After a very quick trip up the stairs, the group all left the house and took to the sky with as much speed as they could muster. Those that couldn't fly were all being carried by those that could. Charles, however, was being carried by the sun Goddess herself as the two conversed quietly.

"Tia, I know something back there spooked you. You never run from a fight unless you know something could hurt you or some other pony." The human spoke sternly into her ear as they flew along behind the rest of the guard.

"My dear..." She trailed off taking in a breath. "While we were in that place, I looked upon what I thought, at the time, to be a mythical book that had long since been destroyed. Unfortunately, I was wrong. That is why I fled." She sighed as they continued along.

"A book spooked you?" Charles looked on in slight shock. "How could a book spook you?"

"That book is a long lost artifact that was created on this planet by the ancients of the minotaur race. It is a shamanistic book that is so heavily enchanted itself, it curses the very area around it, sucking in any and all magic that is within the area. If a being is exposed to it long enough, they will perish."

"That sounds kind of like my leeching ability, but with an inanimate object." Charles hummed to himself.

"That book was said to have been destroyed not long after I had come to this world. Possibly five hundred years, if I recall correctly." She scrunched her nose in thought for a moment before Charles picked up again.

"That still doesn't explain other details though. I mean, if you were so spooked by the book, and you had it right there. Why didn't you just destroy it?" The human asked, furrowing his brow.

"My dear... That book... cannot be destroyed by magic alone." She trailed off as a worried expression covered her, and the humans face. "Many different methods have been tried to destroy it in the past, and the last one was thought to have succeeded. However, our encounter with the book shortly ago disapproved that information. Right now however, we need to worry about the pony that you managed to knock out. I am ashamed to say this, but you should have killed him while you had the chance."

Charles looked toward the Alicorn in shock for a moment as he mulled over what she had just said. "Tia, now you're scaring me. For you to even suggest something like that means that this pony and book are something not only to worry about, but to be feared on a whole new level. I am going to need every bit of information you can give me, and I do mean everything this time." He glared at her from the side, she giving a nervous nod and gulp as they continued along their path toward the castle in the distance.

"Star, go to your room, you're grounded." Charles spat quickly as the group headed into the castle.

"But dad, I..."

"NOW! Or I'll bust your tail mister!" The human bellowed out causing the foal to gallop away with his tail between his legs. Watching the foal run off for a moment, he turned his attention back to the two crusaders that were slowly slinking away.

"And where do you two think you're going? You're in just as much trouble as my son!" He growled out causing them to slink to the ground.

"But uncle Midni...."

"Uncle is it now? I thought we weren't saying that because we were all grown up now. Nooooo, you two are in some deep trouble this time. I may have tolerated your little crusades before, but this time you went too far. You're adults now, and should have known better. You also endangered my son, which under normal circumstances means severe punishment because he is royalty." He snorted out causing their eyes to go to pinpoints in worry.

"However, You two are also my sister-in-laws, which means normal punishment will not be given." He sighed softly making their tense posture visibly relax. "But that doesn't mean you are exempt from such a thing, so, you two are going to do the following. You are to never take Starlight on another crusading mission. If you do, your next punishment will be more severe. You are to never indulge his curiosity in crusading. If he asks, then tell him that I said no. I will be letting him know myself as well. And on a final note..." He paused for a moment as Celestia piped in.

"I think that will be quite enough Char..." She paused, looking toward the human in shock and fear as the purple mist, once again began to flow from the corners of his eyes, his glare seemingly tearing through her without any resistance.

"On a final note, If you endanger ANY pony through these crusades ever again, then you will receive ten lashes per pony. If they are hurt, it will be twenty lashes, and in such a case as somepony dies.... well, let's just say you wont be happy with the punishment then." He growled out. "Now get your flanks back home, the guard will escort you.

The two young mares nodded, bolting out of the room with haste as soon as he had finished. Celestia coming up to his side nervously as he began to walk out of the throne room and down the hall.

"Charles, did you really have to be so stern with them? They are still foals after-all." Celestia sighed as they continued to walk along.

"They are young adults now, so if they want to be adults, then they are going to be treated as such. They were lucky I let them off the hook so easily after this little adventure. Had you not told me about this so called book and pony that even terrifies you. Then they would have been sent home with just a stern talking to. Speaking of which." He growled. "I want to everything you know about this book. I want no details left out, which means we are going for a little walk in your head."

Celestia gave him a worried glance as they continued on through the castle and into their quarters. Charles going straight to the bed and taking a seat, folding his legs Indian style and crossing his arms as he watched the sun Goddess climb onto the bed with him, her horn glowing softly as she pressed it to his head.

In a flash of light, the two were now in a long corridor. Each wall to either side of them consisting of many doors that lined the walls. The hallway disappearing into the far distance as the looked down each of the two directions.

"Sub conscious." Charles spoke out quickly causing the walls to glide past them in a hurry. Within a few seconds, the end of the hall came to a halt only a couple of yards from them. The elegant light blue door trimmed in gold welcoming them as it opened before them.

The two beings made their way into the large ornate room lined with books as far as the eye could see. Celestia watched as the human walked to a table in the center of the room and took a seat, she following soon after.

Once she had taken a seat, she spoke out in a monotone. "Memories of the Eldritch Necromicon."

"Necromicon?!" Charles spoke out in shock. "You mean that magic can raise the dead here?!" He sputtered in total shock.

"You're aware of what the Necromicon is? But how?" She gave a slight gasp upon hearing his statement.

"It is a fabled book from my home world, it was never real, or if it was, there was no magic in my world capable of using it." He gulped slightly thinking back to what he had actually read about the book. As he mulled over the information that he already had, he paused in his train of thought as a book floated to in front of him, resting silently on the table.

"Charles... this book has all of the information that I know and have experienced about the Necromicon. I should warn you, some of these memories are very graphic and real. I spent several years in isolation just to get over some of these memories that I do not wish to relive. So, please know that once you open this book, you will experience horrors unlike any you have ever seen of felt." She sighed as she pulled the human into a sideways hug, releasing him and heading toward the door of the room.

"I shall wait outside until you have accessed the memories. I wish that you would reconsider this method, as I fear..." She trailed off as a look of pain and worry etched across her face. "I fear that this may change you... for the worse."

"I'll be fine Tia, so don't worry. You forget, I've seen military action that most of your guard would wet themselves over." He smirked, nodding to her as she left the room, closing the door behind her.

Once the door came to a close, Charles turned back to the book awaiting his hands that would open it. Giving an audible swallow, his shaking hands slowly reached out to the cover of the book, his finger under the edge of it as he quickly flipped it open.

Charles awaited the rush of information like all of the other books that he had opened previously. However, it never came. Instead, a slow mist began to rise from the book along with an audible low groan that sent a chill to his very bones. Then, from the mist of the book that was now cascading over the top of the table, came a skeletal hoof as several ponies that looked like the rising dead slowly began to climb from it and onto the table top.

Charles scrambled backwards, falling from the chair and onto the floor as he quickly got to his feet, turning back to the ponies as they continued to climb from the mist as it slowly encased the floor all around the room, filling it to the brim, and all looking at him with glowing black and red eyes.

"Oh God, I think I really fucked up this time.... Tiiiiiaaaaaa, Let me out! I changed my mind!" He yelled sideways through the door as he grabbed onto the handle, attempting to open it only for the door to give click as it locked from the outside.

"I warned you... and I am sorry... but you will have to endure what you have done my love. Please forgive me." Came the muffled voice of the sun Goddess from the side of the door.

Charles turned his vision back to the now advancing undead memories of the ponies that had a hunger in their eyes he had not seen before. This only causing his knees to buckle as he fell to the floor and curled up into a ball.

"Oh God...... Oh God...... Why am I so afraid of memories?! They are just memories.... aren't..... they? He asked as he slowly uncoiled from his fetal position on the floor, slowly looking from the hooves that had stopped in front of him. As his vision climbed the frame of the undead pony, looking over its rotting body and seeing several missing chunks of meat, his vision fell upon its eyes. Before he could react, the ponies mouth opened wide revealing rows or serrated fangs, dripping with yellowish, vile smelling liquid, then it lunged at him.

Outside the room, Celestia sat, quietly weeping with her back against the door as she could hear the screams of the human from within as he attempted to claw his way through and bash the door down. These memories were nothing like the others. They were the deepest of the darkest of evils that had ever been seen, and for them to fall upon a human, could become the catalyst that would change the tides forever.

Author's Notes:

I am moving into a far darker part of the story that I had originally planned on leaving out. However, this will be something that will bring a new light into the darkest side humanity has to offer.