The creature was trying to make Stormy react, the wounds from their fight manage to take a heavy toll on the colt, rather than the creature, the tiara on the creature head made obvious her resemblance with Stormy big sister. In fact, without the bone wings, it looked like her, Stormy was out cold, losing blood more quickly, the creature, although she was unable to speak, desperation could be easily seen on her face, completely shattering her killer side, as if the tiara was a dead ringer for Sunnybreeze, however, Stormy was still smiling, remembering his sister made the laughter element powerful enough to keep him alive, the Skeletal Mare decided to take him back to the castle, but as her feelings where coming along, so did the other monsters, trying to end what the mare started, including the very colt that Stormy feared, the Iron Mask Pony, he instructed all the monsters to attack, however, there was one monster missing, the Plastic Mare, wounded by the previous encounter, the Skeletal Mare did something classified as dumb, but also brave, she used the remaining bones of her wings to form a cycle around Stormy body and give him back his sword, the bones acted as a protection ritual, while she, with her scythe in hoof, decided to take down as many monsters as possible.
As she started the assault, eliminating most of the monsters with the exception of the Shadow Armors and Shadow Performers, mostly by the fact that, despise being a memory of Sunnybreeze in a way, she is still a monster, hence her weapon might be fast paced, but not powerful enough to hurt the creatures, specially the Iron Mask Pony, despise the fact that she eliminated the creatures, more monsters kept coming, slowly but surely, and in groups not larger than 2 or 3 at a time, however, as soon as she attacked the bigger treat, the iron mask, her scythe broke, by the creature own sword, he took the creature from her neck, and started to choke her, she then tried to use her powerful bones to release herself from his grasp, but the creature only smiled at her attempts to save herself, he raised his hoof with the butcher knife on it, and swing it downwards towards the creature back, breaking her spinal column and making her bleed, she tried to let out a scream, but the Iron Mask covered her mouth with his hoof, as he ripped off her black robe, revealing all her wounds and parts of her skeleton, that he started to torn apart, bone by bone, smiling as he enjoyed her suffering, the other monsters took advantage of this, and attacked the Skeletal Mare, her internal organs where exposed as soon as her ribs where torn out, the Iron Mask instructed the other monsters to hold her, and so they did, taking his butcher knife, he first made sure to rip a little of her liver, before trying to decide which organ he will take first, he decided to go for the stomach and with his teeth, he took it out, spitting all the dark red blood across his mask and hooves, the mare tried to scream, but nopony could hear her, a Ceiling Filly had its cyan suit as a improvised mouthfold, enjoying the scenario, the Iron mask, then finished up ripping the Skeletal Mare liver, only to be taken out from her body from this sadistic creature, finally, he let the heart for last, he took Sunnybreeze tiara from the creature head, and started to carve Stormy own cutie mark on her heart, the Skeletal Mare couldn't take it anymore, as she felt all her strength going out, slowly dying, to end her misery, the Iron Mask Pony stabbed several times the Skeletal Mare heart with Sunnybreeze tiara, until the muffled screams of the mare ceased…
Having finished with his work, the Iron Mask let the corpse drop heavily on the floor, as he get closer to Stormy still unconscious body, Removing the bones one by one with his butcher knife, he then took Stormy from his Neck, the laughter element made Story wake up, only to see what happened to the Skeletal mare, outraged, he took his sword with his magic and manage to injure the hoof that was holding him, but seeing the situation where he was, he had no shape to fight, his only hope now, was to recover his weapons and ran as fast as possible, but as soon as he moved, all the weapons levitated and flew upwards, to a hole on the ceiling, a organ sound was heard, and all the monsters felt into a trap door, Stormy saw how the hole was coming closer, by the time he reached the top, all he saw was the remaining of his items scattered on the floor, next to a brand new saddlebag that had old lunar guard designs, from 1000 years ago, and a note
"Im sorry Stormy… im sorry, I will wait for you in the castle lobby "
It was the princess hoofwriting, smiling that the princess was not angry at him, he picked up all his items and restock himself, changing his saddlebags, and putting all his items in the new bags, he ate the 2 apples he had, and healed himself with the last bandage he had, changing his old dried blood ones, closing the wounds the best he could, the sword he lost, was not on his back, like at the beginning, he walked towards the lobby, during his way, on what it seems a very large hallway, he could hear voices, echoes of his past… one of them in specific, was reflected on one of the many windows in the hallway…as a stained glass, Stormy saw this, as If he was watching a movie…remembering something of his own past
"Brother…. please hold on!, stay with me, Stay with me! " said a younger Stormy, carrying a Injured pony in his back, it was connected to several devices that he kept floating with magic
"…" the pony didn't replied, but was breathing
The moment showed a train, crashed in the middle of the road between Canterlot and Ponyville, with a mysteriously black pony following them, as soon as Stormy noticed this, he started to run, towards a deep wood area, which seems to resemble the Everfree Forest
"this is…" he said " this is when I escaped Manehatten " he completed his sentence
He then checked another window, that had the same pattern as the one that he already checked, this time however, it was full color, he saw everything, as he remembered something very painful, as he closed his eyes… and his memory took him to the trip…a not so pleasant trip
It was Manehatten, shortly after Redhoof death, the policy of Manehatten where searching for Stormy all along, they even entered his house, unfortunately for him, he was there, dressed up as Moonlight Strike, but his suit was torn and he was bleeding from his upper hooves, Keeneye tried to convince Stormy to give in, however, Silverbadge had other orders…
"Stormy brave!, or should I say Moonlight Strike, by the new mayor orders… you are to be banished from Equestria " the officer said
" WHAT!? " Keeneye and Stormy said in unison
" The mayor contacted Princess Celestia about all your current murders, and as you know, a murderer cannot live in Equestria, let alone a Thief and Murdered, make this easy for yourself kid, and just surrender " The officer said as he draw near Stormy with a special ring that render the user incapable of casting spells
" emmm Silverbadge… I actually don't think this is a good idea… " Keeneye said
" Just shut up and catch him! " The other officer ordered, as he jumped towards Stormy
" if you really believe that mayor… you really are a idiot pony…" Stormy said as he prepared a spell
Stormy defended himself, in his own home, against the police ponies, using all his magic acquired so far, he even knocked out the captain with his own ring, making for the captain impossible to remove it, since Stormy modified the lock spell on the ring, however, several police ponies jumped into him, their lanterns felt to the floor, some of them falling by accident on the curtains, starting to burn the house, some of them, started to beat him up, Stormy used his last resource, his moondust magic, to defend himself and knock down all the other ponies around him, what he didn't expect, was that his magic actually formed the Spiked Bubble shield, making the ponies seriously injured, and splatter him with their blood, Keeneye looked shocked, but Stormy looked regretful, with no other option, he teleported to the roof of his house and ran towards Manehatten Town Hall, despise his wounded stated, thanks to the police officers, as the beautiful night shinned they moonlight on him and the roofs of the city, he knew that he can no longer stay in his birth town, he had to escape, but he was not going to leave his little brother, after the attacks the poor colt had suffered from School, he had to get him out of Canterlot Hospital, after all, that menace he is currently facing, already had mocked both Celestia guards and hospital staff as well, during his run away, several other police ponies started to follow him from the roofs, as his house burned, he had magic enough to slow them down, but he had to be wise, he actually was skilled to recreate ancient torture devices from 1000 years ago, from what he saw on the books, so he prepared a very powerful spell, and summoned a giant spiked wheel, bucking it with all his strength and launching it towards the ponies, they dodged as the wheel put a stop to their efforts to chase him, for now.
He reached Manehatten Town Hall, where his friend used to be, sadly, he remembered her death, but also the secret entrance on the Mayor Office, he went to the office, and was surprised that everything was already cleaned up, after his fight with the " Other Stormy ", he pulled out one of the books in the bookcase, making a elevator appears where the mayor Sit was, enough to hold not only the mayor, but cargo, other ponies and cameras equipment, he entered inside and went down to the secret train, inside, he knocked out the 2 guards that guarded the entrance and used their keys to access the private train, he force the conductor to drive, the conductor was scared, due to Stormy wounded state and his bloodstained clothes didn't helped either
"Whaaa!, Moonlight, please don't kill me! " the conductor said in terror
"Im NOT a killer for Celestia sake!, just take me to Canterlot " Stormy demanded
"On the double" The conductor said
"….thank you, please… hurry…" Stormy said as he continued " last time… I had to drive this thing alone "he finished
The conductor notices his seriousness and pulled the lever on the train at full speed, it was not long before they reached to Canterlot, the secret train takes him to Canterlot Train Station V.I.P Section, that only The Mayor, high society ponies, and on very rare occasions, the Princesses used
"Leave the engine running please "Stormy plead
"Why?" The conductor said
"Because I will bring along somepony, and depart to Ponyville "Stormy said as he ran out of the train
Stormy used a teleportation spell to quickly travel between the train and the Canterlot Hospital, once inside, he reached his brother hospital room, the room 402, he entered the room, just to find the mysterious black pony ready with a knife
"Not this time! " Mayor" ! " Stormy yelled as he shot a magical blast from his horn
The pony was sent flying across the room, Stormy quickly took his brother from the bed he was, along with a portable equipment, used to transport comatose patients from room to room, or from hospital to hospital, however, this made the alarm sound, Stormy hearth was racing, his brother was going to get killed by that pony, he had to take him to a place he was sure nopony in their right mind will go, and that is Ponyville Everfree Forest, the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters, it was well hidden, and all the creatures there make it the perfect hideout, he ran towards a elevator, that was closing up, as the medics, nurses and Doctors, where getting out of his way, and calling the royal guard
"Out…of my way! " he demanded
Seeing that the elevator closed before he could reach, he used a high amount of magic to make one big teleport, to take him and his brother to the train, however, this quickly made his magic to go to dangerously low levels, the train conductor however, was surprised by the extra passenger.
"what in Equestria are you doing?! " he yelled
"no time to explain!, to Ponyville! " Stormy demanded, completely desperate, his mind was shattered to bits
The conductor notices Stormy as he cared about his brother, and make sure he was ok with all the pipes and equipment to keep a comatose patient alive, putting the train now in Reverse, to reach Ponyville, however, it was middle way when something went awfully wrong, the conductor on the other side of the cabin let a yell, as the train now went more faster than usual, Stormy tried to talk with the conductor, but… he was gone, the glass was shattered and the brakes where destroyed, Stormy had little time, as the train was about to wreck in a pile of rocks that where blocking the tunnel to Ponyville, Stormy picked up his brother from his bed, and attached all the medical equipment to himself, and activated the emergency breaks, the train wheels stopped, but the train, was not slowing down, Stormy then decided to use the last of his magic to protect his brother, so he made a bubble shield, and opened up the train door, jumping from it.
The Crash was loud enough to alert the whole royal guard of his location, the Pegasus and unicorn guards where coming from him, there was no way around it, he was going to be banished, most likely to the moon, at least he will make Luna company, but first, he have to put his brother to safety, when he got up… he instantly fall down on the floor, the shield protected his brother and equipment, but not him, his hooves where damaged, he can no longer ran, and his magic was already exhausted, besides levitation, he cannot do anything else, he then started to walk to the Everfree forest… passing through Ponyville, however… he got hit by a needle in his side, this was a more than enough alert to Stormy, the black pony was following them, he gathered what he could of strength and stepped inside the little town, the V.I.P tracks where very close to the normal tracks ponies use to travel to Canterlot, the fire would draw the attention of the townsfolk so he had to be quick.
As he moved towards Ponyville, the black pony was following them, not shooting, only enjoying the view of desperation of the stallion, he enjoyed it, every last bit of desperation and fear, however, when Stormy finally reached Ponyville, the lights of the illumination spell from the Royal guards shinned on the colt, making the black pony to hide
"Halt!, by Celestia name Halt! " one of the Unicorn guards instructed
"i…I cant…I can´t stop…no…I will not…fail…I will not fail my brother" Stormy said… tired of running
"you will come with us" the Pegasus guard said
"i….said….NO! " Stormy yelled
One of the guards used a spear, Stormy, irrational, had a magic surge, allowing him to get one more barrier, the moondust shield, the guards where surprised, as he returned the spear but not to the unicorn guard, but to the black pony hiding behind the Train station column, and successfully nailing his clothes to the wall
"who goes there?" the guard noticed the figure trying to break free
This made Stormy his chance, as he canalized the moondust shield to his hooves, recovering a little from his wounds, he ran towards Ponyville, trying to find the Everfree Forest, the road was already hard, as he visited that place only on his fillyhood, but finding it was not hard, it was near Fluttershy cottage, he started to bleed, his hooves where dropping bloodstains as soon as he entered the forest, ignoring all the dangers the place have, he manage to reach the castle, with Mistshine still alive and well on his back…
"we did it brother….. we finally did it…we are free" he said, exhausted, he collapsed on the floor, near the Elements of Harmony pedestal in the lobby
"not…quite little unicorn… you gave me a long run, but now is over " a pony said behind him
"oh no…B…Blackhorn! " Stormy yelled, as he turned around, only to be hit by a knife handle
Unable to fight… he just watched as the unicorn took out his mask, allowing Stormy to look at those psychopath eyes, as he headed towards the little colt unconscious body, taking him always for Stormy… Stormy wounded, followed the twisted unicorn, his face was unable to be forgotten, that black coat, those deep red eyes, and that yellow and blue long mane, when Stormy did his initial search, he found the Element of Harmony book, and taking out his Ocarina, learned the songs he could, before going down the armory and taking one of the swords from the armors, he then did his search for the Mayor Son… even if he gets banished, he was determined to fight him, he had his brother, and he had to get him back, however, as soon as he returned to the lobby, he was received with several poisoned needles, feeling dizzy, he felt to the floor, as the unicorn had his brother floating with his magic
"I could easily turn off his devices you know?... but I want you to suffer " Blackhorn said, completely lost in his own madness
"Why….just why?! " he demanded to know his reasons
" Your family almost discovered my other artistic business… I cannot let the world know that im a assassin for hire for a reason, besides… I have more magic than you, I can live your life, then my life as the new mayor in Manehatten and continue to my noble work… your mother loved my work you know? And your sister was just a imperfection I had to correct" he said laughing, as he pulled out a bag
"Imperfection?" Stormy questioned
"yes…. all ponies are the same in death, rich, poor, health or not, Everypony dies at the end, however, their beauty fades quickly, im simply doing a favor to Equestria by perfectly preserving their beauty " Blackhorn said with a smile, as he tossed the bag
The bag contained her mother severed head and limbs, perfectly preserved, like if she was some sort of stuffed animal, this made Stormy scream, terrified, as the black unicorn used a blinding light spell. Only his distorted laughter could be heard, before Stormy opened his eyes, he was back at the Castle hallway, but he was very close to the stairs, and could see the element of harmony pedestal.
"…now….i know the truth " Stormy said, as he went down to the first floor
In the First floor, the princess was waiting for Stormy, she hugged him, and Stormy, hugged back, crying heavily, as he just finally let all out, he told the princess, between sobs and tears, the final memory he just saw, Luna… taking this as Princess she was, al she could do was to hug the colt, hug him and not letting go, until his mental breakdown had passed, however, she was puzzled, how did one pony trick 2 towns in order to go as far as banishing other pony to the moon or the sun?, contrary to her, Stormy could have not survive the banishment, since he is no immortal, once Stormy finally end crying, the princess let just a few words, with wisdom in them
"Do not let your past torture you Stormy, you are a good pony, please, let the past be past, and walk to a brighter future "
Stormy nodded in agreement, as he and Luna got themselves up and saw the Element of Harmony Pedestal, however, the pedestal had one thing on it, the Elements, in their round stone shape, or at least the laughter element, however, the other ones where missing, and had some things in their corresponding places, in Honesty, there was a badge, reading Manehatten police, Officer Keeneye, In Loyalty, Sunnybreeze bloodstained Tiara, In Generosity, Mistshine Fluttershy Doll, in Kindness, Redhoof Ribbon, and Finally, on Magic, Celestia Bloodstained armor, both ponies looked themselves, and decided to search for the remaining spheres, corresponding to the elements representation, they searched the Castle hallways, however, all the hallways where changed, they searched room by room on that long hallway, most of the doors where busted, with exception of one, when they entered in it, they found a replica or Mistshine bedroom, several drawings of pony anatomy parts, however, what stood out was the Generosity element holding a piece of paper, it was a simple paper, written as a last will, it says;
"If something happened to me, I want all my blueprints about techno pony parts, to be given to Canterlot or Manehatten Hospital, so they can use them on other ponies, I know somepony will perfect them if im gone "
It was Stormy little bro hoofprint, Stormy took the Generosity element, as he promised his brother " don't worry bro… I will find you… I will make you wake from your coma, and you can see your work in action, all that generosity, that you are showing to other ponies, through your work, will not be misplaced ", both ponies stored the element on the saddlebags and continued. The hallway shapeshifted again, it had a few creatures, 2 Ceiling fillies, Luna shoot them to drop them on the floor, both ponies ran, searching for the door that was correct, but the monsters recovered quickly and attacked, Stormy, having no time for it, equipped his sword and attacked, making a instant kill to the creatures, Luna opened the door, only to find it was a replica of a police office, more concrete, Manehatten police department, there where several pictures of Moonlight strike on the walls, and on one specific desk, there was the Honesty element, and in a rookie desk, the Loyalty element, Stormy noticed the honesty element was in Keeneye desk, while the Loyalty one, was in Sunnybreeze desk, Stormy saw that Keeneye, left a report without date, but half finished, he read it as he seem to be called by it, the report said;
"I honestly find hard to believe what the newspaper says, I have worked many years on this job, and I have only found out, how hard the truth can be, but saying lies is no way to reveal it either, I apprehended a couple of street thugs yesterday, and they said something interesting, they said that Moonlight was innocent, I asked them why they care, since Moonlight was the sole reason they where hiding before committing crimes, they stated that the " Black Shadow " will erase all criminals, and the pony was very psychotic and sadistic, that description, didn't matched Moonlight at all, it matches more the serial killer we have been search for days, and was responsible of the death of our teammate Sunnybreeze, if I can connect the points somehow, I will have this resolved… and honestly speaking, the captain is a sellout, yesterday, I found him taking money from a thief, im sorry to say, but seems Stormy was right"
Keeneye never believed in the lies of the Mayor, no matter how hard the truth was, and he shared his honesty towards others within his department, while her Sister desk, that had the Loyalty element, it only had a few words crafted on the desk, they said " no matter what happens, I will always stays by my brothers side, even if they take the wrong path, I will follow them and bring them back to the good way, like a guardian angel, my family is all I have left, Stormy might be a thief, or at least that is what the media says, I know for a fact he always come home with a empty hoof or with little money, enough for the 3 of us to eat, if he really was a thief, he will come with more money, I will always watch over my brothers. ".
That was Sunnybreeze letter, is true, she even was the one that made Stormy his Moonlight costume, she was always with her and Mistshine at all times, he took both elements and Stored them in his saddlebags, before smiling… relieved her sister was not mad at him for her incident or his decision of becoming Moonlight Strike, as both ponies exited the room, they instantly entered another one, closing the door behind them, it was a room of a mare, several beauty objects could be seen, but the most importantly, was the Kindness element, next to a diary, Luna checked the closet, noticing she was in the room of the first mare Stormy dated, seeing that she was also a gamer, as she found a little Game Pony Advance SP, with a copy of Super Spike Brothers – SuperRuby Saga -, but also found, several kinky stuff, she could learn the type or personality she had, extroverted, lustful, but kind of childish and kind at heart, Stormy could not read Redhoof diary, but Luna could, she took the diary and read the latest entry;
"Stormy was the first pony to actually show me kindness, and she also protected me, always, I actually visit his home very often or escaped from my window to visit him and his little bro, they are good ponies, and here with my father, I only get angry, mostly when dad wants to force me to date high society ponies, I hated it so much, however, Stormy actually showed me to smile, I was jealous when she mentioned Pinkie Pie, as a mare that help him to smile, to be honest, I want to say hi to that pony… but im getting off track here, today I actually could apply the kindness that Stormy had taught me, on the same ponies that bullied me, it felt great to help them…Billy was about to be banned from the school, by something he didn't do, while Madeline, she specially earned herself detention when she punched Howard, and although I couldn't take her out of it, I stayed with her until detention ended, and I actually forgive them, it was hard at first, but then I remember, im the mayors daughter, I have to set a example to others, yet, the only thing I did so far was to be lustful and seductive, but not doing anything for anypony, I guess destiny intervenes in a ironic way, that a "low class " pony as Stormy ( I hate when my father use those terms to refer to Stormy family, they are my friends! ) , could show me, a "high class " pony, how to be a better pony, why not show that to others?. I felt great helping those ponies, and when I apply as mayor, I will do better than dad, and make sure Manehatten learns to be a little more kind to others, that is my dream, as for Stormy… well… I hope we can improve… I have several "things" I wanted to try with somepony special "
"Things to do with somepony special?... she better have not done what I think this means Stormy! " Luna said, blushing hard
"emmm Luna, she only teased at the most, she got killed before we could get any closer remember?, what where you thinking princess? " Stormy said, looking at the princess with a grin
"eehh, nothing nothing!, nothing at all " Luna said, her blush was more than evident, she clearly know what she had in her mind
"you are such a terrible liar missy, naughty princess thinking naughty thoughts? " Stormy said in a joking matter
"….s-silence " Luna said, blushing as she took the Kindness element and placed it inside Stormy saddlebags " is none of your business…" she said, but then she said in a lower voice " not yet…"
Confused, Stormy left the room, only to enter now into Princess Celestia room, the one from 1000 years ago, but it was fixed already, and the Magic element was next to a letter, Luna draw near and read it;
"Dear Sister… how can you forgive? How could I forgive myself for what I done?, is true, we have power beyond normal ponies could ever dream off, but we shared a bond, a bond that had transcended time, but now I feel hopeless now, you are on the moon, and now I have to wait 1000 years to see you pretty face and smile again, I just hope what when you return, I can hug you instead of fight you, laugh instead of cry, share, instead of taking, oh my dear sister, even from far away, even across the stars, I will always love you, and I protect you, even from yourself "
Celestia… ruler or Equestria, but her older sister, the ink was fresh, indicating that the letter was recently made, Stormy took the Magic element as Luna hugged the letter, relieved, from her sister words, both ponies returned to the main area, where the elements where missing, and they placed all the round Stones on their corresponding element place, Pedestal turn around and revealed one last page… it was the last page of the Element of Harmony Book, the Oath of Harmony, the song description explained very well the song, a Song that was created at the same time as the Elements of Harmony, and it allows to fortify the element, or all elements if present, with the user own magic, making a momentary super charged version of the element, also, if the pony had one or several qualities of the Elements of Harmony, the song could restore him to his top physical form, healing any severe wounds, but also contained a dark side, if the song was played backwards, it will have the opposite effect, draining the element of their magic momentary, to fortify the user, Stormy added the page to the Book of Harmony, completing it successfully, but as soon as the book got completed… the alarm when off, and the transformation of the castle began…
The walls of the castle where falling down, revealing the metal that used to hold the stone walls in place, everything started to get rusted, including the harmony pedestal, all 6 elements burst into flames, and started to spin, making a slow lamp, the hallways door felt to the floor, only to be buried into the stones what felt on them, and then into the darkness from below, the LED Flashlight and Lantern where no longer necessary, the " elements " provided enough light, however, the ground had little concrete, and in some segments, the metallic fence was visible, a metallic echo, made Stormy turn around, it was the iron mask pony, carrying in one hoof, the unconscious body of a foal, the wrench cutie mark was visible
"No!, Mistshine no! "
Stormy ran towards the creature, ready to use his sword to attack, but the Iron Mask rose the hoof that hold Mistshine body, Stormy stopped his attack, only to be hit by the same hoof, Mistshine weigh plus the strength of the creature where extreme, sending Stormy back to his original position, Iron Mask prepared then a brush… a old paintbrush, but the brush itself had remaining of old blood in it, making a little cut on Mistshine body, he made a circle very similar to the one Luna and Stormy found on Twilight library, but this one, encased the wounded body of Mistshine in a bubble, that was filling with his own blood… the "timer" was set in some way, Iron Mask Smiled, as he looked upon their 2 new playmates...
"I was weak…that's where you came along " Stormy said, with a serious look in his face
"Stormy…. " Luna was concerned, but was relieved when she saw his guard took out his sword
"but that's all in the past…I know the truth now… and you are just a stain in the page of my life!, time to correct my mistakes and walk to a better future… a future, without you in it… "
"…." A brif moment of silence came, until one word came from the creature " …. C̸̙͖̙̗͉͍͓̤̃̉̎́O͖̟̪̦̓̌̚̕M̟̟̮̳͈̈̿̔́͝E̒ͩ͊̔͌̆̊͌͏̶̞̜̮́!̮͙͚̖͈̯̓̇ͯ͗̌̐ͅ "
" There is no way you will fight him alone this time, this time, i will be together at your side! " Luna said as she also took out Snowdrop Pipe
Both ponies started to attack the Iron Mask Pony, but sadly, the creature had a very powerful block, so both attacks didn't do a thing to him, Luna decided to attack with magic blast, but the attack didn't moved him, however, his body showed damage, the bubble where Mistshine was getting filled quickly, Mistshine hooves where already covered, Stormy tried to burst the bubble, but the sword bounced, Iron Mask was very slow, however, he pack quite a punch, one hit from his Butcher Knife and Luna was down on the floor already, she blocked the attack, however, the strength he used was enormous, he raised the knife again, Stormy jumped and blocked with his sword, manage to stop both his and the creature blade at mere millimeters from the princess face, the princess on the other hoof, used her pipe and hit the creature on its face, the mask absorbed most of the blow, Stormy took advantage and attacked the creature swinging his sword up, the blade manage to cut the chin of the creature and made it step away from the princess, both ponies with the same idea on their minds, give the creature a buck, however, he took this chance and took Stormy hooves, smashing him on the floor, he felt a great pain, as some of his blood escaped his mouth, the princess resorted to her magic power of the moon, and summoned a moon spear, throwing it to the creature, it manage to stab him and take it to the floor, however, the creature got himself up, Stormy attacked again, trying to stab the creature, however, it only manage to rip away his mask, screaming due to loosing his mask, and part of its skin, the creature sliced Stormy chest, making a severe wound that rendered him to the floor, the Laughter element got splatter, as the creature took Stormy again, with the intention to torture him, the mask removal manage to reveal it's horn, and also its skinless flesh, but its sick smile was still there, he smiled as he started to pull the stallion 4 limbs, including his horn, as Stormy screamed from the pressure, Luna shoot a magical blast, however, the creature quickly used Stormy as a shield, Hitting her companion made the blast to disperse, and weakened his limbs, a ripping sound was starting to come from the coat he was hearing, Luna tried to attack again with magic blast, but the creature was unaffected by them at the beginning, thanks to a protective spell, Luna teleported behind the Creature and changed to Celestia Sword, managing to successfully stab him with the sword, the blade burned like the sun, making the creature loose focus and letting Stormy go, Stormy then got himself up, and Stabbed the creature in his heart, while the creature was dizzy, Luna hit heavily the creature horn, weakening his defense and breaking the protective spell, however, they both forgot about something, Mistshine bubble, when Stormy looked, all he could see, was his brother face being submerged, desperate, Stormy took the creature butcher knife and tried to get him out, the exterior of the bubble showed blood, splattering him, Stormy eyes showed total desperation, being so close to his brother, to lose him, the princess also helped, the creature however, started to laugh, a sick and distorted laugh, Stormy tried to break the bubble again, the bubbles of air where coming more slowly, as Stormy felt he lived this before, he dropped the butcher knife, and turned on the chainsaw… something shocking happened, a hoof was forming out, Stormy tried to took it, thinking it was his brother, that he managed to perforate the structure, but the hoof moved and grabbed Stormy from his neck again, chocking him, the hoof was feminine… and some bones where also forming, reforming what it seems to be a Alicorn Mare, Luna noticed this and quickly used her magic to teleport her and Stormy out of the way, as the bubble finally burst, leaving all the blood to flush out, between the holes of the fence floor, however, a fleshy figure was still there, where Mistshine used to be, her featherless wings, her skeletal design green armor, and her dark violet color reminded very well Luna who she was facing, as of her Red moon with grey clouds cutie mark wasn't enough…
" The night…will last… forever!" The creature spoke
"How many times do we have to kill you?!" Luna and Stormy exclaimed
The creature they where facing, the big pony, put himself in front of The Black Alicorn, as she turned into mist and taking the butcher knife, it surrounded the creature, fusing herself with him, the wounds in the creature started to heal, and it's mask suffered a change, in one side, it reflected a mare characteristics, but with eyes resembling nightmare moon, however, no eye sockets, while the other half, resembles a male pony, this one had a Eye socket, where the Black eyes of the Iron Mask Pony could be seen, its mane grew larger, and his whole physical appearance changed, his ribs ripped through his chest and butcher gown, ripping the clothes he had, the wings where now bat like wings, and his back hooves got slim, his spinal column could be visible in his back and neck, as his fangs grew sharper, and his mouth lost some of its muscle, his front hooves gained muscular structure, marked with some bones, exposing ahead of the flesh to protect the nerves, Luna just yelled a disgusted look, but Stormy…
"Heheheheh, Hahahahahah! Hahahahahahah! HAHAHAHAHAHAH! "
Just Started to laugh… Luna noticed the laughter element in his neck was shinning more now, almost as if it was fully reacting with Stormy now, when Luna asked him what happened, he just said
" he just got wings and a make over, seriously, this has to be funny " Stormy said
" how can you find it funny?! " Luna questioned
"…." The Iron Mask Pony just stood there, ready to attack
"oh Princess don't you see? " Stormy smiled, for a moment, Luna could see a faint image behind Stormy, a Pink Pony faint image that quickly faded " he thinks is super powerful, when in reality, he is not, also, he is ugly "
"GRRRRRRR RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWR! " The Fused monster attack not able to ignore anymore the laughs and happiness Stormy gave
Stormy dodged and attacked with Pinkie Party Cannon, a Cake where shot to the creature face, it made impossible to see with the frosting covering the creature eyes, when it removed enough frosting, it notice Stormy hitting him the cannon, Luna saw how the element was shinning as is use to be with Pinkie around, Luna took advantage of this, and attacked the huge pony with her sword, the creature size was huge, leaving both ponies little compared in size, the creature still had its butcher knife and attacked, both ponies dodged at the same, the knife was stuck on the floor, the duo took advantage of this, and used their combined attack, Luna shoot Stormy as a machine gun, and his moondust magic formed some chains that held the creature, 3 in total, Both ponies jumped to attack, but the creature broke free 1 of them , successfully hitting both with his butcher knife, his strength was powerful enough to severe injure both ponies and toss them to the ground, the colt recovered, as he was relieved that the creature didn't cut him in half and attacked him with his sword, however, the creature sturdy armor made things hard to break, he tried the soft spot on the creature stomach, but he felt something moving there, his brother was inside!, he then stabbed the creature on the chest near his heart to try to get his bro out, even if he has to get in the himself, but he was repelled by a powerful hit with the creature hoof, Stormy coughed blood, his bandages started to quickly stain from that precious red liquid, as well as Luna body and mane, she took the worse part, but she was conscious enough to pull out the cupcake Stormy gave her. she still had it, and used it to heal her wounds, as her suppositions where correct, the cupcake made by Stormy was very sweet and made with care and love, the sweetness of the honey and sugar matched perfectly in complete harmony with the bread and the other ingredients the cupcake was made out, just like the mint cupcake made by Pinkie, this allowed Luna to recover her magic to full and used it for a healing spell on her wounds, but she will be unable to fight or move, she need something to speed the healing up, Stormy on the other hoof, ate the last 2 apples he had, and recovered his magic, he saw the state of the princess, he only thought for one thing that could help them, one last song, the Oath of Harmony, the song he recently found, he went near the princess, as she was still lying on the floor, but healing herself, he put himself holding eh princess, as he started to perform the song, Luna felt him lifting her, making sure she was close to him, and putting her horn against her stallion companion body, the focused their magic on the ancient song, the results where notorious, the laugher element started to get supercharged, the cutie mark on the element changed shape, as if it was combined Stormy and Pinkie personalities, but the most important thing was, that both, The Princess and Stormy wounds where getting healed at quick speed, allowing Luna to get herself back, while Stormy had the super charged element, enough to power up the Party cannon for a finishing blow, one shot, that's all he got to end this nightmare, Luna, feeling herself restored used her power and transformed into Nightmare Moon, but her expression and kindness remained, taking advantage of her size, attacked the creature with Celestia Sword, the creature was still being hold on the floor, the first attack from Luna made the creature left wing to come right off, the second attack ripped the second wing, the Princess sat on the floor, while Stormy, running, jumped on her, and like a trampoline, she lifted Stormy up to the air, Stormy used the gravity to his favor, and stabbed the creature on its exposed spinal column, careful enough not to hurt the stomach, where his brother was, the creature roar in pain, as the third and final chain broke, the creature bit stormy, heavily on his side, making him bleed again, the princess, transforming into mist, Started to choke the creature, after a minute, the creature could no longer be without air, so he let go Stormy and redirected his attention to the Princess, she stepped away from the creature and returned to her Nightmare Moon form
"Although I regret everything I done in the past, this is the present!, I already forgive myself for my sins!, so you have no right to be here! " Luna said to the creature, since the creature is her and Stormy traumas combined, made flesh
"And is time for you to disappear once and for all! " Stormy said, as he took Pinkie Pie party cannon, and got ready to fire
The creature jumped again to the ponies, Stormy teleported moving from the creature attack range, the creature attacked with his butcher knife, but the princess actually dodged more quickly the attack, thanks to the effects of the Oath of Harmony, Stormy had charged the shot, the creature however, was no idiot, it hit the floor with his back hooves, so hard it made Stormy lose his balance, then, he bucked Stormy and made him drop the party cannon, Luna attacked the creature, but the creature let out a powerful lighting magic, to electrocute her, similar in shape as the attack that Black Alicorn used, Stormy got himself up, and searched in his saddlebags, using the moon tear amulet magic, he charged not the element energy, but his own moondust magic, he put all his strength, and teleported to the creature, ending below it, in close range to the creature torso, on their exposed ribs, and shoot, the powerful blast was more than enough to rip his organs from the inside, and make a hole on the creature chest, it lifted a few feet's from this, just enough for Luna to return the favor and use her own lighting spell, being Alicorn, it was far more powerful than the one the creature used, the creature screamed, in a distorted voice as it felt to the floor, bleeding its dark red blood on the floor, both ponies took their time and searched for the party cannon, Stormy found it, and again, got ready to shoot the final blow, Luna stood behind the cannon, just at time for the creature to notice them, starting to recover, the effects of the song was running out, wounded already from the stabs, Luna assault and the moondust magic, destroying his organs from inside, Luna returned to normal and Stormy had charged shot to its max, the Laughter element shinned like never before
"Disappear! And don't torture us any more!" Both ponies said at the unison, as they fired the cannon
From the cannon, a powerful blast of concentrated magic, followed by streamers and confetti, where shot towards the enemy, however, the blast had the form of Pinkie Pie, and it was actually, ready to give a good punch, towards the creature, Stormy could hear that he heard Pinkie voice saying " Stay away from my brother! " as the blast hit the creature so hard and powerful, that it actually took him to the floor, the creature dropped its butcher knife, as he saw how the creature felt to his back, surprisingly, almost dead, Stormy and Luna got closer to the creature, and Stormy took the butcher knife, now targeting the stomach, he stabbed the belly of the beast, enough to make a clear cut and try to find his brother, so he could take him out from the creature insides, he felt finally the hoof of his brother, holding him tighter as possible, Stormy started to pull, Mistshine was attached to the creature, so the more they pushed, the more the creature scream and dark blood felt on the floor, until, with more strength and several stabs that Stormy had to do with the Butcher Knife, his brother was free, and finally, with one last pull, ripping Mistshine out of the creature belly, made the monster cry in agony, as it started to melt, and die, Stormy had finally his brother on his hooves, he could feel his breathing, Mistshine… was alive.
"Brother….Brother…. "He said as he hugged his brother closely to him, crying but smiling
"Brother… say something to me" a younger voice was heard
From the puddle of blood that was lying before him, he could see something else… a reflection of his younger self, but fighting Blackhorn in the same place he currently was, the castle lobby, this time Luna could also see it, as she saw the unicorn that made her stallion suffer, after the bidding light the unicorn used before, Stormy could not see, he was already too weak to fight, but the unicorn had set a scenario for him, when the light faded, Stormy saw his brother in a bubble, just like in his fight, but this one was being filled with water, the spell was made by the black unicorn, Stormy noticed the unicorn teleported, taking Mistshine with him, so Stormy searched for him in the castle, during his exploration, he found the book of harmony, and got a idea, learning the a few songs from the book, he placed it on his broken thief suit pocket, and returned to the lobby, just to be received with a powerful blow from the butcher knife Blackhorn used, Stormy let his guard down, bleeding, his strength was leaving him, and all he could see, was Mistshine bubble, half full already, Blackhorn stepped above him, holding him in place
"Hold that pose kiddo!, you will make my final trophy…oh yes… you will look beautiful as your face shows the desperation of your last moments! " the unicorn said holding his butcher knife with his magic
"Bite…my…plot" Stormy said, as his horn glowed
"no no no little one, no magic "Blackhorn said as he injected stormy with a needle that contained a inhibitor, he could not focus any spell
"ahhhhh…" Stormy used what he had of physical strength and took a sharp rock and hit his foe in his left eye
"AAAAH! YOU LITTLE BASTARD! " Blackhorn screamed as he stepped away from the colt
"Im not going to run anymore… if go down, I will take you with me! " Stormy said as he took out his ocarina
He used the Oath of Harmony, since he was near the real element of harmony pedestal, this made the elements shine, Blackhorn used his knife again but the Laughter Rock protected Stormy, the round stoned floated around him, and like if it was alive, it started to hit Blackhorn several times, until the unicorn kicked the element high up to the sky
"Looks like you ran out of ideas " Blackhorn said as he smiled sickly again
"hahahahaha…..HAHAHAHAHA!" Stormy started to laugh, happy
"What in the hoof you find funny?" Blackhorn questioned
"You…. Because you already lost" Stormy said as he noticed somepony behind Blackhorn
"Get your hooves….out of my brother " said a pink pony
Pinkie Pie appeared, and punched Blackhorn in its chin, Stormy, taking a short sword from one of the armors, attacked the bubble, freeing his brother, as he hold him in his hooves, Pinkie alerted Stormy, Blackhorn recovered quickly, but then, the Laughter Stone felt on his head, making him dizzy, Stormy, having enough, jumped and stabbed the foe in his chest with his sword, sadly for him, it was not fatal, Blackhorn felt to the floor, Stormy looked at him.
"im not like you… I don't kill ponies for pleasure" Stormy said
However, Blackhorn hold with his hooves on Stormy´s neck, Pinkie tried to intervene, but Blackhorn used a sleep needle, to put her to sleep, he took his butcher knife, taking Stormy to the floor again, but lifting his butcher knife and aiming for the horn
"I will get rid of that silly magic of yours!" Blackhorn yelled, as he lifted the blade " HAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHA! " his sick laugh resonated in the castle
" Help…. Somepony!, ANYPONY! " Stormy plead
"Nopony will hear you scream in the forest idiot!, you trapped yourself!" Blackhorn said, as he swing the blade
"Stop right there criminal scum! " a powerful magic came and hit the Unicorn from behind
"Royal Guards, what are you doing?, im the victim here! " Blackhorn objected
"oh Really?" the guards made room for 2 ponies to come, one followed them all the way from Manehatten, it was officer Keeneye " because your recent actions says otherwise "
"You!…but…but I though that…." Blackhorn was confused however, the pony that was next to him made him drop his weapon
"You though you could keep the police in Manehatten quiet and deceive your princess forever, based on fear and lies?" Said Princess Celestia herself, her expression showed a angry look "Subjects like yourself disgust me…but im willing to offer you a fair trial, come quietly or you will force my hoof " her voice was very serious
"I chose the second one" Blackhorn said
Blackhorn got his needles ready, but he felt a cold going down his spine, when he looked behind, he found Stormy, that used the same sleep needle he used on Pinkie, and drew him unconsciousness, Stormy only let a few words before collapsing on the floor
"I could kill you for what you done to me…. But then… I would become you… I guess the decision was made…root in jail…" Stormy said as he felt, on Pinkie Arms
"Guards!, quickly!, take him to Canterlot Hospital!, I will deliver the little colt myself" Celestia ordered as she took Mistshine and his medical equipment
Once the blood finally disappeared, escaping across the holes in the floor, a door appeared behind them… on a wall next to the Elements Pedestal, revealing Stormy his exit, big enough for the 3 Ponies to escape, they do not know what lies behind that door, but now, they had each other, The Princess first put her hoof on the big handle, Stormy put his hoof on the handle also, next to the princess hoof, while he had Mistshine on his back, both ponies opened the door, a bright light was waiting for them, so bright it was almost blinding, but they stepped in together, at the same time, disappearing from that place. Then, there was silence.
It felted like hours, before he could clearly hear a sound, a familiar voice, followed by a name, a name he knew
"Pinkie!, Pinkie!, he is finally waking up!" the voice of a female unicorn could be heard