The Second Time Pt 2

Strong Hoof stalked around my broken form as she smirked....wait, I guess I better back up and let you know how I got into this pile of sour apples.

Scoots and I had done our research and even had some fun sparring in an unaffiliated gym then went to watch a movie, something Scoots had never done. We had decided that the time to strike was tonight, having figured out her schedule, turns out she was rather predictable even as she tried to be circumspect with her movements.

As I strapped on my leathers and weapons, I had a small moment of panic, there was always a chance that I would not come back from these jobs, and while most were relatively safe this one was bucking dangerous. Strong hoof could use me like a puppet if she got her hooves on me so I had to be quick, in and out, preferably in her sleep but as far as we had been able to tell she never did sleep. Strong hoof came home every night to her seemingly devoted herd and screwed them senseless until dawn then went back to the gym.

With that fact in mind I filled the reservoirs on my daggers with curare and a small dose of cyanide for a quick paralytic punch then a slow death, since I wanted to watch this mule die. As I remembered why I was here the small dose of panic turned to a large boiling ball of anger. This target had helped to kill my entire family and it was past time for payback.

Most of my life I had been treading a fine line between madness and apathy, tonight though, the madness had a hold on me stronger than before, blood lust growing within me I decided that it was time.

I stepped from shadow to shadow until I reached the path that we had determined Strong Hoof would take tonight. I settled in to wait and was rewarded with an early arrival, Strong hoof strode down the alleyway as if she owned it, totally fearless for someone so paranoid. What I did not anticipate is the two goons following her. Well this was a wrinkle that was easily ironed out and would have the added benefit of panicking my target. As one of the goons stepped too far into the shadows I stepped in behind him and quickly stabbed my dagger up into his skull through his lower jaw. He went down with a gurgle that had exactly the effect I wanted, it drew the attention of idiot number two, and as Strong Hoof bolted he was stupid enough to step right in to the same patch of shadow and received the exact same treatment as his friend.

I was quickly losing track of my target as she was surprisingly swift on her hooves for such a large mare. I knew she was going directly home so I stayed a few shadows ahead of her making just enough noise that it renewed the panic at every turn. Finally her home loomed into view and I stepped into a shadow above her foyer door letting her see my now larger than life shadow. The fear rolling off of this mare was palpable even as a sudden calm seemed to enter her eyes as she bolted into her door.

For the first time in many years I got nervous when I jumped down and received the single hardest punch in my life straight to my muzzle, to say that stars were floating around my head would have been the understatement of the century as I not only saw stars I saw entire galaxies. That punch was followed by an equally hard buck to my chest and I heard ribs crack as all the wind in my body suddenly rejoined its brethren outside my chest.

I sat there for a moment trying to relearn how to breath as Strong Hoof stood over me gloating

“The Black Rose... I was warned you would be coming after me” she said in a surprisingly feminine voice.

I looked at her enormous frame and crawled back to my hooves getting onto my back legs and releasing my blades from their retracted position. I made a 'come at me' motion with my right hoof as she loosened up her neck muscles, let me pause for a moment to say, anyone who ever thought a large opponent is slow needs to be bucked right in the head and the sense knocked back into them. Strong Hoof came at me so fast I had already been hit three or four times before my brain registered the pain, as the pain hit me and I tried to fight back getting in a few hits and cuts with my blades, I lamented not choosing to poison them this time. It would have proven fatal if not for a fortuitous turn of events, an orange and purple blur moving at near sonic speeds flew through the open door and began a series of fly by attacks that staggered the vicious giant enough for me to get back to my hooves and try to fight again.

It didn't last long as my erstwhile savior retreated to the rafters and allowed Strong Hoof to once again focus on me, something that I was regretting from the moment I stepped into her range. Every strike of mine seemed to be hitting steel, while her every strike felt like getting hit by boulders. Her next strike hit my front hoof just past my fetlocks and I heard bone shatter, as I crumpled to the ground once again screaming, she stepped on my now broken leg and began crushing the hoof, just as I felt the hardened surface begin to crack I heard a gurgle from above me as the pressure eased.

I had no idea what had happened, only that Scootaloo was now standing between me and Strong Hoof with a bloody blade sticking from her wing tip, and Strong Hoof was backing away holding a bleeding wound in her barrel. She was in obvious pain but it was not a fatal strike.

“I was just going to kill you, now I'm going to rape you both, and once you are good and submissive I'm going to add you to my herd.” Strong hoof said as blood flew from her lips with every word.

From the shadows I heard a smooth voice growl “One thing I cannot abide is a rapist, Strong Hoof you have sealed your own doom. Draklekar attend to our wilting rose.” Mathias stepped from the shadows with the hulking young dragon at his heels. He wore the form of a griffin but that voice was unmistakable. “Gehennae ignibus hostis devorabit” Mathias said as he turned a small rod in his claws until it was parallel to the floor. No sooner did the words leave his mouth than Strong Hoof began screaming as her flesh began to smoke from every pore. After a moment Mathias moved the rod back to its original position resting in his claw. All that could be heard was the sobbing of the broken wreck of a pony that had once been Strong Hoof. As the smoke cleared from her form I could see horrific burns covering most of her body, the fur had been burnt off leaving only raw reddened flesh that was cracked and peeling in places.

“I'm sorry did that hurt? Here allow me to cool you off.” Mathias growled as he made another motion with the strange rod, this time lifting it slowly towards the ceiling “Benedicite glacies, et omnes inimici Nessus operiam” The screams that came from her muzzle were short lived as her over heated body was suddenly supercooled to below glacial temperatures. When the fog lifted from her body I could see not a pony but a tortured statue made by a psychotic sculptor, her mouth open in a scream so wide that the flesh at the edges of her mouth had ripped revealing the muscle beneath.

Draklekar stood beside me as if daring Scootaloo to attack him as he handed me a small vial that I recognized from my many trips to Zecora's hut, a health poultice. “Drink it.” he growled as if quite infuriated with me. Scoots took it from him and with a glare at the giant young dragon held it to my lips so I could drink it. As the healing magic of the poultice spread through my body, correcting most of the damage done to me, I had a moment of clarity, never piss this shaman or whatever he was off.

Mathias strolled over to me in his new form and must have seen the question in my eyes, “I decided that it was best for my minotaur form to vanish for a while, until the political fallout from my demise had corrected itself. You have disappointed me one time Rose, do not do so again.” he said gesturing to the fallen form of Strong Hoof, the Or Else was pretty clear. I nodded once to show my acquiescence as I hobbled to Scoots and we took our leave.

It would take some time for my wounds to heal fully, but at least I walked away from this fight, I would have to train harder to make sure that I never was in that kind of position again.

Author's Note

Well it seems that Rose is not infallible after all. The real question is, just who is she working for, what kind of monster is he?