The train pulled into the station, bidding me to cease my destructive thinking. With a short, sharp inhale I turned my attention to the interior of the cab once again. I could see a few ponies, although I never remember their entrance, staring at me with concern on their faces. I don’t blame them, though, because it would be strange to see a pony staring out the window and at their hooves for an entire train ride, not to mention my physical appearance either. They did, however, eventually begin disembarking. I followed them out once they had already left, leaving enough room between us to avoid questions from the worried ponies. Once I was in the station, and once the train had loaded the next journey’s worth of passengers and departed again, I began methodically making my way towards the exit. As I approached I saw a familiar figure, albeit cloaked in a shroud. The other ponies didn’t seem to so much as notice his presence despite the fact that they wandered within mere inches of the pony. It was still strikingly obvious to me that the pony was standing there, and I guessed his frame to match that of a stallion. When he turned his head up to look at me I saw that same grey hide I had become sick of seeing. His grey horn barely poked out of the cowl, his greyscale hair barely noticeable behind it. Those striking, light-blue eyes glinting from underneath the cover of his cloak. I lowered my stance, which caused the ponies around me to veer away and look at me in concern, as he removed the cowl. “Well, would you look at who I found at the station today? It’s rather a shame that you still have your armour with you, but I couldn’t let you get back with Storm, now could I?”

“What are you doing here, Erazul?” My flat tone of annoyance rung out above the sounds of panicked flight.

“Oh, nothing much. I was hoping to be able to reason with you, perhaps give you a deal that you cannot refuse. You seem to be taking things in an aggressive light, however, so I’m inclined to rescind my offer.”

“You have nothing to offer me, Erazul, and no power of bargaining either. You’ve already tried killing me, even those around me, off several times. I’m not falling for that kind of trick.”

“Well, isn’t that a shame? You could have enjoyed grandeur and ease, but you instead throw a past mistake back into my face. How…uncouth of you. I guess that just means things have to get a little ugly.” His horn began glowing a light grey before purple streaks shot into the ground around me. I leaped out of the area just in case. Rather than a cage or some kind of magical explosion I saw figures breaching the ground. Screams echoed out from the crowd as they fled the area, or at least most of them anyways. The stone manifestations were not pony, nor were they gryphon, hippogryph, nor sphinx. They were bipedal, but warped in some demented way. As they turned I could see their faces, or at least what I equated to be such. Two eyes was far too low of a number to estimate with. Their mouths hung open like depressed maws of anguish. Almost as if entirely random, spikes and tendrils of stone and root, respectively, projected from the bodies. As for size, they clearly stood about as tall as I did while I was on my back hooves. I could tell that much when I rose into my bipedal stance and drew my blades. The golems of stone began shuffling their way over as Erazul’s voice rang out above the grinding of rock upon stone. “You should have surrendered when you had the chance, Aqua. Now I have to beat you to a pulp before bringing you back. No matter what happens know this: you are going to return with me to my realm one way or another.”

“No matter what happens know this, Erazul: a bloody pulp is all that will remain of me by the time I’m done fighting against you. Either that, or a bloody pulp is all that will remain of you when I’m through with you.”

“We’ll see about that one, drake.” With a nod from him, perhaps a mental command issued to the golems around me, the creatures dramatically increased in speed. They charged headlong towards me. I parried the first, shoving the massive weight to the side. As the second arrived I stabbed both heated blades into its frame. I tore the creature in half with a hefty force, causing it to drop through the floor beneath. Before I could react, the first had charged once more and was upon me. The strong, stone arms wrapped tightly about my midsection. I stabbed at the appendages as I was lifted from the ground. After a circle or two, the force increasing at an alarming rate, I was hurled away. I crashed through the exterior wall of the train station, bouncing and rolling a few yards further until I slid to a stop. I withdrew my blades and arose, shaking the impact and the dust off of me. As I reared up again, drawing the still-heated blades I heard the crack of a whip. Erazul was going to try and capture me with the same vicious weapon; at least that was what I could predict. The creatures surged out of the gap in the wall, seemingly greater in number than before. I readied myself, swinging with as much speed and ferocity as I could muster in order to keep up with the wall of stone. Of course, no matter how great my effort, the creatures were still overpowering me. After I had hacked down about a half-dozen more of the creatures I was violently tackled to the ground by one. I bucked it off, barely causing it to skid a yard or two. I didn’t have a chance to rise again, so I simply continued hacking, slashing, and bucking from my compromised position. I felt an impact on my tail, one that wasn’t as forceful as I imagined a stone golem would hit me for. I eventually took the short glance that was afforded me. Erazul’s whip was wrapped firmly around the plates, almost as if a little sunken into it or connected by some other force. I felt pressure as I began to slowly slide across the floor. “Oh ho, just wait until I get my hooves on you. There won’t be an escape then, slippery little drake.”

I doubled my efforts, both in trying to hack down the ever-growing stone pile on top of me as well as to free my tail from Erazul’s whip. Neither effort was proving effective at much more than tiring me. Still, I fought on. If Erazul was to have me it would be in pieces.

It was around the time that he was going to grab my tail when I felt a massive gust of wind whip over the whole of us. Erazul was launched a dozen or so yards to the side, bouncing and rolling to a stop. The golems were cast to the side, leaving skid marks of upheaved grass behind their sliding frames. I, myself, was barely able to remain in the position I was in. When the wind ceased I withdrew my blades and rushed to my hooves in an effort to evaluate the situation. I first turned my attention to the cause of the wind, as it was in no ways or means normal. I found a familiar set of armour standing there with a large, ornate blade in the mouth. The armour was Storm’s, so I figured it was he who joined me. This notion was reinforced when he nodded after looking me up and down. I reared up onto my hind legs again, drawing my blades. Erazul was raising up, shaking the dirt off of his frame. Once he was on all four hooves again he spoke. “Ah, I see. Insert ‘a heroic endeavour from Storm in a vain attempt to save his love interest’ here. How noble, and how predictable, of you. But it’s already too late, Storm. If it’s not her then it’s this town.”

Before we had time to react, golems emerged from the station holding a large collection of townsponies. It was clear that they were in danger. “Leave them out of this, Erazul. This quarrel is between you and Storm and I; they have no part of this.”

“Oh, but they do now. You see, aren’t you the Guildmaster of the Order of Protectorates? Doesn’t that mean that it’s your job, your duty, your vow if you will, to protect these ponies with your life?” He had me there on that technicality.

“So what do you expect me to do? Surrender myself in some silly hope that you’ll let these ponies go?”

“Exactly.” It grew quiet. I could feel Storm staring at the back of my head in disbelief, as if begging me to decline.

“This is a new low, even for you Erazul.”

“Sometimes you have to take desperate action against a pony as slippery as you. I’m sure you understand what that’s like.” He had found out about the arena incident.

“So if I turn myself in to you then you’ll let them go?”

“Yes. You have my promise.”

“Just like how you promised that they were training weapons in our spar in Galaxia’s realm?”

“Touché.”

“Your word means very little to me, so how can I be sure?”

“As soon as I have you bound to me the golems will disappear.” I looked at him skeptically.

“Don’t do it, Aqua. You know this is a trick.”

I turned back to face him. “Even if it is, Storm, I have an obligation.”

“Think of it this way: if you turn yourself in to him he’ll spare these ponies-“

“Which is exactly why-“

“I’m not done yet.” I closed my mouth, waiting for him to finish. “Yes, he’ll spare them, but for how long? How long will he wait until he uses you to butcher and slaughter everypony in sight, decimating the population of Equestria? So is it better to lose this crowd’s worth of ponies, or to lose this land’s worth of ponies?”

I looked at him for a moment before turning back to Erazul. “Storm is quite the thinker, but your obligation still demands that you surrender now to save these ponies.”

I turned to Storm again, who could extrapolate my plan based solely on the expression in my eyes. “You’re not thinking of…”

Again I returned my attention to Erazul before powering down my armour. I heard Storm let out a cry of shocked fear. I muttered an apology under my breath, unsure myself of who it was addressed to or for whom it was. I began trotting over, remaining in my larger, orange form. “I don’t even get your lithe stature?”

“You’re lucky you get me at all, Erazul.”

“Alright then. Tell you what, then. Rather than a simple collar and leash, why don’t I use the whip to fulfill that role?” He conjured the weapon again before I could speak, lashing it out at me. The barbed, jagged edges of the three-pronged metallic whip dug into the flesh on my neck, causing me to wince as I felt my warm blood seeping down my body. “Now, then, are you ready to go?”

“You have me. Let them go.”

“As promised.” I saw the golems collapse into piles of stone once again, allowing the ponies to panic and flee once again. “Now, as you promised me-“

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Can I say something to Storm first?”

“Fine, but make it quick. I don’t have all day in this realm.” I nodded. Rather than attempting to gently turn to the pony I had agreed to marry, hoping to avoid injury, I whipped about. Before Erazul could react he was yanked towards me before being pelted with a full-fledged strike from my tail. His grip gave way after yanking against the whip again. Between the two pulls I was sure that the metal edges had dug too deep for an optimistic recovery; I felt the blood now coursing down my chest. Storm didn’t waste any time I rushing over, blasting him down with a hefty gust of wind. As he went to strike Erazul down there was a magical poof. Erazul was standing beside me, attempting to grab the whip. Rather than allow him, I yanked myself about in a motion that caused the handle to peg him squarely in the snout. He recoiled as Storm neared again. Once more he warped, but this time it was away from me. Before Storm could rush back over he spoke. “I’ll leave it this time; I can’t have her dying or dead, now can I?”

He, and the whip, both disappeared in a puff of magic, leaving me grasping at the horrendous injury I had just sustained. “Sweet Celestia, Aqua, you need to stop killing yourself like this.”

He called out for Galaxia and Bane before trying to speak to me again. At this point, however, his words rang hollowly in my ears, almost as if reflected back out as soon as they entered. I felt a wave of vertigo wash over me, threatening to topple me. Next thing I knew I was on the ground, struggling to get back up. Storm was keeping me down, as I found out eventually, but it didn’t stop me from trying. I think I said something about having to continue on, but it was all a haze at that point. The world was spinning violently, forcing me to close my eyes to abandon the agony of watching such a sickening situation. It would just take a blink to get a hold on reality again.

When I opened my eyes I was alone, or at least I thought I was. Looking around the room didn’t reveal Storm, Bane, or Galaxia standing nearby. Not even Aldorn was here. I shifted and heard a noise beside me. I turned to see what sound could have come from the bed beside me. What I found was Storm lying there. I let out a quiet chuckle, imagining him exhausting himself as he watched over me. I moved the covers aside to get out of the bed in order to orient and feed myself. As the covers folded away from me, though remaining on Storm, I noticed a bit of white from under the sheets. In curiosity I pulled the covers aside far enough to get a better view. The sight worried me, almost causing me to gasp. Wrapped tightly around Storm’s midsection were bandages. The white part, the portion that I saw, was about the only bit of it that remained white; the rest of the wrappings were stained a deep crimson, and I’m not sure if they were dry or not. I didn’t dare touch him, as I knew exactly what that felt like. The memory of the icicle quickly flashed in my mind, causing phantom pain to shoot up from just above my hips. I shook the memory, placing the covers back over Storm and getting off of the bed. It was difficult to trot, as the world wanted to keep spinning if even just a little. I did, eventually, make my way downstairs and into the kitchen. I prepared a humble meal for myself before thinking on it. I then made the same for Storm, thinking that perhaps he might awaken and desire food. I brought the plate upstairs and left it on the nightstand beside his side of the bed. I then made my way back downstairs to begin eating. As I sat down to enjoy my meal I heard the door open. I turned my attention away from my food in order to see who it was that entered. Bane’s form met my view as I did. His expression showed a bit of surprise, but it wasn’t a whole lot. “Oh, you’re up earlier than I expected.”

“Seems to be a pattern.”

“Galaxia’s magic doesn’t seem to work as well on you, it seems. I mean, even my magic has some difficulty patching you back up from time to time.”

“How come?”

“Beats me. Might have to do with your father’s side of things.”

“The dragon side of my heritage?”

“Yeah. They might be magic resistant or something like that.”

“Interesting to know. So because I’m half dragon it means that magical effects are weaker to me?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, that’d explain a lot…”

“Anyways, I have to check up on Storm.”

“I was just going to ask about that.”

“What?”

“What in Equestria happened to him?”

“Well, after we had taken care of you, getting you all patched up and whatnot, Galaxia and I set out for our respective realms. We were called back a little later, only to find Storm with a huge gash across his chest, side, and back. Sucker was deep, deep enough to cut through about a quarter of him. We also found Erazul there with his weapon dripping in blood. Galaxia drove him out with some pretty potent magic while I tended to Storm’s wounds. Once we got his injuries bound and cared for we both took you here. Galaxia put a spell on the house that would disintegrate anything that attempted to enter the sphere of influence. Erzul tried sending a thing or two through, only to watch it cease to exist. Galaxia only dropped the spell when I came to check up on you two.”

“Can’t he still teleport inside? He knows well enough where the bedroom is.”

“You mean where the bedroom was. You have to remember that your layout has changed since last he was here. He might be desperate to kill you and Storm, but he’s not an idiot; he knows that a poor teleport might end up splitting him in half on a wall that hadn’t been there before.”

“And how did Lazuli get in and out of here?”

“She’s spent the whole time at her guild of mages studying new magicks in an attempt to expand their bank of knowledge.”

“I see.”

“Any other questions?”

“Yeah, I’ve got one.”

“What is it?”

“How does one go about invading Erazul’s domain?”

He was silent for a moment, blinking at me. “Please tell me you did not just ask that. Anything but that.”

“Why not?”

“You just put everypony within a ten mile radius in extreme danger by so much as asking that. You do realise that, right?”

“Not if I act fast enough.”

“Look, it’s not that simple.”

“It’s going to be the only way I can defeat him. Every time he gets weakened or close to defeat he flees back to his realm.”

“And in his realm he has unparalleled power. Do you really intend to try and compete with that?”

“What are my other options, Bane? Sit here until he attacks again while I’m without my armour? Let him murder Storm and capture me? Let him slaughter this town’s population in an act of genocide, in some hope to bait me out of my comfort zone or for me to surrender?”

“And what options do you have when you get into his realm? Get captured? Get butchered?”

“Get even is an option.”

“So is sacrifice.”

“What do you mean?”

“Perhaps it’s not too bad of an idea to sacrifice a little here in order to draw him out of his comfort zone. If done right-”

“No.”

“You didn’t even let me-”

“I said no, Bane. That is not a sacrifice I’m willing to take.”

“The loss of life will be minim-”

“Shut your mouth and listen to me, Bane!” It grew deathly silent in the room. “I’m not losing a single soul here, do you understand that? Not in this house, not in this town, and certainly not in this land.”

He simply glared at me. “It’s not my position to do that either. I am the Guildmaster of the Order of Protectorates. What would it do to the Order if I decided that getting dozens, if not hundreds, of ponies killed in a selfish display was worth killing one pony?”

“Well, I see there’s no convincing you, as you won’t listen to reason-“

“Because there is no reason in selfishness. There’s no reason in sacrificing so many ponies over the life of one. It’s supposed to be the other way around, Bane.”

“Then just let me know when you’re ready to commit suicide and I can teleport you into his realm.” He turned his head up at me before near-storming off upstairs. I was left alone, but I didn’t waste any time. I went over to where I always stashed my armour, finding the heavy saddlebags heaped haphazardly upon the ground. Thinking on it, I never remember bringing it in from outside. Perhaps Aldorn had helped in some capacity, or it was Galaxia and Bane struggling to move it. Either way, I was glad it was secure. I briefly took a moment to properly arrange it before equipping the massive weight. I arose, a difficult task at the time, and unfolded the armour onto my form. When the last plates has finished hugging down onto my hide I turned about. I saw Bane trotting towards the door.

“Not so fast, Bane.” He froze, turning with a sigh.

“What is it, Aqua?” His flat tone was one of exasperation and frustration.

“I’m ready to go now.” He looked me over for a moment.

“What, are you crazy? You’ve barely recovered!”

“I’ve already put this town in danger. I have to resolve this.”

He sighed. “Fine. But there’s one place you have to go first.”

“And where might that be?” His horn was already glowing, casting me off to the destination he had in mind. As my eyes adjusted to the near-pitch black conditions it quickly became apparent where he had sent me: Galaxia’s castle. I groaned quietly before heading towards it.

I was no more than inside of the gates of the main hall when Galaxia burst out in front of me with a poof of magic. “Have you lost your mind?”

“I know what I’m doing.”

“No, you have not a clue what you are accomplishing. You are entirely without clue, actually. Not only that, but you are recklessly endangering the lives of hundreds in some petty display of vengefulness.”

“What are you talking about, Galaxia?”

“Threatening to attack Erazul directly?”

“I know what I’m doing.”

“You do no know how to kill him.”

“With a sword.”

“That will not work.”

“What do you mean ‘that won’t work’?”

“He has crystals inside of the deepest layer of his castle. Not Flare, not Bane, and not even I, not one of us, have managed to find the room yet. What makes you so sure that you can?”

“Determination. You’ve seen the wonders it can do when I use it.” She bit her tongue for a moment, perhaps realising the truth of my statement. “Besides, what’s so special about these crystals he has?”

“Each one is like an ankh of resurrection, in a way. Every time he dies he resurrects back in his realm, in that room, amidst a pile of crystal fragments.”

“If none of you have ever managed to find the room, how do you know this?”

“That does not matter.”

“Well, it’s-”

“Disregard it. There is not enough time to worry about that.” Galaxia quickly cast a spell, a small bubble forming around us. “He cannot hear this.”

“So did you do something to prevent him hearing it?”

“That’s what the bubble is for. Flare used a similar spell when she discussed freeing me with you.”

“How do you know about that?”

“We are sisters. Do you really think she would not tell me afterwards?”

“Right.”

“Those crystals are the key to Erazul’s survival. If he has any of them then he will still be there at the end of the day. You have to shatter the crystals before trying to kill him, as he resurrects at full strength every time. You do not have the endurance, resources, or means to kill him several dozens of times over, but you can destroy his dozens of crystals with little effort. Is that clear?”

“Yes.”

“Now, there are a few more things we must discuss before you go off on this silly little errand you have burdened yourself with.”

“Like what?”

“Shifting focuses on your heritages.”

“What?”

“Have you ever noticed how hard it is to kill you?”

“Well, I’m still alive, aren’t I?” She rolled her eyes.

“Regardless, there is a secret to that. You are extremely resilient.”

“I already knew that.”

“Let me finish.”

“Fine.”

“Imagine your resilience like a bar, call it a percentage gauge if you want. You have two heritages of resilience: the determination for life that your mother had, which saved her several times, and the physical resilience of your father. You can tap into either side entirely, gaining the mental determination to outlive anything if you choose your mother and the physical resistance to survive nearly any abuse and injury, and survive, if you choose your father. You can mix the two to form different levels of resilience, something they didn’t have. Most of the time, you’re mixing the two, and it tends to be about 65-35, with favour to your mother’s side. The more you lean on your father’s resilience, the more pain you can numb, the more blood you can lose, and the more organs you can have fail before you actually succumb to your injuries.” I looked at her in confused awe, having been entirely unaware of that kind of power. “There are drawbacks to using more of the one than of the other, obviously. The more you rely upon your mother’s side of things the easier it is to kill you off like any regular pony; a broken rib into a punctured lung and you’re gone if you rely only on her resilience alone. It can be remedied, but it’s nice not having to fully bring you back from the dead so often. With your father’s side, however, things get more complicated. Bane can only heal so much. The more physical abuse you take before death, the harder it is for us to revive you. If you solely rely on your father’s side you will take so much abuse that there won’t be anything left of you to heal by the time you die and we will not be able to bring you back.”

It grew silent for a moment. “Well, isn’t that quite the tradeoff?”

“It is not something to mess around with, as there is a lot more that you have to accomplish. If I had to estimate what Bane could handle with the aid of Flare, I’d say we could bring you back from a 20-80 death. You certainly wouldn’t be pretty afterwards, but you’d be alive.”

“So then how do I shift that bar?”

“Honestly, it is little more than how you react to your situation. You’ve done it before, ignoring pains that would cripple or drop regular ponies. The farthest you have ever reached was when you had to rescue the mare from the Serpanians, and you hit a balance of about 35-65 in favour of your father.”

“So I’ve been doing it all along?”

“Yes. All you have to do is put your mind to it and the shift will happen of its own accord. Focus more on numbing pain and surviving injury and you will tap into your father. Focus more on recovering afterwards and the resolution of no longer needing to ignore fate and you will tap into your mother.”

“Sounds simple enough. Is there anything else I need to learn before heading out to kill Erazul?”

“There is a magic that you have been using that pertains to it.”

“What would that be exactly?”

“Void magic.”

“Void magic?”

“Yes. It is the kind of magic that Erazul and I use. It taps into darkness to cause effects upon physical things.”

“So what void magic have I been using?”

“Weaponised Shadows.”

“What?”

“When you focus your magic on ponies and your shadow reaches out to harm them. That is Weaponised Shadow.”

“So I’ve been using void magic?”

“Yes, although unintentionally and unawares. It is strange that you can, as only gods or demigods can accomplish such…”

“How did I even end up with that magic?”

“It might have to do with when the sphinx attempted to wrest control of your soul from you. It is very possible that he left some of his magic behind, as a sliver of arcane potential, when he was forced from you again. Perhaps it is this shard that you held on to before allocating it for this void spell.”

“Before, you told me that any spell I cast has an adverse effect upon me because I have to cast it through my soul. What is the effect of this one?”

“It makes you more aggressive. Think on it, at least before and after you used it frequently. Most particularly, think about how you killed ponies and how you felt.” I took a moment to think. The first time I had killed ponies was in my mentor’s house, and it had shaken me. It was self-defense, quick and painless, but it still rocked my world. I then thought back to the most recent event. The screams still echoed through my head, the haunting voices of the assassins bidding me to forget the whole idea. I fought past it to bring the painful memory to the light of my forefront of thought. This incident was bloody, excessive, and as painfully slow as possible. I felt horrible, but there was something congratulating me. I finally shook the thought, unable to handle it.

“I see.”

“Most void magic will react like this for you. Magic from my sister’s side of things, such as your healing spell but more potent, will cause an opposite effect generally. The only void magic I know of that would not cause an aggressive shift would incorporate spells such as my sleep spell. That being said, however, there is one spell that will certainly help you in your battle with Erazul.”

“And what would that be?”

“Summoning and controlling void creatures.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes. He is going to be using them; that much you can be certain of. Being able to control his constructs, along with summoning your own, will be a major asset.”

“Then teach me.”

“We will need to go to the space-time chamber for it, and hopefully I can keep up the ward on the room. When I drop this ward, say not a word. Do I make myself sufficiently understood?”

“Yes.” She nodded, the bubble disappearing. We then swiftly made our way towards the gargantuan, empty chamber. Once we were inside, she closed the doors. I saw her cast a spell, which I assumed to be the ward. Her horn continued glowing as she began instructing me on what to do.

I followed any orders she gave me meticulously. If I’m being honest, I had no other choice but to perfect the magic. I’m not sure how long it took us in that chamber, how much time we might have spent had we been outside of the area. Either way, it didn’t matter; the room warped time and space in such a way that it was mostly irrelevant anyways. I managed to master the spell, effectively ripping away the control that Galaxia had over the creatures she had summoned, along with creating my own and resisting her influential pull to convert them as her own. By the end of the exercise I could tell that she was suffering from magical fatigue, albeit much less so than myself. As she dematerialised the last summon she spoke. “With as exhausted as you are I would suggest you rest.”

“I have to-“

“Resting is all that you must do. You cannot face Erazul while exhausted.” I looked at her for a moment before nodding. Her horn then stopped glowing. “So I will let you rest up before sending you back home.”

She winked, making me realise that she really meant that she was going to send me to Erazul’s realm when I had recovered. It was a good cover in case he was listening in. I also quickly realised that I had to remain quiet about the fact, so I did little more than nod. Galaxia then led us out through the door, pointing me down the hallway. “There should be a vacant room in that direction. Make yourself comfortable therein and rest up.”

“Alright. Thank you, Galaxia.” She nodded before trotting away. I made my way in the direction she had pointed. I tried every door I trotted past until I found the doors to the correct room. The inside was about as dark as the hallway had been, and all of the furniture had deep, dark shades of blue, purple, and black as decoration. Small flecks of white, perhaps signifying stars, adorned the fabrics. The room seemed lush and expensive, but I wasn’t aware of any kind of economy here. Regardless, it was certainly above my regular level of décor. I made my way towards the bed, unequipping my armour before settling into the bed. Once I was comfortable, something that wasn’t hard to do in a bed of that quality, I closed my eyes and waited for sleep to overtake me.

When I awoke, feeling refreshed from the exercises we had practiced, I headed out to find Galaxia. It didn’t take me long to find her, as she was heading towards me anyways. She had a bit of food prepared and invited me to partake of it. She apologised that it might be different from what I was used to. Indeed, it did look rather bizarre, but I decided that being picky at a time like this was not a good idea. I ate the food, which certainly was interesting, before returning to my armour at her command. I equipped it as she cast the warding spell once more. Once it fell quiet, the spell in place, she spoke. “Now, Aqua, here is how this is going to transpire. When this ward drops, I am going to tell you that I am warping you back to your home town. I am not actually going to do that. What I am going to do is plant you as close to Erazul’s chambers as I can effectively recall. From there, it is all up to you to find his secret room and begin smashing the crystals. Once all of the crystals are gone, fight him and win. Have I made myself understandable?”

“Yes.”

“Are you ready for this?”

“Yes.”

“I trust you, Aqua. Do not render that trust misplaced.” She dropped the ward before speaking. “Well, I enjoyed your presence here, Aqua. If there is anything that I need from your Order I will inform you. Until then, enjoy a little rest back home.”

“So you’re sending me to Ponyville?”

“Yes.” I nodded. Once she saw the signal her horn glowed in its usual fashion before I was suddenly whisked away through teleportation. It didn’t take much adjusting with regards to my eyes, as the destination was as dark as the place I had been. I quickly ducked into whatever cover I could find and evaluated my surroundings. As far as I could tell, there was nothing. Even the buildings seemed razed or heavily damaged. It became quickly apparent that Galaxia had teleported me near to where she and Flare had wreaked such havoc upon Erazul’s realm, the place that they drew Erazul towards to ensure my survival. I could hear some slight bustle nearby, the shifting of debris, and a strange, guttural language. I peeked my head around the corner to see what was causing such noises. The closest description I had for these creatures was a mixture of bipedal bear, large gorilla, and shadowy nightmares. There were several of them, their four arms effortlessly sifting through the rubble, organising it and cleaning the area. Their deep blue and purple hide was hard to notice amidst the general surroundings, which about shared the same colouring. I quietly, at least as quietly as I could in bulky armour, made my way back through the cover. I made my way out of the back, doing my best to survey my surroundings and get any sense of a heading. Any clue I could get to show me Erazul’s main palace would help immensely.

At least, any clue would have helped immensely if I had found anything. I found nothing in all of the searching I was doing from my hiding spot, so I decided it was time to move. I ducked between rubble-ridden rooms in an attempt to find anything to direct me. I managed to dodge several more patrols of those four-armed hybrid creatures, barely slipping past a group as they rounded a corner nearby me. I continued my march to what I assumed was the centre of the city. Hopefully I would find something eventually.

I almost missed my one shot at finding his palace, and it was not quite what I had been expecting. Mounted to a post stuck in the street, although barely still in the ground after the havoc of Galaxia and Flare, was a sign pointing towards a place. I could not read the script upon the sign, as it seemed to be little more than scribbles and dots. I shrugged it off and set myself on that path, as it was the closest thing to a clue that I had, before trotting inside of whatever cover I could find.

It was like this that I continued until I saw a building that was both actually still intact, as well as architecturally different from those around it. It didn’t draw attention to it or anything like that, but it was still noticeably different from the surrounding structures. I trotted towards it, ducking back into cover when I saw a patrol of about a dozen or two creatures pass by. These were different from the four-armed hybrid beasts cleaning the rubble several blocks away. These creatures appeared as anthropomorphic tigers, but with claws much larger than they should have been. Their faces were covered in appendages only describable as tentacles. They wore heavy armour, although still a mix of blue, black, and purple, and carried weapons that looked like they would inflict wounds so nasty that death by infection was as likely as death by blood loss or mortal injury. I waited patiently to watch and learn the patrol pattern that these creatures were following, and quickly discovered it. They wandered about the outside of the building, around its perimeter, time and time again. I could only assume that this was the place I was looking for, so I waited for them to round the corner once again before moving in.

I barely managed to get the door closed by the time I heard their clanking armour around the corner. Once secured, I trotted my way quietly about the chamber, searching for anything I could find. I found a stairwell down, so I took it. From what I remembered, Galaxia had told me that the chamber I was looking for was in the depths of his realm, so I figured that down was as good of an option as I had.

Floor by floor, farther than I thought possible, I descended through the building. By the twelfth or thirteenth floor I had come to the realisation that this was, more than likely, the place I was looking for. Eventually, and after dodging the patrol of a few suits of animated armour, I managed to make my way to the bottom of the stairwell. The area opened up into an absolutely massive hallway, perhaps ten or so stories tall. There were equally massive doors at the end of the hall, shaped in a crystalline fashion. I was approaching the doors when I heard a voice. “So, turns out I wasn’t imagining things.”

I wheeled around to find Erazul standing at the base of the stairs, some fifty yards off. “I guess Galaxia really did get you into my realm. This is the end of the line, drake. You’ve been a big enough thorn in my side.”

“I’m fighting you under my own terms this time, Erazul; no more tricks, no more surprises. This ends here with one of our deaths.”

He smirked, eventually breaking into what I can only describe as maniacal laughter. “Did you really imagine that you could defeat me in my own realm? Well, it doesn’t matter now. I’ve got you here, and at a major disadvantage.”

“I have more up my sleeves than you might like to think, Erazul. I didn’t come unprepared.”

“Well, either way, it will be fun to torture the life out of your frame. Hearing your screams of mercy choke and fail will be like music to my ears as I tear the last of your breaths from your throat.” He drew his spiked whip again, breaking into a full gallop and laughing in the same, frightening manner. I turned to the doors and attempted to open them. I found them to be securely closed, a sign that I wasn’t getting in without brute force. I didn’t have enough time to cut through the door, so I focused my magic. After a short delay, and right as Erazul was reaching plausible attack range, the floor erupted as a massive, worm-like creature burst through. Debris flew about the room for a split second before the creature slammed maw-first into the door. The massive force was enough to rupture the locks, blasting the doors open. It gave me the opening that I needed, so I attempted to bolt into the colossal opening. I managed to get a glimpse within before anything happened. Within the room was a roughly cut stone chamber, about the same size as the massive hallway I was currently in. Crystals floated about the room, glowing with a soft pink aura. More of the crystals were embedded within the walls, floor, and ceiling of the room, but were not glowing as those that were floating. I didn’t have much more time than that to observe, as I felt the whip wrap about my hind greave. I whipped around in a full circle, yanking Erazul towards me. He barely dodged my buck backwards, taking advantage of the time it took for me to recover. He positioned himself between the crystals and me, hoping to block me. Seeing his bold move, I decided to one-up him. I began charging directly towards him, forcing him to roll to the side in order to avoid being trampled by my overwhelming mass. I was now within the room, and my work could begin. I focused my magic to summon the worm again, aiming it towards the crystals. As I felt the creature coming again, Erazul wrapped the spiked whip around the neckpiece of my armour, constricting the spiked cord as hard as he could. I grasped at it, but his diversion was enough to cause the worm to go off course. Rather than consume or smash the crystals, the creature simply knocked them to the side. I reached up, wrapping the free length of the makeshift garrote around my hoof. I yanked him towards me again, drawing a blade this time. With a swing I managed to clip the tip of his ears, also sending some of his hair tumbling to the floor. He grunted before magically charging the cord that was still stuck around my neck. “You’re going to pay for that one!”

I felt something creeping into my armour, starting from the neckplates, so I quickly moved to get the whip off of me. I yanked him in again, forcing him to either drop the whip or figure out what superheated metal tasted like. He chose to do the former option. I quickly unwrapped the whip from my neck, pulling out shadowy tendrils from my neckplates. Once it was completely removed I threw the weapon to the side. I quickly made my way over to one of the low hanging crystals, galloping my way over and ramming straight into it. The large mineral shifted over until it clunked against the wall. I bolted after it, wheeling around as I arrived. I could see Erazul galloping towards me frantically, sword in a thrusting position. With a deep breath I bucked back. My hooves connected firmly, the sound of shattering crystal echoing through the massive chamber. The room fell silent for a moment, and even Erazul stopped moving. It gave me enough time to duck out of the way before he tried to charge again. I drew a blade once more and parried the attack easily. I tried to counter with a swing, but he read it too quickly and got out of the way. Either way, it gave me the opportunity to charge towards the other crystals. The ground suddenly began to rumble, forcing me to come to a halt or stumble into a roll. Suddenly, a large creature burst out of the ground beneath us and began roaring. It resembled some sick fusion between a fox and a bear, with claws viciously prepared to cleave through even the largest of enemies. It took a quick swipe down towards me, something that I barely dodged. I focused my magic, hoping for anything that could help me. I saw energy begin building around me, almost as if forming a mass. I was elevating, too, taking a bipedal stance moments before lifting off of the ground. The creature took a swipe at me, or the substance around me, and cleaved out a chunk. It quickly regenerated as I continued being formed into something new. The form continued creating itself around me as Erazul cried out. “When in the Voids did you learn that kind of control?! I watched you tirelessly for the last week!”

As I finished forming into this strange new form I swung my leg, perhaps trying to see if I could free myself. Rather than make any progress at slipping out of the beast that engulfed me, the beast followed my command. The massive, clawed appendage swung heftily at the creature before me. The impact caused the creature to reel, leaving deep lacerations across the face. It returned a swing, which I blocked. I punched forwards, hitting the creature square in the chest. The creature fell, but I wasted no time in moving over towards it. I grabbed the creature by the scruff of its chest, lifting it off of the ground and hurling it towards some of the crystals. It landed upon several of them, shattering them beneath its weight. The room froze momentarily again, giving me enough time to head over to the creature. It dissipated, much like mine began doing. I dropped quickly from the interior of the transparent material, flopping against the ground beneath me unexpectedly. Erazul was already on top of me by the time I arose, thrusting a sword at me. I did what I could to parry the blow, but ended up taking a shot to the shoulder. I grunted as I returned the blow, launching him back several yards with a solid kick to the muzzle. I focused my magic again, although I was feeling a bit drained at this point, to summon the worm again. I managed to focus on both the spell and Erazul enough that I could parry the incoming projectile while still keeping the worm’s path true. A few more crystals shattered, again leaving the room silent and still momentarily. I quickly leaped backwards, further increasing the distance between us. I saw him charging a spell, one that appeared to be a large blast of energy. I quickly focused the spell again, summoning the worm just in time. The blast was engulfed by the erupting creature, which, after a few moments, exploded violently. It launched the two of us backwards violently. So violently, in fact, that a few more of the crystals shattered on the surrounding walls. There were but a couple more crystals left to be destroyed, so I quickly, and painfully, arose. I made my way over, ignoring the numbing pain from the hefty impact, along with the lack of air in my system because of it. I whipped my tail about violently when I reached the crystal, pegging it violently against the wall. The sound of shattering echoed as the room fell still again. When things worked back into motion I heard Erazul emit a roar of fury. As I looked over I saw him being engulfed in a creature much like I had, although not to the same size. “You will die for this!”

He charged over, forcing me to bolt towards the next crystal. I didn’t quite make it in time, being bowled over by the charge. I tumbled several times, eventually stopping with a skid. Erazul was still bounding over, so I took desperate action. I roughly guessed where the crystal would be, hoping that my warp core functioned in the same way that it did on my plane of existence. As he swung down with colossal force I activated the mechanism, warping away. I saw the back of the creature as I began falling down, the rocks beneath his fist upheaving violently. I then looked at where I was falling, finding myself near the crystal. I spread my wings in an effort to redirect my path, barely managing to do so with the short window of time allotted me. I landed upon the crystal, barely clipping the side hard enough to shatter it. The room stilled again for a moment before I heard his enraged cry once more. The impact of the fall had stunned me momentarily, more than enough time for Erazul to approach. I went to arise, but he bashed me back down violently. A few more times this repeated until he had me pinned inside a crater. The creature then gripped my helmet, digging claws into the metal and trying to rip it in half. I did what I could to get out of the vice-like grip, but nothing worked. Suddenly, the plates caved, ripping to either side and leaving my face exposed. I had felt several sharp pains across my head, and the subsequent warmth of blood seeping down. Suddenly, Erazul dropped from the creature as it dematerialised behind him. He quickly seated himself upon my chest, keeping me down. He then began kicking my face violently with his front hooves. I drew my blades and swung back at him, hoping to either stab or mortally wound him. I was unsuccessful, my first strike not rotating correctly and merely slapping the cold metal against his side. He used his magic to draw the rocks from beneath me in order to pin my leg. He did the same when my other blade hit, but this time leaving a deep laceration in his side. He began kicking again, speaking in between hits. “Your kind is so motivated that it’s disgusting.”

“Better to be overly motivated rather than barbaric and cruel.” My own speech was broken up between his strikes. I could taste the blood welling up in my mouth, and felt its warmth running down my face.

“Why won’t you just shut up and die already?!” I spat a glob of blood into his face. He responded by summoning a lance and jabbing it violently into my lower abdomen, in the space just behind him. The pain caused me to hack up another mouthful of blood onto him.

“I am your undoing. How else would I do it but with the trait you can never actually possess?”

“Silence!” Again he summoned a lance, but this time he drove it past the side of my face, leaving a deep laceration on my cheek and jabbing the end through my ear. Perhaps he had been aiming it at my muzzle, but my reaction got me out of the way quick enough. Regardless, I let out a stifled cry of pain before spitting another remark at him in a spray of blood.

“Is that the best you’ve got?”

“Your petty words will be the end of you, drake!”

“Just as weak as I imagined you to be!”

“I’ll beat your face to a pulp if you don’t shut it!”

“DO IT! KILL ME, WRETCHED CAITIFF!” Erazul roared out in anger, I groaned in pain as he continued beating my face in. Each impact caused the lance in my ear to wiggle back and forth, shooting pain down my spine. I resisted as well as I could, ignoring more and more of the pain as it came and spitting taunting remarks back at him whenever I had the opportunity to do so. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could continue, so all I could do was silently call for Bane or Galaxia.

The beating continued for a while, and I’m not sure how long. I wasn’t just sitting idly by, though; as Erazul, blinded by barbaric and animalistic rage, continued wailing upon my broken muzzle, I was charging my pearl full of arcane power. What I was creating was an arcane bomb, the trigger being that of my death. It would be a large enough explosion, I was sure, to either rock or annihilate his whole realm, just to make sure that he didn’t survive. The pearl was ready by the time I was entirely numb and clinging on with whatever shreds of will I had left. Suddenly to view came a large blade, swinging directly downwards onto Erazul. The blade sunk into the centre of his skull, cleaving down to the jawline before getting stuck. Suddenly, the blade erupted into an explosion, scattering whatever was left of his head. Erazul’s roughly decapitated body dropped on top of me. It was rolled off to reveal Bane standing there, the massive sword dropping from a special mechanism on his two front legs. He quickly began digging at the rocks around my legs as he called out to Galaxia. Figuring I was safe enough, I began dissipating the spell locked inside of the pearl while I stopped resisting the pain as much as I had been. My eyes suddenly grew heavy, eventually encapsulating me in darkness.

For the longest time, the only thing that I could feel was the encroaching darkness around me. I had no direction, no directive, and no direct contact with anything. I couldn’t feel, in any sense of the word, and was frighteningly and comfortingly content with my emptiness that I had found.

My eyes opened for a moment, fluttering in drowsy restlessness. I couldn’t focus on my surroundings, and carried that same, floaty feeling as I had for however long it had been. I barely recognised that I was on my side, laying down. I raised a hoof before my face, looking over the alien appendage. I couldn’t feel the motion, nor really control it; the leg flopped down as I lost focus again. My ears perked up with the sound of chatter elsewhere. For but a moment they focused enough to piece together words, but it wasn’t a whole lot. “…e found that there remains one in the city of Maneha…”

I tried to bring it back into focus, hoping to figure out the subject, or even any details, but was unsuccessful; the harder I tried, the harder it became. Eventually, my body gave way under the pressure and I dropped back to the void of limbo.

I eventually roused to senses once more, shifting a bit. I could feel this time, but I wish that I couldn’t. It was numb, but in the way that a limb feels after it falls asleep, with the pain of pins and needles included. When my mind decided to obey the signals of my eyes I could see Galaxia trotting over. She began speaking, but her words bounced off of my face as water. Her words eventually came into focus, as if being tuned in from another plane of existence. “…so the fact that you are even alive right now is, in and by itself, a miracle.”

I went to struggle to a sit, but found my body almost entirely unresponsive. Before I could speak I heard her voice again. “Remain stationary, child. Your body is in no position to move.”

I went to speak but found no words. “I suppose it is not prepared to converse either. I think it is best that you rest for now before I inform you of the current situation regarding Erazul.”

I took a slightly deeper breath than normal, the closest thing I had to a sigh, before resigning myself to that fate. I blinked a time or two more, not of my own volition, before Galaxia began casting a spell. Soon, sleep found me.

When next I awoke I felt entirely different from how I had been before. Rather than a painful numbness I was overshadowed by an overwhelming physical fatigue. Despite this, however, I was full of energy. I struggled as best as I could to raise to a seated position. Shuffling came from nearby, bidding me to look. Bane was trotting over. He spoke as he approached. “Easy, now; we don’t want you passing out or overexerting yourself and complicating things.”

“Where am I?”

“Once I dug you out of the rubble in Erazul’s chamber, my thanks for finding it and calling out to me from within by the way, but once I dug you out and drug you outside for Galaxia to see she immediately pulled us back here. She and I worked furiously to bring you back, and we were exhausted by the end.”

“One has to beg the question, child,” Galaxia’s voice rang out as the door closed, “just how much did you lean upon your father’s resilience?”

“Enough to survive.” My voice was surprisingly hoarse, a realisation that caused all three of us to reel in different degrees.

“Regardless, I remain astonished that we managed to bring you back. It took so long that both Bane and I were growing magically exhausted.”

“Wait, how long was I out for?”

“At least several months.” Bane’s voice was the last thing heard in the room for the space of a few minutes. I sat there in utter disbelief.

“Come again?”

“It took us several months to drag you back from whatever place death was dragging you off to.”

“You’re kidding, right? Please tell me you’re not being serious with me right now.” The two looked at each other before turning back to me in silence. I knew well what message that silence portrayed. “I see.”

“How do you feel?”

“How is the Order?”

“Aqua, you’ve been on the verge of death for months and the second real question you have for us is about the Protectorates?”

“Are they well? Does the Order thrive? Who took charge?”

“Aqua, breathe.” Bane’s voice outpaced Galaxia’s, beating her to the response. “The Order is fine. Are you?”

“I feel exhausted and lively at the same time.”

“Well, I do suppose that such is an aftereffect of extended use of my sleep spell, so that sounds normal. You will be back at it in a day or two if that is all.” I let out a sigh of relief. “I would, however, suggest that you don’t attempt something so bold in the future. We were able to recover you this time, but there might not be a next time for you to recover from. Bane is still surprised that he got your muzzle back on straight.”

“Wait, back on?”

“If it hadn’t been for the cartilage bonded to skull fragments, you’d be missing your muzzle right now.” I swallowed hard following Bane’s statement. Faced with such a frightening prospect, I was certain that I wouldn’t allow myself into such a position again. “Regardless, I think it’s best that we let you continue resting.”

“Before you leave I have a question.”

“What is it, child?” Galaxia was the first to respond.

“I’m not sure who said it or when, but one of the ponies in this place said something about one being in a city. What were you discussing?” I saw the two of them shoot glances to each other again. “What?”

“Erazul had another crystal, a failsafe if you will. He hid it, disguised it, as regular jewelry. It’s in a city to the east-northeast of your town.”

“Just give me a name and I’m there.”

“Not so fast.”

“Why not, Bane?”

“You need to recover first.”

“Obviously, but after that.”

“Are you sure you can wait that long?”

“Yes.”

“Alright, fine then. Manehattan.”

“Never heard of it.”

“The train station will be able to get you there. There are rails extending across your entire country. At least one will lead there.”

“Alright. Although, my other question, is: will Erazul be able to return in the meantime, while I sit here idly?”

“No. It will take him about another month to be drawn close enough to consume the crystal in exchange for his life.”

“Why? Wasn’t the deal with those crystals that he would regenerate almost instantly if he died?”

“Well, yes, but the thing is-”

“It is no more than a fragment, Aqua. It does not possess the proper capacities like those in his realm did. As well, the fragment is not in his realm, and has transferred several times since he last checked upon it. He’s scouring hard, but it’s hard to find material objects from the ethereal side of things.”

“And if I crush that jewelry then Erazul is gone for good?”

“Yes.”

“Alright. Thank you.” They both nodded before heading towards the door. Once they were outside I took a moment to look around the room. I quickly noted that it was the same one that I had rested in before. Perhaps they were dedicated guest chambers. Either way, it didn’t matter. My goal was to rest as well as I could to speed up my recovery. As such, I laid back down and closed my eyes, waiting for sleep. It came eventually, after who knows how long, and took me in its warm embrace.

The next two days passed in sluggish anxiousness. When they were over, and Galaxia figured me fit enough to return home, I gladly accepted the invitation for teleportation. Her spell dropped me off directly outside of my house. When I entered I found my armour sitting in the middle of the living room floor, a piece of paper attached to it. I quizzically looked at it before moving closer. I took the note in my hoof and read it.

Aqua

I’m not quite sure how you always manage to mess up such a strong mineral on such a regular basis. I’ve seen warriors preserve steel plates for decades without injury, yet your armour, despite being far tougher than steel, almost always ends up ruined at the end of the day. Either way, I took the liberty of fixing it up after Bane had me get it off of your lifeless body. Until about a week ago I believed you to be dead, until Galaxia informed me that your vitals returned. After such I folded up the armour from the display stand, packed it back here, and wrote this note. Hope you take care of it better; it’s the only thing between you and being murdered.

Yours truly,

-Aldorn

I chuckled, his frank nature coming out. I put the note down and was on the verge of equipping the armour when I heard the sound of somepony coming down the stairs. I looked up to find Storm emerging from behind the wall that separated it from the rest of the room. “Aqua? You’re back!”

He came bounding over, nearly tackling me in a hug. “I thought I had lost you for a while there. What are you doing scaring me like that?”

“Well, it wasn’t exactly my intention.” It kind of was in a way, but that’s not the kind of thing to say at a time like that.

“Do you at least have some time that you can spend with me?”

“No. Erazul is still out there, but he’s cornered and on the verge of defeat.” I broke the hug, looking Storm in the face. He was returning the look. “I have to go and finish things once and for all. Once he’s gone I believe that we will have a lot more time to ourselves, and you wouldn’t mind that one bit I’m sure.”

He chuckled bashfully. “But until then, I have to suit up and head out.”

“I understand. Please just come back to me again, alright?”

“I promise I will.” He nodded, giving me one more hug. As he broke the hug he reached his face up to kiss me on the lips. My face flushed with warmth at the notion.

“Go, win this fight. I believe in you.” I nodded, determined, before stepping into my armour. The plates folded out around my body, encasing me in their safety. I bid Storm farewell as I left the house. I then turned my attention to the train station, planning out what I was going to do once I got to the city.

I managed to figure out how to make my way to the right train, boarding it once it arrived. From there, I simply waited until I arrived at my destination. Once I had disembarked I began looking around. Galaxia had said that it was a piece of jewelry, so I began searching for signs that read ‘Jewelry Store’ or the sorts. As I began searching through the stores, looking for anything out of the ordinary, not only did I get strange glances from the ponies of the city but I also got a feel that there were a few classes of jewelry stores. There were low-end ones, filled with a few pieces that weren’t anything special to look at. These were like street vendors, in a way, but restricted to buildings. The middle class of stores carried a good collection, with pieces of varying quality. The high-end stores, which tried to kick me out several times, were filled with only the most exquisite of jewelry, with price ranges far above what anypony should have been able to afford. Despite all of this, I was having a hard time finding what I imagined I was looking for.

Just as I thought I had scoured the entire city, having either left or been kicked out of every jewelry store here, I found one more. It seemed wedged between being low-end and mid-range as far as price. As I entered I could tell that the salespony grew tense. His tone called out from behind the counter, suspicion almost causing his voice to crack. “Can I help you?”

I folded my helmet back, which seemed to ease the tense atmosphere if just a little. “I’m browsing, seeing if there’s something that catches my eye.”

“Alright. Let me know if you have any questions.” I nodded and turned my attention back to the displays in the store. I had to bend down to most of them, as I stood about three-quarters or a little more of the height of the store. I began my routine observation of all of the gems, starting with the counter and spiralling my way inwards. My attention was grabbed almost unnaturally by a particular piece in the middle of the room. My interest was piqued as I trotted over. I began looking it over, almost mesmerised by the thing. It looked like a necklace or circlet of sorts, with a double helix of gold and silver wrapping outwards from the brooch. The socket for the gem was also a mixture of gold and silver in very intricate, painstakingly detailed designs. Inset in the frame was a gem. It appeared as if onyx, but transparent. There were brilliant, but dark, streaks of blue and purple, with white dots barely noticeable throughout. The gem was mesmerising, the intricate, space-like pattern seeming to draw me in and beckon me to take it. I was suddenly snapped out of the trance I was in, pulling back several inches from the jewel, when I heard the shopkeep speak. “Find something there, ma’am?”

“This gem, where did it come from?”

“Well, I bought it off of another competitor as they were going into liquidation. Bloke was retirin’.”

“Do you know where he got it?”

“Bought it from a mare, I think.”

“Any further back than that?”

“Now what are you askin’ for?”

“I want to know the origins of this gem. Any rumours, legends, stories, quarry even that could be tied to it?”

“No, not a breath about it. Last owner said it was oddly mesmerisin’, like it called out to whoever looked at it.”

“There’s definitely a magical property to it, I can tell you that much.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“The price should be higher, then.”

“Well how much does it cost now?”

“About 500 bits. After what you told me, a ten-time increase is needed. What magical property does it have?”

“I’m not sure, but if it comes from where I think it comes from then I’m going to have to take it for public safety.”

“Now wait just a doggone minute there, lady. What authority are you from, trottin’ in here and bossin’ me around like you were the police?”

“My name is Aqua, and I am Guildmaster of the Order of Protectorates. It is my duty to ensure the safety of the citizens of Equestria, and as the Guildmaster the highest threat levels fall to me. If this gem is the one I believe it to be, then anypony so much as nearby is in grave danger.”

“And what makes you say that?”

“Do you see how badly scarred my muzzle is?”

“Yeah, makes you look like some kind of monster yourself.” I bit my tongue for a moment, biting back a retort.

“There is a pony that sealed his essence away into things like this gem. I have tracked down all but one, and this is most likely it.”

“Yeah, and what does that have to do with anything?”

“He was the one that left my muzzle like this. Thanks to potent healing magic, it’s actually still attached. Otherwise, we’d be having a very different conversation about this subject matter.”

“So what’re you going to pay me for that gem?”

“Sir, it’s an extreme public safety hazard.”

“A gem. You expect me to believe that a gem is going to murder an entire city’s worth of ponies?”

“Not the gem, but the pony that would use the gem to reconstitute his body using the energy that forms the gem.”

“Now this story sounds like it was blown out of your rear. How do I know that this isn’t all just made up to try and rob me of my most valuable piece?”

“Technically speaking, you don’t.”

“Then why on this verdant planet would I give it to you?”

“Because this will go one of three ways. First: I let the gem sit here until the stallion reconstitutes, you see every warning I put out for you, and the entire city’s population is decimated. Second: you give me the gem and I properly handle its destruction. Third: I take the gem anyways and properly handle its destruction. Your choice.”

“You drive a hard bargain. If you take it, are you willing to pay me back for the theft you’d be committing?”

“When I have the money and the time to return, yes.”

“But at ten times the listed price there.” I folded my helmet plates back over my face before speaking again.

“I’m feeling generous. How about twice the price.”

“Generous? Why, you’re ripping me off!”

“Take it or leave it, but I’m leaving with this necklace either way; I’m not going to have the blood of an entire town on my hooves.” He looked at me for a second, jaw tensed in deep thought.

“Alright, you win. A thousand bits the next time you’re in town. Don’t forget it; we don’t take kindly to looters.” I nodded, stepping to the side to allow him to open the display case. He pulled the ornate piece from the stand, placing it inside of a bag. Once properly wrapped up he slid the bag across to me. As I went to grab it he stressed his point again: “Bring those thousand bits next time you’re in town. Got it?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Now get outta here.” That was the plan, so I turned and headed towards the door. I left, making my way back to the entrance of the city. Wherever I was going with this, it was not going to be in any kind of crowded area. As such, I made my way out through the main gates leading to the city. I trotted about a mile out when I decided that such a distance was far enough to be safe. As such, I sat down, pulling the gem out of the bag. I looked it over for a while, the attracting spell attempting to draw me in. I resisted the impulsive urge to put it on, drawing out my sword instead. I aimed my strike and silently pleaded that this was the right jewel. I struck downwards, hitting the gem squarely. The sound of shattering glass echoed out as the world around me suddenly fell pitch black. I looked around to figure out what was going on, eventually finding that the silver and gold ornamentation for the gem had gone missing. I began searching about, confused. With one last turn I finally noticed where it had gone, but it was too late. The socket and band had become more of a worm-like creature than a piece of jewelry. Before I could even react, the thing leaped at me, latching firmly to my neck. I felt it begin wriggling its way inside of the plates as I furiously attempted to dislodge it. It proved in vain, as the strange creature continued forcing its way inside. Suddenly, breathing became hard and I was losing air fast. Before long, I felt myself tip over, hitting the ground. Not much after that, the world darkened and my fight ceased.

When next I was aware of my presence, and of the world around me, I found that I was moving, not of my own volition but moving nonetheless. As I continued coming to I attempted to gain control of my motions, but it was in vain. I struggled, with increasing ferocity, until I felt just a small fragment of control. Following this slight twitch of my leg I felt a sharp pain jab into the corresponding limb. As I went to react, the same resistance prevented it. Forcing myself hard enough caused me to stop my movement. Sharp pains jutted out of my legs as I heard a voice. It was a mixture of voices, ones I wasn’t quite able to discern. There were voices both high and low, as mares and stallions, and something else. “Your efforts to free yourself will only lend to your untimely demise.”

I went to speak, but my mouth wouldn’t open for it. Rather, it did for the next time the creature spoke. “We’re headed to your home town. Whether you arrive with legs or not is your decision.”

Again I tried to speak, but found it to be in vain. There was little I could do, and I wasn’t sure exactly what I was doing either, so I simply let the force carry me across the sunset-orange landscape. Once it discovered my subjugation, it carried on more quickly.

The journey carried through the sunset that had hung over us, through night, and into the wee hours of the morning. It was just as the sun was emerging, a few ponies moving about, when we arrived in town. I found myself approaching my house, or at least some trajectory of it. As I was heading over, a few ponies began to gather around me. These early risers seemed eerily curious about me. As one approached, hoof about to extend to poke at my chest, I felt my leg kick out. The pony was launched across the grass of the park, stopping several yards away. In horrified shock I tried to look at my own hoof. Indeed, I had lashed out even before I could react, and such was a frightening proposition. I found myself unable to glance at my leg, nor lift it. Not even my voice came out when I bid it to. Just as I was finishing up my attempt to resist and cry out, the creature spoke. I recognised my own voice in there, along with some growling undertones. There was a third tone that I didn’t quite recognise yet that spoke in tandem with the other two voices. I felt my own mouth, my tongue as well, moving in concert to match the creature’s will. “Where is the one they call Storm?”

I saw the ponies look at each other. It was true, Storm and I weren’t exactly famous or renowned. In fact, I wasn’t sure if anypony here actually knew our names. Regardless, the creature called out again. “Where is the one you call Storm?”

A stallion spoke out. “We don’t recognise that name.”

“You lie!” The creature leaped forwards, lunging towards the pony with a vicious strike. I barely managed to resist enough for the blow to stop within a mere inch or two of the pony’s face. He promptly fled as I silently groaned in response to the pain granted by my resistance. The voice spoke out again, long enough for me to try and recognise the unknown voice. “The longer that you harbour Storm, the more likely that somepony will die here today!”

My eyes, had they not been controlled by the creature, surely would have shot open. The voice I had been hearing was Erazul’s. “Tell me where he is and you will all continue living your pitiful lives.”

“We don’t even know who that is!” A mare called out this time, to which my body bounded over, preparing to whip the tail about. I managed to drag it high enough to whiz a few inches above her head, something that sent a horrid pain shooting up my spine; I would have shivered if not entirely restricted.

“You have one more chance to find him before I set this town ablaze, so think well, ponies.” The others looked fearfully at each other. They looked around the town, perhaps for somepony they didn’t recognise. Before much time had passed, the creature spoke again. “I’m growing impatient, ponies.”

“Good thing you don’t have to wait any longer.” Storm’s voice called out. I was both relieved and frightened by his arrival, but could show neither. I couldn’t even look towards him until the creature turned my gaze there. I found Storm crouched into a lowered position, sword nearby and ready to be grabbed. He was clad in full armour, something he didn’t normally wear around the house. My only thought is that perhaps he had received prior warning to our arrival and prepared sufficiently. Before I could assess the situation further, however, the creature spoke again.

“Well, would you look at who it is? I’m honoured to finally fight Storm in person. Let’s see if you can match, even in the slightest degree, the combat prowess of your wife. Have at you, then.” The creature leaped towards him as he quickly drew the sword. I tried resisting, but the control exerted over me was even fiercer at this point, as if my body was conceding defeat with a hope that the creature would protect me. The two began exchanging blows, giving me window enough to view my leg through my peripheral vision. Roiling, sanguine metal, paired with silver and gold, and that strange galactic design that the jewel had presented, coursed over my body. It hid all of my hide, not allowing one bit of the light orange to see the light of day. The coating was currently extended as a blade off of my leg, something that the creature was using to deflect Storm’s blows. The combat was quick and fierce, perhaps not quite to the level that I was used to fighting at, but it was still formidable. I heard Storm mutter under his breath, calling for Bane and Galaxia during the fight. He then took a desperate action, rolling under the blade-like extension and stabbing upwards towards the belly of the beast. I very quickly realised that he did not know that I was underneath the creature’s substance; the blade sunk straight through me, hitting the other side of the creature’s roiling exterior. Storm yanked his sword in a circle before pulling it out and rolling away. I went to groan, but the creature caused a chuckle to emanate instead. The chuckle turned into a full-blown laugh a few short moments later. Each laugh caused sharp pain to radiate through my body from where I had been stabbed. When the laughs subsided, the creature called out to Storm again. “Oh, you have no idea what you just accomplished, did you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You just managed to do something that I don’t believe you would ever do in any other circumstance.”

“Explain yourself!”

“You might just have to tear the explanation from me, Storm.” Although the three voices were there, I could tell that mine was shaky. Storm hadn’t yet figured out the composition of voices, so he charged back in without a second thought. The creature went to strike back at him, but he more than predicted the strike. Storm rode directly alongside the strike, jabbing his own sword in to the shoulder connected to the extension. The problem was, it went directly into my shoulder. He twisted the blade with enough effort to cause him to wince, and I felt my left shoulder crack before a sickening ‘pop’ sound echoed out. Pain shot up my spine and wholly paralysed me, begging me to cry out in pain. I couldn’t. I was stuck, instead, chuckling as Storm’s blade slithered out of the shoulder. The creature pushed him back fiercely, the motion causing more pain to run down the length of my body. “You just keep going, don’t you? This will be fun then.”

“Stop taunting me and just tell me what you actually mean by using all these cryptic answers!”

“Aren’t you going to try and rip it from me?” Storm growled in anger before galloping in again. This time, however, the creature didn’t even try to block it. Storm’s blade swung high, lodging itself into the left side starting at my shoulder and working its way down to the spinal column. Another laugh echoed out as I tried in vain to worm my way away from the pain. The creature spoke as the laugh came to an end. “Ah, you really are something different, aren’t you Storm?”

“Tell me!”

“Well, since you insist.” I heard some kind of sloshing noise echo through the material surrounding my ears, a noise I recognised had played in the blinks before I would be stabbed or slashed by Storm. I then saw Storm’s eyes shoot open wide. For good measure, the creature made me look down at the sight that Storm was seeing. The roiling material had parted, revealing my hide underneath. I would have taken a deep gasp out of shock, but my body still was not my own. I was forced to look back up at Storm’s distraught face as I heard the creature speak, the presence of my voice nearly gone from the mix. “Every time you’ve been trying to attack me, I simply move aside and let my host take the fall. A shame for you that my host happens to be your wife.”

“How dare you! Let her go!”

“You’ll have to rip her dead body from me if you want to ever see her again. Then again, I’ll probably move to you after that.” Just then, I saw a warp of magic, with Bane and Galaxia standing nearby. “Well, we’ve got more ponies here in the party, and what a group we have assembled!”

“Leave her, Erazul. Your time has drawn to an end.” Galaxia’s cool tone was barely enough to mask her anxious attitude.

“Oh? And how are you going to go about that, hm?”

“Erazul, look at who you’re against.”

“And look at who I’ve got, Bane. Obliterate me and you obliterate her. Storm has found that out the hard way.” Bane glanced over to Storm, whose head drooped a little, while Galaxia kept her sight fixated on the creature. I saw her begin channelling magic, the reverse glow around her horn consuming more and more of the light around it. “Oh? And just what do you plan to do with that, Galaxia? Banish the both of us?”

Suddenly, her horn erupted in a burst of magical flame. The dark flames licked around her horn as the spell continued to grow. “Ah, I see now what spell you cast. Well, she is doomed either way. If not by your hoof, then perhaps I can finish the job.”

As it finished this statement, I suddenly felt a large amount of shifting across the top of my hide. Suddenly, sharp pain erupted from enough places on my body that it felt like it was the whole of it. Enough control was released from my body that I was able to gasp in pain before my mouth quickly clenched closed at the command of the creature. I used what effort I could and forced the thinly-spread creature to turn and look at what it had done. As I saw my body from the corner of my eye, I saw many spike-like protrusions that had penetrated much of my body. The creature cut into my throat as it whipped my head back around. The weakened and muddled voices spoke mostly to me as the attention focused on Galaxia. “If I die, you’re going to watch the one who caused your own undoing. You will be haunted by this betrayal for the eternities, and nothing will resolve it, drake!”

Galaxia’s spell fired off, sending a shockwave through the town that both hit and passed through me simultaneously. I’m sure several others felt the same, but I was unsure. The pain caused by it was exquisite, but it did the job; I felt my strength, what was left of it, return to me as control was once again mine. The problem was, I didn’t have the needed strength to so much as breathe, so I collapsed down into a pile on the grass beneath my hooves. A wet splatting sound rung through the quiet town as I hit the bloody mud under me. I quickly lost focus and blackness consumed me.

A bout of sharp pain jolted my exhausted frame awake. “Good, at least you’re alive after that.”

I didn’t recognise the voice, and I was far too groggy to focus enough. I thought the hide was blue, but I could be wrong. The voice wasn’t clear enough to make out after that, so all I knew was that it was a stallion. My most accurate guess would be that Bane was the one standing there. I didn’t have enough time to think on it before I fell under the blanket of darkness once more.

Waking was a come-and-go thing for a while, and I’m not sure just how long. Eventually, though, I stabilised enough to understand what was being said to me by Storm. “Aqua, can you hear me.”

Groggily, and with a considerably rough tone, I responded. “Yeah.”

He let out a sigh of relief before he spoke the next line. “So you’ve finally come to. I was beginning to wonder for a while there. Bane had told me to call him if you didn’t stabilise within the next week.”

“How long?”

“A week…?”

“How long was I out?”

“Oh. Uh…”

“Tell me.”

He looked at me for a moment, breathed in deeply, scrunched his face for a moment, and let his breath out with a sigh before finally conceding. “About six months.”

All I could do was look at him for a moment before sighing and flopping my head back down onto the pillows beneath. “Sorry if that’s not quite what you were wanting to hear as a response.”

“Not really, no.”

“It was the best we could manage, unfortunately. There were shards of metal and jewelry embedded into your wounds, not to mention the fact that we had to very thoroughly scrutinise your body to make sure that there was nothing physical nor magical left from Erazul, especially not inside of you. It’s a miracle you’re even alive, nonetheless awake after 6 months.”

“What did you do all that time?”

“Worry, watch, pace, eat, sleep, decline missions from Cularix, the whole shebang, basically.”

“How has the Order been?”

“The Order? Well, it’s been fine. They’ve seemed a little lost without you, but they’ve been adapting recently. They set up a new system to take care of business while you are gone. In fact, they don’t even know that you’re alive yet. Did you want me to send a letter there to inform them?”

“You can if you want, but it’s not necessary.”

“Alright. I’ll get to it eventually.”

“Thank you.”

“Is there anything you needed, Aqua?”

“Not that I know of.”

“Let me know if there’s ever anything you need me to get, got it?”

“Mhm. Oh, real quick, Storm.”

“Yes?”

“I think my armour is still outside of Manehattan. Could you get that for me?”

“Aldorn already retrieved it for us. Galaxia was ahead of the program when it came to you and that jewel.” I nodded, figuring it better that I didn’t even ask. I could feel a new wave of drowsiness washing over me, my eyes getting heavy. I think Storm noticed, as he left the bedside and trotted elsewhere for a little. Before too long, I slipped under again.

There wasn’t much else to note during my recovery until the very end. When I was finally able to trot, and traverse the stairs, was when the first incident happened. I decided to head outside and get a breath of fresh air, for the first time in some seven months or so. As I was trotting slowly through town, enjoying nature and making sure I didn’t overexert myself, I saw some commotion not too far from my house. My interest was piqued, so I made my way over. As I neared I could discern the ponies; Shade was battling with Blaze. As I neared, I called out. “Enough! Break it up!”

The two momentarily looked over before Shade tried one more strike. With a burst of speed that I thought I wasn’t capable of managing yet, I slid between the two, catching Shade’s strike with my front right hoof. I then rounded it down to the side of me, lodging the blade into the ground. “I said: enough.”

“This doesn’t concern you, Protectorate. You believe in duty, do you not?”

“And what does this have to do with that?”

“It is my duty to claim the life of the one that has escaped death’s grasp.”

“And who is it this time? I already foiled your plans to take Terrn once.”

“A bold move, yes, but his death is still planned, just not yet.”

“Then who have you vainly targeted this time?”

“You should know her well enough, Protectorate.”

“Lazuli is not meant to die!” Blaze’s tone rung out from behind me. I took a deep breath in, something that almost caused a tinge of fear in the plated pony before me.

“Care to explain, Shade, what you plan to do to my daughter?”

“She’s not your daughter.”

“She’s daughter enough for me to watch over her. Whether you accept adoption and rescue as a legitimate introduction into a necessary parenthood is your own issue! Either way, tell me what you were planning to do to her.”

“Well, isn’t that a silly question? You know very well what I planned on doing: the same thing I do to everypony else. I planned on killing her.”

“Yeah, that’s not going to happen.”

“You cannot stop me, Protectorate. My goal is final.”

“Just like with Terrn?” I could tell that the remark got to him, as he took a breath and broke the stance we had. Blaze moved up to my side, sword at the ready and horn alight with magic already. I crouched down as far as my shoulder would allow, which was far enough apparently. Shade looked at me, then at Blaze, then me again before sheathing his blade and speaking.

“Fine. You might win this round, Protectorate, but only because I know you are a worthy foe. Fight me in a one-on-one match and we’ll determine fate. If you win, I will cease attempting to murder ponies under your Order’s jurisdiction. If I win, you will cease attempting to interfere with my work. Do we have a deal?”

“No.”

“What, scared?”

“No, I will protect them either way, whether or not you approve.”

“So be it. If you change your mind, you can find me at the base of the mountain. My portal is there.” With that, he turned and left. I watched him closely to make sure that nothing else happened. Once he was outside of the town I sighed. I then tried to get up, but didn’t have quite the mobility I needed in order to do so. Blaze turned to thank me, but found me still in the stance.

“Uh, everything alright?”

“I need help up.” His eyes widened as he realised the danger I had thrown myself into, the danger I wasn’t even aware of until just then.

“What were you doing with that kind of bravado?!”

“Scaring him off, apparently.”

“I mean, it worked, but please don’t throw yourself into suicidal situations like that, please.”

“I do what I have to, and it’s pure idiocy from time to time.” He shook his head as he did what he could to help me up. Eventually, through a bit of struggle, I managed to get to a regular stance again.

“How did you even end up like that?”

“Quite the story behind it, but needless to say, I helped bring the demise of a demigod.” I could tell he sat, staring in awe, for a moment before speaking.

“Well, no wonder they made you Guildmaster. Any of the rest of us would have been wiped out in an instant.”

“I appreciate the flattery, but I should go home and rest.”

“Yes, you should.”

“Just one thing before I do, Blaze.”

“What is it?”

“Keep a close eye on Lazuli. I don’t want to lose her.”

“You’ve got it, Guildmaster.” He began trotting off, leaving me to head towards my house. I made my way back upstairs to my bed, realising I needed more rest if Shade was upping his game. Storm wasn’t home at the moment, so I simply curled up under the covers and waited for sleep.

I decided to take a few more weeks before making another expedition to the outside world. I made a successful trip to the Order and back, but there wasn’t much of note therein. It was little more than informing the Protectorates that I was still alive, and checking how their newly implemented system worked. Indeed, I was impressed by it. The fact that they could effectively split the work of a single, dedicated pony who sat at a throne all day was impressive. The fact that they managed it on top of their regular duties as faithful Protectorates was even more so.

That aside, it’s time I returned to the journey at hoof. I said my farewells after officially implementing the system they were using. Once on the road, I set my course for home, arriving before too much time had passed. As I was on the edge of town, however, I was passing through the last bit of the forest. I heard a small bit of rustling nearby, so I stopped. I perked up, hoping to find the source of the sound. I heard rustling again, followed by a snapping twig. I pinpointed the sound, facing directly towards the bush where it came from. “Reveal yourself. I know that you’re hiding, and I know where.”

A little more rustling ensued before the crashing of leaves echoed out. Shade lunged at me from the bush I had been staring at. I barely sidestepped the attempted attack, narrowly dodging his sword’s blade. “Ah, so it’s you.”

Through teeth clenched to the hilt of his blade he spoke. “I will get you to fight me, Protectorate. This will be settled through battle.”

“Look, I have matters to tend to.”

“Matters more important than the lives of innocents?”

“I don’t need your loaded questions to dictate the direction of my life. I can figure that out well enough on my own.”

“Their blood will be on your hooves, Protectorate, because of your inaction. Lazuli can be protected by Blaze for only so long.”

“Long enough for me to get things in order in order to face you.”

“If you had any honour, you’d accept my challenge.” Something seemed to spark inside of me, some part I wasn’t aware of. The challenge seemed to burn itself into my very will. It took quite the effort to refuse it.

“Look, I’m not fighting you.”

“You are a disgrace of a coward, Aqua. Lives will be lost because of your selfish desire to tend to your own life before theirs.” With that, he leaped back through the bushes, galloping away. When all fell quiet I began making my way back home. For some reason, though, I still could not get his words out of my head.

I trotted through the front door, finding Storm on the sofa. He perked up and trotted over. “Good to see you back, Aqua. How did it go?”

“It went well, but there’s something that’s been on my mind.”

“What is it?”

“Shade challenged me to a duel, but I can’t seem to shake it. No matter what I do I keep coming back to those words he used, words doing little more than outlining a challenge of bravado.”

“Don’t pay them any mind.”

“That’s the thing: I can’t help but do so. It’s like some part of me finds some connection to it, like some heritage behind it, and won’t let me live it down.”

“So what are you planning then?”

“I think I might have to fight him. It feels like the only way that I can shake this strange feeling.”

“Well, I won’t hold you back, but please don’t go in alone.”

“I have to. Those were the rules of the challenge.”

“Aqua, last time you went in to something alone was with Erazul. Both times, you were out for several months afterwards. I don’t think I can keep surviving with that kind of risk held above me all the time.”

“If I take care of Shade then there will be no more major threats and life will simplify itself.”

“But what if you don’t return, or you return and die for good?”

“That’s not the plan.”

“You didn’t plan to be out for six months because of a necklace either.” His words hurt, but I had to ignore it.

“I’m sorry, Storm, but this is something that I have to do. My duties as a Protectorate bind me to it.”

“Didn’t you just say your heritage did?”

“No, just that it might have part of why I feel so driven to fight him. My duties drive me to winning.”

“But-“

“Storm.”

“Yes?”

“There are no buts. I’m doing this.”

“Why, though?”

“Shade endangers more ponies than I can stand, especially as the Guildmaster of the Order of Protectorates. I have to ensure their safety, at least from this threat. Those under me will be able to handle the rest after that.” He looked at me for a moment.

“I still don’t like this. It just feels wrong.”

“Wrong or not, I have to do this, Storm.” He exhaled a soft snort, a sigh of kinds, before speaking again.

“Fine. I can tell that you won’t budge in your opinion of the matter, so I’ll let you fight him. Just know that I’m informing Bane and Galaxia of this.”

“That’s perfectly fine. I’ll most likely need their help afterwards anyways. Thank you, Storm.”

“For what? Letting you trot straight into your own death?”

“In a way I suppose yes, but for preparing the necessary safety nets for when I return from this fight.”

“For if you return from this fight.”

“I will, Storm. Just wait and see.” He decided against continuing the argument further, as he turned and trotted away. I made my way upstairs, deciding that I should be well rested for the fight ahead. I curled up in the bed alone, closing my eyes and waiting for sleep to overtake me at last.

When morning came I awoke, finding Storm asleep beside me in the bed. I chuckled softly before carefully getting off of the bed. I quietly made my way downstairs, equipping my armour. I then made my way out of the door, heading here to report this to you. I set out in a few moments for the base of the mountain. If I don’t return, well, you’ll know what the outcome of the encounter was. If that is the case, which I hope it’s not, then tell the others. They’ll want to know what has become of me. Thank you, faithful scribe, for writing all of this down for others to read. I wish you well, and hope that I will return to tell you more of the tale.