Equestrian Souls: Fires of War

EQUESTRIAN SOULS
Chapter twelve: entangled hearts
Written by TheCrimsonDM

The next day I found myself leading my friends into the woodland just north of Twilight’s Kingdom. The woodland here was actually part of a forest once called Whitetail Woods. The Running of the Leaves was held here in part once a year, a very long time ago. I doubted that we would ever see another Running of the Leaves. Looking up at the sun I just couldn’t believe that Twilight was left alone to take care of both the sun and the moon. Along with everything else.

We were simply looking for the Silver’s Knights base camp, when we find it we were going to destroy their supplies. We didn’t need to do anything too violent, if we could pull this off without being caught. It was imparritive that we did this mission without being caught.

I had both Moon Shadow and Myst in my team at the moment. Storm Feather and Rainfall were staying behind at the castle. I hated leaving Storm Feather behind even for a moment, but he was simply too loud for a stealth mission. Rainfall stayed behind to keep him company.

The base camp wasn’t as far as I had thought it would be and was fairly easy to spot. I looked down at the camp and could see around fifteen different soldiers all wearing silver armor. Most of them had long swords, but a few had spears or bows. I really didn’t’ want to mess around with these guys.

We moved around the outside of the camp keeping to the tree line and examining the camp. It looked like there supplies were being unloaded into a couple of different tents at the back, and this is where things were going to get tricky. It would be easy to destroy the supplies with my fire magic, but that would draw all sorts of unwanted attention. Moon Shadow had his red shuriken spell, but the timer on that wasn’t long enough for us to escape.

“So any plans on how to destroy the supplies and get out without too much commotion?” I asked the others.

Moon Shadow said, “I can do this, but it will be risky.”

Myst then added, “I could whip up some explosive chemicals.”

Me and Moon Shadow both looked back at her in confusion hoping she would explain further. Myst explained, “well I know alchemy, I’m not the best, but explosions are something I’m good at. I finally restocked my supplies while in the city.”

I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t excited to find out what my little zebra could do. Me and Moon Shadow watched from our hiding spot as Myst brought out some different powders from her jacket. She worked quickly to add various things together before finally adding a thick red liquid to a glass jar and sealing a lid on it tightly.

Myst then gave the glass filled with a red liquid to Moon Shadow while saying, “It’s not nearly as good as say…dynamite, but this causes fire to spread like crazy fast. You just need to place this somewhere near the goods and then puncture the lid, once you do that we have about sixty seconds to sneak away before it explodes.”

Moon Shadow nodded in understanding before sneaking off into the camp. We waited and watched as he sneaked into the camp, and go inside the largest tent. We watched him come back out after a few moments and he made his way back to us at a quickened pace. We were about to turn and run when fire erupted out of the tent and covered the nearby tents as well. The soldiers began scurrying towards the tents as we turned and left stealthily.

***

Our return to the kingdom was hastened by the fact that the soldiers behind us were approaching faster than I had expected. Traveling through the forest had us climbing, jumping and running through the heavy foliage. I didn’t want to be forced into a conflict with the soldiers, but the further we ran the less possible that seemed.

After galloping straight for nearly ten minutes we had slowed down from exhaustion by a great deal. I got my first look at our pursuers than. There was five ponies fallowing us, from my quick glance they all looked to be earth ponies. Wearing leather armor allowing them to move easily through the forest, they moved with practiced ease compared to us.

I knew we weren’t going to be able to outrun them anytime soon so I stopped and turned on them. Two arrows went flying right passed my head as I did. I charged towards them while pulling out my war hammer with my magic. The five of them separated on my approach.

One of them was too late to move and I smashed my hammer into his skull with a bone crushing thud. The earth pony before me fell limp before my hooves. His blood coated the top of my hammer where his skull had given way to its weight.

I froze as I stared at his body, I had just killed a fellow pony. I nearly dropped my weapon at the shock of my realization. I had killed monsters, dogs, and undead. But I had never killed a living pony before, not one of my own kind. This felt…wrong.

I stood still a little too long and felt a terrible pain cut across my side in an instant. I looked over seeing a new tear in my leather armor, and an earth pony staring at me while holding a whip in his mouth.

Rage took over and forced my fear away as I charged at him swinging my hammer. He dodged my slow weapon with deft ease. I looked to my right just in time to see something flying towards me. I managed jump back just as an arrow passed by my muzzle, missing by a hair. The whip pony took another swing at me causing me to move back even further.

He continued to attack forcing me to back away more and more. I looked behind myself just in time to dodge another pony who had set up an ambush for me. The pony tried to stab at me with a glowing dagger made of pure energy being held aloft in its blue magic aura.

I managed to position myself behind the unicorn just in time as the whip came cracking down a second time striking his ally and ripping a large section of flesh away from him. The unicorn fell to his knees screaming in agony and I took the opportunity to charge at the whip pony.

I didn’t use my hammer for this attack, instead I used my hooves and with lightning speed I began smacking the whip pony repeatedly in the face. After the third strike the whip pony went down and my hooves came back red.

I looked up and saw one of the archer ponies staring me down. He had a bow in his hooves as he stood on his hind legs. He loosed the arrow just as Myst jumped from a tree branch with a pair of deadly hooves aimed at him. I unleashed a spray of fire in an attempt to stop the arrow.

The ‘now’ flaming arrow hit me imbedding itself into my left shoulder. I screamed out in pain and quickly ripped the arrow out. I instantly regretted that as the pain tore through my shoulder told me that I just made a mistake. The amount of blood I saw coming out of my wound didn’t help either.

I quickly grabbed my healing flask and took a drink from it. As my body healed I saw Moon Shadow approach me, his daggers were held aloft in his telekinesis, stained with blood. Myst joined at his side and walked towards me. I turned to leave just as I realized that the unicorn was still alive.

I quickly walked towards the unicorn who lay on the ground, his back had suffered a grievous wound. This wound wouldn’t kill him so long as his comrades came to his aid quickly enough. I looked over to Myst and she began digging through her bags for her healing flask. I didn’t want to leave this guy wounded like this, not when danger lurked out there.

Moon Shadow stomped his hoof and said, “are you serious? He’s going to tell his friends who did this, and then there will be trouble for your old teacher. This could start a full blown war Light.”

Myst stopped looking in her saddle bags for a few seconds and looked to me for advice. I didn’t’ want to kill this pony, he didn’t deserve to die just for being on the wrong side. But at the same time he was going to betray us to his soldiers and Moon Shadow was right, this could start a war. I…knew what to do.

I closed my eyes and felt the weight on my hammer in my magical grasp. I didn’t want to do this, and I knew that I could just have Moon Shadow do it for me…after all he was better at this kind of stuff. I knew that I had to be the one to do this, because I was the one who brought everypony out here, because I was there leader.

I opened my eyes and looked upon the pained face of the unicorn. He had light blue fur and a gray mane sticking out between his violet eyes. His eyes were full of pain, and fear. I could tell he didn’t want this, but he already knew what I was going to do.

I swung my hammer down and felt the weapon go through the unicorn’s skull. I stared at the now limp body for a few moments before finally pulling my hammer free. I ignored the looks from both Moon Shadow and Myst, and began moving at a trot towards the kingdom. I don’t know how I did it, but I managed to stay strong and not cry all the way back to the kingdom. I think I earned some respect from the two of them for that action. But I found myself questioning whether it was the kind of respect that I wanted.

***

I couldn’t stay still while at the castle itself, so I decided to explore New Canterlot. Killing that soldier had upset me, and I wasn’t sure what to do about it. Moon Shadow had obviously appreciated the act but then again he was always more aggressive than me. Myst was a little bit off, and these people had betrayed her. I understood why she wasn’t upset with the unicorns death.

I on the other hoof wasn’t sure how to feel about this. I had just killed an injured pony, a defenseless pony. It felt wrong, but I knew that I had to do it. Even if I had asked Moon Shadow to do this for me, then it would have just shown a weakness that as his leader…I could never have again.

Memories of the Mire, and how I nearly got everypony I cared about killed by being unprepared and irrational were playing through my mind. I was their leader, I knew this was true but it didn’t help that even after the Mire I nearly killed them again by trying to fight my way into Ponyville. I’m glad that Moon Shadow had told me to come here to Princess Twilight and ask permission first. It was nice not having to throw my friends into the deep end for another crazy quest of mine. I often found myself wondering why they even followed me.

I knew that I needed to become tough, to become strong. That meant I needed to be able to handle any threat, and be willing to brave certain dangers alone. I would also need to take responsibility for my friends, their actions were my actions. I also needed to be the one who made the hard decisions, and did the hard things. I couldn’t let them do this. It was my burden to bear.

The city of New Canterlot was a little different from what I had expected. There were soldiers around every corner, all of them would give me their respects as I passed. Some of them told me how much of a hero I was too them for standing up too King Silver. Others however looked at me like I was somehow a villain, but they still gave me their respect. I guessed that I had earned it.

The civilian ponies around the city were usually found in the bustling markets doing trade, or at the restaurants making small talk. I found ponies playing games, and some making art. My favorite ponies were the ones who would sing. A few times I found the soldiers singing alongside them, this place was peaceful and happy, at least in the busy sections of the city.

There were a lot of places in the city where I didn’t see any ponies expect for the guards walking by. More guards seemed to be posted closer to the walls, and with more guards came less civilians. That worried me, I would’ve figured that ponies would be out and about all through the city. Not all huddled into the most popular spots, closer to the castle.

With the amount of guards I saw around the city. I could tell that Twilight truly was prepared for war. Should anything come bearing down her front door they would find themselves in for a world of hurt. I continued exploring the city until it got late in the afternoon when I finally decided to come back to the castle of gold and see my friends again.

***

On my way back I found myself pleasantly interrupted by my good friend Storm Feather. The brown feathered and handsome griffon landed next to me, his trademarked heavy armor was replaced by some red and gold colored robes. The symbol of the sun was embroded in gold on his chest. I could feel my face warming to his presence.

“Light, I have been searching for you since your return,” Storm Feather said in a worried tone.

I looked away not wanting to look into his eyes. I knew that I had been avoiding him. I just didn’t want to think about…things. I then asked, “Why, is something wrong?”

He approached me and said, “I was told about your stealth mission for the princess…and how it didn’t go quite as planned.”

I refused to look into his face as I said, “does anything ever go as planned.”

Storm Feather gave me a kind smile. I couldn’t help but look at him now. “No plan survives contact with the enemy. That’s something my father always taught me,” Storm Feather explained.

I looked around and noticed that the two of us were on one of those empty roads. There were a few soldiers walking by but other than that this road was quiet. I could tell what he was wanting to know, and to be truthful he wasn’t the only one.

“Light,” Storm Feather began saying in a kind and gentle voice, “My clan has been at war with the Rainbow cult almost all of my life. I have seen, and…done some things that I am not proud of. The second I was old enough I left out on a journey to find something better than what I had seen. I joined the Crusaders hoping to become a hero, or at least to find some adventure. But when my clan truly needs me I go back and aid them as best I can. I am one of their strongest warriors after all.”

I looked up into his eyes, and where I expected to find pity I found understanding. I asked, “what does that have to with me though?”

Storm Feather looked deeply into my eyes and explained, “I understand what doing hard things to protect the ones you love feels like. You are not alone Light.”

I could feel tears running down my face, those last words hit me hard and my emotional walls broke. I wasn’t supposed to falter and cry on him anymore, I was supposed to be strong but I needed him so badly. I couldn’t stop myself as I told him, “I killed a defenseless pony, there was no honor, no challenge, nothing good about it all. I murdered him so that Twilight wouldn’t be suspected.”

I felt Storm Feather wrap his arms around me and say, “you protected your friends, like you always do. You are a good pony, even when you do the hard things. By knowing that what you did was not just, but needed, you are able to keep your honor. I would be worried if you could do this, and not feel pain over it.”

I wrapped my hooves around him and cried into his chest. Storm Feather was the best thing I had going for me right now. Everything else was just so hard. Reed was completely gone, I was chasing his ghost if even that much. My other friends seemed to be more heartless or hardened then me. And I was still expected to be the leader. The only one who could help me when I broke was Storm Feather and I still couldn’t tell him the three words that I really needed to.

I looked up at him and found something that surprised even me, Storm Feather was crying. He stared at me with an expression of compassion, and understanding. He held me tightly and I felt warm and safe in his embrace. I knew why he was crying, he was a sensitive griffon, and he hurt for me. He understood and cried along with me so that I wouldn’t be alone. He was the perfect pony, even if he was actually a griffon.

We stared into each other’s eyes for a few moments longer. I was about to crumble into a puddle of goo from the feelings I got from his wonderful look. That’s when he closed his eyes and began leaning towards me. Maybe if I was in a more stable state I would have done things differently but right now I needed him, and I needed this. And I kissed him.

***

The night went a little differently then I had planned as we returned together. Storm Feather had wrapped a wing over me and held me tightly next to him. I wasn’t sure where this was going to end up, but I was willing to give this, to give us a try. I didn’t think that I would ever be able to let go of Reed, but I would try to move on.

Moon Shadow was the first one to pick up on what had happened between me and Storm Feather. He gave me a disapproving look at first, but as he studied us his expression softened and I even saw a smile from him. He wasn’t going to say a word, but he gave me his support through his expressions.

Rainfall didn’t notice at first, but after a while of watching me and Storm Feather I think she figured it out. I couldn’t stop from blushing around him now, even when I tried to be serious, and I don’t know why but every little thing he said made me happy. I really did love Storm Feather. Myst on the other hoof was completely oblivious or unwilling to accept my feelings for Storm Feather. Either way she wasn’t commenting on it. I felt like that was a small blessing.

At one point I had to painstakingly tear myself away from Storm Feather. I needed to speak with Twilight in person, and in private. At this time of night the throne room had emptied and Twilight was on a balcony that overlooked the entire city. The lights hung around the city were really nice, but after having seen the city I wasn’t sure that those lights belonged to actual ponies, or whether they belonged to ghosts.

Twilight didn’t look back at me as she stared out over her entire city. “Light, look at this place. At night it looks so lovely, but during the day…it’s so empty anymore,” Twilight said, not once taking her eyes off the city.

I walked up and sat next to her. Her height bothered the part of my brain that was happy about being a tall mare. I cleared my throat a little nervously before asking, “how come the city looks so full at night. I walked around today, and there are parts of this place that feel like a ghost town.”

Twilight looked down at me and explained, “a lot of ponies have left the city, most of them going to my southern towns. The threat that King Silver pose’s is a frightening one. I mean he couldn’t get into my city, but he could destroy my outlying villages if he wanted to.”

I looked up at her and said, “but if King Silver did that, than he would risk retribution. You and me would kick his butt.”

Twilight gave me an odd look before smiling and saying, “Yeah we would. We would go all Rainbow Dash on him.”

I smiled in agreement. We sat there quietly for a few minutes simply watching the sky. Twilight finally broke the silence by saying, “thanks for your help today. I have received word that Silver’s forces are suffering. They suspect the bandits, or me. They have no evidence it was me though so they won’t retaliate for now. Raising the sun and moon has been hard enough, but I don’t think I could handle another war.”

I looked at Twilight in disbelief, had she really been raising the sun and moon all by herself. “You have been raising the sun and the moon? By yourself? For how long?”

She looked at me with sad eyes. “I’ve been helping raise the sun for the past three hundred years. But the moon I’ve only been raising for the past twenty or so.”

“Why weren’t you raising the moon?” I asked feeling even more curious.

She looked at me with sad eyes before saying, “because until then Luna was helping me.”

I looked around and then back to her and asked, “what happened?”

“Luna had been using dark magic. Trying to keep us safe, and to keep her own powers strong. Eventually she became curoupted and we saw another Nightmare Moon, only this time without any elements of harmony…you were forced to…stop her. Now I’m the only princess left,” she explained.

Twilight gave a sniffle before continuing, “I just can’t believe she is gone. We were together for three hundred years. Just the two of us fighting against all odds, making a peaceful kingdom where we ruled in equal power. After I lost her, I just…It’s been so hard.”

There was something deeper in the way she talked about Luna. I could feel it, she had loved Luna very deeply and her lose was devastating. The worst part was I had been the one to stop her. I don’t know how Twilight could still care about me after something like that, I took away Luna…shouldn’t I be the evil one here?

Twilight looked at me and it was like she could read my mind as she said, “please don’t worry about it. I was the one who told you to finish it, actually I ordered you to stop her at all cost. You had asked me not to send you, but after what Nightmare Moon had done to me, my city, and my people I had to stop her. I sent you after her like a hound from Tartarus and you did your job exceedingly well. I’m the villain here, not you.”

I didn’t remember what had happened but I knew just how painful it was for her. I leaned over and gave Twilight a hug. Maybe I couldn’t fight he pain away with a hammer, but I could certainly shield her with my love.

***

It was a depressing walk back to my room but on my approach I saw Storm Feather walking down the hallway. Just seeing him quickly cheered me up. I quickly caught up to him and said playfully, “HI, what are ya doin?”

He looked at me and grinned before saying, “I was looking for you. It’s getting late and I wanted to see you off to bed. Who knows when we will receive time for peace like this again?”

I quickly gave him a kiss and said, “Yeah I bet you did.”

That made the griffon blush, which as I was finding out wasn’t as hard as one would believe. He looked away and said, “I was only-“

I cut him off with another and much deeper kiss. He didn’t have any choice. After all, he had said that we may not have time for peace again, so I was going to exploit the heck out of our time. After a few moments of kissing I pulled back and let him have a breather. I wasn’t sure that he knew exactly what to do. But with the warm spring air hanging around I did.

I turned around and began walking away as he stood there frozen. My tail swaying back and forth. About five feet away I turned and asked, “are you coming or not?”

He continued looking confused for a moment, which was cute, before he finally got the idea and began fallowing me. I lead him to my bed room, and decided that for tonight I would be willing to share it with him. He tried valiantly to argue about chivalry until I kissed him again and wrapped my tail around his neck. Maybe it was the kiss, or maybe it was his now unobstructed view on a certain part of my anatomy but either way he fallowed me willingly into my nest. That was a night that neither of us were going to forget anytime soon.