Fallout Equestria: Starlight

Chapter 17: Deadly Games

All of those ponies look so posh. And with the Grand Galloping Gala coming up, I bet you could totally get some of them to buy your dresses. Very smart!

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Two Days Earlier...

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The door to the medical wing slammed opened, instantly awaking the rest of my friends. Haakor stood at the entrance, a grin on his face.

“The Overlord was quite pleased with your friend's fight, Ministry Mare. He wishes to see how the other fares now,” he said, motioning to Patch, who rubbed her eyes as she pushed herself up to face Haakor.

“Tell Wrath that he can go fuck himself. I'm not letting another of my friends get hurt because of him. If he wants to fight me, he can fight me now,” I shouted. I stood, glaring at the thin minotaur.

“In due time, Ministry Mare,” the frail beast replied. “For now though, your friend will join us in the arena. We have a very special match prepared for her.”

The power-armor clad guards entered, pointing their energy rifles at us. Steeljack moved from his spot next to Patch. He stood woozily, but had a determined look on his face that prevented anyone else from telling him he wasn't going to be attending this fight. Very soon we were moved out of the medical wing and on our way back to the arena. Patch was silent the entire way down, sticking close to the still injured Steeljack. After witnessing the spectacle of her lover’s fight, I'm sure she was wondering what sort of creature she would be facing. Nixis was with us, keeping up easily even with occasional twinges of pain showing through his stoic expression. The hellhound’s recovery was amazing, even by the standards of the robust earth ponies. He stepped in time with Violet and me as we followed the guards.

Haakor disappeared again as his lithe form moved back up to the announcer's booth. The guards behind us shoved us along, forcing us into the slave pens. Patch was pushed onto the makeshift bridge as we sat down. I prayed to Luna for her safety, fretting as she entered the Arena. The green mare trotted along confidently, leaping the last several lengths to land on the platform with power and poise. The crowd roared in delight at her showmareship as she twirled about the side of the metal platform.

“Welcome again my friends!” Haakor called out over the speaker system. His voice was fully in working mode, powerful and rich as he whipped the audience into a frenzy. I caught another glimpse of Danish in the crowd. The cream-colored unicorn was sitting in the far back of the stadium, intent on a whispered conversation with one of his underlings. What are you up to? I thought as I studied him. He stood shortly, and disappeared into the crowd of ponies flooding into the stadium. Haakor's voice rang out once more from the speakers.

“We've got another exciting match lined up for you all,” he began to say. “In our first corner, we've got another companion of the Ministry Mare. Watch out guys, she's a spitfire. Let's give it up for Patch!”

I could hear catcalls from the crowd for the young mare. Haakor's chuckle erupted across the entire arena.

“Our second competitor for the evening needs no introduction. In fact, she's a bit of a surprise.”

I looked about the other end of the platform, trying to locate this mystery fighter, but there was no one there at all.

“Do you see anyone?” I asked Violet, who shook her head. That's when I heard the flapping of wings. I craned my neck around looking for the source of the sound. A dark form flew down towards the platform, slamming into the roughly painted circle on the far end. My eyes widened as the figure revealed herself, stepping out of the shadows.

“No... no... not her, no,” I said quietly as the pony stepped into the harsh lights of Colter Field, revealing herself in all of her glory.

Her glossy coat gleamed in the light of the arena. Her wings were shiny as well, adorned with silvery wingblades. I realized I had only seen the mare outside of her normal armor once, and that had been in Glyphmark. She stepped forward, a sneer on her face as she stared down at Patch.

“Lust...”

“Hello, sweetie.” Lust's svelte voice echoed from across the platform, crushed velvet over a knife’s edge.

Patch stared down the black pegasus intently. The crowd had gone mostly silent as they waited for the first move to be made. Lust stepped forward, flaring out her wings.

“Lust,” Patch said angrily. “What are you doing here? Last we saw you, we’d chased your loose ass out of Glyphmark.”

“Oh, you are adorable when you're flustered darling,” Lust replied, grinning widely. “Why shouldn’t I be here? This is my home, after all. My brother Wrath runs this establishment after all.”

“Your brother?” Patch asked as she stepped further towards the black mare. Soon, the two were circling each other on the platform.

“Yes. Ask your Ministry Mare about that. Oh before I forget...” she said, flaring out her wings and literally disappearing into thin air. A flash of black appeared in front of my face and I felt a pair of lips press against my own before dissipating just as quickly. Lust emerged out of the shadows behind Patch, grinning widely as she looked back at me. She winked, licking her lips lasciviously. “You taste better than our last time, Ministry Mare” she mouthed.

I blinked, not even sure what the hell had just happened. I put my hoof up to my lips, feeling the stinging taste of Lust on them. I glared back at her angrily. Lust rolled her eyes and returned her focus to the battle at hand, sidestepping Patch as the green mare attempted to level a forward hoofstrike at her face. The pegasus dodged lazily, fluttering aside to return to the far edge of the platform.

“Nice try, sweetie, but I wasn't ready yet. You're gonna get me all hot and bothered before the main event,” Lust said, licking her lips.

“Well, seeing as how this is a fight and not a show, I don't think I'm going to give you any chances,” Patch declared, rushing forward at the black mare.

Lust flapped her wings, pushing off in a flash, causing Patch to run underneath her. Lust spun about in mid-air, landing on the earth pony's back and forcing her to the ground. A black hoof ran its way down the pinned mare's face as Lust reached forward.

“Mmmm... you look like you might taste rather delectable yourself my dear,” she said as she lowered her lips to Patch's struggling mouth. A few moments later she broke the kiss, grinning. “Mmmm... yes. Quite lovely.”

Patch growled, trying to push the black mare off of her. I looked over at Steeljack, who was fuming at the sight of his mare being violated so by Lust.

“Ooh doggy. If you grab this bull by the horns, you better be ready for a ride!” Patch cried out, pushing up with a spectacular buck that knocked the pegasus back into the air. Patch spun about and leaped upwards, throwing a hoof out in an attempt to knock Lust out of her airborne position.

Lust simply flew upwards, causing the green mare to miss and fall back to the platform.

“Come down here so I can hurt you!” Patch shouted.

“I told you before sweetie, I wasn't ready. Now I am,” Lust replied as she hovered above my friend. “I think... you had better get ready now.” Her wings flapped and she disappeared once more.

Shit, she is really fast! I thought as a silver flash soared past Patch. Lust reappeared on the far end of the platform. Patch spun about, a thin cut on her side dribbling blood. The earth pony sniper panted as blood spattered on the metal below. Lust grinned and lowered one of her wings to her mouth, licking the blood off the blades. She shuddered with delight at the taste of the earth pony's life force.

Patch shrugged off the injury and charged forward again, strafing from left to right as she came closer to the black mare. Lust twirled about, slashing out with her wings and catching Patch in the shoulder. The green mare grunted through the pain as she launched her hoof out, landing a solid forehoof strike on Lust’s neck. The pegasus reeled back from the strike and reached out, grabbing the other mare in a deadly hoof-hold. Patch struggled, wriggling back and forth as Lust tightened her grip.

“Fucking bitch. I think it's safe to say, you aren't much of a match for me,” the black pegasus said, grinning.

“And like I said, if you think you can take me on, you've got another thing coming,” Patch replied as she surged backwards, forcing Lust onto the platform with a *crash*. The earth pony pulled away as Lust's grip slackened. Patch sprang into the air herself, twirling about as she came down upon the pegasus. Lust howled in pain as Patch's hooves connected soundly against her chest. The earth pony leaped back, huffing and panting. She looked as if she was going to fall over at any moment.

“Get her!” I heard Steeljack shout from beside me. The grey stallion had an intense look on his face. He was clearly enjoying the fight.

I narrowed my gaze at the two ponies on the metal platform. Lust wasn't this much of a pushover. What's your angle Lust? I thought. I nodded knowingly as the black pegasus disappeared from the platform. There it is, you were goading her into using up all her energy. But you don't know Patch too well, do you? Lust reappeared above Patch, putting all of her speed into a dive-bomb at the green mare. Patch looked up, her eye widening at the blurry form above her. I almost couldn't watch, but I was unable to tear my eyes away from the two fighters.

Patch grinned as she leaped to the side, quickly removing herself from the black pegasi's path. Lust struck the platform hard, spraying metal and stone everywhere. The crowd roared and screamed as the mare pulled herself out of the small crater that she had made. She didn't even look fazed at what had to be a painful landing. Grinning, she stepped forward towards Patch, who was breathing even harder.

“That was ambitious, sweetie. But it's going to take a lot more than that to kill me,” she said, buzzing her wings as she rushed at Patch.

I cringed as I watched. The green mare barely had enough strength left to move as Lust struck her, knocking her to the ground. Lust snarled with primal fury as she lifted her wings, bringing the blades in for the final kill. Patch screamed and howled beneath the black pegasus as she struggled to get away.

“No!!!” I cried out, screaming loudly for my friend.

A dark form plummeted in from above, blasting Lust out of her killing strike and slamming into the platform next to Patch. The figure hit hard enough that the massive platform, steel and stone and incredibly heavy, bounced on its chains. The colossal links jingled and rattled as the platform swayed. Lust screamed in fury and recovered in mid air, streaking in a quick loop before arrowing in towards the massive cloaked form. A clawed gauntlet shot out from that concealing shadow of the hooded cloak, smashing Lust out of the air and sending her sliding across the platform. The crowd’s shouting died down, and I realized who was standing over my friend's body.

“Mind your place, sister.” The voice of Wrath echoed throughout the arena. The minotaur leader stepped forward, throwing his cloak off of him in a flare of cloth. “You were to humiliate, not mutilate.”

“She's mine, Wrath. I'm owed her death,” Lust snarled, a pout forming on his face.

“And you would do well to remember which of us is the stronger,” Wrath said, growling back.

Lust flared her wings out. Wrath grinned, and made a motion with his claw. Two robed minotaurs appeared behind him.

“Yes, Lord?” one of them said.

“Remove the young mare to her pen. I have a lesson to teach,” he replied.

The guards nodded as they pulled the shaky Patch to her hooves. They disappeared, taking her with them. I looked over at Violet and Steeljack.

“Go to her. I need to watch this,” I said.

They nodded and stood up, motioning to the guards. Several minotaurs stepped forward and escorted my friends away. I shot a glance at Nixis, who was focused intently on the action on the platform. I returned my attention there myself, where Wrath was looming over the Lust’s furious form.

“So... you think you have what it takes to challenge me? You will remember your place, little one,” the cult leader said, snarling.

Lust was silent as she circled around the minotaur. “Look, I'm sorry Wrath sweetie, but I am just like you. And you interrupted my playtime,” she said.

Wrath erupted into terrifying laughter as he stepped forward.

“Your playtime? You are a foal Lust. Scheming and manipulative to the last, just like sister Pride. The Arena is not for play, not for revenge or foal’s games of jealousy. There is no honor, no glory in what you do here today. But Iron Will himself provided a path to repentance, sister. Take your best shot, and remember: You apologize, I penalize.” the minotaur said.

Lust growled, flaring out her wings once more as she rushed at Wrath. The fanatical cult leader merely stood there as the black mare launched her bladed wings at his head. Wrath grinned as he lifted one of his claws, batting away the pegasus with a single lazy strike. Lust went flying backwards, flapping her wings hard to regain her focus.

It was already over. As soon as Lust had managed to get control back, Wrath was upon her. The minotaur grabbed the black pegasus by her steel wings. My eyes widened when I realized what he had planned. Wrath exploded with laughter as he began to pull on the mare.

“Let's see how good you are when your wings are clipped, little bird!” he shouted maniacally.

This is what I have to fight later? He didn't even waste any time to wear her down. He just went in for the kill, I thought. I didn't know if I even wanted to watch this. I didn't particularly like Lust, but she had saved my life once from Pride. I owed her. My horn flared, throwing up a shield around me as I extended my magic to the black pegasus in Wrath's grip. The minotaur's eyes widened as Lust disappeared in a flash of light, reappearing next to me. The black pegasus looked confused as she looked up at me.

“Wha –?” she started to say.

I turned my attention back to Wrath, grinning widely as I magically amplified my voice. The crowd was roaring and screaming by now.

“Wrath. Do not forget who your real challenger is,” I said. “Leave the pegasus be. Fight me instead.”

Wrath grinned as he lifted a claw, motioning for me to join him. My horn flared again and I appeared on the platform before the maniacal cult leader. As I emerged, I noticed that the guards had returned to the slave pens and that my friends were with them. Patch looked like hell, but I knew she was tougher than nails. It surprised me that Lust was still sitting there, looking deathly confused as my friends were sat down next to her.

“Very well,” Wrath said as he turned to the crowd. “Brothers! Dregs of the Forgotten City! See before you, the paragon of virtue! The Ministry Mare! Prepare to see her driven before me, begging for her pathetic and useless life!” He looked back at me, grinning. “Are you ready Ministry Mare?”

I sighed. As ready as I'll ever be, I thought as I glared at the minotaur. I nodded grimly, preparing to enter into the fight of my life.

I ignited my horn and stepped forward, pushing against my opponent with a simple telekinetic strike to test the waters of his strength. Wrath... just stood there, laughing no less.

“Your magic will not work well against me. Iron Will has given me the strength to resist such power,” he said, snarling as he rushed at me, leveling a clawed fist right at my side, beginning the fight in earnest.

I dodged out of the way, flapping my wings hard as I brought my hoof across Wrath's face. The blow barely fazed the minotaur as he struck again, knocking me across the platform and to the hard metal below. I grunted in pain, forcing myself to stand and dodge another slam from the cult leader.

Wrath growled as I dodged another claw strike. I put all of the concentration I could spare into a teleportation spell, ending up at the far end of the platform far away from the minotaur. I looked around for anything I could use as a weapon. Flaring my horn, I grabbed some of the metal rubble surrounding me and began tossing it at Wrath. The cult leader merely shrugged off the blows as he charged forward. Wrath leaped next to me, launching his clawed fist at my side once more.

The claw descended, and I closed my eyes, waiting for the inevitable pain that would result in my untimely death.

It never came. My eyes cracked open and I saw Wrath's fist, held in the air above my face in a cream-colored glow. The minotaur's face was angry as he tried to force his way through the magic holding it. I shuffled away just in time before the fist came down, slamming into the ground. I looked up, seeing a friendly face. Danish grinned as he stepped forward, a large revolver held in the air with his magic.

“Howdy darlin'. Happy to see me?” he said, leveling the revolver at Wrath and pulling the trigger. The bullet struck the insane cult leader, tearing through his shoulder and out the other side. The minotaur howled in pain as chaos erupted in the arena. Everywhere in the stadium the crowd began to riot, and suddenly it was as if an all-out war had been started. The familiar pinstripe bakery suits of the MMMM flooded the seating as Danish's boys began to hold back the raiders and slavers in the audience. The cream-colored unicorn extended a hoof to me, helping me to my feet.

“D-D-Danish?” I said shakily. He nodded in reply. “What are you doing here?”

“Duh, saving your life. Now come on, we've gotta get out of here,” he replied, floating his revolver out and taking aim once more at Wrath, who was charging at us both. Danish fired again, striking the minotaur dead center in the chest. The blow only fazed Wrath slightly as he continued to charge.

I flared my horn and activated a teleportation spell on both myself and Danish. We reappeared in pure chaos. The stadium seats were being turned over, and there were even fires starting around the arena. I quickly located the slave pens, and noticed my friends were busy freeing themselves. Nixis slashed the cage doors completely off their hinges, ignoring the lock altogether. My friends were stuck together in a tight group, Patch and Lust working surprisingly well together to defend the still wobbly Steeljack.

“Nixis!” I shouted as we made our way through the chaotic fighting to my friends. The hellhound turned about, staring at me. “We need an exit!”

“It would be my pleasure, Ministry Mare,” he replied eloquently, adding a small bow for extra flair. The hellhound jumped to the side and literally dove into the pit. He hit the side of the wall, claws extended as he began to dig in deep. Within moments, a large hole appeared where the hellhound had been.

I looked to Violet, who nodded as I grabbed Lust with my magic.

“You're coming with us,” I declared, prompting confusion from the black mare.

“But-but-but...” She started to say, sputtering as she tried to make sense of what was happening to her.

“Do you want to stay here with him? Because I can arrange that,” I said, pointing across the way at Wrath.

The minotaur leader was in full rage mode, tearing attackers limb from limb as he slogged his way across the metal platform towards us. Lust's eyes shot wide, and she shook her head violently.

“Good. Get in the hole everypony and follow Nixis!” I stopped for a moment, realizing I was forgetting something.

“Danish, our stuff is still inside our medical room,” I said. “You follow the rest, I'll be right behind you.”

“You're tha' boss sweetheart. Just don't stay here too long,” he replied.

I nodded and flared my horn, focusing my energy into a teleport. I reappeared in the familiar confines of the medical wing that had served as our prison for the past two days. Giggling with the release of tension, I ripped open the locks on the cabinets holding our bags. Festooning myelf with our entire party’s belongings, I laughed as I took up Thunder Flash, Para Bellum, and Stargazer. The other weapons were faintly familiar, but the weight and heft of my weapon was like an old friend. The door crashed open as several minotaurs in red robes burst through. I turned and fired with all three weapons at once, not even bothering to enter E.S.A.T.S. I grinned as the silver fire of Thunder Flash tore through several of the guards, reducing them to nothing but silver goop on the floor below.

“Sorry boys, time to go!” I shouted, charging my horn again. I reappeared once more in the center of the arena, high above on the announcer's platform.

A mighty explosion of a roar erupted from the platform below as Wrath saw me reappear in the air above his fighting ground. The insane cult leader was now literally tossing raiders and slavers at the bakery gang members. His eyes were blood red, and he panted hard as he saw me.

“Ministry Mare!!!” he shouted. “We are not done yet, you and I. Ours is a conflict for the ages, written in stone by the great Iron Will himself. I will find you, and when I do... I will end you. Not in front of a crowd like this, but in the dark of the cold night... where nopony will find you!”

“Come and get me you fucker,” I said, flaring my wings out and speeding towards the hole that Nixis had made.

Wrath snarled loudly as I disappeared from view into the darkness of the hole. I hesitated for a moment, wanting to go back and ask the minotaur about Pride, but I got the distinct impression that Wrath would not tell me no matter how nicely I asked him. Moving through the tunnel that Nixis had made, I found that it was moving upward towards the surface.

I broke free of the stuffy air of the makeshift exit and into the stagnant atmosphere surrounding Colter Field. My friends were huddled next to the wall of the massive stadium. Violet stepped up as soon as she saw me, grabbing onto our bags with her magic. I groaned as she helped relieve the burden of the weapons I was carrying as well.

“Thanks. I wasn't sure how much longer I would have lasted magic-wise,” I said. “What's the situation?”

“Pretty bad,” Danish said, interjecting. “Colter Field is going up in flames and the Cult of Iron Will is in full religious fanatic mode. We need to get moving before they find us, darlin'.”

“Danish, I don't... I don't even know how to thank you for this,” I said.

“Don't then, we call it even Steven and we're good,”Danish replied. “Now let's go already. This place is going down faster than Celestia on a fillyfooler!”

I blinked at the uh... colorful euphemism. I giggled and realized I missed the stallion's unique sense of humor. I nodded and moved over to Lust, who was still shaking.

“Lust. Come on, let's go. We're going to get you out of here,” I said, prompting a cry of surprise from my friends.

“We're helping her?” Patch said angrily. “After what she did to me?” I nodded. “Why?”

“Because Wrath was going to kill her, and I owe her one. Remember Glyphmark? I wouldn't have survived if not for her,” I said. “Besides, if she puts one hoof out of line...” I glared at the pegasus, who merely nodded.

The odd one out of the group, Nixis, stepped forward. The hellhound had a wide smile on his face. “Nixis is with you as well Ministry Mare,” he said.

I grinned, nodding. I would have to sit down later and have a nice long talk with the cultured beast. An explosion split the air above us, and I looked around. Minotaurs in power armor began to stream out of the stadium itself, and I realized we had been spotted.

“Let's go!” I shouted as we began to run away from the stadium. All around us, the world exploded. Gunfire filled the air, coming dangerously close to us as I tried to keep a shield spell up. Shining Armor's spell was excellent for deterring just about anything, but it definitely was wearing on me. The beginnings of magical burnout began to stir within me, causing a spike of pain to shoot out of my horn. I grimaced through the pain. I couldn't let it go. I had to keep going. I had to keep my friends safe.

The desolate city of Chicacolt loomed to our right, while in the distance ahead of us lay a large ruined building. That’ll have to do - we HAVE to lose these guys!, I thought, trying to figure out the best place for us to hunker down. Violet and Steeljack were firing wildly behind us, hitting the occasional minotaur and slowing down the ones behind it. There was no way we could stand and fight. Between the enraged minotaurs and the presence of Wrath himself, we would be overrun and destroyed in moments.

Without much of a choice, we pressed forward towards the massive building in the distance. The effects of the shield spell were now wearing on me heavily. I didn't have long before the spell failed... or worse. We crossed the space of Wasteland between Colter Field and this new building, moving as one. The details of the building began to reveal themselves the closer we came to it. A massive sign lay across the front steps of the structure, revealing the word MUSEUM on it. The building was unfenced, but an area cleared of rubble showed the edge of the territory controlled by the museum. As we neared the building, the incoming fire slackened, then ceased. I spared moment to shoot a look behind me, seeing the minotaurs simply stop as we crossed the curious border onto the grounds of the ancient museum.

“Why are they stopping?” Violet asked as she pulled up next to me. Her expression was a mixture of elation and confusion.

“I don't know! Keep going!” I said as we pressed forth, arriving finally at the steps. Now the front steps of the massive museum were fully visible, I gasped in shock. The bodies of ponies, griffons, and minotaur littered the courtyard, each one missing various body parts. These were not your typical two hundred year old preserved corpses either. These were fresh bodies, bloody and messy.

“What?” I said aloud, taking in the gory scenery and stopping cold in my tracks. I looked around, expecting to be attacked by raiders. It certainly seemed to be their normal choice of décor. I looked back again, noticing that we were completely alone now. The minotaur guards that had pursued us were gone. “What happened to the guards following us?”

“They're... gone?” Nixis said, scratching his head. “But how?”

“I... I don't know. Everyone keep an eye out, we may be in some form of raider territory,” I said, bringing up my E.F.S. It was empty, showing absolutely nothing other than the yellow blips of my friends Even Lust showed up as a friendly. I dropped the shield spell, feeling a wave of relief roll over me from the cessation of effort. The headache persisted, however. Cautiously I stepped forward onto the steps, heading up towards the front doors to the museum. A cold chill blew over my coat, the cold caress of a breeze without the air movement. I stopped at the top of the steps, Violet moving to join me. The disturbed look in her eyes showed that she felt the same not-wind too.

“What is this place?” she said, igniting her horn into a light spell.

The doors to the museum were practically falling off of their hinges. It looked like nopony had been here in ages. So what was up with the fresh bodies in the courtyard then? I looked back and gasped softly.

“Violet...?” I said, catching her attention. I pointed back at the courtyard. All of the bodies that had previously lay around the front steps were now mysteriously gone. Clean white steps lay in their place. “What happened to all the bodies?”

“I... I'm not sure,” Violet replied.

Patch and Steeljack stepped up next to us, helping the shell-shocked Lust onto the step. The black mare had a blank look on her face, almost as if she had seen a ghost.

“Well, I don't want to take any chances here. We should get inside, find someplace safe to hunker down and recover,” I said, motioning to the doors.

My friends nodded and I stepped up to the entrance. I kicked outwards, knocking the doors to the ground. A pile of dust filled the air, another sign of this place’s antiquity. After rechecking my E.F.S. for what felt like the fortieth time, I stepped inside.

Surprisingly, the museum lobby was quite clean. There was no rubble to speak of, and the ticket booths appeared to be intact. A thick layer of dust lay over everything, including the floor. I trotted forward, hearing the echo of my hooves on the thick marble flooring. More sounds followed behind me as my friends came into the museum.

“Wow...” I heard Patch say as I looked upwards. A massive mural of the two regal sisters Celestia and Luna adorned the ceiling of the museum's main hall. The main hall extended upwards, showing different floors on each side of the building. I could barely count the number of floors that there appeared to be. This was a museum? I thought as I tried to take it all in. It's so... large. I turned to my friends.

“I think we should be okay to set up here in the lobby. We'll take shifts to keep watch,” I said.

Steeljack nodded, helping Lust along to a seat on the side wall. He moved to help Patch and Violet set up our temporary camp as I sat down next to the black mare. She looked up at me, her face completely devoid of emotion.

“Hey,” I said. “Are you alright?”

“I... I don't know,” she said, looking away for a moment. Her voice had lost the confidence I had come to know the brash pegasus by. “I feel... strange. This place... it's... weird.”

“I'm getting that feeling too. Listen... Lust. I know we're not on the same side, but you helped me before against Pride. That must mean something,” I said. “Things have gotten... worse since we last met. I need to find Pride. I need to prevent something really bad from happening.”

“Let me guess. You want to know about Stable 180,” Lust said, sighing. I nodded. “I... I can only tell you where it is. What it is, and why it's important... I don't know. I don't remember.”

“You don't remember?” I asked.

“Pride is a master of mind magic,” Lust said, shaking her head. “She took away our memories of the place. The only ones that knew were her, Sloth, and Wrath.”

“But I thought Wrath only cared about himself?” I said.

“He does. That doesn't mean that he's stupid though. His mind was far too powerful for Pride to attack. All that wishy-washy Iron Will shit, I guess,” Lust replied. “He works for Pride only when it suits him and the Cult.”

“I'm guessing that my capture wasn't happenstance then,” I said aloud.

“Wrath had planned to deliver you to her after he defeated you in the arena. He claimed his right as leader of the Cult to tell Pride that you belonged to him before she could ever have her hooves on you,” Lust said. “I guess we know how that one turned out.” She motioned to the scene before her. Danish and Steeljack had managed to use the fallen front doors to fortify the entrance, while Patch and Nixis assisted Violet with setting up camp.

“Never underestimate the power of friendship, Lust. It can do some pretty amazing things,” I said.

“Well, I wouldn't count on Wrath leaving you alone. You're on his radar now. He won't give up,” Lust said. “Now... you wanted to know about Stable 180 correct? I believe I do owe you for saving my life, sweetie.” She grinned widely as some of her trademark confidence emerged.

“I... I would consider that we were even on that. After all, you saved me from Pride in Glyphmark,” I said.

“Well, then consider this one a freebie,” Lust said. “All things considering, I think Pride is pretty much done with me now.”

“What will you do now?” I asked.

“Wrath is probably just as pissed off at me as he is at you. I... If you would be okay with it, I'd like to stick around you,” the black mare replied.

“You mean you don't want to capture me?” I said, my eyes widening.

“Wrath promised me that he would pay a lot of money for one fight. I didn't know who it would be. I may have gotten a teensy bit carried away in that one fight,” she said, motioning across the way at Patch. “I don't think she'd forgive me, though.”

“You'd be surprised,” I said. “Now, what about Stable 180?”

“Down to business as always, sweetie,” Lust said. “But yes, I'm getting off-topic aren't I? Stable 180 is located in the most obvious place. It's underneath Filly's Tower.”

I looked at the mare incredulously. Filly's Tower? I thought. “You mean... where the Minotaur is?” I said, blinking. “You mean, I was fucking there and didn't know it?!”

“Huh?” Lust said, looking clearly confused.

“Long story, but I teleported there once and met the Minotaur. Well, not so much met as spoke to,” I replied, telling the mare about the incident with the Pink Cloud megaspell. “But there's a Stable underneath it?”

“I... I don't know much more than that, but that's where it is,” she said, nodding and looking around the dark lobby. “You know... even being here for this long is starting to give me the creeps.”

“Yeah. I think we had better stick close together and get some rest,” I said as I helped the pegasus up.

We made our way back over to the others, where Violet had managed to salvage some of our food out of our bags and was making some semblance of a dinner. It was meager, but it filled my stomach well enough. After eating, I stepped over to Danish, smiling at the cream unicorn as he was helping Steeljack roll out extra bedrolls.

“Darlin',” he said, nodding as I walked up.

“Danish, I can't thank you enough for helping us,” I said.

“Ah, let's just say I owe you one, sweetheart. You did save my life after all,” the stallion replied, giving a shrug. “You certainly made an impression on the MMMM.”

“Well, I really appreciate it. But umm... will the rest of your boys be alright?” I asked.

“Yeah, I'm sure they'll be alright. After all, the big guy was really after you. Should have given my boys plenty time to get out,” he said, motioning for me to follow him to the far side of the lobby. “Speakin' of the MMMM, I wanted to ask you somethin'.”

“Oh? What's that?” I asked.

“I know that you're prob'ly busy and all, but I have a job for you. Something only you could do,” He said. “Y'see, our big boss is in a real ripe state. He's... well let's just say he's kinda big. You know the MMMM has a lot of bakers and sweet makers in it right?” I nodded. “Well we could use some help. Things have gotten... bad for our bakers. All of our caps are going to feeding... well... him.”

“What?” I asked. “You mean... literally?” The unicorn nodded again. “Holy shit... he's gotta be... how big?”

“Really, really big,” the pudgy unicorn replied. “I'm at a loss, here. It's starting to cause a lot of fighting amongst the bakers and the various factions inside the MMMM. The Buttercream Boys and the Whipped Cream Royalists have almost come to blows recently...”

“What do you expect me to do?” I asked.

“I just want you to talk to tha' boss is all. See if you can convince him to stop what he's been doing. I've seen what you can do,” he said.

“Listen, thank you for holding me in such high esteem,” I said. “I'm hardly worth that sort of reverence.”

“Ain't reverence sweetheart. It's respect. Just... think about it would ya? It'd sure mean a lot to this old baker's heart,” he said.

“Sure, I'll think about it,” I said, smiling and nodding. We made our way back over to the others. Patch kept glaring at me the entire time I had been talking with Lust and Danish. I decided to try and find out why. Might as well get everything out of the way now, I thought.

“Patch?” I said, startling the mare. “Can we... talk?” She nodded and I took her aside. “Look, Patch... I know you don't like, don’t trust Lust...”

“You think? That bitch... first she kissed me, and then she tried to kill me,” Patch replied angrily. She snorted. “And you expect that I'd be okay with you saving her life? For bringing her along?”

“I know. And I'm not expecting anything, but please understand... she knows where to find Pride and she's willing to help us,” I said, sighing. “But I need to know that you can at least shelve your grudge against her until we can get out of here.”

“I'll... I'll try Star. I really will. But I can't make any promises. If she starts something with me...” she said, trailing off. “I won't hold back. You know that.”

“I know, and I appreciate your honesty, my friend,” I said.

“I'm gonna go see if Danish and Steeljack need any help,” the green mare said.

I nodded as she trotted off towards the unicorn and the earth pony. I looked over at Violet, who grinned and motioned for me to join her on our bedroll. I moved over and lay next to my love, smiling. Danish had volunteered to take the first watch while the rest of us tried to get some rest. I let my gaze drift aimlessly around me at the ruined museum lobby, feeling that cold chill down my spine once again. It was like we were being... watched by something. I shrugged it off and opened my bags, pulling out the cases of memory orbs I had collected. I blinked when I saw the amount of them. I really had too many of these things. I pulled the case containing the orbs from the Fort Knowledge library and set them aside.

“Violet?” I said quietly, drawing my love's attention. “Despite the fact that Spark is gone... I still look the same. I can't help but think this won't be over until I face her again. But... I'm scared. Scared I won't have the strength to face her.”

“Oh Star, we'll be there with you to help you face her. You won't be alone. Never again,” She said, nuzzling my neck.

I smiled, leaning into her caress. “Thank you my love. However, if I'm going to be ready for this... I need to know about Shining Armor. One of these other two orbs belonged to him,” I said. “I need to see what drove Twilight to accept Spark's offers.”

Violet grimaced, but finally nodded.

“Alright. But you have to take watch at some point,” she said, grinning. “Besides. It gives me the perfect opportunity to... you know.” She winked, causing a furious blush to emerge on my face.

“You wouldn't,” I said, sticking my tongue out.

Her grin only widened. I knew in the back of my mind that she probably would not do anything, but I also knew to never put anything past my marefriend. I looked down at the memory orbs before me, selecting the second silvery one in the middle of the case. I latched out with my magic, and felt the world fall away.

This was a new feeling. I was inside a very powerfully built unicorn stallion. Shining Armor! Twilight's brother's body radiated confidence and power. Beneath it all however, was a searing pain that flowed not only through my host's body, but inside his mind as well. My host looked up, and my vision refocused. I was in a bedroom in what appeared to be a palace. A stream of sunlight filtered in through the curtains. My host was lying on the bed. A golden door at the far end of the room opened, revealing a light pink alicorn mare. She stepped into the room, followed behind by Twilight Sparkle and an older dark navy blue alicorn mare.

“General Armor,” the dark blue mare said.

My host raised his hoof in a salute. “Princess Luna. You honor me with your presence,” he said.

Twilight averted her eyes from her brother. The purple mare looked as if she would burst into tears at any moment. The pink alicorn sat down on the bed next to Armor. Twilight kept her place behind Princess Luna, who smiled.

“As do you, our general. When we first heard of thine injury, we feared for the worst,” the princess of the night replied. “The Littlehorn Agent is one of the most foul things that the zebras have created.”

“I would have been claimed by it too, had it not been for my shield spell,” my host said, clearing his throat. Twilight continued to look at the ground. “It's keeping the Littlehorn Agent contained, but just barely. I was forced to cast it on my own organs to keep myself alive. I’m not certain how long I will be able to maintain it either.”

“We understand your predicament Shining Armor,” Princess Luna said. “We fear that there may be no cure for you.”

“No...” Twilight uttered softly.

Luna shot a glance at her, before turning back to Shining Armor.

“No!” Twilight repeated, punctuating her statement with a hoofstomp like a hammerblow on the floor. “There WILL be a cure. I will find one, or MAKE one.”

“Twilight, dear, we talked about this. You are a Ministry Mare, and your Ministry is the best chance we have of ending this conflict.” Princess Luna said, sadness and resignation coloring her words.

“I agree with Princess Luna. I love my husband very much, but the only way to save him is to put an end to this senseless conflict.” the pink alicorn interjected. “As much as I would like a cure to be found, I know he understands the needs of the many outweigh the needs of a single pony.”

Twilight glared at her. “And as Ministry Mare of Arcane Science, I hereby declare that a portion of our research shall go into finding a way to neutralize the Littlehorn Agent,” she said angrily. “So that I might save your husband, my brother.”

The pink alicorn glared back at Twilight, until my host placed a hoof on her shoulder.

“If you all would excuse me, but shouldn't I have a say in this?” he said. Both mares looked down at the floor as my host continued. “Now, while I appreciate your concerns Twilight... Cadance and Luna are correct. I'm just one pony. Equestria needs you to save it, not me. I will perform my duty until the day I either retire or expire, whichever comes first.”

“I just... I don't want you to die...” Twilight said after a few moments of silence.

Cadance stood and moved over to the lavender unicorn, wrapping her in a firm and simple hug. “And my dear sister-in-law, I do not wish for my husband to die either, but if that is to happen then it is to happen. We cannot question fate,” she said.

“Thank you Cadance. Can... can I have a moment alone with my brother?” she asked.

“I think that is allowed,” Cadance said, looking up at Princess Luna.

“We shall take our leave of you General Armor. We shall visit thee soon however, to discuss your return to duty,” the Princess said, nodding.

“I look forward to it, my Princess,” he replied.

The two alicorns left the room, leaving just my host and his sister. Twilight stepped forward and sat on the bed next to Shining Armor. Several moments of pure silence followed.

“Shiny?” Twilight said, drawing my host's attention.

“Yes?” he said, shifting himself in the bed to sit upright next to his sister.

“I know you don't want me to, but I meant what I said. I'm going to find a cure for you. I will find a way to save you,” she said, a look of pure determination crossing her face.

“Twily, I told you. I'm just one pony. What difference can I make? You're in control of one of the most vital Ministries in the Equestrian government,” my host said. “Please don't make such a big deal about this. I'm fine for now. Plenty of time left in me.”

“But...” Twilight said.

My host smiled and extended a hoof around his sister, pulling her into a hug. “Hey, don't worry. You're still my L.S.B.F.F.,” he said.

Twilight looked up and smiled. “Thanks, B.B.B.F.F.,” she said, returning the hug and standing. “I feel a little bit better now, but don't think you've convinced me to stop. I will find a cure.” She stood and strode out of the bedroom without saying anything further.

My host remained silent until she left. A shadowy figure appeared in the room next to Shining Armor.

“So... you convinced her to do it,” a smooth voice said from above the white unicorn.

My host looked up as an alicorn as dark as night stepped forward, emerging from a fold of shadow. Cold blue steel armor gleamed on her midnight coat. My host nodded.

“Yes Empress. She is sure to approach the Element of Magic for assistance,” he said. The alicorn grinned wickedly.

“Excellent, Shining Armor. Your assistance in this endeavor has been greatly appreciated. Soon this war shall escalate to the point of no return, and I shall reign supreme,” she said proudly. “With the Elements of Harmony corrupted, nothing shall be left to stop me from ruling this sad and pathetic little world.”

“Yes, Nightmare Moon. Or should I say, Princess Luna?” my host said, a grin cracking on his face.

The alicorn's horn glowed brightly and she transformed into the Princess of the Night.

“You are most effective Shining Armor. We are quite pleased with your service,” the Lunar Princess said.

“And I am pleased to serve you Empress. But won't Twilight figure out what's going on?” he asked.

“That is where you will continue to serve us. Your mission General Armor, is to ensure that Twilight continues on the path that we have set for her. The Elements of Harmony will be mine to control once more, and with them I shall end this war. For far too long the Ministries have squandered their resources in this bloody conflict,” the Princess replied. “If harmony is dead in Equestria, the zebras will have no choice but to serve me. After all... I am the Nightmare.”

“Of course my queen. I am ever in your service,” my host said, bowing his head before the alicorn as the memory faded to nothing.

I came to in darkness. I lay quietly, a headache settling into my skull just behind my horn. I sighed and got up, stretching my legs and back out. Looking around, I couldn’t find Violet. In fact, I was completely alone... and not in the same part of the museum that I had started in. In fact, I wasn't totally sure where I was. The room I was in was part of a large exhibit on what appeared to be the paleo-pony period. I stood and looked around. My bags, weapons, and most importantly... my friends were gone.

“Hello?” I called out. Nothing answered. I sighed, and started walking. There was just enough light coming in from the skylight above to illuminate my path. Skylight? But we were on the ground floor before, I thought as I stopped and looked up. The moon poured along the ground from above. A cold chill flowed across my body. Something wasn't right about this place. What was going on here? I decided that I should press on, and try and locate Violet and the others. I brought up my E.F.S., seeing nothing that indicated any hostile or friendly presences nearby. I silently wished Lucky was still around. I really missed the green mare's company in times such as this.

A screeching noise from all around me broke the silence. I spun about, trying to find the source of the infernal sound. A red light flashed in the darkness behind me, coalescing into a silvery orb floating in the air. Protruding from its sides were two spindly arms.

“INTRUDER... INTRUDER... INTRUDER...” A robotic voice emanated from the orb as a blast of magical energy soared past my ears. Shit! I thought as I ducked to avoid the orb's blasts. The robot guardian flew towards me, continuing its monotone change and death-ray fire. I ignited my horn, throwing a nearby skeleton of a prehistoric pony at the thing. The orb merely blasted through the bones, disintegrating them as it continued its mission to end me. I turned tail and ran, dodging blasts from the flying robot as I made my way into the next exhibit hall. The next hall was filled with marble pillars. I ducked behind a close one, just barely missing another blast of energy from the robotic orb. I grunted in pain as spatters of molten marble singed my hide The silvery orb flew past the pillar and spun around, its red eye zooming in on my location. I growled and reached out with my magic, raising my shield as the orb fired another stream of energy my way. It bounced off harmlessly into the the hall, disintegrating a crater from one of the nearby pillars. My horn seared in agony from the use of Shining Armor's shield spell, but I pushed through the pain and extended the shield out towards the robot. The shield pressed upon the silvery orb, forcing it back into the pillar behind it and crushing it to pieces.

With the orb down, I dropped the shield and breathed a sigh of relief. I walked over to the strange device and picked it up in my magic. The device appeared to be of Ministry of Arcane Science design. Where did it even come from? There was no indication that any of this place's security systems were still intact, I thought as I removed the spark battery from the device's crushed casing. Realizing that I didn't have any saddlebags to put the battery in, I tossed it aside and looked around. The hall was filled with a mist that covered the entire floor. I felt cold again. I looked up and realized the skylight was now gone. I stepped back and looked behind me, into the paleo-pony exhibit I had awoken in. A completely different hall stood in its place.

“The fuck...? What is going on here?” I said aloud as I returned my attention to the pillar hall. The mist covering the ground felt... unnatural. It was as if it were alive. I cast about, mentally. There was no other option available, I had to press on. I stepped deeper into the hall, feeling that cold chill roll over me once more. This place was playing with me. I couldn't figure out how, but it was doing something. I wondered how my friends were faring, and how Violet was. The insanity of Colter Field seemed so far away. I sighed, hoping that everyone else was alright. The hallway seemed to stretch on forever. As I walked, began checking my E.F.S. As I neared what looked like an ending, a yellow blip came up. A flash of green appeared in the hall ahead of me.

“Who's there?” I shouted, not expecting any sort of reply. A meek voice called out in response.

“Hello?” it said. I moved towards the voice, heading into the next hall. The exhibit was about the Elements of Harmony. A fake set of the fabled Elements themselves were set on a center dais in the center of the hall.

“Hello? Who's out there?” I said.

A small green filly came into view as I rounded the dais, hunched over and crying. The yellow blip on my E.F.S. matched her. I smiled as I looked down at her. “Hi there. Are you lost dear?” The filly turned around and I gasped softly. Whatever... whatever it was, it wasn't equine. Its eyes were soulless orbs of milky black. It grinned widely, its teeth filed down to sharpened points. It opened its gaping maw, cackling wildly as it stepped towards me. The ghastly filly launched itself across the hall, growling as it slammed into me. I tried to dodge, but the creature had already managed to latch onto me and began biting ferociously at my neck. I reached out with my magic, grabbing ahold of the thing and tossing it across the hall. The beastly thing hit the wall with a sickening *splat* and fell to the ground. It shuddered on the floor for a moment and then righted itself. It howled with unearthly glee.

“Fuck!” I shouted, turning tail as the howling creature hopped towards me once more. I couldn't even begin to process what was happening to me. I was being chased through a strange museum by a psychotic little death filly. I couldn't even tell if it was a ghoul or not. I didn't even take a second glance to even see. I just kept running. What the fuck is wrong with this place?! I thought as I passed into another long hall, this one opening into the central shaft of the museum. I was back at the center! I galloped ahead, launching over the railing and flapping hard to control my flight into the shaft beyond. I looked down, seeing darkness. A howling followed behind me as the insane filly-thing launched off of the railing after me, howling through the void on a collision course. I snarled and grabbed a hold of it with my magic, flinging it upwards with a grunt of effort. The 'thing' struck the skylight violently and splattered against the glass, turning into nothing but blood and bone.

I flew downwards into the darkness, heading towards the bottom of the museum. I flew for what felt like forever, finally touching the solid ground of the main floor of the museum lobby. I headed towards the front, looking for any traces of my friends. Nothing. There was nothing around the front lobby. No sign of our camp, or my friends’ presence. I sighed. Did they move on already? I thought. No. Something's not right. My friends wouldn't leave me behind. A silvery light caught my glance as I searched the lobby. It appeared to be coming from behind one of the ticket booths. I trotted over, finding what appeared to be a memory orb just sitting there in the center of the booth. I looked around, wondering what the hell was going on. My eyes returned to the orb, and I started to reach out with my magic almost instinctively.

“No,” I said, stopping myself. “I... I can't. I have to find Violet. The others.” I sighed. One teensy weensy peek won't hurt... right? I groaned, deciding to throw caution to the wind as I picked up the memory orb with my telekinesis and letting the world fall away into nothingness once more.

My eyes came into focus as I realized whose body I was in. Twilight's body was extremely comfortable to me by now. My host looked around for a few moments, and I recognized the familiar scenery of the palace halls. Twilight trotted along, making her way out of the palace and into the gardens beyond. Her journey led her to a small alcove where a large white statue stood. The statue was of a very familiar creature. It was the spirit of Chaos, Discord. My host stopped before the statue, regarding it with narrowed eyes. Memories flooded my thoughts of a time when Discord had escaped, and the six mares had used the Elements of Harmony to turn the spirit of Disharmony back into stone.

“Twiliiiight,” a feminine voice said, cutting through my host's thoughts. My host spun around, looking for the source of the phantom voice.

“Hello?” my host called out. “Who's there?”

“Twilight. It's me,” the voice replied. “I'm your friend.” My host's eyes widened as she looked up at the statue.

“No, it's not... but you're trapped inside the stone,” she said. A soft chuckle emanated in the back of my host's mind. A ghostly presence appeared from behind the stone statue. The soft light formed into that of a lavender unicorn. Her mane was not yet the dark black I was used to, instead it was a soft purple with a pink streak through it. She smiled brightly at my host.

“Hello Twilight. In case you're wondering, I'm not Discord,” she said. “But I am somepony you know rather well.”

“Who... who are you?” Twilight asked.

“Isn't it obvious, you silly filly? I'm the Element of Magic!” the spectral mare said, grinning widely. She twirled about the statue.

“That... How is that even possible? How are you...?” Twilight said nervously as she began to look the other mare up and down.

“You're the first bearer in a long time I've ever revealed myself like this to Twilight. You're special,” the spectral unicorn replied. “And right now, you need my help.”

“What... what do you mean?” my host said. “I mean... I know the war's gotten worse and all...”

“Trust me Twilight. I can help you with your Ministry. Being the Element of Magic, I know plenty of spells to help you,” the other unicorn said. “I also come bearing a warning.”

“A warning?” my host asked, cocking her head to the side.

“There shall come a time when things will get really bad. The Elements of Harmony will be challenged again, and you shall have to be strong to get through it all,” the other unicorn said.

“What's going to happen?” my host said.

The lavender mare on the other side of the statue grinned. “Don't worry Twilight. In the end it will all work out,” she said. “Things always do. Now then, I have to get going. If you need me, just call on me.” She began to fade to nothingness.

“Wait! How do I get in touch with you?!” my host shouted.

Soon the mare was nothing but a grin, floating in mid air.

“That part's easy, just call my name,” the floating mouth said. “You can call me Spark.”

I came to, feeling a soft and warm body next to mine. I looked next to me, seeing Violet laying there. She was sleeping, a gentle snore coming from her muzzle every few seconds. I perked my ears up, taking in the surroundings. I was back in the main lobby. My friends were all asleep, save Nixis, who appeared to be on watch duty. Was it all a dream? I thought. The events I had witnessed still weighed heavy in my mind. Did I imagine it all? Damage or leftovers from Spark? Something the Virtues did? I couldn't tell. With all the creatures and things messing with my mind, I couldn’t be certain of anything but Violet and my friends.

I pushed myself up away from Violet, carefully allowing her to continue sleeping. I stepped lightly towards the hellhound. He looked up at me, and smiled toothily.

“Hello Nixis,” I said quietly. “May I sit next to you?”

“It... it is a pleasure to be in your presence, Ministry Mare,” He said, nodding.

“Please. Call me Radiant Star. I have to admit that I am impressed at your... eloquence,” I replied.

“Yes, well. I learned from ponies. High Equestrian and all. It was how I earned my position in Ponyville,” Nixis said.

“How did you end up in Chicacolt, of all places?” I said.

“Our town was besieged by slavers. Many of us were taken, myself included,” he said.

“Must have been strong slavers to take hellhounds,” I said.

“Hard to resist when they were using those Celestia-forsaken mind control collars. Kept us in line quite nicely,” he said, noting the surprised expression on my face. “Remnants of old Enclave technology. Even for a hellhound, I was a difficult slave. Ponies who would own a slave tend not to be able to deal with one who can not only explain to them why they are in the wrong, but what they should do about it.” Nixis and I shared a laugh, and he continued. “I managed to escape from the Lotus Triad, but the Cult of Iron Will recaptured me, and here I’ve remained.”

“And you've been there ever since? How long?” I asked.

“Years. Sometimes, it feels like forever,” he responded. “But not as long as I have studied the doctrine of the Goddesses and the words of the Lightbringer.”

“Ah yes, the Destroyer,” I said, scowling as I considered the unicorn who had been responsible for my pseudo-mother's demise.

“I see that you refer to her much like most of your sisterhood does. I've met several of your kind in the past, and you're all the same. You do not see past your own sins,” Nixis said solemnly.

“Oh? And your kind is much better?” I said, feeling up for a little challenging debate.

“My kind is long known for pain and suffering in the Wasteland. We do not ignore this fact, my friend. Instead, we embrace it. We know we caused pain, but we do our best to make this world a better place in the Lightbringer's wake,” Nixis said. “Alicorns on the other hand... are tragically misguided in their knowledge of their past. When your Goddess broke, she spread your minds across all your sisters. Many of your kind went insane from the multiple minds inhabiting their bodies. Even those few of you who have held onto sanity have nothing of the past but fractures and mystery. You are truly, a race with no past.”

“I think there’s a lot of value there, but from a personal perspective...” I paused to think. “Ultimately, it’s I that resents the Destroyer. Even if her actions gave me my freedom and individuality back. Even if we truly deserve to be in Harmony, not Unity,” I said. Nixis simply smiled.

“You make an interesting counterpoint my friend. However, without the Destroyer you would not even exist,” he said in return. Before I could respond, the hellhound continued to speak. “I am loathe to turn away from a debate, but I must express my concerns. I have been watching this place for some time since my watch began, and I am... unsure of it.”

I looked around the dark lobby. “I... I am too. I had this strange dream. I was... attacked and chased around several areas of this museum. It was... discomforting,” I said. “There's something here... watching us and waiting for the right time.”

“Indeed,” The hellhound said. “I've felt it too. It's unnerving to say the least.”

A stirring behind us indicated that the others had awoken. I stood and turned to the group.

“I believe that there is something... wrong with this place,” I said, addressing my friends as we began to collect our belongings. “I think it’s high time we moved on. The Cult of Iron Will is no longer following us, and we should use this opportunity wisely.”

The others nodded in agreement. They all looked like they hadn't gotten any rest at all. In fact, they looked worse than when we had first entered the museum. I nuzzled Violet and helped pack up our bags. Attaching Stargazer to its harness, I moved towards the front door where we had entered. As I pushed open the doors with my magic, a soft gasp escaped my lips. Violet came up next to me.

“Star...? What's wrong?” she said, looking past me as she saw what I was now seeing. “Oh... oh my.”

The outside world was completely gone. Beyond the front doors, instead of stairs down to eerily clear ground, there was another lobby. Squinting, I could make out a large violet butt at the far end of the room. The rest of the pony was invisible, hidden by the door she was looking through. With a start, I realized I was seeing myself.

“What the fuck?!” I shouted angrily. “What the fuck is going on here? This isn't right! Where's the outside?” I pounded my front hoof on the door frame. There was something wrong here. Something terribly, terribly wrong.

Violet stepped closer and put a hoof on my shoulder. “It'll be alright, Star. We'll find a way out of here,” she said.

I sighed, looking out the door again at the other lobby. There was... something there that was watching us. I thought for a moment that I saw movement, but when I looked again there was nothing there. Just my imagination, I thought, turning back to the others.

“Alright then. Our only option then is to go up. Find a skylight and get out that way,” I said. “Does anyone here know anything at all about this place?”

“I know that the Cult never came here, but I don't know why,” Nixis said, sighing.

I nodded at the hellhound. “Okay, well. I'd prefer to not stay here much longer than we have to,” I said, stepping into the lobby and motioning to my friends.

As one, we moved deeper into the darkened hall. I paid close attention to my E.F.S. but nothing appeared other than the yellow blips belonging to my friends. The hall ended in a large staircase, heading up to the next level. As we stepped near it, a clicking sound emanated from my PipBuck. I looked down at it, noting that there were rising levels of radiation here. It became obvious however, that there were no bodies anywhere. In fact, there wasn't even any skeletons. I looked up, seeing the skylight at the very top of the ceiling far above us. I thought about Spark and Twilight and how they first had met. How that cheery mare that Spark once had been had transformed into one of the most evil forces in the world. How Shining Armor had tricked Twilight down the path that led to Spark's continued survival. And now, as I stood in this strange museum the corrupted Element of Magic was on its way to Pride. There wasn't any time to waste. We had to get out of this place, and fast.

A bolt of energy soared past my ears as I picked up Stargazer, unleashing a torrent of gunfire towards the turret jutting out of the ceiling. Several of the rounds struck, causing the turret to explode in a spectacular blaze of fire. Another series of energy beams came from a second turret. Violet hopped next to me, pulling up Thunder Flash. A blast of silver fire turned the second turret to melted goop on the side of the wall.

Since we had moved up to the first level of the museum, the ancient security systems in the place had suddenly become active. Every hall had several turrets that suddenly would pop up without warning and begin firing. To make matters worse, the museum itself seemed to be playing with us. We'd walk into the next hall and find ourselves in a hall we had already visited. These 'new' halls also had completely repaired security systems. We paused, taking a much needed rest break as I tried to convince my PipBuck’s automap to make sense of the shifting layout of the place. Worse, we were still being watched. The feeling of eyes on the back of my neck intensified, and I wasn’t the only one noticing the heavy atmosphere. I was starting to feel panicked, and seeing signs of it on my friends, when we finally came to a set of stairs... that went down.

“Down? Down?! The stairs are supposed to go up!” I shouted, pounding my hoof on the railing. “This place is just fucking with us!” I roared, pounding harder as I spat profanity at the world. I could hear my friends behind me talking amongst themselves.

“Is... is she gonna be alright?” I heard Lust say. “Or are we expecting her to go crazy and kill everyone she sees?” There was a short pause. “What? What'd I say?” I groaned and turned around, causing the black pegasus to nearly jump out of her skin.

“I'm sorry everyone. I'm fine, I really am. I'm just... I just wish we could get out of this place and go after Pride. The longer we take, the more time Spark has to find her. And if she does... it's really bad,” I said. Seeing no other option, we started walking down the stairs. As we trotted along, I felt that cold chill again as well as that watchful feeling. Violet stepped in time next to me, keeping me company as I brooded on the subject of Spark.

“I'm really just going nuts here aren't I?” I said quietly as we made our way to the next landing. The stairs seemed to go on forever.

“Nah, you're fine sweetheart,,” Violet immediately said, reassuringly. She paused, apparently thinking over her next statement. “It’s just been hard on all of us. And it keeps getting worse.”

“I just... I can't rest until I confront her again Violet. She's... she's not bad. Not really. She was corrupted,” I said, explaining the memories I had witnessed of Shining Armor and Twilight respectively. I then began to tell her about the Virtues, and the insight they had given me into Spark and who she was. It was the first time I had really opened up to anypony about the bizarre metaphysical experiences I had been through, and it felt almost absurdly good to do so. We soon arrived at what looked like a basement of some sorts. Immediately my PipBuck began to click wildly into the green.

“There's mild radiation down here,” Steeljack said. The stallion had been rather quiet since we had moved deeper into the museum. I smiled as my earth pony friend passed out packets of Rad-Away to those of us who needed them. An alert on my E.F.S. came up, noting the presence of several hostile targets within the area. The basement was large and long, filled with large stone columns that lined the room. For the most part however, it was a completely open space. Darkness filled the room like a hungry beast, devouring any shred of light there was. Danish, Violet, and myself took point, using our horns to light the way as we walked cautiously along. I floated out Stargazer, wondering just what was down here. I heard them before I saw them. The faint sucking and gurgling sound that could only belong to ghouls. I indicated this silently to my friends as the first of the undead monstrosities came into view. Violet lifted Thunder Flash and fired, reducing the ghoul to a puddle of silvery goop on the floor. Three more of the creatures appeared on each side, moving to flank us. Nixis and Patch moved forward to engage the foul beasts, the hellhound slashing wildly with his sharp claws while my green earth pony friend brought up Para Bellum and fired deadly shots that pierced through ghoulflesh like a knife through butter.

More ghouls spilled into the basement level. Where in Celestia's sloppy plot are they all coming from? I thought as Stargazer ripped apart two more of the undead beasts. The telltale *crack* of Steeljack's rifle echoed throughout the immediate area as my friend dived into a large group of ghouls, ripping them to shreds with his fast and frantic gunfire.

“Where the fuck are they all comin' from?” Danish shouted above the roar of the assault as he levitated his carbine up and unloaded it into a particularly nasty looking ghoul's rotting face.

Lust soared above us, using her bladed wings to rip apart the masses of the undead. She growled as she landed next to me.

“You know, if I'd have known I was going to be following your fat ass into battle, I'd have had you teleport out my power armor. I feel naked without it,” she said angrily, before a sly grin crept along her face. “Not that you'd mind staring at my flank.”

“I'm not fat,” I snapped. My thoughts crept back to when I was able to see myself earlier. I am not that fat, I thought. “And I've already got a marefriend, for your information.”

Lust chuckled, and motioned to Violet, who was currently blasting apart a ghoul with her beam rifle. “Oh, her? I know all about that. Well, hey if you ever want a real hot piece of flank I'd be more than ---” she said, before I put my hoof up to her mouth.

Her eyes widened as I floated Stargazer to her face.

“Duck,” I said.

The black pegasus did as I instructed and Stargazer's fire ripped through the space above her, destroying the ghoul that had been creeping up on her. Lust lifted herself up from the ground, smiling.

“Thanks, sweetie. Didn't know you cared so much about me,”she said. Any trace of the mare's fear was replaced by her normal brash confidence.

“I don't. But you're a fighting body, and right now we need you,” I replied as she nodded and brought her wings up, slashing brutally into a nearby ghoul.

Soon the battle was rejoined by myself as well, as Stargazer spat hot fiery death upon the ferals that came even remotely close to me. My horn flared angrily. These monsters were just one more delay in my journey, one more obstacle that I had to push out of my way in order to get to Spark. I wouldn't let them slow me down for one minute.

Of course, when we had finished cleaning up the smaller ghouls is when the big one appeared. A throaty roar sounded from the end of the hall. A large door sat behind the massive beast, which appeared to be some form of earth pony ghoul. The creature stood easily three times the size of myself, which is saying a lot. Rows of sharp teeth gleamed in the darkness as the undead monstrosity roared again.

“What the fuck is that thing?” Steeljack said, echoing the thoughts of everypony present. I couldn't even react as the thing began to charge right at us.

“Everypony spread out!” Nixis shouted.

I could hear my friends fanning out on all sides of me as they launched a full-on assault against the massive creature. Nothing seemed to faze the ghoul as it continued to charge. I stood straight before the beast, dropping into E.S.A.T.S. and queuing up shot after shot at the ghoul's legs. Time fell away and Stargazer fired, spitting its hot payload of death into the monster. Ichor and flesh exploded, but the ghoul continued onward, slamming into me and knocking me to the ground. It roared as it lifted its hooves, rearing into a killing position above me. Before it could strike, the beast's head exploded in a gory mess, covering me liberally in rotting ghoulflesh. The massive ghoul fell over next to me and I looked up, seeing Danish standing there.

“Y'alright darlin'?” he said.

I nodded mutely, standing up and shrugging the gore off of my body.

“Yeah... I'm fine. Just... messy,” I said, chuckling. I looked down at the bleeding body of the monstrous ghoul. “What in the hell was that thing? Some sort of super ghoul?”

“Who knows. If it t'were that big in life there had to have been something seriously wrong with it,” Danish replied. “It's a mystery, for sure. Prewar ponies, so fucked up.”

I chuckled, latching Stargazer onto its harness as we rejoined the others. The door at the far end of the basement hall was locked. A large terminal sat to its side, blinking idly as it waited for some form of input. I stepped up to it and tapped one of the keys. A prompt appeared asking for a password. I connected my PipBuck to it and began tapping through the code, looking for anything that resembled the passcode to access the door. Nothing stood out, however. I groaned, reaching out for the terminal itself with my magic, ignoring the keyboard. It was almost instinctive, but it had an immediate effect. The door began to rumble and shudder as it slid open.

“What did you do?” Violet asked, looking at the terminal.

“I... I don't know. I just touched it with magic, and it opened,” I said, shaking my head. I looked up at the door and stepped forward into the darkness beyond. My friends stepped cautiously behind me as we made our way into the next hall. The room was aglow in a soft light, provided by various candles that lined the walls. What was strange about the room was the... figures. Figures made of clay filled the room, all shapes and sizes. They were figures of ponies. Some of them were finished while others stared with blank eyes into the soft glow of the hall.

“What...?” I said as we walked through the maze of clay ponies. What is this place? I thought as we pressed deeper. The room was massive. Beneath the clay statues, I could see that this room used to be some sort of research facility. What were they researching? The effects of little clay statues on the war? I thought, moving past another set of the statues. Something moved out of the corner of my eye. I turned, lifting Stargazer.

“Star? What's wrong?” Violet asked.

I looked past my love, seeing nothing but the sea of clay ponies. I sighed, holstering my weapon once more. “I'm... not sure. Thought I saw something,” I replied. “What do you think they used these for?” I motioned to one of the clay statues.

“I'm not sure, but this place is eerie as fuck,” Patch said. “Something... feels off here.”

“I agree with greenie,” Lust said, earning herself a glare from the green mare. Lust snorted. “What? You're green.”

“And you're a bitch,” Patch replied angrily.

I glared at her. Patch, you told me you were going to shelve this grudge against her, I thought.

“Well, takes one to know one I suppose,” The black mare said.

I growled, putting a halt to things before they could get worse.

“Enough. We need to stick together. Find out what's ---” I started to say before I saw it. A puddle of purple goo was moving through the room. It hesitated for a moment and then seeped into a crack in the ground. “Did... anypony just see that?”

My friends looked at me in confusion. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw it again. And then again on the right. It was... everywhere! My eyes widened as the purplish sludge surrounded us. My friends saw it too now. As the sludge arose around us, I wondered just what this museum had in store for us next. Between the fucked up dreams, the crazy halls filled with insane security systems, and the psychotic ghouls inhabiting this place... what else was there?

“Everypony run!” I shouted as I turned tail and ran towards the only space of floor not covered by the purplish substance.

Loud hoof steps on the marble flooring echoed behind me as my friends followed closely behind. We galloped across the hall, ducking and weaving through the clay statues and trying to stay out of the purple goo. I looked back for a moment, noticing that the sludge was actively moving around us, trying to cut us off. I spotted an alcove set back into the wall high above the hall. It appeared to be a window leading into an overlooking office. I growled and charged my horn, preparing to ignite it in a massive teleportation spell. The spell released and we suddenly appeared inside the office. My horn burned as I caught my breath. I looked out the window, noticing the purple sludge had completely covered the floor below.

“What the fuck is this shit?!” Steeljack said. “It's like it's chasing us!”

“It's like some sort of ooze.” Patch replied.

“Slime,” Lust said.

Patch glared at her. “No, it's an ooze. See how sludgy it is?” the green mare said.

“No no. You're definitely wrong. See how slimy it is? It's slime for sure,” Lust said defiantly.

“Ooze!”

“Slime!”

“Ooze!”

“Slime!”

“Slime!”

“Ooze!”

“Okay you win, it's an ooze!” Patch said, smiling widely.

“Thank you – hey wait a minute!” Lust said angrily. I stepped between the earth pony and pegasus, growling.

“Stop it you two! We can't be fighting like this! Besides... it looks like both a slime and an ooze... like a... smooze!” I said.

Patch and Lust huffed and looked away from each other.

I looked back out of the window, no longer seeing the smooze substance in the room. “Alright, look. It's gone now. We should probably get out of here and try and backtrack out of this place. I'm sick and tired of this.” I flew out of the window and down to the floor, looking about the clay statues. One of the statues behind me fell over suddenly as I spun about, seeing the purplish smooze goo bubble up from the cracks in the marble. It sped towards me and arose in a wave of goo. I barely had any time to scream as it poured over me, drowning me in darkness.

Where... where am I? I thought as I looked around. I groaned and realized that I was standing in a hallway. One that I almost forgot existed. One that I hadn't seen in quite a while. Many of its doors were boarded up and locked. Comically large padlocks hung from them. I stalked down the hallway, trying to figure out in my head what was happening. How did I get here? I thought. I thought that this place had disappeared along with Spark, but I was obviously wrong. Was Twilight still here in my head then? Even with Spark gone? The *fwoosh* of the torch and *creak* of an opening door came from the hallway. I found the door that had opened and stepped inside.

The room was long and bright. Sunlight streamed in through the stained glass windows lining the chamber. At the far end of the hall was a large door. I realized I had been here before. It was the chamber that contained the Elements of Harmony. Standing in front of the door was a lavender unicorn. She turned, smiling at me wryly.

“Welcome Radiant Star,” she said.

“Who... who are you?” I asked.

“It's been some time since you've spoken to us,” the mare said. “My name is Faith. I'm a collection of several of Twilight's emotions.”

“Faith? Really? And why are you here now?” I said. “I thought you all were gone after Spark left me.”

“Spark's exodus let us out fully. Twilight's emotions are still here inside your mind Star. And we want to help you,” Faith said.

“Oh? Really? Fat lot of good it did when Spark was fucking with my mind,” I said angrily. “Where were you then? Huh?”

“Forgive us, Star. Spark was fully in control of us. She kept us from helping you,” She said. Her eyes were filled with sadness. “You have to have faith my dear. Faith in us. Faith in yourself and in your friends.”

“How can I? How can I have faith in something I don't even understand?!” I shouted. “All I want is for you to get out of my head, and to get out of here so that I can chase after Spark! She's dangerous, and I cannot let her get to Pride.”

“Sometimes... faith means believing in the impossible,” Faith said, nodding.

“I don't even know what the fuck that means?!” I said, shaking my head. “Why won't somepony give me a straight answer for once in my life?”

“I'm sorry, Star. But I cannot be up front with you. My commitment to Twilight prevents me from doing so. All I can say is that your journey to find Spark will bring you to the answers you seek,” she said. “And then... you will have to choose.”

“Choose what?” I asked, cocking my head.

“You'll know when the time comes, Star. I'm sorry, but I can't say much more than that,” Faith replied. “Know that when you are faced with this choice... we will be there to help you.”

“What about Twilight's power? Is it still locked away?” I said.

“Twilight's power is inaccessible to us at the moment. Spark's presence was enough to let some of it leak through, but now that she is gone... Nothing. Twilight’s power is dormant or locked away, and we are unsure if that is going to change.” the purple mare said.

“I see. If Spark is gone now... why do I still look like her?” I said.

“That is because the spell is still quite active, despite Spark's absence. The Twilight Society really had no idea what they were doing when they cast the spell,” Faith said. “It's unfortunate too. It brought Spark into this world, and that cannot be good for any of us.”

“Why did it bring her here? What's she planning?” I said. My mind was abuzz with questions.

Faith’s eyes met my own. Her eyes were deadly serious. “Spark planned this from the beginning. From the first moment she revealed herself to Twilight, she was already planning on taking immortality for herself,” she said. “She wants to rule this world. Perhaps it was a bit of the Nightmare taking hold of her, but she seeks ultimate control over all of the Wasteland.”

“Is there any way that she can be stopped?” I said. “I can't let her do that. There's no way that Equestria would ever heal if she were to take control.”

“I... I don't know. All I know is that you must face her. When you do, when you face that choice, you will do so in full knowledge of the consequences,” Faith said. “Now then, I must bid you goodbye. You need to wake up now Star. There is still so much for you to do.”

I coughed and sputtered awake, clearing some of the purplish goo out of my mane as I tried to stand. Where am I? I thought as I looked around. The room was similar to the clay statue hall, with more of the clay ponies lining the walls. A pale light came from the candles hanging in the corners of the room. I couldn't see any exit past the darkness. The purple smooze goo covered every inch of the floor, and I nearly slipped in it as I stepped forward towards the center of the room. As I made my way, I swore that I heard... humming? What is that noise? I thought. I sighed, thinking of my conversation with Faith. I knew from my collective experience that Spark had been planning her ascension to Goddess for a long time, but from the very beginning? How long had Spark gone before Nightmare had corrupted her? When had she become the Spark of Magic that I knew? And what of this choice that I was supposed to make? What choice? What would happen if I made the wrong choice? My mind was filled with scrambled thoughts and questions. I knew that the only right answer at the moment was to find Spark and end this once and for all.

“Hello?” I called out. The humming stopped for a moment, and then continued. A large mass of the smooze had collected in the center of the room. It was... moving. Two appendages that appeared to be arms had extended from its sides. It was hunched over some sort of pedestal in the middle of the room. The humming appeared to be coming from it. “Hello?” I said again. The thing stopped what it was doing and shifted, it's arms turning about as it faced me. The creature... if one could call it that had two dark holes where its eyes should be, along with a large open mouth. I cringed, stepping back a few feet away from the thing.

“Hello. Don't be afraid,” the thing said suddenly. I stepped back a few more steps. “No, please don't. It's alright. I'm won’t hurt you.”

“What... what are you?” I asked, cautiously. “What do you want with me?”

“I'm... I don't remember... I don’t know,” The thing said. I sensed a sad tone in its voice. “I don't want to hurt you. I was hoping you could help me, since you’re her!”

“What do you mean?” I said.

The thing shifted around me. “Her! The one I was told to expect!” it said. “I've been here so very, very long that you could only be her.”

“I'm Radiant Star. Otherwise known as the Ministry Mare,” I said confidently. This strange creature was almost childish in its reactions, its simple honesty. “Where are my friends?”

“The others are fine. I didn't hurt them, if that's what you are asking. I’m talking to them right now also. They know you’re okay, and they are okay as well. The green one says that she still thinks ooze.” the smooze creature said, a muddy rendition of a smile on its face. “It’s so nice to have visitors, I've been stuck here for... well, forever. Long enough that all I’ve ever known is this place and my work, these.” It motioned with one of its arms at the clay statues lining the walls.

“You... made these?” I said.

The thing nodded. Well, at least it looked like it nodded. “It's all I ever do. I can't leave here. The security system keeps trapped,” it said. “I'm confined to this room and a couple of the ones that are next to it.”

“What... what happened here?” I asked.

“I know that the security system here has been locked down since the bombs fell. I found a terminal that told me that.” the creature said. “Since then, I think, I’ve been here. The Ministry of Image made the first statues, in the before. I’ve been making them ever since.”

“Ministry of Image? Rarity's ministry?” I said. A pit formed in my stomach as I considered just what sort of project Rarity was doing here. Something related to the Black Book and necromancy no doubt. “You said before that I was her. What did you mean?”

“You'll have to forgive me. I get so few visitors here. You see, I was visited recently by another mare. She had told me you would be coming,” the creature said.

“Me? Who... who was she?” I said, my mind going wild with speculation. Was it Spark? Pride?

“She told me she was a friend of yours, and gave me a message to give to you. She said... she said you would know what to do,” the smooze creature replied. “But, I’ll only give it to you on one condition.”

“And that is?” I asked.

“Help me get out of this place. I've been here so long and I wish to see the world beyond it. I'm stuck here, Radiant Star, and I want to be free,” the thing said.

I could feel the calmness radiating from the creature. No matter what, I knew it held no ill will towards me or my friends. Its wish to be free was genuine.

“I... Yes. I can help you,” I finally said after a moment's pause.

The thing turned around quickly and grabbed something off of the pedestal. It lifted the item before my face. The clay figurine was of a mare that had both wings and a horn. Her green coat was instantly recognizable to me. Her mane was purple, and a cutie mark of a four leaf clover emblazoned her flank. I let out a soft gasp at the image of the mare that I had let expire in front of my eyes. Of a friend, one that I had let down on more than one occasion. I bit back the tears forming in my eyes as I took the figurine from the smooze creature's hand. I held it there for a brief moment before dropping to my haunches as I began to sob.

“No...” I uttered. “No...!”

I let my eyes drift to the base of the figurine. A phrase had been etched into the plate adorning it.

Have Faith.