It Came From Paradiso (Edited)
It Came From Paradiso
Written By: SCP Pinkamena
All rights go to Hasbro, Lauren Faust, Sega, and Platinum Games
"May the Creator, Jubileus, grace you on your journey!" Fortitudo roared at the Umbran Witch as the minions of Inferno dragged him into the portal. His dragon heads were pulled into Inferno as well, and are probably experiencing their own torture and punishment. Fortitudo did not care, however, for he knew his sacrifice was worth it if it meant a step closer to the resurrection of The Creator, Jubileus. The Angels of Paradiso wanted to unify the three realms, Dark, Light, and Chaos, with the power of the Eyes of the World, two gems that would bring Jubileus back to life. As he traveled through Inferno, he saw many torture devices, like Iron Maidens, Guillotines, and Torture Racks. One device in particular caught his eye, yet made him deathly afraid of it. A cross holding a dead and decaying Affinity was present, next to it a much more larger cross stood and above it held one name: Fortitudo.
While his face was mostly gone, he could still see with the magical field around his head. He gulped at the device and thought of how tormenting and humiliating it would be to put an Angel in it's own device. As the Inferno Minions were about to put the first nail into his wing, a bright flash entered his vision, and he appeared in the middle of Paradiso fully restored and with his master, Jubileus, The Creator.
"Ah, Jubileus?! You have returned?!" Fortitudo asked, stunned to see his master and creator in front of him now. Jubileus shook her head to the star struck Angel.
"No my child, I am but a simple manifestation of the Creator. I have saved you from Inferno because I am here to tell you the same thing I will tell Temperantia, Iustitia, and Sapientia: This world is all for naught, Jubileus will be resurrected, but will fall at the hands of the Infernal Demon Queen, Sheba and the Umbran Witch, Bayonetta."
This struck him hard. Harder then being in Inferno, harder then being defeated by the witch. His master, defeated? His dragon head looking different ways, contemplating and understanding what the manifestation had told them. "Liar!" He roared and fired a meteor-like fire ball towards the projection, only for it to pass straight through it. The projection once again shook her head.
"Why would I lie to you Fortitudo? Did you forget how Jubileus was sealed away during the First Armageddon? Or how when you and the other Angels attacked and exterminated the Umbrans? I've seen much Fortitudo, and you're lucky that not one, but two Umbrans survived the witch hunts. If we didn't have anymore witches, who would oversee the Dark?"
Fortitudo, thought this over for sometime. What would happen if the Umbrans no longer excisted and no one was left to watch the Dark? The infernal demons would be released into the world and no one short of Father Balder and Jubileus could stop them. Could being the key word here because of Queen Sheba, leader of the demons and at least five times the size of Jubileus. He thought about how Malphis would be free, always watching learning and hunting it's prey. Then there was Gomorrah, it lingered in the evil wood of Johnson Forest, anything that moved would be hunted down be it. His dragon heads, Hope and Hospitality, swayed back and forth, thinking about how close they were to having their heads cut clean off.
"And don't forget Father Rodin..." The projection said in a quiet voice. Fortitudo shivered at the thought of Rodin even coming back to Paradiso. "The traitor will not be coming back anytime soon though, I have seen to that personally. Father Rodin is currently working at a demonic bar known as 'The Gates of Hell' and helps Bayonetta by selling items and making weapons for her with Golden Angel LP's, but he always comes back in horrible condition."
Fortitudo was at a standstill at this point. Either do what the projection says, or go back Inferno or worse... Rodin. He sighed reluctantly and turned away from the projection. "I except what you have said about the defeat of Jubileus, I will do as you ask of me." He said turning back to her, but now she was now she was no longer a projection of the Creator, but of Madame Butterfly. Fortitudo's eyes widen as she slammed her foot down and a portal underneath him opened. Arms, much like the Minions of Inferno, reached up and grabbed him and slowly started pulling him down. Before his dragon heads were pulled into the portal, she gave him the one finger salute and closed the portal, barely nicking the horn of Hospitality's head.
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Celestia was many things. She was loyal, honest, kind, faithful, and patient. The latter slowly running out as she heard her nephew complain about the dirt town also known as Ponyville. The prince rambled on about how the town was in the way of a new building he wanted done, and that town should be destroyed with the occupants of said town turned to servants and slaves. By the time he finished the rambling, she told everyone, but Blueblood to leave so that she may have a private talk.
"So... tell me nephew," She said, the word 'nephew' feeling like months old lettuces on her tongue. "what is your plan for MY students town? For the town that holds the bearers of the Elements? You want to destroy the town... so you may put a huge spa there..." With everyone gone, she didn't dare resist the urge to place a hoof on her face. She breathed in long intervals, calming herself every time.
"But, Aunti--" Celestia put up a hoof, effectively cutting him off as she took more deep breaths to calm herself. Physically, it did, mentally, she was buzzing like a hornets nest that had been dropped off a cliff. Rubbing her eyes, she gave one more sigh before turning back to Blueblood.
"No Blueblood, I will not destroy Ponyville, and I will not make the residents servants. You might as well forget this entire thing, and go back to--" She was cut off by a loud crash above her and saw a large gold and white mass falling above her, she stood there, shocked at this thing, so many thoughts moving in her head, before pale blue aura surronded her and yanked her off the throne where the beast landed. The beast roared in pain, using it's bird like wings to give it support, and stood on it's two bird like legs.
Celestia and Blueblood stood looking at the beast as it easily towered over them. It gave on last grunt before turning around. "Where am I?" It asked, in a language that neither pony understood. It turned more revealing that it was really an upside-down head with wings and dragons heads, the dragon heads had no eyes, but they both looked at the ponies, watching them like predators. "I will ask again, where am I?" He said as the dragon heads growled at them. Blueblood hid behind Celestia, while she herself walked up to the strange being.
"Forgive me, I do not understand what you are saying." She said, stilling staring at the giants eyes. "But hopefully you can understand me?" She asked it and it gave one nod, confirming that it understands. "Good, now lets start with names: I am Princess Celestia, and you are...?"
The beast took a breath and spoke. "I am a guardian of Paradiso, an Auditio, I am Fortitudo, Bringer of Flames and Destruction." He boasted, and despite the fact that Celestia couldn't understand half of what he said, she caught on that his name was either Paradiso, Auditio, or Fortitudo. She smiled and nodded politely to him, and turned to the still shaking Blueblood, but now he was in a poorly formed stance that stood for 'Battle'. Blueblood, being the horrible coward he was, shot a bolt of magic at Fortitudo. While he did not know if this meant a fight, he laughed at the pony and Hope leaped forward ready to crush him. The dragon head stopped in a field of glowing yellow and writhed around before being forcibly shot back to it master.
She gave him a hard look and turned back to her still cowering nephew. "Now Blueblood," she said in a voice that was all but kind. "I would like you to go back to your 'Palace' and stay there until you think of something worth complaining about, understand?" Blueblood sighed heavily and nodded, walking towards the door of the throne room. When the doors of the room closed, she turned back to Fortitudo. "Please forgive my nephew, he can be arrogant but in the end he means well." She said with a smile. "Despite the fact he's a horrible little cockroach that deserves to be thrown in the sun." She quickly thought to herself as Fortitudo began laugh.
"Arrogant can't even begin to describe that little worm! The Infernal Demon themselves would say he tastes bad!" He laughed, but even though Celestia didn't understand him she felt as though what he said was right... in a way.
"Fortitudo was it?" She asked and he gave a confirming nod. "Can you speak my language? At all?" Celestia wanted to know what language he spoke, for even though she was a princess on the outside, inside her mind she was like Twilight: Always wanting to know more and more. Fortitudo knew how to speak plain English, but he hadn't used it in so long, he might've forgot how to speak it.
He cleared his throat and opened his mouth. "I... am... Fortitudo..." He said slowly, trying not to slip up on his speech. Celestia encouraged him to continue. "I come from... Paradiso... A wonderfully golden land of... Angels..." For whatever reason, at the mention of Angels, Celestia's eyes widened and she took a step back. "I am an Auditio... And I seek..." Celestia's mouth opened, but no words came. She remembered things... how Nightmare Moon came to be and how Discord once tried to over throw them. "...To unify the Light, Dark, and Chaos of the world!" He announced, and Celestia, by the time he was finished, was looking at the Halo above him, how it moved and and bobbed...
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Three hundred years after the banishment of Nightmare Moon, Celestia sat on her throne with a very stern look on her face. She scanned the room until her eyes fell on one pony in particular: Nightshade. A former guard, Nightshade was standing in the crowd keeping his head down. His cutie mark was a symbol of a triangle with three circles each holding a different picture, he also wore a heavy coat with small sunglasses, an invention Luna made when she was younger to protect eyes for the sun. He was a bald stallion, but still young, at least in his mid twenties, and a he had a short cropped tail. Celestia once over-heard a conversion about it and he said it was for intimidation.
After she had dismissed the court she asked for Nightshade to stay. "What can I get ya Princess? A good bottle of champagne, a fine glass of wine? Or, maybe a strong shot of tequila?" He asked in a low dark voice, but at the same time it was light and caring. The princess laughed at his suaveness, and brought a pillow for both of them to sit on.
"As kind as the offer sounds," She said resting on the pillow, "I think I'll kindly pass. I actually needed to speak with you." Her face turning serious in an instant. "I was... reading something things when I suddenly came across a picture much like your cutie-mark... I was wondering if there was a connection?" She asked him. Nightshade closed his eyes and exhaled quite loudly, blowing Celestia's mane in different directions. He stood and walked over to the farthest wall before slamming his hoof on it and a dark circle appeared, pushing out a large bookshelf. He picked a select few books from the shelf before it was pulled back and the portal closed.
Celestia was dumfounded, an Earth Pony had just used magic. He rested the three books on the ground before turning away. "W-wait! Nightshade, what am I supposed to do with these books? What will happen once I read them?" She asked before he turned back to her with a smile.
"Read them and get acquainted with denizens inside doll face, I got a bar to run." He said before a red portal appeared underneath his and he was slowly sucked in. "I suggest reading the blue one first! It'll help with the other two!" He shouted before his head went under and the portal closed.
Celestia had spent hours on one book. "A Guide Through the World of Purgatorio and It's Denizens" Where ever this 'Purgatorio' place was it did not sound pleasant. She set the book down and debated on what book to look at next. After about a minute of internal debate, she decided on the black book with what looked like flames coming off of it. "The Book of Infernal Demons... sounds like a bestiary..." She mulled to herself, before opening the book and finding so many scary looking creatures.
First was Gomorrah: A beasts head, that hunted everything in sight. "A monstrous creature hailing from the demonic wood, Johnson Forest. Taking the form of a dragon, it is incredibly fierce, identifying all that moves as game and devouring it's prey. Territorial, it is most likely to be found alone." She read the caption, watching the picture of Gomorrah itself move and sway. Next to the caption, it said three little words that made her heart jump a little: How To Summon... She stared wide eyed. "I-I can summon this creature?!" She asked in shock. 'To summon Gomorrah, first your soul and will must be strong, and you must not fear it, or it will see you as prey, regardless if you are the summoner or not. To manifest Gomorrah, you must speak the incantation, AVAVAGO or for the more skilled, OXEX RACLIR.' Celestia once again mulled it over in her head, could she summon the beast without problem, or would she be food for it. She sighed and set the book down, and walked to the center of the throne room.
"AVAVAGO!" She shouted and at first nothing happened. Suddenly her mane and tail grew longer and they both met inside of a portal that opened under and she heard a deafening roar behind her. She turned, and stared at the beast known as Gomorrah. The beast stared her down and breathed steam from its mouth. It raised its head and opened its maw to consume her it shot down and suddenly stopped. Its two tongues flickered inside its mouth before moving away from Celestia and putting its head down making little sounds as she patted his head. "Good boy... it's okay I wont hurt you..." She cooed to him as his tongues flicked out and gave her a small lick across the cheek. The portal underneath Gomorrah began to close, and he unweaved letting her mane and tail go back to normal length.
She sighed, and returned to the book, flipping the pages for any more demons she should know. Her eyes widened at one particular demon: Queen Sheba. She was humanoid in form, but she was pure dark inside. As she was reading the description for Sheba, "Do not attempt to summon Sheba without atleast fifteen Umbran Witches to assist." She spoke to herself, and closed the book for now; she still had time to read the book, but she wanted to see the golden white book. "The Hierarchy of Laguna" This seemed spark something in her, because for whatever reason she wanted to put the book down and walk away. She fought against the feeling, and opened the book to reveal more humanoid like creatures. "Affinity" was the first one, and according the book the weakest as well. "Applaud" was slight more stronger and bigger, but still was weak enough that a group of Affinitys could kill it. She moved up and a chapter page marked the next part of the book.
The Second Sphere, it consisted of three different things: Powers, Virtues, and Dominions. She hummed at this, and looked at the new creatures, some not even humanoid. Fearless and Fairness, two griffin like angels that used fire and lightning to their whim. Kinship sounded exactly like it was. An angelic ship that, when killed, the body stays and floats in suspended animation. Grace & Glory were Virtues, humanoid form, like Fairness and Fearless, they controlled fire and lightning, although they were better at controlling them. She read almost all of the book by the end of the hour, and she was one of the last chapters. Auditio. Turning the page she the first Auditio, Fortitudo, the Cardinal Virtue of Fortitude. Said to create magma flows at will, Fortitudo is the second most strongest of the Auditios. Courage, his look-alike, was weaker than the Auditios, but still the book counted him as one, for he and the other look alikes governed over a small fraction of Paradiso. She was awe struck at these angels, but at the same time, she felt the need to destroy every one of them.
It made her feel... jumbled... Moreso the fact that they all looked like they held a permanent look of stupid on their faces. As she shut the book, a stray page caught her with golden halo that spread across her whole body. While the picture of the Angel itself was distorted, one word was scrawled on it: Dea. She knew enough about Nightshades lessons on a language called La-tine. She thought about for a minute before the word translated in her head. Goddess. Dea stood for Goddess. This was their goddess in the eyes of the Angels, and for whatever reason... it frightened her.
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The books. The Hierarchy of Laguna had said something about Fortitudo. He was an Auditio, which meant he was a higher-up. He commanded warriors of Laguna to attack the Umbrans. He was was responsible for the extermination of an entire race. He was the Cardinal Virtue of Fortitude. Her eyes widened as Hope and Hospitality charged meteor like fire balls and barraged Celestia the second she put her shield up.
Fortitudo only saw this as a minor annoyance and slammed both of heads into the shield causing it crack and crater the ground. "You are a strong regent, but I am stronger!" He said charging up a large fire ball. A click of fingers echoed throughout the throne room and pies flew into Fortitudo's marble face, and then promptly exploding.
"No one beats on Celly like that but me! You overgrown lawn ornament!"
Celestia looked up to see the Elements of Harmony and Discord standing between herself and the large Angel. Discord had long since been reformed, and the Elements were their because they've seen one of the many giant fireballs that flew out of the castle. Celestia smiled at her favorite student and rival turned ally. Fortitudo once again laughed at the 'heroic' display before him. His face was slightly chipped, and a bulbous red substance was showing underneath it.
"Hahaha... That hurt you know?"
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Fortitudo roared and the castle rose from the ground on two angelic pillars of fire. He crashed through the wall and perched atop of the highest tower of the castle. "I, Fortitudo, will bring this world together in Light, Darkness, and Chaos-" His last syllable being cut off by Twilight Sparkle, protege of the Princess and princess herself. Fortitudo snorted and rose Hope in the air and began showering the exposed throne room with meteors.
"Scatter!" Discord yelled as the fiery rocks began hammering the throne room. Fiery explosions filled the room, burning those unfortunate to get in the way. Discord snapped his fingers again, this time a rather large rock flew towards Fortitudo in an attempt to stop the meteors. Flying up slightly, he roared and slammed the rock to pieces with his tail before perching back on top of the castle.
Celestia fired a bolt of magic that hit Hope and caused it fall unconscious. Fortitudo roared once more, and great flames spewed from his marble mouth lifting the floor into rocks and threw them about. Hope shook it's head before returning back to its masters' side.
"You think you can defeat me? Pitiful, all of you." Fortitudo said as he jumped from his perch back onto the throne room floor. "My power is renewed! No longer do the effects of time hold it back, so now prepare to unified!" He said taking a deep breath, preparing to fire off a massive fire ball. The Elements and Discord stared at Fortitudo, and while Twilight was charging a shield for themselves a shout spread through the room.
"OCMA PRODA!" Six infernal gates opened on either side of Fortitudo revealing six dangerous hands. Hope and Hospitality looked at the six arms for a moment, noting them and how they waited, before firing off meteors at them. Three of the six held on head while the other three took Hope (red) and began pulling on its neck before it snapped off in a gruesome pop. An Infernal gate was opened and the three hands took it in the 'Heave Ho!' stance and threw it inside the gate. The hands dusted themselves off before disappearing, and Fortitudo writhed on the ground in pain before standing back up. The element bearers stood shell shocked as Celestia's mane returned to normal length and flowed in the invisible wind.
Discord chuckled. "I always wondered why your mane flapped like that." Hospitality roared along with Fortitudo and he once again perched atop the tower.
"An Infernal user?! Here?!" He roared from his perch before launching meteors at Celestia, Discord and the Elements all scattered once again, dodging meteors and bits of molten rock, while Discord fired off more pies while Celestia, Rarity, and Twilight shot Fortitudo with magic bolts. Rainbow Dash was practically going so fast that every time she hit the dragon head it knocked tooth or two out. Finally, when Celestia thought it was enough, she stuck a sultry pose.
"OCMA PRODA!" She yelled as the six Infernal hands once again appeared on either side of him. He looked at the hands before trying to dart away, but one caught him the foot and slammed him down so now four hands were holding him down and two were pulling on Hospitality until, like its counter part, it snapped off of Fortitudo with a sickening pop and threw the writhing dragons head into Inferno, but the arms didn't go away yet.
"Finish him!" Celestia commanded and four took and held him up, two holding the wings and two holding the legs. The remaining two clenched their fists before slamming them together and brutally started beating on Fortitudo. He gave off grunts of pain every time the fist connected with his marbled face. The spikes on one hand suddenly grew in size and connected with Fortitudo with so much force, his head went straight in the air while four arms held each of his limbs. He hovered a bit before coming back down and being caught by the hands which brought him down to Celestia.
"Now, be a good little Angel and tell me how you got here." She said sternly, but Fortitudo only stared at her with awe.
"So much power... Incredible... I have only seen one other Infernal User with this much strength." He said as the hands disappeared, dropping him.
"Twilight, please go get the Elements." She said in a calm voice, and Twilight teleported the Elements from her home and handed them out to their respected user. As she and the other bearers charged the elements, the jewels took a darker shade and instead of a rainbow shooting out from their combined strength, a dark portal shaped behind Fortitudo. Infernal Minions took Fortitudo and started to slowly pull him in.
"May Jubileus, The Creator, grace you!" He roared as the portal closed around him and an hourglass was left behind. Discord walked up to the hourglass and picked it up handing it to her.
"I believe this is yours to use." He said as Celestia took it and lifted it in the air causing it explode with a blue sand, and everything began to rewind. The castle nested back on the ground and fixed itself, the throne room was no longer a pile of dirt and rocks, and the mountain Canterlot Castle nested on was no longer crumbling. Celestia sighed heavily and walked to her bed chambers before turning back to everyone.
"Forget this happened and go on with your lives." She said. "That's a request from your princess." She quickly added causing everyone to giggle.
