“I swear by all the souls within my heart, I shall not lose to you ponies…”

Feilbach paced back and forth from one side of the room to the other, contemplating what actions he should take to secure himself from any more memories distracting him during dire situations. He had considered smashing the silver orb multiple times, but established that it would kill him. He had also considered ripping Amber’s gem from the orb, but that was too risky, as it might manifest itself as her original form…or merge directly into him.

No, no matter what action Feilbach thought of, something arose to negate the idea. If he did one thing, another thing would ruin it. He had no choice but to live with the risk. He enjoyed his daily meetings with Amber, but he could not allow her to distract him from his main goal. He needed to destroy the world that had caused him so much pain. After it was gone, he could be with her all he wanted for all eternity.

The orb flashed brightly, calling to him. He moved closer to it and stared into his reflection. He saw the group of ponies he despised so much standing on a layer of clouds next to a large waterfall. He quickly realized that they were freeing their final friend. He considered entering the orb and disrupting them again, until he realized that they probably still had the opal gem. As long as they held the gem, he couldn’t risk entering the other realm with them. Amber’s soul could captivate him once more.

No, to his disgust he had to let them be. Besides, a few ponies are nothing compared to him, anyway. He was the Lord of the Shadows in an alicorn body. There was no way a few non-alicorns could beat him. He turned away from the orb, returning to his previous set of thoughts. The orb flashed again, signaling the end of the other realm adventure.

He continued pacing back and forth, the souls within him growing hungry once more. He released some of them to go feed on the life force of the possessed ponies while he continued his thought. When the first group returned, he released another. This continued for a few minutes, until he felt a power that knocked him to his knees. It was a power that he recognized, yet he couldn’t quite figure out what it was.

The Shadows that returned to him immediately expressed their discomfort and fear, which he felt almost identical to his own. Though he was unsure why, this power threatened him.

The power you feel is your father, my child. He has manifested himself in a physical body. He is going to attempt to stop you. The question is: Will he be able to? His mother’s voice called to him.

Feilbach laughed, “Surely you jest. You and father have been dead for ten-thousand years. Even if his soul lived on outside the orb, he would never be able to manifest a physical body, not without stealing it from another pony. And the old fool is too kind for such an act.”

You do not have to believe me. But it is your father. And you will regret not believing me. How much do you truly remember about us, Feilbach? Do you remember us as nurturing, negligent, loving? How about hateful, uptight, lenient? Your memories don’t matter anymore, do they?

Feilbach smiled, “How I remember you doesn’t matter. If you get in my way, you will be disposed of. You’ve already killed me twice, Mother. I won’t allow it again.”

You are mistaken, child. Your defeat at the hands of the Princesses was inevitable. I simply saved you from the pain.

“Save your lies for Father when you see him. Tell him his son loves him. That’s a pretty good lie.” Feilbach scoffed. “I’ll put his soul in the orb so you two can hang out.”

With that, his mother stopped responding. He grinned in pleasure as he realized he had gotten the last word in. He relaxed a bit and decided to take a stroll through the castle. He hadn’t left the Royal Wing since he got there in the first place, aside from a visit or two to Ponyville.

“Don’t worry Mother; I’ll play nice with Father…”

Next Chapter: Chapter 18: Some Things Never Change Estimated time remaining: 37 Minutes