Dimensional Chronicles

Waking the Blades.
(Any links are to music I consider fitting for the scene.)
The best words to describe the between world they were flying through were beautifully abstract. Lyra and crew were flying through a massive cave of luminescent purple crystal, small islands each with their own ecosystem floated through the air. They could see themselves cloaked by a veil of white energy reflected on the walls making it look like they were surrounded by comets.

"Incredible." Rarity whispered. "I would probably sell my shop to get my hooves on a piece of that crystal." Five of the ponies were marveling at their surroundings, while Twilight and Lyra were talking over strategies.
"Lyra."
"Yes Twilight."
"You said the daggers would be our first allies, what did you mean?"
"The daggers are nameless zanpakto, once unsheathed a spirit will bind itself to it giving the blade a name which when called will give it power."
"How do you learn its name?"
"You simply meditate with the sword, try to feel it entering your mind, simply find it and help it along. Once you get that far it's different for everyone."

Lyra stopped talking staring at their destination in horror.
"Lyra what's wrong?" Twilight asked she looked and saw a massive complex of open roofed corridors.
"That's the Seireitei."
"So we're going to the wrong dimension. Just cast the spell again."
"No it's the right dimension."
"Then what's the problem?"
"That's the capital of the one place I was worried we would land in. That's where Kenpachi comes from and they don't take kindly to unwelcome visitors." Everypony cringed but this was not the level of fear Lyra had been hoping to inspire. "They're going to hunt us down and kill us!" This worked and they all screamed.

"Alright, now that everypony has a handle on how serious this is we need to get into order to best survive, I don't want you goofing off on me now. First grab a landing buddy if we hit halfway through the barrier you're gonna need one, second make sure your sword is strapped tightly onto your body and thirdly if we hit outside the barrier... it was an honor serving with you." Applejack and Rainbow grabbed Rarity, Pinkie jumped onto the closest pony which happened to be Fluttershy and Twilight grabbed onto the stone faced Lyra who started speaking almost as fast as Pinkie Pie.

"If you encounter a captain most would say run, but anypony who's spent time around them knows that running will be about as useful as throwing a pegasus down pillow at them. There are ten captains currently, one of which you've already met. Captain Yamamoto head of first division is an old man but stronger than most creatures could even imagine his zanpakto's name is Ryūjin Jakka, at it's basic level it is a massive wall of fire that he can command. Suì-Fēng is head of the second division and the stealth force, she has the appearance of a young woman with two massive braids, her zanpakto is Suzumebachi it appears to be a claw but if it hits you in the same spot twice you will die. The third division currently has no captain. Retsu Unohana is captain of the fourth division, she appears to be a middle aged woman, her zanpakto is named Minazuki, her powers are mostly for healing so she may be the one captain you can run from. The fifth division currently has no captain. Byakuya Kuchiki is captain of the sixth division, he has the appearance of a young man, he is most easily identified by the white holders he keeps his hair in, his zanpakto is named Senbonzakura it is a swarm of minute blades do not run from him under any circumstances. Sajin Komamura is captain of the seventh division, he has the head of a dog so he should be easy to identify, his zanpakto is named Tenken it creates a giant that mimics his movements. Shunsui Kyōraku is captain of the eighth division, he is most easily identified by his pink floral print robe, he is more likely to simply stall you with pleasant conversation than attack you so if you do encounter a captain pray that it's him, his zanpakto is named Katen Kyōkotsu I actually never got to see this one. Ninth division currently has no captain. Tōshirō Hitsugaya is captain of the tenth division, he has the appearance of a child with white hair, he is surprisingly easy to goad, his zanpakto is named Hyōrinmaru it takes on the shape of a dragon made of ice which he can command or that of a pair of wings. You already know the eleventh division captain. Mayuri Kurotsuchi is captain of the twelfth division, he is easily identifiable by his massive headdress and facepaint, his zanpakto is named Ashisogi Jizō if you are cut by this you will be paralyzed then you can consider yourself as good as dissected, probably awake and screaming. Jūshirō Ukitake is captain of the thirteenth division, he appears to be a sickly man with long white hair, his zanpakto is named Sōgyo no Kotowari I never got to see this one either. Brace for impact!"

They popped out of the between space and briefly hit something solid before bursting through, Lyra relaxed which Twilight guessed meant that they had hit halfway through the barrier so she relaxed too for a second before they started spinning and she had to hold on for dear life.
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Rarity clutched her friends as they spun out of control still coated in the white light. Rarity tried to establish some sort of balance but all she could see were Rainbow, Applejack and the buildings rapidly approaching them.
"We are going to die!" one of them screamed just before they hit.
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"Weeee!" Pinkie cheered as she and Fluttershy careened towards a building with the same symbol that Kenpachi had been wearing on the front. "Woo hoo!" Pinkie raised her hooves as one would do on a roller coaster sending a shrieking Fluttershy flying off in another direction. "Oops..." Was all she had time to say before she crashed through the building's roof.
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Twilight and Lyra crashed with a deafening boom, once Twilight was sure they had stopped moving she opened her eyes and lowered her hands from her face only to bring them back up again. I have hands! She examined the rest of her body, she was one of Kenpachi's species. Why am I like this? I shouldn't be like this. A thought that wasn't quite hers shot through her mind and she pushed it aside. She didn't have time to deal with any mental anomalies. She looked up to Lyra who was sitting cross legged in a robe similar to Yachiru's.

Twilight tried to stand up and ended up falling flat on her face.
"That's not how you walk in this body." Lyra pointed out without turning around.
"Huh?" Twilight was dazed by the impact to her head.
"Hind legs." Twilight carefully got up with more success and walked over behind Lyra who turned around, eyes closed. "Now Twilight do you- urk!" Lyra opened her eyes, grabbed her nose and turned back around.
"What's wrong, am I on fire or something."
"Twilight, you're naked."
"And? It's not like we wear cloths normally."
"I just forgot about it." Lyra turned back around. "You remember what I told you on the way in here?"
"Yes."
"Good, then you can take it from here, I'll set up some wards."

Twilight sat down cross legged grabbed the dagger from her saddlebag and unsheathed it. The dagger grew into the katana equivalent of a longsword. "Wow you're just a little powerhouse aren't you?" Twilight blushed as she always did when somepony complemented her power. What do I have to be embarrassed about? Twilight again pushed away the thought that wasn't quite hers. There was a sort of popping sound and a robe like Lyra's came into existence around her body. She placed the blade across her lap and concentrated looking for some spark from the sword, some tendril from her mind to its. Twilight had practiced meditation while under Celestia's tutelage so the dive into her own mind was simple.

She opened her eyes and the world was black. She could see nothing in the darkness, then a light soft and, purple broke through the shadows. She followed it to its source, a glowing blade, ethereal and flowing next to a black blade that looked as if it was the shadow the glowing one would cast, they were linked together by a grey chain that seemed to be rising above them. She grabbed the chain and the world exploded into white. She covered her eyes with her hooves to no avail until the light faded, she was surrounded by shelves of books.

Outside Lyra tapped her shoulder to make sure she was under.
"I forgot how... disarming the human form can be." She thought out loud. A nagging voice that came from being married surfaced in her mind. "I was married, not blinded I can look at whomever I like. Oh Faust, I'm already talking to myself." She looked out through the barriers she had set up. I hope the others can make it alright.
"Hoo." The owl swooped down and landed on her shoulder.
"Owlowiscious, I almost forgot about you."
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Rarity kept her eyes closed until she was sure she had stopped moving, something felt different she just couldn't put her finger on it. She opened her eyes to find herself between two large fleshy bodies, a streak of rainbow hair passed through her line of sight she followed it with her eyes back to its point of origin which happened to be one of the creatures she was sandwiched between, both of whom had their eyes squeezed shut.

"Rainbow Dash?" The creature opened its eyes and looked down at her.
"Who else?" The voice was Rainbow's but the face belonged to one of Kenpachi's species.
"Uh Rainbow." Applejack on the other side had also opened her eyes and was staring at her friend unaware that she was in a similar state.
"Applejack, Rainbow; darlings brace yourselves." She levitated a shard of glass from the floor between them, giving them each a good look at themselves. Rarity clamped down on their mouths before they could scream. "Now girls we have made enough commotion with our landing and if you remember correctly anything we come into contact with will try to kill us, so we don't need to be drawing any further attention to ourselves."
"Attention guard squads a group of ryoka have entered the Seireitei, capture if possible, resistance is to be met with lethal force." A voice boomed across the area delivering commands that were not to be ignored

"Case and point." Rarity stated. "Now we are going to need weapons. Luckily Lyra supplied us with some before we went in." Rarity opened her saddlebag and removed her blade from its sheath, it instantly blossomed into a rapier-like katana. She gave it a few test swings and thrusts, it was balanced perfectly.

"Whoa!" Applejack nearly fell over as her dagger leaped to great sword proportions, she overcompensated in the way back up and swung it over her head. She picked it up more gingerly. "It don' hardly weigh nothin'. Musta' caught me by surprise." Rainbow looked down at her own sword with disappointed eyes. It was more of a shortsword, designed to be fast but not as impressive as Applejack's or Rarity's. Three robes popped into existence around their bodies but they just figured it came with the swords

"We should get out of here and find a better place to lodge long enough to think of a way to find our friends."
"I think I saw a place just before we hit." Rainbow offered.
"Sounds good, lead the way." Rainbow tried to take off only to land on her butt.
"My wings! Not again." They heard voices from behind the wall they hadn't destroyed.
"Now may not be the best time to worry about that darling."

As it turned out the place that Rainbow had spotted was just around the corner, although seeing as the Seireitei seemed to be made up of massive corridors this was still quite a distance. Once there they ducked inside the small deserted building and Rarity disguised the entrance with illusionary magic. Applejack immediately sat down with the sword and closed her eyes seeming to fall asleep for a moment.
"Applejack, what are you doing?" Rarity asked staring at the farmmare with a cocked eyebrow.
"Ah heard Lyra n' Twi talkin' 'bout how ta wake up the swords."
"Mind telling us before you go and do it yourself." Rainbow scowled at her.
"Sorry Ah hadn't thought a' that. Ya just sit with the sword an' concentrate, try ta feel the swords mind enterin' yer own. Meanin' sit still Rainbow."

Dash Groaned but sat down with her sword across her lap and closed her eyes. Rarity also sat with her blade looking inward searching for the tendrils of another mind. She opened her eyes to a black world, the only light came from something silver in the distance, she ran towards it finding that the faster she moved the farther away the light seemed to get so she slowed down to a canter and the source of the light seemed to fly towards her, it was a silver arrowhead which impacted her chest bathing the world in white light. When the light faded she was in a cave filled with gems of every shape, size and color.
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Rainbow knew that sitting still would be the hardest part of this so she flitted around in her minds eye looking for anything out of place, The blackness was pierced by a pair of silver wings that she ran headfirst into. Once the light faded she found herself on her back looking up at a very angry looking winged hominid.
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Applejack had actually started practicing meditation after the "Applebucking Season" incident to prevent another scene like that, not that she would admit it especially to Rarity, the little fussbucket would probably hold it over her head for the rest of her life. Part of honesty was knowing when to keep your mouth shut.

Applejack was actually able to find her item by listening for it, it was a pair of old worn looking boots that made quite a lot of noise as they moved around. She touched them and the world exploded into white when the light faded she was in a golden field standing across a table from a hominid in a suit.
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"Whee Let's go again!" Pinkie yelled as she hopped out of her crater. She was surrounded by confused looking soul reapers. A bald one stepped forward.
"What the hell are you?" He asked poking her mane.
"I'm Pinkie Pie and you're bald." Pinkie replied rubbing his dome.

"Attention guard squads a group of ryoka have entered the Seireitei, capture if possible, resistance is to be met with lethal force." The bald one looked away for a moment before grinning at her.
"Figures you would land in squad eleven's barraks."
"Squad eleven..." Pinkie drooped as she remembered the terrible strength Kenpachi had wielded. "AAAHHH." She tried to bolt for the exit but reapers soon covered all possible exits, she was trapped. The bald one and several others closed in on her, he pressed the tip of his sword to her throat.
"Go ahead, make my day." he growled at her. One of them cut open her saddlebag and the dagger fell onto her hoof, the world froze.
"Well this is disappointing." A very cross looking bipedal lizard stepped out from behind the bald one's head.
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Fluttershy's head was spinning even though the rest of her had stopped moving a few minutes before the voice had announced that she and her friends were to be captured. Once the world stopped spinning she retreated into the still intact rafters and pulled out her dagger, after unsheathing it the sword blossomed into a scimitar that bent back on itself. Fluttershy marveled at how the how the handle seemed to be glued to her hoof for a second before she felt it reaching out to her and the world went dark.

She carefully struck out into the darkness heading towards a small yellow light that seemed to beacon her closer. It was coming from a helmet that swooped onto her head bathing the world in white. Once the light faded she found herself in a dense jungle.
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Twilight had started going through the books, there were thousands of them but all were books she had read. She was sitting with one of her favorites when a figure walked up behind her, it cleared its throat to get her attention. Twilight turned around, the hominid had a calming female face, she was wearing a flowing purple and black robe decorated with archaic symbols.

"Miss Twilight, I see you've been enjoying our home." The being smiled gently her voice like silk.
"I have miss..." The being laughed
"Oh it's not going to be that easy, you know that Twilight."
"It was worth a shot, then how do I earn your name?"
"I'll get to that but for now you may call me A. I like questions and riddles Twilight, I especially enjoy questions that make you think but I am frustrated by the number of these that are just ridiculous and not worth anythings time. Such as my least favorite, 'which came first, the chicken or the egg?' The egg came first evolution tells us this, but there is one question in this mind that really catches my attention, one that has plagued you since before you came here. Why wouldn't Vamprah help you?"
"I'm immune to the proce-"

"Oh come now Twilight, we both know he was lying. Though the process is similar shadow leeches and Vamprah's bite are quite different as exampled by Princess Luna. The shadow leeches simply devour all they can get, Vamprah only drains the physical, any immunity comes from mental fortitude, so how can you be immune physically?" Twilight opened her mouth to respond but found herself unable to think of anything to say.
"He lied to me? Why would he do that?"

"That's the thing isn't it. What side effect would be so terrifying that Vamprah would refuse to go through with it even after seeing how dedicated you were? I already know, but you don't, Vamprah thinks he wiped it clean from you, but we know better, don't we?" Her eyes flashed black, her voice became gruff and male on the last two words before reverting back. "That is how you earn my name, find the one book that doesn't belong and answer your question." There was a flash of lightning and she was gone.

Twilight paced through the halls searching for any obvious differences, something in the binding or the shelves that she wouldn't recognize, the library was huge. Twilight briefly regretted having read so much. There was one thing she didn't recognize, on the end of every shelf of books there was a plaque that read.
"When the shadows turn so does the door. What the hay does that mean?" She reached the center of the library which held a ball of light which appeared to be the only light source and a large rub emblazoned with her cutie mark. The rug was a large circle with a border that was wide enough to walk on. She looked from the light source to the border of the rug. "When the shadows turn so does the door." If she walked around the border her shadow would effectively turn around. She walked calmly around the edge, once halfway through there was a sound like a gong being struck she waited a moment but nothing happened so she kept walking, once she got back to the other side there was a painful noise like stone grinding on stone. The Five white stars on the rug fell through the floor and the large one turned black before tearing itself apart and reforming as a serpentine head, the center of which flipped over revealing a pedestal.

Twilight cautiously walked up to it, on the pedestal was a book much different from the others. The binding was metal, the pages seemed to be made from some kind of stiffened leather and it was emblazoned with the same face as the rug was. This book felt evil, every one of her senses rebelled at being this close to it but she wanted it, she wanted to open the book and absorb whatever resided within, she wanted to unleash the power she felt bound to it, her magic would make lifting the steel cover a breeze, it would be so easy. But it was wrong everything about this book was wrong, no matter how much she wanted it. She backed away from it terrified of what might have happened if she had given in.

"Congratulations." There was another flash and A was standing between her and the book. "You have not only answered your question but proved yourself above his control."
"Who's control?"
"The being that scared Vamprah into not helping you. Vamprah was worried that by helping you he would release him."
"You mean-"
"Yes this creature is nestled in your mind, Vamprah was unaware that he was harboring it and transferred it to you. My name is Arukana." Twilight vanished from the inner world as she woke up. "Shadō, let's get this game started." Arukana's shadow distended rising from the floor, it became a billowing black being. The only features distinguishable on it were its shining eyes and its shark-like teeth caught in a perpetual grin not unlike the Cheshire Cat. The black being walked over to the pedestal and reaching out a clawed hand hefted the book open unleashing a tide of blackness that swallowed the glowing orb above it.

"Welcome back." Lyra gave Twilight a hand in standing back up.
"How long was I under?"
"About ten minutes. Strangely long for this tactic, your zanpakto must have really not wanted to tell you its name." The wall behind them exploded showering them in rubble and dust.

"Hey bookworm, lookin' good."
"Kenny, now that you've found her can I go play with Pinkie?"
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Applejack stared at the well dressed figure in front of her. He would have looked like he was headed for a gala if he hadn't been wearing the most worn down and dirty pair of boots Applejack had ever seen and his black hair hadn't been such a mess.

"Hello Miss Applejack." A devious smile that matched his voice rested on his lips. "I've been looking through your head and I've seen all your thoughts and tricks. I'm not impressed, whether or not you get my name depends on how you respond to my request. Impress me." It was a simple command but by looking into his eyes Applejack could tell that he wouldn't be impressed by anything she did, he was actively trying not to be.

"Ah don't 'ave time fer this." He visibly jerked.
"Excuse me?"
"Ah know yer kind, mah friend Rarity fell fer one a yall's tricks at that gala five years back an' I don't plan on makin' her mistake." To her surprise he started clapping.
"I've had seventeen potential bearers before and every one of them killed themselves trying to impress me. My name is Kyōdasha. You'll find my appearance much different out there then in here. I think this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship."
"Ya mean friendship?"
"Don't push your luck." The world faded to white.

Applejack opened her eyes to see Rarity sobbing and Rainbow Dash scowling, things obviously weren't going as well for them.
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Rarity marveled at the cavern captured by the beauty that surrounded her until she heard the sound of stone being smashed. She whirled around to see a white coated maneless unicorn stallion picking crystal debris out of his hoof.

"Why are you here?" He said coldly.
"Excuse me?"
"War is nasty business, one as delicate as you has no place in it. I repeat myself, why are you here?" He looked up from his hoof and Rarity got her first look at his eyes. They were star sapphires.
"I'm here to find a way to save the ones I care about."
"You might have a chance if you were a soldier, but you're a dress designer; there is nothing you can do."
"So I should just leave? Just abandon everything I hold dear?" The stallion walked up to her looking her right in the eyes as his changed color from the cool blue to a fiery red, he locked her into his gaze.
"What is the point of fighting if you cannot win."

In his eyes she saw Celestia and Luna, Sweetie Belle, her friends, her neighbors, her home. She saw all the beautiful things of Equestria. And she saw it all burn, she saw Celestia and Luna beheaded, she saw the streets littered with bodies, she saw the rivers run with blood through a wasteland, she saw Applejack being forced to drag tanks, she saw Twilight being used as a battery for a death machine, she saw Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy strapped to tables having their wings plucked, she saw Pinkie Pie drawn and quartered, she saw Sweetie Belle being beaten and she saw herself broken and bloodied weeping in a grey stone cell.

"NO! Please stop!" She tried to look away tried to run from the nightmares filling her mind but she found herself paralyzed by his stare. "No more, please no more!" She cried out.
"Why are you here?" He turned away from her leaving Rarity to slump to the ground weeping.
"Why would you show me that?" She pleaded. "Why?"
"Because it is the inevitable, because it is what will happen whether you fight or not, it is the future. Do you accept it?" Rarity forced herself off of the ground.
"No." She didn't notice but the stallion's eyes turned a soft purple. "No I don't accept it, I can't accept it. Say what you will about me, i am no soldier but I will fight for the things I love. I will fight the future i just saw to whatever end and even if i fail I will at the very least die trying." He smiled.

"Congratulations Rarity, you're a soldier. Soldiers are not born of training or battle, soldiers are born of a refusal to be defeated, a willingness to die trying. i had to be sure you were ready for what you're going to have to do. My name is Kaizen." The world faded to white and Rarity woke up to Appejack's face.

"Rar' r' you alright?" Rarity didn't even bother with explanations, instead opting to sob on her friend's shoulder. "A'll take that as a no."
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Rainbow Dash was in awe of the irate creature standing over her, it had a hard male face and wings that seemed to be comprised of thousands of blades that sparkled in the sunlight, it was wearing a tunic that was the same shade of green as his hair. She looked at the rest of her surroundings. She was on an expanse of cloud that seemed to continue forever.
"Wow." She breathed staring at the creature
"That's not what you were saying earlier." It had a gruff voice that reminded her of the instructors at flight camp.
"Huh?"
"You were ashamed of me, so I've set up some challenges to see how you would fare without me. That means no wings for you." He snapped his fingers and her wings dissolved.
"My wings! Come on I need those."
"You need what?" He put a hand up to his ear.
"My wings."
"Until you earn my name you may call me Wings." Rainbow leered at him.

"First test, a simple race." The clouds rearranged themselves into two lanes. Rainbow grinned at Wings before taking off in front of him. she had already proved that she was fast on her feet and took off confidently, she didn't know how long the track was but she was determined to at least keep up with her opponent. She looked over at Wings who was barely even flapping to keep up with her, on top of that he was reclining on his back and even looked a bit bored.
"Hey you said no wings!"
"I said no wings for you. You're boring anyway." He flipped over and gave a single mighty heave of his wings he propelled himself out of sight. The clouds flattened themselves out and Wings came in behind her.
"What just happened?"
"I won."
"How?"
"I flew past the finish line and came back."

"Second test, a duel." He flapped his wings and seven swords embedded themselves in the clouds in front of her, they were all considerably bigger than hers had been. She picked up one that was about the same size as Applejack's.
"Bring it!" She brandished the sword. No sooner had she said this than Wings shot up above her and started raining blades down on her, she lifted the blade so they would glance off but it was too clumsy and one managed to get through sticking into the cloud next to her hoof, there was a small prick in her chin, Rainbow looked down and saw Wings holding a small blade to her throat.
"I win again." He dropped the sword and the rest of the blades disappeared.

"Third test, cloud hopping." The clouds they were standing on broke into smaller pieces distancing themselves. Dash cocked her head, cloud hopping was a sport used by pegasus to keep their legs from becoming too weak, the use of wings was restricted, how would this prove a point. Wings flew up to take a birds eye view. Rainbow made the Jump to the first cloud easily and simply kept going until things started moving making it harder for her to make the jumps bus she still kept going until she jumped herself into a corner, her cloud moved away from the others and stood there, there was a single other cloud that came just barely with leaping distance. He's doing this on purpose the jerk. She steeled herself and jumped timing it with the movement of the cloud which happened to stall just out of her reach. And she fell screaming.

"Help me!" She looked over and Wings was simply falling with her reclining like he would in a chair. "What are you doing? For Celestia's sake help me!"
"Why should I help you?"
"What do you wan't from me?"
"Me?" He flipped over glaring into her eyes. "I want you to be scared, I want there to be no one else there to help you when you are, I want you to apologize for being ashamed of me and in that moment I want you to admit that you need me." Dash just stared at him. He was insane, there was no way she would compromise herself like that to this thing. But she was scared and he was the only one there to help her, then the element of loyalty kicked in and she realized that if she didn't cave into this thing she would be leaving her friends and her race to annihilation for the sake of her pride
"I'm sorry!" A slightly malicious grin spread across his face. "I'm sorry I was embarrassed that you were my sword, I'm sorry I was judgemental, I don't know you well enough to do that, I'm sorry I wanted you to change just to please me, I-" This was the hardest part. "I need you Wings. Now help me!"

He reached out and grabbed her tail stopping them dead in the air. The clouds reformed under them and he dropped her on her face.
"You are aware that you have as much control over this place as I do right?" Rainbow looked up at him shocked.
"You knew that and didn't tell me!"
"My name's Burēdo Fushichō by the way."
"You bastard." She tried to tackle him but the world faded to white.

She opened her eyes to find Rarity and Applejack staring at her. She reached down and grabbed her sword.
"I swear Burēdo If I ever get my hooves on you I will wring your smug little neck!" She would have sworn that she heard him chuckle
"I take it yours was... unpleasant."
"Unpleasent? He's a total vent. He let me think I was falling to my death just for a laugh." Rarity who had obviously been holding in a laugh giggled. "Oh shut it, I bet yours was even worse. Rarity seemed to shrink as she stared off into space for a moment.
"Consarnit Rainbow Dash, Ah just got her ta stop cryin'."
"Oops..."
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"You weren't planning on dying before you learned my name, were you? Because that would be a real dick move." The bored looking reptile had the kind of voice one would expect from a lizard, raspy and hissing. It inspected its talons. Pinkie shook her head. "Good, I should probably help you. shouldn't I?" Pinkie nodded furiously. "Man I had all these cool games set up too." It sighed. "Fine I'll tell you my name but you need to say it like this."

Time restarted and the soul reapers that had been pinning her down were blown back by a wave of power.
"Waidosumairu, Hachūrui!" [Smile wide, Reptilian.] Pinkie's sword erupted into an alligator made of pink energy it was at least twice the height of the reapers it surrounded her protecting her from harm. The bald one was unfortunate enough to be on the ground in front of her when its front legs landed.
"What the- grah!" A foreleg landed on his chest. From the belly of the beast Pinkie observed her new power. When she lifted a hoof, it lifted a claw, it moved with her. "Oh yeah!" She yelled. "Let's get this party started!"
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Fluttershy was simply wandering through the forest, she found the sound of the birds and rustling leaves relaxing. She looked around completely forgetting why she was there in favor of the calming forest.
"I never knew my mind was so overgrown." She commented looking at the forest floor which was covered in vines.

There was a growling to her right and she snapped to attention. In the undergrowth a pair of almost catlike blue eyes stared at her so intently she felt that her mane might burst into flames. "Um, hello. Are you my sword?" The thing responded by growling at her and creeping out from the shadows. It looked identical to her, but its face was contorted onto a snarl the that made the fire burning behind its eyes seem tame by comparison.

"Oh my." Fluttershy started backing away as the enraged version of herself crept closer looking every second like it was going to pounce on her. "N-now there's no need to be a-angry. W-whatever's bothering you I'm sure we can work it out t-together." The rage thing simply growled in response. Fluttershy was beginning to panic backpedaling as fast as she could, the rage thing just kept pace with her. She backed into a tree cutting off her route of escape, the glint in the other's eyes reached a menacing high and drool started leaking out from between its clenched teeth. It gathered itself and pounced, at that moment an armored figure burst from the underbrush delivering an uppercut to the other's jaw. Fluttershy squealed hiding her face behind her hooves not daring to look until the other yelped in pain and rustling told her that it had left. The armored figure seemed to be staring at her through its vizor, the armor was silver and bulky with feather engravings placed on the forearms and the forehead.

"H-hello?" She tried to shrink against the tree. The armored thing saluted. "Are you my sword?" It nodded. "Could you tell me your name?" It shook its head. "Why not?" It pointed to its throat. "You can't speak?" It nodded. "Would you tell me if you could?" It shook its head. "Why not." It glanced briefly after the other. "Are you scared?" It shook its head again. "Do you not want to tell me?" It nodded. "Why not?" It made a series of gestures that seemed to mean [you cannot fight.] "I can if I need to." It made another series of gestures that plainly meant [I will not let you.] "Fine then, I'll find the other and see if it will help me." The time for her usual timidness was over, she had remembered why she was there, although she didn't understand how not knowing her swords name would effect her ability to fight with it. If she backed down now she would be letting everypony she knew down.

Outside Korutsuchi and Nemu were searching the Twelfth squad complex for signs of the intruders.
"Really Nemu, to think that those morons would call me away just to look for some unauthorized souls. It's simply criminal." He was so caught up in his rant that he almost didn't notice the partially decimated room they were walking by. "I have much more important things to be doing, like-"
"Sir." Nemu tugged on his robe.
"What?" He snapped at her. She pointed through the blasted out wall. Standing in the rafters was a small yellow and pink equine. "What?" He repeated although this time in genuine confusion. He jumped up next to it, studying it, paying no attention to the sword in its hooves as it stood still as a statue its only movement breathing. "Unnatural coloration, obviously warped skull, overlarge eyes, mark in the fur of the flank. Mark in the flank!" He giggled. "Nemu take this one back to the lab, I believe our little traitor Heartstrings is back."

End of chapter ten