The cold morning winds brought death beyond the seas. It also carried the anger that knew no bounds. This was a warning that many felt but none knew what was coming their way. A mare, who was shrouded in darkness. No pony in the Dragon Claw clan was safe as long as they served the leader.

The capital was lively. Warriors were practicing their arts of war at the big square in front of a public. They moved in a perfect synchronization, showcasing that they were parts of a well oiled machine of death. Little ponies with their mothers watched them swinging their weapons with great admiration. The kids even mimicked their moves and smiled, as if they were in front of a confectionery. For them this was their dream, to become ninjas, mighty warriors, who would seek challenges and feats. This was their wicked culture of the absolute warrior clan, which had one problem: there weren't worthy deeds to be done in these times, in which the truce still held everypony on a leash of peace, as short it may be.

This skilled ponies in black were ready for another war, which was just waiting for the little spark to ignite the land again. These killers were going to burn fields, forest and murder many brothers and sisters in the name of the leader and the clan. Were the fillies and colts ready for it? Could they live with the thought  that their mothers and fathers were going to perish one by one, never to return to their families? Could they actually comprehend the reality that there is no glory on the battlefields but only misery and death? How many orphans this society had to produce until everypony snapped out of this poisonous dream and saw the real pain around them?

Too many questions and almost none to know the answer of at least one of them.

The leader was practicing with his warriors, wearing black like every other ninja. You couldn't notice that he was there, they all looked the same. This had a symbolic meaning, that the leader was one warrior in a sea of thousands. This created a strong bond between him and the ponies under his command. By showing that he was one with them, Lupi was giving his respect to the ninjas, the ponies who were the extension of his body. Without them, he'd not be able to lead this clan to glory, without them, Do would not be the leader he was now.

The training ninjas were at the end of the morning practice. They all jumped forward and stabbed the air with their different kinds of weapons and shouted like one mighty dragon. The powerful cry could be heard in the entire capital. This marked the ending of the morning session. The warriors simultaneously turned left and marched out of the square. When they reached the streets between the houses, they spread out and quickly disappeared from sight, probably headed to the nearest pubs.

Only one ninja remained in the open. Lupi took off his mask and sighed, when his eyes spotted the approaching military advisers. He wanted only a minute of peace but he was the ruler after all. There was no escaping his duties.

"My leader, we have troubling news." said the red ninja, who was accompanied with three others, who were wearing purple.

"I'm listening." the leader pierced him with his earnest stare.

"We've learned that the enemy spies have delivered information of our Guardian problem to their leaders. We can expect angry letters from them anytime soon. Sire, maybe we should prepare our territories for upcoming invasion."

The leader needed a few moment to assess the position of his clan. He was not found of two versus one scenario like in the last war, which ended not so long ago.

"They won't." he whispered.

"What was that, my leader?" the red ninja sounded a little confused.

"They won't attack and I know why. The Guardians of the Portal are the only thing that prevents them from completely renounce the rules of combat and of how our little world works. It will be in their best interest, if the ancient Guards are no more. They'll use the opportunity to tarnish our image and impel everypony against us. If they are going to attack us, it will be after we've dealt with the remaining Guardians."

"I see, my lord. What are your orders?"

"The villages that are near the border need to be evacuated. It should be a steady process.  Do it as silently as possible. Lie to them, if you must! We do not want to scare everypony with the news of another war. About the Guardians, we must kill them but let's make it look like they were ambushed by the enemy's forces. The families that still believe in the old ways will be easily persuaded to willingly join our cause. Also let's prolong the Guardians' days on this physical realm, so that we can prepare for the inevitable clash."

"Of course, my leader!" he then walked closer to him and whispered in his ear: "There hasn't been any news from our airship. Maybe we should send a team to find out what happened to them."

"It my be a little too late. I believe that Blue Circle has killed them all. Without the machines we won't be able to control the weather and help the few farmers in our clan. It seems we are stuck in the deep hole. It will be hard to recover but we'll endure. I think its time to change my politics a little bit. Gather two hundred of my warriors and start their training in cultivation of vegetables. If anypony asks why, tell them that is for the greater good of the clan. If there are ponies, who are too proud of themselves and refuse to obey my orders, punish them in front of everypony."

The ninja nodded, bowed down and then backed away from Lupi. He watched them ride off, when they were far from him, his green eyes turned to the little happy ponies that stared at him with their big cute eyes. They were the future of this clan and his actions were not making it easy for them. Was Lupi going to bring the reaper to the next generation? Those still innocent little joyful creatures were far too young to die. Lupi would not let suffering and misery take over their reality, though he didn't know how it would be possible to avoid the tragedies. .

Why was this world so fucked up?  

Maybe their warrior-like ancestors could be blamed for their current situation. However, this would be like escaping responsibility by blaming the dead for the problems of the living. What would have happened, if he didn't listen to his most trusted adviser? Would their world be a more peaceful place? Sometimes Lupi doubted what he did in some situations but the spirit said that it was for the greater good, for the brighter future. Could he completely trust Her?

"I can hear your thoughts, young leader."

Her scary voice almost gave him an heart attack. Lupi froze still. Never had the spirit appeared in public. None knew that he was able to speak with Her or that She even existed. If others learned of his ghost adviser, then his position as a leader may be threatened. He put the mask back on his face, so that no pony would be able to notice him speaking to the air.

"Why you've come now? Couldn't you have waited until I'm in a lonely place. I hope that you haven't shown yourself completely."

"No, I haven't, my prince. Those small cute kids won't see me. I have a message to deliver to you."

"You too? I guess, this morning can't be more interesting than what is now." he whispered.

"A familiar figure will be arriving form a long journey." the Princess of Doom said calmly, with the slight demonic tone.

"Foxy Tail? Is she really coming home?" Lupi couldn't hide his surprise and excitement. "I'll greet her properly, like a hero!"

"She is coming to kill you, my prince. You've caused her great pain. Your future is not safe, the clan's future is unclear. She must be stopped!"

"What?!" he shouted and was heard by the little bystanders. "Why is Foxy coming to kill me? I've never harmed her in any way."

"Yes, you haven't but she believes that you are responsible for her pain. My prince, if you want to see your love and bring the promised glory to the clan's name, then she must be stopped. There's no other way."

Her words felt like ice cubs, that fell on his head. How could he kill the only daughter of his love? Maybe Lupi could get those misunderstandings sorted out with a simple talk. For him, Foxy was like a daughter and the thought of murdering his own adopted child was mind-boggling. This was far over the acceptable line he was willing to cross. Lupi didn't believe to have the strength to do this dirty deed, physically and mentally.

"What you ask of me is too much. I will not kill her!" he really meant that. The black spirit was not quite happy to hear this, though there was a way to persuade this insignificant, powerless, microscopic creature compared to her, the Goddess of all Time and Space.

"Your clan's future depends on your decision, my prince. You have time to think about it. You have been warned!" then her cold presence instantly left him. Lupi yet again could feel the warm sunbeams. He quickly turned to the young audience in front of the square. Ah, the little sweet future murderers. They seemed a bit scared of his strange behavior, being all alone, talking to himself, though the spark of admiration was still in their pure eyes. Their icon silently headed towards the palace to think about the choice he was given: the clan or Foxy.

Somewhere in the deep forests...

"What's the matter, Master Triple? Why are we moving so far away from the camp?" the white pegasus asked with a concern in his voice. The old pink unicorn didn't answer and quietly guided him to the secret place of their meeting with the shadow ninja. The woods stood tall, like bars in prison. It was darker in here. The green coronas effectively absorbed almost all light and leaving nothing for the vegetation below. A few red winged butterflies were dancing in the air, not caring for the troubles of the ponies. Usually this beautiful creatures lived in more opened areas, where the sun was the king. However, this butterflies actually preferred the shadows. They were called crimson spirits, because of the paint of their big wings. When in the air, they resembled ghost that tried to penetrate this existence. Quite scary, but completely harmless.

There were click sounds, that would repeat on regular intervals. Never in Feather's life did he hear such a thing. It kind of resembled two blades meeting. The ponies silently came to a big stone, on top of which Blue Circle was patiently waiting for them. He was sitting, only one dark tentacle held a metal object, whose silver top he repeatedly opened and closed. The master ninja seemed to meditate and looked very calm. Nothing in him indicated of the big decision he made, that would have a great impact on the Phoenixes.

When they arrived in front of the overgrown with mold stone, Circle looked down at them and noticed the curious gaze of Free. His blue eyes were pointing at the lighter, an object that was not known in their world. He put the top and then placed it in his hoof. Feather carefully followed it. Yes, the new leader was definitely interested in this little piece of technology that came from the Fountain of Fates.

"Circle tell him the exact same thing you told me earlier." the old master was all serious, which worried the young pegasus.

"I'm not a recorder, you know." then his mad crystal blue eyes pierced Feather. There was no sanity left in them, like of a psychopath. The new leader stood bravely in front of those abysses and prepared for the important news. "We'll part ways here."

"What? Why?" Free tried to hold his fears under control.

"Destiny has a different path for me. I can't waste any more time protecting your sorry plots. My time is nearing. I must return and prepare the soil for the chosen one. Funny, I always thought that I'd finish the prophecy with the white pegasus at my left side and the black mare at my right. However, this dream of mine won't come true."

"Why is that so?"

Blue looked down at his lighter. Something told the pegasus that the next piece of his revelation would be worse.

"The white pegasus is you!" he almost instantaneously pointed at Feather. Circle sounded more like a madpony than a fearsome ex-leader.

"Me?" the pegasus raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that the other, of which you've previously spoken about? How so I'm your prophecy's holy pony now?"

"The other has already done his part. You and the one from across the sea are the bodies of one same soul. You are fulfilling the prophecy by leading these good ponies out of Tarturus. And to back my claim just look at yourself! You've lost something dear to you..."

Feather glimpsed to his wound, where used to be his left wing. He missed it but in the past days Free had many more important things to worry about but for some plume.

"The ultimate sacrifice for one winged pony is to lose its ability to fly, one of the characteristics that defy you. Just like the prophecy said. Also, remember a few days ago, when you claimed that you'd return to your mother clan, when they are going to leave the island. You can kiss that dream Good-bye, son! Now you are stuck with these dying brothers of yours as their leader. You have sacrificed your freedom to preserve the true spirit of the warrior."

"Aha..." Feather was beginning to worry about this sick master ninja. Though there was a lot of truth in his words. "Master Blue, the one, who is connected somehow with me, isn't he coming here to help the chosen one, whoever that might be?"

Circle stared at him in a way that sparked some uneasy feelings in the pegasus.

"He is dead." the white ninja said in an emotionless voice. "His mate, the chosen one is coming to avenge his mournful death. Her name is Foxy Tail and may the ancient spirits have mercy on the souls, who will be forced to stand against her. While I was meditating, I felt so much rage and pain, true dragon feelings that only resonate in the beasts heart. They were intoxicating despite sensing them from so far away. Like a very good drunken sex!" Blue licked his lips and made an evil smile. "Blood will rain. And it will be glorious! Better start hiding, cause none will be spared!"

"Cut the horse crap, Blue!" Triple angrily shouted. Circle turned to him, the old unicorn saw only insanity in his big blue eyes. He wasn't scared of him at all. "You are not making this easy for all of us! If you leave now, than the chances of a successful escape will be very low. How are we supposed to break through the barricade at the Portal without your help?"

"You tell me! You are the wise one, think of something. Or you could just wait for Foxy to arrive and enjoy the show."

"I sense that you can't be persuaded to change your mind. When will you leave?" Feather asked calmly and with understanding.

"Immediately, after I have a word with you. Master Triple, could you give us a minute alone?"

The pink unicorn frowningly nodded, unwillingly turned away and went behind the woods. Only the two remained. The young and the experienced were looking at each other silently. Then the older jumped from his stone, landing in front of Feather. Circle was with one head taller than than him. The feeling of standing face to face with White Shadow, was like when facing a giant mountain, whose white peak was somewhere above the clouds. Free felt a little nervous and invisibly prepared for any dark surprises Circle might throw at him.

"What do you want to talk about?"

Circle smirked.

"Because we may not see each other again, that is, not in this realm, I'm willing to give you a few advises. Do not trust Silver Knife too much. She may have sworn allegiance to you, but trust doesn't come that easily, just by words. This is something only time will tell, if she is that trustworthy."

"Silver Knife will not betray us. I kind of understand why she joined us and my faith in her is strong."

"Do what ever you think is best. However, when we meet in Tartarus, don't tell me that I haven't warned you. The second thing is, be a good leader. Don't fall on dirty tricks, always be the moral ground for the rest because they'll follow your example, and examples often become traditions and the thing that characterizes your ponies."

"Well, that's an advise I'll follow."

"And the last thing, give this to the rightful owner!" Circle took off the scabbard and handed it to him. The pegasus felt honored to hold this holy tool of destruction, the Legendary Clawed Sword. Although it was almost weightless, the burden given to him equaled to carrying a giant rock on his back. The blade was perfectly balanced. Its power could be felt, even when not wielded. "Protect this sword like... your eyes." there was slight sarcastic tone in his voice.

"Yes, I will. This weapon will be delivered to Dragon Born. I promise."

"Good. Then I'll be going now. On more thing, tell Triple that I'm sorry for my behavior again."

"I will."

The master ninja turned around. A single tentacle appeared from his side and took the lighter from his hoof. He opened the top and tried to light the lighter. Click, click. There was no flame, on which his mind could concentrate. It helped him to endure the madness that has already consumed a big portion of his mind. His blue eyes were frozen and would not move, until they were shined on by the small orange flame. Click, click.

"What is that?" Feather asked behind him.

"I call it a flamemaker, though it won't light up for some reason." suddenly the white ninja turned back and passed him the small metal object. "Here, it's yours. I have no use for it, where I'm going. It has brought me a lot of luck. You'll need it in order to get to Equestria safely."

"I-I... thank you." Free looked closely at the surface of the shining metal, where the unknown symbol 'V' was.

"We'll no more gifts to give. May your journey to the North be as painless as possible. So long!"

Then Circle used a spell to teleport himself away from this silent place, where red winged butterflies danced without being disturbed. His body degraded. Pieces o his fell from him like leaves and when they touched the ground, they'd become one with the earth, gaining its properties and color. Free Feather was all alone in this place or so he thought. Two red eyes watched him from a high branch of a tree. Her body was hidden quite well but not enough for the master of spirits. He was behind, sitting on a higher branch. His earnest brown eyes did not lose sight of her. The unaware mare watched how Feather put the scabbard on his back and hid the lighter under his right wing.

"Spying on fellow comrades, eh?" the grave voice of the old pony startled her. Silver lost balance and fell from the thick branch. Good thing she was a pegasus, so her plot never smashed on the ground by the force of gravity. Knife steadily landed, when from behind her came Master Triple, surrounded by a magical pink semi-transparent orb. This levitation spell helped him get to high places and descend with ease, without worrying of braking his neck or other important parts of his body. The only problem using that spell was that it would not lift others, except the one who is casting it.

"Master Triple!" the ninja in the black outfit made a wide big smile. She was not wearing her mask, so the old pony saw her fake happy-to-see-him grin. Intriguingly, there was no sense of fear in her eyes.

The magical orb disappeared and the unicorn closed the distance between. Their faces were just an ear away from each other.

"Explain yourself! And spare me the false excuses because I saw what you were doing."

"It's not what it looks like!" she sounded oddly honest. Her tone changed to aggressive. "I was just making sure that psychopath would not harm him!"

"No pony talks like that to Blue Circle, the legendary White Shadow, young lady!" he pushed her lightly with his hoof. "He may be strange, sometimes almost evil, but if it wasn't for him, we wouldn't be here. That pony has endured more than you'll ever do in ten lives. Do you know what is to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders? You got no idea, darling! So, have some little respect to the warrior, who is going back to the beast's mouth on his own and the only thing that keeps him together is his belief. I do not agree on his decision but pony's got to do what a pony's got to do. So, toss aside your grudge against him. You should feel ashamed!"

"Ashamed of what?" Feather came out of the blue. Both turned to him simultaneously. "You know, it was very difficult not hear you. So, what's seems to be the problem here?"

"Silver Knife was spying on us." Triple said without a drop of a doubt. "I explicitly said back at the camp, that this was to be a privet meeting and everything will be revealed after its conclusion. Why could you not wait?"

"What?!" Feather looked at her beautiful red eyes. "Is that right? Silver Knife?"

The mare began to feel embarrassed. Their stares, one earnest, the other confused, were like swords that slowly moved inside her body. This uneasy feeling was what held her from speaking up the truth. The silence was dreadful. If they thought that she was not on their side, Silver was going to quickly say farewells with life.

"Silver?" anxiety was all over his face.

Out of a sudden there was a noise from the local bushes. They shivered, something was moving inside them. The three quickly stood in defensive positions. In a contrary of their fears, a family of bunnies appeared out of the greens shrub. They were cute little grey creatures, who ignored the ninjas and continued on their search for food. The ponies calmed down and returned to the triangle.

"Well?" Feather sounded a little bitter.

"I was not spying on you! I swear! I came her in case of danger."

"Protection? Ha!"

"I believe you." the pink unicorn in dark cloths turned to him. Feather was absolutely serious about what he just said. The mare felt a huge relief and was grateful for his trust in her.

"Be careful, Free Feather. Like Circle said, trust doesn't come that easily, on which I agree."

"You were eavesdropping us too?" the white pegasus looked surprised.

"Of course, I was. I'm a Master ninja Triple Spirit, for equilibrium's sake! If I didn't listen to your little conversation with Circle, then how I'm I to know what lesson I need not to repeat, that he may already told."

"So, you are guilty too!" Free angrily stared in the unicorns wise eyes.

"Partially, yes. However, I am not the intruder here."

"Boys, can we stop arguing who is the biggest spy? I admit that I did it, but my intentions were solely to protect you." Silver Knife looked at her leader, who was shamefaced after her revelation. "I'd not want to see you harmed by that lunatic, like he almost did with me."

Triple looked at both and saw a small spark that was just enough to start a forest fire. A sparklet, which he used to have too in his prime years. The teacher knew that they should be left alone, for that little light to make contact in their hearts. The unicorn tactically began moving in the direction of the camp. His little escape was noticed immediately.

"Where are you going?" Feather asked.

"I'm going to bring the bad news to the rest." Triple turned to her and apologized. "Sorry about the harsh tongue from earlier. Circle's decision to leave us resonates inside my head and I let some of the frustration to slip away. I can only imagine what will be the reaction of the others, when they hear that our strongest card just walked away. See you two back at the camp."

Then smilingly he went forward, disappearing in the maze of hundreds of woods. The two remaining heroes looked at each other. She was older than him, though the crazy little feeling did not acknowledge any bounds. They stared at each other for quite some time, until one of them spoke up:

"Silver Knife, would care to have a walk with me?"

"Well, it's not like I'm busy or anything. Yeah."

They happily started walking in unknown direction. The forest was everywhere, as green as it was possible, with brown to support it. A calm environment surrounded them. Their hooves were stepping on grass or small rocks. Steadily walking in known direction.

"So, you did hear what Blue Circle told me about you?"

"I wasn't able to hear anything. Unfortunately I do not have the senses of the Master."

"Oh, well, he told me not to trust you." Feather looked at her crimson eyes, the color of blood and felt like he finally found something, which was missing in him. "However, when I see your eyes, I feel like I've known you for many years. I want to believe in that."

"I too have the same feeling."

"Silver, why you really hesitated to kill me that night? Why you joined our little doomed cause? I want to know the truth!"

"It's hard to explain... I didn't kill you because I saw a reflection of myself on your place. I saw anger but not hatred in your eyes. You were afraid to die, but you didn't let the feeling dictate your actions." she looked away, her cheeks blushed. "And you kind of looked cute, when you made your last stand."

His eyes were wide opened. Feather honestly wasn't expecting such an answer.

"I-I joined your small clan because I was fed up with mine. I just felt out of place, taking orders, doing suspicious stuff in the name of the leader. I like some others started to doubt our rightness in our actions. After seeing you fighting for your lives, for your beliefs, I knew that I had a knew purpose in my life. That is why I and the other five joined you."

"Wow, that's very honest of you. Thanks for sharing it with me."

A big smile appeared on his face and on hers as well. They felt very good. The bridge was made and from now on, it was only history.

"Should we get back?"

"I think so. Let's see what happened to the moral of the rest of the Phoenixes. Hope, that my former master was able to calm everypony's roosters or the enemy will easily find us."

They turned around, when there was a sound from a place near them. They turned their heads in the direction of the source. The two were nastily surprised by flying kunais, their only targets - the enemies of the clan Dragon Claw. Suddenly, from all sides appeared a flock of sharp metal edges, all aimed at the two not so lonely ponies. Time stood still. Under black rain, they stared at their own fates, which were waving their skeletal limbs. Big dead grins were welcoming this two to the other side of the world. How unfortunate of them to be in the heart of the trap...

To be continued... Next Chapter: Chapter 34: Triple Horn Rule Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 44 Minutes