Shadows of Katsura

There was a beautiful fountain at the north of the village, decorated with peculiar, mysterious carvings of ponies in cloaks.

One of its stones sat awkwardly out of place.

A small opening was visible in the ground, a faint orange light glowed from inside.

David sat next to a lit candle, in the middle of a small wooden basement. Before him, sat a medallion, so simple and unremarkable in its design that it could've been mistaken for a cheap old trinket, sold at every souvenir store for a laughable price.

A simple round shape. A dark gem in the center.

David hesitated for a moment and touched it.

Nothing happened.

He slowly picked up the medallion and wiped the dust from its surface.

"Please..." he whispered "I need to protect my friends... give me a talent mark to protect them"

He closed his eyes. Nothing happened.

"PLEASE!" David screamed "I KNOW MY FATE IS NOT OF A SOLDIER!! I KNOW!!!... We practiced... Sam and I... we practiced with swords until we couldn't lift our hooves anymore, but our cutie marks wouldn't appear... I know I have no talent for combat BUT I NEED IT!!!" He screamed shaking the little medallion "LET ME DECIDE MY OWN FATE!!! I - NEED TO PROTECT THEM!!!... Please..."

He sobbed.

Nothing happened.

The medallion remained dark. No cutie mark had appeared.

David bitterly wiped the tears from his face as he hung the medallion over his neck.

"... stupid thing..." He muttered as he made his way back to the fountain. The night sky was filled with smoke of countless fires. The screams in the distance became much fewer in number.

"Sam..." David whispered "Hang on"

* * *

Sam sat on the cold floor of his home, a wooden practice sword rested before him. His mother was sitting behind him, holding him in a tight hug. Every so often, an explosion would ring, making both of them shiver. The small, white pendant on his mothers neck emitted a faint glow and went dark again.

"I thought it doesn't do anything" Sam asked to break the frightening silence.

"... it doesn't" his mother replied with a smile.

"Mom... how can you be so calm, every time our soldiers go into combat. Don't you worry about them?" Sam asked looking at her.

His mother smiled: "They don't need us to worry. They need us to believe. Our trust in them, gives them the strength to fight and come back to us."

"They need us to trust them?" Sam slowly asked.

"Yes" his mother smiled. A sudden explosion drowned out her words. Wooden planks began to rain from the ceiling and half of the roof collapsed down on them.

Sam screamed in panic and crawled out of the rubble. His mother was on the floor beside him. She didn't move.

"Mom?... MOM!!!" Sam screamed, then immediately slapped himself out of shock. His fathers words rang in his head, and he followed instructions just like in practice:

Check for pulse. Sam lifted her hoof.

Check her breathing. He placed his ear next to her chest.

She was alive, slowly breathing but she wouldn't wake up.

Check for visible trauma - his fathers words echoed inside his head.

Sam looked over and found a wound on her head. It wasn't big but the sight of it made Sam shiver in fear.

The front door of his house suddenly slammed wide open.

"DAD!" Sam called, but to his horror, an unfamiliar soldier walked slowly inside. His armor was foreign. His sword was stained red.

Sams eyes widened in terror. He slowly reached for the wooden sword, laying nearby.

"Put the toy down" The enemy soldier smirked but Sam only grasped the sword tighter and slowly rose to his hooves.

The soldier laughed, then suddenly lashed out and the wooden sword snapped in half.

Sam stared at it in horror, then took a step back and fell on the ground. Uncontrollable fear began to slowly consume him.

"Close you're eyes" the soldier smiled "It will be over sAAAAAHHH!" he suddenly screamed as a sword pierced his chest from behind. The soldier stared at it in confusion, then slowly fell to the ground.

Behind him, was Sams father. Heavily breathing, injured, stained red but alive.

"Dad!" Sam screamed and rushed forward as his father heavily fell on one knee.

"Dad!" Sam called "Mom won't wake up!"

"...take her... Get out of the village" his father slowly replied.

"But... you said-"

"And now I'm telling you to go" his father heavily exhaled looking at him. Sams eyes widened, he opened and closed his mouth again several times without saying a word. His father smiled and gently ruffled his hair:

"...protect those you cherish, son... I love you"

A dozen hoofsteps rang behind them and twelve enemy soldier appeared at the front door. Sams father slowly rose on his hooves, heavily lifting his sword and taking a stand between them and his son.

"Time for you to go" his father quietly said.

The soldiers released a smug grin: "You got balls, old man"

"This is MY house" the older pony replied, raised his sword and charged forward.

He turned into a blur. His sword danced, reflecting the light and with each strike another blood chilling scream filled the air. The soldiers roared, as their brothers heavily fell to the ground. They attacked without mercy, hammering at the old pegasus over and over, until one of them broke his attack.

The sword flew out of his hoof and the soldiers slashed over his knees. Sams father heavily fell to the ground, an enemy soldier approached and slashed his neck open.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Sam screamed, grabbing his head. Something clattered under his hooves.

His fathers sword.

Without thinking, Sam grabbed the weapon and charged forward.

His eyes were mad with anger, the heavy sword sparking as it dragged the ground.

The soldiers lifted their swords.

* * *

David was almost at Sams house when he noticed the roof had collapsed. He froze for a moment, staring at the destruction before sprinting inside.

"SAM! WHERE ARE YOU!" He screamed rushing into the house. "SAM!" He shouted and almost tripped over a body of an enemy soldier.

"Damn it! SAM WHERE ARE YOU!" He screamed again, running further inside. Sweat was heavily dripping down his face, obscuring his vision. His heart was racing, as he checked every room, his shaking legs barely keeping him steady.

"Sam, come on" he called in desperation "SAM ITS ME!!! COME ON - SAM! S-"

David froze.

A moment ticked by or maybe an hour, as he kept staring somewhere further ahead.

Slowly, unsteadily he made a step forward "...Sam?" he called his friend, but Sam didn't answer. He just quietly laid on the floor. His eyes closed. A sword set beside him.

David slowly approached and fell on his knees next to Sam. He gently picked up his friend and looked at his closed eyes.

"Sam... come on" David called in a shaking voice and suddenly noticed the red stains that covered his body.

"Sam... no... No..." David sobbed "God please no... Sam" he gingerly hugged him, as tears fell from his eyes.

"Please wake up... please" he pressed his forehead against Sam's.

"Sam... don't leave me..."

The village in the Whispering Valley, burned in a silent fire. No more screams were heard over the rising ash.

A lone unicorn figure slowly stumbled out of a broken home, a little medallion over his neck.

* * *

Sams mother slowly awoke. She could not understand why there was broken wood in her house. Then she saw the bodies around her.

Her husband. Her son. She rose on her hooves.

"No no.... no no no no, its too early" she mumbled, stumbling toward Sam. She reached out and hugged him, then with a steady hand she reached for her pendant, pressed it against her lips and whispered right into it:

"Please... he's too young... I beg you"

The white pendant glowed in response. The mare smiled, wiped the tear from her eye and tied the pendant over Sams neck.

A smile appeared on her lips as she whispered: "...I will always be with you-"

* * *

David was slowly walking through the ruins on his village. He payed no attention to the bodies, or the enemy soldiers slowly moving about.

He kept walking, emptily staring ahead. His eyes were blank, an empty expression was over his face as an enemy soldier suddenly ran into him.

David fell.

The enemy soldier roared "You piece of trash!"

"GET THE HELL OF ME!!!" David suddenly shrieked, his eyes filled with rage.

"I will END you" the soldier sneered, raising his sword.

"Get - out - of my village" David muttered under his breath, slowly rising back on his hooves.

The soldier laughed, aiming his sword at David: "What the hell are you gonna do boy?"

David was heavily breathing, his fists clenched. His eyes burned with barely contained anger.

He heavily swallowed and looked right into the eyes of the soldier. Something very unsettling reflected in Davids eyes, and the soldiers smile slowly faded away.

David gritted his teeth and muttered in a low, hoarse voice:

"I will kill you"

The soldier quietly looked at him. Any trace of a smile was gone. He had the sword aimed at Davids chest, carefully watching him.

"...can you?" the soldier quietly asked "can you really... kill a man?... A living, breathing man like you?"

David gritted his teeth: "... You... Murdered!... my FRIENDS .... my FAMILY... and now... you want to kill ME?!

WHAT MAKES YOU THINK - FOR A SECOND - that I will hesitate to take your life"

"...then, go ahead" the soldier quietly answered. David scowled. His horn glowed. The medallion on his neck flashed.

And an invisible force ripped the soldier in half.

The sound of the dying pony echoed heavily across the village. A dozen soldiers ran to the source, only to find a ten year old unicorn standing over their soldier. The medallion on his neck glowing with an unsettling light.

The soldiers hesitated for only a moment, before their commander shouted: "KILL HIM! TAKE HIM DOWN!!!"

A dozen soldiers rushed toward David. The colt shrieked and the soldiers around him exploded.

A gigantic pillar of light, struck out of the Medallion on his neck and into the night sky above.

David slowly rose over the ground, screaming. His voice filled with all the pain, tears and anger he hid inside him.

Red flames slowly engulfed his body, his eyes turned red.

His talent mark flashed and slowly appeared.

It was a dark Scythe.

* * *

Sam violently woke up and twisted around in confusion. He remembered vividly, how an enemy sword pierced his chest. The pain was unbearable, and then, the darkness came.

Then why is he still here? Why is the pain gone? He looked at his chest and found no trace of injury there. And then he noticed his mothers small pendant, slightly glowing over his neck.

"Mom?" he called in confusion "What happen-"

He froze, staring in horror as he noticed his mother laying beside him. A large open wound in her chest, in the exact same spot that Sam had.

"No..." Sam bitterly whispered "No NO!!! YOU SAID IT DOESN'T DO ANYTHING!!!" He shook her shoulders as tears appeared in his eyes.

"ITS NOT FAIR!!! YOU SAID ITS JUST A PENDANT!!! You..." Sam bitterly sobbed "I was supposed to..."

He hid his face in his hooves as a sudden scream echoed over the village.

Sam twisted in its direction, consumed by fear. There was something so familiar in that scream. And yet so frightening.

So much anger, so much unbearable pain echoed inside it that Sam involuntarily shivered, shaken to his core.

He ran outside and saw the gigantic pillar of light, that struck the sky in the distance.

At its center, was a small, fragile figure of his friend.

"David" Sam whispered and sprinted toward him.

* * *

David screamed until he ran out of breath. He closed his eyes as bitter tears fell down his cheeks. The light slowly faded and he fell back to the ground. Sitting on his knees, among the death and destruction, he punched the ground, cursing the world.

Someone was screaming something, just over his ear. David violently pushed them away, unable and unwilling to open his eyes again, just to see any more of the savage horror around him.

Someone was calling his name, then grabbed him and started shaking his shoulders.

"...What do you want from me" David sobbed and suddenly saw Sams frightened face, right in front of him.

"DAVID STOP! ITS ME!!!" he screamed at the top of his lungs.

"S-Sam?" David squeezed out, fresh tears appeared in his eyes and he tightly hugged the colt in front of him.

"S-Saam..." David sobbed: "I thought you died..."

Sam was sitting with a stiff expression over his face, holding David in a tight hug.

"Sam..." David called again: "Everyones dead..."

"...I know" Sam quietly said, closing his eyes.

Dozens of hoofsteps rang in the distance. Enemy soldiers beyond count appeared and stood in perfect rows in front of their commander.

"Sir!" one of them called "The village is ours. The Shadow clan is no more"

"Excellent, prepare to-... what the hell?"

Their commander slowly turned as he noticed David and Sam, sitting close together, amidst ruin, ash and a dozen dead bodies.

The colts looked back at them. There were more enemy soldiers before them, than they could count.

"Sam..." David quietly called: "...what are we going to do?"

Sam looked at the soldiers and scowled:

"...kill them all"