Light.

The tunnel Twilight trotted through was finally at its end. Gone were the narrow passageways, the stalagmites, the endless drip of water from the ceiling above. For as Twilight walked out of the darkness, the sun shone on her, brighter than she had ever seen before. A cool breeze blew on the grass, sending a spray of mildew cascading across the field. Applejack and Fluttershy ran ahead of Twilight, the sun drying their moist coats, the acidic residue that still clung to parts of their skin.

Twilight rubbed her tummy in worry, feeling for a scar that wasn’t there.

Just a few short minutes ago a blade had been ran through her chest. Acid poured down her throat. She was on the brink of death, her heart failing, her insides dissolving. And yet, somehow, she was saved. A blinding flash of light had sparked in front of Twilight as she coughed up the chemicals. She felt her own soul joining with another, someone who she remembered, someone who took Twilight’s body under her control and used it to devastate the foul creature that had corrupted Fluttershy. She held the staff again, its blade ringing with power as she unleashed devastation on the plant, her eyes burning with anger. But at last, the plant was dead, and the staff knocked from her hoof as her possessor left her. Twilight fled darkness, fled from anger that tore itself apart in one frenzied moment as mountains of stone fell upon the plant’s corpse.

And now she stood in a perfect world, the sun shining, the breeze cool.

Below her, she saw Applejack and Fluttershy scream in surprise. The sound of hooves galloping and small squeals of delight echoed from the valley she overlooked. Twilight squinted, perceiving the environment clearly, without a smudge of black until she saw it. A black pony, blue mane glittering with stars, her wings spread out as an orange pony and a yellow pegasus embraced the dark form. Twilight stared in confusion for another minute, then gasped in horror.

Luna was inside the Reaper.

Twilight galloped down the hill, her hoof still aching from the fallen stone. But her mind was set, and curiosity and courage fueled her motions, each stride perfectly carrying onto the next. She saw Luna raise her head in laughter as Applejack dived into a nearby lake, a huge splash riding over Fluttershy and the princess of the night, soaking them both. Wind coursed through her mane, sending ripples of movement down the long hair as she ran, the hill carrying her movements. Laughter rang across the hillside as the Princess watched the two ponies splash each other with cool water.

Twilight saw the Princess turn her head, attracted by the sound for her hooves thundering on dirt.

“HALT! WHO GOES THERE!?” projected a Royal Canterlot voice. “OH WAit, tis’ the savior herself, Miss Twilight Sparkle. Thou art powerful indeed, having saved two of thou friends from this monstrous evil we stand in this very moment.”

Luna lowered her volume as Twilight approached, her speed remaining constant, her horn lowered, the wind rushing over her head as she charged.

“What has come over thou?” said the Princess of the Night.

Twilight leapt, her body soaring in the air as she tackled Luna. But instead of hurling her to the ground, Twilight wrapped her arms around Luna’s neck, her head burrowed in the princess’ long mane. Her bear hug may have not been the mightiest, but Twilight still hung on, her victim making no movement to end the embrace. Rather, Luna grasped the purple unicorn around the chest, her own loving embrace squeezing the air out of Twilight’s lungs.

“Thou knowest, if this embrace continues one of us will run out of air and suffocate to a second demise.”

Twilight, after what seemed like eternity, finally let go of the dark alicorn’s neck. Her legs left long depressions on Luna, but the Princess of the Night didn’t seem to mind. Her navy-blue eyes gleamed in the morning sun, her wet coat drying off from the mighty splash. Applejack and Fluttershy swam in the pond, their once-dirty coats cleaning off in the cool water, the acid and the gunk falling off their tired bodies.

“It is soooo good to see you again, Princess Luna.”

“Oh, but Twilight, the pleased one is not thyself, it is we!”

“I see you’re still having a little trouble adjusting. I could help you out, we seem to-”

“すみません、私は何かを中断するのですか？してください、昔の侍に彼の残りを与える.”

Twilight and Luna both raised their eyebrows in suspicion. They looked around, startled at the strange and foreign sound that just a second before had trampled right through their conversation. They both laid eyes on a tall figure, who had, just before, blended perfectly with the forests, his straw hat covering his face. Worn and weathered armor covered the mysterious pony as it slowly walked towards them.

“Eh, les âmes de nos jours, ils n'ont aucune maîtrise de la langue. S'il vous plaît, parlez-vous français? Si oui, pourriez-vous s'il vous plaît me dire pourquoi un vieux samouraï suis si brutalement perturbée par le bruit?”

The armored pony spoke again, this time in a strange and flowing dialect that neither Luna nor Twilight was able to comprehend. All the pony received in response was a raised eyebrow and a cold glare from a princess of the night.Twilight turned towards the mysterious pony, her confused brain running at full speed, neurons sending thousands of electrical impulses per second, slowly deciphering the strange language the pony spoke.

“Um, Mr, uh, pony?” eked out Twilight. “I have no clue as to what you’re saying. Do you know the language I’m speaking? You know what I’m saying, right?”

“Ahh... Hoofas. Back in war times, they not call it Hoofas. They just speak it.”

“So you understand me!”

“Yes. I do. Now speak and tell why you are here. Why you disturb me?”

Twilight recoiled back at the hostile gesture. She felt sweat beading on her brow, heat rising from her cheeks. Luna turned to the purple unicorn, making a small gesture with her hoof, pointing at the warrior pony, Twilight shook her head, stroking her mane with her hoof, wiping away the sweat.

“I- um... well... I- uh, escaped from certain death... and, well, I...”

“So, you come down the spine too?”

“Huh? You mean the really long plant-thingy with uh... Fluttershy in the center?”

“Yes. The plant that grows inside the Reaper. I saw the column fall. What you do to break it?”

“I- uh... slashed open the uh... control node?”

“What? How? My own blade cannot even puncture the baka. How did you?”

“Oh, that. Uh... um...”

Twilight was raining sweat. Discomfort and disarray overcame the unicorn as the armored pony stood right in front of her, the straw hat still covering his face. She guessed the pony was one of the Umas, a race of pony that lived on a peninsula to the south of Equestria, although  they weren’t as peculiar or scary as the one that stood before her. The Umas were technologically advanced, their gadgets easing life for all ponies that managed to get their hands on one of their machines. But the pony that stood before her was in contrast to everything the Umas were, except perhaps the strong accent the pony possessed. He wore armor similar to ancient Uma knights, known as samurai in the Uma language. Two sheaths hung over his back, the rusty blades of two swords poking out of the torn and cracked scabbards. His straw hat was frayed and dirty, and dust settled in a fine layer over his armor. Twilight looked down for only a second, but enough time to look at his hooves. Tattered sleeves just barely hid white bone, and the hoof exposed was cracked and battered. The samurai, noticing Twilight’s subtle gaze, raised his head, revealing his grotesque face.

Twilight recoiled back in fear.

The samurai pony possessed no eyes. Or a nose. or even a face. His head was but a skull, shadowed over by his straw hat. The skull lay endlessly grinning as the pony removed the straw hat, letting the bright sun shine on his bones.

“Now you know me, pony. My apologies for scaring. I cannot modify my appearance, unlike when I was young. You know why I am here. I am part of Reaper, as you, as your friends are, as this princess alicorn is. I died long ago, not like you, who died recently. But stay here, and soon you will become a skeleton like I. You must flee.”

“Bu-but there’s no way out?”

“Young one, I am very old. I have seen Reaper, in and out. I know subtle things that the Reaper does not. There is a way out.”

“Y-you mean the Black Gate?”

Fluttershy and Applejack, drawn by the escalating argument, ran out of the pond, shaking themselves dry and trotted towards the commotion. Luna shhhed them as they came close, pulling them beside her as the samurai and Twilight continued their tirade.

“True. I believe the Gray Mare told this to you?” said the samurai. “She passed it on to me as well. I... I have been there. I have tried to open it.”

“And? What happened?”

“It was tightly locked. One could open the Gate by powerful magic, I suppose. But I am not capable of magic, and your Princess’s power could not open it. I do not know ”

“Wait, what? You brought Luna to the Black Gate? I thought Luna’s magic is the second best in the world!”

“Child, the magic that binds the Black Gate is beyond your comprehension. It is made with pure darkness, like the one that has once before bound your Princess of the Night. No one could hope to open it without magic like the one used to purify her. The chains of darkness would forever be broken, and you can walk the world of the living again. But where are we to find magic like that? Tell me, young one. How can we muster such a great power that it could banish the darkness forever?”

“I- I know! The Elements of Harmony! We used them to purify Luna back when I just came to Ponyville! It was powerful enough to stop Nightmare Moon, maybe it could open the Black Gate!”

“And just where do you think you’re going with this? Your artefacts do not exist here! They are trapped in the real world with the real Reaper!”

“I don’t think so. I think I can get the Elements to appear here. When I purified myself and Applejack, the Elements appeared to us. I found Fluttershy’s Element in the corpse of that plant. Maybe, somehow we’ll be able to get the other Elements from my other friends, and use them.”

“If your plan works, I will be forever in your debt. I have longed for the real sun every day of my life, now you let me see it again. I cannot make words to express my gratitude.”

Twilight beamed at the skeletal samurai.

“But mind you, if your plan fails...”

“You are all doomed.”

Twilight looked around, surprised by the interjecting voice. A shadow had fallen, dark clouds moved overhead to block out the sun. A harsh wind blew across the land, rustling the grass and ripping the leaves off trees. The samurai stared straight ahead, his skeletal gaze unwavering, having no eyelids to blink.

“So nice you you to share your plan with us, Twilight. You’ve made my job much easier.”

A thunderbolt hit the ground. Twilight and Luna were thrown off their feet, blasted away by the force of the blast. The samurai stood firm, unaffected by the blast. His right hood reached behind him and drew his blade, all 28 inches of rusted, corroded metal. He held the sword in front of him, ready to fight the world.

“Haha... your pitiful sword again? Puh-leaze. I could break that thing in half if I wanted to. Too bad it’s not you I want this time.”

“Go! There is a mirror inside my house!” The samurai gestured at a nearby traditional Umalan building. “That mirror is a transporter. It will let you go past this world. GO! I will hold her off.”

The thunderbolt struck again, in the exact same spot. This time, a pony rode the blast to the ground, a cloak obscuring her skin, white as death and cold as ice.

“GO!” the samurai shouted. Twilight took one final look at the skeletal samurai as she turned tail and sprinted for the house, her friends and Luna trailing behind.

“If you want their lives too, you must defeat me first.”

“Hahaha, killing an old, undead samurai with a broken sword will be fun. A true duel of darkness, the Reaper’s enforcer girl versus an undead moron with a brain full of rot!”

Twilight looked back at the samurai as Applejack kicked in the door to the house. The mirror lay inside, glowing with energy. Applejack jumped through the portal, followed by Fluttershy. Luna hang back, her mane blown astray by the winds. The audible clang of iron on steel rang through the air, as Twilight saw the samurai cross swords with an apparition of ash and steel, wielding a sword as black as night. Twilight looked back upon Luna, her heart heavy as she stepped away from the portal.

I-I’ve only known him for a few minutes, but I feel like I need to help him out. I ne-

“Twilight Sparkle! Thou must leave now! Thou hast no time to waste! Hurry, before the portal closes!”

True enough, the portal in the mirror was getting smaller and smaller, Twilight looked back upon the battle between darkness and darkness. She made a move to run, but before she could Luna grabbed her around the flank and threw her into the portal, the gate closing behind her. Luna looked at the mirror, a portal no longer, and ran to assist the samurai.

Twilight fell through the darkness.

She saw the light of the portal close as Luna disappeared once more.

Twilight screamed as gravity rose to claim her.

Luan wept silently as she roared, armor fusing to her chest, red veins popping in her eyes as the blackness wove itself around her, strengthening her and vitalizing her. Her mane stretched out to full length, her eyes turning pitch black as she reared.

Nightmare Moon charged into the melee, the sound of iron on steel still cutting the air.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The skeletal samurai drew his katana. The old and pockmarked blade was covered in rust, with holes in the steel and rips in the handle. Yet despite the blade’s age, it was as sharp as an icy wind, able to cleave the air itself with its long and harsh swings. He held the long sword in front of him, pointing the blade at the cloud of ash and dust swirling in front of him. Sharp laughter cut through the air as the cloud condensed, fine particles of ash forming a tangible body. Where a cloud of dust once swirled now stood a mare, her skin white as death, her mane gray and frayed. Yellow eyes peeked out from under her hood as she drew her own blade, a massive black sword that twisted at the bottom to form a handle, and separated upwards of that to form two blades with a gap in the middle, reconnecting at the tip. A black ball was grasped in the sword’s pommel, and darkness dripped out of it. She swung the sword over her head a few times, the massive blade slicing through the air, whooshing with the cries of a thousand lost souls. A magical aura built around the blade, as black as night itself, and the samurai saw the light around him dying, the trees turning an ashen white, the grass becoming brown and brittle, and the once-bright sun encased in a red aura, blocking out the light. The mare laughed.

“Hahahahahaha! Foolish one. You should have saved your own bones instead of their fresh ones. I never liked consuming flesh anyway. You will make a perfect meal for my soul, haha.”

“I will not submit, security program! Today, you return to your master with shame on your back! Hand me back my sword and you will not flee in pieces!”

“What, give you back your sword? Puh-leez. No way. Purifier is mine. And when it is mine, you’re going to have to fight me to get it.”

“So... Be... It.”

The samurai swung his blade, the rusted sword cleaving through the air. The mare blocked it effortlessly, a flash of sparks accompanying the parry. She swung at the samurai, her sword arcing over her head. The samurai held up his own sword, but instead of stopping the strike, the katana let the black blade slide down its pockmarked surface, catching the black sword in a groove. The samurai twisted his blade, pulling the black sword away from the mare. The ebony sword clattered away, its huge weight shaking the ground with every bounce it took. The samurai held the point of his blade to his opponent’s head, slowly raised it above his head, and gripped it with both front hooves. His swung, but only cut through air as the mare jumped to the side at the last minute, narrowly dodging a swing that would have surely decapitated her. She grabbed her sword again, and the two warrior fell upon each other again, sparks flying as steel met ebony, mortal metal facing the black steel.

“I...am...Locust...” said the bushi. “and...I...will...win.”

“Don’t think like that.” said the mare. “I’ll crush you like a bug, like the locust you are.”

They crossed swords again and again, sending sparks flying everywhere. Locust swung his blade in a diagonal uppercut, the sword meeting the ebony blade in midair. Both warriors cut at each other, parrying and dodging slashes, cutting the ground with missed cuts. The mare charged at the samurai with the blade pointed down, and lunged towards the skeletal warrior. The blade narrowly missed the samurai, cutting a tiny notch in one of his bones. Black marrow leaked out of the bone, dripping like freshly spilled blood. Locust tipped his straw hat, and charged towards the mare, readying a powerful jumping slash. The mare gracefully leapt out of the way as the powerful swing impacted the ground, sending dirt and grass in all directions. The mare readied a massive downwards cut, her sword lifted in the air. The samurai rolled away just as the blade came down, lodging the ebony sword in the dirt. The mare desperately tried to dislodge the massive blade, using all four hooves to try and pull the sword out of the ground. The samurai simply stared at the mare with nothing, for his eyes had long since died. He then charged the mare, just as she pulled the blade out of the ground. She managed to parry the katana just in time, more sparks blasting from both blades. They crossed swords again, mortal steel meeting corrupt ebony for the third time.

“You are a fool if you think you will win.” said Locust through gritted teeth. He pushed his blade further, one hoof on the handle, the other pressed against the blade itself.

“Don’t count on it.”

The mare pushed downwards, lodging the samurai’s katana in the ground. She bucked him away with her back hooves, the powerful impact blasting the samurai against the earth. She pulled his sword from the ground, her stark-white hoof gripping the frayed and broken handle of the katana. She paced in front of the samurai, as he slowly tried to stand, still dizzy from the heavy impact. The mare swung both swords in wide circles, and raised both blades over her head. She swung downwards.

Whoosh!

Nightmare Moon jumped in front of the blades. She met the blades with horn and magic, her horn meeting the ebony sword with a clang, her magic catching and throwing the samurai’s katana into the ground. The mare recoiling back, dropping her ebony sword as Nightmare Moon stood before her, horn lowered, her wispy mane stretching out behind her. Nightmare Moon charged towards the mare, ready to impale her through with her horn. The mare jumped away, picking up her blade, dodging the quick and powerful charge. Nightmare Moon crossed blades with the mare, her own long and sharp horn meeting the black metal. Flakes of the horn floated down to the ground as she slashed and stabbed, knocking away the sword and puncturing the mare’s skin many times. Magic bolts burned and seared the mare, and arcane lighting coursed over her body as Nightmare Moon laughed. She stabbed the mare through the chest with her horn, impaling the mare on her magical instrument. Black blood ran down the mare, soaking Nightmare Moon’s helmet, dark liquid dripping into her eyes. She tossed the mare aside, the pony choking on her blood as it flowed out of the gaping hole in the base of her neck. Nightmare Moon rippled with magic, the combat over, her silver armor flaking off like leaves in autumn, restoring the Princess of the Night to her former form. The samurai looked on from afar, his eyeholes watching, unblinking as Luna retrieved his katana. She brought it over to the dying mare, gripping the long sword with her magic. He watched, still kneeling in the dirt, as Luna turned the blade around, the point facing the mare’s wide, tearing eyes. Luna closed her own blue eyes as she brought the blade down, the point of the sword penetrating through her skull, entering the ground on the other side. The white mare convulsed several times, her eyes wide, then suddenly lay still.

The bushi walked towards Luna. He laid a hand on his sword, wordlessly pulling the blade out of the white mare. Her colorless skin glowed with a green light as the blade left her lifeless body, data lines and endless streams of ones and zeros exposed to the night air. They separated from each other, green light pulsing off the meaningless numbers as they drifted off, disintegrating the mare’s body. A small piece of rolled-up paper fell from inside her cloak. Locust picked it up and placed it inside his own armor. He then turned towards the green light behind him. Luna and the samurai watched the data stream fly off, forming a pillar into the sky.

“See. A security program, and nothing more. A conjoining of data and memory, given a physical form to fight inside the Reaper.” said the samurai at last.

He picked up the ebony blade from where it lay on the ground. As he grasped it, a wave of yellow light shot down the steel blade. Blue runes appeared on the metal as the ebony rotted away, to be replaced with gleaming steel. The samurai held Purifier in his hands, and swung the heavy blade around a bit, watching as the sword gleamed in the new light. He checked the pommel of the sword, and, as expected, the small black ball that lay gripped by the metal disintegrated into ash. The program had hidden the True Light. Locust sighed, if a skeleton could sigh, and turned back to Luna.

“Come then, Princess of the Night. We must go to where your friends have gone to. Our enemy is vanquished, for now. And I...have to find something.”

The samurai walked towards the lake’s edge.

A cold wind blew over the lake. Wind reached out over the dead trees as the samurai raised both his hands to the sky. Luna watched as yellow energy flowed from the bushi, forming a ball of pure light that the bushi held in his hand, tossing it about. He then walked back, his hoof gripping the yellow ball, before throwing the ball across the lake. An explosion formed where the ball landed.

Luna felt her coat prickle up as the wind blew harder.

The ground began to shake.

The samurai pulled out his sword.

“Watashi wa anata o shōkan shite iru yō ni, anata gata wa, shōkyū shinakereba naranai. Watashi no fune wa, watashi no yūjin, watashinoie wa, watashi wa nigeru koto o kono sekai kara watashi o kite, jisan. Watashi no doragon'u~ingu, detekuru!” said Locust in his native Umalan language.

The water in the middle of the lake began to simmer.

“Watashi no doragon'u~ingu, detekuru!” shouted the bushi.

The water began to boil. Pieces of wood and cloth began to rise to the surface. A torn and tattered sail broke the surface.

“DETEKURU!!!!!!”

The water parted as a whole ship dragged itself from the grimy depths. Seaweed and kelp covered the boat, and its sail was torn and ragged. Splintered wood covered the massive hull, and at the bow a rusted metal dragon stood , its wings spread wide, its mouth open, a massive hollow tube sticking out of its gaping maw. It sailed quickly towards the shore. Yellow energy gripped the broken vessel, plugging up holes, patching the sails, cleaning the dragon at the bow. The once-broken vessel arrived at the shore looking brand-new, the damage nonexistent, shipshape and bristol fashion.

“Welcome aboard, Princess Luna, to my humble ship, the Dragonwing.”

A gangplank fell onto the ground from on board. Locust helped Luna step on board his mighty vessel. She passed the polished bronze dragon, it’s face forever trapped in a visage of anger and power. She saw the crew of the ship, skeletal ponies surrounded by yellow energy fixing everything on board, hammers and sewing needles wielded by the undead. She saw yellow light surrounding a prone skeleton, lifting the dead pony to his feet. He started to work with the others, picking up a hammer and pounding nails into a new plank. The bushi and Luna stepped towards the ship’s wheel, newly fixed and polished. Two skeletal sailors bowed to the bushi, and stepped back, allowing the skeletal samurai to grasp the wheel. As he did, Luna saw yellow energy once again flowing from the samurai’s hooves, entering the wheel and the planks where he stood. An Umalan letter formed on the sail, outlined in yellow light.

“風”

“Kaze. In your tongue, it simply means wind. Nothing more. Nothing less. Wind will hold strong when all else is nought. Wind will run when all else has stopped. Wind, my dear Princess, will take us to our destiny.”

“Dragonwing, FORWARD! To the Endless Ocean!”

Luna watched as the character glowed. True enough, a strong wind blew, pushing the ship away from land. The ship grew in speed, its sails filling with air, the water below them becoming little more than a blur as the ship sailed away from the land.

The sun rose in the distance.