How unfortunate of them to be in the heart of the trap. There was no way to dodge this attack from all sides. The seconds turned into hours, as they hopelessly watched the twenty blades flying towards their position. Their razor sharp edges wanted only to pierce their flesh and leave them dead, while they were standing in the red circle. The reflection of the kunais in their eyes as they approached were ominous. Death stood high above them and prepared to scythe the two unlucky ponies.  

The black blades were coming closer and closer like speed demons. They were guided by pure hatred. They're going to punish the responsible for the attempt to kill their rightful leader. The sentence was going to be quick and merciless.

Except, there was one big problem. At first it was a small flash that grew exponentially in size and stopped, when an entire pony could hide in its light. Like an angel from the sky, Master Triple emerged from the teleportation and immediately his horn shined in a blue light. A sphere shield appeared between them and the blades. Metal smashed into the protection spell, not a single one of them managed to get its target. The ringing sound of the knifes hitting the blue wall gave the beginning of a lightening attack. As if the forest came to life, when twenty black ponies together jumped out from their covers, with blades pointed at the trio.

The pink unicorn fearlessly looked at them. He was ready to face them all. Every attacker wore an yellow piece of clothing around their necks. They were having a game with a notorious unit, known for its ambush tactics and attitude towards survivors: they took no prisoners. Three of them had steel claws, with which they liked to rip out their prey's guts. Like horses of war, these veteran warriors knew no fear or despair. They were going to fight to the last pony, if they had to.

Triple waited for them to come closer and when they did, he stamped the ground, which expanded the shield very quickly, hitting everypony in its way. The enemy ninjas hit the ground like ninepins, though they didn't lie there all day to enjoy the beautiful nature. The warriors renewed the attack, but this time with more fury. Battle cry sounded between the trees.

"Back-to-back!" Triple ordered. They immediately made the formation, now facing every enemy. They prepared for the unavoidable clash. Feather, using his only wing grabbed the handles of his remaining three kunais on his belt and aimed at his first targets. Silver knife drew out her dagger and stood in position to counterattack. The old pink unicorn thought of a spell, which would help them get the upper hand in this dire situation. There was not a drop of fear in their eyes, only calmness. They needed to have a cool assessment, if they wanted to survive this. "Feather, better use the sword in close quarters!"

Free quickly glimpsed at the handle near his head. The powerful tool, made for the dragon cursed, his burden. He was not worthy of wielding it but the situation demanded that this blade saw combat. His blue eyes turned at the incoming dark ninjas. They seemed more like vicious beasts than warriors. The black unicorns slowed down a bit, maybe to prepare spells. The pegasus jumped in the air with their steel claws aimed at their hearts, which were struggling not to beat fast. The earth ninjas continued the furious charge, they were going faster and faster. The forest seemed darker now, more evil-like. Sinister shadows fell on each pony, like veils of death. This was going to end in a bloodshed and the worst part was that the chances were not on their side.

When the attackers crossed the invisible line, which marked the ten meter radius around them, Triple stood on two legs and his horn flashed as bright as the sun, blinding every attacker and hindering their synchronized attack. Feather threw his kunais at his three targets. The knifes struck deep in their chests and the unfortunate victims bit the dust. He then immediately drew out the magical sword. The pegasus lifted it high so everypony could see with what they were going up against. Some of the ninjas, he was facing, had second thoughts about charging blindly at him, though their hate had much more driving force, so none even slowed down. The bone claws on the blade patiently waited for the flesh to come near. Feather felt its power going through him, like a bolt of magical energy, oh, that's because there was a real power surge that connected him with the horn of the enemy unicorn, though Free was not affected by it. Like a lightening rod, the sword guided the energy to the ground, protecting the user from its harm.

The legendary blade fulminate brightly in a pink light. Now this epic show brought some fear in the hearts of the attackers. They were witnessing the might of this weapon and whoever held it was almost invincible. The first five came at blade distance, Triple dodge two very fast attacks, swiftly moved between the two ninjas and pushed some sensitive points on their backs and necks, which turned them to stones. They stumbled over and hit the dirt, their last actions in their lives. Silver Knife parried a series of fast strikes with her long dagger. The opponent was skillful but he made a crucial mistake and let her put her edge inside his throat. Warm blood stained her beautiful face. Before this mortally wounded warrior lied down in the eternal sleep, she continued toward her next kill.

Three all together tried to stab Feather. The latter jumped to the left, barely escaping the blows. Then the sword was put horizontally, with the sharp claws facing the first to be sacrificed to the Goddess of War. He became one with the blade, moved swiftly forward and though the edge only reached the second attacker, when the pegasus cut off the head of the nearest one, an invisible force sliced the others too. The three black ninjas immediately fell on the ground, blood was pouring like from fountains. Free stood there, with the glowing sword in his mouth. It was feeding from his will to live and thus its true powers were revealed. He felt kind of funny, the urge to kill was growing to become a madness, a cruel sensation that was visible in his dark blue eyes. His black mane waved by the force of this unity with the weapon, which should not have been.The next three stopped their charge and thought twice before they jumped at him.

Silver Knife took it to the sky, followed by two pegasi with steel claws on their hooves. She skilfully maneuvered around the trees, trying to get them off her bright tail. Silver was leading them to a maze of pointy branches. Turned left, turned right, up and down and rolled, executing every flight trick under her belt, but they were still gaining on her.

Silver then decided to dive into the battle on the ground. Flying just a meter from the ground, she used the ninjas as obstacles for her chasers. The mare just passed Triple by. He was battling four warriors, three of which were unicorns. They threw magical fire at him, he blocked either by jumping from the harms way or by creating a blue shield, that could only take two to three balls of doom per life. It was quite a spectacle to look at.

The forth one was a pegasus with gold painted claws. It showcased that he was very experienced in this style of fighting and many had fallen by his hooves. While they were taking the pink unicorn's attention, he flew to his side like a fast missile. If Triple didn't duck, he'd surely be gutted badly. When the flier missed him, the master bumped him with his plot, screwing up his flight path and sending him directly at one tall tree. The pegasus smashed right into it with a bang. The huge ash shook from the crash.

One of the unicorns successfully used a freezing spell on Triple. He stood still like a statue, the perfect target. The old master was unable to free himself from it, at least his horn was aimed at them. His clarion flashed, creating a purple beam that got one of the unicorns. The magical energy send him flying across the forest, until his body hit a tree trunk, where the ninja broke something very important. His soul got out and went straight to Tartarus!

The other unicorns moved out of the way of his horn. Two more ninjas came to this little party. They threw kunais at his back. Triple gathered a lot of magical energy, concentrated it and unleashed it in a form of a bright light that hurled everypony around him in different directions. The kunais ricocheted, though they found a new victim, one of the pegasi, who was pursuing Silver. His body was sent flying downwards in a spiral before hitting the ground.

The mare saw what happened and an opportunity was given to her to finally end this exhausting chase. She turned around, slowed down, her enemy approached her with greater speed. There was no hesitation in her actions, she moved below him, when his claws were about to shred her to pieces and stabbed him in the tummy. The dagger ripped his stomach like hot knife to butter. The ninja's guts got out, blood was raining from the open wound. Screams of pain were the music in these parts of the woods.

Silver then looked at the old master, who was in a bit of a trouble. Because of the magical surge he unleashed, his body was a bit fried and Triple couldn't stand up to face the four enemy warriors. When they recovered from the blast, they quickly charged him again. The two earth ponies were going to stab his plot, when a dagger entered in the head of the one on the left and then the mare jumped on the last. They rolled a few times, until they stopped to an hold and began fighting each other. She managed to save Triple from one attack, but the next was forming now. The two unicorns went for the kill.

With the last remaining magical strength, Triple levitated two swords from the bloody ground and threw them at his opponents. They managed to dodge the flying blades and continued on their predetermined path of death. The old unicorn was not going to give up that easily. He waited for them to come closer, they did and that was when the old master rolled to the side, escaping the supposed finishing blows. He kept on rolling and rolling, while they were trying to end his time in this world. One of them got the same idea of using his sword as a projectile. The blade was sent flying at him in the same time Triple pushed himself from the ground. While the unicorn was rolling in the air, the sword got into his hooves. He redirected it to the nearest sucker. By using its kinetic energy and his rotation speed, the weapon flew swiftly at its helpless target. The edge pierce the center of the poor ninja. The stopping power of the strike put the unicorn into a hold and then his body graciously fell to its eternal place of resting.

The remaining opponent used again the freezing spell but this time Triple was able to shield himself from it. Then the dragon ninja jumped forward, landing on him and finally catching this mighty warrior. They began a struggle of life and death. The much younger horn had a great strength and was pressing hard his blade at the old one's throat. Triple was sweating from the tension his old body was forced to endure. Their eyes met, divided by worlds of pain. If only they could stop to look at all the death around them...

Suddenly, the black unicorn felt a patting on his shoulder, he turned around and saw two more Triples. The spirits had come to save his plot and they did with a great punch, which made the blood pony air-born for a brief moment. They lent the old horn a hoof and got him back on his legs. He was happy to see them answering his call and coming to his rescue.

"Took you long enough to show up!"

"We needed time to heal our wounds, Master Triple. The Dragon leader hurt us badly that night... Behind you!"

They tossed him on the ground to protect him from the claws. The spirit on the left attempted to disarm the enemy ninja, who quickly dodged and then pierced his chest.

"Crap! Not a again!" the clone puffed. From the little cuddly white clouds came a surprise attack from the second spirit. He tried to paralyze him, though the swift pegasus would not let him touch his body. The flier jumped over him and cut his hollow head. When he landed on the ground in front of the real unicorn, the spirit exploded into tiny puffs. His eyes augured only doom to the weakened Triple, whose body now had many bloody marks.

The unicorn was calm, he even smiled. The doom bringer stepped closer to his victim. His claws were hungry for blood. Like a big shadow, the black ninja stood tall. This mountain was his judge and executioner.

"For the death I've caused today, I humbly accept my fate! May the spirits show me my eternal home!"  

Free Feather was utterly slaughtering the five ninjas, who he faced alone. None was able to get close and inflict any kind of harm on him. They all fell under the hungry clawed blade. He was turned into a demon of war. His white coat was covered with warm red. In his eyes could be seen the corruption, that only the rightful owners of the sword could resist. The pegasus turned around to see what was going on with the rest and that's when his eyes witnessed how the last remaining pegasus pierced the old pink pony in the guts with his deadly claws.  

"Master!" Feather screamed in terror.

Silver Knife just finished her fight and looked back at the unicorn. She froze. Cold shivers were sent down her spine. Justice was served. The pegasus avenged his fallen comrades, though his time came shortly. A flying razor sharp gift impaled his throat. Bright blood splattered everywhere. The last one fell on Triple's body, shaking uncontrollably and drowning in his own red fluid. Soon Feather came to finish him by separating his head. A furious warrior cry echoed in the forest, scaring every little animal in the area. The glowing sword was dropped on the ground. It was satisfied by the killing and slowly the pink light faded away.

Death was all around them.

Feather felt much anger and despair. He violently removed the beheaded body from Triple, not caring about the respect to the dead. The old-timer was not looking pretty. His seconds were numbered, he was breathing his last breaths. Cold was creeping inside him, death was whispering his name. He had only one thing to do now: to obey his real master!

Feather was joined by Silver, they both sadly looked down at the critically wounded. They could not say anything, grief was starting to take over their hearts.

"You fools! Smile! Death is just another form of life!" Triple barely spoke.

"Master..."

"Do not be sorrowful or I'll come from the spirit world to slap you both! Free, remember, never let the darkness cloud your mind!"

"Yes, master!" tears by the force of gravity made miniature rivers, on which his feelings found their way to the unicorn's bloody cloths.

"Take care of..." he tried to breath, but the cold mistress took him in. His muscles loosened up, the final beating marked the end of his long life.

The last master of the Guardians of the Portal went on the path of eternity. His brown eyes stared dead at Feather. His life force left this body without finishing his last sentence. The pegasus understood what he wanted. The leader was going to fulfill this dead pony's last wish. But before that, he needed to give his last respect to this legendary warrior, a brave ninja, who believed in peace but lived in times, where such thing was not wanted.

The loss was felt across the sea. Foxy was waiting in front of the ship, which was going to get them to the Portal, when this strange feeling made her shiver. There was no cold wind, so she guessed right that something bad had happened. With Phoenix in front of her eyes, they were waiting for Metal's return... Next Chapter: Chapter 35: All Aboard! Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 32 Minutes