The drive back to Sunset’s home was pleasant, mostly because the dynamic had changed between Celestia and Sunset, it was less a guardian driving her ward, but instead a mother driving her daughter back home. When they arrived at the sidewalk, Sunset facepalmed herself and groaned.

“Dammit, I forgot!” Sunset griped.

“What did you forget?”

“My bike! I drove it to your place and I just spaced out and left it there! I just got it too…” Sunset lamented her own forgetfulness, her precious Valkyrie was left in Celestia and Luna’s driveway, thinking about it made it feel like she just left her pet out in the cold rain.

“It’s probably for the best, you’re still recovering, and I don’t want you getting dizzy like you did earlier today while riding that thing. God knows I worry enough knowing you’re riding that bike, but add this on top of it, oh hell no,” said Celestia.

Sunset grinned, hearing the way Celestia said that, it was like she had gone into full mom mode. “Okay, fine, point taken.”

“That reminds me, you should stay home tomorrow too, just to be safe. I’ll drop by after school and take you back so you can pick up your bike, but I’m going to be following close behind you the whole way back, alright,” said Celestia with finality.

Sunset rolled her eyes playfully and responded in a whiney voice, “Yes, Mom.” The former unicorn exited the car and smiled at Celestia. “I’ll see you tomorrow…I…I…”

“Hey,” Celestia broke in. “You don’t have to say it now, only when it’s natural. I know what you mean, just go and get some rest in your own bed. Just don’t get used to me letting you get away with playing hooky, I expect you to come in on Friday, no excuses.”

“Got it,” said Sunset, “Goodnight.”

“Night,” Celestia replied.

Celestia waited until she saw Sunset enter her home and then began her drive back home. The principal of CHS felt happier than she ever had been in the last couple of years. She and Sunset had finally begun to advance their relationship to mother and daughter, and now she had the means to help Sunset fight against the forces of evil.

\\\/// I like this feeling from you, Celestia. I’ve noticed that you have particularly strong maternal energy, is that why you became a Principal at the school? \\\///

“Can’t you look into my memories? We’re one, aren’t we?” Celestia asked.

\\\/// Well, I could, but it’s better to listen to you. Tell me your motivation. Do you see yourself as a mother figure to your students? \\\///

“It’s not exactly like that…I kept thinking I would have children, at some point. I discovered my orientation early, and I did date a few girls back then, but nothing serious. Then when I turned twenty-one and Luna eighteen…our parents died. Of course, she took this hard and started acting out, in many ways Sunset and Luna have a lot in common with being bad girls, Luna even created a ‘street name’, Nightmare Moon. At that point I had been trying to keep us together, and with Luna’s constant troublemaking, I finally had enough and confronted her. Needless to say it turned into a brawl that destroyed half the living room, but afterwards Luna came to her senses and realized that we were all we had left, and she understood how much I wanted to keep us together.”

\\\/// I see, this eventually led to you two becoming the administrators of Canterlot High School, correct? \\\///

“We both loved CHS, it was a place where we created many good memories and made many friends. But, again, I never really had time to fully date and find a girl I thought I could spend my life with,” Celestia lamented. “I’ve had a few one-night-stands, a night of…ahem…carnal passion. But in the end, it meant nothing, just a way to fill the hole in my life that I was too busy to fill. That is until Sunset came into my life…I remember it well.”

Celestia had spent a night with a new woman, it had been a particularly stressful day at work that Friday, so a little unwinding was called for. Celestia tried to remember the names of the women who took her to bed or let her take them to bed, it only seemed polite to remember, but after a while, the only thing that Celestia remembered was the sex and the woman she had it with, not the name. She hated herself for that, it was becoming more apparent to Celestia that she was becoming apathetic about her nights, and that was bad in her eyes.

The Principal of CHS had walked down from the apartment of the woman she had just slept with and was heading down the sidewalk to her car. Honestly it wasn’t the best neighborhood, she was skittish about coming here, it was closer to the east side of Canterlot City, a part of the city that was seeing some resurgence, but there were some unsavory people who preferred it that way and were fighting cops and workers to keep it from getting better. As a result, there were muggings, rapes, and carjackings. Right now, all Celestia was focusing on was getting to her car and leaving.

All things considered; it was probably better if I had just stayed the night with her. Celestia looked from the apartment building and to her car, she was at least at the halfway point between them, and could easily head back. Then again, that’ll be an awkward conversation to have…

Just then, Celestia felt something press against her back, making her entire body go stiff as a board. Ever so slowly, Celestia tried to turn her head.

“Don’t you fucking look at me!” the man hissed with venom.

Celestia kept her face forward, she wasn’t sure if the object at her back was a gun or not, but she wasn’t about to tempt fate. “P-Please, I’ll give you what I have, but I don’t have m-much money…”

“Get in the fucking alley!” he ordered.

Celestia did as he told her, carefully walking into the alley, and standing there waiting for more direction. Before Celestia could ask what he wanted her to do next, she was thrown against the brick wall, front first. The sudden impact scraped her face and made her whole front sore as hell. The mugger ripped off Celestia’s purse and began rifling through it, trying to find anything of monetary value. The principal of CHS glanced over her shoulder briefly, noticing the crazed look in the man’s eyes, Celestia recalled memories of a seminar she took on how to spot someone who was high, and from the looks of it the man was definitely high as a kite and probably coming down from his fix. That was bad, as it meant he was willing to do whatever he needed to get more of whatever it was he was taking, even if it meant killing her.

“Shit, shit, SHIT! UGH!” the man growled as he threw the purse to the ground. “Is this really all you got?!”

“Yes, I promise I don’t have much else! I-I can give you my cellphone, my credit cards or–?”

“Shut the fuck up! You think I’m stupid?!” the mugger pressed the muzzle of his gun to Celestia’s head, making the older woman’s heart race with fear. “I take your phone; you just have them cut it off! I take your cards; you’ll just have them cancelled!”

“No! No! I swear, I-I won’t! I-If you want, you can take me to the nearest ATM, I’ll withdraw all the money I can and give it to you!” Celestia tried to barter with the man, money can always be replaced, but her life…she wasn’t ready to die. “Please, I swear to god I’ll empty my whole bank account, just please don’t kill me!”

“SHUT UP you fucking BITCH!” the mugger raised his gun and struck Celestia upside her head.

Celestia felt pain erupt from the back of her head as she slumped against the brick wall, her legs went wobbly as stars danced in her eyes before she fell to the ground. She thankfully had just enough of her senses to fall onto her hands and knees, but that didn’t last long as the pain and dizziness from the strike made her fully collapse onto the ground and blacked out for a second. When she came to, Celestia found herself rolled onto her back and staring up into the night sky, the mugger was still there, his gun hovering over her face while he used his free hand to unbutton her top.

“N-No…P-Please…” Celestia begged.

“Yeah…you may be an older bitch, but you got a damn good body…yeah, yeah! I know some guys who’d pay for you!” the mugger muttered.

“NO…A-Anything but that! Please, I’ll get you whatever money you want…! Someone…anyone, help me!” Celestia cried in desperation.

“Heh, how many times do you think someone hears that in this part of town?! No one’s gonna come help you, ‘cause people don’t give two shits about helping anyone else, ‘cause they know if they do, they’re gonna get dead!”

“HELP!” Celestia cried without all her might.

As if answering her call, a trash can lid flew through the air like a Frisbee disk. The lid struck the mugger square in the temple, completely disorienting him as he tried to stand up, his vision was blurry, making it hard for him to see who had thrown it. All the mugger knew was that it came from right behind him when he turned his head, the mugger wouldn’t get the chance to retaliate. A young girl of about thirteen to fourteen years of age came rushing down the alley, brandishing a rusty, discarded pipe and swung it straight for the mugger’s right wrist.

The metal pipe struck his wrist, snapping the bones inside and causing pain to erupt in his hand, making him release his weapon onto the ground. The mugger tried to punch her with his left hand, but she was too nimble and easily dodged his attack, sidestepping to his left. The young teen quickly struck him again, nailing the mugger’s left kneecap upon impact. The mugger wailed in pain as he felt the bones in his knee break, forcing him to go down on all fours. The teen raised the pipe high into the air and then brought it down with a fierce battle cry over his head, the man went quiet and completely fell upon the ground.

The moment that the mugger was down, Celestia got up, getting into a seated position as she put her back against the wall, clutching at her blouse to keep her chest from being too exposed. Part of Celestia was grateful, and yet the fear still hadn’t left her, wondering if she just traded one bad situation for another. When she managed to calm her nerves a moment, Celestia took in details about her possible savior. It was definitely a girl, at least thirteen, at most fourteen, she had on raggedy, pants that were marred with dirt and stains. The girl wore a teal colored shirt, which had a few holes in it, but thankfully not where it mattered the most. The girl had red and gold hair that flowed down her back and over her shoulders, it looked similar to fire, but it was unkempt and equally dirty.

The girl’s face had dirt spots on it, and but still by all accounts cute even in such a disheveled state. Her eyes were wide, if Celestia didn’t know any better, she would’ve thought the girl was afraid. The girl’s hands were shaking badly, most likely from the adrenaline that was still coursing through her body from her actions. She looked down at the man she just attacked, and then back to Celestia.

“Did…Did I kill him…?” she asked with a shaky voice.

Celestia understood now, she really was afraid, this girl attacked with such ferocity that it seemed to scare her as much as it did Celestia. The older woman edged herself closer to the mugger, a small part of her hoped that he was dead, but for the sake of the young girl, she hoped more that he was alive. Carefully, she placed her fingers against his carotid artery, the tension ebbed from her, but only a little when she confirmed that the mugger was still alive.

“No, he’s not dead…he’s alive,” Celestia answered.

The young girl felt the strength leave her legs as she fell onto her rear and smiled a little as she hugged herself. “T-Thank Faust…I…I just heard your voice and then…I saw what he was doing and heard what he was going to do…I just…I just reacted…” The young girl hugged herself tighter and began to sob hard.

Celestia felt her heart breaking for this girl, she risked her life to save hers, doing so despite how afraid she was. The older woman didn’t even think, she just slowly approached the young girl and readied to hug her, but surprisingly, the girl threw herself at Celestia and hugged her tightly, burying herself in Celestia’s bosom as she continued to cry. Celestia felt her hot tears seeping into the fabric of her shirt, and her shaking sobs with each breath, it broke her heart. How long had this girl been living on the streets? How long had she been forced to see things that a child shouldn’t see? Live in conditions that no person should have to? And yet, in spite of all that, she came to her rescue.

“Thank you, you’re such a brave girl,” Celestia cooed as she stroked the young girl’s long fiery hair. “Can you tell me your name?”

The young girl looked up at her with wide turquoise colored eyes, and then smiled, it was such a warm smile, as if she had found someone she had always wanted to find, it carried a sense of familiarity and happiness. “My…My name’s Sunset…Sunset Shimmer.”

\\\/// I see, she saved your life. \\\///

“I understand why she did it now, I looked like her mentor from back in her world, she couldn’t stand by and let me get hurt,” said Celestia. “But I know now she can see me differently from the woman – or mare as she puts it – that’s from her world.”

\\\/// Still, it lends credibility to the kind of person my Son chose. She may’ve been prideful, envious, and even a bit wrathful, but it seems she crawled her way out of the literal hole and found redemption and salvation. Seeing such a young human child find her way gives me hope for your kind. \\\///

Celestia had just pulled into her driveway and gotten out of the car, she spotted Sunset’s bike and sighed with a smile. She didn’t like her riding that thing, it scared her a little everyday knowing how easily Sunset could get into an accident and get herself killed. But now that she had the Witchblade, Sunset could heal herself from even the most fatal of wounds, aside from getting her head removed that is. Celestia was about to unlock her front door, but just as she did, her cellphone rang. When she took it out, Celestia was surprised to see that it was Maria.

“Maria, it’s pretty late, is there something wrong?” Celestia asked.

{There might be, that Cardinal we met last week, he called me not too long ago and said that he had information that could end this war with Sombra and the Darkness.}

\\\/// I’ve heard that before, tell her to tell him that our meeting will remain as scheduled. I have no time to entertain his groveling. \\\///

“Uh…Angelus says she’d rather wait until Friday to have a meeting, the scheduled one,” Celestia paraphrased.

{Cardinal Neighsay also said he had something that could stop the Darkness, he said it was called the ‘Siphon’?}

Celestia felt Angelus go completely silent, she was stunned, she could feel it, Angelus, the Entity of Order, was genuinely stunned. “Angelus…?”

\\\/// We’re going – tonight – now – immediately! \\\///

“Uh…wait, you just said that–”

\\\/// CELESTIA I SWEAR, I WILL TAKE FULL CONTROL OF YOUR BODY AND MAKE YOU GO! WE NEED THAT SIPHON! IT IS THE KEY TO ENDING THIS WAR! TO ENDING SOMBRA’S LIFE AND TRAPPING THE DARKNESS AWAY FOR ALL ETERNITY! THIS IS THE OPPROTUNITY THAT WE NEEDED AND WE CAN’T PASS UP! \\\///

Celestia’s eyes widened to the size of saucer plates. “You mean…this Siphon thing can kill the Darkness?!”

\\\/// No, like me, the Darkness cannot be destroyed. But eons ago, I forged an item that had the power to not only kill its host, but also absorb all the essence of the Darkness from the host! With that we can rip the Darkness from Sombra and render him as weak as any normal human being! \\\///

Celestia liked the sound of that, she wanted to make him pay for what he put Sunset through, for killing her, and holding all four of them hostage. “Let me set my purse down and we’ll go. Maria, we’ll be there in a few seconds.” Celestia quickly entered the house, finding Luna on the couch and playing videogames on the TV while drinking a can of CrimsonSteer.

“Sister, you’re back, I ordered a supreme pizza for you, I already had my pepperoni pizza for myself,” said Luna. “OH, c’mon, stop your camping ya noob! Heh, alright, let’s see how you like an RPG right up your ass!”

“I have to go to Maria tonight,” said Celestia as she put her purse on the table.

“Oh, a little late-night booty call with the Mayor dear sister?” At that moment a flash of light went off and shocked Luna to the point that the game controller flew out of her hands. When Luna looked to her right, she saw Celestia, but donned in her Angelus attire. “W-What the hell?! Why are you like that?!’

“I told you, Maria called and it’s urgent,” said Celestia.

Luna sat up and asked, “Do I need to call Sunset Shimmer?”

“No, she’s still recovering, but we might finally have a way to stop the Darkness once and for all–!”

\\\/// Enough with this! We need to go, NOW! \\\///

“Sorry, sorry, we’ll go! Luna, don’t wait up, I’ll see you in a minute.”

After that, Celestia disappeared in another flash of blinding light, leaving Luna alone in their house. Luna sighed heavily and sat back down on the couch, crossing her arms.

{Hey, Nightmare_Knight, you finally give up? I knew a chick couldn’t hack it in an FPS.}

Luna’s eyebrow twitched, she found her controller, and made her avatar switch out her weapon for an RPG, she then pressed the “R1” button and launched the ordinance right for where her opponent’s avatar was hiding with his light machine gun. The rocket flew across the map and hit the spot where her opponent was hiding and exploded magnificently. Not only did her attack take out the one trash talking her, but also two of his teammates at the same time as her HUD displayed the names of the three she just killed.

“Bite me.”

Maria Mare waited for Celestia in the center of her home, ironically, it was the same one that was repaired after the skirmish between Witchblade, the Darkness, and Angelus, their debut trinity battle. The Madam Mayor of the city was pacing the floor, feeling anxious about what was going to transpire, but her anxiety left the moment a flash of light erupted in the room. When the light faded, Maria put on her more mayoral, stoic expression. She could immediately tell that the being floating in the air was her girlfriend, but it was the white glowing eyes that told her that she was in the presence of the Angelus.

“Where is Neighsay?!” Angelus demanded.

“He’s coming, Angelus,” Maria spoke in a placating manner.

Angelus floated down to the floor and stood before Maria. “And is what he says is true? Does he have it?!”

“See for yourself, your Grace.”

Angelus and Maria glanced in the direction of the front door, and from it entered Neighsay. The man was dressed in his Cardinal trappings, and within his right hand he held the fabled item of the Angelus’ creation, the Siphon. Neighsay slowly approached the Mayor and the Entity of Order, a look of pure rapture appeared upon the latter’s face.

“I thought it lost all these centuries! How did you find it?”

Neighsay had a humble look on his face as he stood before Angelus and presented her with the artifact. “The Vatican has a few supernatural artifacts stored away in order to keep them from the hands of those with wicked intent, or to prevent the items themselves from causing harm to the people. I rooted through the archived artifacts and found this, when I realized what it was, I rushed it over to the states and voila.”

Angelus carefully took the item from his hands, grasping it tightly and admiring one of her finest works, a weapon that could finally end the wretched existence of the Darkness once and for all. “Neighsay, your contribution to the war will not be forgotten, I will ensure that you are greatly rewarded!”

“Ah, funny you should say that your Grace. Because I do wish to make one small request,” said Neighsay.

“Speak your request, dear Cardinal,” said Angelus in a chipper tone.

Neighsay’s diplomatic demeanor changed just then, his lips curling into an almost sinister smile. He reached into his robe, and from it he produced the Prism of the Brothers, and once Angelus saw it, her feathers immediately ruffled like a scared bird. Her eyes practically bulged from her skull, and her body visibly trembled.

“What – Why do you have THAT accursed thing?!” Angelus demanded.

“Angelus, what’s wrong?! Why are you so scared?!”

\\\/// That thing is the Prism of the Brothers, it does the exact same thing as the Siphon I made, but instead of imprisoning the Darkness, it imprisons me! \\\///

“As I said, the Vatican has various items under lock and key, the Siphon and the Prism.”

Angelus jumped into the air and formed a ball of light into her right hand and proclaimed, “You shan’t imprison me you insolent little man!”

Before Angelus could attack a cloaked being smashed through the skylight, getting everyone’s attention. The cloaked being, the Magdalena, spun in the air and slashed downwards with her Spear of Destiny. The Spear easily cleaved through Angelus’ exposed bicep, cutting off the entity’s arm as white light ichor came splashing out. Angelus cried out in pain as she released the Siphon and let it hit the ground, using her now free hand to clutch at her injured arm. The Magdalena landed on the floor, without missing a beat, the warrior woman took her attack stance. Angelus concentrated and immediately, her severed arm evaporated into particles of light, unfortunately, instead of returning to her, those particles zoomed towards the Prism and were completely absorbed by the artifact. Angelus’ eyes widened again with fear, having just watched her own energy being absorbed by the Prism.

“You bastard how dare you! You seek to imprison me?! Are you – a man of the Cloth – in league with that wretched abomination?!” Angelus asked as her arm regenerated.

Neighsay picked up the Siphon and held it in his left hand as he kept the Prism pointed at the Angelus. “Hardly, although I have been playing double agent for the last couple of weeks. However, that’s not the case, but it will hardly matter what my reasons are after you’ve been trapped inside.”

Magdalena twirled her Spear around and tossed it straight for Angelus, the being of light channeled her power into both hands and fired it at the Spear of Destiny, but Neighsay raised the Prism and the artifact immediately absorbed all the energy that Angelus was firing. Now unimpeded, the Spear of Destiny sunk itself right through Angelus’ chest, carrying them with its momentum until both hit the wall, pinning her like a macabre butterfly on display. Fluttershy put her hands into a prayer position, and at the same time, the Spear of Destiny glowed as Magdalena muttered her chant.

“In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te.”

The Spear of Destiny released arcs of golden lightning that spread across Angelus, creating chain constructs that wrapped around her arms, legs, body, and neck. Angelus tried to fight against it, but every action she took only caused a surge of pain to shoot through her and disrupt her powers.

“What have you done?!”

“So long as the Magdalena continues that chant, the Spear of Destiny will bind you and keep your powers disrupted. Which is more than enough time for me to take the rest of your essence,” Neighsay explained.

The corrupted Cardinal raised the Prism again, immediately the artifact began to absorb the power of the Angelus. Particles of golden light flowed out of her body and right into the object. Angelus could feel her power quickly draining, despite her efforts, every action she took only caused her more pain and further disruption of her powers, and her powers were already decreasing at a rapid pace. Her eyes shot to Maria, who had been standing by and watching as this all transpired.

\\\/// Celestia, I’m switching with you, get that woman to do something! \\\///

The white eyes switched back to magenta, signifying that Celestia was back in control. The school principal gritted her teeth as the pain continued throughout her body, but in spite of this she managed to address Maria Mare. “M-Maria, please help! I-I can’t move! Maria!”

The Mayor of Canterlot City looked upon the scene before her, and for a moment Neighsay’s glance diverted to her. His plan was factored upon whether or not Mayor Mare would interfere. Was her loyalty to Angelus or her affection for the one who was playing host stronger than her fear of what Neighsay or Magdalena could do to her? Maria glanced at Celestia, she knew she had to save her lover, but at the same time, she knew that inside her lover was the wolf in angel’s clothing.

Angelus made it clear to Maria that when the Darkness was defeated, and his followers killed, that the Entity of Order would set her sights on Canterlot’s citizens, using the same draconian methods to weed out the supposed “sinners” among the populace, and leaving only those who followed the rules, those who walked the fine line of morality. Should anyone veer off that path, Angelus and her Sentinels would swiftly kill them without mercy. In that scenario, what could constitute sinful in her eyes? Simple white lies? Cheating? Graffiti? If Angelus was going biblical then surely homosexuality was considered punishable in her eyes, which meant soon enough or possibly as a first act, dependent on the situation, Maria herself would be among those whose life would be brutally ended. The only reason Celestia would be spared is because Angelus needed a host, and what of Celestia’s young ward, Sunset Shimmer? Losing a girlfriend was one thing but losing someone you considered a daughter would devastate Celestia.

So, Maria Mare, Mayor of Canterlot City, made her choice. “Angelus, consider this karma for what you had planned for my city and its citizens.”

Celestia didn’t have a chance to reply before Angelus switched out, her eyes blazing with white flames as she gave the Mayor the most hate filled expression she could muster. “YOU FUCKING, CONNIVING WHORE! I’LL KILL YOU SLOWLY AND TORTURE YOUR WRETCHED SOUL UNTIL I’VE GOTTEN BORED WITH IT, AND THEN SEND IT TO OBLIVION!”

Maria crossed her arms and smirked. “And there’s the tyrannical bitch behind the warm smile. You may be a being of order, but you’re just as bad as the Darkness and Sombra! Now I’ll have Celestia back and you’ll be a prisoner!”

Neighsay’s smile broadened, he had cleared the last hurdle, now there was nothing stopping him from taking the rest. The corrupted Cardinal focused back on Angelus, he could feel the power of the Angelus seeping into him through the Prism, and it was quite intoxicating. The glow of the Angelus was getting dimmer and dimmer, and pretty soon all of her would be trapped inside the Prism.

However, a powerful roar cut through the moment. Neighsay and Maria looked up and watched as Gaghiel, the Beast of God, jumped through the same skylight that Magdalena had a moment ago. The giant liger transformed himself into his humanoid form and attacked Magdalena. With no choice given, Magdalena stopped her chant and jumped backwards just as Gaghiel’s claw blades crashed into the floor where she once stood.

“Ad me!” Magdalena spoke as she reached out with her right hand.

The Spear of Destiny dislodged itself from Angelus and flipped through the air like a Buzz saw towards her. Gaghiel got out of the way just in time and landed at his Mistress’ side. Something was wrong though, when Angelus looked up, her eyes weren’t glowing white, instead, they were magenta.

“Mistress, I heard your call, are you alright?!”

“We need…need to get out of here!” Celestia stated.

Gaghiel didn’t ask why it was Celestia and not the Angelus herself giving him orders, but regardless, he needed to follow her command. The Beast of God muttered an apology as he wrapped his large left arm around her middle, flared his wings, and shot off straight through the skylight. Once away from any obstructions, Gaghiel took off through the air in a random direction.

Neighsay looked up and growled in anger, he was so close to getting all of the Angelus’ power. The corrupted Cardinal looked upon the Prism and smiled despite the situation. While it wasn’t all the power he wanted, it was a good chunk of the Angelus’ power, enough to command the Sentinels and more, but he still needed the rest if he truly wanted to make his plan come to fruition.

“I’m sorry, Cardinal Neighsay, I am unable to pursue the target,” said Magdalena.

“No matter…”

Neighsay concentrated and immediately felt the power of the Angelus seep from the Prism and into his body. His red Cardinal robes broke down as a transformation was engaged. From his back sprouted two feathered wings made of scarlet light, a layer of armor formed over his body, crimson in color, and atop of that formed heavier armor. Around his forearms formed bracers that were white and gold, emblazoned with the image of an angel holding a sword and pointed down. The greaves formed next, the same image was upon them as well, but around the outer ankles were golden metal wings.

The chest plate appeared next, a golden sword symbol was molded onto the center, with gold wings flaring from the guard. The shoulder pauldrons were golden, the bits of the red robe reformed and connected to the pauldrons, creating a crimson cape that covered the back and sides. Some of it reached upwards and formed a hood to cover his head, while his face was adorned with a white and gold metal mask, with emerald crystal-like eyes.

“My God…so this is the power of the Angelus! And at only a mere seventy percent at that! I can scarcely imagine it at full power!”

The Magdalena got on one knee and bowed to Neighsay, while Maria could only look upon Neighsay with shock, it was then that she realized that maybe letting him suck out Angelus from Celestia with that gaudy looking thing wasn’t the best idea in the world.

“W-What are you planning on doing…?” Maria asked.

Neighsay looked to the Mayor. “For now, it’s business as usual. No one needs to know what happened here tonight, the Sentinels will do as I say, and will continue to patrol for the Blood Kings and the Darkness, but they will also be hunting down Angelus’ host. Seems only seventy percent grants me control of all but one of her Sentinels. That might be a problem, but for now, the people will continue to believe that Angelus is still around.” Neighsay walked towards Maria, his new form towering over her as his emerald eyes shined. “Make no mistake, Madam Mayor, if you step out of line, I will not hesitate to kill you. Nor will I hesitate to kill the host of the Angelus, you seem to care about her, am I right?”

Maria wanted to deny that, but it seemed Neighsay saw through her. “Don’t hurt Celestia…”

“The host is not my target, so long as she comes in without a fuss no harm will come to her. On that note, I need you to tell me who she is, where she works, where she lives, anything that I could use to help make this search a lot shorter.”

Next Chapter: To War: Part 2 Estimated time remaining: 5 Hours, 4 Minutes