Faded Shadows
Chapter 1
"When are they suppose to get here?" asked Celestia as she sat scrunched on her throne.
"Any minute sister." replied Luna. "Why don't you ask some more because I am certain it'll make them get here quicker."
"The last thing I want is lip from you, Luna." said Celestia as let out a small sigh. "What about Phoenix?"
"I had my Lunar Knights send out the summons but we have yet to receive anything back." replied Luna.
"What about Twilight, is she ready?"
"She's been standing back that statue since dawn. I guess she's excited to go through with this." replied Luna.
"That's Twilight for you." said Celestia as she got up from her throne. "I'm going to my room, have somepony fetch me when Agliss and Yamato arrive.
Celestia turned and began to walk out of the room as a bright flash flooded the area.
"They're here." called Luna and she smiled widely at her sister.
Celestia turned to see only Agliss standing before the two.
"Tia, Lulu!" called the large man. "It's been awhile."
"Agliss, how have you been?" asked Luna. "And where's Yamato?"
"He decided to stay back to make sure nothing finds Oasis. We had a band of thieves make their way into the city a few months ago. We're trying to avoid having to make another mess."
"How has everything been in Oasis?" asked Celestia as she stood by her sister.
"Besides the occasional thief and or treasure hunter, everything is fine. We finally found Avalan's study last week and have since burned most of his spellbooks. We did keep a couple and we currently have them under lock and key. Other than that, we've moved away most of the debris, buried the bodies that were somehow preserved, and got the place looking like a homicidal maniac had not come through and kill the population. Remind me to give you a tour sometime."
"I'll keep that in mind Agliss." said Celestia with a smile on her face.
"Now, enough with formalities." said Agliss. "Tell me why you needed me so urgently?"
Celestia paused and walked over to one of the many windows in the throne room. She found the one that looked out over the garden and gazed upon the landscape.
"I want to reform Zhane." she said, not looking at the large human beside her.
"You're talking about the same thing we did to Discord, correct?" asked Agliss.
"Yes." replied Celestia. "I needed you here just in case his powers weren't stripped away from him after Avalan was vanquished."
"I'm confident that the moment Avalan manifested himself outside of Zhane's body, he lost all of his powers."
There was a pause.
"If would have known what you were going to do, I would have brought Yamato with me." said Agliss. "How are you going to free him without the Elements?"
"Their power has weakened ever since they were given back to the Tree of Harmony. All it would take would be a powerful unbinding spell to set him free. The only thing I am worried about would be the wounds he sustained during that fight. He was engulfed entirely by the Elements. It's likely that he's suffered from some serious magical burns. The stone surrounding him is something to keep him in place. It's likely that his wounds have yet to heal."
"I would be more worried more about his mental health than his physical health." said Agliss.
"That's why I have you here." Celestia said with a small grin. "You're going to help us."
Agliss rolled his eyes and attempted to rebuttal but was stopped by a loud bang originating from the other side of the throne room.
"Celestia!" yelled Shining Armor as he walked through the doors, Cadance close behind him. "Are you going insane? You know what kind of damage Zhane did to Equestria. Are you really going to risk that a second time?"
Celestia took a second to take in the anger and fury of the ex Captain of the guard. Since he had left to serve with Cadance at the Crystal Kingdom, he had become quite annoying at times. Always meddling in business that he has no business being involved with. Celestia frowned and looked down at the Unicorn.
"Do you have any idea what kind of damage Discord did when he got free?" she asked.
"Of course I do." he replied. "I had to deal with the chaos that ensured when he escaped his prison. Not to mention his most recent betrayal. Why do you ask me this rhetorical question?"
"Why do you think I decided to reform Discord? If he caused so much trouble, why in the world would I free him again with the hopes that he would change?"
Shining Armor stayed quiet, looking at the Princess with a confused look on his face.
"Because I knew that deep in that heart of his, he had the capacity to turn his life around."
"And look where that got him." replied Shining Armor. "He betrayed you the moment he was offered power. What makes you think that Zhane won't do the same."
"Because I won't let that happen!" yelled Celestia as her wing flared up to their widest reach. The angry princess felt Agliss lay his hand on her shoulder as an attempt to tell her to calm down. She retracted her wings and attempted to regain her composure.
"You have become manic about this entire situation." said Shining Armor.
"Shining Armor." said Agliss. "It would be best for you to remember who's castle you stand in and for you to remember your manners."
"I don't need you to tell me what I need to do." replied Shining in a vicious tone. "I'm trying to do what's best for the ponies of Equestria."
"Equestria in no longer the land you watch over." replied Agliss. "You have your own kingdom to preside over."
"Shut your mouth before I shut it for you!" demanded Shining as his horn flared with magical light. "This is all because of you humans. If it weren't for your species, we wouldn't even be having this conversation."
"I advise you keep quiet or else you start a fight with something you cannot beat." Agliss threatened as he drew his sword slightly.
"Honey, just drop the whole thing. Let's go home and relax." interjected Cadance. "This is Celestia's decision, not ours."
"No." replied Shining. "Do you know how many good soldiers I lost under MY command because of Zhane. Do you know how many families I had to tell that their little colt they raised for so long was easily murdered by some rampaging monster?! If I ever get the chance, I would gladly kill that monster for myself."
"Then you would have to deal with me." replied Agliss. "Zhane is still a human and there are only three of us left in this entire world."
"If I had a say in anything, I would have done this world a favor and wiped the rest of you out as well."
"SHINING ARMOR!" yelled Celestia. "I will not stand here and listen as you continuously insult my friend. This is my castle and Equestria is my land to govern as I please. You no longer have any authority here. Your place is beside your wife at the Crystal Kingdom. So I will give you a choice. Either you cease this nonsense and come to your senses or I have you escorted off Equestria's lands and back to the Crystal Kingdom."
Shining Armor frowned and snorted loudly.
"We're leaving Cadance." he said. "But remember this Celestia. Don't say I didn't warn you if he starts killing again because this time, it'll be on you head."
With that, Shining Armor and Princess Cadance turned and stormed out of the throne room. The only other sight before they left was Cadance turning and mouthing "I'm so sorry" before turning back to the entrance. With him gone, Celestia let out a loud sigh.
"Let's get outside." she said. "I'm ready to do this."
Darkness. Surrounded by complete darkness. Dark, stuffy, can't move. It's been like this for what seems like forever, I don't know how much more I can take. I don't know why I sacrificed myself like that. I could have moved, I could still be alive. I guess I deserve what has happened to me, all my actions and thoughts have come back to bite me. Karma is a real bitch you know.
I guess my fate is to remain like this till I go insane. It's better than being stuck in a jail cell... I guess. Being here has given me some time to think. You know, about the stuff you wish you could change. About how I wish I could have realized that I was no longer The Shadow the moment I died from Agent Warren's gunshot. I guess that was partly my fault, I was the one to make a deal with a fucking demon. I wish I could have realized that coming to Equestria was my metaphorical second chance. My one chance not to be a vicious killer or at least not an evil one. Again, more my fault than anyone else's, Celestia and Agliss gave me more than enough chances to receive forgiveness.
Damn, I wish I could see that old man one more time. I would love to run him through with a sword for what he did to me but I'd do it with a friendly smile. Then he'd probably pull some kind of god tier spell out of his ass and cut me into pieces. That's exactly the reason I miss that man.
You know, now that I think about it, it's actually pretty hot in this darkness. I don't remember it being this bad. I mean, it was always at a room temperature in here but I guess I just noticed how hot it really is. Now I feel a little dizzy. Please tell me this isn't going to be permanent. I might actually try to kill myself if it stays like this. Ok, seriously, I don't know what's going on but my whole body tingling... in a bad way... like an ow this feels like a knife stab wound way. To add to it, the dizziness just increased in intensity. Finally to top it off, this really bright light is pretty close to my face. What the fuck is going on? What the fuck is happening?
"Do you think that worked?" asked Celestia as she looked over to Twilight and her friends.
"I've got no idea." replied Twilight. "I know we did this once but that was with the Elements of Harmony. I have no idea if this actually worked or not."
"Take a look at his face." said Agliss. "The stone is starting to crack."
The light started to get brighter and brighter as the pain increased. Now, instead of my entire body, the pain centered on my hands, feet, and face. I have no idea way, all I know is that it fucking hurts. The light kept getting brighter and brighter until finally the light equaled out and I could finally see something lit by light. It was quite blurry but I could make out a giant stone structure in front of me along with several other figures below me. From the way I was standing, I could tell that I was standing on some sort of pedestal. My vision began to slowly unblur and as time passed I could make out several, as I should say, acquaintances as my vision continued to improve. I could see the Sun bitch and her sister Luna. To my left was Twilight Sparkle and her merry gang of annoying friends. Much to my surprise, I look to my right to see old man Agliss standing there with a smile on his face. I wasn't dead, I was still alive! Oh thank christ I thought I was going to be like that forever!
I attempted to move my arms and legs but felt them rooted to the spot. I looked down to see that they were still covered in stone, although, the stone was receding at a fast rate. About five seconds later, the stone was about to release me, I was about to be free. I ignored everything that wasn't important and focused on get off that pedestal. I could feel my feet free from the stone and the second later, I could feel the pain rushing through my body. I crumpled like a marionette doll with its strings cut. It didn't take long for the ground below the pedestal to greet my face with a lovely earthen hello.
The pain kept me from moving, pulling me ever so slowly back into the darkness from before. The last thing I heard before fading back into darkness was that old man.
"Get the doctors out here, it's worse than we thought."
Alright, I decided to post this chapter as well and will continue to post chapters periodically until I decide on a solid release date every week. Until then, enjoy the chapter.