The Darkness Beckons

Chapters

Chpt 1: The Darkness Draws Back
Chpt 2: The Darkness Emerges
Chpt 3: The Darkness Devours
Chpt 4: The Darkness Envelopes
Chpt 5: The Darkness Matures

Chpt 1: The Darkness Draws Back

The Darkness Rises: Book one

Written account by: Flash Conception

The days where ponies knew Equestria are much different from what they were thousands of years ago. Celestia had defeated Discord, Sombra, and her sister. With so much of her power spent, she had to rely on others for smaller tasks. To the pegasi, she left the creations of rainbows. Not all of society knows about how the pegasi created rainbows, but why should they? The ones who find out are always silenced forever, that dark secret they would carry to their grave. The Earth ponys were told they had to do whatever it took to keep the other ponies in line and under control. Shortly after, dozens of residents began to disappear around town, and would never be seen again. Finally the unicorns were asked to keep balance between this plane of existence and another plane, which was partial to merging with our own.

All three races kept their dark secrets throughout the ages, however, two of these dark secrets were illuminated. The pegasus’ rainbow machine and the earth pony’s “pony costume” were brought to light. However, neither of these actions were stopped by the victims or the guilty. As time went on, the world forgot about the second plain of existence the unicorns tried so hard to keep abroad. This secret was safely guarded, due to its catastrophic effect on the world in earlier years. To keep ponies from finding out their secret, the unicorns devised a plan to make sure their secret was never discovered. What better place to hide it than in plain sight?

“Twist, Specs! Flash is already half way up the mountain. We’re going to be late to Argon’s place. Again!” whined Sunset Remedy.

“This would have been easier if you were all Pegasi like me!” shouted Flash, soaring back and forth to find a faster way to Argon’s house, “but, since none of you are, we have to walk around this mountain.”

“Come on guys, this is good bonding time! We hardly get to hang out anymore since Twilight Sparkle had us go on those wild goose chases.” Called Lemon Twist, who was the farthest behind in the group.

“Who’s to say this isn’t another one of those?” moaned Retro Spects. “For all we know, Argon isn’t even home.”

“Don’t worry.” Reassured Sunset, “I was just at his place earlier today, he said he’d be home for the rest of the day ‘Preparing something’. Whatever it is, it must be important.”

“And just WHAT were you doing at his house?” accused Flash, “did you go ‘have a drink with him’? Are Remmy and the Mad Scientist of Ponyville hooking up?”

“For your information, Flash, No. I already have a very special somepony, thank you!” Sunset shot back.
Twist tilted her head “You do? But I thought you liked F-mmhmmph” She was cut off. Spects had shoved a small shrub into her mouth.

“Keep it down,” Spects whispered, “Remmy is going to tell Flash tonight, that’s part of why we’re going too, to make sure he doesn’t fly off in a huff or die from a heart attack. Its not every day you find out your best friend loves you”.

Remedy blushed and looked on towards Flash, noting his distance she remarked “you’re also there to make sure that I actually tell him this time. I’ve almost told him three times this week, but I either froze up, got mad at him, or he started talking about his silly game shop.”

“I thought you loved my job!” shouted Flash, who was near the summit of the mountain. "you never complained about the free stuff I got you".

“If he could hear that, why didn’t he hear our earlier conversation?” said Twist, dumbfounded. She never came across as the brightest in the group.

“He’s a boy, he may have good hearing, but it has a filter. If its not about mares or games, he isn’t interested.” Grunted Remedy. “lets just get to Argon’s place, we can talk there.”

As the group of friends skipped up the mountain, they couldn't see the dark presence stalking them on their way to their friend's house. The shadow condensed to form a dark unicorn, with a scar across his red eyes. He watched as the group ascended the mountain and smirked.

"they have no idea what's in store for them. Soon they will meet their fate, and my task here will be complete".

He took his shadow form once again and sulked into a bush, waiting for the group to get farther ahead before he went after them.

“Ah! You've all arrived! This is wonderful news!” Argon spewed. He was sitting in his lab chair, eating a blueberry muffin as streams of data clung to his computers. The usual smell of a work-in-progress experiment fermented from somewhere in the room. The streams of cobwebs a clear sign how often Argon had gone back to work on it.

“Anything you’d like done, Doc?” Flash beamed “you know how helpful I can be!” Flash looked around the lab to find anything that could be done to hasten their visit. The faster he got everypony out and about, the more time he could pester Remedy about her very special somepony.

“Ah yes, I recall a certain parasprite outbreak because you lost my specimen. You still owe me one parasprite, by the way” Argon shot back, quickly nodding his head toward a broken containment chamber. "They're not easy to come by you know".

“Hey its not my fault that the stupid little-“ Remedy cleared her throat, cutting off Flash before he could finish. “so, what’s this ‘new discovery of yours? We rushed here as fast as we could.”

"Ah, well, as I was digging for some iron and copper for chisels and tools for my lab, when I stumbled upon a new discovery. An entire temple hidden throughout the years, some kind of ancient civilization must have built it. I need you all to come with me to check it out. If something were to happen, my magic might not be enough to escape that wretched tomb.” Argon said concerned. His eyes scanned the group to find anyone who dared question his stand.

Retro Spects was the first to look to Argon, confused. “What do you mean? is there some ancient barrier preventing you from moving rocks aside? Judging from the region we’re in you shouldn’t have trouble-”

Argon, whose face was full of frustration now, shot back “What would happen if the temple is full of traps? I know nothing of this civilization, and all of my books say nothing should exist there, but i can guarantee with a certain margin of error that the temple is no place for anypony to travel alone. That, and the entrance is blocked by a giant boulder which can only be moved by more than one pony. There seems to be a certain mechanism to move it away from the door.”

“Sorry i asked” deadpanned Spects. He should have seen that coming. He thought of ways to handle situations like that better, in preparation of when it happened again.

Lemon Twist sprung up and looked at Argon. She smiled and said in her usual bubbly voice, “So lets get this show on the road! I can’t wait to see an ancient civilization other than my auntie Lime’s house.”

“Alright, if we get separated, everypony should meet up back here.” Sunset ordered. She slowly trotted around the room. “there’s no telling what might happen, so be on your hooves”.

There was a collective “Yes Ma’am”, as they piled into the cave, unaware of the events that would soon follow.

As the group finished moving down into the tunnel, a shadow emerged from where Argon had been standing. It started to morph into the sinister pony who had followed the group to their house. He began to trot around the room to see what chaos he could cause, when something caught his eye. The data on Argon’s screens talked about a temple just bellow the house location dating back 1,000 years in the past.

“Ah, so it finally showed itself” sneered the dark pony. “After all this time, we have been waiting. I know what I must do.”

He ran down the hole, after the group. He turned to the entrance of the cave and blocked it by forming a giant rock to block the tunnel. As he formed into a shadow, it hissed “I’m coming for you, Flash. The prophecy must not be fulfilled. She must not escape”.

Chpt 2: The Darkness Emerges

The Darkness Rises: Book one

Argon, Remedy and Lemon were checking the entrance of the temple, while Spects and Flash hung back to trade secrets with one another, as they did when the girls were preoccupied. Their bond of Bro-ponydom required secret meetings when possible.

“So, what did Remmy say about her very special somepony, has she told you yet?” Flash rushed. There was no telling when the girls would be back to ask them for help. They knew that it was bound to happen, as it did so many other times.

Spects straightened up, and bit his lip “not yet, she said she would tell you when you figured it out.” Spects knew that Flash would believe him, so Remedy would be able to tell him for sure what her feelings were without Flash catching on.

“How the hell am I going to figure it out if she won’t tell me? Is this some sort of crude game?” Complained the now riled up pegasus.

“How should I know? Anyways, did you find out if Lemon had a very special somepony?” Spects looked back at Lemon. His face glowed red, and he had to turn to avoid Lemon from looking back by chance.

Flash sighed “no. That mare is difficult to figure out.sometimes I even wonder how you fell for her in the first place.” Flash knew it had happened when they were in kindergarten, Spects never said how it started. It was one of those "We don't like to talk about it" moments.

“Love makes us do crazy things, my friend. Lets head over. Looks like Remedy may have found what we were looking for”. They both started into a light trot to be informed on the ever apparent information.

“From the looks of this, it seems we have to do some kind of ritual to unseal the gate”, Remedy explained. The group winced when they saw the blood stains on a stone near the entrance. Remedy noticed the horror on their face, and reassured. “No we’re not going to sacrifice anypony. There is no way i'm letting any of us die down here. However there IS a way inside.”

Flash stomped his hoof, bringing Remedy's attention to him. He motioned toward the looming temple, “Care to enlighten us then, Ms. Remedy?”

Remedy glared at Flash “ Keep your pants on! I need you to fly Lemon to the top of that column, and place her on the circle. Then stand adjacent from her”

Flash complied. He flew the mare without even breaking a sweat to the top of the stone column. as he did, he noticed engravings in the granite that made him shiver. Regardless, he moved to the other column. As he placed his hooves on the cold stone, the column shifted down, only a few centimeters, but significant enough that Flash was concerned.

“Uh, this doesn’t seem exactly stable! the column moved down!” Flash spoke frantically.

“Thats normal, its a stone plate.” Remedy cooed. She knew how to tease the bold pegasus. “can the pegasus who flew faster than anypony in The Wonderbolts Camp as a colt not handle a bit of change?”.

Flash blushed “j-just get the damn thing open”.

“Very well. Spects i need you to walk under that torch, and be ready to cast a fire spell. Argon, stand away from the exit, no telling how its going to open so everypony be ready.” Remedy slid into her position. Aiming her horn at the torch, she yelled “Spects, Now!”

A burst of flame swept through the cave, illuminating the cavern. Argon moved just as the rock went flying past him impaling the wall where he had stood only moments before.

“Well, that was almost unfortunate,” Argon noted. “My demise would surely put a damper on things here, now wouldn't it.”

“Sure would, now lets head into the unknown!” Remedy rallied.

The darkness was overwhelming, the only light source being Argon’s light spell. Naturally, he was behind Remedy so she could look for signs of traps. The others mimicked Remedy’s movements as best they could.

“We haven’t run into any traps yet” griped Flash, flapping his wings twice. “I could easily fly f-”

Argon spoke softly “I hate to interject, but first of all, without a source of light, your visibility would be zero, meaning you could run into something unpleasant. Secondl- Oof”. Argon bumped into Remedy, who had frozen in the middle of the hallway, looking carefully at something.

“Something’s not right” she declared. “We’ve been walking in a straight line for far too long, this temple couldn’t possibly be 3 miles long, we’d have seen it from the side of the mountain.” The moment she finished her statement, the hallway light up, and everyone could see the fine detail in the hallway. Runes littered the walls, and they were glowing.

“I’m no expert” interjected Lemon, “but i don’t think that’s a good thing.”

“The trap has sprung. Now i have all the time i need to plan everything down to the last detail. They must not touch the heart before it is ready. If they are aware of the trap, they will be here in no time.” the Shadow Colt stated.

“If I don’t do this right, SHE will reawaken... I can not allow HER to rule Equestria again! Her elements have faded to oblivion, and her power with them. But the prophecy said she would return one day, and return to power. This CAN NOT HAPPEN. They would want it to happen from ignorance.” The Stallion rambled on.

“She can not escape her prison.”

Before the group could react, the runes began to move around, centering themselves. The runes faded together to form a door in front of the group. Right before them stood a room with pillars of stone towering so high that no pony could see the top. Sitting in the middle of the room, was a small floating sphere, pulsing every few seconds. With each pulse, the room responded, its runes flashing with the sphere, pulsating throughout the rest of the temple.

“I don’t like this place,” Lemon squeaked. She hid behind Spects and mumbled “its no place for ponies.”

Remedy looked back at her friends, wiping the doubt from her expression, and said “Come on, all we have to do is find the information we need about this temple, which is probably on that... stone... and we can be on our way”.

Remedy began to trot toward the center of the room. As she did, Spects began to study the floor, and what he saw was frightening. With each pulse, he could make out a small formation on the floor near the sphere. Looking at it, he had never seen such a symbol befo-

“BUCK!” Remedy screamed in pain. Her horn had hit the edge of the ward, and before anyone could do anything, she flew back into the group, landing on Flash.

“Oh... did i mention i think i saw a ward rune?” Spects nervously laughed.

“No,” begrudged the injured Unicorn, “you didn’t”.

“Ah, so a ward is placed around the center of the temple,” Argon examined. He took his time circling the sphere like structure before coming back to his friends. “I’m sorry, this is a ward over 1,000 years old. I don’t know who could have set it, but no pony in our day and age can disable it-”

“If i may interject,” a mysterious voice hissed “there is one way, but one of you may need... motivation.”

“Wha- Where are you? Show yourself, you Coward” Shouted Flash.

The group started to look for where the voice came from. Flash saw something in the tunnel above the relic glimmer, and he flew toward it, trying to find the source of light. As he positioned himself below the tunnel, a dark shadow draped itself across him and the ward. The shadow put a hole in the ward, threw Flash inside, then sealed the top once more.

Remedy’s face was struck with horror, before she could think, she shot a bolt at the shadow, which was drawing ever closer to the remainder of her group. As the bolt struck the ground, the shadow condensed and formed a Colt, with an ash grey mane and a black coat. A streak of white riled his mane and tail. His red eyes staring into her very soul, and that scar...

“Forgive me, if the policies have changed over the past few hundred years, but isn’t it impolite to stare?” the Colt coyed.

Remedy blushed for a moment, before Spects stepped in front of her, “if we’re bringing other's manners to light, isn't it rude to trap someone you've never met before?”

“My sincere apologies, i had to give one of you motivation. They say with the right motivation, anypony can do the most impossible feats.” the colt smiled “Don’t you need to get through that barrier?”

Argon looked at the colt with interest “were you the one who put the ward up?”

The colt looked back at the Ward, “Alas, no. However, my people did. I can’t quite recall how to disable it, but there was an old riddle we used to remember how, should we forget.”

“Well don’t keep it from us!” Remedy rushed forward eagerly, “we need to get through to save Fla- er get that relic.”

“With pleasure, my lady. Might i add he can’t hear us right now.” The colt smiled.

Remedy blushed again, making it obvious that she had ulterior motives. She never thought that anypony could read her feelings that openly... If this complete stranger knew her feelings for Flash-

“You’re stalling” Spects accused. “Tell us the riddle.”

“Fine fine, don’t get your mane knotted up." The colt tilted his head back and started speaking in a language no one had ever heard before. After some time, he translated it.

What we protect is most certainly ours,
to keep from greedy thieves darkest desire.
But should we let our barrier fail soon,
our treasures will surely fill inquires.

Our spell can not be easily broken,
but those whose heart is as pure as their soul.
Should they spill their life’s blood onto the seal,
their dreams and wishes will become most real.

The colt lowered his head to bite back the laughter, as the group looked at him, dumbfounded.

“WHAT THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?!” shouted Lemon.

The Colt snickered “how should I know, i’m not the one trying to get in. Now if you’ll excuse me, I must take leave”. He hastened toward the door, before a hoof caught him.

Remedy softly asked “what is your name?”

“Umbra Descepta,” the colt turned his head to hide his scar from Remedy.

“Will we see each other again?” she looked down. She didn't want him to see the anger in her eyes.

“I suppose if the fates allow. Now go, he doesn't have all day” Umbra motioned toward Flash, who was now flying inside of the ward, looking for the way he had come in.

No one seemed to notice when he had stopped, and looked to the ceiling.

Chpt 3: The Darkness Devours

Flash shook his head. He panned around the small space occupied by the ward he was now prisoner of. The view of the outside wasn't clear enough to see out of, but he presumed his friends were now dealing with his assailant.

"Damn it all! If I didn't let that guy sneak up on me, I wouldn't be in this mess", Flash grunted.
He began to whisk himself around the dome the ward produced, looking for the way out.

"There has to be a way out... There just has t-" Before Flash could continue, a pestilential voice whispered just next to his ear.

"There is one way, my child"

“WHO'S HERE?!" Flash whipped around, only to find that the dome was completely empty. Flash stood silently, listening to his forsaken prison.

“A friend, dear child. You seem to need one” resonated an audible voice. Flash couldn’t place where the voice was coming from, it seemed to be coming from all directions at once.

Flash’s jaw dropped as he saw an orb of... something, wafting down from the ceiling. It was neither made of light nor darkness, but it was glowing.

“W-what are you?” Flash cried out. His mind was racing trying to find an answer to why this existed.

“As I said before, my child” hissed the glowing orb, “I am your new friend, and your only means of escape. This form I’m in, is no way for a princess to live.” the orb wafted around Flash, encompassing him in its hypnotic spell.

Flash was dumbstruck. Never before in his life had he expected to meet a princess. The last princesses had ruled over Equestria over 2000 years before. She had passed the power to her faithful student, who created a Democratic society. He was afraid to ask this orb whether or not it was who he thought.

“A-are you the princess who ruled over Equestria? T-the one with the power to raise the s-sun and the moon?” he stumbled as he spoke.

The orb, if it had a facial expression, would have given the Sky Blue pony a smirk. It passed through Flash, sending shivers down his body. “Let’s just say I’ve been locked away for far too long,” the orb was now radiating. “We must discuss our escape. If we don’t, innocent blood will be spilt upon the temple floor, and one of your friends will die”.

****************************************************************************************************

Remedy had exhausted all of her brain power thinking of a way to get inside of the ward. Umbra Decepta had told her that if Flash wasn’t freed soon, he would suffocate. That was more than enough motivation to figure a way to save him. Lemon Twist was playing with her tail as she sat upside down, which was far from helping. Her cutie mark of a lemon and lime, ironically showed her bittersweet existence in this world. Retro Spects had a protective bubble over his head, as he often had when he was looking at everything in retrospect. His cutie mark, an infinity sign with an eye in the middle, made his special talent more apparent. Argon, who’s flask was uncapped, and contents spewed across the temple floor, reminded Remedy that the scientist got his better ideas after a few drinks. “Right after a quick nap,” he often boasted, “I will solve this current issue.

Remedy looked down at her own cutie mark, a heart with Ribbons protecting it. She never fully understood how her love for Flash had become her special talent. Who was she to question her own cutie mark? She had seen plenty of miserable souls wandering around trying to find their purpose in life. Remedy knew she was lucky to fall in love with Flash, it had changed her for the better.

She remembered back to when she was a filly, back to when she first met Flash. It wasn’t a very memorable first impression. Remedy had been talking to Cheerilee in math class, a subject they both dread. Flash had asked Remedy if she had an extra piece of paper. She said no and continued to talk to her friend.

Their second experience was much more memorable. She had been walking past the Everfree Forest, when a bully by the name of Hector Crag, had snatched Remedy’s diary. Just before reading it, Flash had appeared and made a bet with the husky earth pony.

“I’ll flip this coin, if you call it right, you can have it. It’s an old relic I found that’s worth tons of money. But if I win, you have to leave her alone, and never bother her again.” Flash stated very firmly.

Remedy couldn’t believe what this young colt, who she barely knew, was willing to offer up to save her personal journal. She was especially afraid that if he lost, her last diary entry was about her big crush on Malady Bolt, and if that information got out, she could have just died.

After Hector looked the coin over, to make sure it was authentic, he sneered “Okay punk! And don’ try ta trick me. I could clobber ya in a second if you cheat.” he puffed out his chest and said “Ah call Tails.”

Before Remedy could interject, Flash tossed the coin in the air with his wing. Just before it hit his hoof, he winked at Remedy. Confused, Remedy leaned over to see the results of the coin toss, and froze.

“HA! TAILS! Ah Win!” the bully shouted. “A’ve won! A’ve won! Ah’m gonna be rich!” Hector snatched the coin from Flash, who looked a bit too happy.

“Oh no! My grandpa gave me that coin” Flash stated, loudly. “Be a shame if somepony ran to the thrift store to sell it. I’m sure they’d take an interest in an old war coin from the g-” Flash stopped. The bully had already run off, leaving the diary behind, running for the thrift store.
. Flash grabbed the book with his mouth and gave it back to the dumbfounded unicorn. She couldn't piece together what had just happened. She stared down at the journal, trying to figure out the event that just unfolded.

“How... did you know he’d forget the book?” She interrogated Flash.

Flash sat there with a stupid grin on his face, “Wasn’t difficult. What do you think a person, who I will remind you asks kids for their bits on a daily basis, would do if they won a gamble and got an incredibly rare coin?” His voice was filled with sarcasm. Remedy didn’t catch on.

“But, you lost your Grandpa’s rare coin. Isn’t he gonna be angry with you?”

“Sure he would, if he actually had one. That coin was a fake, you can buy them at the joke shop for about two bits. I’m more surprised he fell for it.” Flash laughed, “I’ve pulled that trick so many times, I know when to lose, and when I lose, and I win anyways.”

It was about that time that Remedy’s cutie mark appeared. She remembered tearing out the entry about Malady Bolt, saying he was nothing but trouble anyways. She still had that journal sitting at home, with love notes to Flash, never to be delivered.

Twist snapped Remedy out of her daze. She had apparently explained to Remedy something of value, as she was trying to slap Remedy as she came to. Before her hoof connected with Remedy’s face, Remedy blocked it with her own.

“What? I’m sorry I-” Remedy blushed, “just remembering the good ol’ days.”

“I said... I think I know what life’s blood is...” Lemon’s face had drained of color.

Remedy went ballistic. “YOU MEAN YOU FIGURED IT OUT? WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME?” her concern growing more apparent.

“y-yes but... you’re not going to l-” Lemon was cut off.

“I DON’T CARE, DO YOU KNOW HOW TO GET HIM OUT OF THERE OR NOT?”

“It’s the smallest possibility b-”

Remedy had her horn glowing red, she was about to shoot Lemon with a bolt, one of lethal damage, when Spects stepped in, and protected her.

“The answer is, the one here who is most innocent must spill their entire blood across the floor around the ward. The only one here qualified to do that, is you Remedy.”

****************************************************************************************************

“So you mean to tell me, the purest creature’s Life’s blood can be interpreted as either an innocent person’s blood... or Water?!” Flash screamed.

“Don’t judge us. You’re questioning a society that is over two thousand years old, what do you want, a door knob?” the orb deadpanned.

Flash noticed that there was a major flaw in the orb’s plan. “There isn’t any water around here, and I don’t have water. So how do you expect us to get water to escape?”

“But my child, you’re filled with water. I just have to... force it out.” The orb approached Flash and went through his head, this time taking over Flash, possessing him.

When he woke up, Flash was in a house he did not recognize. He wandered around in its rooms for some time before he came upon a murder scene. Retro Spects had been stabbed to death with a blunt object, and left on the floor to die. His blood splattered everywhere, a clear sign there was a struggle. As Flash trotted over to him, Spects used the last of his energy to look at Flash and whisper “why?”, and passed away.

Flash was mortified. He just watched one of his best friends die right before him, and he didn’t know what had happened. Just before he began to cry, he heard the scream of Lemon twist from outside the house. Flash ran out to see Lemon being torn to pieces by a flock of darkness, all climbing over each other to get at the bloodstained coat of the seemingly orange mare. Flash backed away slowly, and turned to run away from the scene. He couldn’t bear to lose another one of his friends. Then, he ran into another figure.

Argon was frozen solid, turned into a statue, and smashed to pieces when Flash had bumped into him. The block Argon had stood on said “Argon, Turned to stone, lost his life to save Flash Conception and Sunset Remedy”. Flash was on the verge of tears. He couldn’t think straight. He turned away, almost sobbing, trying to figure out what was going on.

In the distance, he saw Remedy, walking away from him. Flash flew to catch up with her, ask her what was wrong. She simply turned to him and said “you’re what's wrong...” and jumped off into an abyss Flash had not seen was there. He tried to rescue her, but saw that the darkness had consumed her body, and all that was left of her sanity.

Flash broke down and began to sob. His weeping echoing around him. He couldn’t go on, he WOULDN’T. Just at that moment, reality began to fill his vision, and the ward around him, had been disabled.

****************************************************************************************************

Remedy had the spell ready. She asked Argon to conjure up a mirror to bounce her blood spell off of. If this worked, she would free Flash... but never see him again.

“Are you sure you don’t want to think of another way?” Lemon tried to poke her head out from around the mirror, pleading her friend not to do what she was planning.

“There isn’t any other choice... The riddle said Life’s blood must be spilt to disable the Ward...” Remedy looked down, hiding her expression. “It’s funny... I always said I’d die to save him, like when we first met... and here I am, ready to do It.” tears fell to the floor.

“Anything you want me to tell him?” Spects asked.

“... Ask him to never forget me...” Remedy charged her horn, and aimed at the mirror.

Just as she was about to fire the spell to end her life, the ward containing Flash collapsed, and Flash was wiping tears from his eyes as it fell around him. He looked up and saw his friends, and galloped towards them.

Remedy met Flash and her friends in the middle, and the group hugged. They told their short versions of their experiences on opposite sides of the Ward. Flash left the orb out of his story, since it vanished as soon as the ward fell.

“So you really almost killed yourself, to free me?” Flash said astonished.

“Well... yea,” Remedy blushed. “I still owe you for the times you’ve protected me.”

A voice called from the middle of the chamber “If you two love birds don’t mind, we have a relic to examine” Lemon called out.

Remedy blushed and looked to Flash, looking for a similar reaction. She was disappointed as he yelled back “Who you calling a bird, bird brain?”

Spects countered “that joke doesn’t work on anyone but you, Flash.”

“Don’t be hating just cause I can fly-”

“Given the chance I could easily think of a spell to give myself wings so I could fly faster than you. I wouldn’t because of my condition, but you know I could” Spects teased.

“Guys, listen to this.” Argon had caused the bickering to stop. All gathered around as he read aloud what the ancients had left by the relic. “‘Those who touch this stone, will travel to parts that we have known. But should you leave without its touch, you’ll find your life will end and such.’ Well that’s a bit of a downer, this relic is a common keystone.” Argon kicked his hoof.

“So... we can go home?” Lemon asked, very sweetly. “I’m tired of this cavern, not bright enough.”

“Yes, all we have to do is grab this stone and think of Ponyville, and we should end up in town square.” Argon stated. “Is everypony ready?”

They all nodded, wanting to leave behind the horrible memories left in the room. As one, they each put a hoof on the keystone, and were whisked away.

****************************************************************************************************

“She has escaped... but left them a present... those arrogant fools.” Umbra noted

"Did they really think it would all end that easily?"

Chpt 4: The Darkness Envelopes

Chapter 4: The Darkness Envelopes

Lemon awoke to find she was now in a crater. She held her head as she laid on her side. She thought to herself, that was the single most painful experience of my life. She laid on her side until the pain faded away. When she stood up, she looked around her, horrified at what she saw.
Everywhere she turned, remnants of buildings she had not seen before. The buildings from Ponyville were light in color, roofs made of straw, and painted as though they were meant to be eaten like candy. These buildings... Lacked any sort of appeal. They towered over her, such that she merely caught glimpses of the darkened sky. The buildings also looked... Wrong, as though they were falling.

Lemon decided she should look for her friends. They can't be far. Try can't be far. She thought to herself. A voice sounded in her ear, taking over her thoughts. They wouldn't LEAVE me, would they? She shook her head, rejecting the thought that her friends would leave her.

She roamed the streets of the desolate city, looking for any signs her friends were faring better than she did. All she could see for miles were broken, barren buildings and craters littering the ground. Lemon couldn't figure out why metal boxes were in the middle of the street, and before she continued walking past the barren building she stopped.
Something had moved in the alleyway. It couldn't have been her friends, it looked too... slender. She went to investigate the alley, looking from left to right. Suddenly, the dumpster next to her started to shake. Lemon lifted a hoof to the lid to investigate, shaking as she did. The moment she cracked the lid open, mice poured from the trash can, spilling into the alley. Horrified, Lemon screamed, and ran.

Lemon eventually realized what had occurred, and stopped mid-gallop to laugh at herself. “I was scared, of a few mice!” she giggled, “I’m such a silly pony.” She returned to her search for her friends. Question was, where should she start? There are so many places to start, she thought. She started into a light trot, and scanned the buildings for movement. She focused on the buildings and thoughts of happier times, in order to press onward. The very thought of her friends abandoning her had brought up thoughts she had not had since she was a filly.

Lemon had been so focused on scanning the buildings, she unknowingly stepped off into a crater. She tried to move away from the boulders rushing up to greet her, but to no avail. As she moved down the steep hill a large rock came to one of her hind legs, and snapped her leg as it connected with Lemon. She bit her lip, biting down to keep the pain of her leg back, and focused on keeping her balance to prevent further damage to her body. The last thing she saw, was another stone, which rushed up to greet her.

Flash awoke to find himself in the middle of a field, barren and battered with small holes. As he roused himself, it began to sprinkle, then pour rain. About 200 meters from him stood a house, which seemed to glow as he approached. The house was long abandoned, support beams visible through the now tattered ceiling, black burn marks littered the walls, anything living here abandoned this house years ago. Flash immediately ran into the house to take cover from the rain. As he climbed the steps, one fell from under him, and before he could flap his wings the support from the porch came down, crushing his wing. Flash managed to pull his broken wing out from under the rubble, and continued into the house, aware now that this house was bent on falling around him.

With a broken wing, he could no longer fly overhead to search for his missing friends. He pondered for a moment before realizing that the house he now stood in looked terrifyingly familiar. As he toured the empty halls of the house, he came upon a door, where streaks of blood lead into the mysterious room. Flash felt a cold shiver run down his back. The room looked like the one he found Spects in during his vision. Flash, horrified at his revelation, turned away arguing with himself whether he should open the door.

“If I don’t go in, then the vision won’t come true. But... what if Spects is already inside? N-no... that’s impossible... Spects can’t be inside yet. I’m the only one in this house, aren’t I? Maybe I should check to make sure.” Flash spoke to no pony in particular. He lifted his hoof to the door, and pushed inward.

Suddenly, something large and dense fell out of the room toward Flash. He gave out a shout, startled by the event. The object that had fallen out, was a carcass of a dead animal. It CAN’T be a pony Flash had thought to himself, still recovering from the scare. Its body shape is wrong. It’s too long and slim... which begs the question what IS it?

Flash winced when he realized the carcass had touched his wing, which in response shot searing pain throughout Flash’s body. Flash fell to the ground, and carefully folded his wing to his side. He looked around for anything he could use as a sling, when his eyes fell upon a piece of cloth he thought looked familiar. He knew it wasn’t from his vision, but from his past.

Flash thought back to his childhood. He had tried to perform a stunt with a few of the other pegasi who wanted to become Wonderbolts. When he didn’t listen to what the fliers were supposed to do, he fell from the sky, knocked down by one of his teammates. Remedy had been there for support. When Flash hit the ground, she was the first one to arrive on the scene.

“FLASH! Are you okay?” she cried.

Flash could do nothing more than groan. He had fallen over 2 kilometers and landed on his wing. The bone stuck out, and Flash dared not look at his injury, knowing it would hurt more if he knew the damage done. Remedy noticed the shape and puffed out her chest.

“Flash... I can fix it.” she muttered

“Are you crazy?! No pony has fixed a broken wing with magic before. What if you end up making it worse?” Flash recoiled in fear.

Remedy sad down “can you let me try? If you don’t, you may never fly again”. She looked at Flash, and he knew she was right. He looked at his wing, and noticed that it was horribly disfigured.

“... Alright... do your best.” Flash gave in. He closed his eyes and prepared for the worst.

Remedy’s horn glowed a deep blue, as Flash’s wing was coated with the same blue as Remedy’s horn. Soon, her horn blared loudly, as Flash’s wing began to take its form again. The light from her horn grew brighter as each second passed. Finally, as Flash began to feel his wing again, Remedy’s light went out, and Flash felt searing pain throughout his wing and body.

The good news was that Remedy’s spell had reformed Flash’s wing so that it would allow him to fly again. The bad news was that it hospitalized Remedy for a week, and Flash’s arm had a minor fracture, and couldn’t go home. He wouldn’t even if he could, Flash knew he had to stay by Remedy’s side until she woke up. When she did, she looked at Flash and smiled.

“... How’s the wing” she whispered.

“Its fine, has a fracture but better than being turned to dust.” Flash said sincerely. He looked down and asked “why did you push yourself to do that? I’ve been mean to you over the past few years. All the pranks and rude remarks, yet you still saved me... Why?” Flash looked at her, on the verge of tears.

Remedy smiled and grabbed Flash’s hoof “because it was the right thing to do.” she said. “Here”, she grabbed a piece of cloth from her bedside table. “That sling looks loose and uncomfortable. Let me tie your wing.” She took the cloth and, as a mother would tend to her child, wrapped Flash’s wing carefully without error. Flash moved his shoulder around testing the new sling.

“T-thanks...” he blushed. “No pony has ever really taken care of me before.”

“It’s no trouble really” Remedy said, eyes drooping. “Also... ever since we met... I’ve always kind of... of...” she drifted back to sleep, and her hoof slid out of Flash’s hoof. Flash stood up, and smiled as he left the room.

Flash grabbed the piece of cloth. It was tattered and old, but looked like the material Remedy had used to mend his wing long ago. He thought of her and how she treated him throughout the years, thinking back to her incomplete sentence.

“She always sort of... liked me? No... More than that. She loved me. She loves me! I’ve been so stupid!” Flash slapped his face with his bad wing, and cried out, “Ow.”

He ran to the entrance of the house and stood at the door, looking out to the city. “I know where she is! I have to tell her I know how she feels about me! That I’m her very special somepony, and that I want her to be mine. I’m not just her best friend anymore!” Flash declared “I am her Very Special Somepony!”

As Flash turned to the door, a dark figure stood blocking his path. It was the shadow pony who had trapped him inside the ward at the temple. “Well, too bad she won’t be hearing that you know. I bet she’d be quite pleased.” With that, the shadow pony smashed Flash in the face with his hoof, knocking Flash out.

“Who’s to say the beings who build these structures were beasts?” Spects noted as he stood atop a skyscraper looking out over the city. His analysis showed that the buildings were not designed for ponies, but two legged creatures, who Spects caught small glimpses of every now and then. “They seem more ignorant than they do monster-like.”

Spects began to pan the area of the city, looking for the smallest bit of movement. Except the small bits of smoke drifting into the endless sky nothing in the city moved. He turned his attention to the outskirts to see a faint blue spec moving across the field towards a house. Spects used his magic to “zoom-in” on the spec and to his surprise found that the spec’s identity belonged to Flash.

“Well then,” Spects muttered to himself “that was quick.”

Spects knew that Flash would be gone in a matter of minutes, so he had to act fast. Doing some quick calculations, he assumed he could jump off the skyscraper he was on, slide down the building pressed against it, run down the stairs and be on the ground headed towards Flash in approximately twenty minutes. He slammed his hoof on the ground and swore.

“Twenty minutes? The distance from the base of this tower to Flash would take less than eight minutes... there has to be a faster way. Knowing Flash he’ll be on the move within the next ten-” Spects was cut off. A faint voice at the back of his head whispered to him, something he couldn’t ignore.

You could always apparate to the house. You know the spell. Do it!

“NO... No I-I couldn’t” Spects stuttered as he remember the last time he used his apparition spell.

He rubbed his left ear with his hoof, feeling the small bit that had been taken the last time he attempted teleportation. He knew the farther he apparated, the more of himself he lost. The time before had been 2 meters, as a small test. Even losing the sixteenth of his ear hurt. It wasn’t a cutting pain, more of a slow burning pain that lasted a month. He shuttered just thinking back. He measured the distance from the house to the top of the building on which he stood. 2 Kilometers. One thousand times farther than his test...

“But...” Spects thought for a moment, “It’s... the only way. There is no way I can be sure Flash will stay at the house.”

Trotting to the side of the building, Spects focused on the porch of the house. He saw himself appearing there, nothing on the outside missing. He continued to watch as he entered the house, as the image faded to black. My hindsight spell showed nothing wrong with me he thought to himself. Maybe I’ll get this one right!

Spects horn begins to glow a light green as he focuses once more on his target. Putting all of his energy into imagining himself standing, facing the house. If he so much as thought of himself in a different location for a fraction of a second, he just very well may kiss his flank goodbye. Spects reared up as his body became encompassed in a flash of green light. When his eyes adjusted, he stood at the front door of the house.

He entered the house to begin his search for Flash, but was astonished to feel the searing pain in his stomach, or rather where his stomach would be. A quick full body scan revealed that Spects had lost his stomach, a fatal wound. He would starve to death within the next few days. Spects knew if he could find Remedy, perhaps she could fashion a replacement with her magic until they found a way to save him.

Spects had told Remedy about the bit of his ear gone missing a few weeks after the incident. She did some research and told him the next time it happens to find her within twenty four hours of the body part going missing. There is a spell where you can temporarily replace other’s body parts, and the possibility that their body will adapt to it are low. But if we ask Lucky if he can help change the odds, we might be able to repair any damage caused Remedy had told him.

Panning around the room, Spects saw Flash was nowhere to be seen. He ran up the stairs to his left to see if Flash had gone to higher ground. The attic was empty, and the roof was clear aside from the bits of debris.

Suddenly, a noise from downstairs alerted Spects that someone else had entered the house. He ran to the stairs, and after placing one hoof on the top step fell down the stairs. Spects imagined the room he had entered when he came through the front door of the house and apparated into the house before his head hit the next step.

When he appeared in the burnt entryway, his left ear had a small chunk missing from it. He turned to cradle it, when he saw what had made the noise. The dark unicorn, Umbra if I’m not mistaken he thought, was standing over Flash. Umbra’s horn was glowing a dark red and Flash had a small bud of dark surrounded his neck. Without thinking, Spects lunged at Umbra and prepared a bolt spell.

Chpt 5: The Darkness Matures

Lemon awoke at the bottom of the crater, blood dripping from her forehead. She tried to stand up, but felt a gripping pain coming from her hind leg prevented her. She settled back down in a comfortable position, keeping her hind legs uncovered, and waited for help to arrive. She sat there for what seemed like hours before drifting into a light sleep.

She awoke from her nap abruptly as pebbles descended down the hill with a tuft of dust floating after them. Still trying to grasp her current predicament, Lemon decided one of her friends was trying to mess with her. She tried looking over the rocks to see who had the nerve to try and scare her. That's when she saw it.

Whoever - rather, whatever was behind the rock had left a small trail of blood that followed its path into the crater. Lemon froze, looking She was about to call out to whatever was behind the small boulder when she felt something trickling down her forehead. She put her hoof to her head to realize that her forehead was bleeding. She then retraced the blood trail back up the crater's hill, and sure enough it began at the rock she had hit her head on.

"Oh well that explains it" she lied to herself, "a rock must have come loose and fell just now."

Lemon tried to crawl to the rock, but couldn't move with her broken leg. She decided to make some noise, to both tell her friends where she was and to break the ominous setting she found herself in. Finding a few good sized rocks and a broken pot, Lemon began to pound out a horrible racket that would surely alert anypony to where she was.

"I mustn't stop. I need to tell my friends where I am. If I don't, how will they find me?" Lemon stuttered as she tried to reassure herself.

Lemon could make out a faint voice at the back of her head, one she hadn't heard in a long time.

Who says they're going to look for you? The voice whispered. As it finished, Lemon felt a cold shiver run down her spine, but dismissed it.

"Of course they'll come back for me, Lemon argued. “They wouldn't just leave me!"

Wouldn't they? The voice said more assertively. Think carefully for a second. What would bring them back to find you?

Lemon, not at all confused as to who she was talking to, thought of a counter argument for the voice.

"Because... Because they're my friends and that's what friends do?" Lemon stumbled.

The voice lashed out, and Lemon felt as though somepony had hit her. Don't be foolish! Even if they are our friends, what's stopping them from leaving us? They probably forgot us already!

"Don't say that, how could they forget us?" Lemon tried to reassure the voice inside her. She had known it as her imaginary friend as a filly, but knew what it was now. She couldn't afford anypony to know she was schizophrenic, or they would send her away. Besides, Lemon liked having her friend, Lime, to talk to.

Lime's tone dropped from that of defensive, to one of sadness. But what if we aren't their friend? What if they were never our friend?

"Lime, they'-"

It's YOUR fault. You just HAD to keep following them-

Lemon was taken aback by this accusation. "Lime I thi-"

-they never wanted to be our friend-

Tears started to well up in her eyes "They're not like tha-"

They DON'T love us, they don't love YOU!

"SHUT UP, LEAVE ME ALONE!" Lemon shouted. The tears dripped down her face as she took in the sudden barrage Lime had delivered. Could it be true? Could her friends really have abandoned her? She shook off the thoughts and thought back to her days as a filly.

"A-are you sure this spell will work, Spects?" Lemon said nervously.

She looked at Spects, reading an ancient tomb about reading another person's mind. He looked so dreamy, she would do anything to spend time with the colt.

"Worry not m'lady," the colt said, reading lines with each word that came from his mouth. "The only one at risk is myself. After the teleportation incident I don't know what adverse side effects each spell could have on me." The colt had a dire look in his face as he stared at Lemon.

Lemmon looked longingly at Spects and blushed. She looked down and almost cried. Lime asked what's wrong, sis? but Lemon had pushed her out of her thoughts as she returned her attention to the, now smirking colt.

"You know I'm only joking about the side effects, right?" He asked.

She blushed again and looked down. "Y-yea... I know".

"Well," Spects began to draw his magic forth, "here I go. Mind reading test number one!"

Lemon could feel the colt peering through her window of thought, looking for information. She threw him a curve ball by asking herself what Spects thought of Remedy. Without missing a beat, Spects took the bait an answered aloud.

“She’s a nice pony, and totally pretty, but I think of her more like a sister than a girl" Spects confessed.

Lemon smiled, even though his eyes were closed. She thought all was going well with the experiment. Spects agreed and began to talk to Lemon about things she couldn't remember. That's when things started to take a turn for the worst.

Lime had started asking Lemon about who Spects was, when Spects called out to Lemon " you know who I am, why are you asking yourself?”

Suddenly, Spects began to scream. He had thought that the other voice in Lemon's head w a ghost. Lemon tried to tell him, but she couldn’t bring herself to do so.. Lime told Lemon that they would take her away if anypony found out about her, so she punished Spects for finding her.

Lemon ran over to Spects to see he was in shock. Their parents had asked Lemon what had happened. She replied that Spects had seen a ghost, and got scarred. The adults believed Lemon and Spects had too much sugar for nightmare night, and were told they couldn't hang out with each other for one month. For that month, Lemon asked Lime why she had hurt Spects. She replied each time because I don't want them to take me from you.

Lemon thought fondly of Spects, and couldn't stop thinking about him since. She had known him since childhood, and hadn't worked up the nerve to tell him how she felt about him. Remedy and Lemon had made a small promise to each other. "If one of us tells the guy she likes, then the other has to too!" Lemon remembered herself saying to Remedy, and moved her hoof to touch where her heart was, ignoring all the cuts and bruises she smiled and whispered "Spects...”

Suddenly, a small noise snapped her from her fantasy, and turned her attention to the pile of rocks. Something had fallen down the hill, and kicked up enough dust to cause Lemon's tears begin to well up in her eyes. As she blinked furiously, she saw the form of a small, fluffy, cotton like creature now staring back at her. Its eyes glowed green and its feet barely visible under its furry, oval body. I saw Lemon starring, and chirped happily.

"Aww! It's soooo cute" Lemon squealed, "where did you come from?"

The creature looked at Lemon and tilted its head to the side. When Lemon let out another squeal, the cotton creature began to grumble and wriggle. Its head began to shed and its white fur fell to the dust. The fur ball's body began to twist and expand, until it grew to ten times its size. Lemon looked at the creature, horrified at the spectacle she had just witnessed. She made an effort to evade the creature, but shrieked in pain as she found herself immobilized by her broken leg.

As if to respond, the monstrosity bellowed a heavy roar which echoed throughout the city, alerting the other creatures dwelling in the shadows. As the echo fell silent, green, glowing eyes encompassed the perimeter of the crater looking down into the pit. The creatures on the outside we're smaller than the monster before Lemon, and she assumed it was their leader. She limped away from the brute, before it casually picked her up in its hands and dangled her above the sharp jagged rock from where it had emerged moments before.
"Move... And... Die..." It grunted.

Lemon tried not to squirm, but failed to do so. The creature was putting pressure on her broken leg, and with each second that passed, Lemon felt the bone being crushed into a fine powder. She screamed "AT LEAST PUT ME DOWN! MY LEG HURTS!"

The brute was baffled. It put Lemon down and looked her over for a few seconds before it spoke again. "Pony... Speaks?"

"We'll of course I speak! How else would I have asked you to stop?" Lemon's words drove deep into the Brute's skull. Before it could speak again, a shrill shriek came from outside the crater. The monstrosities on the outer circle jumped up and down as a dark figure came down from the circle, rushing towards Lemon. This new being looked like the brute, but much older and wiser. It looked over Lemon and spoke.

"Was my associate correct? You spoke?" It stated.

Lemon was taken back. She wasn't sure what to say. It seemed friendly, and other than its rotten like features it seemed harmless. "Yes I did! Can you help me?" She cried.

The creature grinned, showing its yellowed, cracked teeth. It turned its attention to the circle and shouted something in its own language. He crowd of monsters jumped and grunted with excitement, and Lemon felt a cold shiver run down her spine. She knew that something was amiss.

"We've not seen a pony of your kind in years. Tell me, magic pony. Where did you come from exactly? Radioactive factory? Inhuman breeding? Torture?" The old brute continued, as if reciting from a long list. c

Lemon couldn't understand what this thing was talking about, but it obviously knew where talking ponies came from. She answered reluctantly, "I'm from Equestria." She muttered.

"The legends are true then. We are able to return the favor to that damned land, Equestria." The monster bellowed. "And it’s all thanks to you! Now, would you be so kind as to tell us where the portal is?"

"What do you mean, portal? I fell here with my friends. I need help to find them!" Lemon squealed. "I need HELP!”

The monster looked her over and muttered "so there are more? This changes things. I'll be on my way, my dear. You'll stay here with my friends. Just be warned, they don't play nice." He sneered.

With that, he snapped his fingers. At once, all of the creatures swarmed into the crater. They rushed towards Lemon, now limping toward cover. The creatures swarmed over her body, ripping bits of flesh with their teeth and claws. With each second that passed, Lemon felt less and less in danger and rather, filled with relief. She no longer had to worry about finding her friends.

They would find her body, laying in the crater, blood littering the floor.

Spects stared blankly at the stallion blocking the door. His green eyes looked over his opponent, head to hoof, looking for any weakness. His search for a weak point seemed fruitless, so he returned his attention to his surroundings. The house frame was damaged, and fighting inside would most likely lead to structural damage, which would not be good news for the unconscious Flash lying at the unicorn's feet. Spects shifted his thought to the plain just outside of the house. He remembered seeing a small mound of rubble that could aid in his escape if it came to that. His final check was to scan himself once more, to assure he was not in immediate danger.

His stomach had been disintegrated from his last teleportation spell. Spects did a quick hindsight spell to view any and all possibilities, should he remain without a stomach. It left him vulnerable to mid attacks, since they would directly hit his major organs rather than his own stomach. Spects cast a fill spell to place a dummy stomach in order to keep his organs from being hit.

This all took place within seconds of coming upon the scene, and Spects waited to see what Umbra had to say. Umbra simply looked Spects over with his dark red eyes, debating what he should do next. Spects impatiently stepped forward and shot a spell at Umbra. It was immediately deflected. Spects fired another spell, a bounce spell, to read exactly what Umbra had used in order to deflect his previous spell.

Again, his spell pinged away from the stallion and hit the floor. Spects saw a flicker of darkness in the grey house, and realized Umbra must have used a basic shield spell. He prepared a penetration spell, but as Spects was about to fire, Umbra fired a bolt of lightning at his feet. Spects jumped, dodging the bolt but losing concentration. The only logical course of action left had been an option the entire time.

Run.

Spects ran out of the house, his opponent in tow, and stopped in the field. Spects knew he had to leave Flash out of the area he would be flinging spells in. Umbra looked at Spects menacingly and spoke in his hissing voice.

"So, you've come for your friend you pathetic excuse of a unicorn?"

"I had to," Spects confronted Umbra, "because that's what friend's do!"

"I was hoping to lure the girl here, but I suppose you'll do." Umbra mocked as he looked at his hoof.

Spects threw himself at his foe, but missed as Umbra sidestepped his attacked, countering with several streams of fire. Spects deflected it with ease and followed up with a blast of lightning. Umbra evaded the electrical blast and created a portal which exited twenty meters from where they stood, the unguided lightning striking cold stone, kicking up dust. Spects tried to use his hind sight to see where Umbra had gone, but to no avail. Spects heart sank. There was only one possible way to get to his enemy: he thought of the area just outside the smoke, and teleported himself to the location.

As he recovered from this spinning head and the shock, he found it hard to breathe. One of his lungs had been taken as tribute of teleporting to this new location. Umbra came from behind Spects and knocked the wind from Spects as he fell to the ground.

"What a joke," Umbra sneered. He kicked Spects again "you should know never to sacrifice your own body to cast something as simple as a teleportation spell."

Spects swung his hoof, which connected with Umbra's mouth. Umbra took a step back to recover, as Spects climbed to his feet. Spects shot an arc of fire at Umbra, which went right through the stallion. Umbra appeared behind Spects, eyes glowing red, and touched his horn with Spects. Pain shot through Spects’ body as Umbra's lightning shocked him to the very core. Spects could think of nothing else but to teleport once more.
When he emerged, his left ear was wiped from his head.

Spects staggered back, looking Umbra over- searching his eyes for signs of attack. Umbra lashed out, and Spects parried. While Umbra had begun to move quicker, and Spects found his movements lagging. Every once in a while, Umbra's hoofs would connect, sending Spects in a flurry of motion. Umbra knew Spects would not last long, for Spects had a look of sheer exhaustion on his face, the missing lung clearly taking its toll. There was only one solution, and it was risky enough while in combat. Spects looked for other options...

None came to mind. To survive, he had to teleport inside the house. Spects thought of the room he had found Flash in, and focused. As he did, Umbra prepared a fire spell, sure to wipe all flesh from Spect’s corpse like stature. If Spects didn't move now, he would have fought for nothing.

He Teleported. His eyes flashed vibrant colors as they had not done in years. He saw his parents, smiling at him telling him how proud they were of him. Then he saw Lemon, on their first Hearts and Hoofs day together as friends. She was blushing, her mane tied back in a ponytail, smiling. As his vision faded to grey he saw a spec of blue in front of him. Flash came into view. Spects tried to call out, but noticed his blood had run cold. He didn't need a spell to tell him what had happened. As he drifted into a lifeless state, He thought of Lemon, and what he had wanted to say to her.

She already knew.

Umbra entered the house, expecting to find the unicorn standing and ready to fight. He peered to a room next to the main hall, and found the colorless pony slumped over a pile of rubble. He entered, and examined the body of Spects. He found that he had lost his heart when he teleported his final time.

Umbra stomped his hoof into the ground, knowing that he no longer could carry out his task. A small thought popped into his head. There were four more ponies somewhere in this wasteland, and one was right behind him. Umbra turned to look at the unconscious body of the Pegasus.

To his astonishment, nothing but a single deep blue feather remained.