darkSpyro

Hearing Arlon's question, I turn to look him in the eye. My deep, dark midnight blue eyes glisten in the light as I speak. I rake the ground with my hooves and swish my mane as well as my tail.

"Well, I never thought about it actually... I guess, its my compassionate nature. Though when I do think about it, I believe that it is that fact that this is my home and I consider them as something more... What I don't know... All I do know is that this is my home and I will protect it along with all who dwell here. I know that they will die, and my big sisters and I will live on as generation after generation of the them die, but I believe that the time with them, is all worth that, even despite the pain that I feel, when they pass away."

"I see." Arlon glanced away, his silvery eyes narrowed slightly. "I always thought... When I was young, my mother used to tell my little sister and I to respect them. I suppose I did, once, until..."

He laughed bitterly. "I used to think that they were nothing more than tools. Ants to crowd my perfect little picnic. Malleable minds to bend to my will, just to throw them at my siblings and cousins... Hah, and I thought I'd make a better ruler than my dear Niomedes... Not that she was so perfect and innocent, in the end, hm Ideas?"

"I'm not talking about it..." Ideas grumbled, a pained look flashing across their shared eyes.

"Respect is not enough, you need to care about them. You need to bond with them and get to know them personally. Then, and only then will you truly feel as my big sisters and I do."

"It's a starting point." Arlon replied. "And from the little games I used to play... hell, nineteen hundred years ago now, was it? Not to mention the mess I caused when I stole away one of their champions and bent him to become a monster. The prince-regent. The hero of the war against the gryphons. The greatest of them all! But I digress. I do not want to be like you and your siblings. My role is to remain distant, cold, to maintain the laws and processes that her nation rests upon.

"If you want to talk to someone who used to be an empath, someone who used to care," he continued, sparks crackling around his broken horn, "talk to Ideas. He chose to abandon a younger brother and sister for the 'greater good' of equinity."

"Well if that is what you wish then, follow your chosen path. I myself, prefer to get to know and even bond with my people. This way I can understand them. By understanding your people, you can become a better ruler. Knowing their concerns and such allows you to be the strength they need and rely on. It also means that you know what kinds of things you need to address to make thing better for them. Content or even happy citizens means a better and more stable empire."

"That is Niomedes' forte. She is Progress; what good would the continuous progression of society do, if the embodiment of such doesn't connect with the ponies she so lovingly rules over? But Protocol must remain distant. Unbiased. How can I maintain balance if my favour tips to one side? I can tolerate. I can respect. But I cannot get close to them."

Arlon's draconian tail flicked, the kirin looking away.

Arlon watched the sun wearily, before turning to look at Southern Star. With a puff of silver flames, he sent the letter to his little sister away.

"We'll talk later," Arlon said quietly, getting to his hooves.

Ideas... Is it wrong to care?

'What do you mean?'

I've gone so long, without knowing, without caring, about those that our kind are supposed to watch over, guide, and protect. But, I can't help but feel like... I'm concerned for these ponies, Ideas. Goddesses I have never met, and perhaps never will. And it terrifies me.

'Why would that be a bad thing?'

Why would that- I can't start caring now! I've been apathetic for so long, now that I have this feeling... it feels almost like hope.

'And?'

I haven't felt hopeful since father tore me apart, Ideas. I haven't felt hope since anger and hate replaced it in my heart. Do you know what nineteen centuries of loathing does to a pony?

Arlon sighed, his tail flicking uneasily. His expression creased at Southern Star's words, wondering idly when the last time he ate was.

'I- I get it. Believe me, Arlon, I do. It's easier to not care, to protect yourself from being hurt all over again. I've been where you are.'

I did that to you.

'Your point? Have you seen what being around familiar faces again did for me? I tried avoiding them. I didn't want to hurt them again. But things are better now. I can see he- that I'm- that he's happy again.'

Seeing Arlon conversing with himself and feeling his uneasiness, I trot up to him and place a hoof on his leg with a smile.

"Do not be afraid. Whatever you are going through, I am here to help you, support you, no matter what. We are in this all together. We are friends and comrades. Only together, united can we banish this darkness and return Equestria, my home back to normal. Only united, can we save those who have been taken by the darkness, destroy it and free this land of it forever," I say, with my deep, dark midnight blue eyes glinting.

"This isn't my home." Arlon replied. "Once this is over, once I have a way out, I'm leaving. We are not comrades. We are not friends. At best, we are allies to a common goal. Who knows? If the Nightmare presents me a better offer, if it'll get me back to Hyperborea sooner, then I'll take it."

"Nightmare Moon," Ideas said, "or Nightmare Invictus? Trust me, your highness, we aren't any better than the thing that's out there. It's- it's- it'd be better if we leave, the sooner the better, before we- before we get too involved."

"If anything, we're worse," Arlon added bitterly, "because I was never redeemed, or even mad to begin with. Luna can hide behind her pleas of insanity. I held onto the monstrosity I created until the very end."

"If that is what you believe than, perhaps it is best you leave sooner. I don't believe that you are at all, what you say you are. Your heart tells another story, but I will not stop you from leaving if you think it is best. However if you join the enemy, I will have no choice but to fight you. I will not make any exceptions just because we were fighting together before. You join The Mist, you are as bad as it is. You will not be able to escape judgement. You, along with anyone that fought willingly beside The Mist shall pay for their crimes," I say firmly, looking him straight in the eyes.

Arlon merely grunted in response, staring out the window.

"'Bad' is a- is a subjective term." Ideas replied. "I mean- especially for us, being alicorns and... living forever, n' all that. Our ideals go beyond that. We just want to go home."

"As far as I'm aware," Arlon added, a slight smile curling along his muzzle, "is ever specifically stated in law that allegience to Nightmare incarnate is a crime? No matter. If it is, I'll arrange a fix. Besides, if they get to Protocol first, that would theoretically mean that I've joined them, no?"

"I suppose you are correct about that, still we will wage battle against one another should you change sides. It does not matter if it is specifically a crime by law. By threatening the safety and peace of my home, you become my enemy," I say firmly without even blinking as I gaze into his eyes. My pure snow-white mane and tail shimmer in the sunrise.

Arlon chuckled, shaking his head, closing his icy eyes as he turned to walk away from the window. "That's reasonable. But unless you follow me home to Hyperborea, I doubt we'll ever come to a real fight." He opened his eyes partly, his teeth glinting as he smiled, pausing. "You wouldn't want to then."

"Uh, y-yeah!" Ideas called back to Southern Star, his tail flicking with mild frustration at Arlon's 'threat'. "Yeah, we are."

I say nothing in response to Arlon's last comment, as I make my way down the stairs. I gather up my things and place them in my saddlebags, but in the hurry, the wooden box opens and out falls, Midnight's bloody horn. It gleams in the light of the rising sun, making its presence known to the others. I move to pick it up quickly so that no one else sees it, as I do not want them to worry anymore about me.

Arlon frowned slightly, before following the rest. Turning his attention inward, he noted his stores of magic, his frown deepening as he realised that an alarmingly large amount of what he'd taken was missing.

Bah, I'd forgotten how much aether it took to send letters between worlds... he thought, his tail flicking.

"A- it's probably- it's probably a bad idea for you and your friends to come with us into Tartarus..." Ideas said. "It's- it's really dangerous for a mortal, down there."

Crimson red blood paints Midnight's violet horn. Cracks are visible where it was broken off and her blood glistens on the edges. Quickly moving to pick her horn up, I return it to the wooden box, closing the box and returning it to my saddlebags.

"Magic." Arlon grunted, reaching the stairwell. "I appear to have made myself a little more useless than I already am. Hh. At some point, I may have to seriously consider the alternatives, if worst comes to worst... My rune will take either sanity, vitality, or memories as its price, as is the way of dark magic. I'd rather not let it get to the point where I have to use it.

"Oh," Arlon added, "you acknowledged-? Gah, that'll just encourage him. I was hoping he'd shut up eventually."

Ideas mentally chuckled. 'Takes more than that to shut me up, Arlon.'

"True." Arlon replied, a slightly amused edge to his voice. "Hm. It might be good for him, though. He's been alone with no one but me for a long time, and I wasn't... I'm not great company. Yeah... It'd be good for him to prattle to someone else for once."

"'Prattle?'" Ideas laughed. "You wound me."

I continue to lead the group toward one of the hidden entrances into Tartarus. I do not speak at all as we travel, for I am not in a talkative mood. Well that is not true, I just well... I have more important things that I must do, that talk to others. My home, my family and friends are in danger, I must end this evil, so that life may return to what it once was, once again.

"Oh, sorry about that guys. I didn't mean to leave you behind. I thought you were right behind me. Sorry, my mind must be elsewhere," I say nervously raking the ground.

"You're all too eager to go to Tartarus." Arlon said, shaking his head, but quickening his pace. A light frown touched his expression, one he frequently wore, brought upon by millennia of wanting back what the pegasi had. "Frankly, I'm amazed. It's suicide, and I should really be dealing with this alone. That other alicorn down there either doesn't know it, or doesn't care to mention it."

"It'll be fine," Ideas muttered doubtfully. "Nothing bad'll happen. We'll be fine. We'll solve this mess."

Arlon's mane whipped about in the wind, a mix between a flame and corporeal hair. Aside from that he seemed relatively unfazed, and as such, didn't care.

"Most mortals would have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the Underworld." Arlon replied to Flash Photography, his voice frigid. "But that's beside the point. I'm sure we won't need to go to where most of the, aheh, action is. Certainly not the Five Rivers, at least."

'You're hiding behind a front.' Ideas said quietly. 'You're more terrified than any of them.'

"It is true that Tartarus is a dark and terrifying place, but I have been there many a time and know the place like the back of my hoof. Just stay close to me and you all will be fine. If in fact there is someone who can help us in there, I should be the one that approaches them. For I can feel that even you, Arlon and Ideas are afraid, maybe even more than everyone else. Do not be afraid, I will protect you all," I say, my eyes glistening in the light.

"Do you mean Hades, or someone else?" Ideas asked. "We've met. I think he pushed my- our? Our nephew off a tower to get some peace and quiet for a while. Can't blame him, really."

"Nolan defies the general rule of 'don't speak unless spoken to first'," Arlon said vaguely, before his voice hardened, "but trust me. I know what's really down there. I sent one of the... highest-security prisoners back there, again, along with myriads of his servants, and made him wish he'd never met the likes of me. Thousands of innocents, stolen from their homes and families, becoming nothing more than slaves and food for the gryphons. A younger brother and sister, tortured for information they didn't have anymore, both of whom still carry the marks almost two thousand years later. My niece, slaughtered, driving a grieving mother into wiping out a city... no, an entire species, in the name of revenge. Niomedes... She lost her eldest daughter, and was later maimed for life. What else was I supposed to do to make sure that madman never tried to come back?"

Turning to Supercell, Arlon added, "You're naïve. It's almost cute, actually. And you," he turned to Astrello, "maybe you know. But no alicorn could hope to prevail over what's down there alone. And Protocol... no. I will not permit you, any of you, to hurt it."

"I do not intend to hurt or even necessarily fight anything or anyone. If Protocol is down there, I have no intention of hurting him. As for if there is a fight, I won't be alone will I, I say with a little smile and I continue to lead the party onwards. As for our companions, let them come if they wish."

"I said 'almost.'" Arlon scowled, his mane flickering in frustration, but following the others anyway.

"Tartarus isn't a necessity," Ideas said, "it's just to stop these Nightmares from getting a new ally. Maybe to get Arlon his power back, if we're... if we're lucky. We dunno how, uh, how cooperative that the- that Protocol would be, if it's- if it's even there, but..."

"Better grey than white." Arlon said, distracted, trailing off into a mutter. "Or black. Thousands of lights... Watching, always watching, the hivemind... Always rearranging, always something new... How many thousands of possible combinations can they think of after nine hundred years? Give it enough time, a pattern will emerge. It always does. Heh... aheheh... heheh..."

'Are you okay?'

Given the circumstances? No. Remember how I used to be when we were stuck together in the moon?

"... But how am I to know... There's always a variable... a... an irregularity..."

'Marginally. Why?'

Clearly, I'm not handling things very well. Powerless, already teetering on the edge of insanity, barely able to hold back the trauma of what he did to me, this gods-forsaken magic withdrawal I'd managed to keep at bay since I took that castle's magic, and then descending into Tartarus. It's a great day, no?

'So you're... pretending... about everything.'

You can only pretend for so long.

Trotting over to Southern Star and Flash Photography, I drape my wings over them. Taking a few steps down the stairs, I turn toward them. My deep, dark midnight blue eyes glimmer in the light of my glowing horn as I smile back at them.

"We could, uh, teleport?" Ideas mentioned, pushing Arlon's consciousness back. "I think we've got enough magic for a- uh- a few of us. I hope. Without Arlon going all... craz- well, it's already happened... Besides, going down the mountainside- we'd be a bit exposed, wouldn't we?"

"Well, yes- but think of it this way; say we walk down the mountain, or whatever, and some of those... things... attack, would that be more efficient if we fight them than if we just skip right down to the bottom?" Ideas proposed. "See, we're dealing with theoreticals here. Y'know, Arlon's thing. He should be agreeing with me here."

"I'm not agreeing with you." Arlon replied stiffly.

"If you are low, on magic Arlon/Ideas, it would be unwise to use what small reserves you have now, just to save yourself some walking. Besides this place is brimming with magic defenses, including cancelling magic, which includes teleportation. The only way in is through these stairs or some secret passages that my sisters and I only know," I say as I trot down the stairs and wait at the bottom for the others.

"If I wasn't low on magic," Arlon stated, "then I wouldn't have condemned the ponies in the castle to them, wouldn't have I?"

"Knowing you, you probably still would have, actually." Ideas grumbled. "Doing something cruel under the guise of- of- what was the word you used? Pragmatism?"

"At least it's cruelty for a reason this time. Sever the limb to preserve the body. Do something amoral for the greater good. You don't see many, aheh, 'reformed villains' going out of their way to fix something that doesn't involve them."

Arlon frowned at the descent down the stairs ahead of him, the stubs of his wings twitching. Using a pair that didn't belong to him just didn't feel the same as what he'd remembered, and his antlers couldn't support the amount of magic it'd take to craft a temporary pair.

"I miss them," he muttered vaguely.