The Price of War

POV : Universe

Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity sat together and watched the centennial comet 'Herald of Light' pass by Equis, their world, from a hilltop just outside the town of Ponyville, oblivious to the danger they were in.

Meanwhile.

In Canterlot, the capital city of Equestria and home to its ruler Princess Celestia and her student, Twilght Sparkle, who, at this moment, were watching the very same comet from the garden of Canterlot Castle as Celestia had done countless times before. This time however,  something new happened, the tiniest of shards, no bigger than a small cottage, broke off and fell toward the planet.

One week later.

A strange eeriness took hold of the night. A soft rumbling audible only to those that truly listened. Most slept unaffected by this sound but six mares were thrust from their slumber by an acute awareness of their world. All six walked outside of their homes to find what had woken them. They turned to the sky drawn by some invisible force, Pinkie Pie's tail twitching to the point of her falling to the ground. The air itself churned whipping dust from the dirt, birds fled their homes, creatures scrambled to escape the unseen danger. An immense booming snap ripped through the sky as a thundering ball of flame passed over head. It tumbled through the air, terminating its fall in the plains outside the town. Four of the six immediately took off, galloping toward the fallen entity, while two remained still, one staring in awe, the other cowering like the world was at its end. The first to arrive at the crater was Rainbow Dash, she flew overhead and landed a short way off.

"WHAT TRICKERY IS THIS?" bellowed a voice from the crater, "Oh for the love of sanity not this again!"

Rainbow walked up to the edge of the fresh-made pit, "Hey, you okay in there?"

Her eyes came to rest upon a form that was not of her world. Ever the most bull-headed of her group, she went on the offensive. Pumping her wings hard she flew straight up, at the apex of her climb Rainbow angled herself at the alien beast and tucked in her wings. Time itself seemed to slow as Rainbow accelerated. Her eyes widened in horror as she saw the beast move, straightening and spinning, extending its arm toward her neck. Rainbow snapped her wings open and flapped retrograde, trying to slow herself, but it was too late. She closed her eyes as the creature's long, dexterous fingers closed around her throat, her life flashed through her mind, everything she had ever done or wanted to do, all of her existence, but the squeezing she expected never came.

The thing that held her life in its paws started to chuckle, “If I wanted to kill you I would have done so before you left the ground,” releasing her it continued, “but my days of killing are at their end.”

“What are you?” Rainbow Dash opened her eyes and saw the creature had turned its back to her.

“I am the incarnation of hatered and conflict, I am the second horseman of the apocalypse, I am the destroyer of entire worlds, but you may call me War.”

“So War, why are you here?” Rainbow Dash questioned.

“I have no idea,” War stated, “but if I were to hazard a guess I would blame that infernal, accursed Council.”

“What are you talking about?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“Nothing of value,”  War waved dismissivley. “What is your name?”

“Huh?”

“Your name, what is it?”

“Oh -- um, it's Rainbow Dash."

War twisted around to stare at her with his glowing white eyes, the only feature she could make out under his hood, “Surely you jest?”

“What?”

“You joke about your name?”

“No, that would be dumb and uncool!”

“Rainbow where are ya?” cried Applejack emerging from the Everfree.

“I'm down here!” Rainbow replied, “You gotta come see what I found!”

“Why're ya in that hole?”

“Because I'm not the only one in the crater!” Rainbow called back, turning to War, “How're you gonna get out of this hole?”

“Like so,” he said, crouching. Rainbow's keen eyes spotted small wisps of dust swirl around War's massive feet before he

shot into the air faster than she could follow. When her eyes finally found him he was about ten metres above the crater's edge, his shadow cut a very imposing figure against the moon falling just outside the border. War slammed into the ground kicking up a large dust cloud.

"AAAHHH!" came a scream from the cloud. Rainbow Dash flew straight into the swirling mess, " Applejack! I'm coming!"

Using an old pegasus trick she flicked her wings out and up sending a wave of air into the dust, dissapating it. Applejack opened her eyes to War looming over her.

Instinctively she spun around to buck him but faltered and fell when he spoke, "Ask Rainbow how that will end."

"What's he mean ?" Applejack turned to Rainbow.

"Hehehe... Well... Um... When I first saw War here," she gestured to the Nephilim, " my first reaction was to attack."

"My entire purpose before I came here was to kill and destroy, so I have a keen sense for those that would harm me, as such I am very good at stopping attacks quickly."

"Ah don't mean to pry, but ah gotta know what's under yer hood."

"The second reminder of my mistakes." War pulled back his hood to reveal a pale scarred face with burning white eyes and a snarl.

"What's the first?" pried Rainbow.

"This." War hoisted his massive metallic left hand, which was promptly enveloped in a blue glow.

"What a monstrous beast! Never fear girls Rarity is here to help!" War sighed deeply before turning to face Rarity, he snapped his left hand down from where her telekinesis was holding it this in turn sent Rarity flying through the air. War reached with his right hand to the hilt of the massive sword strapped to his back.

"So, you have magic. Why then, are you not aware of your environment?"

"What are you talk-AAAHHH!" War swung the sword form his back in a swooping arc sending forth a wave of flame into the forest and knocking back the timber wolf pouncing on Rarity, "Oh thank you, thank you, thank you! You saved me!"

"Don't mistake my actions for kindness, I just hate my brother more than I do any of you."

"I don't follow. What does your brother have to do with anything," asked Rarity.

"My brother is Death," War spoke softly. " Should anything die after encountering a Nephilim, Death will come to escort

that being's soul to the Void."

"So if anypony here dies, Death will come?"

"Indeed. But before anything important happens, I need to rest. After all I have not slept in eight millenia."

Pinkie Pie walked out of the Everfree wondering what she would find in the crater of the fallen object and planning an 'A Massive Meteor Just Crashed' party, she stopped when she heard her friends talking to somepony she'd never met.

"Ohohohoh, I wonder if he likes parties?" Pinkie considered this for a fraction of a second. "Of course he does, everypony likes parties!" Her mind raced at the possibility of having another friend, and the mere thought brought her such joy that she pulled from, what her friends often referred to as 'Pinkie Space', her 'Welcome to Ponyville' cart and rolled it toward her friends.

War's honed senses picked up Pinkie's mutterings from behind him as Rarity asked, " Why do you wear such hideous clothes?"

"Because this is no mere outfit, it is a suit of armor that has saved my life on more than one occasion. Where I come from nothing is aesthetic and everything performs a function."

As Pinkie and her cart drew up behind War, he added, without turning, "If your friend turns whatever that thing is on, bad things will happen will happen to her."

War lifted his massive blade over his back and held it there. A single loud click rang through the air. War snapped his hand open dropping the sword onto the cart. The sound of shearing metal, splintering wood and gasping mares filled the night. War turned and withdrew Chaoseater from the wreckage and placed it on his back. A strange off-yellow substance began to leak from the remains of the cart.

"Oopsy, I mixed up the cake-batter and confetti again!"

"Tell me, where does your ruler reside?" War asked.

"In Canterlot Castle, of course," said Rarity.

"Where is that?"

"That way," said Rainbow Dash, pointing at acity on a mountian shadowed in the light of the rising sun.

"Thank you, and goodbye."

War summoned his shadow-wings and took off toward the city.