The rain poured uncontrollably. The lightning strikes were mere seconds apart. The entire country was in chaos. Clouds of black smoke flew all over the place, destroying homes and injuring ponies. Feilbach laughed maniacally as he stomped through the halls of the Castle his mother once called home.

Before he even noticed it, he was standing in the throne room, staring at the Princesses that once made up the Triad. He spat in their direction. Clouds of black smoke flew throughout the room, covering each of the exits with as much force as possible. He allowed his crimson eyes to glare at the beings in front of him. In his heart he felt that what he was doing was necessary…

The Princess of Sol commanded him, “Speak now, Feilbach. Why is it you do these horrific things?”

He chuckled, “Because it’s fun, Princess. And besides, this is your entire fault!” His eyes shined brightly, the clouds of smoke growing larger. They were slowly closing in on the room.

The Princess of Luna asked, “Why is it you blame us, stallion? We have done nothing to you.”

Feilbach’s mane stood up, almost like a silver flame. He angrily screeched, “How dare you say such lies?! It is because of your needless and senseless killing that I am this way! It is because your pointless war killed my mother that I am this being you see before you!” His eyes turned a deeper shade of red.

The Princess of Love spoke softly, “You were bound to that magical tree, were you not? Your time in this world has expired. Why is it you continue to live on?”

Feilbach laughed maniacally, “Because the souls of the ones who wasted their lives in the war want me to! They have given me life after death! They want revenge on their self-proclaimed protectors who abandoned them to die!” The black smoke closed in even farther.

The Princess of Sol spoke, “You are no more a stallion than the souls you possess. These Shadows you have summoned to this world…are they the souls of which you speak?”

Feilbach answered bluntly, “Of course. They want revenge, not me. I’m only a vessel for them to live in until they have it!”

The Princess of Luna asked, “And when they have it what becomes of you?”

“I go home. I get to be with my Mother and Amber… In here!” The silver orb burst from his chest, floating gently in the air. The Princesses could see the faces of the souls trapped within. “My mother created this orb so that she could live on and protect me! And my Amber…gave her own life to restore mine! But now, once my vengeance is had, I can be with them for an eternity!”

The three Princesses nodded to one another, and each charged their horns with a powerful magic spell. They fired at Feilbach, but the smoke blocked the attack for him. The cloud evaporated immediately.

“My children! How dare you harm them?!” A ball of black gunk flew from Feilbach’s mouth, charging the Princesses with full force. The trio fell to their knees. They charged for another spell.

The smoke blocked this attack as well. Feilbach charged forward at the Princesses, ready to end their lives. Before he made it even half way through the chamber, he was stopped dead in his tracks by a voice that called to him.

My son, why do you do these things…? You were given new life to be happy with, not to kill and harm other ponies. What has become of the child I left behind?

“M…Mother…?” Feilbach’s eyes returned to normal, and his mane fell back down. The smoke around the room started to retract into him.

Forgive me, my child. Perhaps your life was forfeit the day I died. I had hoped you would live a happy life, with her sacrifice. She died to revive you so that you could be happy, you know… Alas, it is not to be.

As the voice faded out, Feilbach turned to see the spell charging right at him. It was too late for him to react; his mother’s voice had distracted him just long enough. As it hit him, he felt his body begin to vaporize. His mind swirled through so many thoughts; his heart felt so many pains; and his body felt so many deaths…

All of the souls within him took time to show him their pain and torment, until the spell finally finished its job. In a flash of silver light, Feilbach was no more. In his place there sat a small stone statuette. The smoke that remained in the chamber was vacuumed into the statue, sealed away for good. The three Princesses lifted the statue with their magic, and warped it to some unknown place in some unexplored region of the world.

Far below the Castle he had once called home, in a cave encrusted with every different type of gemstone imaginable, at the center of a pedestal surrounded by seven magical gems, encased in a sapphire, Feilbach rested inside his statuette for ten whole millennia. The whole time his mind was swirling with thoughts and emotions of all the souls trapped with him.

Then he saw a lost stallion wander into his prison. His plan would soon be carried out…

Next Chapter: Chapter 14: Charoite... or Opal? Estimated time remaining: 55 Minutes