Ashes I: Escaping the End
A Fading Light
Story by: Fire Blanket
I remember... back when I was a child. My friend, my closest and dearest friend... we used to fly through the vast fields outside the city, soaring through the endless sea of clouds that formed the barrier between us and that below, the clouds that engulfed our immaculate city. I remember back to those days, when we would spend so much time out there, simply moving through the air, taking in the sunlight and feeling the wind on our faces.
We spoke no words to each other, we hardly ever did when we were out there. We would just... let ourselves be free, let our emotions and thoughts move us and guide us through the fog of clouds, letting our minds wander to whatever passing thought or idea we had. We would waste hours out there, silently ducking and twisting through the sky, away from the cluttered, tight spaces of the city, with its people and noise.
Out there, in the clouds, we were the kings of our own worlds, with no rules no hold us down with no parents to chastise us for what we did, we just went off on whatever whim we had. Of course, we would always get berated by our parents upon our return they would always tell us how Sen’yoth, our allfather and creator, gave us our wings for a purpose, for a reason, not to be used for petty flights with no goal to be accomplished, and how they told us how dangerous it was to be in open space like how we were, every day.
We never listened to them, we would always be right out the next day, flying together through the air, and we would always come home to be routinely put down for our misuse of our God given wings. They never meant it, I don’t think. They knew they wouldn’t stop us, with words of course. They could have easily gotten our wings sealed for a few days, to prevent us from flying uselessly, but they never did. I suppose they just knew how much we loved to fly, how much it meant to us to be out there in the sky, free to our own thoughts, the talkings just there to add to the sentiment of it all.
I miss it all. I miss the flights into the open air, where we were free. I miss the constant talks from my mother and father, where I was reminded just how much they cared for me, how much they enjoyed just being with me. I miss it all so, so much....
“Captain!”
The shout jarred me out of my state of being somewhere between sleep and not, where I had been reminiscing about my childhood again. I found I had been doing that quite frequently in the past years, with my recruitment and subsequent position in the Koh’ran, the Royal Military of Et’ran, taking up the majority of my time. All of the work as a Captain over an entire squad had taken me to remembering, wistfully, back to when I was younger, when I was more free in what I could do.
“Captain, please, we must hurry!”
I felt a hand grab my shoulder and shake me roughly, prompting me to turn my head and see Je’lar, the Knight of my squad. A good man, quite young for a soldier, but ultimately one I could trust to get a job done. Even with the seasoned men and women I had under my command, he somehow always managed to outshine them, earning the rank of Knight.
“Captain Ari’edal, it is an emergency, we must hurry! Now!”
He gave me another shake, his armored hand digging into my shoulder, and successfully pulling my mind out of whatever strange state it had been in. I had no idea why I had been acting in such a way, when it was obvious something was wrong.
I shook my head clear of the remaining fog and stood from the seat at my desk, taking a second to look over Je’lar. He was in full suit, the standard gray robes of the Military, the black, silver lined tabard bearing Et’ran’s own Silver Cross, and the hood of his garb pulled up, the mandatory enchantment replacing all within with a pool of black.
His other hand was on the hilt of his sword, and his gray wings were giving an occasional twitch of anxiety, their feathers ruffled slightly. I could tell from his almost worried stance, and his grip on his weapon, that something must have been very wrong, especially with his previous words, and the adornment of his armor.
I let my glance linger on his empty face for a moment, and I bolted from my desk and over to my cabinet, throwing the doors open to retrieve and dress in my own armor. I slipped on the silver greaves and boots over my legs and feet, and the gauntlets over my hands, then reached for my robes, throwing them on and pulling my hood up, activating the enchantment and giving a vision a slight, gray tint.
Next, I slung my tabard over my head, and grabbed the black leather belt and tightened it around my waist, keeping the tabard in place, and allowing my scabbard and holsters to hang freely. Finally, I carefully and quickly pulled my sword from the prongs holding it up, and I slid it into it’s scabbard, followed by the two silver rods that made my chakrams, which went into their respective holsters.
I took a brief moment to stretch my own, large white wings, making sure they weren’t obstructed by my robes. Though an enchantment was in place to make sure my wings could pass through the material, it was instinctive to check.
I shook my head, assured that my wings were unhindered, then turned to Je’lar and asked, “What’s the emergency?”
He walked past me, ushering me to walk beside him as we swiftly made our way out from my office and to the main hall of our squad’s quarters. As we walked, he told me, “I honestly don’t know Captain. One minute I’m peacefully asleep, the next I hear that half the kingdom is in ruins, with forces marching on the capital as we speak.”
I jerked my head to the side and, unseen by him, wore an expression of shock, “What? Half of... what are we dealing with here?”
He pushed through the double doors leading to the main room, where the rest of my squad was gathered, all suited for combat, and all with similar, anxious stances. When they saw the two of us, they gathered their weapons and headed for the front doors, all heading out without orders.
“We don’t know the enemy,” Je’lar said darkly, “they sprung up from underneath and just... destroyed everything in front of their path. A barrier of pure Darkness was erected around the kingdom, none have been able to escape, but these... things that are invading, they just keep coming.”
I decided to ignore my squad leaving without my order, as there was obviously something greater hanging overhead, and they most likely were under order from higher ups to leave as soon as I was prepared, not the first time it’s happened.
Instead, I focused on Je’lar as we also made for the doors, “Give me a straight answer Je’l.... How long do you think we have?” He seemed to slacken at my question, and silently opened the doors before us, letting me view the capital outside. It was... all the answer I needed.
The sky, the beautiful clear sky, was tainted and colored a sick black, while the shine of our radiant sun just barely saw through from the other side. The endless fields of white clouds that surrounded the city the ones I spent my youth flying so freely through, were black and disgusting, their once thin and pure forms now corrupted and heavy like smoke.
The massive, sprawling city below the castle we were stationed by was... decimated. The ivory towers which went on for miles were broken, destroyed, burning, and crumbled down to nothing, the city was in turmoil as black figures of twisted and unknown origin soared through the sky, raining down heavy, black and red showers of evil energy, tearing apart the streets, killing all who were struck by them.
Just down the path from our quarters, leading into our city, I saw my squad. They were dead, cut apart or burned, glistening red blood spilled over the ground, and not a body of an offender to show me they stood a chance to live. They were butchered easily, just a short distance from me, by whatever theses monsters were.
As I stared down from the castle’s perch, watching with a sickened eye as my home was ripped apart before me, Je’lar said somberly, “I would like to say we had an hour... but I don’t want to lie....”
“What in Sen’yoth’s name is this...?” I was breathless at the sight before me, unsure if I was dreaming or in reality, “How long have we been under attack?”
“A few short hours at the most....”
A few hours... Et’ran was a kingdom spanning a universe of space, the pinnacle of all being within the Yt'vomar, the Expanse of Creation. A few hours was all it took to reach the center?
I fell to my knees in shock, my wings lying limply at my sides as I stared hopelessly down at the destruction. Je’lar just stood there, not moving and not speaking, so I asked, “What do we do...?”
He still remained silent, so I turned to look at him, only to wish I hadn’t. An indescribable figure made of pure shadow was behind him, two purple eyes staring down at his body, as a pitch black sword jutted through his chest, blood running off the smooth blade and silently falling to the ground in small drops.
I stared up at this being in still and silent horror, while it simply disappeared from sight. After it had gone, I found myself staring back at the ruined city, tears rolling down my face as I watched it fall to pieces.
I then noticed something, as I watched my city die. All of the monsters and beings had gone, all left the city completely. I had a strange feeling then, an overwhelming sense of terror. I was alone. I could tell, all of them were dead, all but myself. I don’t know why I thought I knew this, but I could just sense that I was the last one.
It was at that moment that a large wave of air passed over my, a heat wave that pushed the trees, clouds and fires all around as it spread out in a shock wave. It was then pulled back to the center, the very center of the city below, pulling all of the trees, clouds and fires slightly forward with it.
Right there, at the center of the city, it happened. A crushing pressure filled the area all around the city, and a vile red light began to shine from the center, growing brighter and brighter, the pressure strengthening in time with the growing light. Finally, I saw a brief flash of red, then nothing. The whole world... no... the whole of Existence went silent.
Horribly... deathly silent.
“You are going to die, hero.”
“Why is that, you say?”
“Because we all will.”
“Explain yourself.”
“We will all share that same fate, the End shall consume us.”
I opened my eyes, strangely. I had died, I know I had. But why would I open my eyes once more? And what were those voices I had heard? How am I... alive?
“You are not.”
I screamed and clenched my eyes shut in fear. That voice, Sen’yoth’s might that voice! I heard everything, all of everything crushing down on my very being, all of it from that voice. Countless souls, worlds, stars and universes screaming out at once, the entirety and presence of all things were within that voice!
I was not the smartest of beings, I was not the most perceptive, but that voice spoke not to me, but through me! It drove into the very core of my being and demanded I know its power and sheer weight, the weight of all things within it! It was deafening and terrifying, silent and calming, a great sound that made me hide in fear like a child from their angered parents, but one that wished to beckon me out from my hole, to console me.
I curled up into a ball, wishing to hide amongst my robes and conceal my entire body until nothing remained, and I cried. I was afraid, truly afraid from three simple words, yet the sounds of the voice also assured me I had no need to be. It shook me to my core, throwing my mind- no, my soul -into turmoil as I tried to comprehend it in full.
I was stuck in a twisting, maddening, downward spiral into a pit of unspeakable insanities, and at the same time my mind was soothed, lifted from the depths of chaos by a calm hand and a gentle touch, set high from the reaches of the equally pressing fear.
“Stand up, child.”
Again the words assaulted me, only three words more and I was on the verge of collapsing, yet forgetting all that troubled me. I did as the voice had said though. I didn’t follow its words on my own volition, the force behind them commanded me to stand up to their vastness, demanded I be standing when they spoke to me.
“Open your eyes.”
Again only three words, nine in all, and I was close to the edge. I opened my eyes to be blinded, but I saw so much more within myself. Inside, I was standing on the peak of a mountain, so elevated from the ground I could reach out and touch the stars. But I wasn’t seeing the universe, instead my mind’s eye was forced downward, staring at my feet as their heels were the only thing touching the edge.
Below me, below the mountain I was so fraily standing upon, was darkness. An uncaring, violent, evil darkness that twisted and moved on its own accord, lashing out at the crumbling rock I was perched on, calling silently for me to leap forward and be embraced by the madness it so freely gave away.
“Look at me.”
Three more words, and the vision in my mind disappeared, as my eyes cleared of their obstruction so I could see, all the while my mind tearing itself and healing at a faster, more sporadic rate. The sight which greeted my no longer blinded eyes....
I could never describe it. The beauty and horror of the image I viewed, it was beyond my comprehension. Simply gazing upon it forced my mind to break, but in the same moment, it repaired itself, halting the chaos I was pushed into.
“I am sorry.”
The effect its voice had on me seemed to cease with those words, and I was returned to my state of mental balance I held before. Even still, however, the weight of what I beheld carried with it, it was immense. I was clad in robes and armor enchanted to withstand most of anything, yet I felt bare and naked before this being.
“You must be confused, I am sure of it.”
It spoke in longer sentences than three for the first time, and what it spoke was true.
“You are dead, but the rules set in your Existence permit you to not be.”
What could it mean by that? Rules set in my Existence? Did it mean Yt'vomar? What rules could permit me not to die, when I am such a small speck, an atom compared to the vastness of Yt'vomar?
“The rules were set by one Sen’yoth, your creator. He designated what would happen should he eventually die.”
Sen’yoth... died? Is that what it implied?
“Yes, he has passed on, child. As well, all of the beings from within your Existence have passed.”
Yt'vomar is empty.... All have been killed by that force that overtook us, I would presume.
“Correct, the End had consumed it. All life, and the Existence itself, is no more. You, however, are an anomaly, produced by the End.”
I was struck by the information, that all of Yt'vomar was gone. How could this “End” be so powerful? How could it have destroyed the ninety nine Domains below Et’ran without us knowing? Was it that fast in its path of destruction, that it could destroy them all before we would know?
“It is unnecessary to think of such things, child.”
In an instant, a flash of pain shot through my mind. Why had I been thinking of such things like Yt'vomar’s demise? This being obviously wished to speak of something important, I should listen, other thoughts are unnecessary.
“Good, now listen. You are an anomaly, child, as I said before. The rules mentioned, set by Sen’yoth, made you so.”
What could it mean by that?
“His rules were that, should he die, his title of creator and owner of his Existence would pass onto the next being in line.”
So he had died, and his title was passed on to whoever was next.... But what could that do to me?
“The rules also would make it that, should the one the title was passed to die, it would continue to pass on and on. So many died that the title continued to pass on, until it reached you, the one who was, unluckily, left as the last being in your Existence.”
So I inherited the title of Sen’yoth? So I was correct when I felt I was the last in all of Yt'vomar.... But it was destroyed, as this being said, so the title was pointless.
“It was, so one would think. In actuality, your title as a creator and owner of an Existence still holds firm, but the Existence you would have owned was destroyed soon after you became the owner.”
What could that mean then? If it was destroyed, yet I am still an owner, what will become of me?
“Unfortunately, there are barriers ahead, blocking you from completely fulfilling your title.”
What does that mean?
“I will not lie, I am that which creates these owners and creators of Existences, such as your Sen’yoth. Under usual circumstances, should one die like Sen’yoth did, I would simply create one more. However, given the rules he set, I cannot do so, and must use you instead.”
Surely that must cause some complication? It sounds as though this shouldn’t happen, and would cause a problem.
“Correct, young one. For you see, I have no open space to allow you to create an Existence to rule over. That would be the first issue.”
What could the second one be?
“Your body would not be able to withstand the power needed to create an Existence. If I were to simply give it to you now, your body and soul would be destroyed completely.”
Then what will happen? What could be done to fix this?
“I have a solution, but I cannot reveal it to you yet.”
Why?
“You will come to learn in time, when I deem you ready. For now though, I must send you to a new world, where you will start your path to being a creator.”
Do I have any say in this?
“No, you never have, nor will. I am sorry.”
I... see.... What am I to do to start my “path” as you called it?
“This world I am sending you to is corrupt and overrun with evil, kill it.”
Kill... what? The evil, the corruption?
“No, the world. Now go, child.”
I felt my mind seer with pain again, and the intensity caused me to black out.
(Ashes- A ruined city)
When I opened my eyes, I found myself standing at the top of a high stone wall, my body and mind intact, and my memories of that being still very clear in my head. Looking around, I beheld a sight not too foreign to what I saw in Et’ran.
The wall was to a castle, the gray stone worn and cracked, vines growing creeping up the sides and choking the structures. Below was a vast, desolate land, the vegetation gray and wilted, the dirt roads cracked and dry, and the far off image of a town that was burnt and destroyed reached my sight.
The air was hot and humid, and the sky was dark, the sun barely shining through the heavy smog that seemed to blanket the land, and forks of lightning cracked through the sky constantly, a light rain falling on the heated ground.
If I strained my eyes and focused on the ground, I could see something else, a large collection of figures shambling across the land at a slow, unsteady pace. They were of a variety of sizes and shapes, but I couldn’t make anything else out about them otherwise, so I simply chose to look past them for the time.
Instead, I decided to focus on a strange, growing sensation across my arms, a feeling like metal heated by the sun pressed against my bare flesh. I rolled back the sleeves of my robe, and pushed up the white linen of my undershirt, revealing my arms and what had been causing the strange feeling.
A sight greeted me that I know was never there before, one with an unknown origin, though I could make a decent guess. Black marks, almost like ink, were crawling up my arms, from the wrists to the shoulders, taking the form of large chains, wrapped around and spiraling up.
A single chain was on each arm, the final links of each one stopping at the outside faces of my shoulders, and starting at marks resembling shackles, revealed by pulling my gauntlets forward slightly.
As I stared at these marks, the burning sensation faded away, at which I pulled my gauntlets back and returned my sleeves to their full length, seeing no point in staring at the marks for any longer.
If I were to wager a guess, the marks were given to me by that being, and they’re possibly related to my “path” in some way, though because it wouldn’t, I have no idea what they’re really for. Given that it was the last thing I talked to, and that it sent me here, it’s safe to assume it gave them to me.
I didn’t linger on those thoughts for very long, however, as with no real knowledge, it would have been a waste of time to contemplate what the marks were for. So, I instead turned away from the edge of the wall and stretched my wings, gently gliding down to the courtyard of the castle below, which greeted me with an unpleasant surprise.
As soon as I landed, the dry dirt of the ground shifted in various places, and old, dust bones and armor moved about. From within the ground, erupting with a series of loud cracking sounds, came more bones, and a few pieces of armor and swords.
The objects whirled around, flying to different already existing piles of bones and spinning around in small, tight circles around said piles. Within a few minutes, the bones and armor had assembled into something I never thought I would see; animated skeletons.
They were short things, possibly only half my own height, and stood on four legs, with a figure similar to a small horse. They wore old, tarnished gold armor, stained with blood and held on by rotten leather straps, a few having holes in their armor for either bone wings, or a horn jutting from the forehead.
The ones with horns were the first to actually react to my presence, turning and glaring at me with small, pinprick flares of blue energy, set inside their abnormally large, empty eye sockets. The horns on their head lit up in a blue mist, which also wrapped around the hilts of the swords they had nearby, lifting them into the air haphazardly.
The other ones, with wings or without either those nor horns, also turned on me, slightly delayed behind the horned ones, and with no weapons of their own. There were twelve in all, five horned ones, three winged ones and four without either, and they all shambled towards me slowly, in a way that made me guess that the ones I saw far down below were also similar constructs.
They stumbled forward mindlessly, the horned ones giving slow, uncoordinated swings of their swords, missing me entirely, but by the amount of stone and dirt torn from the ground on impact, it was clear that they had great strength behind them.
I took a few steps back, pulling the silver rods from their holsters and holding them out to my sides. With a forceful push, a large wave of dull gold energy traveled down my arms and into the rods, igniting in a ring around each one, with four blades spaced equally apart. Strangely, it took a larger toll on my body than normal, signalling I was low on energy, and would need to rest.
I didn’t pay that much mind though, as the horned ones were preparing to swing again, and the others were getting closer. I looked between them all, seeing they had formed a rough semi-circle around me, with the horned ones in front, which I decided were the priority targets.
I threw my chakrams forward, and they impacted on the skulls of the closest horned ones, shattering the bone and knocking the helmets into the air. As the chakrams returned to my hands, I heard the sounds of their swords clattering on the stone ground.
I didn’t focus on that, however, and sent my chakrams out again, this time straining my body to use more energy, redirecting the path so that they would take out four more, three horned ones and one winged one. The fact that half of them were destroyed so easily made me wonder who would make them so weak, as bone constructs aren’t natural phenomenon as far as I knew, but I figured I could find out later.
The remaining skeletons, without weapons or any way to fight, were simple to destroy. When I was finished and my chakrams were returned to their respective holsters, I found myself surrounded by piles of shattered bone and bent armor. I noticed something strange about the bones, however, a soft blue glow emanating from the individual skulls.
As my curiosity grew, I was surprised by what happened next. A blue orb shot up from each skull, leaving a trail of light behind them each, and they flew through the air in an arc, aimed straight for my body. Before I could move, the orbs converged and hit my chest, and I felt an overwhelming rush of energy surge through me as a result.
The sensation lasted only a few seconds, and I was left wondering just what those orbs were. I had no knowledge of Necromancy, the art used to create such things as those skeletal constructs, so I had nothing to go off of, and I was thus left clueless.
I shook it off, deciding to head into the castle before me, where I might find answers. As well, the rain was beginning to pick up, and the castle would at least offer shelter, and possibly some knowledge as to where I was.
I made my way through a large hole broken in the wall of the structure, finding the inside to be oddly well lit, by blue magical fires burning on wall mounted wooden torches. Given the similarity of the fire’s color to the eyes and orbs of energy on those skeletons, it was believable that the Lich responsible for creating them was within the walls, hiding somewhere inside.
I stopped just at the entrance and glanced down both ways in the long, dusty hallway within, before taking another step. As soon as I did, I heard a crunch underneath my foot, and I looked down to see old, worn bones of a creature, similar to the constructs I had just defeated. These bones, however, did not reanimate, even after a period of waiting, so I assumed they were not a construct.
I was about to step past them, deeming them unimportant, when something under the bones caught my eye; a small, brown, worn leather book. I bent down, brushing the bones away and picking the book up, hoping I might find some information within. Flipping through it, I saw a majority of the old, stained pages were too worn to read, though I could make out a few words on the first page.
“I’m going to keep a journal, now that it’s all started to get bad. I like to think that, after Equestria’s inevitable end, any survivors that find this would get a kick out of my rambling---
---ays since Ponyville fell, nopony knows what to do. It’s rumored the Elements, at least the ones other than that damned Twilight Sparkle, were killed alongside the rest of the town. Our only way out of this whole thing, and it’s useless no---
---to thank. I can’t believe the Princesses would allow that thing out, and even believe it wouldn’t do something like this in the end! Now everything’s gone down, and nopony knows if it’ll ever get better. I---”
There wasn’t much else on the first page, but I had at least garnered some knowledge, more than anything I had before. I stored the journal in my robes, choosing to read the rest later, whatever I could make out at least.
For the time being, I had a ruined castle to dig through, which still had no name I could place on it. At least, however, I had a name of the general land, or at least I understood I did.
Equestria, that was the name of the world I was sent to kill. For what ultimate reason I had no idea, but I chose it best not to question the order of that being, as it’s simple words could drive me to the edge of madness. Besides, given the state that I had seen the immediate parts of the world in, as well as the words of the obviously very old journal, it seemed that death may be a better alternative either way.
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