly what Terra had in mind of doing. The Evil Terra looked upward and remained befuddled until it finally dawn on her what it all meant. Terra then let it all go. The rocks that were high above concentrated on The Evil Terra as it showered her with such force and precision.

It felt like gold ball sized of hail if it had spikes falling down on her, hitting her both bluntly and sharply. The Evil Terra tried to resist, pushing back with all that she could, but it proved pointless as the storm of rocks was too much to bear for her to handle.

The pillar beneath the Evil Terra gave in and collapsed as she fell to her demise. In the end as the skies cleared, the Fire of Fate died down, and the dust settled, Terra remained the last one standing. She looked upwards towards to the visible moon and smiled brightly. She couldn’t have been happier that she wanted to shed a tear.

She said to herself in her mind, ‘I am now free.’

The pillar beneath her then slowly descended by her own will. As she came down from the heavens gently, her friends, including John and TK, were there to greet her. She looked at every one of them as they all smiled except for John and TK.

She took a deep breath as they all surrounded her with glee and with a smile, she said, “Thank you all, my friends.”

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