Learning To Live

by Nekron Smauzog

A sensitive man was always trying his best to deal with life, whether his struggles with friendships or maintaining the best motives. Everything changes when he is supposedly killed in a deadly chase dealing with a dangerous criminal gang, and he appears in Equestria. What is his purpose there? But most to notice, why is he even there?

95. i - Raise Your Banner

A/N: This is it everyone, the first of the final chapter, being a three-parter itself. There will be an epilogue following the final part.

If you are wondering... yep. I have watched all of the final season, and to be honest, I did have my set amount of emotions on how I felt about it being the end of the generation. As much as I wanted to keep going, I really did not want the show to end up on life support like SpongeBob Squarepants, Simpsons, Family Guy or Fairly Oddparents, childhood shows I used to watch. I'm just honestly way more baffled that they want to have a Season 10 with an online petition.

Needless to say, I know that there has been an anonymous reviewer begging me to keep the story going and for it to never end. I'm kind of sorry to say this, but all things have both a beginning and an end. To quote a Calvin and Hobbes line: "If good things lasted forever, would we appreciate how precious they are?" Yeah, I know you're sad that it is coming to an end, but I really feel that I should really move on with my life, since age and life is catching up with me, even at 26 years old.

---

"Hero of the Friendship Kingdom"

I can feel the carriage rattle a bit inside as my eyes stared outside of the window. The armies of all over Equestria, gathered and moving forward, headed where the carriage I was sitting in was. The gates of the place ponies feared to name: Mortem.

In that carriage right in front of me, was the blade itself, ready as I was to face Rebecca again, and for a final time hopefully unless she changes her mind, then she will pay dearly for murdering Nightmare. Whatever her fate would be, I would leave it to be decided should I finally get her to surrender whether with words or violence if necessary.

My mother and aunt was there in the carriage with me, as well as Shining Armor himself. Both my mother and aunt were wearing this kind of armor that were not like that of what the other guards would be wearing. This armor covered all of their body, neck, hooves, wings, and featured a helmet upon their heads, only other thing not covered was their manes and tails. I knew from the emotion on their faces... their will to protect Equestria, no matter if we win or lose.

I want to say something to my mother or aunt, but by the look on their faces, who seem rather cross about the Dragon Queen... or what was my friend. I didn't want them to get angry at me either.

"Brayden?" I can hear Shining Armor's voice, saying to me. I turn my head from the princesses to take a look at the prince of the Crystal Empire. "Is everything alright?"

I look down for a moment, closing my eyes. I reopen them a few moments later, looking at him as I speak with him, which also caught the attention of my mother and aunt. "It's... I want to say something to my mother and aunt, but they seemed too angry."

"Brayden, my son," Celestia says to me. "We're certainly not angry at you. I never would be angry towards my own son."

"As we go out towards the fight of our lives, I can remember still the memory of first bringing you here to Equestria, moments from dying," Aunt Luna says to me, her dark blue armored hoof reaching forward and placing it onto the top of my left hand. "I too wouldn't be angry at you either but our enemy in Mortem."

"I'm certainly quite furious at the Dragon Queen... my friend... or what used to be her," I said to the both of them. "She took two things that I love dearly, Nightmare Moon... and captured my wife Twilight. Those two are the ones who keep me going, and gave me a reason to live, along with all of you."

"We'll get her back," Shining Armor assures me, placing his helmet onto his head. "And I know you'll be the one to do it."

"Thanks Shining," I said to him, smiling. I reach forward and grab the handle of the Song of Order. "We'll show them what friendship is truely made of."

"Your Majesties!" I can hear a voice calling out from outside on my side at the door there as we went forward. I can see one of the royal guards galloping alongside the carriage, keeping himself caught up to inform, most likely my mother and aunt. I open up the door for him, letting him hop aboard.

"Do you have a report on our status?" Luna asked the guard.

The royal guard nods, opening his mouth to talk. "We are on approach at a good distance from the gates of Mortem. Shall we move closer, or keep the distance we plan to be at?"

"Stay the distance, we don't want to take risks." Celestia tells him.

The royal guard nods again. "I will go and tell the others at once." He says, hopping out of the carriage from the door I left open for him, and going behind to inform most likely the soldiers in the other wagons.

(Play Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMix -Keyblade Graveyard- Extended)

We were on approach back to Mortem, and I felt the eagerness, getting up out of the seat I was sitting in, the Song of Order in my possession and turning to the door, wanting to get a good view of what I believe will by the view for the battle plans as well as my own to get into the darklands.

"Are you going somewhere, Brayden?" Celestia asked as I was about to step out.

I stopped for a moment, turning to look at my mother. "I'm going to get a good look at our positions for war. Get yourselves ready, with the rest of your armies."

"Brayden?"

I turned to the sound of Luna's voice, saying my name. Her eyes looked at me as if she really wanted to say something to me. I look at her, ready to hear her, as she is one of the ponies I trusted most in my heart, and the aunt I knew as someone in my family.

"This is the fight for all of Equestria's lives, left in your own hands," She is telling me, both myself and my mother listening to her. "I remember the first time I brought you here to Equestria... now after so long... you've grown. You've become one of us all this time, and I knew it deep inside. If me and your mother don't survive, I want you to do what you can to help Equestria and keep it in order."

"But how?" I asked. "I'm not an alicorn, but only human from rebirth."

"But you are an alicorn firstborn," Celestia says to me, giggling. "Isn't that right, Sun Light?"

I chuckled for a moment at the mention of my old name before being reborn as Brayden. "I'll see both of you on the battlefield." I said to them, turning around and hopping out of the carriage, spreading my wings in flight over the gathering wagons and two carriages.

The other carriage behind the princesses were that of my friends, waiting to get into position. Both behind and ahead are wagon of Equestria's own allies, gathering towards a large field of desert outside of the walls of Mortem, whose red clouds and smoke could be seen rising out from the inside of the lands beyond those canyon walls I'm seeing before my own eyes.

Before my own eyes, I caught onto the gates that the others were gathering in front of...

It was the black gates of Mortem itself, still remaining closed until the word could be said by the Dragon Queen herself that the doors can open up wide with the intention of killing all of us here and now. I fly forward to the gathering ahead, seeing the gate's appearance opening up more, seeing how crooked they were, looking almost as tall as a skyscraper back on Earth, the crooked death-like tone of the dragon teeth as railings for the dark beings to fire their dark magic at us from.

I arrive at the gathering, landing my bare feet onto the dry rocks below softly. A few of the soldiers see me, taking a stand where I am as the others come rushing forward, joining up alongside.

Ahead and above the gates, I recognize that familiar color and shape from afar, seeing that it was Rebecca herself, watching us and waiting for the moment to strike which is what I can assume.

A flash appears on my side, and I turn my head, seeing the familiar draconequus having appeared there before my eyes. It is Discord himself, who I haven't seen for a while. He looks to appear like an army general, kind of like I saw him back when Tirek was attacking Equestria.

"I go on an extended vaction, and come back only to find all of Equestria at war with Mortem, at each other's necks." He complains, exhaling a sigh. "I suppose even so it's as now a good a time to join alongside you Brayden."

"We could use all the help you can give to us Discord," I said to him, smiling. "You can help out on the battlefield. I have a plan already for me to help get Twilight back."

Discord stretches his neck towards me. "If you want, I could definitely just snap my fingers and bring her-"

"Wait Discord, I wouldn't recommend it," I suggested. "If there is some sort of anti-magic alarm there at that black tower inside the darklands, it could detect you trying to bring her here to us."

"Right," Discord says, realizing my point. "The battlefield it is."

Ahead of me, I catch the sight of the gates of Mortem opening up, and Rebecca flying out towards the battlefield, swooping with some speed, her boots skidding onto the canyon ground and stopping a good distance away from us. The soldiers stand their ground, the unicorns channelling magic to their horn and ready should she begin attacking us. Instead, she just stands there with her katanas, her eyes... looking a bit different as they weren't hazel green like they should be... but rather they were red in color.

"Well..." She speaks to me, acknowledging everypony with me. "Look what we have here, the guardian of the ponies and the ponies themselves, ready for battle."

Her voice sounded rather different, than the usual her that I would know. Her voice is there, but another was there as well, being louder than her own voice, sounding rather deep and with intentions in its tone. Like we intending to fight to the very death, no matter the cost and the price paid for such.

"You're going to pay for those ponies you killed." I said to her, glaring as I sheathe the Song of Order, ready to fight just in case.

"Awww, so?" She says to me in a mocking tone. "So I took the lives of some of those Apple-whatever ponies and your precious Nightmare. It's not like you ever needed them in the first place. Even so, that Blueblood fellow was just a puppet for me to get what I want."

I growl for a moment, hearing a hoof step forward. "Where's Twilight?!" I can hear Rainbow Dash demanding, and turn my head to the right to see her attempting to fly at her, but being held back by Applejack to keep things from going wrong.

Rebecca laughs for a moment, the deep voice combined with her own voice giving out a creepy vibe to her laughter. "Don't worry there, rainbow freak. She's safe and sound, at the tower, waiting for that spark to be found, and then the harvest of your lives and land can truely begin."

"Rainbow freak?! That little-" Rainbow Dash is offended by the name Rebecca just called her, but isn't able to charge at her.

"Not if we can stop you and your armies!" I said to her, gripping tight onto the Song of Order, its magic flowing through my veins and my five sparks glowing brightly, strengthening that magic.

"I'm looking forward to this, already you're starting to get warmed up and ready, of course you'll face me and try to stop me," She turns around, walking towards the open gates of Mortem with the black tower now visible before my own eyes as well as the red clouds of death above and on the ground. "Well, that is... if you and your pony friends survive that long!"

"Face me, Rebecca."

She chuckles for a moment, spreading open her wings and getting up off the ground, heading airbourne. "For this moment, not as now... the moment will be saved for you and me, together as it should be, your song... and mine."

"Your song?" Rarity sounded curious at first, then gasping and realizing. "You have..."

"Yes, unicorn," Rebecca says, letting her katanas' blades set into flame. "These katanas of mine, are the Song of Flames. If he thinks he can take them off of me, he is wrong as that claymore of his will be quite the trophy... for me at least."

Ahead of the gates of Mortem, I can see the various creatures and armies of the darklands emerging from the shadows, the soldiers of what remains of the Global Persecution gathered with the deadly creatures and the blood dragons flying above, ready to swoop down deadly flames at all of us. Rebecca stays there, opening her arms out further as they begin to advance out and pick up in speed as they charge at all of us.

"I look forward to what comes next," Rebecca says to us. "I'll be waiting for you Brayden, especially." She takes flight into the skies, flying back towards the black tower, where I knew Twilight was being held.

I turn around, looking at everypony around me. My friends were all there, ready like the soldiers of all over Equestria. The pegasi were ready for flight against the airbourne enemies and the unicorns, staying back in position had magic prepared at will for any ongoing attacks airbourne and on the ground. For the corner of my eyes, the yaks were there, ready to charge at the sound of my call with the griffons joined alongside the pegasi. No sign of the hippogriffs, dragons or Celaeno's ship yet, as the ship was the one that would take me closer to Mortem for the faster way to the tower.

"They're coming Brayden..." Fluttershy says to me, sounding a little panicked.

"Do not be afraid," I said to her, then turning towards the charging armies of Mortem who are getting closer towards us. "For this time, we can turn our fears around, and face it dead in the eye. We're certainly not going to be afraid, because we are Equestria! The magic of the enchanted lands lie within our hearts!"

"Don't you mean the magic of friendship?" Spike asked me.

"Yes Spike, it does..." I waited for the armies ahead to draw in even closer before I finally started to summon my ethereal armor which began to shine brighter that usual. When summoned completely, I looked down, rather surprised to see what it was.

It was not ethereal this time, but more rather had become real. When the bright light had toned down, I look at my armor before me, seeing that most of the body was colored in a white cream-like tone with marking which resemble that of a rainbow itself on the sides. My helmet above me is the same color, but now feature a full face covering to protect me from bright blinding lights when this armor is summoned. My wings are not covered by the armor, which is good because I'll want this to stand out, and it would be too heavy on myself.

I stand my ground as do everypony else, waiting for my signal to make the first move as they were. My mother and aunt join alongside my friends, as I turned my head, seeing their heads and faces now armored with the eye guards on them glowing and resembling the color of their magic aura. I turn my head back towards the oncoming swarm of Mortem's strongest.

"Equestria!" I acknowledged them, bringing the Song of Order forward towards the storm, giving them the signal. "May the light of the First Alicorn protect us forever!"

(Play Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMix -Sinister Shadows- Extended)

With the loudest cheers I have ever heard from my allies and friends, I made the first move, sprinting towards the oncoming dark armies with the sounds of tremendous hooves galloping right behind me. Adrenaline could be felt throughout my body as I pressured myself going forward, one of the clawed ground creatures targeting me first in the lead.

"Wait for it..." The Song of Order's voice said to me as I continued.

I can hear the aggressive roaring of the creatures and Global Persecution members screaming their way with their blades and rifles. The rifles could be a pretty big concern, so I did take good precautions in remembering to tell the guards to shield themselves from gunfire and dragon fire.

"And... now!"

With the assistance of my wings, I leapt upwards into the air, landing a few feet from the first couple of waves with the Song of Order driven into the canyon stone below my feet, creating a shockwave that drove them back a bit. I take the Song of Order out from the ground, leaping forward to clash with the claws of the creatures.

Above me, I can see the beams of my aunt and mother firing at the blood dragons above, knocking them back with effort and unicorn magic being thrown at them from the distance the unicorn soldiers took in position. I take my focus back on the creature roaring in my face, spinning around and slicing its own head off, leaving but a bloody mess. Another creature jumps at me, with Rarity jumping forward and kicking that creature away from slicing a good cut on my armor.

I nod to Rarity as thanks, catching myself just in time from an iron blade a Global Persecution attempted to stab me with, clashing the Song of Order with his.

Around me as I battle, I can see the Earth ponies using their hooves or whatever weapon they have to fight back, with few others shielding themselves from oncoming dragon fire which the heat could be felt from a bit of distance. The pegasi were latching themselves onto the blood dragons, distracting them the best they could and getting them to crash-land onto the ground, making it easier for a kill and a score for Equestria, being that they are the strongest of Mortem.

The man knocks me back, throwing me onto the ground and kicking me in the side of the armor which weakened the amount of pain I would expect to feel. I can see that familiar farm pony pounce onto him, holding him onto the ground as I am slowly getting up.

"Get yer hands off of mah friend!" Applejack yells at the man, grabbing him by his nose with her mouth with a firm grip.

I can hear the man scream in agony as he wrestled for his life with my friend Applejack, but I knew even so that he was a lost cause for swearing allegiance to the Dragon Queen. I leave AJ to him as she grips onto him, slamming him to the ground and bucking him in the side of the chest.

"Brayden!" I can hear Rainbow Dash calling for me as she takes on and avoids gunfire on the field. I run over to her, clashing in defense from some creatures and tossing a few into each other like bowling balls.

"Rainbow!" I called to her as I approach her, ducking down behind a boulder from the gunfire. "How are you doing?"

"It could be better! Me and a few other soldiers are held up by those guys ahead! A soldier is wounded and I'm doing what I can to help them!" She explains to me, yelling over the sound of the gunfire. "I can't reach them over there!" She points to the boulder across from where we were positioned, as my eyes underneath the armor could see a unicorn soldier attempting to mend a pegasi soldier's wounds, as bullet wounds could be seen on the wings, blood dripping onto the canyon ground.

"I'll look into it!" I said, hopping over the rock and into the line of gunfire.

The Global Persecution members firing their weapons see me sprinting towards them, ready to attack, with one tossing a grenade in my direction.

I am too late to react from the grenade as it explodes right behind me, launching me forward to the ground, skidding my armor and helmet as I make a stop, rolling over. My ears ring a bit from the explosion, now knowing what it is like to be in a war itself. I hop back onto my feet, swinging the Song of Order and knocking back some foes, who fire some bullets, hitting me in the armor.

I jump forward at them, recovering a bit and driving the Song of Order into the one who had hit my armor with bullets. He lets out a scream, letting myself kick him onto the ground which slid the blade out from his gut. I catch a few pegasi swooping down onto the armed men, pounding them into the hard ground, the blood of the human men splattering out from their mouths from each hit they took.

Up on my feet, I am quick to notice a grenade landing right close to my feet with a grasp of the direction it was thrown at me from. I bend down quickly, tossing it in the direction towards a few of the creatures and humans. They scramble to get out from the blast zone, but a few are sent flying or have been affected from the explosion.

I open up my wings, spreading them out and entering into flight, placing my focus on the blood dragons that have begun breathing fire right at a few of the pegasi. A couple that were caught in the flames are sent scrambling, screaming their lungs out from pain. A few I noticed dropping like flies from the sky, a few chomps on their wings and a few all over.

Gripping onto the scales of one blood dragon, I can hear it roar and attempt to start shaking me off from its belly that I grasped onto. I take the Song of Order, firmly ramming it through its scales and into it. The shaking begins to get a lot more aggressive as it is fighting for its life to stay alive.

With the blade, I twist it onto another side, driving more pain with more dragon's blood rushing out from its bleeding out wound. I crawl to the side below the dragon, ripping the Song of Order out from the belly and slicing through its left wing to spiral it out of control.

A few pegasi that it faces, use their spears to attack the blood dragon from the eyes, blinding the beast among many others. The blood dragon cannot see and I can see it spiralling downward to the canyon floor below. I turn around, gripping onto its scales still, stabbing the blood dragon in its belly a few more times, then releasing myself as it feel to the ground, slowly getting up.

The dragon itself begins to slowly turn around towards Fluttershy who is busy trying not to get hurt from any of the creatures trying to swipe at her. That beast's eyes are set onto her, eager to kill her. I merely dodged oncoming airbourne fire before making the move to fly down, standing in front of my close friend.

"Look out!" I said to Fluttershy behind me as the blood dragon's belly glowed orange and the fire coming straight out from its mouth.

The flames came forward, with my position still standing my ground. The yellow pegasi took cover behind me, with the flames covering me from my armor. The armor is able to resist for a moment, but on the last bits of the flames thrown, I can feel burns around my chest's sides, knocking me down to my knees.

"Brayden!" Fluttershy screams out, worried about me and keeping herself close to me.

A beam of energy slams on top of the blood dragon's head, which I recognized as the aura of Aunt Luna's magic. "You will not harm him, vile beast!" I can hear her shout at the blood dragon, driving herself forward and stabbing her horn onto the dragon's already bleeding right eye.

While the dragon is fleeting about to look for Luna, I slowly get up onto my feet, charging straight at the blood dragon and swinging at its mouth, knocking its head to the side, allowing me to hop on top of its head.

The Song of Order was channelling magic like no tomorrow, with a burst of magic firing out and around me when I drove the blade straight into the top of the blood dragon's head, the blade tipping into an important part of it's life force: the brain.

It swirls around for a bit weakly to look for me, but falls to the canyon floor, releasing its last breath. I take the blade out from its head, my feet hopping back onto the ground, leaving the Song of Order bloody. I'll need that to show Rebecca that I have defeated one of her own blood dragons with no mercy whatsoever. One creature is sprinting towards me, but one swing isn't good enough as it clashes with its claws.

I scream at it as it roars in my face at the same time, releasing the Song of Order from its grasp and swinging across its chest, making it stagger back and grip onto its chest. It could feel pain.

"Quick Brayden," The Song of Order suggests to me. "Grab one of the dead men's guns and go crazy with that and me!"

I roll forward, gripping onto one of the AK-47s that were lying on the canyon floor, still with ammo lying in it. I aim it towards the Global Persecution members, firing right at them, striking a few in the chest while others began to take cover. I run towards their positions, hopping over one of the rocks tthey hid behind, the bullets fired from the rifle striking two soldiers in the chest with a lucky shot in the head for the one on the right.

Green fire can be seen blowing right past me and I saw Spike come out from right behind one of the rocks, scorching some of the soldiers and creatures. I drop the rifle and grab onto him, placing him onto my shoulder. "Hang on!" I said to him as I begin to sprint down the rocks for cover from oncoming swarms of blood dragon fire.

"What do you need me for?" He asked.

I sheathe the Song of Order for a moment, gripping onto him like a rifle as he had this look on his face as we had a clever idea. I held onto him, using him as a torch to light oncoming creatures into flame. It felt like the first time I ever saw Capper using Spike as a flamethrower against the Mooks. Still, there was no sign of him or the other back-up in sight.

The pegasi airbourne look to be struggling against the blood dragons that are chomping and breathing fire at them, but I am too distracted on the ground to help them out. "We need assistance!" One of the pegasi commanders of Cloudsdale shouts out. "Where is the back-up when we-"

He is cut off, surrounded and burnt by the powerful flames of the blood dragon he was facing, its burns looking fatal as he was falling from the sky towards the ground. After a few more moments with Spike, regarding the flames of green he sent towards the Global Persecution and creatures of Mortem, I place down Spike and spread my wing into flight above.

Down below, I can see that other than the airbourne forces above. Despite the ongoing streak of how many I was taking down from Mortem's side, their side was picking up more. Our earth pony forces were struggling quite a number of fatalities seen on the field. A few of the medics are struggling to even get to them due to the dragon fire being sent from above with every swoop the blood dragons made.

The unicorn soldiers below look to have a hard time as well, scrambling to keep out of harms way, using their magic to shield them when necessary against the bullets and dragon fire. I can feel myself knocked forward, seeing the blood dragon in front of me face me, flapping its wings and roaring at me.

I brought my hand forward, firing a burst of magic into its mouth as it roared, cutting off its breathing temporarily, remembering that the dead bodies of the Global Persecution soldiers had grenades.

"Hey Brayden!"

Applejack caught my attention, bucking a grenade upwards towards with her back hooves. I catch the grenade with my hands, trying not to drop it at first, but looking at the blood dragon who is trying to get its breath back from the magic burst I gave to it. I pull the pin on the grenade, looking it in the eye.

"Eat fire with fire, bitch." I said to it, throwing the grenade directly into its mouth, in the hopes of it actually lodging up into its throat as it chokes.

The explosion practically blew its neck, separating the head from its body, killing the blood dragon and sending its body parts hurling towards the ground with its life abruptly cut off. I put my focus out towards a few of the other blood dragons, sheathing the Song of Order again and flying out towards the pegasi soldiers to aid them.

"We don't know how much longer we can hold them back!" One of the soldiers shouts, scared for their life.

I fire beams and bursts of magic towards a few of the blood dragons that surround the airbourne pegasi, fighting back with them and with all the might I had in me from the five sparks within me.

"Face it Brayden. You'll never win..."

Voices from my past were beginning to distract me from the battle, making me stop firing my magic against the blood dragons and directly at the enemies below. I grunt for a moment with a few others looking concerned why I seemed a little down and didn't want to use my magic when they needed it.

"Come on Brayden!" I can hear Nightmare Moon's voice in my head. "Don't let her win! Don't let Equestria fall!"

Hearing the voice of Nightmare gave me some strength, allowing me to fly forward at the blood dragons, the magic from the blade growing stronger and sending out magic sparks with each swing I took at them. Many successful as the pegasi soldiers gather, using their spears to strike at the eyes, attempting to blind the beasts.

It all looks successful, like we are picking up the pace in the battle, like we were becoming the winning side...

"Brayden! Look out!" I can hear Rarity's voice screaming out.

I find myself slammed in the back from one of the charging blood dragon's tail. I lose grip onto my flight, feeling myself fall downward from the sky towards the ground. Then, I can feel something grip onto me. Teeth! It grips right into my armor, chewing into my skin which causes me to scream out in pain.

I cannot look behind me to see the dragon that it is crushing me with its mouth, but my hands were tied with the Song of Order having fallen from my grip to the canyon floor, so I cannot use magic against it. My wings are also quite useless in the struggle, as I feel one of the teeth piercing through my right wing.

I was being shaken around, almost feeling like I was used as food, ready for death... the strength of its jaw crushing me with its teeth... it's killing me.

"BRAYDEN!" I can hear my mother screaming, the Royal Canterlot Voice within her coming out with panic in her voice, seeing me moments away from possibly getting eaten, or... killed at best.

I can hear magic slamming in the blood dragon as it releases me from its grasp, letting gravity slam me onto the canyon floor, my head facing upward to the sky at first to see the pegasi soldiers struggling with many more dying from the flames of the dragons. My head tilts a little bit, now able to see what is happening in both ground and sky at the same time. I can hear trotting among the gunfire, fighting and explosions.

Mom... she is now standing there above me, bending downward with quite a frightened look on her face as well as my friends who weren't distracted by oncoming enemies, her magic is surrounding my helmet, taking it off to take a look at my face as I slowly struggle to get up.

"Oh my goodness!" Fluttershy says to me with panic in her voice. "You're hurt!"

"I need a medic here right away!" Celestia commanded one of the Earth pony soldiers nearby, letting them go across the field.

By that point, everything felt like it was starting to go silent and out of focus for me. Was I dying? I didn't exactly feel like I was dying, but more of felt like I was in that moment lost in my thoughts from the onslaught I was seeing before my eyes. I can see one of the creatures grip onto my mother, struggling against her which got her out of my eyesight.

Fluttershy... one of the creatures has her pinned to the ground trying to swipe at her to kill her. I feel almost helpless in this silence within amid the pain with blood coming out from the inside of my armor.

A little strength comes to me, and I slowly take the time I need to stand back up on my two legs, kneeling for a bit with the Song of Order on the ground close to me. My helmet rests there on the ground to my left, opposite of the blade I wield.

My eyes kept focus on the warzone in front of me, feeling the pain in my chest of having being stabbed in the sides plenty of times. A few earth ponies are struggling with a few of the creatures, being overwhelmed and becoming food for the creatures. Unbelievable to see the lives being lost around me, even with the thought of seeing a pony being eaten alive and struggling to get away from that creature's open mouth.

The blood dragons above are swooping downward and taking soldiers that weren't airbourne off from the ground and tossing them like toys into the skies, falling right to their deaths. The earth ponies they'd pick up weren't lucky, with some of the unicorn soldiers catching themselves from their fall with their own magic.

"Brayden!" I can hear a faint voice which I recognize as Starlight's, echoing in the distance.

Fluttershy's screams are also heard, but I feel restrained with something inside of my mind... I can't go to her... I can't help her...

"Come on! You've got to get up!" I hear another faint voice echoing, my Aunt Luna.

Their voices of encouragement... The five sparks inside me sparking some hope within... I slowly begin to lift myself up, taking the Song of Order in my right hand. I don't pick up my helmet for my armor, leaving it there on the ground.

"Don't let them win, Brayden," A third echoing voice that is faint is speaking with me, that I recognize as Arryl. "You can overtake them. Believe in you, believe in your friends."

Up ahead as I was readying myself for a final stand, I can various shadows beginning to approach the valley of rock, opposite from Mortem itself and straight from Equestria's side. My eyes are fixing itself to get a good glimpse, trying not to let the sun block my view of what or who were coming.

"Is that..." I can hear a soldier's voice calling out in the distance at the oncoming shadows which I am just starting to see make shapes after moving closer into view that a bit of color would appear.

Relief was thrown onto my shoulders, seeing that from afar, I recognized that shape in the middle afloat in the sky, a great size with a giant flag of Equestria to serve as something for the wind to blow on... the pirate ship. Alongside on both sides were the various races that I knew would come here... reinforcements.

"They're here! Reinforcements have arrived!" The same soldier calls out to everypony on the battlefield as the color appeared for the giant airbourne ship, as well as the huge amount of support from Queen Novo's hippogriffs and Princess Ember's dragons that have arrived with it.

The airbourne blood dragons above me roar at the oncoming allies of ours, making their way towards them, with one swooping right past me from above, narrowly missing me with its tail.

I quickly turn around, turning towards the creature that has Fluttershy pinned down and sprinting towards it, despite the pain that I endured from one of the blood dragons. I hop onto the creature, pushing it off from her before it could even take a gander to swipe at her again.

With magic in my hand, I pushed my hand onto the creature's chest, sending it flying a good distance away towards a few other griffons that were practically tearing into any Global Persecution or any of those cruel-teeth.

The hippogriffs now joined with them, leap downward, grabbing onto any creatures or soldiers they could find, tossing them towards the other soldiers, with plenty more collaborations that I can now see throughout the field. Those large magic blasts that resemble fireworks... I can tell that was Tempest herself, ready to fight for Equestria's name.

I can hear a laugh from above, recognizing it as Capper's own. "You all ready for the grand entrance?!" He says from above, with the roar of the cannons that followed afterwards, plenty headed towards the ground where numbers of Mortem were present. The Equestrian dragons from above, slam and begin to collide against the blood dragons, grabbing at one another and fighting for survival.

"The pirate ship!" I said to Celestia and Luna as they fought off some of the creatures. "Now's my chance!"

"What about your injuries though?" Celestia asks me, worried.

I look at her eyes with assurance in my own. "When we win, I'll have plenty of time to heal. I've got no time to bleed!"

"Hop on, Brayden!" I can hear Celaeno call to me from above on her ship.

"I'm going with you!" Spike calls to me, as he sprints towards me and joins next to me.

"Spike, no!" I said to him, a little concerned for my dragon friend. "This could be too dangerous for you to face against my own enemy. I have to do this alone!"

"No way am I going to let you go at it alone!" Spike argued back with a smile on his face. "Twilight's number one assistant and best friend here!"

I sighed in defeat with a smile on my face. "Alright, hang onto my back, I'm going to fly us up there onto the ship!"

Spike nods, hopping up onto my back and hanging on tightly enough that I wasn't feeling too squeezed. I spread open my wings, soaring upwards towards the deck of the ship. I can feel pain from the bite that the blood dragon, but I wasn't going to give up. I land on the top of the deck, seeing the bird captain and her crew. She took the wheel of the ship, steering it towards Mortem's gates, directly towards the black tower itself.

Capper is there with the rest of Celaeno's crew, right at the cannons and firing airbourne or directly towards the ground at any or all Mortem-blood bound. Spike hops off of me, and I approach the front of the ship, watching everything from above. I can see my mother and Queen Novo collaborating on the field, taking on the soldiers and creatures together. One blood dragon tries to swipe at them, with Rarity and Applejack working together to block the oncoming attack towards their princess.

"En route towards the gates of Mortem!" Celaeno calls out to me. "It's as far as I'll take you and Spike! I can't risk anything else to happen to the ship should it pass the gates!"

"Don't worry!" I called back to her. "It's the distance me and Spike need."

The wind was the guide for the ship, watching as it blew right past the blood dragons, even ramming head on into one of them. I stood at the side, firing any magic towards any of the blood dragons that got too close.

A few of the cannons fire towards the ground, giving out a good blast below at some of the creatures that battle from below including those who were charging out from the gates. My eyes were kept towards the black tower ahead though, knowing very well that Rebecca was waiting for me.

"Hold it steady..." I can hear myself saying as the ship's front with pointed towards the tower with a bit of Mortem's own wind swaying against the ship's side. I can see the ship beginning to make approach towards the black crooked gates itself.

"Spike, come on my back again!" I said to him, with acknowledgement from him as he nods, running over towards me.

He hops onto my back again, with me turning to give one more look at Celaeno and Capper themselves. The look on the cat himself told me that he did wish me luck and hoped that I will be able to find Twilight and save everypony. I nod to him with assurance, turning towards the ship's edge, and with the dragon assistant on my back, I leapt off from the ship, spreading open my wings and making my way airbourne towards the black tower itself.

Below me, I recognize all of Mortem from the last time I was here when getting the last black book. Other than the clawed creatures I saw on the battlefield that I recognized from the first time, I can still see the undead ponies down below that were not even on the battlefield in the first place. One part inside of me suggested to me, what if they are not undead or... zombies for that matter? What if it something brought onto them, like the mist that surrounds them?

The black tower is on approach, with each flap of my wings taking me and Spike closer. I can see the tower a bit more clearly, seeing a single green orb on the floor there with something contained in it. I had a bad feeling about it inside, but I pressed on, letting my armored feet land onto the dark stones at the top of the tower, taking a few steps forward to let Spike get off from my back.

Inside that green orb, I can see not something, but morely... somepony. It was my wife Twilight inside, her eyes closed as if she was in an eternal sleep.

"Twilight!" I called out to her, running towards the orb in the middle, placing my hands onto the green orb, calling her name in hopes that she will wake up. "Twilight! Twilight! Open your eyes!"

"It's no use." I can hear a voice saying to me. That voice, I recognized as the mixture between Rebecca's voice and that deep voice I remember that was within her. My head turns towards one of the pillars where the voice came from.

There she was, sitting there with red eyes, looking down at me with those two katanas out, ready to fight when ready. "The princess of magic has lost her spark. Without it, she cannot wake up and give it to me." Rebecca spoke again with that mixture of her voice and that deep voice again.

Wait a second... the way she spoke... that's not her. With her, she would sound a lot more arrogant about it. "You... you're not Rebecca!" I said to that voice within Rebecca.

Rebecca hops off from the top of the pillar, her wings assisting in getting her down. "I cannot complete my dream, so long as her spark is gone missing. The spark of magic itself."

"Then... the sparks I earned! They're from my friends!"

"Yes, because of the bond you share with them," Rebecca says to me. "Yours and Twilight's bond is completely different though, and I am so close to tasting the victory I long for. It is time she woke up and gave me what is mine, as well as that Song you carry."

"Whoever you are in my friend, you better let her go!" I shouted at her. "Give Rebecca back to me! The friend who didn't act arrogantly towards me growing up!"

"But first," Rebecca points one katana right me. "A spark must be handed back to the princess. And you, have that spark within you."

"What are you talking about?!" I shouted at her. "She is the Princess of Friendship! Not the Princess of Ma-"

A sharp pain from within my body is felt from within, making me groan, falling onto one knee, placing one hand on my chest.

"Brayden!" I can hear Spike calling my name in a worried tone as he joined next to me, turning towards Rebecca. "What was that all about?!"

Rebecca doesn't respond back to the baby dragon, her eyes still set on me. "Don't you see yet, Brayden?" She spoke to me, standing right where she was in the same spot she landed. "The spark itself! The spark of magic! It responds from within! You never needed to earn it from Twilight herself! It was in there all along! You have all six of the sparks within you!"

"I..." I said weakly, pondering to myself about it. "I have all the sparks?"

"I know all that there is to know." Rebecca responded, with that mixture still in her voice.

Eager to know who it was within Rebecca and why she wasn't herself, I looked back up at her. "Tell me then. If you are not Rebecca, who are you exactly?!"

"If you are that eager to know, I will be happy to tell you. That entire Vuurtongo nonsense... it was all something that I planned, long before you were even born in the first place. It was merely a disguise to enter the heavens above to take on the First Alicorn..."

Rebecca opened up her dragon wings and arms, looking above at the red clouded sky above, finally with that mixture of her voice and that deep voice, she spoke to me.

"It is I, Grogar... the necromancer ram of legends. The one that most Equestrians fear, and tell their fillies about at night."

"Gro-Grogar?" Spike asked, having no clue what the hell was even going on at this point.

"You see, that entire harvesting of Equestria? It was never going to kill everypony in the first place, but more rather enslave them. The point of me acquiring the sparks within you, as well as your Song... it would help me forge the Aria of Darkness needed. My dream of turning all of Equestria into the shadows for my eternal kingdom of Tambelon. Everypony, even the puppets I used, would be my own slave."

"You sick bastard..." I said to him.

"That's not all," The goat within my friend said to me. "I have already acquired the Song of Flames needed to begin to forging of my blade. I am already aware of your human friends Ann, Alex and Andrea... they have the Songs of Nature, Earth and Aqua. Once I have defeated you, I will take the Song of Order from you and go after them next."

"You are not going to hurt them!" I shouted at him weakly, still held down by the spark's pain inflicted onto me.

Grogar, possessing Rebecca begins to walk over towards me, the katanas still wielded out, ready to kill me if needed.

"Oh no you don't!" I can hear Spike shout, running right at Rebecca. He is about to jump onto her, to try and snap her out of it until Grogar within used her magic to push him to the side, placing an invisible shield around the area where the baby dragon cannot interfere.

"Brayden!" I can hear Spike calling my name, his claws on the shield watching as Rebecca approached me, standing in front of me.

Rebecca pointed her katanas at me. "So, I shall release the sparks within you, to begin the first part of the Aria's forging. Darkness, lend me your power! Give me the power of magic to forge the blade I seek. Open the door forevermore to the eternal kingdom of Tambelon! Lead me to my throne, as not a king, but a god to be feared!"

Rebecca raises the both of her katanas, ready to strike down at me and kill me, a reflection of how Nightmare Moon's life was taken before from my own very eyes, except it was going to be with the flames appearing onto the blades themselves, being that her body itself is more powerful now.

This is it... I feel... hopeless...

"Brayden!"

Twilight's voice itself was enough to channel the sparks within to come to life from inside of my heart, brightening myself inside more than ever. I can feel myself lift up the Song of Order, quickly enough to clash with the both of the katanas.

"Forget it..." I shouted angrily at Grogar within my friend, slowly standing back on my two feet, the shoulder length hair of mine beginning to change to resemble that of what looks like strands of rainbow colors on parts of my brown hair. I shoved right back, knocking the katanas out from the clash, with the katanas still held onto by the possessed Rebecca, ready to fight.

"...There is no way you are taking these sparks!"