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"You bastard!" Sentry's blow landed unhindered against my jaw. I let him unleash his anger upon me. It was the least I could do, and I deserved it.

Grabbing me and shoving me into a wall Sentry continued to strike away. "You sent me away on a pointless mission. I could have... I could have been there. I might have been able to-" Sentry collapsed against me, tears running down his face as his blows dwindled away into weak taps.

There was nothing I could say to make this up. People say time is a remedy to all ailments... But I knew from experience that time only turns loss into a lasting scar. "I know what he meant to you, Sentry. To lose those you care the most about is-"

"I can't do it anymore... This pain, make it end." Sentry begged. I shuddered at his words, they reminded me of the agony Kira was still in.

"This is my fault." I pushed Sentry away and stared into his red, tear stained, eyes. "You can hate me. Hold me responsible for my copy's actions, let that keep you going. But don't you dare give up on life that easily. Got it Flash?"

Sentry nodded, wiping pointlessly at the tears that would continue until he ran himself dry. He took a shaky breath and stood up a little straighter. He began to walk away, his slogging steps betraying the brave facade he was putting up.

I continued on the way to my original goal which Sentry had interrupted, Xane's death was fresh in my memory, and even though my heart ached I couldn't find the tears.

"Halt" I stopped upon hearing one of the castle guardsponies. Realizing I had arrived at the room Celestia had taken Kira to I took another step.

"I am going to have to ask you to stand back," spoke the guardspony.

"Why? What's going on!?" I asked, somewhat panicked.

"The princesses say there are to be no interruptions, even in an emergency. The magic they are working with needs every ounce of concentration. Even Discord seemed unusually... Worried."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Luna told me you should go rest. You will be notified of any change in Kira's condition."

~~

Luna entered my room, silently watching for a time as I gazed lifelessly out at the moonlit gardens. "Ike, I need to ask you something." She spoke, pulling me out of my stupor.

"What is it? Is it about Kira?" I frantically peered into Luna's eyes, praying for some glimmer of hope, finding only sorrow.

"Have you and Kira been... Intimate?" Luna asked.

"Yes, but I don't see what that has to do with any of this. Is she's doing any better, can I see her?" I begged.

"Kira lives, and looks to make a full recovery with time. But the trauma... It was nearly too much for her, let alone her developing child."

"Kira was- she was pregnant?"

"It brings me great sorrow to say that she indeed was. Though in such early stages life is fragile, the child is lost."

"Oh god..." My mind sped with emotion, my heart aching in torment. "I..." My mind flew to the dark altar, sanguine ichor flowing from its sides. His mocking form stood in the bloody pool, eyes taunting.

A dark rage swept over me, silver flames tinged with a blackness that seemed to absorb the light burst forth from my skin. "I'll kill him!" I growled out, my rage spewing forth, manifesting itself as raw energy.

"Ike you must calm down!" Luna cried out, her royal voice barely carrying its way past the din. She stood her ground as my rage tore the room to pieces, cracks forming in the masonry.

"I'll strangle him with my own hooves!" I snarled, taking a step towards the window as a chunk of the ceiling fell down, smashing into my back. Lashing out wildly I launched a shockwave of energy, the entire roof of the tower shattering away and tumbling towards the courtyard below.

"Ike! Please rethink this." Luna stepped in front of me, staggering before the maelstrom of my wrath. "You must not let your emotions rule you, I know very well that is a path that leads to darkness."

"Move." I growled taking a threatening step closer.

"You must see reaso-"

"I said move!" I growled as I focused my energies, Luna's hooves scrambling for a better grip as her own protective shielding began to falter. Her face screwed up in pain just before the barrier collapsed, allowing the dark energies to flow through her unprotected form.

A cry of pain shattered my vision as Luna simply disappeared from sight. Shards of images cascaded down around me, the shining fragments falling away into a empty void before dissolving into nothingness, their destruction leaving me in absolute darkness.

I floated, utterly alone in the maddening silence.

Unable to move.

Unable to breathe.

Lifeless except for the burning rage.

That too slowly subsided as I realized there was nothing I could do.

What had I done???

"Ike, wake up." A small glimmer in the distance peaked my attention, suddenly I was able to move once again, my hooves grabbing at nothingness as I made my way towards the light.

~

I awoke with a gasp, nearly falling from the chair by the window. It was all a dream? I looked around the undamaged room, my eyes falling quickly on Luna. She let out a ragged sigh, the toll of my actions in the dream having affected her even in the real world.

"Luna... I- I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, I just lost control."

"I had thought myself invincible in the realm of dreams, it seems no place is truly safe. Your actions are deeply concerning Ike, you have a darkness within you. I pray for all of us that it never creeps forth into the waking realm."

"Are you going to be ok?" I asked.

"I will be all right child, I just need rest. The process of healing Kira is taxing."

"What about the elements of harmony, can they do anything to help? Even if they can't we still might need them to fight the Imperium."

"I forgot you were not here... The elements have been returned to the Tree of Harmony to restore balance to Equestria. They will not be of use, even though it is the easiest way I know to cure a possession. Ike, please take time to reflect on what you have witnessed tonight. Such outbursts should be avoided in the future." Luna shakily went to the door, opening it with unsteady hooves.

"Luna..." My voice begged for the forgiveness I knew I couldn't receive. Whatever trust she had for me had been broken.

"You should rest, you can check Kira's progress in the morning."

~

My dreams were not peaceful, as Luna didn't dare set hoof in my mind again to quell the uneasy tide. I was scared, and never before had I felt so alone. Monstrous visions of my shadowy counterpart taunted my sight with blood and death. I could only hope they were nightmares rather than visions.

~

"Ike." Celestia's voice coldly woke me from sleep, my drowsy eyes lifting slowly. "You are permitted to see Kira, but we must speak on an important matter afterwards." Celestia left as fast as she had awoken me, several guards accompanying her. That was strange, she normally didn't bother having guards escort her when inside the castle.

I wandered down from my personal spire, the winding stairs taking what seemed like ages to come to a stop. The hallways of the Alicorn Sisters' castle seemed to narrow in on me as I walked, giving me the dreaded sense that I was no longer welcome to roam them freely.

I turned a corner, the way leading to another flight of steps partially blocked off by Discord. I gave him a questioning glance but he seemed to ignore me as I walked past.

"Celestia is plotting something, I would suggest a hasty retreat." Discord spoke, skulking along behind me.

"What?"

"She believes you too great a threat to Equestria in your state."

"I am a threat... I've seen that first hoof and I don't just mean my possessed copy. Luna could be dead right now if my actions weren't just a dream. I'll accept whatever she has planned after I get a chance to see Kira, even if that means somepony else will have to face my trials. I- I'm afraid of what will happen if I have to face him again... Face myself."

Discord put his paw on my shoulder, bringing me to a halt. "I'm not the best at this sort of thing, but I believe you need to reconsider. I may take great pride in my action of bringing you to this world but your accomplishments are your own. Do not fool yourself into believing that anypony else has a solitary hope of stopping the evil that will soon spread across the land."

"But none of this would have happened if I had never arrived." I turned to look into his ancient and knowing eyes for answers.

"You belittle fate, Ike. There is always some form of darkness lurking. Your arrival may have sped its coming, but it would have reared up in a different form given a little more time. So far you have managed to keep it at bay, a feat I believe no other could have accomplished in your hooves. "

"Discord, thank you." I paused, thinking aloud. "I think this is the first serious conversation I've gotten to have with you."

"I have my moments." Discord let out a chuckle. "Feel better?"

"I think so, but I still need to accept whatever Celestia has in store."

"Ike, do you trust me?" Discord looked at me with a dead seriousness.

"For the supposed master of trickery you've done nothing but help me, why is that?"

"Maybe I'm going soft, or maybe the secret of the trick is to wisely choose those whom it effects." Discord snapped, a doorway materializing on the wall to my right. "Take this door and don't look back. Despite their newfound fears Celestia and Luna will still do everything in their power to help Kira make a full recovery."

"And what if I don't go?"

"It's your choice, I can't force it upon you. Just know this decision holds far more weight than it appears, the consequences of either path-"

"He has to be here somewhere, find him!" Celestia's voice harshly cut across my hearing, interrupting Discord.

"Choose now, while you still have that freedom."

...

What was I supposed to do, stay and accept punishment from an Alicorn notorious for the millennium long banishment of her own sister? I had wanted no more than for this to be out of my hooves, but Discord had given me the option to dive right back in.

Then why did I choose the door, why did I choose to continue fighting at every step? Was it because I would always feel guilty if I walked away from my responsibility to this world, or was it the burning desire for vengeance against the bastard who would dare kill one friend and harm another? My mind was befuddled, even I didn't know the answer...

All Discord's doorway really did was throw off any pursuers, but now that I had taken it I knew my life would be different. I was no longer an Equestrian Prince, despite any intentions I was now likely this land's most wanted criminal. It was time to say farewell to these lands, at least until everything was set straight... If things could even be fixed at this point.

Author's Note:

~ Thanks for reading.

Crunch time here for the end of semester. A short hiatus of 2-3 weeks is possible if I don't have time to write. Otherwise there will probably be one more chapter in that time frame before I get some free time.

Other news, I apparently have a severe vitamin D deficiency. And holy hell I forgot what being a human was like... My brain was in zombie mode for so long because of it. Getting the daily D has helped immensely. And I mean a massive load of D (alright, thats enough with the dick jokes). It comes in 500IU (International Units) aka get more sun you dumb fuck, 1000IU aka get out of the damn cave you filthy pigmy, and 5000IU aka wtf dude are you a walking corpse? I happen to be in the latter category 0.o. Final Verdict - Fuck You Genetics.