Research and shadows

In a far part of Equestria, in front of the gates leading to Tartarus, Shade Soul was staggering to get himself towards the entrance. The blast from the magic of friendship summoned by the Young Six at Canterlot had destroyed his amulet, rendering him weak. But, the pony refused to give up, because he found the perfect opportunity right in front of him.

Using what strength he still had inside him, he opened up the doors with his magic as hard as he could. They opened up slowly, and moved apart from each other wide enough for Shade Soul to walk inside. Releasing the magic, the doors shut behind him once he entered the dark cavern.

Shade Soul walked down the path, looking around him as he paced along. Beasts and creatures were locked inside cages, with no way to get out. "Pathetic," muttered Shade Soul to himself, seeing them in their prison. "They're not powerful enough if they've ended up trapped here."

Shade Soul made his way further up the path, until he encountered two cages, each containing a figure inside. One of them was a large, but slim-looking centaur. None other than Lord Tirek. The other was a filly with curly blue hair and a sinister look on her. It was Cozy Glow, the young Pegasus who attempted to steal all of Equestria's magic earlier that year.

They both looked at Shade Soul curiously as he walked up to them. "Well, what do we have here? Have you been sent down here by those puny ponies?" asked Lord Tirek smirkingly. Shade Soul just stared at Tirek and said nothing. "Not much of a talker, huh?" questioned Cozy Glow. "Well, you look promising enough. Would you be a dear friend and get us out of here? We could work well together."

Shade Soul just stood on the spot and didn't reply to her.

"Uhh, hello?" asked Cozy Glow.

Shade Soul then spoke. "You think you're someone capable of being powerful?" he stated, facing Tirek. "Locked down here, with no capabilities visible? You're nothing but a pathetic virgin,"

Lord Tirek was simply dumbfounded, staring at Shade Soul, mouth opened. No one had ever dared to talk down to him like that before.

"And you," said Shade Soul, turning to Cozy Glow, "are nothing but an annoyance,"

"He's right about that at least," muttered Tirek, gaining his voice back.

"Hey!" snapped Cozy Glow.

"I haven't got time to waste blabbering with fools like you," continued Shade Soul.

And with that, Shade Soul ran towards the edge of the towering path, and jumped over the edge, and out of sight. Lord Tirek and Cozy Glow couldn't believe what just happened.

"Well, so much for him getting us out of here," muttered Tirek.

"And he seemed so nice, too!" pouted Cozy Glow.

But they both didn't know, that Shade Soul wasn't falling down the void below. He was scaling down the towering the stone pillars using his sharp, strong cloves. Shade Soul scaled deeper and deeper down the pillar. The air around was getting darker and darker and he loved it.

"This should get me back up again," he thought gleefully to himself.

Shade Soul was planning on restoring his strength and powers by feeding on the pure darkness surrounding him down in Tartarus. It was going to take time, but he was in no hurry. He just wanted to regain his power to take over Equestria by the time he's fully recovered.

At her castle home, Twilight was feeling pretty uneasy. Recently she had been up against a returning foe, who came very close to succeeding.

"You gonna go all "Twilighting" about again?" said Spike.

"No, no, Spike. I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" replied Twilight enthusiastically. "We just came up against an evil shadow pony who almost took over Equestria. I wouldn't have made it if it wasn't for our students. Nothing to freak out about…"

"3… 2… 1…" counted Spike in his head, before Twilight inevitably began freaking out.

"He took over Celestia and Luna! He corrupted everypony! He made every object go crazy! And worst of all, I have no idea how exactly was he able to return! How did he escape from limbo? How did he become a solid figure? It doesn't make sense and I need to know!" burst out Twilight.

"Calm down, Twilight. Get a hold of yourself," said Spike.

"Calm down? CALM DOWN?! Spike, we literally faced a villain who almost won! Who could've taken all over Equestria without anypony to stop him!"

Then Twilight realized.

"He's still out there… what if he's planning an attack? What if he becomes more powerful than before?"

Spike wasted no time and gave Twilight a paper bag to release her rapid breathing in and out to slow down.

"Feel better?" he asked her.

"…I think so…" replied Twilight.

"If you really want to find out more about him, why don't you ask somepony who might help us?" suggested Spike.

"You're right, Spike! That's a great idea! And I think I know just the pony to talk to…"

Star Swirl was at the Ponhenge, investigating the ruins around him. Then, he received a letter from Twilight. He read it, and immediately went off to Twilight's home.

The doorbell rang in Twilight's house. Twilight answered it, and there was Star Swirl before her. "I wondered when you would be requesting me, Twilight," he said.

"I'm pleased to see you, too, Star Swirl. But I'm really feeling nervous, and I was hoping if you would help me-" began Twilight.

"Find out about Shade Soul?" finished Star Swirl for her. "Yes, that is indeed an important matter that shouldn't be ignored."

Twilight was relieved that Star Swirl was willing to help her.

Twilight led Star Swirl to the library, and they both sat down across each other at a table.

"Now, I'm sure you have got questions about Shade Soul right now. I might not know every possibility behind him, but I've come to some conclusions that could provide us more insight on his powers and abilities," stated Star Swirl.

"Ok. The first thing I really want to know, is how was he able to get out of limbo and come back in the first place? The first time he returned, it was because… because I interfered with your plans, that were already successful," said Twilight.

And she remembered how guilty she had felt when Star Swirl belittled Twilight for not only freeing them from limbo, but the Pony of Shadows as well.

"…it's all my fault, isn't it?" asked Twilight, feeling more discouraged now.

"Good heavens, Twilight! You have nothing to be sorry about! Sure, you did mess up our original plan, but I don't think you would've figured out a detail like that through written stories and legends. And besides, you and your friends helped us bring Stygian back to our side, as well as to realize our own faults," replied Star Swirl.

"As for Shade Soul? Well, yes. He escaped from limbo the first time with us because of our reconnected artefacts. Then we freed Stygian, and banished the darkness into limbo after that. As for how he escaped, you ask? Well…"

Star Swirl looked around. "Do you happen to have a chalkboard of any kind? I figure some diagrams could help me further with my theories."

"Oh, of course!" Twilight gestured to one in a corner of the library.

Star Swirl held up chalk using his magic, and began scribbling on the board.

"I've been trying to figure that out myself as well, Twilight. But with more investigating, I've come up with a possible answer: When we hit him with our beam and tried banishing him to limbo through the portal, the magic looked like it was gone when it came in contact with him. But what if…" Star Swirl explained, drawing the event on the board. "What if the magic we cast on him, hadn't disappeared after him gone, but instead, ended up inside him? What if the magic got absorbed inside the darkness?"

Star Swirl was now done with a drawing of a splodgy shape, with Twilight's symbol inside it.

"The darkness absorbed the magic? But that's unbelievable!" exclaimed Twilight.

"Indeed it is," agreed Star Swirl. "I figured, that with the magic it stored inside itself, it merged together with it and became a solidified pony with shadow powers. With that, it no longer has to rely on anypony else to corrupt and make them its host."

"So that explains his physical appearance, but how did he escape from a timeless dimension between worlds?" asked Twilight.

"That's the thing. I also came to a conclusion that because the magic we used to open up a portal to limbo, he was able to do the same thing from there, to get himself out and back into Equestria."

Twilight was now feeling more worried.

"So he avoided our attacks because he couldn't absorb magic anymore, now that he's a real pony… and also why my blinding light spell didn't work on him… why didn't I see it before…"

"There's nothing wrong with not understanding something you're not familiar with at first," Star Swirl assured her. "My theories may or may not be correct, but they definitely seem to be the most realistic ones to believe."

"So the darkness became a pony with shadow powers… he freed himself from limbo, and now he's back to take over Equestria himself… and there's no way we can stop him…"

"Oh, but I think there is," said Star Swirl.

"How? He showed no signs of weaknesses anywhere. He can't fly, but he's not an easy pony to dodge," replied Twilight feeling more nervous.

"Have you ever heard anything mentioned by him that he dislikes? Anything that sounds like something he can't stand?" asked Star Swirl curiously.

Twilight then stopped to think. She remembered how taunting Shade Soul had been to her when she first encountered him. And then it hit her.

"Friendship…" said Twilight slowly. "It's friendship! I remember him saying how it is a weakness to anyone who believes in it. He must not believe in it himself."

"There you go! Friendship is a definite factor that can be seen as effective against him. Especially since the power of friendship summoned by your students together drove him out of here," said Star Swirl feeling more confident. "That being said, it does seem unlikely that he's really gone."

"That's another thing I'm worried about, Star Swirl," said Twilight. "I can't help but think that he's out there somewhere. Is he planning revenge against us? Is he trying to conquer other parts of Equestria? Is he creating an army?"

"Calm yourself down, Twilight. I know you're… "freaked out", but you mustn't let your emotions interfere with your intelligence," said her idol. "Whatever his next tactics are, we don't know. But what I do know, is that a substance of darkness like Shade Soul only has one motivation: to spread darkness everywhere. I expect Shade Soul wanting to take over Equestria means that the darkness wants to turn our world into a horror zone filled with shadows everywhere."

"You're right, Star Swirl. And now I want to know, is there any way we can truly defeat him?"

"Well…" pondered the wizard. "Sending him back to limbo with his current state isn't an option; he's bound to escape from it again, now that he's got magic stored inside him. The magic of friendship through your students has proven to be very powerful against him, so they're definitely essential for bringing him down, or at the very least, weakening him, given that he doesn't seem to be really gone yet."

Star Swirl paused. Then he asked, "can you remind me what are exactly his abilities again?"

"Well, I definitely remember seeing him pierce my friends with his cloves, and then they became corrupted. And that shadow orb, too. Completely despicable if I ever saw one!"

Star Swirl was now scribbling on the chalkboard once more, and now he had a whole set of written calculations and symbols up on the board.

"I think there might be a solution. This might not be a way to really defeat Shade Soul, but I might've figured out how to protect ourselves from his shadow powers.""

"Really? How?" asked Twilight, who was instead feeling more excited.

"If we can capture a shadow orb like the one he used to trap us and bring us to him, in a strong container, I could use the substances from it to coat armour with it. That way, Shade Soul's injections should have no effect upon his own darkness, protecting ponies who wear it," Star Swirl concluded.

Twilight came up to him and focused on the calculations he made. Then, she turned to Star Swirl, and beamed. "You're right! This could work! Protecting ourselves with clothing coated with his own darkness could prevent anypony from being corrupted! You really are the greatest wizard I've ever known!"

"No worries," smiled the wizard. "And I don't think I could've done it without your help, Twilight. You really are a pony full of wisdom and courage."

Twilight felt happy with being praised by her own idol she looked up to.

"Well, I believe now we have gained a step further into preparation for when Shade Soul attempts to strike again," commented Star Swirl.

"You bet we did! I'm going to tell my friends the good news! And thanks again, Star Swirl!"

Twilight raced out of her house to tell her friends what she and Star Swirl had been researching. Star Swirl chuckled.

"Sometimes I wonder how far that pony's mood can change," he thought to himself as he went out of the house himself and went off to tell his pillar friends the same thing.

Down in Tartarus, Cozy Glow and Lord Tirek were still sulking in their cells keeping them inside.

"Those ponies think they're so special, and that friendship is magic!" muttered Cozy Glow in a mocking tone. "They'll regret the day they messed with me…"

"Will you please keep it down?!" roared Tirek. "I can't stand hearing your complaining all the time!"

And then he whispered, "No wonder that dark pony thought you were annoying."

Cozy Glow was about to argue back, when they both had a strange feeling.

"…Tirek? Doesn't this place seem more… dark to you?" asked Cozy Glow.

"Come to think of it," replied the centaur. "Tartarus has always had light around it. Why is there less light?"

They both saw ahead, that from the depths below, shadowy lines were beginning to appear on the walls, and up the pillars. They were moving up, slowly and slowly, getting thicker every time. Cozy Glow and Tirek looked at each other with worried expressions.

"You don't think…?" asked Tirek.

"You mean…?" replied Cozy Glow.

They both had the same thought, but were feeling nervous now. And deep down into the depths of Tartarus, was complete darkness. If anypony were down there, they'd see nothing but the whole void around them. It was so dark the top of the pillars and light above weren't visible anymore. And that's exactly where Shade Soul was. He felt like he was at home. And in this area, he didn't need to hold on to the pillar walls with his cloves anymore. He was resting in the void, feeding on the darkness that surrounded him, and slowly but surely, restoring his strength and power.

"I can feel it… lovely shadows…" he exclaimed, his white eyes glowing brightly.

"You'd better watch out, Equestria… cause darkness will rise once more!" he added.

And he let out a menacing laugh which echoed so loudly, that Tirek and Cozy Glow, thousands of meters high up were able to faintly hear it, giving them the shudders.

Writer's note: Sorry for the delay. Just had school stuff to take care of the past week. But now, I've got this episode done, which serves as a follow-up to the 2-part premiere. It might not be the most exciting or engaging story, but it's meant to hopefully give you some deeper explanations on Shade Soul and his abilities this season. As for the rest of this season? There's going to be some focus on him and some other villains as one arc, the Young Six's elements of harmony as another arc, and the rest of the stories as slice-of-life situations focusing on the Mane Six and other prominent characters. Stay tuned for more stories coming up soon for this alternate season!