Chapters There is darkness we can’t see from the light of our world, until it is so close that we can’t get out of it reach.
Darkness whose existence we don’t even know, because the light of our world blinds us.
Darkness that’s lurking beyond the reach of our sight, until is time to jump on the attack.
Chapter 1
Traveler Chaos
It was a normal day like any other in ponyville. The sun shining, the birds singing and all the ponies walk from one side to other, busy but happy. All but two ponies. Walking with disgusted look, a white coat unicorn with blue hair completely disheveled and tail of the same color, although a little more organized, and a brown coat pegasus with black hair combed not better than his partner, and that just seeing which protruded under the black helmet he was wearing, and tail the same color as his mane, but this was completely disheveled and with a couple of branches and leaves as if he was running at full speed through bushes.
"This is bad." The unicorn said. "If those guys see me, the man in charge of “The Controllers”, and you, the lord of chaos, in a place like this, they will serve all our heads on a platter for their boss." That comment caught the attention of several ponies that roam the streets.
"All our heads?" The pegasus answered by way of mockery. "We’re just two"
"I pretend to change that with the time, what I can’t if we're dead by then."
"Whatever. And I don’t see why you are so worry, their boss is your cousin, he will never order your death. Right? ... Right"
"Would this be a bad time to tell you that our heads have price and that was my dear cousin who put it?" The Pegasus froze looking at his friend, while the ponies were even more curious. "This is your fault."
"Me? Why this would be my fault?"
"Well, this isn’t my fault." Said the unicorn stopping and pointing all over the place with his right hoof. "And to my knowledge, the only other with one of my devises is you ..." This time pointed to the pegasus with one of his hoof and with an accusing glare. "... So this is your fault." The unicorn looked away and continued his march, until he suddenly stopped as if something had beaten his head. "We are the only ones who possess the devises. Right, Chaos?"
"Well ... it’s actually a funny story." A blaming smile appeared on the face of Chaos.
"You ... you are a ... I'll ..." Anger simply don’t let the unicorn even organize ideas.
"Calm down Traveler. Surely there's a way to fix this."
"Who you GAVE MY DEVICE?!" Shouted at Chaos. "What you looking at?!" Shouted at a group of ponies that had turned to look out the screams.
"Take it easy dude." Chaos replied with some fear to see the reaction of his friend, but he wasn’t surprised by it, he knows his friend's bad mood. "If you want to know who I gave it, I gave it to my cousin."
"Oh, then there’s no problem, you gave it to your cousin." The voice of the unicorn was calm.
"You’re ... pretending to be calm, right?"
"OF COURSE I'M PRETENDING! We gotta get out of here."
"We need information."
"Good idea. Wait, we cannot, the devises not work, remember? We need to bring your cousin here, now only she can get us out of this mess. Procedure fifteen."
"Great! I love the procedure fifteen." Chaos hit his helmet with his right hoof and flew away. "Great! I can fly! This is cool!" Again the pair of ponies had caught the attention of every pony on the street. A pegasus surprised because he could fly? He wasn’t an adult, but he was old enough to have a good flying experience. The idea that those two were just two crazy ponies started to cross the minds of the ponies in the street.
"I wonder what I can do."
"Are ya serious?" Said a yellow filly with red mane and tail, and a big pink bun on her head that was passing by. "You’re a unicorn, you can use magic, everypony knows that. How you don’t know that and how you don’t ... you don’t have a cutie mark."
"A what?"
"A cutie mark. Don’t you know what a cutie mark is?"
"Are you going to tell us what the hell is a cutie mark or what?" Asked Chaos while landing, losing his patience.
"A cutie mark is the most important thing for a pony! When a pony discovers what is his special talent or what makes him different from the other ponies a cutie mark appears magically on his flank."
"I understand." Traveler said as he watched the cutie mark of the ponies passing on the street. "Wait, you don’t have a cutie mark."
"I know you don’t have to remind me. Me and my friends Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle are the cutie mark crusaders and we also seek our cutie marks."
"Also? You talk as if we cared to find that cutie whatever."
"The cutie mark tells us what is our talent, what make us special. It said our goal in life! What kind of pony would not want to find his cutie mark?!"
"We. And why you care so much, we don’t even know who you are."
"I'm Apple Bloom."
"Hello Apple Bloom." Chaos was smiling as a colt meeting a new friend. "I'm Chaos and this grumpy unicorn at me side is Traveler."
"Yes, and if you excuse me, I must learn to use my magic." Traveler closed his eyes and concentrated.
He could feel energy flowing through his horn, was close to release all that power, he could feel it. He felt all the energy out of your horn and heard a loud bang. Quickly opened his eyes and saw a big hole in a wall in front of him.
"What happened?"
"Your horn began to emanate black energy and suddenly threw a lightning that breaks that wall as if it was nothing." Chaos answered admiringly.
"Black energy?" Ask Apple Bloom. "That’s how you call that black mist covering Traveler’s horn?"
"Yes." Traveler answered by muddling through. "Use magic was easier than I expected."
"YOU GOT YOUR CUTIE MARK!" The shout of Apple Bloom make the other two ponies looked Traveler flank too and then they saw a strange symbol drawn with black lines.
^ ^ | ^ ^] ~
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"What's that?" Apple Bloom ask confused.
"I have no idea." Chaos answered as confused as the filly.
"How is that you don’t know what it is?! It's the symbol of black energy. You've seen it a thousand times!" Traveler scolded a little angry. Well, a little compared with the other occasions he had been angry.
"Oooooohhhhhh ... right, the symbol of black energy." Chaos tried to hide his confusion.
"You don’t remember it, right?"
"Nope."
"So, I guess your talent is managing that weird mist." Apple Bloom concludes."What else can you do with it?"
"That doesn’t matter; with this is enough to destroy the city."
"I suppose, but ... Wait, Did you say destroy the city?"
"Right."
"PROCEDURE FIFTEEN BEGIN!" Chaos shouted and started flying again, but this time spinning like a tornado through a nearby house easily, as if it was made of paper. When he left, there was a mark on his side as a cartoon blast.
"Look at that." Traveler said with an evil shine in his eyes. "Looks like your talent is destroying things. That will be quite useful."
"I know." By that moment all ponies in ponyville were running in terror, all exept Apple Bloom.
Traveler looks three pots that were in front of a house and its horn was covered by black energy. "Bip." A lightning left his horn and blew the pot on the left along with the window behind. "Bap." Another lightning left his horn and blew up the pot on the right along with the front door. "Bam." A third lightning left and hit the center pot flying it into pieces and pulling down what was left standing in the front of the house, exposing his terrified habitants. "Three of three. Beat that Chaos."
"Why do you do this?" Apple Bloom ask terrified as he slowly retreated.
"It’s not your matte." Traveler replied coldly. "Better go before you get hurt." Apple Bloom couldn’t do anything but run as far as she could.
"Hey, traveler, check this out." Chaos shouted as he break through repeatedly the City Hall letting it full of holes.
"Not bad. But I think I can do it better." Once again his horn was covered with dark energy, but this time do not throw a lightning, instead he gestured with his head and a large shadow was formed in mid-air next to the building and cut it in two as a blade.
The top of the town hall, now holding on nothing, slip and fell to the land. Fortunately there was no pony around; because everypony had ran to take refuge when the destruction began.
"Looks like I win." Traveler presumed admiring his work.
"YOU TWO! STOP RIGHT NOW!" Shouted a voice behind traveler, who turned around while Chaos landed beside him.
"Is she your cousin?" Traveler asked.
"How the hell could I know? She probably changes her form when she enters this world, just like us."
"What the hell are you two talking about?" Ask the pegasus who stood imposingly in front of them. "You know what? I don't care, stop destroying the city, now."
The destructive pair of ponies stared the pegasus carefully. His coat was cyan color, her mane and tail mimicked the colors of the rainbow. They look her cutie mark in his flank, a cloud with a lightning which also mimicked the colors of the rainbow.
Traveler approached the pegasus, extended one of his forelegs and took one of the pegasus bringing it closer to his face to see it better.
"No mark. You aren’t who we are searching for." He turned and went back to his friend's side.
"What? Pegasus asked that confused." What mark are you talking about?"
For the Pegasus was clear that they didn’t speak of his cutie mark. It was exposed in his flank and the unicorn had searched her right foreleg. Only then the pegasus realized that the unicorn and his pegasus friend had both a symbol in his right foreleg.
"Hey!" She cry sick of that pair. "I don’t know what the hell is that symbol in your foreleg or why are you looking for somepony with it. I just know that if you don’t stop destroying ponyville you and I will have a problem."
"You think you can beat us? Don’t make me laugh." Traveler smiled arrogantly while taunted the pegasus. Chaos meanwhile flew and hit his helmet with his foreleg like a warrior eager for battle.
"You’re death!" The cyan Pegasus flew and get ready to charge against the unicorn.
"Rainbow Dash waits!" Scream a unicorn hidden in a pile of rubble.
The unicorn had lavender coat and his mane and tail were blue cut in two by two hairlines, one purple and one pink. From his position Traveler couldn’t see her hoofs, so he looks at Chaos, who was still flying in the sky, waiting for confirmation.
Chaos could see much better the unicorn from the sky, saw his cutie mark, it was a dark pink star surrounded by five small white sparkles. Could also look their forelegs, that was what he wanted, but there wasn’t the mark they wanted for. Chaos proceeded to shake his head in negation which was not amused at all to his friend.
"Don’t tell me to wait Twilight, I will teach to respect to these idiots once and for all." Replied the pegasus, still upset and anxious to fight.
"No, you can’t by your own. They are too powerful." Argument Twilight, starting a discussion between the two.
Meanwhile Traveler and Chaos, who had landed, had their own discussion.
"That's two! How many will be before we find her?" Traveler cried furiously while hit Chaos in the chest blaming him for the problem on which they were now.
"Let me see if I understand, my cousin can be anywhere on the planet and you’re expecting to find her in the first two attempts?" Answered the accused in a not very good defense. "And people say you're the smart one of the group."
Apparently these comment wasn’t funny to Traveler taking in count that hit Chaos in the face knocking him to the ground. The newly attacked pegasus stood reeling until he finally stays up.
"What just happened?" He said with apparent amnesia for the hit.
"Nothing." His college lie.
"I was unconscious, and you say nothing happened?!"
"That’s right."
"Whatever" He said a little skeptical but downplaying, as if he didn’t care to have a head injury and didn’t know why "Aren’t we supposed to perform the procedure fifteen? All we've done all day, except for when take down that building, is just talking and talking. Really dude, this is the most boring thing that has happened since we left home. Actually when we left home was more exciting, you know, with the shooting and the explosion and these guys trying to kill us."
"Yes, I know. You know what? You're right."
"I'm?! I mean, of course."
"We lost too much time and this place made us go through many problems. So, LETS BURN IT TO THE GROUND!" His furious shouting stopped the argument between Twilight and Rainbow Dash, who now concentrated all their attention on the destructive pair.
"Great! Finally some fun." Chaos exclaimed beside himself with excitement.
"Do you keep thinking we should wait for the royal guard and Princess Celestia?" Rainbow Dash asked, knowing the answer. Twilight’s horn bright while preparing his magic to stop any attempt to destroy the city by the two diabolical ponies.
Rainbow Dash fly and went hurtling towards the pair of ponies but before she could reach an energy barrier black colored appeared and Rainbow Dash collided with it, not strong enough to be unconscious, but enough to be too stunned to react.
Traveler walked over to the dazed Rainbow Dash smiling devilishly with its horn emitting black mist, but when he was at a couple of step a magical barrier appear between him and his victim.
Traveler glared at Twilight, whose horn glowed with an aura of the same color of the barrier. That look didn’t surprise her, and indeed liked. It means that she was causing him problems, so she smiled confidently, maybe she really could beat them after all. However, when she saw that the glare was accompanied by a mischievous smile she realized that something was wrong.
Only then Twilight realized she didn’t see Chaos anywhere. Before she could do anything she felt a blow on his side, as if some metal traveling at high speed would have beaten her. The blow was so strong that it throws her several feet, right next to her friend.
Chaos and Traveler were just a few steps from the two ponies with evil eyes. Something in their eyes made Twilight be completely paralyzed by fear; it seemed that this would be the end. She couldn’t believe how easy she and her friend had been defeated. She tried to concentrate, cast a last spell on their defense, but she just couldn’t, the fear had dominated her, not let her think. This would be her last.
"STOP!" A voice that seemed to come from nowhere rumbles in the place making all remain silent.
Suddenly a small wall of purple mist appeared from nowhere in the middle of the street and a mare walked out. Her coat was the same color of the mist and her mane and tail was black coloured and disheveled and she had no cutie mark, but a mark in her foreleg.
"She have the mark, is she." Chaos said a little worried to see the annoyed look of his cousin.
"Of course is she, idiot! She goes out from the kind of portal my device makes." Traveler replied hitting the head of Chaos, which was not such a good idea considering that he still wearing his helmet. As he watched his sore leg and Chaos grin, he realized that he should hit Chaos in the face as before.
"What do you think you are doing COUPLE OF FOOLS?" Cried the angry purple pony making Chaos paralyzed with fear.
"You’re a brave warrior." Traveler said the most sarcastically he could. "I take care of this Chaos. Hello Gen" He stepped forward to facing Gen, the purple mare, but when he opened his mouth to speak she shut him up with a scream.
"Not a word! To the portal, NOW!" The pony turned around and went to Twilight and Rainbow Dash."I apologize for the behavior of this pair of fools, by that they are called "Traveler Chaos". I promise that they will not bother you again.
"Always making promises you can’t keep." Traveler sneered maliciously and without hesitation, even when Chaos's cousin sent him a murderous look.
"Wait a minute." Cried indignantly Rainbow Dash. "They can’t just come here to destroy everything and leave just like that."
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. How careless." The pony don’t give explanation at the confused looks of Rainbow Dash and Twilight, instead she closed her eyes and that strange black mist began to flow from his legs covering the streets, debris, buildings and moving well to cover the entire ponyville. He opened his eyes and immediately the black mist disappears revealing a ponyville completely rebuilt.
Twilight and Rainbow Dash stood there completely in shock, neither, not even Twilight who was famous for his knowledge of magic, had seen a magic like that, specially executed by an earth pony.
"Well, I guess we can go now." Gen said ignoring the obvious shock of the other two mares.
"Aammmhh ... I guess ... Yes." Twilight was only recovered in part from the shock that was to see a magic like that coming from an earth pony.
"I don't want to interrupt ..." said Traveler with the most serious and concerned look he'd had in all day, the only actually. "... But we should go now. There's an unwanted guest and we would go before he cause problems to us.
Gen turned his head toward the roof of a house, so Twilight and Rainbow Dash do the same. On the roof was a mass of black mist, but this was not like that Gen had spread, or the one Traveler use. In the mass they could see two glowing red reptile eyes with a cold stare. Whatever it was that thing was a living being and not one friendly.
"They find us! We're going to die." Chaos cried terrified running to the portal, the wall of mist from where Gen came from.
"Dead? I don’t think so." Gen finally said while she walks into the portal in total calm.
After looking into the eyes in the mist for a while Traveler finally walked slowly to the portal and stopped at just inches of it and sly look at the two ponies speechless watching what happened while trying to understand what was that they were seeing.
"If you think this is weird, you can’t imagine what is about to happen. The days of peace of this place had officially over." Traveler laughed devilishly as he entered the portal.
Immediately traveler crossed, the black mist left the roof flying off toward the portal entering in it. Rainbow Dash approached the portal, lifted one hoof and slowly approached to touch it, even though Twilight was screaming like crazy not to do it, but when she was within inches of the purple mist that was made, the portal vanished.
While Twilight and Rainbow Dash continued to stand there, trying to understand what had just happened and tried to convince them that it wasn't a dream, realized that several ponies, attracted by the mysterious black mist and the sudden and magical reconstruction of ponyville, had surrounded them, whispering crazy theories about what had rebuilt the city and looked curiously at the two ponies in the center of them.
Between whispers and confused looks Twilight and Rainbow Dash saw running to them her friends Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy. All with worried looks and asking if they were good and what had happened and many other things that lastly ended losing in the noise they ended up doing, which was beginning to rile Twilight.
"SILENCE!" The lavender pony shouted annoyed by the noise her friends did and the rest of the crowd makes silence. "Sorry." She apologized, a little embarrassed about losing control. "We're fine. About for what happened ... I'm not sure what has happened."
"How ya don’t know what happened?" Ask Applejack astounded. "Ya weren’t here when all happened?
"Of course we were here!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed raising his right foreleg with indignation.
"Take it easy Rainbow Dash." Twilight put a hoof in front of her friend to stop her. She looked very upset; his pride was hurt by being defeated so easily. On the other hand Applejack looked worried, surely Apple Bloom had told her that she was around when the destruction began and she was worried by the fact that those two walk around free. "What happened is that ... well ... although we saw everything that happened, in reality we have no idea what it was, we had never seen anything like this.
"And, uuh, what happened?" Ask Fluttershy timidly as usual.
Twilight and Rainbow Dash told what they saw, the two destructive ponies, how easily those criminals had won, not as easy according with Rainbow Dash, the mysterious mare who left the purple haze, how she covered the city with the black mist, how the city was fully rebuilt when the mist disappear and how they had gone through the purple mist followed by that black mist creature.
"Oh dear, that's terrible. It's a relief you two be fine. You should wait and leave the matter to the royal guard. You could have died!" Rarity said worried.
"Of course not, I had everything under control." Rainbow Dash was really offended.
"Sure." Sneered Applejack." Well, at least everything is fine now."
"Yeah!. I am so happy that everything is fine in the end. Everypony is fine; everything is fine, as if nothing bad had happened."Pinkie Pie bounced in place as she spoke, happy by the fact that her friends were fine and safe, and by the fact of being Pinkie Pie. "Oh, wait, I have an idea. Let’s celebrate that everything is fine with a PARTY.
"This is no time for parties Pinkie, those two could return at any moment, or that black mist creature." Twilight was very worried, and at that time she could only think in going to the library to search from where those two got so much power, what were those symbols on their hoof, what was the purple mist and what was that black mist creature.
"Do not be a killjoy Twilight, by what you said, we are not going to see those two again for a while, and apparently the mist was going after them and don’t care anything else, so I do not think it cause problems. We also have to put Rainbow Dash in good mood after be so humiliated." Rainbow Dash, which until now was occupied thinking about the battle that had just lost, woke up and his eyes filled with rage.
"I wasn’t being humiliated!" Rainbow Dash defended herself. "I was about to recover and put in place those fools when that purple pony appeared… However… a party doesn’t sound bad."
"YEY! PARTY" Shouted the excited pink pony and the six friends go to Sugarcube corner for the party. However Twilight keep thinking in what that unicorn had said, about what was about to happen. When the party over, she surely will go to investigate.
~ O ~
As the sun set on the horizon and the ponies in ponyville celebrated in sugarcube corner, something not so cheerful happen in the everfree forest. In the darkest part of the forest, a place never touched by the sun rays, a dark figure was absorbed in his thoughts.
A mass of black mist, this time drawing the silhouette of a unicorn, with those reptilian eyes glowing in that bloody red, but this time with a look full of hate. Lying, sitting on a rock.
Going over and over what had happened. Traveler Chaos had not shown great power in battle in the city, he should easily defeat them, but he didn’t expect to be so weak. He should have attacked before, before ... came into this world, was this place that had weakened him, it was too ... No. No matter now, there was no point thinking about it. Now he just had to think on one thing...
"Revenge." Said the black mist creature with a cold, calm and unsoul voice. "Let me live was a big mistake. It will weigh them. Now, I need to recover ..." The black silhouette stood and looked up. " ... But for that I must make this world a place more comfortable, a place more ... dark."
Note: Hellooooooooooo!!! I don’t speak English. I’m just improving my skills translating to English this story of my own creation. I expect don’t have too many errors, and I really expect that have the standards required to everyone enjoy it.
If you see any error don’t doubt in tell my, and don’t forget comment about the story, especially if you like it. ;)
Those who live in the darkness are blinded by the light.
Usually those beings back to the darkness they come from, but others…
They think: If the light blinds you… shut it down.
Chapter 2
Darkness
Twilight and her friends run in the middle of the Everfree forest, now called dark forest, a right name now that it had been consumed by the black mist. Perhaps this was what the unicorn had talked about before left trough the portal? That doesn’t matter now. Now the only thing that should be in their heads was escape from those creatures.
They can hear its footsteps behind them. It had already devoured the royal guards that had come with them, and now it chased them. The ponies stop when they see something in front of them. A pair of red points rose from the thick cape of black mist that cover the ground of the forest and didn’t left see anything under the chest height.
They had already seen these red points; it was the eyes of those things. One of the creatures jumps to a branch revealing its form. It was like a wolf as big as a pony and covered by a metallic exoskeleton. Its small and cold eyes full of fury looks like were made of red glowing glass. On its back there were hundreds of long thin needles. The needles were leaning on the back, but when the creature growled aggressively the needles got up and vibrated emitting a menacing metallic rattle sound.
Twilight looked from side to side but there wasn´t escape, it had surrounded them. This would be her last... again ... again? She wished somepony mysteriously come out from nowhere and saved her as the last time, but how likely was that to happen?
~ S ~ That morning, before the darkness spread. ~ S ~
Twilight opened her eyes a little tired for the party last night, but still willing to investigate tirelessly to find all the information she could about everything that had happened the day before.
The pony, eager to study, got up and glanced at the bed of his number one assistant. The bed was empty, which didn't surprise her; he must have been raised to do their morning chores. He hadn’t gone to the party so he had gone to bed earlier. Maybe she should do the same, the party had ended much later than she had expected, and as a result she was wake up later than expected. In the clock was 8:00 AM, an hour later than she had planned. Now she had one hour less to investigate that day.
Twilight rushed downstairs to start her research and smell the delicious aroma of the breakfast her number one assistant had prepared for her. Spike was finishing setting the table when he saw Twilight down and greet with a smile.
"Morning, Twilight. The last night must have been quite a party. You wouldn’t wake up an hour late if you weren’t really tired." That comment was not amused at Twilight. "Are you going to investigate everything that you told me yesterday when you back to the library to pick up that thing last night for the party? By the way, what you came to pick up?"
"Nothing important." She answered as sat to eat. "Why don’t you wake me? Now I'm very late with my research."
"I didn't want to wake you. You looked very tired. And how you can be late in research? It's not like you can know when you'll find the information you seek. Maybe you'll be lucky and find it in the first book you open and so you'll have the whole day off ... and me too."
"I think not. I have read almost every book in the library and no one has anything about what happened. Definitely it will take a long time, maybe even several days." Spike had face of want to run away. Working tirelessly for several days didn’t sound good for the young dragon.
Twilight finish his breakfast and go straight to find the few books she hadn’t read, to find the information she needed. Just as she opened the first book was surprised by the sound of somepony knocking on the door.
"Read the sign, the library is closed today." The pony Shouted while trying to concentrate, but again the sound of somepony knocking on the door distracted her. "If you can't read a sign, you shouldn’t be here." Twilight remained in silence waiting for somepony to knock on the door again, but it didn’t happened. The studious pony refocused her attention on the book to finally investigate.
"Twilight!" A shout behind Twilight made her jump in surprise throwing the book into the air. Twilight turned and saw Rainbow Dash standing behind her. "Why don’t you open the door?"
"Because the library is closed. If you want another Daring Do book you have to wait until tomorrow. And how you get in?"
"Through the window. And I don’t come for a book of Daring Do. There's something strange going on in the Everfree forest."
"Is that weird?" Spike said dismissively. "There's always something strange going on in the Everfree forest. It's the Everfree forest!"
"I mean something stranger than usual. I was working hard on the forest with a cloud ..." For work, she mean to nap on it. "...when a noise in the Everfree forest caught my attention and I saw that the leaves of the trees were black and there was a weird black mist covering the entire floor in a part of the forest."
"You mean a black mist like..."
"Like the black mist that used those weird ponies, exactly." Twilight ran straight to Everfree forest with Spike on his back and Rainbow Dash flying beside her.
"That's not all Twilight."
"What?! What else can happen?!"
"The mist began to spread through the woods, and put the leaves of the trees black colored. This is not cool."
Finally they reached the edge of the forest and, as Rainbow Dash had said, the leaves of the trees were black and there was black mist that reached chest height. Suddenly they heard the sound of footsteps coming from the forest. Twilight and Rainbow Dash were prepared for the worst; anything could be expected coming from the black mist.
The footsteps came closer and closer until they could see the silhouette of a pony. That figure came closer and they realized that it was not a pony, but a zebra. Zecora! It looked terrible, his body was covered with scratches and bruises, and his coat was cover with his blood.
"Zecora! What happened to you?!" Both shouted in unison.
"A dark evil consumed my home, now only the creatures with that evil can survive on it. Into horrible monsters turned the living beings of the Everfree forest, so I was forced to flee."
"Does the black mist turned Everfree forest animals into monsters?"
"I'm afraid so."
"Rainbow Dash takes Zecora to the hospital immediately." Rainbow Dash charge Zecora on his back and walked toward the hospital, she would have liked to fly to it, but with the weight of Zecora would have been impossible.
"What now?" Spike looked worried the black mist that had consumed all the Everfree forest and the blood on the floor that had dropped from the Zecora's coat.
"We write to Princess Celestia, I hope she knows something about this mist." Spike pulled out a pen and a scroll waiting for Twilight dictate what to write, but before the pony could say a word the dragon burp green fire and a scroll fell to the floor. "A letter from the princess." Twilight magic lifts the scroll and unrolled it to read it.
My dear and faithful student Twilight Sparkle:
Recently I have been informed that a strange evil power is spreading in the Everfree forest, a forest near to ponyville. It’s vital that you and your friends discover from where that power comes from and stop it. I would have liked to entrust this important task in person, but I'm afraid I cannot. I’ll send royal guards to accompany your for protection. Please be careful, I had never heard of something like this.
Princess Celestia.
"Looks like the princess had heard what happened. Come on Spike, we have to go by the other and wait for the royal guards. First look at Fluttershy, her house is closest." Spike jump to the back of Twilight and marched to the house of her friend.
~ F ~
"Umm ... sorry but I can’t go." Said the soft and shy Fluttershy's voice with a little of fear after Twilight explain the situation. "I have to feed the animals of the forest, and Angel's favorite food takes much time to prepare. You will have to go without me."
"Fluttershy, I know you're scared, but the whole Equestria could depend of this. There are many animals in the forest Everfree and we may need your help to deal with them. Like when you made that dragon go to hibernate to other place."
"Twilight, I don’t know, sounds very dangerous. And who will take care of my friends of the forest?"
"Fluttershy please, we need you, we can’t go without you. And, Spike can watch for your friends of the forest, like last time." Then Spike put face want the earth to swallow him, but nopony noticed. "In addition, we will have royal guards watching over us."
"Well ... I guess ... I can go."
"Great, let's find the others."
"HEY!" Rainbow Dash flew out the window a bit annoying. "Why didn’t you wait me?!"
"Rainbow Dash I'm sorry, but I received a letter from the princess saying that we must investigate..."
"So what are we waiting for?! Come! We must go for the other."
"In that we are, we have to go for the others and wait in the library for the royal guard."
"Royal Guard? What for? We can handle anything without problem. No need the royal guard."
"Don’t be so sure, I remind you that this mist is related to the ponies that beat us yesterday. We must take every possible precaution."
"All right." Rainbow Dash finally yielded reluctantly "But we could beat them without the royal guard."
"Sure." Twilight said sarcastically concealing laughter.
~ T ~
The six ponies were in the library waiting for the royal guards while they talked about things related to the incoming mission. It was almost noon when somepony knocked on the door. Twilight opened it and found herself face to face with not less than ten royal guards.
"Twilight Sparkle?" Asked one of the guards.
"Y-Yes." Twilight replied almost in shock, she didn’t really expect that Princess Celestia sent so many guards.
"The Princess Celestia has sent us to escort you and your friends as you investigate the unusual events in the Everfree forest."
"Mmm ... ok. When do we leave?"
"We are ready to leave on your mark."
"Ok ... then go."
Twilight and her friends left the library and the guard who talk make a signal to the others, who immediately surrounded the ponies and marched off at their side toward the woods.
Finally, after Rainbow Dash tried to break the concentration of the guards several times, Fluttershy tried in vain to make conversation with one of them and Twilight interrogate the leader of the guards about how his brother was, they came to the edge of the Everfree forest.
Still not getting dark, but it was better that entered and left before it did. As they entered the forest something unusual happened, everything became a little darker, as if there was a cloud over them, but it wasn’t. But the strangest thing was that suddenly became much colder than usual, almost freezing, and seconds later the temperature was normal.
All, both guards and ponies looked at each other confused, but decided to go ahead. More and more they approached to the center of the Everfree forest or dark forest as Pinkie Pie had called it as a joke, though in truth the name it wore to perfection. There they hoped to find what was causing this sudden change, or at least a clue.
Twilight announced that they were close, which was a relief for her friends who were beginning to tire, but spotted something in the way. A pair of red points rose of the thick mist that covered the forest floor.
Slowly the head of a wolf, apparently with a metal armor, appear in the mist. Fluttershy immediately hid behind a guard and Pinkie Pie jumped in front ready to greet this creature, but Twilight stopped her with magic and returns her to the group. One of the guards stepped forward to look a little closer at the creature, but when he was at a few steps the mysterious being gave a roar and hundreds of long thin metal needles rose, from which one might assume was his back, and vibrated emitting a menacing metallic rattle sound.
Immediately a group of these creatures, no smaller than the group of the ponies and the royal guards, rose from the darkness growling furiously and with those needles in his back got up and vibrating menacingly.
"Get out of here, we’ll ... Aagh" Before the royal guard could finish speaking one of those creatures jump out of the mist on one side of the guard and bit him in the neck diving into darkness along with the body of the now dead guard.
"RUN!" Twilight scream terrified and ran along with her friends as the guards were fighting back fiercely with those monsters.
The six ponies were now running through the dark forest for their lives. Suddenly a thought came into the mind of Twilight. Perhaps this was what the unicorn had talked about before left trough the portal? That doesn’t matter now. Now the only thing that should be in her head was escape from those creatures.
They can hear its footsteps behind her. It had already devoured the royal guards that had come with them, and now it chased them. The ponies stop when they see something in front of them. A pair of red points rose from the thick cape of black mist that cover the ground of the forest and didn’t left see anything under the chest height.
They had already seen those red points; it was the eyes of those things. One of the creatures jumps to a branch revealing its form. It was like a wolf as big as a pony and covered by a metallic exoskeleton. Its small and cold eyes full of fury looks like were made of red glowing glass. On its back there were hundreds of long thin needles. Those needles were leaning on the back, but when the creature growled aggressively the needles got up and vibrated emitting a menacing metallic rattle sound.
Twilight looked from side to side but there wasn´t escape, it had surrounded them. This would be her last... again ... again? She wished somepony mysteriously come out from nowhere and saved her as the last time, but how likely was that to happen?
As soon as that thought crossed the mind of Twilight another pair of red eyes appeared in the mist between Twilight and the creature in front, but it weren’t like the eyes of those beings. The eyes that appeared in the mist were reptilian with a cold and soulless glare and when appeared a mass of black mist rose where they were drawing the silhouette of a unicorn.
The creatures like wolves looked t the being of black mist and took a couple of steps away from him before running away. Twilight stared at the image before her. It was clear that that was what had followed the three mysterious ponies. Now the question was whether this creature was friend or foe. Although seeing the kind of creatures that were related to the black mist, Twilight was the only one with some hope, and it wasn't much.
"H-hi I-I’m Twilight sparkle and te-they are ..." Before Twilight over the presentation the creature just suddenly appeared in front of her just at a few centimeters making all jump with fear. The creature was only at centimeters. Centimeters! What would be its next move? Twilight thought about running, but his body wasn’t responding ... What could she do now?
When you think that nothing coul surprise you, is when is likely to something surprise you.
Confuse truth with assumption is simply another form of self deception.
On this world exist the truth and what we want to believe is the truth.
Chapter 3
Lonesoul
"You should go." Said a cold and calm male voice whose origin could not be specified, but that combined well with the cold and soulless eyes of that creature, so it was not difficult to assume that was his. "The weak creatures like you will not last long in this environment."
"Excuse me?" Rainbow Dash pushes Twilight off the way and stood in front of the creature.
"For exist? No."
"Excuse me?" This time Rainbow Dash sound furious, like if she was about to pounce on the creature.
"You already said that." That was it, Rainbow Dash jump ready to pounce on whoever had offended her, but over levitating in the air surrounded by a magical aura, one she knew. "Twilight! Let me go! I’m going to teach a lesson to this fool!" Twilight stepped aside to Rainbow Dash and stood again in front of the black mist creature.
"I apologize for that." Twilight said. "Rainbow Dash is a bit..."
"Arrogant." The creature over the sentence for her in that very cold and soulless tone, which starting to sound a little creepy. "I saw the fight in the city."
"I see ... umm ... " This was a unique opportunity to learn more about those weird ponies, if that creature knew something she should know. "Do you know something about those ponies that attacked Ponyville?"
"Yes." Immediately the creature responded he turned to other side and start to walk.
"Wait! Where are you going?!"
"To complete my mission, I had lost too much time."
"What mission?"
"Disable the black generator."
"Black generator? That is what did this to Everfree forest?"
"Yes."
"Now that's a surprise." Rainbow Dash interrupted. "I would bet that you were the one who caused all this."
"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight rushed to scold his friend and whisper in his ear. "How you think of talk like that to whom saved us! Especially knowing that the creatures we had to flee ran in terror when they saw him! We need him on our side and you are not helping."
"I heard that." Said the creature stopping and turning to the ponies. "My ear is much more sensitive than yours, taking into account that you expected I didn’t hear. And I'm only on one side, my side." The cold voice of the creature made blood run cold, was like he blow ice on them when he spoke, it was creepy. "Also, I was the one who activate the generator."
"I knew it!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed excited.
"But if you activated it ... Why you want to turn it off?" No sense for Twilight, Why disables something that had activated that same morning?
"I active the black generator to make my stay here more comfortable, but it had an unexpected effect."
"We know, it turns the Everfree forest creatures into monsters." Aha, that explains it. He just wanted to be comfortable and didn’t know that what he was doing would cause all these problems, he was not bad after all, was only an accident. It was a relief to know.
"No. The effect on native creatures was expected."
"What?!" He was bad after all. But if these monsters were not the problem meant that the real problem was even worse. "What was the unexpected effect then?!"
"The creatures that followed you are not native creatures affected by the black generator power. Those were native predators of my birthplace. A joker brought them here, and even worse creatures."
"A joker" Pinkie jump from the mist scare killing all her friends, but the black mist creature still stand with cold eyes as usual. "I love jokers, they are fun and always make everypony laugh, are like my. You think I could be a joker? That would be co..."
The mist creature closes the mouth of the overexcited pony with what appeared to be his leg, covered in mist too, and stared her. "This is a joker that won’t make you laugh. Except if, like them, you think the death is funny. The jokers are dangerous. I recommend you, again, to retread, my presence has scared creatures for now. But is almost dusk and stronger creatures, the ones won’t flee until they witness my power for themselves, will go hunting. And I'm not going to stop and save you. As soon they get out of my way, they’ll be your problem. They’ll devour you as they did at your allies."
Fluttershy was shaking with fear, but only a bit more than the rest, except Rainbow Dash. The s pegasus stood stunningly without showing any fear.
"Now listen to me. I don’t know who you think you are or where you came from, but we've saved all Equestria many times, we can with whatever be here." The creature looked at the friends of the pegasus, so she did the same, only then she realized that her friends were shaking ... all of them.
"Sure, you can." Although his voice was as cold as usual, sarcasm could be felt in it. "As for who I am, you can call me Lonesoul, and I'm a Phantom. As from where I come from... from a place much darker than this."
"What the hell is a Phantom?"
"We are very feared and dangerous warriors. Only our name is feared by those who know who we are. And if you think that you and your friends are so strong, take care of the next enemy."
"Of course!" If Rainbow Dash had turned back would have seen the looks of horror on her friends and Fluttershy faint. If Lonesoul were a regular pony would probably be laughing, but as he wasn’t he stood there with the same cold stare. "As soon appears a monster we’ll take care of it."
"As soon appears? How do you expect to defeat him if you don’t even see it come?"
"What?" As Rainbow Dash asked, she and her friends felt a blow on the side that shot into the trees.
"Hailer. They are stronger on full moon nights like this."
The ponies got up dazed and saw the creature that had attacked. A hideous bipedal creature of two floors tall with black skin was stood before them completely ignoring Lonesoul who watched with his cold eyes the situation.
The Hailer was a really nasty being; their limbs were outrageously long and thin, almost skeletal, with fingers ending in sharp black claws that get lost in the black of his body.
His face was not far behind; her mouth had no lips, so they could see his needle-sharp teeth from its black gums to the tip. His reptile eyes were glowing in bloody red such as Lonesoul's eyes, but they didn’t have a cold stare, instead his eyes were full of anger and bloodlust. And to complete the glare, the part of the eye that was usually white in this creature was black.
The monster screamed a cross between a ferocious growl and a cry of pain. As trailed off his scream shining marks in dark blue appeared all over her body while it began to move towards the ponies.
"The moon shows up." They hear said that cold voice that was characteristic of Lonesoul.
Twilight froze terrified by the look of that creature, couldn’t move, couldn’t think ... this would be her last... again ... again?! Twilight thought for a moment, in just two days she had already faced death three times counting that. In the previous two a miracle had saved them. It sounded crazy, but there was no reason to think that this time would be different, besides Lonesoul was there watching, he told he won’t help, but he really didn’t think let them die, right? ... Right?
Darkness consumes everything, true… but...
In the presence of light the darkness retreats.
Chapter 4
Black Energy
The Hailer approached to Twilight walking calmly and extended one of its grotesque claws at her. Twilight was still paralyzed, as if there was some sort of spell on the eyes of the creature.
The creature was about to catch Twilight with its claw, but something hit him in the side knocking him to the ground, something that leaves a trail of color of the rainbow. Twilight saw Rainbow Dash hitting the creature as soon he rose again and again.
"You're not so tough now, right?" Rainbow Dash bragging shouted at the creature, which wasn’t a good idea. The creature took advantage of the carelessness of the pegasus to hit her with his claw leaving four scratch marks on her side. Rainbow Dash fell to the ground being completely immersed in the mist.
Then the creature turned his attention to Twilight, but when he was a few steps of her he turned her gaze to where Rainbow Dash had fallen, as if something important happened there. Twilight did the same and saw nothing, but a few seconds later she look with joy her friend rising from the mist. But his joy faded a bit when she sees that there was something wrong with her.
The right front leg and the right side of the face and chest of Rainbow Dash were covered by strange black marks that emanate a thin layer of black mist.
"I will tear you into pieces." Rainbow Dash's voice sounded different, it was charged with a hate more intense than Twilight had ever known.
Rainbow Dash flew and lunged at the creature, but this fell to the ground before she could reach him. Everypony thought that the creature had crouched to avoid the attack of Rainbow Dash, but when they heard the screams of agony and saw him writhing in pain on the floor, they realized that this wasn’t the case.
Twilight looked around and saw Lonesoul staring at the creature and realized that what was happening to the creature was caused by him. But she was the only one who noticed this. Actually she don’t even know why she was so sure it was him, she just knew it.
Suddenly the screams of agony from the creature stopped and it stood up and one of his claws goes quickly toward Lonesoul. In response he shook his head from right to left and in less than a blink a shadow, like the one that had cut the city hall of ponyville when the mysterious ponies attacked, cut the arm of the Hailer, which fell to the ground sinking into the mist. At that time the other ponies realized that it was he who had attacked the creature.
"Hey! I was taking care of him." Rainbow Dash cries being ignored by Lonesoul and his opponent.
The Hailer covers the bleeding wound on where his arm used to join his torso with his remaining claw in a vague attempt to stop the bleeding. With blood pouring from his wound the wounded being looked at Lonesoul and took a few steps in the opposite direction and ran away, just like had made the creatures like wolves.
Lonesoul did the same nod and a shadow cuts creature's legs. This fell to the ground, but did not sink in completely darkness, his head sticking out the mist and could be see that he used the only arm that was left to drag himself away from Lonesoul.
"Too late to flee." Lonesoul said coldly as usual, but with a hint of malice.
While the creature drag himself away he terrified glanced up and saw a large floating rock surrounded by a thin layer of black energy over his head. Twilight glanced horrified toward Lonesoul, who was standing as if nothing in the same place where he had been since the fight began, then looked back at the creature and saw with even more horror how the aura that made levitate the great rock disappear and this fell on what was left of the creature.
The rock sank Hailer’s head into the mist and the sound of bones and flesh being crushed echoed through the forest. To finish the dreadful spectacle, although fortunately they couldn’t see the skull being crushed by the mist, they could see pieces of flesh, bone and blood splattering everywhere.
Lonesoul look at the ponies, and enjoy their looks of terror, except in one pony.
"Why did you interfere?!" Rainbow Dash Cry furious. "I had it! You said you'd let me take care of the next enemy." The cyan fierce pegasus with those black marks was too busy arguing to notice how her friends watched in horror. They could not believe that after such a horrible show all she cared was not had defeated the creature herself.
"I really would have liked to see it tearing you alive ..." Said Lonesoul pausing to savor the furious glare of Rainbow Dash. "...and believe me when I tell you than that was what I had planned, but that was before you were corrupted by dark energy. You resulted be very weak."
"Weak?! I think you missed the part when I kicked the ass of that thing. And that was just beginning, just before you interfere..."
"You felt as if you had suddenly much more strength than before, your tiredness disappeared as the pain for your injuries."
"Yes. How did you know?"
"Like I said, you were contaminated by dark energy. Weak creatures are the first to be affected. I hoped that you last longer. Now hold there while I remove the excess." Lonesoul extended his foreleg to Rainbow Dash but she dodged this with a jump.
"No way. I will not let you take off this power. It's the coolest thing that has happened to me."
"Rainbow Dash, what are you doing?" Twilight felt she had to make her friend to reason, anything that had to do with dark energy couldn’t be good. "You have to let him help you, that energy is making you..."
"NO! I know what’s happening to you, you’re jealous because you're no longer the most powerful of the group. Well, now I am the strongest of all and I will be even more." The black marks on the body of Rainbow Dash began to spread slowly in her body. "I'll get more of this black energy and makes me the strongest pony of all Equestria! No! I better be ... The World's strongest pony! And I won’t let anyone get into my way, not even you."
"Typical." Lonesoul said. The ponies looked to where he was but he was not there. They looked around looking for him until they found him lying on the branch of a tree looking at them with disdain, as if they look like insects or something like that. "That's what makes the dark energy to those who are not ready to receive its power. Give them power, yes... But not enough, never enough. They always need more and more, and do whatever is necessary to get more. They do not care who or how many die in the process."
"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Everypony's attention turned to Rainbow Dash. The marks had stopped spreading and a tear ran down her cheek. "I'm not a monster!"! It was clear that Lonesoul’s words had affected her deeply.
"No? Just look at you. Black energy has almost completely controlled you. You even see your friends as your enemy, right?" Rainbow Dash look with regret her friends who look her with terror. What happened to her? Certainly Lonesoul was right. She couldn’t believe what she had just said, Twilight was her friend and, indeed, the idea of attack her had crossed his mind. She was turning into a monster, she couldn’t allow it, had to fight with the sudden desire of power. The marks on his body began to slowly fade until there was none.
"I'm really sorry, girls, I don’t know what happened to me. Lonesoul, take out of me the black energy. I don’t want this thing in me anymore."
"I'm afraid that's impossible."
" What?!" Shouted all ponies at the same time.
"I said I would take out the excess, not everything. That's not possible, unless you want to die, of course. The dark energy is within all of you for the rest of your lives. Don’t worry; you will not go crazy as your friend. While you not make contact with a lot of dark energy won’t be problems."
"So ..." Twilight looked and sounded worried. At that very moment they were surrounded by that energy, the longer they spend time there more likely was that some of them lost control. "We'd better ... Lets go, I think we will follow your advice and leave it to you."
"Do you surrender? After the far you've come? It look to me that you are already too close like that retreat don’t look as something stupid."
"What?! What are you up to? First you tell us that we should go and now you tell us that we should accompany you. What are you up to?"
"Nothing." Lonesoul jump from the tree and fell continuing the march. "I just thought that a good chess game always needs a few sacrificeable pieces. Are you coming or not?"
Twilight didn’t trust him at all, but that was just another reason to go, now that they could no longer trust the mysterious being they had to ensure for themselves that the mission was completed. Twilight glanced at her friends and only that was enough to realize that her friends thought the same. One by one her friends nodded, even Fluttershy, who couldn’t hide his fear. The ponies go quick to reach Lonesoul to continue his mission. At least now she could count with that Lonesoul would not let them die, but she couldn’t say exactly why.
However, Twilight suspicions were right about something. Lonesoul had not been completely honest in why he wanted them to accompany him. The truth was that it was not normal for someone, or somepony in this case, almost completely consumed by black energy to recover just like that. Black energy was consuming her and suddenly not only stopped when almost completely consumed her, when it was less likely to recover, it completely retreated. That Rainbow Dash was not like the other creatures he had known, she had something different, something special, and he would find out what was that something... at any cost.
A dark soul ... stays dark.
Chapter 5
Black heart
The girls continued walking guided for Lonesoul, who looked sidewise at Rainbow Dash occasionally. The ponies, including Rainbow Dash, started noticed this and, in fact, it began to seem suspicious.
"What are you looking at me?!" Rainbow Dash said almost shouting and with suspicious look.
"Nothing." Replied the accused.
"Do not give me that, I know you've been watching me since we started to walk..."
Lonesoul cover the pegasus mouth, indicate them to make silence and pointed to a small black spot on the bark of a tree. All looked with horror at this little being but his fear vanished when they saw what it was. A kind of black parasprite with red eyes was walking down the tree probably looking for something to eat.
"Do not move." Said softly. "He hasn’t seen us yet.
"Are you afraid of that?!" Rainbow Dash seemed like she was to explode with laughter. "It's just a parasprite." Rainbow Dash finally burst out laughing.
"Not a parasprite, a swarm of parasprites mutated by black energy."
"A swarm? They should be invisible, because I only see one."
"The trees on this area have no leaves."
Rainbow Dash stopped laughing and tries to understand what Lonesoul meant by that trees had no leaves, when she could see them on the branches. She didn’t have too much time to think about that, because when the parasprite saw them gave a shriek and hundreds of red dots appeared on the trees. What she had thought were the leaves of the trees were actually more of these mutant parasprites.
In matter of seconds the bugs surrounded them, flying in circles around them without leaving a single way to escape.
"What do they eat? - Ask terrified Twilight"
"You really want to know? - The cold Lonesoul’s voice answered."
"I’ll distract them, you flee." Rainbow Dash said preparing to fly and face the swarm.
"At least you take responsibility for the problems you causes."
"Do what I say!"
"I could do that or..." Lonesoul stomping hard on the floor and a wave of black mist spread like the blast of an explosion scaring the creatures that had surrounded them. "Lets continue."
"Why you didn't do that from the beginning?"
"Because we just call the attention. Now we can be sure that the joker knows we are going. So, I wanted to avoid unnecessary confrontations like that."
Now it was the girls who kept looking at Lonesoul, what he did was simply amazing. They really believed that they had no salvation and in one move he had fixed everything.
Lonesoul meanwhile showed no interest in the stares of the ponies, he had more important things to worry about. He had to find out what made the pegasus different before she ended making that she and her friends get kill. But, he couldn’t raise suspects; he needed that they don’t notice his interest in the pegasus.
"Why you were sent?" Asked finally.
"Huh?" Twilight, who until now was focused on his thoughts about everything that had happened and what might happen, was surprised by the question. "We were sent to find out what happened in the Everfree forest and fix it."
"No, I mean why you."
"Oh, well, like Rainbow Dash already told you, we have saved Equestria many times before. You see, we are the elements of harmony."
"Elements of Harmony?"
"They are the greatest power known in the kingdom. Each has an element, mine is the magic."
"What are the other elements?"
"Well..."
"Twilight." Applejack whispered to her friend. "Are you sure we can trust that information to him?"
"I can hear you." Because the always cold Lonesoul voice tone was hard to tell if he was upset or not. Of course, the ponies hoped not. "And don’t worry, if you do not tell me I'll find it out anyway, so there's no worry if not tell me what I want to know." It’s clear that these words also don’t inspired confidence.
"Well ..." After some thought Twilight decided to tell. Anyway it's not like that was a big secret, just had to ask anypony and he’ll know immediately what he wanted to know, so it didn’t matter. "The Fluttershy’s element is kindness, Rarity’s element is generosity, Rainbow Dash is loyalty, Applejack honesty, Pinkie Pie the laughter and as I said mine is magic."
"I understand." The element of Pegasus was loyalty ... loyalty ... Would it be loyalty what avoid the black energy consumed her? It was when she saw her friends when black energy back, so it was possible that the loyalty to her friends was the cause of it.
"Do you understand?" Everyone, even Lonesoul, turned to Rainbow Dash. "How can you say you understand if you do not know the names of four of us?"
"Not only spoken with words. And what is your interest in questioning me?"
"Do not change the subject. And what's that about not only spoken with words?"
"Simple." Lonesoul continued walking and left his voice expresses some disinterest and arrogance, as if what he was saying was something even a child should know. "It doesn’t need a genius to know that the pink híperexcitable pony is the carrier of the element of laughter, and when she mention the name of Rarity looked at the other unicorn. There were only two elements, honesty and kindness, which are easy to pair with the orange and the pegasus pony respectively."
"How you see Twilight looking Rarity if you turned to her while she talk?"
"Not only see with the eyes, and stop questioning me." Lonesoul stopped in front of a cave and turned to the ponies. "Now stay here."
"Why? Am I bothering you?"
"Yes. But that's not the why. The generator is inside the cave and if you get closer... well, you know that you and black energy don’t mix."
Rainbow Dash looked suspiciously at Lonesoul with some displeasure for not being able to accompany her friends but finally give in. "Okay. Take care of my friends. If they return with a scratch..."
"Calm down. They’ll continue breathing when we return. You should care more for yourself. You will stay here alone, exposed to any attack."
"I'll be fine. You can relax." Added quickly when she saw the concern of her friends. "Continue without me."
The group continued with its mission. The friends of Rainbow Dash couldn’t stop worrying about her. They really disliked the idea of leave her behind, but they couldn’t risk that again she went crazy.
As they progressed they began to see more and more of some strange black crystals. "Don’t touch the crystals, it have black energy. Not much, but enough to completely consume you."
Besides the crystals, Twilight noticed that no matter how much they entering the cave it don’t become dark, it was very strange, but she assumed it was an effect of black energy. They had not ventured more than fifty yards when they came to an abyss.
"Don’t worry Lonesoul." Twilight said. "I can teleport us to the other side ... Lonesoul?" Lonesoul continued walking as if he had not heard her, getting closer and closer to the abyss. "Are you listening?"
When Lonesoul was a couple of steps from the abyss a bridge of black mist began to spread and he continued to walk on this. When he was in the middle of the bridge he turned and looked at the faces of the surprised ponies.
"Are you coming or not?"
Twilight approached the bridge and touched it. The structure was solid, though it was cold as ice. The unicorn stood on it and told her friends that they can continue.
"How did you do that?"
"The matter in its most basic form is energy. The energy can become matter."
"Then you can turn that black energy into what you want?"
"No. It requires a lot of concentration to convert energy into matter. Materialize appliances with many moving parts or large objects is difficult. Besides, I can only make black energy in a material."
"What material?"
"We call it Crosys. It is a unique material not found in nature."
Wow. Twilight could not believe her ears. It can materialize objects with magic, but that new material Crosys, Black energy. Everything was so new and exciting! It was amazing! She couldn't believe that nopony had written about such interesting things!
"We are here." Once again the voice of Lonesoul Twilight awoke from his thoughts.
In front of the ponies there was a metallic cylinder embedded in the rock floor with a small glass window. Around the cylinder there was no black mist, so they could see some strange black marks and circles on the floor around the object. Through the window in the cylinder they could see a small black crystal, such as that formed throughout the cave.
Lonesoul approached the cylinder and extended a foreleg at the window. Twilight expected that he open or break the glass, but as soon as he touches the glass his foreleg pass through it like if it wasn’t there. He takes out the crystal and the marks in the floor disappeared along with all the black mist. The crystals that grew in the cave became into rock and the cave gradually darkened until they couldn’t see anything.
"Who turned out the lights?" Pinkie said as a joke, one that might have been a bit more humorous if her friends weren’t scared to death because they were plunged into darkness. Twilight lit the place and saw that Lonesoul was no longer next to the cylinder. She looked back the way they had come and saw him walking away."
The ponies went quickly to reach him but before they did it he jumped aside just in time to avoid a huge black sphere that fell from the darkness crush him. The ponies run to Lonesoul to see if was okay and realized that something was embossed on the sphere.
It was a mask of theater, the comedy one. But it was not normal; there was something sinister on it. The smile had sharp teeth and there was malice in his expression. The expression was like if it were happy for doing something bad, like a bad joke or maybe something more evil.
"You knew we were coming." Lonesoul said. "What's the catch?"
"If you knew it wouldn’t be as fun." They heard a jovial and mocking voice from the darkness.
"Who's there?" Twilight had a bad feeling.
"Who do you think?" Lonesoul answered. "It comes with a mask of comedy and believes that all the problems he has caused are some funny jokes."
"The Joker."
"Bravo." Joker's voice answered the deduction of Twilight. "Now I know why you are considered the smartest of the group." Twilight smiled proudly. "Don’t smile, believe me, is not as great as you think." Said this, laughter echoed in the cave.
"No more talks." Lonesoul stopped the Joker laughing. "Something falling from the ceiling above me is a very mediocre trap for someone from your class. Tell me, what is the real trap, piece of scum?"
"No. JAJAJAJAJA"
"I will destroy you anyway."
"What attitude, typical of a Phantom, you're all killjoys. I'll give you a hint to cheer you up. Do you see that I'm not so bad?"
"Speak the fuck up."
"The surprise is waiting at the front door."
"Rainbow Dash ..." Immediately Lonesoul said the name of the Pegasus, he ran down the road to the entrance followed by the other ponies.
Lonesoul created the bridge over the abyss and cross it with the other ponies and then a question came to his mind. Was I worried? The answer was clear to him, yes, he was. But... why? He never before worried about anyone, it wasn’t normal, the Phantom never cared about anyone except when ... No, it was impossible. But the question was why? Was it for his interest in her for rid of the black energy control? Yes, that must be the why.
Finally, they see the light announcing that they approached the exit of the cave. A few steps from the cave were a lump of cyan color. As they approached they could distinguish wings, and a characteristic color of rainbow mane. It was Rainbow Dash! She was lying motionless on the floor, they had to hurry.
They get more and more close, they were really close. Lonesoul suddenly stopped and motioned for the ponies to do the same.
"What are you doing? We have to help Rainbow Dash!"
"That's not Rainbow Dash."
The cyan pegasus stood up and turned to the other ponies revealing a devilish grin on his face, one that reminded the one that was embossed on the black sphere that had fallen from the ceiling.
"Bravo." Said the pegasus. "You found it out; I guess I'm very predictable." Said that, black mist covered her entire body until they could see nothing of her. The mist disappeared as quickly as it appeared revealing a black earth pony with a mask of comedy equal to the one in the black sphere.
"Who are you? Where is Rainbow Dash?" Twilight was very worried about what might happen to her friend, there was something devilish in that pony mask. Perhaps she was dead or worse, maybe ... No, she can’t think about that. Rainbow Dash was strong, she wouldn’t be hurt easily and she should keep hope.
"No idea. She went crazy after giving him a gift." As he finished speaking in his particular voice broke into laughter. Which make Lonesoul get mad. "Jealous? I saw the way you looked her in the way here."
"You're dead." He answered angrily.
Twilight on the other hand was not even paying attention. She looked from side to side looking for anything that would give a hint of where his friend was. Without seeing anything she had another idea of how to discover where her friend was.
"Lonesoul, you feel the presence of that creature before it was in sight. Can you find Rainbow Dash?"
"No." The creature replied curtly. Twilight was about to scream angrily when the joker interrupted.
"I hope you have not put all your faith in him. Without black energy around he can’t even tie a rope." Once again the creature ended with laughter.
"What are you talking about?" Asked confused the unicorn. Lonesoul had been able to build the bridge without black energy around him, so he didn’t need to be in contact with the mist to use his powers.
"It's an exaggeration, obviously." Lonesoul answered." Although I can’t sense the presence of creatures around me, I can fight with all my potential, but without black energy around me to recharge I become weak quickly. Fortunately the joker is subject to the same limitations, so I can still easily kill him. "Lonesoul walks toward the joker ready to destroy him."
"Then it’s fortunate that it’s not me who will fight you."
As soon as he stopped talking, Lonesoul jumped back just in time to prevent something hit him, something that leave a trail of rainbow colors behind.
"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight could not believe her eyes. Rainbow Dash lunged again and again against Lonesoul trying to hit him, fortunately he dodged all. "What are you doing?"
Rainbow Dash stopped and stayed fluttering in the air revealing her body completely covered by the black marks.
"What do you think? I show who is weak to this fool." Once answered the question the Pegasus continued his series of attacks.
While Twilight and her friends tried in vain to reason with Rainbow Dash, the joker was writhing on the floor unable to contain his laughter. Then in a quick movement Lonesoul not only evade the pegasus but also make her hit a rock at the entrance of the cave. The friends of the now furious Pegasus were in silent, now aware that they could be sure that nothing would make her to reason, letting the laughter of the joker, that now were stronger, echo in all the cave.
It was clear that Lonesoul had passed from defensive to offensive. He had by far the advantage, whenever Rainbow Dash lunged, he make the same move making her hit strongly the rocks until Rainbow Dash get dazed.
With the skill of his opponent reduced, Lonesoul could handle it easily. In the next time Rainbow Dash lunged, Lonesoul made the same move throwing her against a rock, but this time he pounced on her before she got up and immobilized her. That was it; all he had to do was remove it black energy of her. Lonesoul was concentrated, but ... nothing. He couldn’t take out the black energy of her.
"You didn’t think it would be so easy, right?" The look on Rainbow Dash's face had changed; it wasn’t the expression of a dazed pony, now was a diabolical and arrogant expression. She brought his face close to Lonesoul and whisper. "I'm going to destroy you."
The pegasus kick his opponent throws him at several feet. That was all; take care of her wouldn’t be as easy as he thought. He had never met anyone who caused him so much trouble. Again Rainbow Dash was on him, but this time cut short just as she was past him and kicked him. Lonesoul could hardly avoid the blow; it was becoming faster, his skill increased every second that black energy remained in control of her.
He had to fix it quickly, that he wasted energy fighting with her was just what the joker wanted. Maybe kill her? No, he could not kill her ... Why he couldn’t kill her? Does his research interest him so much? No. It was something else but ... what? No time to think about it ... Another pegasus attack, this time brushing against his target.
The only option was to break his concentration. Could attack his mind as he had done with the Hailer, his kind was famous for that, but ... Lonesoul glanced at the Joker kept laughing loudly, he could not spend energy on the fight. He had to ... Hit.
Lonesoul had lowered his guard while thinking and Rainbow Dash had not hesitated to take advantage of it. He fell and his enemy got him up with a hit and immobilized him against a rock. However, she saw something, a purple glow behind her. She knew what it was, Twilight was about to use her magic. What a pain. The pegasus spread his wings ready to escape as fast as she could, but she saw something unexpected. The glow disappeared and suddenly she hears exclamations of surprise from her friends.
"It's bad manners to meddle in the affairs of others." The joker, as usual, ended with laughter watching the magical barrier that had been created between the two ponies in duel and the others, who now returned to their attempts to make her friend to reason.
Rainbow Dash returned his attention to his opponent, but what she didn’t know was that the distraction had given him time to think in a solution. But ... that was really the only solution? Sure. He had thought of every possible solution and there was no other. It was not like he wanted...
Rainbow Dash lifted her leg ready to deliver the final blow. It was now or never, Lonesoul should make his move.
The whole cave was silent. The ponies were silent unable to believe what was happening before their eyes and the joker had suspended their laughter and now lay motionless watching what was happening.
"I am not crazy enough to hallucinate something like this." Said the joker in the most serious tone he'd had in his life, but that doesn’t say really much.
Rainbow Dash, like everyone was still in shock while Lonesoul held his lips against her in a warm, soft kiss. Success. Rainbow Dash had broken his concentration, was his chance.
Gradually the black marks on the body of the pegasus began to disappear. The pegasus began to struggle to get rid of the kiss, but was in vain.
As the marks faded so did Rainbow Dash struggles until she answered the kiss and continued so until the marks fully disappear.
Lonesoul finally broke the kiss at see its purpose completed. Rainbow Dash stepped back and only then could reason. What had just happened? What really happened?
Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to express these questions when Lonesoul slapped her knocking her out on the act and leaving three scratch marks on his face. The mist in his foreleg disappear revealing three sharp daggers embedded in his hoof, then the mist cover it again and turned his attention to the joker like if was to him to who he teaches those sharp daggers.
"That was cold, cruel and heartless." The Joker do still speak the same mocking and jovial tone, which considering the situation was really annoying. "But considering who you are may be considered that you have improved your attitude. Now, I leave." The creature became a mass of black mist and flew away at high speed.
The barrier separating the ponies disappeared and they ran worried for their friend. Rarity turned to Lonesoul with a furious glare.
"This is the most cruel and less gentlemanly act I have ever seen in my life. You kiss her and a few seconds later you attack her. What’s wrong with you?!"
"Better get out. I'll finish the mission alone."
"Are you listening?!"
"What do you mean by finish the mission?" Ask a little calmer Twilight but with the same furious glare of Rarity.
"You don’t think that was the only generator, right? There's more. I will deactivate it alone; you caused me enough trouble already." Lonesoul turned his back and walked on into the forest and into the next generator.
Twilight hated to leave everything to him, but had no choice, Rainbow Dash was very ill and had to take her to the hospital, and ... that place was horrible, black energy was leaving her an uncomfortable feeling. Anger, sadness, pain ... emotions that arose inside from nowhere, she don’t wanted to be there more time, especially with someone like Lonesoul. But there was something she should do first.
"Lonesoul, wait." Lonesoul turned to the lavender pony foreseeing what she will say. "Tell us what you know of those ponies that attacked Ponyville."
"Polite people say please."
"Don't provoke me."
"Controller scum."
"What?!" Twilight's horn glow purple while it loads with magic and hatred in her eyes intensified.
"Not you, them. Power-hungry scum. Traitors who will be punish."
"What can you told us of them apart that you hate them?"
"In the world I come from my race is known as the most powerful in the universe. Traveler worked for us, a brilliant scientist with trouble to follow orders. He never bears than his race wasn’t in charge. So he decided to change that, using our own resources for their own research. We soon realize it, but it was not a threat, so we just keep an eye on him."
"What was he investigated?" Twilight turned and saw Rainbow Dash up. Judging by her question she had been paying attention to the conversation.
"Power, he was seeking power. He did not seem as a threat. Until one day he appeared with those cores, a power source never seen before. We went after him, but we didn’t count with Chaos, his old friend, was stupid enough to join him. Hiding like rats survived until the devices were full working. The controller. I witnessed its power, that thing allowed them to manipulate the laws of nature, was very dangerous.
"What did you do?"
"We attacked with everything, ready to end at once for all with them, but we didn’t count with a skill of the controller. At the last second they opened a portal with characteristics never seen before. The General decided that follow them would be very risk, but I'm not good at following orders, or being a coward. I reopened the portal and followed them. It was a new world. There wasn’t a parallel dimension, or another universe. It was a completely different reality with its own laws and forces. World by world I followed them. I watched as his powers evolved, not only could manipulate natural laws, they created and destroy matter and energy, until we arrived here."
"What happened when you arrived here?" Before Lonesoul could answer a loud roar echoed in the distance.
"Enough talk. I've lost too much time with you. I will only say one last thing. Controllers are abominations that go against the laws of nature. Expect nothing but wickedness from them." Said that Lonesoul left the same way the joker did.
Rainbow Dash walks to where Lonesoul was before left and look the trees back to normal. "We must go. I want to leave this site as soon as possible."
None of her friends objected, frankly neither wanted to continue on that site. Nopony had said anything, but dark energy began to affect them as Twilight. This time they’ll do what Lonesoul said, certainly they not trust him, but they had no choice, Black energy was... they don’t really know what it was, but no longer wanted to be near it.
Fortunately the part of forest they had "cleaned up" was on the verge of the forest, so no more black energy nor creatures was found in the way to Ponyville. As soon they arrived to Ponyville Rainbow Dash got carried to hospital. Of course she did it reluctantly and only to please her friends. She thought that was unnecessary to go to the hospital for a couple of scratches on the face and the flank. Fluttershy, who was the most worried of all, accompany Rainbow Dash to the hospital while the others went home to rest.
While bandaged to Rainbow Dash a memory popped into his mind. A warm kiss ... a slapped ... It had no sense. She had kissed many times before, but none had been like that. It was an unexplainable feeling, the best kiss of her life.
But not only remembered the kiss. Rainbow Dash touched the wound on his face. Three long thin marks ranging from the bottom of his eye through his cheek to his jaw. Why had he done that? Who kiss her like that never would have done that. For how it felt ... that kiss was the kiss of a tender lover, she knew it. Why? Perhaps... he was pretending to be bad? Why would he do that? She feels so ... confused.
"Are you okay Rainbow Dash?" Fluttershy’s concerned voice pulled the pegasus out of his reverie. The yellow pegasus approached her with worried eyes and spoke in an altered voice that contrasted with her usual shy voice. "Is something wrong? Does it hurt the wound? What if the clutches of that black mist monster were poisoned?" She takes the doctor by his shoulders and shook him violently and uncontrollably. "Was poisoned right? How much time she left? You cannot let her die! You have to do something!"
"FLUTTERSHY!" Rainbow Dash's scream interrupted her friend agitation, who finally stopped shaking the doctor. "I'm fine, I was just thinking."
"Oh ..." Fluttershy's voice returned to his usual shy tone. "I'm sorry." She apologized to the dizzy and disoriented doctor.
"What were you thinking?" Twilight entered the room making Rainbow Dash turn her head, but not in her direction. The pegasus doesn’t want her to see that she was blushing. "It's something wrong?"
"No, nothing." What the hell happened to her? She was the coolest pegasus in Ponyville, no, in all Equestria. It has no sense to blush for thinking in the kiss that gave her a jerk in the middle of a fight, only to hit her later. Immediately she thought on this the blush on her face disappeared along with her sense of confusion, which was replaced by a feeling a lot easier to understand for her, hate. "I wasn't thinking in anything. Everything is fine."
"If you say so." Was easy for Twilight to realize that something was bothering her but didn’t want to be her who bothers. She must have had enough with what black energy had done; surely that was what she was thinking.
"What are you doing here? I thought you were going to write to the princess with everything that happened and get some rest."
"I was a little worried about you and..."
"I told you I'm fine." Now was she who bothered her. It would be best to leave her alone; Rainbow Dash had already been through a lot.
~ L ~
CRASH! BOOM! ZWANG! Attack after attack, all failed. Lonesoul had defeated a Hailer before. If that joker really thought that with increasing the number to ten would be the difference was even more stupid than he looked.
One, two, three, four...... eight, nine and ten. As easy as count the Hailers now lay in pieces on the ground. The path to the generator would be very easy. Confront a Phantom was a grave error by part of the joker, the last in fact. He was ready to put an end to all this.
But ... was not his mission what worry him. He could complete more dangerous missions without moving a hair. What worried him was the memory that really refused to leave his mind even in the midst of a fight. I guess people reading this can imagine what it is. That kiss was actually their first kiss, which was expected taking into account that he has always had that attitude.
Although it was only a tactical move, that kept bothering. The Phantom doesn’t have emotions, especially him, or so was supposed. His breed saw the emotions as a weakness and he had always ensured don’t have any. The blow... Why he did it? He had do it to teach a lesson to that creature or just had done that to make sure that she hated him and stay away from him. Had he become into one of those pathetic Phantoms that still having emotions and feared anything that might arouse some feeling?
He could not deny his interest in the creature, he had told himself that it was only interested in his particular ability to get rid of black energy, but was it true?
Lonesoul stopped their march and look at the moon. Certainly that was true. He is Lonesoul, feared even among his own. The Phantom exiled from the lair for doing everything at his way. He still being part of the clan, of course, they wouldn’t expel someone with his power. But his daring had done to be hated by his superiors until they simply push him aside. He was a legend. He was a lone wolf, a lone soul. And nothing would change that. Now he should stop wasting time on nonsense about emotions that was impossible he had and concentrate on his mission. There were many generators to turn off and a joker and other creatures to tear into pieces.
Now the real war began. He will kill the joker and everything that get in his way. Only that matter now. Lonesoul looked down and continued his way ready for the coming battle.
