Author's Notes:

There is some dark content in this chapter. Nothing graphical, just disturbing and, for some of you, maybe even hard to read.

I know that some of you may tell me that dark content wasn't needed. But I can tell you that this kind of things can happen to anyone. You just don't want it to happen to yourself. Obviously, no one does.

But Andromalius had a life. Like you, like me. He is alive, at least in my head. And that means he could've experienced things others didn't. Any life is unique, including his. Someone lives a life full of happines, another one lives a life of darkness, and yet another may have something in between.

I'm just trying to keep everything as realistic as possible. Including treating my characters like real people.

Andromalius walked through the halls of Canterlot Castle, trying to subdue his anger and suppress memories he didn't want to remember. Even his face showed the emotions that were burning inside. Some guards shivered as the hell stallion passed them by.

Soon, he saw Natura Stella and Luna walking alongside talking to each other.

"Andromalius!" Natura noticed him first. "I told Luna what happened..." she stopped. "You... don't look so fine, to be honest."

"I know." Andromalius replied with a slight growl in his voice. "I want to talk with Luna."

"O-okay, I just be gone to my room, then, if you needn't anything else." Natura nodded.

"Have some rest, you need it." Andromalius said, and Natura left him and Luna alone. When the unicorn was far enough, the hell stallion addressed his mother: "Mother, I want to talk with you."

"I want to talk with you too, son." Luna nodded. "Come with me."

***

Luna and Andromalius locked themselves in the princess's bedchambers. Both took a seat in front of each other.

"I..." Luna cleared her throat. "I remembered these times we spent together while I was still Nightmare Moon. I don't know how could I forger those times!"

"It's not your fault." Andromalius put his hoof on her shoulder. "You were having a very hard time there, alone on the Moon for a thousand years."

"I know, but..." Luna sighed.

"No buts, Luna." Andromalius shook his head. "Your remembered that, it is what important."

"Alright. Also, what is with your father? How is he?" Luna asked. "I haven't seen him for a long time."

"Do you know who he is?" Andromalius asked, and the mare nodded. "That is the reason. I doubt he'll be able to escape his kingdom-prison. And even if he tried, he would either come out dead or there'll be much worse consequences."

"I understand." Luna sighed sadly. "But I still hope that I'll be able to see him again..."

An uncomfortable silence fell upon the two.

"So..." Luna cleared her throat. "There's something in you. You don't look so well, son. What is on your mind?"

"A memory that still hurts." Andromalius replied in a grim tone. "I... I couldn't help my friend in her time of need."

"Please, tell me." Luna looked at him in worry. "Maybe I'll be able to somehow alleviate the pain."

"I... I'll try." Andromalius frowned. "It hurts to remember. Well...

"It was a long time ago. Three years have passed since then. I had a friend called Sofia. She and I liked to spend time together, to have fun. She was my old firiend, she was the first one who befriended me.

"But good times ended. One day, she was walking from the school alone. She was caught... and raped. By one of the classmates that confessed his feeling for her but got rejected. When I found that out... I beat him to a bloodied pulp. I would've killed him right there, but someone pulled me from his barely breathing body.

"He was sent to prison for the rest of his life. But that didn't make anything better for Sofia." Andromalius sighed. "She was scarred for life. I tried to cheer her up, to make her feel better, but she pushed me away. She started to fear men. She even hid from me, fearing that I hurt her as he did.

"A few weeks later I... I..." Andromalius' eyes teared up. "I was walking through the forest, and... and..." a tear rolled down his cheek. "I saw her. She... she..." another one followed. "She was hanging there... with a rope wrapped around her neck." the hell stallion paused. He inhaled deeply and continued: "I found a note on the ground. She wrote that she did that because she couldn't live with the fear of being raped again." he exhaled shakily. "I... I cried on my knees for hours. I don't remember much, only a blur of images: me, crying under the tree; me, crying with her family, standing at the funeral; me, no longer able to cry, walking home empty...

"A few months later I locked that memory deep inside my mind." he continued in a much steadier, calm voice. "I managed to continue living, trying to act like nothing happened.

"Today, I was told that I am evil and will commit acts such as... rape." Andromalius closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "I barely could contain myself. If Artemis continued to talk about that like it means nothing to me, I would... rip him apart." he opened his eyes. "He woke a memory that I don't want to remember."

Suddenly, Luna leaped forward and hugged her son tightly.

"If I was there, I would do everything to help you, Andromalius." Luna whispered into his ear.

"I know, mother." Andromalius didn't contain his tear–stream any longer, crying freely. "I know..."

"What do you feel?"

"Mostly anger." he replied. "Sorrow... Fear..."

"I know what will help you, Andromalius."

A few minutes later.

Andromalius and Luna stood before heavy double doors. They were made of oak, reinforced by titanium plates in the weak points. Two guards were standing by the door.

"This, my son, is a room that will help you with the emotions you feel." Luna spoke. "Inside, you'll find many different objects. The objects that you can turn to dust.

"This room was made long ago for me and Celestia. Sometimes, when it seems any of us are going to take our emotions on someone, we go to this room. There, we smash and break everything until we feel we're good. You can unleash your emotions, and destroy everything you can get a hoof on. You will feel better after you do that, trust me."

"I think I need that room." Andromalius grinned maliciously. "I don't want to suppress myself any longer."

"See you later, then." Luna nodded, and opened the heavy doors.

Andromalius walked into the room and the doors closed behind him.

An hour later.

Arantir was walking through the halls of the Canterlot Castle to Luna's quarters. Suddenly, he heard unusual noise.

Frowning, the necromancer changed his path and turned into another hall. The noise that disturbed him sounded from the doors at the end of the hall. Two guards that were stationed by them didn't look good. They were trembling and sweating, barely holding their stoic expression.

Arantir started walking there to ask the guard about the noise.

Suddenly, the heavy doors bursted open, were thrown off their hinges, and were sent flying across the hall by a tremendous force.

The necromancer avoided being hit, conjuring a shield around himself. The heavy doors bounced off of it and crashed to the floor, shaking the whole castle.

With a thunderous roar sounding from down the hall, a bolt of pure hellfire hit the doors, instantly melting and burning them, turning them into a small pool of liquified metal with specks of ash.

Arantir looked at the end of the hall and saw Andromalius walking out of there, roaring flames behind him.

"Is there a reasonable explanation for this?" Arantir asked.

"It's personal." Andromalius replied in an eerily calm voice. "But there is. Anyway, I want to speak with you." he walked closer. "About Luna."

"If you wish." Arantir nodded. "But let's find a more private place for this."

Meanwhile, the two guards looked into the room. By that time, everything burned down completely. Some pools of molten glass and metal, charred stones, and a thick layer of still hot ash was what remained in the room. There were also a lot of cracks on every surface.

"Hey," one guard said to another. "And they say there's nothing worse than angered princesses."

"Yup. Also, remind me to request a relocation."

"Same here."

"So," Andromalius spoke after he and Arantir were in the necromancer's room. Both of them were sitting on the armchairs, face to face. "I found out you teach necromancy to Luna."

"I do." Arantir nodded. "Is there a problem?"

"I need you to explain how it came to this." the hell stallion replied. "I was attacked, and the attacker said I've brought a necromancer who started teaching Luna necromancy."

"I know necromancy is considered evil almost everywhere." Arantir replied calmly. "However, I do no evil. I teach her because she asked me to. She wants to be ready."

"For that war you were talking about?"

"Yes, it is so." the necromancer nodded. "She is still feeling nervous about this, though."

"Well, then, can you guarantee her safety?" the hell stallion narrowed his eyes. "Can you guarantee my mother will be alright?"

Even if Arantir was surprised, he didn't show it.

"I will do everything to make sure she will be alright." he told Andromalius.

"Good." the hell stallion nodded. "Because if not... I will make sure that you suffer worse."

"Threatening me, now?" Arantir quirked a brow.

"I'm warning you." Andromalius replied. "I don't want to lose my family." he stood up and turned to leave. "Maybe you even know how it feels." he turned his head to the necromancer. "I know you've lost someone who was dear to you. Ornella was her name."

Arantir didn't know what to say, just staring at the hell stallion as he exited the room. After the door closed, the necromancer continued to sit in silence.

"Ornella..." he whispered, and a lone tear rolled down his cheek.

Celestia returned to Canterlot along with five members of Secret Service. She dismissed them, and headed to Luna's quarters.

When she came to the big door, she knocked twice.

"Come in." Luna replied, and Celestia entered. "Hello, sister!" she greeted her, then noticed a stern look the solar alicorn was giving. "Is... everything alright."

"No, it's not." Celestia replied, closing the door behind her. "I need to talk with you, sister. About you and Arantir."

"So, you found out." Luna frowned. "Well, let's talk, sister. You first."

Celestia sat on an armchair and looked into Luna's eyes.

"I know that we discussed it a long time ago, but it seems it needs to be talked about again." she sighed. "Luna, you know what is necromancy."

"I know." Luna interrupted. "I also know it's dangerous. But I have a reason for learning such an art."

"An art?" Celestia was shocked. "That is absolutely not an art!"

"Tia, please, calm down." Luna remained calm, even if that was hard for her. "I have an explanation, a reasonable one!"

"I'm... listening." Celestia inhaled and exhaled, calming down.

"Arantir told me a very important thing." Luna sighed. "Do you have a feeling that... something is happening? Something really bad."

"I have." Celestia nodded. "Tension in the air, some things that happen around the world. Griffin Kingdoms closing their borders, strange incidents happening more often... It leads to something."

"It does." Lune nodded. "It leads to war."

Celestia looked shocked. She cleared her throat and asked warily: "Did Arantir tell you that?" after getting a nod as a reply, Celestia asked: "Why does he think so?"

"He told me his goddess told him." Luna answered. "Asha told him."

"Asha, yes..." Celestia frowned and scratched her chin. "Hm... It still irks me like I know who she is."

"She is a Primordial Dragon of Order, as Arantir told me." Luna replied. "She created his world and it's her will he follows. But Asha is also a spider."

"Yes, a spider!" Celestia widened her eyes. "I remembered something! When you were absent, these first few years... One night, when I couldn't sleep, I heard a voice. A strange voice that came from nowhere. It told me that someday, a great danger will threaten the peace our land has known for centuries. That day, I thought it was about what you and I defeated together, someone like Sombra or Discord.

"Maybe it wasn't about them. I know that Sombra is getting back — his power grew enough to summon a Black Crystal Dragon. But I remember another thing...

"While the voice was talking to me, I notice a speck of black on my muzzle. But when the voice disappeared, that speck crawled away. It was a spider."

"Maybe the warning Asha gave us is the same you received that day?" Luna warily said. "Maybe that is why Arantir appeared here. He is her worshiper, a powerful one. Maybe Asha wants to help us prepare? But why would she care about our world?"

"There's a proof that at least three worlds are connected: ours, the Earth, and the one from which Arantir came. Maybe if one world falls, so will others." Celestia suggested. "So, we must prepare. I no longer forbid you learning necromancy. If whole worlds are at stake, we would need even the undead warriors.

"But Luna," Celestia put a hoof on her sister's shoulder. "Promise me you won't hide it if something is wrong."

"I promise." Luna nodded. "We must stand together, sister. Together, we are stronger. Together, we will overcome anything."