"YOU ARE WHAT NOW?!" Knuckles shouted with a twitchy eye.

"The voice comes from the sword?!" Tails asked in disbelief.

"YOU ARE A KING?!" Pipp asked in shock to her boyfriend. "WHY DIDN'T YOU TOLD ME THAT BEFORE?!"

"You talked with a tree?" Shadow asked with a bored expression, apparently that being the one thing he didn't believed.

After Sonic and Sunny returned from the mysterious and hidden Korok Forest—that's how the Korok's and Deku Tree's home is called—with Excalibur now on Sonic's hands, they had to explain everything to their friends, and its going as well as they both expected.

Sonic stood in the center of the group, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head as everyone bombarded him with questions. Sunny was next to him, trying not to laugh at how flustered he looked, especially in front of Pipp, whose wide eyes were demanding answers.

"Okay, okay, calm down, everyone!" Sonic said, raising his hands in an attempt to quiet the group. "Yeah, I guess I left out the whole 'King of Camelot' thing... but it wasn't like I asked for the title! It was a temporary thing, like I said!" He glanced nervously at Pipp, who was still looking at him like he had just revealed the biggest secret of his life. "It's complicated, alright?"

Pipp crossed her hooves and huffed. "You think maybe that was something you should've mentioned, Sonic?" Her voice was half-teasing, half-annoyed. "You're literally royalty in another world, and I had no idea!"

Sonic let out an exaggerated sigh, feeling cornered. "Well, technically I'm not royalty here..." He muttered, trying to dodge the heat. "Besides, that was ages ago. I didn't think it mattered!"

Tails, however, was less concerned with the royal title and more fascinated by the sword. He circled Sonic, eyeing the sheathed Excalibur on his back with curiosity. "So, you're telling me this sword can talk—inside your mind—and it's called Excalibur?" He stopped in front of Sonic, his brow furrowed in deep thought. "And it somehow followed you from another dimension? That's... that's amazing!"

Knuckles, still processing everything, crossed his arms and shook his head. "I'm more stuck on the whole tree thing," He grumbled. "A talking tree gave you back your magical sword? You can't make this stuff up!"

Shadow, meanwhile, leaned against a nearby wall, arms folded, his expression unimpressed. "A sword that talks, a mystical tree, and now you're a king. What's next, Sonic? You planning to open a history museum?" His voice was sarcastic, though Sonic knew it was just his way of processing the situation.

Sonic smirked, taking the teasing in stride. "Nah, too much paperwork for a king. Besides, I prefer to run fast and smash bad guys." He glanced at Excalibur, feeling its weight on his back. "But seriously, this sword is something else. If the Great Deku Tree is right, we might need its power to deal with whatever's coming. Although I'm still kinda lost on where he came from, or why this Korok Forest he lives in hasn't shown to anyone else besides Sunny and me."

"That's because you two have the purest heart out of them all, Hedgehog!" A voice suddenly spoke, one everyone could hears loud and clear.

"Oh no..." Sonic muttered in annoyance, knowing too well who was coming.

And then, a pot suddenly grew legs made of its plant's roots, walking around the group as it startled Misty and Amy, while Knuckles tried to smash it, Shadow tried to run over it, and Omega even prepared to shoot at it, but then the pot broke and the plant moved on its own now, trapping Sonic as it surrounded him, but the hedgehog's bored expression remained until the plant transformed into a strange creature.

The creature in question was made out of many animal parts, and it had very long white hair, a missing pinkie, and a long beard as well. The creature's face looked straight to Sonic in a mocking way, and Sonic looked even more annoyed than he was before.

"Oh yes, dear Sonic! It is I! The Lord of Chaos!" The creature presented himself, as more like him suddenly appeared, with some throwing flowers and confeti, while other clapped and whistled at him.

"Hello, Discord..." Sonic sighed and shook his head. "What do we owe the unfortunate visit you pay us today?"

"What a way to great a friend, Sonic. I expected better from you," Discord said with acted offense as he let hm go, crossed his arms and looked away of him.

"Intruder alert!" Omega shouted, pointing his weapons at Discord. "Activating defensive protocols!"

"Omega, wait!" Sunny shouted in horror with widened eyes.

But before Omega could shoot at him, Discord snapped his fingers, and so, Omega shoot... bubbles out of his weapons instead of the bullets he was supposed to. Izzy even started to chase some of the bubbles around, and Sparky wanted to pop some as well, thus leaving Amy and Team Dark confused, while the rest seemed... not used to this, but definitely not as lost as the newcomers.

"Uh... What's going on?" Rouge asked with an awkward chuckle.

"And who is this?" Amy asked with a forced smile and a twitchy eye.

"He's mine!" Shadow said in anger as he suddenly pulled out a sniper, charged it and pointed at Discord.

But before he could shoot, the draconequus yawned boredly and snapped his fingers, suddenly disappearing and also changing Shadow's gun for a water one instead.

And thus, Shadow shoot water of his weapon, hitting Knuckles and soaking him wet by mistake instead of shooting Discord as he wanted to. When the Ultimate Lifeform realized his mistake, he stopped shooting, and Knuckles coughed some water, glaring daggers at Shadow now, who looked confused at the water gun on his hands instead of the weapon he had.

"What the actual fuck?" Shadow questioned confused.

Discord reappeared, now laughing his ass off as he flew over Sonic, while the hedgehog groaned and rubbed his eyes with annoyance.

"Guys... this is Discord, the self-called 'Lord of Chaos'..." Sonic presented him tiredly. "He tried to destroy magic before a message of his death wife, girlfriend or whatever she was from him made him realize he was a fucking idiot and decided not to destroy it anymore. He's also to me what I am to Shadow, I believe..."

"An annoying prick I'd shoot any day of the week if I wanted to?" Shadow asked.

"Yeah," Sonic nodded.

"Dear God..."

"That's not a nice way to talk to your friends, Sonic," Discord said with an annoyed expression, mixing something on a cup before he ate the cup and left the liquid floating on his hand.

The scene had descended into absolute chaos, but that was to be expected when Discord was involved.

Discord took a sip from the floating liquid in his hand, slurping it obnoxiously as he hovered upside down, inches above Sonic's head. "Honestly, I expected a warmer welcome after all we’ve been through," He remarked, the liquid somehow not spilling out of the cup that wasn’t there anymore.

Sonic, still rubbing his temples, muttered, "We've been through this, Discord. You cause chaos, we clean it up. Classic you."

Sunny, ever the diplomat, stepped forward and smiled awkwardly. "Um, Discord, hi. Thanks for, uh, the bubbles? But… why exactly are you here?"

Discord flipped himself right-side-up, his tail twirling like a helicopter as he descended gracefully to the ground. "Ah, my dear Sunny," He began, conjuring a bouquet of sunflowers from thin air and handing them to her. "I came to offer my unique brand of assistance. After all, I couldn't possibly miss the chance to witness such a thrilling showdown against—" He paused dramatically, leaning in close to Sonic, "—the gloom!"

He then started to simulate that he got infected by the gloom, part of his body suddenly getting "infected" with a red malice that extended all over his chest until he fell to the ground "dead", his eyes now turned into a couples of X while his tongue lay out of his mouth.

"Should we cancel him for playing with actual ponies dying because of the gloom? I feel we should," Sonic said with a bored expression.

"Your modern terms mean nothing to me, dear Sonic," Another Discord said, suddenly appearing at Sonic's side and wrapping an arm around him, while the "dead" Discord in the floor disappeared.

Tails adjusted his goggles and gave Discord a curious look. "You know about the gloom?"

Discord grinned, his mismatched eyes sparkling with mischief. "Oh, I know more than just the gloom. There's a storm of dark magic brewing, the likes of which Equestria hasn't seen in centuries. Its rising from the deeps of the earth itself, and most of it concentrates in the ruins of Canterlot. But I bet you already knew all of that."

"Yeah, we've been investigating on our own, Discord. We weren't born yesterday!" Knuckles said in anger, still soaking wet from Shadow's mishap with the water gun.

Discord smirked, floating lazily above the group as he twirled a cloud of cotton candy between his fingers. "Ah, Knucklehead, always so intense. I do so enjoy your attempts at seriousness." He flicked the cotton candy cloud, and it floated over to Knuckles, raining sprinkles on him. Knuckles grumbled but didn't even bother trying to wipe them off. He'd already learned that with Discord, resistance was futile.

"But really, you're all investigating this gloom business? How charming." Discord snapped his fingers, conjuring a massive, exaggerated magnifying glass over Tails' head, causing the fox to stumble backward under its weight. "Leave it to you lot to solve a cosmic mystery with good ol' detective work."

Tails managed to push the oversized magnifying glass away, his face determined. "It may not be as flashy as chaos magic, but we are making progress. The gloom started seeping out from Canterlot and spreading through cracks all across Equestria. We're trying to trace its origin—Wait, did you just said it's coming from the deeps of earth itself?!"

Discord's grin widened as he floated around the group, clearly relishing in the growing curiosity and tension. He snapped his fingers, and a miniature, three-dimensional map of Equestria appeared, hovering in the air between them. Dark tendrils of gloom began to rise from deep cracks in the map's surface, spreading ominously toward the landmarks they all recognized—Maretime Bay, Zephyr Heights, Bridlewood, and of course, the epicenter: The ruins of Canterlot.

"That's right, my dear Tails," Discord said, his voice dropping to a more serious tone as he pointed to the darkest part of the map, where Canterlot once stood tall. "The gloom isn't just some magical anomaly floating around. It's rising from deep beneath the surface, a byproduct of something much older... much darker than even I care to meddle with." He gave a dramatic shiver.

Sunny leaned in closer to the map, eyes wide with concern. "Older? Are you talking about ancient Equestrian magic? Could it be tied to the old legends of the princesses or even… the Tree of Harmony?"

Discord's eyes flicked toward Sunny, his expression unreadable for a moment before he waved a paw. "The Tree of Harmony? Pfft, that old sapling was a beacon of order, not chaos. No, what we're dealing with here is something else entirely. Something that pre-dates even Celestia and Luna."

Sonic narrowed his eyes. "Then how do you know about it?"

Discord paused mid-hover, then floated down to meet Sonic's gaze. His usually playful demeanor shifted into something more serious, almost calculating. "I may enjoy chaos, but even I have my limits. The thing buried deep beneath the earth, stirring because of the gloom... it's a force of pure destruction. Not chaos. Not order. Just... the end. I found a path hidden inside the ruins of the castle, but I couldn't venture as far as I would've liked..."

"Why not?" Sonic asked, now giving him a playful grin. "Did you chickened out?"

Discord looked at Sonic and glared in a mix of anger and annoyance, but instead of finding funny that he nailed it, Sonic himself seemed to feel terrified as well at the single thought that Discord chickened at something. Just how uncomfortable that path he found has to be for him to not explore it further?

Discord's glare softened slightly, but his discomfort was palpable. "Chickened out? I prefer to think of it as making a strategic retreat. There are forces down there that even I wouldn't toy with. Forces that don't appreciate visitors, no matter how charming or chaotic they may be."

Sonic now frowned upon hearing this. "What kind of path are we talking about here?"

With just a snap, Discord transported himself, Sonic and Sunny to the ruins of Canterlot Castle.

In front of them was a door hidden behind an ancient tapestry that Discord moved aside. Said door was big, metallic and ancient, with symbols that Sonic couldn't quite place, but Sunny did: Zonai symbols, some recognizable and even readable for her, some others completely unknown.

"I traversed this door, descended some stairs and reached a new door, but..." Discord cut himself mid-sentence, gulping a little. "Whatever's beyond said door... I don't even want to imagine it. I-I could barely step beyond whatever's the other side because... I simply didn't liked to be down there, not in the slightest."

Sonic glanced at the ancient door, feeling the air around them grow colder. The intricate Zonai symbols on the metal surface gave off an eerie glow, faint but persistent, as if the door itself was alive, watching them. He could feel the weight of something... unsettling just beyond.

Sunny, who had been quietly studying the symbols, took a step closer, her eyes narrowing as she traced the lines with her hoof. "These are Zonai alright," She murmured, her voice a little shaky. "Some of these symbols talk about protection, others... warnings. But this one..." She pointed at a symbol near the center. "It talks about something... sealed away. Something ancient and powerful."

Sonic's frown deepened, then he looked at Discord. "So, this is where the gloom's coming from?"

Discord, uncharacteristically serious, nodded, floating closer to the door but keeping a respectful distance. "Not just the gloom, my spiky friend. There's something down there—older than even I, older than any magic you've ever encountered. The gloom is just its... byproduct, seeping out like poison from a wound."

Sunny looked back at Sonic, her expression resolute. "If we don't stop it here, it's only going to get worse. We have to go in."

Sonic glanced at Discord one last time, then back at the door. "What else is down there, Discord? What aren't you telling us?"

Discord's eyes flickered with something that looked suspiciously like fear. "I told you I didn't go far. But... there were whispers. Not the playful, mischievous kind that I enjoy, but something... dark. Hungry. It's as if the very walls want you to turn back, to leave before you wake whatever's sleeping down there."

Sonic stood firm, his usual cocky grin replaced with a look of determination. "Well, too bad for them. We're not leaving until we get to the bottom of this." He then looked at Sunny. "It'll be better if it's just you and me, though. We can face whatever's down there together."

Sunny stepped forward, smiling and nodding at Sonic's words. "Together."

"You two are going into a suicide mission," Discord pointed out with an eye-roll, then he began to use Excalibur as a tooth stick.

Sonic's eyes widened, and he looked back at the empty sheet on his back, then he frowned at Discord. "Hey! That's not a toy, you idiot! It's my sword by right!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, 'King of Camelot'," Discord mocked with a save of his paw, then looked at the sword by closing his eyes and making the other one get out of its place and fly around the sword to look at it closer. "Are you sure this sword from a world that only exists inside of a book is going to help you fight the gloom and its source?"

"Unless you have a better idea, it's out best shot!" Sonic said in anger, jumping and snatching the sword from Discord's arms, then returning it to its sheet but still holding it from its handle in anger.

"Alright, be my guest!" Discord said, making a hat appear and then making a reverence, while a tiny Discord flew out of the hat and circled Sonic like a mosquito. "Just be careful to not brake your new toy!"

With that, Discord disappeared entirely, finally leaving Sonic and Sunny alone while Sonic sighed relieved. "Finally! I thought he'll never leave..."

Sonic stood before the ancient door, Excalibur now firmly in his grip, feeling the weight of the task ahead. The strange, cold air emanating from the door prickled at his senses, but he brushed it off, as usual. Sunny, however, remained quietly focused, her eyes still studying the Zonai symbols, though she had already pieced together as much as she could.

She turned to Sonic, her face set in determination. "So, what's the plan? Do we just… open it and go in?"

Sonic looked at her, his usual cocky grin returning as he spun Excalibur in his hand. "Yeah. It's just another adventure, right? No biggie. We'll get in, kick some ancient gloom butt, and be out before dinner." He paused, glancing at the glowing symbols again. "Though, I gotta admit, this place gives me the creeps."

Sunny chuckled softly, trying to lighten the mood. "You? Afraid? Never thought I'd see the day."

He winked at her. "Afraid? Nah, just... respectfully cautious. This whole thing screams 'trap.' But we're pros. We got this. That being said, maybe we should tell the others what we're gonna do before, you know, actually doing it."

"Yeah... That sounds like a good plan." Sunny agreed.

"You two are equally crazy, you know that?" Knuckles told them both with a bored expression.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Knux." Sonic deadpanned with his arms crossed.

Sonic and Sunny reunited with their friends in Lookout Landing and told them what they were gonna do. Of course, they hated the idea right from the go, but they both know that they won't talk them out of this idea, even though Sonic and Sunny themselves know it may be a very stupid thing to do. They were both thankful that Team Dark was out interviewing people for the Monster-Control Crew, or they'll be part of the scolding team.

Knuckles crossed his arms, leaning against a crumbling wall of Lookout Landing, glaring at Sonic and Sunny. "You realize you're walking into something even Discord didn't want to deal with, right? That guy thrives on chaos, and even he backed off."

Sonic shrugged, Excalibur resting on its sheet on his back. "Yeah, well, he might've chickened out, but we're not Discord. We're not running from this."

Tails, standing nearby with his arms folded, was clearly deep in thought. "Sonic... are you sure this is a good idea? We barely understand what the gloom is or what's causing it. Charging in there might—"

"—Might be the only way to stop it," Sonic finished for him. "Look, I get it. It's risky. But we can't wait for this gloom to keep spreading and making more ponies fall sick and even die. We have to do something now, or this thing could get worse."

Sunny nodded, stepping forward. "The more we wait, the stronger it gets. We've already seen how bad it's affecting Equestria. If we don't act soon, we might lose more than just some ponies."

Hitch paced back and forth, clearly agitated, his usual calm demeanor nowhere to be found. "This is a terrible idea, even for you two! Charging headfirst into the source of the gloom? You might not come back out!" His voice cracked with a mixture of worry and frustration, and Sparky hugged one of his hooves in an attempt to comfort him.

Zipp, leaning against a makeshift table, eyed Sonic and Sunny with a frown. "I get it—you're both bold, brave, and all that—but this? This is reckless! You could get yourselves killed! There's no guarantee you'll even find a way to stop the gloom, and we can't afford to lose either of you."

Misty, who had been quiet until now, stepped forward hesitantly. "Maybe it would be better if we all went together," She suggested softly, her wide eyes filled with concern. "If we face whatever's down there as a group, we'd stand a better chance. We don't know what's waiting beyond that door…"

Pipp, sitting nearby and clutching her phone, looked directly at Sonic. Her usual bubbly nature had been replaced by a serious expression. "Sonic, this whole 'going solo' or 'just the two of you' thing? It's not going to work here. We've always faced things as a team. Being bold is great and all, but now? Being smart is way more important." She took a breath, her voice softening as she walked to her boyfriend in concern. "We need to be united. If we're not, something worse could happen. And you, of all people, know that rushing in alone doesn't always end well."

Sonic glanced at Sunny, and they exchanged a look. The tension in the room was thick, the concern from their friends weighing heavy on their minds. But they had already made their decision. The gloom wasn't going to stop on its own, and waiting any longer could spell disaster for all of Equestria. Sonic's natural instinct to jump into action, combined with Sunny's unwavering sense of responsibility, wouldn't let them turn back now.

"I get it, you guys are worried," Sonic said, trying to ease the tension. "And trust me, we're not taking this lightly. But someone has to do this. The longer we sit around, the worse it gets."

Sunny nodded, stepping up beside him. "We don't want to put anyone else in danger. If it was just us two going in, there's a chance we can slip in, figure out what's really going on, and come back. If we all go, we might alert whatever's down there sooner." She turned to Misty and smiled softly. "We will need you, though. If things go wrong, we'll need all of you to be ready. We can't do this without you watching our backs from up here."

Misty’s eyes flickered with uncertainty, but she nodded. "Okay… I understand."

Zipp sighed, still frowning but nodding. "Just… be careful, alright? I'm not thrilled about this plan, but if you're really going through with it, we'll be ready to back you up. You just have to make it back."

Hitch sit on the floor and crossed his arms, clearly still not happy but resigned. "This is crazy... But alright. If this is what you're set on doing, we'll be on standby. But you better not make us come in there to rescue you."

Pipp frowned but sighed deeply. "Promise me you'll call if things get out of hand, Sonic. Don't go silent. We can't lose contact again like last time."

Sonic gave her a confident grin, reaching down for her hoof and kissing it gently, just like he did when they first met. "I promise. No going silent this time."

With that, the group stood in uneasy silence for a moment, the weight of the situation pressing down on them all. Sonic and Sunny had made their choice, and their friends, despite their concerns, knew they had to trust them.

Sonic gave one last look at his team, then turned toward the path leading back to the Canterlot Castle. "Alright, let's do this."

Sunny, her heart pounding, glanced at the others one more time before following Sonic. "We'll be back soon. Stay safe, all of you."

As the two headed out, leaving their worried friends behind, the atmosphere grew heavier, the enormity of the task ahead settling in. They were walking into the unknown, but that had never stopped them before. With Excalibur by Sonic's side and Sunny's determination lighting their way, they would face whatever darkness lay beneath Canterlot together.

Sonic and Sunny opened the ancient door inside the castle, and after that, they stepped through.

Sunny made her etherial golden horn appear and summoned a torch that she decided to levitate as she descended, with Sonic following close behind. The stone staircase beneath them made their steps echo through the passage, and the more they descended, the air grew colder and more humid, and a feeling of oppression increased with each step they took.

After what seemed like an eternity, the staircase finally came to an end, giving way to a wide corridor carved into the living rock. There were several inscriptions on the walls, which once again Sunny recognized as Zonai language, but she had no clue on what it said at all. Sonic, meanwhile, didn't even bothered trying to figure them out. Is not like he was interested on the Zonai or anything, so why bother?

They walked through the corridor for a while, until they reached another closed door at the very end, one they both knew was the same door Discord didn't dared to cross, and now they understand why: They felt the atmosphere thicken, almost as if the air itself was trying to push him back, away from that forbidden threshold.

"Well, shit..." Sonic muttered. "Now I can't blame Discord for retrieving once he reached this point..."

"Well, too bad we're not gonna do the same," Sunny stated, surrounding the imposing black gates with symbols with her magic, then pushing it open.

Ahead they only found darkness, and a vibration that emulated a heartbeat. That was concerning already, but they knew they couldn't stand back, so they choose to ignore it and moved ahead.

They began to descend through several long, dark corridors, which became increasingly difficult the further down they went. There were long remains of what were once structures that stood firm to allow passage to anyone who entered this place. At a certain point, the air felt heavier and unnatural. It almost seemed like the gloom was permeating the air. Breathing was starting to become a bit difficult, but neither Sunny nor Sonic let themselves be defeated.

Sonic, however, felt the urge to bring his hand to the handle of his sword every so often. With each step they descended, he felt more and more trapped. Maybe his face showed indifference, or at least he hoped it was, but in reality he was terrified. The gloom at his feet was little, and yet it made Sonic very nervous. Something was very wrong with this place, and he knew it. They both did, actually.

They reached a set of square stairs that led down what looked like at least 100 meters underground. They quickly exchanged nervous glances with each other, but nodded in silent agreement anyway, determined to see it through. They descended that large set of stairs, and when they got all the way down, they found a series of narrow hallways, which they decided to explore anyway.

The space was getting tighter and tighter, so they now had to descend side to side. They went down more stairs, in silence. It seemed like they would only find stairs by the bucketload down there. Their footsteps echoed through the stone walls, and Sonic found himself trying to make his steps lighter, as if he could drown out the sound. The gloom twisted around his shoes, though he didn't even feel the contact.

"This strange gloom keeps getting thicker..." Sunny commented after at least an hour had passed in which neither of them exchanged words of any kind. Their eyes were glued to the darkness of their surroundings.

By this point, the torchlight was not so comforting.

Finally, they reached the last step and turned a corner. Two ruined pillars preceded a shorter staircase. And, below, faint blue glints.

Sunny looked around the apparent cave that awaited them up ahead, while Sonic felt his right hand tingle. Something very bad was waiting for them, and he was beginning to like the idea of turning around and getting out of there.

"We've been descending for a while now..." Sunny said, looking at Sonic with concern. "These tunnels are deeper than I thought. What could be down here?"

"Whatever it is, it can't be good considering all this gloom." Sonic commented with a frown. "Let's keep moving."

They then resumed their march and began to advance. Sonic felt the urge to unsheathe Excalibur and carry it in his hands at all times more and more strongly. This place gave him a very bad feeling and, once again, he wanted to turn around and get out of there.

For some it would be an act of cowardice, but for Sonic, it is the most sensible option of all.

Inside the cave, everything seemed to be much more natural than what they had seen so far on the journey. The cave walls were pale, and sharp teeth of rock jutted out from the ceiling, threatening to fall on them. Small pools appeared near the rocks.

They continued on their way, discovering a winding path that stretched through the cave as far as they could see. Neither said anything about it and decided to keep walking. It's not like they have a choice, really.

Soon they came across more ruins scattered across the floor. Smooth walls, pillars with a strange lamp on top, even the occasional ruin with blurred manuscripts. The cave at the end wasn't as natural as they thought. It looked like it had swallowed everything.

When they reached a threshold, they stopped. Sunny wondered why there wasn't a door, though almost immediately afterward she assumed it had deteriorated over time.

There was a dying smell of embers in the air, and Sonic felt like vomiting. It wasn't embers from the torch, it was that disgusting smell of gloom. He sniffed the air for a moment, and realized that the smell of gloom was starting to permeate with the humidity of the cave. They almost seemed to smell the same, but the musty smell isn't as strong. The gloom? That smell made the hedgehog's stomach twist, and he just swallowed discreetly, hoping that he wouldn't throw up.

"Ponies have been falling ill after coming into contact with the gloom drifting through these caverns..." Sunny said after a while. Sonic assumed she was thinking out loud. "Though here it seems almost misty, and not concentrated enough to harm us." She lowered the torch, looking at the mist that barely touched her legs and hooves. "With it coming from beneath Canterlot Castle..." She then turned to Sonic. "We do not know what awaits below, so we need to be ready for anything. But I know we'll be okay as long as we stick together. Let's go solve this mystery!"

Sonic smiled at her and nodded in agreement after hearing this. "Ladies first!"

They continued to advance through those tunnels, which began to zigzag. A strange melody in reverse began to echo through the cave, and Sonic in particular felt a headache, since he heard that melody and whispers in his head at the same time. Either the lack of fresh air was making him lose his mind, or something more sinister awaited them.

"Sonic!" Sunny's voice brought him out of his thoughts, and he looked at the mare over his right shoulder.

As he did so, however, he could see that a golden glow was protruding from the sheath of Excalibur. And then he understood: The voice in his head came from the sword, who was trying to warn him of something. Seeing the golden glow only confirmed his worst fears.

The blade of Excalibur only shone in the presence of dark forces that threatened the world. Years ago, when he was summoned to Camelot, that blade helped him defeat Merlina. Today, that glow was back, but instead of feeling safe like in Camelot, he felt panic and fear in equal measure.

He refused to pull his sword out of its sheath. There was no need, because his right hand was tingling too much. He knew what he would find if he pulled the sword out.

"It seems that Excalibur is reacting to something in the surroundings," Sunny said fearfully, resisting the urge to hug herself. "This confirms what we suspected… There is no doubt that something is hiding here."

Sonic was about to suggest what he wanted with all his might: Turn around and get out of there as soon as possible. He wouldn't be a coward for doing the most sensible thing in the world under these circumstances… But he also knows that if they don't end the problem now while they can, they may never do so.

Determined to continue, the duo crossed a dark threshold, and then found themselves in a completely different cave.

These ruins are well preserved, with pillars adorned with alabaster flowers. The hallway continued to stretch out, disappearing into darkness, but the dim light made it difficult to see.

When they got a little further, Sunny gasped and hurried over, kneeling in front of a collapsed stone tablet. It had inscriptions and the symbol of an eye on it, but it wasn't something Sonic recognized. Still, he felt like he'd seen the style of inscriptions somewhere else.

"These are ruins from an ancient civilization." Sunny pointed out, before suddenly gasping in surprise. "Wait... Something is written here. Might these ruins be... from the Zonai?"

"If that's true, this place might be even older than we think," Sonic pointed out, kneeling down beside her. "Can you decipher what it says?"

"No, but I'm sure the Zonai research group Tails organized will be able to figure it out."

With that, Sunny took photos of the inscriptions with her phone, then put it away and they continued on. Sunny examined every curve and almost every rock she found along the way. On one of the walls, they found the ruins of a dragon-shaped sculpture that Sonic found most familiar. In some ruins north of Equestria, there were similar statues everywhere. Maybe they were the remains of this civilization.

"This is... Zonai architecture..." Sunny said to herself, before taking out her phone again and taking another photo. "This was built by them no doubt, but... How is it still standing? And why the hell did they build this under Canterlot Castle of all places?"

Sonic knew nothing about the Zonai, so he decided to ask. "What is known about these Zonai, exactly?"

"The Zonai lived a long time ago, in the time of legends," Sunny answered. "They are believed to have an almost divine power. Their culture thrived in the skies for a long time, but some descended to the surface. Maybe they were the ones who built this here."

"But why under the castle?" Sonic asked confused. "This place doesn't seem appropriate to leave a legacy like this..."

"Maybe the place fell down. Maybe they built the castle on top of it a long time later. What I don't understand is why they would hide it..."

"Well, maybe we'll find out if we keep moving forward."

Sunny nodded in agreement, and so, they continued on their way, this time stopping in front of a pair of statues that guarded the entrance to the next room. They were large and imposing, about 3 heads taller than Sonic.

Those statues had bodies similar to those of a human, but their heads were different. They seemed to have an animal shape, long necks and long ears, similar to the horns of a goat. They also had long robes on. Neither of them had seen anything like this before, and once again, Sunny took out her phone to take pictures of the statues. She couldn't wait to get out of there to study all of this.

Sonic, for his part, couldn't wait to get out of there and never come back, but he knew he had to go all the way if he wanted that to happen. Besides, it wasn't a good time to break Sunny's good mood. She was fascinated by studying ancient civilizations, and if she was happy, he could allow himself to be happy too, even if it was for a brief moment.

"They have huge ears," Sunny said, after taking one last photo and then putting her phone away. "Could it be that they represent a Zonai?"

The two of them continued walking after that. They went down a steep, narrow staircase. Down below, they passed a small hallway surrounded by other statues. Sonic stopped dead in the middle, putting a hand in front of Sunny as he sharpened his senses.

Sonic decided to move quickly, taking advantage of the cave's low lighting and finally taking his sword out of its sheath. It shone with that golden glow he first saw years ago. He knew it was partly a bad sign, but he decided to ignore it for now.

The monsters in question were small. They had a single eye from which a pair of wings emerged. When they saw Sonic, their eyes turned red and shone dangerously, but the hedgehog wasn't the least bit afraid of them. Therefore, when the 3 identical monsters launched themselves at him one by one, he only had to wave his sword and kill them without pain or glory.

He looked around, making sure there were no more monsters. When he was sure of it, he sheathed his sword, but not before noticing that the gloom at his feet had twisted a little at the glow of Excalibur.

"You're not hurt, are you?!" Sunny suddenly asked, running towards the aforementioned with concern on her face.

Sonic just nodded at the question with a confident smile, but Sunny decided to check him out anyway. When she saw that he was actually okay, she nodded in satisfaction with a smile.

However, something else called her attention, and she soon illuminated the rest of the place they were with the torch, then she gasped again before rushing over to what he saw. In this new cave, there was a long stone mural with figures carved into it. The mural was quite large, so much so that some ended up buried in the rubble.

Sunny was almost shaking with excitement, while Sonic felt his hair stand on end at the imposing structure. He knew Sunny was going to give him the context, though, so he didn't bother to decipher it for himself.

"Look at these murals..." The Earth Pony mare pointed out, as she illuminated the murals with her torch, then approached to look at them closely. "The written histories of Ancient Equestria include stories of a great war fought long ago. It was a conflict between allied tribes and someone only ever referred to as the Demon King."

"The Demon King?" Sonic questioned, frowning at the name. "I don't like the sound of that..."

"Is it possible? Do these murals depict the same legend?!" Sunny asked with a bit of hope, before she rushed to the very beginning of the murals, way to the left, while Sonic followed her close behind.

The first mural showed a character unknown to both of them. It seemed to have a body similar to that of a human, but its head was the same as that of an animal. Maybe a deer or a goat, there was no certainty. It had long ears and a suit that neither of them recognized. Seven spirals floated around it.

"This is similar to the statues we saw earlier—a Zonai," Sunny murmured, then looked at the figures below the supposed Zonai, which were looking up at the sky. "And these figures look like Earth Ponies." She then stepped back to look at the full picture, with Sonic standing at her side. "This depiction certainly suggests that the Zonai descended from the heavens."

Sunny let out another gasp and walked over to the next mural, which again showed a Zonai, but this time, clasping his hands to a female, equine figure. The tunic that the woman was wearing looked very similar to a dress. Two spirals floated above the Zonai and the mare.

"It is said that way before Celestia and Luna, Alicorns were born from the union with gods who had descended from the heavens." Sunny narrated. "These murals tell a similar story, and if they are accurate, then the gods mentioned were the Zonai... They must have forged a relationship with the ponies of that time, then helped to make peace among ponykind, and then worked together to establish... the Kingdom of Equestria!"

Sunny squealed excited like a filly after reading all of this, while Sonic raised an eyebrow. "I always wondered where the Alicorns come from... Guess we have our answer." He said with a smile, before his eyes widened as he realized something. "Hold on a second... Wouldn't that mean that the story about Wishday, a.k.a. what used to be Hearts Warming, half-true and half-lie?"

"Well, we know that the three pony tribes accomplished peace to make Equestria, but that's a story older than Twilight Sparkle herself." Sunny pointed out. "Maybe it was changed over time. Why? I don't know."

"It's weird... Is like if Celestia wanted everypony to forget the Zonai existed by removing them from history... But why?" Sonic questioned with a concerned frown.

"No clue..." Sunny said, before moving to the next mural. It showed the mare from before, but now it was floating in the air. A tall, imposing looking male creature stood beside it. His gaze showed a very macabre pleasure, and his smile was sinister. He looked like an anthropomorphic ram, and seemed to be removing one of those coils from the mare, with dark tentacles surrounding the man, as if they were consuming him.

Sonic felt a kind of strange hatred when he saw that figure. He couldn't explain why, but he hated it with his soul. It was as if he had known it all his life, or from a past life, it was difficult to explain, and he wanted to tear the mural in half. It was a strange feeling and thoughts, but a part of him told him that it would be the right thing to do.

"This figure... He seems to be stealing something of incredible power from the young Kingdom," Sunny narrated with concern. "This all aligns with what I've read during my dad's studies."

She then turned and rushed to the final visible mural, which was the very first one they saw earlier. Now that they had a better view, they saw that there were several monsters depicted, including the bokoblins they first saw near the Korok Forest. There were also ponies of all races on the left, armed with swords, shields and spears, ready to fight for the cause. And on the other side, on the right, was the same man from the previous mural, but now he was hideous. He had long white hair, long, sharp nails, and horns protruding from his temple. The title of Demon King suited him perfectly now.

Once again, Sonic felt a great hatred for that figure. If he could just break the mural with Excalibur, he would do it without hesitation, but he knows that Sunny would not like that. Still, he did not like the Demon King in the slightest, and if destroying him would get him out of his sight, then he would destroy him.

"If the creature depicted here really does represent the Demon King, then... Incredible!" Sunny said with a huge smile and excitement running though her whole being, an excitement that Sonic didn't understood nor shared. "This mural must be the great war recorded in my father's histories he researched about!"

Yet Sonic stared at these walls with a frown, but the Demon King in particular... He still couldn't come to understand why he hated that glyph out of all of them.

"This is the Imprisoning War and the events that led up to it!" Sunny said, before turning around to face Sonic in excitement. "Sonic! This is a huge discovery! Oh, Zipp has to know about this! Maybe we can even study all of this together!"

After saying this, she took out her phone again and took pictures of all the murals with excitement and joy, her brain already working on every possible theory and dots to be connected related to the Imprisoning War she's been talking about for the past minute.

Sonic, however, wasn't so sure if he was confused with all of this, or concerned for what could it mean, and for what could be hidden in the deeps of this tunnels.

"Oh..." Sunny's voice took Sonic out of his thoughts.

He looked that she stared at something with disappointment, then he looked in the same direction and noticed that she stared at some rock blocking two more murals.

"It looks like the rest of the murals are obscured..." Sunny said with disappointment.

Sonic frowned at this, then charged up a Spin Dash and launched himself against the rocks, but he ended up getting sent backwards, and he slid in the ground, looking at the rocks with a slight frown.

"Well, at least I tried..." Sonic said.

Sunny then began to look at their surroundings. "Just what is this place?" She questioned, before she turned and pointed the torch on a certain direction that showed they could still go deeper through the tunnels. "Maybe we'll find more answers farther ahead. Let's keep moving deeper, Sonic."

With that, Sunny set off again, but Sonic stayed behind, staring at the Demon King. He couldn't shake the thought that the figure wasn't as defeated as the legends say...

The duo found themselves descending the longest set of stairs yet. The hallway was so narrow that they had to go down in a row, as they couldn't even fit side by side anymore.

The further down they went, the worse the smell of evil aura in the air became. And not only that, but the echo of musical notes in reverse sounded louder and louder, as well as getting closer and closer.

However, the worst part of all had to be the dizziness and nausea they felt at the moment. They had never been so close to the gloom for so long, and that cave gave off that smell wildly, as if it were the natural smell of the place. If none of them vomited right now, it would be by a miracle.

Sonic now more than ever wanted to make up an excuse, any excuse, as long as everyone got out of there. He didn't even care if Knuckles or Shadow made fun of him or called him a coward as long as he revealed why he wanted to leave; he just wanted to breathe fresh, pure air again, something that wasn't down there. The putrid smell of the gloom was driving him crazy, and he didn't know how much longer he could hold out before he exploded.

But just when it seemed like Sonic was finally going to explode, Sunny suddenly stopped. Sonic followed him, and then he realized they had reached the end of the stairs. They were now in a much larger cave. There was a glowing green light, coming from a spiral in the middle of the cave. It reached all the way to the ceiling, surrounding a very large, pointed rock. Around it, there was dark mist, the same one that came out of the cracks in Equestria, but it was much thicker.

"What is that?" Sunny asked, squinting in hopes of seeing better, but she didn't seem to be able to see that well.

"I don't know, but I don't like it," Sonic said with a frown. His voice was shaking, but he didn't really care anymore.

Sunny took a step forward, but Sonic held her back firmly. Fear would make his will iron.

"Take a picture with your phone and let's get out of here," He told her, not taking his eyes off the room before them.

Sunny frowned, though her magic's grip on the torch faltered a little. She was just as terrified as he was. "We can't just leave. We're too close."

"I don't give a shit," He muttered. "We don't know what the hell that is. And don't tell me the gloom isn't concentrated enough to hurt us down there, Sunny."

He sounded harsher than he intended, but it was the only way to get her to see reason. One more moment down there and he'd go completely insane.

However, Sunny moved closer to him with a stern look, and suddenly she seemed more intimidating than Shadow himself.

"I want to get out of here," Sunny whispered. It was as if they were both afraid to speak too loudly. As if they would disturb someone down there if they raised their voices. "You don't know how much. I hate this place. But don't tell me you don't feel it."

"Feel what?!" He hissed, even though he knew what she meant. Oh, he knew all too well.

"Something is pushing you forward. It is forcing you to see the end of this. Sonic, if we leave, fate will haunt us until we come back here. We won't be able to pretend we haven't seen everything down here. And things will only get worse."

Her eyes were wide, her hoof pointing to the room ahead. Sonic searched for a convincing answer with all his might. It was dangerous. They needed reinforcements. This was a suicide mission; they didn't even know what they were up against.

However, he knew it would all be in vain. Sunny was right; an invisible force was urging him on. It wouldn't leave him alone until he obeyed. Leaving wouldn’t be the right thing to do.

In the end, he sighed regretfully, then looked at Sunny with renewed determination and nodded.

"Fine… Let's continue. But let's move forward very cautiously," He said at last, deciding to end the problem while they can.

They both walked down the final group of stairs and began to approach the figure ahead. However, as they did so, and the light of the torch illuminated the area more and more, Sunny gasped a bit in horror at the sight ahead. "What is that?"

What they had in front of them was nothing more than the source of the strange gloom. It was a rotting body, with skin so blackened that it seemed to be paper. Its back was positioned unnaturally, perhaps due to the passage of time. Its eye sockets were empty, making the scene more grim and twisted. Its long white hair touched the ground, and it was a miracle that it hadn't fallen off already considering the state of the body. Even the muscles looked worn out to the point.

The mouth of that mummy, because there was no better word to sum it up, was open, like a silent scream that died along with the body. And on the chest of that body, there was an arm that was not connected to any body, but from it emanated both the spiral that surrounded the pointed rock on the ceiling and the greenish glow that never stopped pulsating. On it were golden ornaments and, on the back of the hand, rested a shiny stone.

Sonic stepped in front of Sunny for protection. "Don't get closer!" He told her with a frown. "The gloom comes out of it. We don't know for sure if it'll do something to anyone that approaches."

Sunny nodded in agreement, so she didn't approached to the mysterious corpse that lay on the platform. Also, she noticed that Excalibur's golden light was glimmering more, meaning approaching the corpse was very dangerous.

However, it seemed that the glowing hand sensed their presence, because it began to tremble a bit, until it was not holding the corpse anymore and fell to the ground, while the stone in the back of it fell as well and rolled through the stairs, until it stopped right in front of Sunny. The hand's glow dimmed off, passing from green to grey.

The Earth Pony mare looked at the stone in front of her with a raised eyebrow, then touched it with a hoof and pulled it immediately away, not knowing if the stone could damage her.

Seeing that it did nothing to her, Sunny took the stone on her hoof, and Sonic didn't stopped her when he noticed this as well. However, as soon as the stone entered in contact with Sunny's hoof, it began to glow in a golden light and mark a strange symbol, which confused her.

Sonic's attention was now divided: He didn't know whether to see Sunny and the mysterious stone in her hoof, the hand that fell limp to the ground, or the putrefied body that released the gloom.

And suddenly, something rumbled. So loud that it echoed off the walls of the cave. Something like a heartbeat.

Sonic and Sunny instinctively gathered together, the mare staying next to Sonic, while both looked anxiously at the corpse in the middle of the room, because that rumble came from it, and that couldn't be good.

Something very, very bad was happening.

And then, the worst came: That mummified body began to move, to twist unnaturally as it seemed to get back up. Dust was coming off the body from the sudden movements, and in the middle of that creature, there was a large black spot from which gloom continued to emanate everywhere.

And suddenly, the movements stopped, and the mummy returned to its original position. There was silence for a wonderful moment... But then, the creature moved its neck in the direction of Sonic and Sunny with a creak, and now its eye sockets glowed with an intense crimson red.

Immediately afterwards, gigantic tentacles of gloom emerged from the creature's chest, which headed towards Sunny with the intention of harming her.

Fortunately, Sonic unsheathed Excalibur, which's blade was glimmering in a golden light, and then he slashed the tentacles away with no problem whatsoever.

"Are you okay, Sunny?" Sonic asked her with a concerned frown.

"I am, but be careful!" Sunny replied with worry.

Sonic nodded, then pointed the sword ahead towards the gloom tentacles with a frown. He felt victorious for a moment, a moment in which he stupidly let his guard down, because in a matter of seconds, the gloom tentacles surrounded his right arm along with Excalibur. He wanted to see that Sunny was okay, but he felt such excruciating pain that he couldn't even do so.

When the tentacles dissipated, Sonic looked horrified and in pain at what happened: His entire right arm had turned black, with red veins running through his being, meaning he was infected by the gloom; and Excalibur was suddenly covered by it. As if that wasn't enough, he felt that those tentacles took away all his strength, as if years of experiences and adventures had been of no use.

And the worst thing is that it was his right arm, the sword arm.

At that moment, Sonic couldn't think clearly. The pain in his right arm was starting to become unbearable, and by instinct, he grabbed it with his left hand. Touching his arm only increased the pain, but he had no other choice.

Suddenly, Sonic looked up, just in time to see a gloom tentacle heading towards him at full speed. Without wasting any time, Sonic made a superhuman effort to raise his right arm along with the sword, but as soon as the blade came into contact with that tentacle, it broke into a thousand pieces that scattered everywhere.

The sound of Excalibur breaking resonated in the cave, an echo of despair that seemed to reverberate in the hearts of Sonic and Sunny alike. The sacred blade, symbol of hope and power, had now been reduced to rubble, scattered across the ground. The glow that characterized it had disappeared, leaving only a trail of darkness and emptiness.

However, the tip of the sword had flown out and managed to cut the cheek of that body, which now looked at them both with a hatred that neither has ever felt in any other enemy.

"Sonic!" Sunny exclaimed in panic, wanting to get closer to him.

"Was that the legendary Excalibur Sword?" Asked a raspy, eerie voice that echoed through the cave, a voice that had not been used in a long time... The voice came from the mummy. "A blade that shatters so easily against my power cannot save you from me."

Little by little, that creature began to get back up with unnatural movements, forcing Sonic to stay on the defensive, even if Excalibur was destroyed. That mummy had on its forehead an ornament with the same stone that Sunny had on her hoof.

"Sunny..." The mummy's voice spat out that name with so much hatred that, even if he wasn't her, Sonic felt the same chill. "You, who carries that fragile sword... are Sonic." He stopped for a moment, analyzing both of them equally. "Rauru placed his faith in you... and that was all you could do?"

"How do you...know our names?!" Sunny asked in fear, as she stepped back.

The creature, instead of responding, gathered several gloom tentacles in his chest, and then expelled it all towards the ceiling. The gloom collided with the pointed rock and began to push it, which also caused everything around it to shake violently.

Rubble fell from the ceiling and began to collapse on the cave. The floor suddenly cracked and, immediately afterwards, the pedestal where the mummy was located, along with the creature itself, collapsed and fell, disappearing into an abyss of darkness.

It was then, however, that Sonic could no longer hold on any longer and fell to his knees on the ground. He held his right arm with his left hand, and prayed to Chaos that he wasn't completely lost, that there was still hope to save him. Was he still holding Excalibur? He didn't even know for sure anymore.

"Sonic!" Sunny shouted, worried as she watched Sonic fall almost exhausted.

Sonic was about to say something, one of his typical sarcastic comments, but a gasp interrupted him. He turned around abruptly, and then he saw her, he saw Sunny falling. The ground disappeared beneath her hooves, and her gaze was filled with horror and despair alike. Maybe because of fear she forgot that she could turn into an Alicorn, but Sonic wasn't going to ask something like that, least of all at that moment.

Without a second thought, Sonic let go of Excalibur and lunged at Sunny, stretching out his right arm in hopes that he would magically start falling faster so he could catch her. This wouldn't be the end for either of them. He'd never failed her before, and he wasn't going to start today.

Time suddenly stopped, and Sonic struggled to reach out, hoping to grab Sunny and then figure out how to survive. Maybe he could remind her that she's an Alicorn and that she can save them both with her magic, if he could just catch her first.

Sadly, he barely managed to graze Sunny's hoof with his blackened hand, but she kept falling. In horror, Sunny reached out her hoof to him, as if that would catch her, but then a golden glow enveloped her, and then she was gone.

Sonic felt the urge to scream, to cry, to propel himself faster, but he couldn't do any of that because he had suddenly stopped. He looked up, seeing that his savior was that strange hand that had sealed the body until a few moments ago. It had that greenish glow again, and then it pulled Sonic, making him disappear with a blinding glow.

Author's Note

Before anyone asks: Omega was already rebuilt by this point. Is not something I pulled of my ass, I know he was destroyed in Season 2, but brought back in TYT.

Also, I went overboard with this chapter, but I think I made it as long as it has to be. I hope you don't mind.

Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time.