"Order the shamans to get their flanks out of the other temple and to come aid us against the demon!" the ninja on the left ordered. One of the defenders of the city took it to the skies to relay the command.

"Unicorns, stay in defensive positions! Prepare to strike on my mark!"  the second on the left shouted.

"Earth ponies, protect the unicorns!" the one on the right ordered.

"Your puny strategies will not save you." it said with a frightening voice.

"On my mark, FIRE!" one from the four pointed directly at the leader's body. Dozens of colorful beams were sent at the target from different directions. The deadly rainbows collided with a great force. A powerful explosion sounded throughout the city, killing any other sound for a brief moment. Where the the demon used to stand, was now hidden in a dense black smoke. The ninjas were on the alert. They weren't sure, if it was enough to destroy that creature.  

The four red tin hats backed away a bit to breath better air and then using their magic, together they blew with such a wind force, that in seconds the smoke was pushed further away. A crater was revealed on the street but the body was missing. One of the commanders looked up to the ninjas on the roofs of the closest houses. They shook heads once. The red hat quickly realized where the body of their dead leader was heading. He quickly pointed at the street, from which Metal made their escape and ordered:

"We need one to stay here and redirect every ninja to us. I'll need four fliers to warn the generals! Dragon Born is its prey."

"Move out!"

The warriors immediately went after the beast, that had one goal: to ask her the question.

A single figure watched the ninjas leaving the square from the shadows of two houses. The yellow unicorn was frightened for his life, trying with all his mental strength to stay cool.

"Why are you standing in here? Follow them now!" the evil spirit ordered like a boss.

"Did you see what happen to those warriors? Like first year students, they failed to pass their first clash with this monster."  

"You are not a coward, are you?"

"No."

"Then go after them, or..." Phoenix felt pain, as if needles were piercing his internal organs. Unexpectedly for the shade, a thought from the unicorn's subconsciousness was brought by a mechanism, that was created to drive the shadow out of him. This was his only chance of freedom, losing it would mean only death.

"Inna kri ni kronium!" this was a bit of dragon and pony language, mixed in one incomprehensible sentence, which in the magic realm triggered series of events. His horn began producing sparks, his eyes flashed in an yellow light. The process couldn't be stopped. Not even the demon, who pulled the strings, could do anything about it.

The mind-meld started.

Phoenix's mind was sent through a colourful tunnel, whose end was blocked by a black sphere. It grew in size fairly quickly, taking over the different lights with its gloomy surface. He didn't slam into it, the yellow pony moved inside it without a problem.

At first, there was nothing, then pictures of the dragon's past life began to appear left and right. They came one after another, starting from his birth.

He was a small and green with red hues on his wings and white spikes on his back. Two horns were coming out from his forehead, which pointed backwards. His eyes were bloody red. Four fangs were peeking outside from his long upper jaw. This little fella looked cute, all baby dragons did. Although later they become more and more ugly due to their greed for wealth.

In the next images, the little serpent grew in size and so did his mentality, which was developing faster than the other newborns. Very soon the first troubles arrived. Surrounded by stronger dragons at his or above his age, they mocked at his uniqueness. There were fights, in which he was constantly alone against superior numbers. Relaying on his clever mind, the young Jester planned ways to defend himself from the bullies. The reason why he couldn't just fly away, was because his body was too weak for flight and his undeveloped wings would take him about a few meters at best. Despite having the shape of a flier, he was way too young to leave the flock.

Each time they came to make fun of him and hurt him, Jester showed them what his brilliant intellect was capable of. However, brains were not enough, when dealing with dragons. His only weakness cost him dearly. It never ended in his favor.

Confrontation after confrontation, his spirit to fight for his honor and the right to be respected as a dragon corroded, making each blow a far more devastating than the previous. Marks from the clashes were all over his armored skin. His smart gaze was lost and despair settled in his soul. Then thoughts of murder began to itch his mind. Killing another of his kind was immoral and was punishable by death. The elderly dragons wouldn't interfere in the battle but they'd drop the hammer on the winner. A harsh rule, which enforced order in the circles of the young dragons. There was another problem, killing an young dragon was not an easy task. It would require great strength and understanding of which spots on his armor were weak and easy to exploit.

Months passed, life was getting tougher by the day. His being couldn't take the harassment no more. In this time Jester studied his opponents carefully and when the moment came, he showed all how deep his razor sharp claws could go. His victims didn't expect it and payed the ultimate price. Stained in the blood of younglings, Jester finally had his revenge for all the hell they put him through. Four dragons were lost, the elderly serpents were not happy about it.

They were about to punish him, when a strong wind came from the north, whispering his name and so, Jester took the chance to fly. With long spread wings, he jumped from the cliff. Every titan there was surprised to see him soaring through the air. He felt like a free bird. His will to live was strong and no regret of his actions could be found in his heart.

Disappearing quickly from sight, they tried to pursue him but all was in vain. After that moment, he was known as The Jester of Flame, killer of own kind. His name was quickly spread through every corner of the dragon world. In his travels he met a lot of hostility and constantly had to fight for his life against hunger and other dangerous beasts. Tough times were ahead and much he didn't know about how the world worked.

In those times of uncertainty, Jester discovered that he had hidden powers, many of his kind would call it a blessing. He was sensitive to magic. It took him a century before he could weld the mystical powers like a master. And when he did, the question came as obvious: what was he going to do with all that knowledge of magic? The answer was simple: Jester was going to become the mightiest of all dragons and change the hierarchy forever. In his mind, there was going to be one dragon to rule all living things.

However, in the beginning of this conquest, something unpredictable happened. When he was traveling to the north to steal some magical crystals, he stumbled across a big she-dragon, twice his size, to be precise. The wind she created under her white wings could be compared to the force of a hurricane. However, she did not follow the flock and by the looks of her scars, he quickly learned that she was an outcast like him.

He approached her with caution, after observing her for a week, as the she-dragons were creatures not to be messed with. Their fury was well-known and one was very easy to upset. Step by step, he approached the mighty beast. His strong heart began to beat faster. At first, she was suspicious and ready to repel this invader, but a little thing called for calmness. He went to ask her to join his cause, but instead the crazy little thing got him in its trap. His heart for the first time felt joy like no other. His mind, corrupted by dark thoughts. finally felt peace. The seeds were placed.

Both had mutual feelings for each other, true feelings that no dragon had ever experienced. Both were different than their own kind.  They were unique. She was kind to creatures of all sorts, but was not scared to show her strength and he was a brilliant mind, who could think ten steps ahead of anyone. Together they made the perfect symbiosis. What he lacked, she gave and vise versa.

Thirty years passed from their first meeting. What a wonderful time they had. They were soaring the skies together. He had long forgotten about his evil plans. His only purpose was to be with her until end of time.

Unfortunately, destiny was not kind to him and his mate suffered a humiliating defeat by a single pony. A brave warrior, who sought glory, challenged her to a duel. It was a glorious battle, the story of which was retold to this very day. When the murder of his love happened, he was not near. Jester was looking for a perfect cave for their future family. After not sensing her presence for a day, the lonely dragon went to the skies in search for his heart. He found her beheaded body after three days of flying. The sight of her lying cold body was devastating for him. Enormous rage began to engulf his mind. It was expressed by a mighty roar, which was heard tens of miles away, scaring every animal. The mountain, near which she died, stood like a tombstone, forever marking the end of her journey. Everything that was good in him was exhaled with the hot air from his mouth, leaving only darkness and anger in his heart.

After giving her a proper burial by burning the body to ashes, he followed the bloody tracks of her killer. He wasn't alone, as they showed that many hooves had been trotting in the vicinity. The hoofprints led him to a cave, that had a mysterious portal. It was too small for him to use it. Not knowing the exact place of the other side, the killer escaped his claws for good.

From that day, he sworn to avenge the she-dragon by punishing the entire world instead. There was one vision, a vision of flames that consumed every green plain and forest, every happiness and every life on this rock. Did he eventually find the little land in the ocean, where the killer had created a kingdom? Yes, but the dragon was late by a century. For the next hundreds of years he planned how to destroy the word and when Jester learned about the illusion of this reality, he knew that Shadow Sun was going to help him greatly with his plan.

Everything was calculated. Helping Lucky and Foxy to destroy two of the medallions ensured that his revenge would not be interfered by super powers. The elimination of the elite changelings was going to not only severely weaken the Queen's power but also kill any possibility of peace between Equestria and the changelings. By preparing the soil in the ninja island, he made sure that their region would be in total turmoil and unprepared for what was coming. After his rage was felt by the Equestrian and ninja ponies, his sight would turn beyond the see, where the Gryphon Kingdom and the Lands of Zebra were lying in complete unawareness. No creature was safe from his wrath.  

Suddenly, Phoenix felt the pain of the demon inside him, which made his eyes to become wet. Because of the mind-meld, the inventor experienced everything, as if those memories were his.

"You never wanted Foxy to succeed!" his voice was shaky. "You never intended to leave me alive! You are going to take the last pendant and combine it with yours, thus making you the most powerful mage in Equestria! I have to stop you!"

The pony used his magic to pull out the bracelet-gun from the brown bag and tried to destroy it. However, before he could even use another spell, his mind was wiped out almost instantaneous. Blackness came out from his skin and completely covered him in matter of seconds. Phoenix's plan to mind-meld with Jester and control him failed. No force could control the dragon's will.

The gun fell on the pavement.

"Ha, I almost fell to his trickery." the shadow pony took the weapon from the ground and put it on its hoof. "He was darn right to try to destroy the gun and not kill himself with it. The projectile is the fastest and will stop every creature in its tracks. A perfect hunting tool for difficult ponies like Foxy. If only I didn't lose her sword back in that cave, it would have been so much easy. However, with that weapon in her hooves, she has become a dangerous opponent. I'll get only one shot at this."

A few ninjas galloped in the direction of the square, more were to follow. They didn't see the demon in the shadows and continued forward.

"Now I have to wait for her to exhaust the leader's body and when the moment is right, I'll kill her. The rest will be easy." he made a step in the light and the dark hoof quickly began to burn in the sunlight. The Jester moved back into the shadows.

"Why it had to be during the day."

Three more ninjas appeared on the street and were headed towards the plaza. They were wearing black cloths from top to bottom. That gave him an idea.

Somewhere in the city...

"Foxy? Are you there?" the distant voice was incomprehensible for her ears. "Come on! Snap out of it!"

Suddenly, she stood up and took a deep breath. The mare felt dizzy and weakened.

"Easy, you almost fell under her spell. Give yourself time to recover..."

"Where's my sword?!" she shouted with some fight in her voice. Metal knew that this was going to be asked, so he had put the sword next to her. He gave it to Tail. She seized it and held it close to her grey fur. Her hooves were shivering. Her gaze was of a lunatic. Metal was terribly worried about her state. Foxy hectically looked around. There were a lot of white-painted houses. They were in a small tight street. The sounds of panic and bells was all around them. There were the occasional running for their life ponies. Fear was spreading like plague, turning the capital into a giant horror house.

"Foxy, calm down. We are safe for now."

"Safe? I doubt it." then it hit her. "Where is Phoenix?"

"He probably ran away with the crowd. I didn't get time to look around, when a tentacle was on my tail. Foxy, what the heck was that thing trying to do to you?"

"Corrupt me."

"How? I didn't see no energy stream coming from him."

"Yet, my sword turned black the moment I placed it in front of me. It was no pony magic, it was alien in nature. Shadow Sun is not from this world, so I have no idea what She's capable of."

"What is our plan?" the pegasus in armor looked ready to fight, but under him he was terribly scared.

"It's simple, I kill it before it kills me." Foxy stood up, leaning on her sword. Her body was still shacking from that deadly dose of darkness. Yet, her readiness to fight again was in her warrior eyes. If it wasn't for her tough character and body, she'd have fallen under the will of the Dark Princess. "Hit me in the face!"

"What?!" Metal exclaimed.

"Do it! As hard as you can!"

"Okay, okay! I hope that I won't receive your wrath afterwards." he reluctantly turned around, hesitated for a moment and then kicked her right in the nose. Foxy stood like a rock. The Royal Guard was afraid to look back at her pissed face but that wasn't the case. She showed no anger, just awkward calmness. Her nose reddened. Tail didn't seem to be in any hurt. She closed her eyes and sat, while still holding the blade by the handle in a vertical position. The edge pierced the ground.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm gonna meditate. You'd better hide, cause once it finds me, it will get messy."

"You think it will follow us?"

"The sword is still black, I can bet that Shadow Sun can follow the energy that's still on my sword."

"That's bad. We can't run, we can't hide. The only option is to fight. Well then, count me in!"

The end of her mouth curved upward a bit.

"I want you to be in the skies and do the same thing, if she gets me again."

"You got my wings!"

"Good, now go!"

Metal went to the skies and took a good position, from which he could do a fast dive and rescue Foxy again, if it was needed. The mare was alone on the small street. She prepared her mind for the inevitable clash. She cleansed herself from any thought, worries but feelings, well those were tough. If Foxy was to forget him and rid herself of the 'Equestrian weakness', she would have to go back in time, when Tail cared for no pony. When she used to know only one thing: how to kill.

However, this proved to be impossible for her because she lacked one thing. The dragon within. The only thing that kept her in check. There was a saying among her clanners called 'The love and hate of dead is reserved only for the dead.' When a ninja died in combat, every emotion his friends had must be cut and forgotten. This mentality served to stop warriors from avenging their fallen comrades in pointless mini-wars, that could destroy the balance of powers. But it also helped clanners to move forward in their lives, despite the losses. Foxy had lost a lot comrades in the war and managed to live through the hell but she couldn't get over this one loss of a weak pegasus.

Detachment from the short memories was impossible for her. Then there was only one possible choice: to let them flow like a river stream and use the emotions for her goal.

Time was up.

The black figure was standing on her left. Aimed its deadly ray at the calm mare. Suddenly, Foxy woke up just in the right moment. She took the sword in her mouth and attempted to cut her opponent. The dark ninja moved out of the way. Just a scratch from that weapon meant defeat. A powerful curse was put on anything that was cut by it. The wound would bleed non stop, until the subject is dead or very sophisticated healing magic is applied.

The black ninja drew its sword. Blades crossed, producing sparks in the point of contact due to high tension. Shadow Sun knew well that her tentacles were pointless for blocking attacks, when Foxy wields that terrifying sword of hers. Two black snakes appeared on its left and right side. They went straight at the mare, who had to back off and cut them before they managed to harm her.

The demon then stared at her to bring the mutated pony down on her knees but this time Foxy was quicker. Rolling towards her enemy, she barely managed to escape the concentrated hate stream. The demon moved through the wall, escaping the dangerous strike, which ended with the sword piercing the wood instead.

She pulled the blade out of the wall and shouted:

"Get out, you miserable demon! Let me extinguish your existence from this world!"

"You will answer the question, small creature. And the cycle will repeat!" the voice seemed to be coming from all directions. Foxy was on guard. She took a few steps back, when she noticed a movement with the corner of her left eye. Tail jumped from her position but was too late, she was under the sight of Shadow Sun and her corruption began its march to her soul again. Placing the sword to block the magic just delayed the inevitable.

"Obey me, like you have done before!" it said with a creepy voice.

"Buck off!" Foxy was struggling to hold as much as possible. Her strength to resist was unseen. She drew energy right from the good memories and feelings with Lucky. This proved to be highly effective against the corruption.

"Who was the pony in your head?"

"How did She know what went inside my head?" Tail thought, then said: "A special somepony! What? You want one?"

"I am the one being, that will face the end of the universe alone, long after all life has become part of me!" the black ninja approached her, its green eyes trying to conquer this pony. The closer he was, the stronger the magic got. "There is no power above me!"

"Yes, there is!" she shouted, letting out the every feeling for her dead mate. Foxy stepped forward. They were just a few hooves away.

"What is the delusions you speak of?"

"Friendship." Foxy made another step forward. She was close enough to deliver a blow. With extraordinary force and will, she managed to do a powerful swing. Her opponent barely dodged that attack. Unfortunately for the black ninja, a white projectile came down from the sky. Metal was falling dawn like a bullet from a fired gun. Before the demon could react, the pegasus slammed into Lupi, pushing him to Foxy.

However, it dematerialized and fell under ground. The winged pony had to do a sharp turn to the skies to avoid colliding into her.

"What is he thinking?" she followed with sight how Metal returned to his high position.

The Guardian looked below, trying to find the possessed body of the leader but there was no trace of him on the small street and the surrounding buildings. Suddenly, the flapping of many wings took his attention. Pegasus ninjas, in black clothing and wearing steel tin hats, were coming from the temple plaza. They were flying in one perfect formation. Headed right towards him, he thought that he'd need to defend himself from them but the unit ignored him and lowered their altitude. Only two split from the group and went to him.

"What is the situation?!" one of the black pegasi strictly asked with some notion of hostility in his voice.

"She is fighting Shadow Sun! Isn't it obvious?"

"Where is it?" the other moved in Metal's personal space, looking closely at his eyes.

"It went under the street. From that point, it could be in the toilets in every house!"

"This is serious business!" the other raised his voice.

"Ain't it all serious?" Metal smirked.

The mare's scary growl made them look below and saw Foxy charging at Lupi. The dead leader was standing at the end of the street, waiting for her. The pegasi, armed with kunais, followed her in this reckless attack. Just like they used to do in the war. They formed a spear, on top of which was their heroine.

"That's not gonna end well!" Metal looked powerless how she jumped with a sword ready to slice the demons throat.

Foxy swung it directly at him but for her surprise, the dark pony was just an illusion. Death cries from behind, they were paying price for their stupidity. The black spears were coming from the ground. Almost every pegasus was pierced by a tentacle in midair. Life was quickly sucked out of them.

Eight bodies hit the dusty street simultaneously. The survivors immediately went above the houses, their hearts were overflowed with fear.

With the energy it got from the warriors, this body was ready to continue the fight. Appearing in the middle, it's mere dark presence provoked her to furiously attack again.

"Dragon Born has to hold on her own, until the shamans come. Our ninjas are no match for this demon." the cyan pegasus said, while watching the deadly duel from above.

"How good are these shamans against such a thing?" Metal asked.

"They know a lot about the afterlife and have dedicated themselves in learning the ways of dark magics. They are our only hope of stopping this demon."

The Equstrian pony looked them in a serious manner and asked:

"Then we have to bring them FAST! Where are they?"

"They should arrive at the plaza now, unless they've been told where exactly the battle is held."

"Then let's go to the square and from there we'll search for them. Foxy can't forever resist the corruption!"

The two ninjas looked each other, wondering if they could trust him. They nodded, then they called the survivors and together flew back to the square, leaving Tail all alone against the monster. The air was filled with the sounds of bells and screams. Soon more and more ninjas found the two. They got the warning not to get close by seeing what happened to the eight unfortunate pegasi, who were forever stripped from their right to live.

Back at the temple...

The shamans entered in the square in a hurry. Wearing black masks and their purple painted robes, which had black symbol all over them, and carrying special potions on their belts, they were here to rid the world from the black force that was possessing the body of their beloved leader.

A group of medics were hopelessly trying to revive the unfortunate souls. They distinguished themselves by wearing only white cloths and a red painted hoof on the sideways. It was good and bad at the same time 'cause usually warriors respected the healers and ignored them in the battlefield but there were some, who didn't give a flying buck and treated them as easy preys.

Groups of four or more warriors crossed the empty space and headed in the general direction of the ongoing fight. The pegasus, who was instructing them where to go, went with the last group. The ten magical ponies approached the doctors cautiously, as they felt that something did not felt right. The head of the shamans stepped forward from the group. Like the rest, only his green horn and violet eyes were visible.

"Where is the demon?"

"We have no idea, sire. You should probably ask the warriors." the healer answered.

"Hey, you there!" the master shouted to one lonely unicorn, who just came to the plaza. "Where is the threat?"

The ninja pointed and said:

"Somewhere there." he answered with a strange voice.

"The four reds must be buying us time. Come on, we have no time to waste!"

They were about to leave, when out of a sudden, the master shaman sensed a dark presence near him. He lifted his right hoof and ordered:

"Spread out in a circle formation!"

His horn flashed and he began searching for the source of the dark energy. He need not much time to find out that it was coming from the lonely warrior. It's pattern was well-known to him. The very same energy, that the shadow ninjas used in their techniques.

"Capture that pony!"

The shamans' horns began glowing in red lights. Jester understood that he was going to be toast, so the demon made a quick escape from the unicorn's cold core, taking both the gun and the medallion with him. A crimson cage appeared around the unicorn. The magical walls missed him. Because he was 'naked', the sunbeams were quickly burning him. Jester had to hide behind a shade and find another host or face death by sunburn. He turned into a shadow on the paved square and quickly headed to the closest cover.

The shamans saw the shade running for its life and attempted to capture it with their magic. The demon needed only a few good meters, when a red prism put an end to his escape. Breaking through the energy walls was nigh impossible. Time was ticking, the yellow ball of doom was killing him by the second.

"Free this fiend of its existence!" the holy ponies made a different formation and were preparing for the massive finishing magic blow.

"No! No! No! Die by my claws!" Jester used the cage as a connection to the shamans and send concentrated black energy back to them. Each of their horns began to shine darkly. They resisted his magic for a good three seconds, until they all fell unconscious on the ground. Together they managed to block most of it, but even the small amount was enough to knock'em all out.

The cell disappeared and Jester immediately crept behind a building. All this happened under the surprised sights of the medics, who quickly went to help their comrades. The shamans' condition was dire but they were going to live.

A bit late for the show, eight pegasus arrived. You could tell that things were bad from their eyes. They were not expecting an attack on the shamans, so that's why none protected them.

"Are they?" Metal asked.

"Those are the shamans." cold shivers crept the cyan pegasus's back. "Medic, what's their condition?"

The lead doctor shook head.

"They will survive the powerful attack. It will be a miracle, if they wake up after a week."

"Well, in that time, there won't be anypony left in this city!" Metal exclaimed and then turned to the warrior: "Aren't there other shamans, who can help us?"

"They are the only ones, who are experienced enough with black magic to fight that monster."

"Who did that to them?" the armored pegasus asked.

"It was another demon." the doctor pointed at the dead ninja, who was examined by one of the medics. "The master noticed its presence inside that pony. The thing jumped out of it's body but was caught. It fought back and managed to runaway."

The medic removed the mask of the fallen ninja. One of the winged ponies recognized her friend, which hurled her in a shock. She slowly went to the dead body and kneed for all ninjas to see. It was a sad picture, one of many that were produced on this island. The medic whispered something to her ear and then walked away. The warrior stood up. She wasn't looking down. The pegasus silently returned to the group. There was no grief in her eyes, just emptiness. This was bucked up!

"If Foxy fails, it's game over! Couldn't you call the other clans for help?"

"From where do you have information about the other clans, stranger?" the ninja looked angrily at him. "Dragon Born must have told you about us, hasn't she?"

"Yeah, and what are you going to do about it?"

The ninja clenched teeth.

"That's right, there's a bigger problem in your hooves. Also I represent the mightiest empire on the planet and if something would to happen to me or Phoenix's Just, things won't turn very colourful for your ponies."

"Are you suggesting an alien invasion?"

"Worse! The Sun and the Moon will fall down on your heads." Metal smirked like a devil and that made the rest of the fliers a bit nervous. Was he telling the truth? His gold armor kind of supported his claim, so they were going to think twice before messing with him.

"What are we going to do now?" an young ninja asked.

They all looked down. Because of the helmets they were wearing, their eyes were hidden but Metal knew that hopelessness was corroding them from the inside.

"We are going to defeat it. We have superior numbers and the spirits, who will watch over us!" the chief stepped in the spot light. "We are the descendants of the mighty first dragon slayer! And we will not bow to anything!"

They were about to shout, when a heavy projectile hit the red ceramic roof of the temple. As if an explosive shell exploded. Dust cloud flew upwards. A wide hole appeared, marking the entry point of the flying pony. The ninjas in the square were caught off guard. Falling wood and tiles were the only sounds that came from the inside.

"What the..."

"The holy temple!"

"The spirits will be angry..."

"Bad sign..."

The chief spread his wings and hovered above the ground in front of their demoralized eyes. He had to hold them under his control and make sure they don't panic.

"Listen up, everypony! We have to protect the temple. I need four of you to see what caused that attack! You two.." he pointed at the the remaining warriors. "Watch over the stranger!"

"Hey! I'm here to help!" the guardian protested. "I'll come with you inside the temple! There's no telling what crashed inside it!"

"That's a blasphemy! No pony outside our clan is allowed in the holy temple. I'm afraid you'll have to watch from afar."

The chief ninja turned his back to them and headed towards the temple. Metal ground his teeth, when his freedom was taken away from him by two very sharp kunais pointed at the unprotected part of his throat. This was going to be quite tricky to escape from.

The chief pegasi landed in front of the massive green doors, which had wooden figures carved in them. They made elegant shapes that formed a big face of a mare. There were steel round handles on each. He pulled the right one. Some force was needed. It slowly set ajar. Then he heard something. He cautiously peeked inside. It was too dark for his eyes. His gut feeling told him that something wasn't right and he stepped back from the doors, just when a black spear tried to pierce his face.

Because of sudden fright, the ninja jumped in the air and backed off more by using his wing power. He saw a chance to get his guards off his back.

"Guys, we all saw the tentacle! We have to help him or he's toast!" the two were unsure what to do. "Standing with me here does not contribute the efforts of defeating Shadow Sun! You have to warn the rest that She is HERE!"

They slowly removed the knifes from his throat. Success. Metal was finally free and he jumped high in the sky. He was so quick that they didn't have time to react. The two watched him flying to the roof with some regret in their decision. They then split up. One went to the chief, the other to tell the new location of the demon.

Metal silently peeked inside the hole and for his surprise, he saw Foxy lying unconscious in a pile of debris and dust. Her head, legs and tail were sticking out from the mess. Her landing spot was the space between the huge columns. A dark figure was next to her. The leader stared at the mare, sending waves of darkness at her. It seemed to be not aware of the spy.

"What should I do?" he asked himself.

Then the front doors were quickly opened by the two pegasi. Bright light entered inside. The leader continued pumping her with death energy. From his back appeared tentacles, which defended him from the pesky creatures. They threw a few kunais at the demon and then retreated to a safe ground. Their weapons did not harm him at all.

The corruption was spreading through her body like a virus. She tried to fight it. In her mind the battle was repeated in a loop, trying to stop her from waking up...

She swung her sword fast and precisely. Tail gave Shadow Sun a very hard time. The demon couldn't stop and concentrate the dark magic in its eyes. He constantly defended himself from her attacks. The dragon mare was agile like a snake, hit hard like a tiger and fully determined to defeat Her once and for all.

The puppet parried and counter attacked. This synchronized dance was a spectacle for the ninjas, who were watching the duel from a safe distance. The four hats ordered no pony to interfere. They didn't want to feed the monster with more lives or harm Foxy. They were waiting for the shamans to arrive. For some reason they were late.

Every foal and mother were evacuated from the nearby buildings. Only warriors were here. Warriors who were too afraid to go to battle against the spirit, who was equal to their war heroine. It wasn't clear who was going to win.

Two swords met each other again and again. Ringing sound and the sparks were coming out their clashes. These epic titans fought for supremacy. Stakes were as high as they could get. No error would be forgiven.

Parry. Dodge. Strike and repeat. It was almost like a mechanical play for both. They were dancing from one place to another, not caring for their surroundings. The air was hot around them. The sun was looking down in anticipation of the end.

Foxy changed her strategy and caught him in a delicate position. A precise blows was all it needed for this to finally conclude. Concentrating her entire being at this chance, she went in for the kill. They were moving like two tears in an endless circle. Shadow Sun saw this coming, quickly dematerialized and dived under the street. Foxy ended up slicing only the air. She was angry.

The mare turned around to see her opponent staring at her. She immediately charged at its position. She wouldn't give Shadow even a second to focus his green yes on her. The hate stream was sent at her again, only to be met by the magical sword. Her gallop was unstoppable, her fury was beyond measure.

Shadow Sun concluded that the only way to make this work was to stop being so nice to her. Lupi's body stood on two rear legs and then slammed the ground beneath him with such a magical force, that it split open the street beneath her legs. She almost lost balance but her attack was not hindered. This was no enough. The medallion flashed brightly and when Foxy was at sword's reach, a powerful red beam was fired right in her face. Foxy flew high in the air, spinning like a bullet. She held the sword tight in her mouth, not letting go, no matter what. It was her first and last means of defense against Shadow Sun.

She was barely conscious. She wasn't afraid. Her eyes saw the face of her lost love somewhere in the clouds. Sky and earth were rotating. It made her a bit motion sick. The pain in her forehead was marked by a red spot, from which blood was falling. Tail couldn't say what happened. Foxy couldn't focus even for a moment. Her flight seemed so dreamy. Her breath was steady. Her mind was peaceful. There was no wrong and right in that state. Only the failure on her part.

Then she landed hard on the roof, which put the end of the memory. It all started again and again, while Shadow Sun was finishing the final touches. The Princess of Doom wanted her to be alive, so that the question could be asked and answered by Foxy.

"What to do? What to do?" Metal was frantically thinking of ways to distract this powerful adversary. Suddenly, something caught his attention. It was shinning near the debris. "Her sword! Now, how do I sneak in there? Distraction!"

He moved away from the hole, quickly went to the ninjas in the square. More and more were coming. The four red hats arrived just in time.

"Surround the temple! We are going to attack from the front! We have to do this without the help of the shamans." said the third on the right.

"It will be wise to wait for more warriors to arrive."

"No! Foxy is in trouble!" Metal said loudly.  "Shadow Sun is corrupting her and she can't fight back! We have to immediately storm the building!"

"I think the pegasus has a point." said the first from the right. "The longer we wait, lesser the chances are of defeating the demon."

"Then we attack." the four nodded and together ordered: "Storm the building! Protect Dragon Born! Get her to safety!"  

The ninjas formed into squads and silently went to the walls of the temple. Armed with mere swords, knifes and shurikens, they were no match for the power of Darkness. Metal quickly flew back to the hole. Pegasi were already camping the entrance from the roof. The four waved their left hooves in the air. The warriors began the rescue operation with an excellent synchronization. The earth ponies went inside first, then backed by unicorns, who were using defensive spells. The pegasi dropped from above.

The ranged ninjas sent everything they had at the demon. Some of the magical ponies fired beams at the demon. Shadow Sun was not impressed. Twenty tentacles emerged from the leader's back. Quickly the wooden columns and floor were stained with pony blood. After the first meeting with the deadly black snakes, the ninjas tried a more safe approach. Using the columns as cover, the ranged warriors were able to sustain a steady fire on the demon. The unicorns' spells were quite effective. They caused most of the tentacles to be used in protecting Lupi. However, this was not enough. The melee ninjas, who were brave or stupid, died without even being close to landing a single hit.

Metal used the chaos to sneak inside and land behind a column near the sword. The symphony was made up by the cries of dying and spells that were fired at the black pony. He crouched and carefully stepped outside his cover. The leader and Foxy were in front of him. The weapon was lying right from them. Unfortunately for the pegasus, Shadow Sun noticed him and a tentacle was sent at him. He jumped quickly forward and began flapping his wings. The sword was in hooves reach, when a second spear came about from the nine o'clock. He managed to grab it and swung the blade to cut the shadow. Lupi looked at the pegasus. He was now number one threat.

The clawed blade shined brightly in pink. It illuminated the vast hallway. The light gave hope to the fighters and they jumped out of their covers and charged together. Many fell, others continued the charge, distracting the demon. Metal made a 180 degree turn. The sword was now in his mouth. His pink eyes were full of determination. Aimed directly at the leader, the Equestrian Royal Guard was flying like a flash.

BAAM!

A shot was produced from across the big room, where the two legendary mares rested. A bright thin line pierced him. Metal felt pain near his heart. Life seemed to drift away from his body. His inertia and will was what kept him flying forward. He couldn't maneuver well and the first shadow pierced his chest, then right front leg and wings. He drop the sword.

It landed next to Foxy. The demon attempted to take it, when time froze for Foxy. The blade called for her. In her looping memory, she could definitely sense it.

"Foxy. Foxy. Foxy."

The whisper began to get louder and louder, until it turned into shouting. Her ears hurt from it. The memory became murky, then slowly faded away in the mist of her subconsciousness. The darkness was more sinister than before. She felt, as if a big part of her was forever lost.

"FOXY!" the sword called her name again. Tail tried to break the spell. "FOXYYyy!"

The corruption was too much. Her will was not enough to take control over her body. Black fluid invaded her mind. In just an instant, the mare found herself drowning. She tried to get to the surface but was impossible. As if weights were pulling her to the deeps. She couldn't tell what was up and what was down. Out of air and out of energy, she was quickly sinking to her demise.

She was about to close her eyes for the last time, when white and cyan feathers began coming from the abyss. They were falling opposite of her direction. They were bringing the light in this dark place. How calmly the flew upwards. They were around her. It was beautiful. They were sent like a last gift, which brought her strength to oppose the evil. The mare looked down at the blackest thing she has ever seen, a black hole in her subconsciousness. Then up, where the feathers were headed. She kicked mightily and went after them. Swimming in the direction of the call.

The puppet was about to take the sword, when Foxy lightning fast grabbed it under its nose. The edge touched the red crystal surface and that triggered a very quick response. Lupi's eyes flashed and the entire world disappeared.

Foxy was no longer lying in debris. She was scared, when floating in space. Milliards of stars were all she could see. There was no sound, no life.

"Little Foxy Tail. You never cease to amaze me. One thousand nine hundred and ninety one times I've tried to conquer you world. Each time you found a way to fight bravely." a cold voice echoed in the empty space. The stars began to die one by one, soon leaving only nothing.

"Shadow Sun! Your tricks won't help you any longer!"

"I don't use tricks, little creature." two big white eyes appeared in front of Foxy. Pure evil was coming from them and at the same time, they were quite neutral. They were odd to look at because they had no characteristics of normal eyes. And when they took 40 percent of Foxy's view, they achieved the goal of making Her sound and look like a Queen of the Universe.  

"Where are we?! Answer now!"  

"In the mind of all."

"What is that you want from me? You have any last words before I kill you?"

"You can not kill a thing that's already dead."

"We'll see about that!" she looked angrily at the huge eyes.

"We have two goals that are crossing our paths. I want your world and you want your love back. Yes, you won but how is it a victory, when your heart feels so empty? Destroying the last pendant will make sure that I'll never be able to touch your world. But I..."

"You can bring him back for a price." Tail interrupted.

"I can restart the universe only with your help. The pendant demands a sacrifice and you are perfect for it. Your unique dragon and pony symbiosis has made you a creature of a lot of potential, which I can unlock for you. Then, you'll have to simply use the pendant."

"Then everything will start again... like in a circle..." Foxy whispered.

"You are an interesting life form. Every previous conversation with you have been unique. You've shown creative ways of fighting me. If you had let me inside your soul, you'd have been an excellent apprentice. The planet's life force is trying it's best to reincarnate you in better versions of you. I can only imagine how well it will satisfy my hunger."

"I can try again to save him but endanger the world in the process. Or live in pain for the rest of my life."

"Both choices are good. Would you care for another try?"

Tail looked down.

"If you are so powerful, why you want to destroy life? Shouldn't you help life flourish?"

"Once I was a bright star. I was living the lie, what every creature calls life. Life is an illusion, only one state of the energy that every life form holds inside. I collect this energy to preserve it for the end of this universe. Your essence will survive inside my belly, while everything else is destroyed. I'm your savior, I'm your God!"

"No higher force than me is my God!" Foxy looked up and with a ready-to-kick-flank gaze. "Now I understand what you said, Lucky."

Then she shouted: "Face your end!"

Foxy roared as fearsome as a bear. The edge went through the medallion like it was made out of paper and struck the heart of the puppet. Jester was too late. A bright white light immediately took over every other color, blinding everypony. It was everywhere. It was changing the time pattern and was realigning the universe to the state before Shadow Sun's conquest. Little did She know that her magic could backfire like that. It pulled her avatar back to her dead core, which continued it's endless journey across the cosmos.

The stars were brighter than ever before. Life was safe from her touch. It flourished, spread and evolved. All were safe, while the Ultimate Princess was sleeping inside her black palace. Dreaming of conquest.

Will She wake up one day? How will the future face her wrath? That I do not know. I leave it for the future generations to figure it out.

"I'll never forget you." Next Chapter: Epilogue Estimated time remaining: 5 Minutes