Chapters Chapter 2: The Cathedral of Chaos
Fluttershy groaned in pain as her body ached from head to toe. Every nerve protested whenever she tried to move, warning her about a thousand bruises that required healing. Worse still, her brain was stuck on the last minutes before she fell into that abyss. And no matter how many times she replayed the scene, she could only think of it as a nightmare.
She opened her eyes, letting her pupils adjust to the low light surrounding her. From what she could make out, she was inside of a titanic cathedral, with a ceiling high enough to fit the old Golden Oaks Library. Her surroundings, a near endless sea of wooden benches and cushions with an occasional statue, were bathed in an arctic light. Her eyes soon focused on the gigantic statue resting on the farthest side. From her distance, the statue was barely the size of her hand. Yet this only made her want to get a closer look.
She passed over the soldier’s unconscious body, without realizing she was being completely mute. When her eyes got another look at the statue, she was a less than a dozen meters away from it. The statue had gained a new level of awe. Before she was merely interested in making out the figure, but now she wanted to know how such an anarchic masterpiece was made.
The statue was not of a man she could recognize, and yet gave her the feeling that she had seen him before. The person was a really handsome man, clad in robes and attempting to hold something in the air. And yet this was the second feature she found interesting. The winner was the materials. She could see marble and granite, onyx and diorite, and at least a dozen types of rock she had never seen before.
There was a large plaque on the base of the monument, reading:
There is no knowledge in reason,
No energy in peace,
No passion in serenity,
To unlock your true self,
break these shackles of sanity
And let your inner madness free
Fluttershy merely scratched her head at these words. It may be that she did not consider herself a smart person, but she was confident that even Twilight would have trouble figuring this out.
But her thoughts were swiftly interrupted by a loud and incredibly painful groan. She looked back and saw the trooper walking toward her. His helmet was tied to his left hip, allowing a small mass of silver hair to flow freely on his head. A pair of gunmetal blue eyes stared at her with a ferocious look, akin to a wolf studying an opponent. Both his hands were close to his belt, his fingers caressing pistol handles.
“Ma’am, are you hurt?” he asked her, she shook her head. “Good, at least there’s that.” he mumbled to himself.
“Do you happen to know where we are?”
“Sorry, but the last thing I remember was tackling you as we fell down. Fortunately for us I managed to cast a bubble to help us survive the fall.” The soldier flexed his muscles, setting a large backpack on the ground. “Just give me a moment to get in contact with my squad and I’m sure they are going to pick us up.” he said as he began rummaging his pack. After a few seconds he pulled out a large black box, with more lights and knobs than one of Twilight's machines, and plugged it to his bracers.
“What is that?”
“It’s my grandfather’s emergency beacon, and unlike the high-tech beacons, it uses magic to send signals through almost anything.” he pressed a few buttons and the machine began to hum softly. He went for his helmet and pulled out a small bead, which he lodged in his right ear. “Mayday, mayday. This is Sam 23 calling all emergency channels. I am currently stranded with a civilian and am in need of extraction. My coordinates should be arriving now. We await your response.” he sighed and turned his head toward her. “My name’s Iron Cross, by the way. Nice meeting you.”
Fluttershy couldn’t help but widen her eyes in surprise. “Fluttershy…” she mumbled.
“Then it is a pleasure to meet… wait,” he paused for a second, eyes darting everywhere as his brain raced in a million different directions. “did you just say Fluttershy? as in THE Fluttershy?”
“I… yes?”
Iron immediately turned back to the beacon and began shouting: “Mayday mayday! This is Sam 23! I need emergency evac for Kindness! I repeat! Need immediate evac for Kindness! Base, can you hear me?” he then grumbled a thousand curses, swearing loudly as he slammed the beacon back inside his backpack. “Fuck!” he cried, kicking the pack with enough force that it probably broke it.
Fluttershy felt like these words should have sent her into a crying fit, but she was still processing her current situation to truly understand her predicament. The fact that she didn’t keel over because of the overload was a testament to her strength.Yet her strength was not enough to stop her from falling onto one of the benches.
“My, my, my…” a sultry voice echoed across the cold stone halls. “is that despair that I hear?” The soldier immediately pulled out his pistols, his eyes trying to zone in on the source. “Now that is a melody that I have not heard in a really long time.”
From the statue’s outstretched hand a small feline head peeked out, a pair of emerald eyes glinted with the light. A split second after the cat had shown its head did the soldier fire a pair of shots, neither of which managed to even force the stranger to flinch.
“Now that is just uncalled for.” she purred, leaping off the stone and landing gracefully next to them. The cat was larger than most, and bengal in fur. “I was thinking about helping you, but it seems to me that you are more hostile than one would expect.”
The trooper frowned, pointing a gun to her temple. “Explain yourself before I decide to paint the floor with your brain…” but he was never allowed to finish. Fluttershy, having found something as soothing and familiar as a housecat, leapt in front of the barrel and stared at him. And despite his attempts at throwing her away, Fluttershy kept herself rooted in place. “Ma’am, could you please move? We don’t know if that thing is dangerous. For all we know it could be a demon in disguise!” Yet did nothing to deter her stance.
“Well, how kind of you dear. If you want, I’ll tell you and only you anything you want to know.” the feline said. Fluttershy stroked her head, letting her fingers course through the fine fur. “But please keep your dog on a tighter leash. I don’t want those catalysts of his to kill me.”
“Oh, he isn’t my… no, you’ve got it wrong… I…” Fluttershy failed to find an answer to explain, since that required her to actually understand her situation.
“If you trust this thing my lady, then I won’t open fire.” He turned his head toward the cat. “But keep in mind demon, I will be watching.” Iron replied, and to show his good faith he holstered his weapons. “Now, are you willing to talk?”
The bengal chuckled. “Of course, but I will only answer to her.” She pointed a paw at Fluttershy. “You are the one with the power, my knowledge is here to serve you.”
The veterinarian groomed her pink hair, letting the caressing motion stimulate her brain. Sadly, there was only one question in her mind. And she was too afraid to ask because she felt it was not the best option. “What's your name?” She asked.
The feline widened her eyes in surprise and smiled. “Call me Eris. That was the name I was given when I joined the Order.”
“Nice to meet you Eris, I’m Fluttershy.” she replied. “So, where are we?”
The cat snuggled her head against Fluttershy’s neck. “This is the Second Cathedral of Our Lord of Chaos. Right in the outskirts of the city. Where are you from?”
“I live in Ponyville, but I was born in Cloudsdale.”
“Cloudsdale?” the cat asked with a raised eyebrow of astonishment. “That militaristic flying city?”
“I… Guess? Is Cloudsdale really that? I don’t remember-”
“Wait… Cloudsdale hasn’t been a militarized city since it joined.” Iron Cross murmured. “And that was over a thousand years ago! How many cities does Equestria have?”
“Three… Like it always has had since Celestia and Luna showed up and took over everything. Where are you going with-” the cat was interrupted by a loud bang, emanating from the wooden entrance at the other side. She tried to speak again, but this time the screech of the heavy doors was enough to send everyone into high alert. “We should start running.” she said, jumping off the girl’s back and sprinting toward the statue. “As in now!” she screamed.
The first creature to walk into plain sight was a humanoid, clad in chainmail and armed with a broken sword. Its legs were naked, revealing chunks of burnt flesh and pure bone. The corpse walked forth, managing a snarl as it raised its arm and charged. The howls of pain and anger that echoed across the room turned her blood into pure ice.
Iron Cross pulled out a large knife from his boot and charged at the charred corpse. He rolled under its first swing, thrusting the point through its lower jaw. Despite the distance, Fluttershy could still see blood splashing from the wound. The zombie gagged as the blade cut through the flesh, but still swung its blade. The flying droplets of blood were a sign that it met its mark. Iron Cross tossed the aggressor aside, letting the body crash against the pillar.
To her surprise, the corpse got up and attacked again, gurgling as it tried to cry through the blade. It swung the remains of its blade, missing the soldier by a mile. But the silver-haired man rushed in, using his right hand to grip its wrist and his left to smash the exposed bones apart. He grabbed the rusted weapon from its hand and jammed it inside one ear. He quickly pulled out his knife and struck the other side. With one last gasp of breath, the body toppled to the floor.
“That certainly was unexpected.” Iron Cross said as he pulled his knife out of the skull. “I never thought corpses could walk, let alone charge me.” he turned to face Fluttershy, showing a large gash stemming from above his upper lip to the cheekbone. “In retrospect using my pistols was a better call than fighting hand to hand.”
“We have to go,” Eris cried, rushing to the statue. “Hollows never travel alone.”
“I can deal with a few more of those.” the soldier scoffed. “I’m used to dealing with ogres.”
“You do not understand, hollows travel in packs that rival the thousands. And we were lucky this one had half a sword. I’ve seen others armed with full armor and wield some of the best weapons ever crafted.” Eris replied. “To face them would be your doom.”
The ground shook and a thousand moans echoed through the cathedral. They turned their faces to see a horde of burnt flesh charge through the door. The highly decorated slabs of wood fell down under the mass, crashing against the cold tiles and splintering. The benches met a similar fate, as the naked bodies tripped over each other and forced the wood to buckle and crack under the heavy load.
The soldier lost no time in thinning out the horde, pulling out his pistols and blasting as many shots as he could. Each of his electric blue rounds tore through the bare skin, sonding chunks of charred gore flying. Yet even with the loss of limbs, the wave seemed intent on keeping its momentum.
“Follow me! I know a secret way out!” the feline replied, climbing on Fluttershy’s shoulder and pointing toward one of the arches. She ran, weaving her way through the benches until she reached her target. Once on the other side she rushed through narrow hallways, keeping half an eye on the bengal’s paw as it guided her through the several rooms.
“This is the room.” the cat said as she jumped from her shoulder to a nearby dresser. “Open up all of the doors. We’re looking for a replica of the statue you saw outside. Tell me the second you see it.” Fluttershy began flinging doors open, tearing more than one out of its hinges. At first she looked worried, furiously trying to paste the door back. But one look from Eris told her that they didn’t have time to care. The sound of approaching gunfire was also a good timer, growing from an afterthought to a near deafening roar.
“What the hell are you still doing here?!” the soldier bellowed, letting his guns drown his voice out. He turned to face the narrow hallway, and continued firing. “Whatever you gotta do, do it fast. I’m not sure how long I can hold them off.” Fluttershy suddenly tossed a door aside to see a golden statue, she reached to grab it but was shaken by a sudden explosion.
Eris dropped to her shoulder and lept at the gold, toppling it back. With a light quake, the floorboards below the cassocks rose, giving way to what could be a steel slide. The cat jumped to the floor and launched itself at the hole. “Jump in!” she yelled as she slid down into oblivion. Fluttershy stepped back, a part of her rejecting to jump into the darkness.
“Sorry!” Iron said as he pushed her into the hole. “But there’s no time.”
Chapter 3: The Slums of Cankerville
The following minutes were filled with nothing but pure fear. The slide reflected no light at all, letting her feel the cold iron press against her back. The cold air soon reeked of excrement, slowly becoming even more unbearable.
For a few seconds she felt as she floated in the air and suddenly landed on really soft ground. She placed her hands on the ground, accidentally taking in a deep breath of the putrid atmosphere. Her eyes watered, almost to the point of crying, despite the fact that she couldn’t see anything.made it even worse. On the distance she could see an orange dot, the only color her eyes could see for kilometers. She lifted her feet, trying her best to avoid sinking back into the putrid quagmire.
“How do you like the smell?” Eris’s cool voice rang throughout.
“It’s horrible!” Fluttershy replied, or at least she tried. The stench was too strong, for her to even open her mouth without choking.
“Don’t bother talking, the air here in Cankerville is almost deadly. If you breathe in too much your lungs will begin to grow at least three types of fungi. You’ll be dead in ten minutes.”
The new silence was swiftly broken by a large splash. As Fluttershy turned her head to look at the darkness what was supposed to be the source. Her eyes were suddenly blinded by an incredibly bright light. With a hand shielding her eyes, she managed to recognize the purple armor of Iron Cross.
“Ma’am, are you alright?” he asked before chocking violently. She approached him, placing a hand on his shoulder. The lamp tilted to illuminate the backpack, letting the soldier pull out a pair of plastic masks. He handed her one and quickly strapped one over his mouth and nose. “Better.” he replied. “So, do we know where the hell we are?” he turned to face her. But she never got a chance to answer, focusing instead on the tremors and growls that were looking to sink her.
Iron lifted his guns and scanned the surroundings. Behind them, a geyser of mud exploded, releasing a titanic shockwave that echoed throughout the wastes. Fluttershy’s heart prepared to crack as her eyes turned to look at a monstrous neck.
The thing stood at least three stories tall, with popped blisters dripping pus at an unnatural rate. Its maw lashed out a purple tongue, lashing at the soldier with blinding speed. Iron was immediately caught, stunned by the development, he pulled out his knife and swung hard. The monster cried in pain and retracted its extremity with warrior in tow.
“Iron, no!” was all the pink-haired woman could say before he disappeared with the tongue. The worm swallowed him, thrashing violently as Iron stabbed the limb.
Once again, she was in complete darkness. “Huh.” Eris sighed, approaching Fluttershy without a worry or concern about the titanic maggot that had burst from the ground. “I thought that there weren’t any plague maws left in the wild.”
The worm began shrieking loudly,letting its thorax glow. A second later, a large flash of light preluded another quake. The shower of blood and guts forced the pink-haired woman to cover her head, although she was lucky not to feel any of the wet gore crashing against her. Her eyes turned to face the source of the explosion, setting her eyes on an Iron Cross bathed in orange light.
His shoulder light was still working, illuminating everything around them like a dying star. He was nearly swallowed by the ground, having been buried knee deep in the quagmire. “Shit!” he exclaimed, “I’m pretty sure that’s what we’re stepping on!” he began squirming around as he tried to free himself from the trap. He turned his eyes toward Eris. “Listen you little furball I’m running out of patience, so I’ll make you a deal: Tell me how the hell do we get back to the surface now and I promise I won’t kill you this very second.”
The feline jumped onto Fluttershy’s shoulder. “I will ignore your insolence merely because it amuses me grunt.” she replied cooly, letting a sly smile decorate her face. “As of this moment you are in Cankerville, at the very bottom of the world. And if that does nothing to dampen your enthusiasm, know that there are worst monsters lurking about.” she spoke while staring at the halves of the plague worm. “So as long as you step of this quagmire of wastes there will be no rest. And each breath you take will take you ever closer to your doom.”
“Listen here you little furball.” Iron replied. “I’ve seen some really messed up shit in my five years of service. And while that thing sure jumped into the small list, I’m still not ready to give up.”
The bengal snarled. “Fine, then I believe you will no longer need me.”
“Wait!” Fluttershy cried, rushing through the mud to grab the cat. “Please don’t leave us!” she held out her hand to caress her tail, but her hand clasped air. The feline did not even respond, simply giving her a toss of her head. The woman stepped forward, only to be stopped by the soldier’s armored hand.
“Leave her.” he said, his voice muffled by the cover. “Witches only know how to make things difficult.” he pulled out his pistols and began walking away from the slide. “Hopefully there’s some way to get back to the surface. But for now we should focus on getting out of this place.”
The trek was uncomfortable for her, between the fear that a new worm would pop from the ground and the air being enough to make her eyes water constantly. And on top of that, she felt as though there was a cloud over her shoulders that was weighing her down.
The soldier seemed kept his guard up, scanning the space around them as if he expected something to pop out. His eyes kept darting to the sides and behind, always keeping a gun pointed in front and the other behind.
“Well, I thought about a lot of things when I woke up this morning. Finding an underground world beneath the Everfree Forest was not on it. What did you think of this morning ma’am?” the soldier asked, keeping his vigil.
“Oh.” she sighed. “I’m not sure. I just wanted to get some supplies and get back home.”
“Don’t worry, with me at your side there’s no danger that’ll come your-” he was interrupted by a sudden howl, a high-pitched scream that would break glass, and the appearance of five bloated humanoid figures clad in loincloths. One of them swung a putrid club at them, heaving as the massive piece of rotten wood flew through the air to smash the soft ground.
Iron tackled Fluttershy out of harm's way, letting the full force of the club slam him to the ground. The woman could do nothing but watch as the others closed in on him, testing their weapons on their arms.
She saw the purple body roll out of the next two pommels, jumping off as the soft ground launched him like a ragdoll on a trampoline. “Well, I guess it’s time to-” and immediately he was rammed by another club, sending him rocketing back. This time, he stood up and fired several bullets. Each round of magical fire tore through the rotten flesh, spilling blighted skin and gore.
Fluttershy began stepping back, making sure to walk as silently as possible. She stopped when the howl echoed through the field, but this time it was behind her. She turned around, hoping that whatever had made that noise was too far away to worry about. What she found was a new kind of terror.
It was a short creature, with leech teeth and inflated bulbs of flesh. The pair of stick-thin legs that moved it around broke into a sprint, leaping off the ground as the maw aimed right at her. The sharp stab of pain made by the bite to her left shoulder was nothing short of unbearable. She could feel as the beast sucked the blood out of her.
She pushed it with what little strength she could muster, but it seemed as though the man-leech had fused with her skin. “Cross!” she cried, taking a peek at the situation. She could see the five barbarians with their clubs and tooth necklaces looking around in apparent confusion. With a new shot of adrenaline on her body, she punched the leech in the gut, freeing her shoulder from the drain and kicked it away. A large snap later and the monster was writhing in pain on the floor.
“Incoming!” the soldier yelled, landing face first on the quagmire. He got up and immeditely fired another round of pistol fire. One of the brutes fell down, letting its skull be crushed by the foot of a comrade. “Well, at least we now know that they can die.” he said with a nervous chuckle. “Those bastards really are made to take some punishment. And sadly, without my rifle there’s no way we will kill them. We need to get away. You start running, I’ll be right behind yo-” his eyes focused on her shoulder. “What the fuck happened?” he yelled, before shaking his head and grabbing her arm. “Y’know what, you can tell me later. Right now we have to run.” and run they did.
They could still hear the growls of the monsters behind them, getting weaker with each step they took. They stopped once they saw torches perched on a rotten paliside. As they stopped to recover their breath, they took a peek at a small metal plaque. It may have displayed a message some time ago, but now it was nothing but rusted metal.
“Sure hope that wasn’t a keep out sign.” Iron murmured, “I’d hate to face anything worse than those monsters.” his walk had now degraded into a limp, and she could now see several dents and cuts throughout his armor. With a large huff he sat on the new ground. Regular, sturdy soil that did not look like the toxic mud before.
“My goodness!” she exclaimed rushing to his side. “Are you alright?”
“This?” he snapped. “This is nothing! I-” his bravado was cut short by a mouthful of blood. He quickly spit it out, wiping off the excess on his right arm guard. “Maybe I need a dose…” He sighed, undoing the straps of his breastplate. Once his armor was set on the ground he examined the back part. His gloved hand caressed a cracked topaz and a small quartz underneath it.
“Is that a gem?” Fluttershy asked curiously.
“Yup. This little piece of earth is what made sure I wasn’t turned into puree before.” he sighed. “Now that it’s busted the barriers are gonna be even weaker than before. Fortunately the inner barriers are still good, so maybe I’ll survive another beating.” He threw his arms into the air in celebration, before wincing in pain. “Maybe we should rest for a while. That thing on your shoulder is not sitting well with me.” With a nod, she sat next to him. He pulled out a large medical kit from under his bag, setting it in front of them and opening it.
The kit revealed several syringes, knives, forceps and other medical tools that it looked like he was about to open a small clinic. He grabbed a small box with a pistol grip and pointed it at her. “Stand still, this thing will scan for anything wrong in your body.” A few short beeps later and he put the scanner down. “Well, I hate to break it to you, but you’ve got something so weird in your body that this thingamajig can’t even recognize it. B-b-ut don’t worry, I’ve got just the thing.” he blundered, pulling out a tiny syringe from the kit. “I’ll give you this shot and after a short nap you’ll be good as new.”
“But..” she stammered. “what about you?”
Iron blew a raspberry “Please, I’ve had worse before. Now, let me get my bedroll ready and I’ll give you this antidote.” he rolled his eyes at the look of Fluttershy’s confusion. “All Right mother, I’ll take a shot of combat stims. That’ll fix me right up.”
With the sleeping bag ready, Fluttershy received her shot and was immediately overcome by sleep.
Chapter 4: Kvasir, The Blighted Dragon
Fluttershy’s back hurt the second she began opening her eyes. Iron Cross was asleep, resting his back against the wooden palisade with pistols in his hands. As she shuffled to her feet, the soldier opened his eyes.
“I don’t think we slept for a short while.” he said, taking a look at his wrist. “And there go five hours of our life.” he grunted, stood up and reached for his bag. “and to make matters worse, we still don’t have a signal on ye olde transmitter.” he sighed. “So that means we’re so underground that there’s no music band below us.” he chuckled to himself. “See what I…” he stopped as he looked at the pink-haired lady. “Sorry, I… let’s just pack up and go.” A few minutes later and they were back on their feet.
“So ma’am, since you’re of a higher rank and we’re no longer in danger, you’re in charge. Do you think that we should go right, left, forward or back to the place with the horrible barbarians that didn’t chase us.”
Fluttershy began rubbing her chin. “Why did they stop chasing us?”
“I’m afraid to question it.” he replied, making an effort to look away from the swamp. “The less I know the better I sleep. So, where do we go?”
“Umm…” she began thinking, and while there was barely any illumination around it was hard to make an educated guess. But there was something on the right that made her want to explore. She pointed a finger in her direction.
“So spooky right it is! Not frontal fright or creepy left, we go to the right!” he began blathering on about going to the right, so much that Fluttershy stopped understanding him after a while, but still had to walk faster than the usual to keep up.
The open darkness quickly devolved into a small cave, illuminated by nothing but the soldier’s lamp. The ore they advanced through the narrow rock corridor, the more she felt the need to advance. She had no real explanation, just a feeling in her gut.
“I hope your gut’s right, otherwise we might just spend the rest of our lives walking through.” he said, “Then again, it’s not like we had a chance of ever getting out in the first place.” he chuckled for a while, taking a look around. A few minutes later they began to see a bright green light radiating from the end of the hallway. “Maybe you should wait here for a second ma’am. I gotta make sure that the coast’s clear.” Iron whispered, crouching down and waddling forward. The glow swallowed him, leaving her to feel the gusts of the empty cave.
“Ma’am, you might want to see this!” exclaimed the voice of Iron. Hesitantly, she walked forward. The momentary blindness of the light allowed her to see a mass of blue, golden sand and more walls. She rubbed her eyes in disbelief, hoping that it was an incredibly elaborate illusion. The sky, or at least the closest thing she could identify, was as blue as in Ponyville. As she looked closer at the sea, a large mass of grey scales burst from the water.
It took her an instant to recognize it. The look of a dragon is not one that is easily forgotten. With its grey scales glimmering from the light, the dragon’s right paw clawed at the beach. With one powerful heave, it crashed against the beach. The sand that was kicked off nearly rendered its head invisible, while the deluge of crystal water bathed the dry land.
“Holy Shit!” Iron cried, racing back up the stairs with guns in hands. “Get back!” He managed to pin her to the ground. He kept pressing himself against her. “Don’t move, this dragon might be feral.”
Fluttershy managed to catch a glimpse of the gargantuan. The right eye was gone, leaving a pitch-black socket behind. “Poor thing…” she mumbled. She gently pushed the soldier away. “Please, could-”
“Stay still, that thing may not have seen us yet.” the soldier whispered. “I think it’s blind on one eye.”
“But it’s suffering!” she retorted, pushing him to the side before breaking into a sprint. With a graceful jump she landed on the soft sand. As she struggled briefly to regain her footing she kept running toward the beast. Her pace was fast enough that not even the bullets fired from the pistols could hit her. All of them landed next to her, scorching the pristine land. Iron’s cries fell on deaf ears, for she was now next to the dragon.
She placed a gentle hand on one of the scales on its lower jaw, smoothly caressing it. “Are you alright?” The head turned slowly, until a single aventurine looked at her. “You poor thing.”
“Thank you, Child of Areion.” The dragon growled. “It has been centuries since I have heard the voice of someone else.” The majestic monster lowered his head, turning his head so as to see her with an ice blue eye. “Yet there is no time for pity. Time is short and I need your aid.”
“What can we do?” she asked.
“I will need you to fetch a knife that has been lodged in my neck. Please bring it to me.” he gently turned his head, letting her scale his head with ease. Once she arrived at the top, she walked over the brow, staying light on her feet as she skipped across. The dagger he spoke of was a beautiful steel weapon whose hilt was ready to hold a gem.
With the weapon in hand, she raced back to the beach. Iron Cross was sitting cross-legged, arms on his knees. As she jumped off the scales the soldier stood up. “Ma’am.” he said, “Since when did you become a dragon whisperer?”
“Greetings knight.” he boasted, raising its head and bowing down. “I am Kvasir the Primordial.”
Iron’s eyes widened in horror. “Kvasir? No, that’s not possible! He’s been dead for over a thousand years!”
“Sadly, that is incorrect.” he growled. “I am alive, held from the next life by this lake.”
“So…” the soldier began. “You’ve been kept alive for a millennium by staying underwater?” Kvasir noded. “So the water can heal, can we drink it?” he approached the lake, pulled out his canteen and drowned it in the lake. After a few seconds he pulled it out and took a long gulp. Suddenly, he vomited. But it wasn’t the regular green bile, instead it was a tar-like grey substance. A few coughs later he wiped his mouth clean and refilled the bottle.
“Are you alright?” Fluttershy asked as she rushed to his side. He appeared to be fine, with whiter teeth and livelier skin. “What happened?”
“If I had to guess, those were ogre spores. Had I left them there stayed there for another week I’d have exploded and given birth to some of those grey bastards. I must admit, this could use with a bit of flavoring… What’s with the knife?”
Fluttershy immediately let her surprise show. She looked at the fine blade, gazing back at her face reflected on the dagger. “I… I... “
“I asked her to retrieve it for me.” Kvasir took one look at Iron and smiled. “It was on my neck, used to stop the main flow of the disease into by brain. My body will be consumed by the corruption in a few hours, but I intend to escape it before that.”
“Wait, so that knife is what has kept you alive. Am I correct?” Iron asked, and the dragon nodded. “So why don’t you keep it there? This place is gonna die if you kick it.”
“There is no use in delaying the inevitable any longer. My body has been consumed by the Blight of the Prophet, as you can see from my lack of limbs.” He motioned to the stumps on his back and the thigh sticking out on his left back side. “But there is still a way to return you to your home and stop this madness from spreading.”
“Wait,” Iron interrupted, “so there’s no regular escape route?” his face was clearly rejecting the news, it did not improve when Kvasir shook his head. “Can’t we just fly through the hole we fell from?”
The dragon took a deep breath before explaining. “How you reached here alive is beyond me, as this entire place has been encased by a time-distorting field. Nothing is supposed to enter or leave. If you want to return to the surface, you will need to deactivate the field. And only a very powerful magical force can dispel it.”
“So the knife is magical?”
“It is not strong enough, but if you were to use a Dragon Heart it would be able to break the spell.”
This time it was Fluttershy who interrupted. “But… you’re not going to…”
“Yes. You will take my heart away from this decrepit body and use it to power the dagger. Then you will have to cross the streets of Cankerville to reach the gates of the city proper. After that it is a simple task of reaching the First Cathedral and reaching the top spire where you will break open the Primordial Gemstone and destroy the field. Once that is done you will be able to find some method of escape.”
“Okay.” Iron replied. “So is there a weapon that I can use? Because I was really hoping that I could get a claymore or something like that.”
“Very well, search near my left leg. There I am sure you will find something that appeals to you.” Kvasir replied. The soldier leaped with joy and rushed to the back. “Child, I must ask you that you keep the dagger at all times. The power contained within it will be beyond your comprehension. You are to keep this forever, let no one else touch it.”
“Okay.” she mumbled, before slotting the knife around her belt. Iron arrived some time later carrying a pristine bastard sword and a kite shield. The expression of childish joy was all that she needed to see. This man was ready.
“Good, now watch as a dragon gives you his heart.” Kvasir responded, pulling himself to the right and stabbing his hand on his chest. In one gruesome move, he pulled out a glowing quartz. Despite the blood around the beach, the gem was deprived of gore. Fluttershy grabbed the stone, treating it as if it was made of glass. The stone was warm on her fingers, giving her the impression that she was not holding a mere stone, but a beating heart.
“Now…” Kvasir heaved. “Put it in the hilt…” he kept panting as gallons of blood escaped from his body. At first the fluids looked standard. It was all dark red blood. But the more he bled the more the ichor turned to sickly bile. Soon, there was no more blood pouring out. It was just pus. Pure, undiluted pus.
She jammed the grey stone on a small opening on the dagger’s centre. It fitted snugly. As the gemstone clicked, a faint glow covered the sharp blade. It also gained the familiar warm glow of before.
“Well, there’s no point in sitting around.” Iron said as he heaved the sword to his right shoulder. “We’ve got three canteens of this holy water and I plan on using them to get the hell out.”
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Chapter 5: Epidimeus, Prophet of the Vermin Horde
Finding Cankerville proved to be easier than they’d imagined. With a little help from some friendly signs they managed to walk across the arid darkness until they discovered the torches on a new palisade. The long torch stands guided their way through the wasteland, revealing nothing but dirt roads. This particular path took them over a hill, where they were able to gaze upon the shanty housings of Cankerville.
The city, for something of this size could not be called anything else, was made mostly of rotten wood. The houses were entirely made of fungus-ridden planks and tied together with orange-stained iron fittings. Each square was built on top of each other and held together through splintered beams, giving it the look of a reality-defying skyscraper.
They soon found that the ground turned to mosh beneath their boots. Each step sunk deeper into the ground, as if the city was attempting to swallow them. The buildings carried a fittingly putrid scent, a sickening mixture of putrid defecation and vermin stench.
Iron raised his arm to stop Fluttershy. “Look, I’m gonna need to give you this.” he took off his backpack and handed it to her. “Make sure you don’t lose it.” With a nod, she put it on. It was lighter than she’d expected, it was like carrying Spike after a pretty big lunch. “Now, I wonder what sort of-” The loud screeches interrupted their calm moment, causing the humans to twist around in an effort to figure out the source.
“Did those sound like-”
“Rats?” Iron asked with a raised eyebrow, to which she nodded. “Okay, so I’m not the only one.” the rodent howls began again, this time closer than Fluttershy could find comfortable. The soldier immediately grabbed her hand and pulled her away. “Run!” he yelled.
The sounds were now upon them, and as she looked to the sides she could see orange orbs flying at their speed. From the cloak of darkness pair of large masses of fur jumped from into the light. Their guess became reality, as the monsters that escaped the shadows were rats half their size. Clad in leather and hunched, the rodents charged with rusted spears.
Iron slammed his shield at the nearest opponent, following with a downward slash of his sword. The blade cut through the leather and flesh, sprinkling blood as the rat fell on its knees. Seeing its partner in trouble, the other one charged. Its spear stabbed the soldier in the right thigh, right in the only unarmored part. With a short cry, Iron turned and delivered a horizontal swing at its neck. With a clean swoosh, the vermin’s head flew through the air.
“C’mon, you gotta try harder than that!” he bellowed, planting his sword on the ground and blasting the last rat’s brains across the road. “You little kids really need to step up your game!” he exclaimed as he took a gulp of his canteen. With only a screeching battle cry to alert Fluttershy, five more joined the fray. With a reaction benefitting a cloud-walker, she used the dagger to parry the three blows directed at her. THe other two rodents jumped past her, jabbing their spears at the soldier.
His kite shield took the blows, letting the blades scrape past its surface. The soldier split the pair apart, allowing one of them full access to his back. “Come on you little rats, daddy needs a-” he stepped to one side as his opponent thrust its spear. With a step forward he stabbed the rat in the chest. THe other one attacked, backed up by Iron’s boot.
The lady didn’t have time to see the rest, instead focusing on the trio of hunching vermin. None of them seemed to dare to take a step forward, which was great for her. It meant she wouldn’t get stabbed, at least not yet. These rats were adapting, constantly poking at her defenses with their rusted weapons. It was only a matter of time before they got smart.
Then two claps of thunder boomed from behind her, blasting apart an arm and a jaw. She turned around to see Iron brazenly flashing his pistol on his left hand while his right prepared a swing. Five more shots echoed from his gun, none of them maiming their intended target.
The rats countered his charge, hoisting their spears and squealing. Both blades bounced off his breast, forcing the rats to scramble behind their bucklers. But the wood did nothing to stop the bullets. They turned the defense into a shower of splinters and shrapnel. Each shot sprayed the rats with more debris than they could handle. With defenses gone, the rats ran away.
“Bastards.” he cursed as he brushed his armor. “They couldn’t even die like-” a deep, eldritch howl interrupted him. Fluttershy’s skin crawled as the sinister cry echoed. Then it returned, this time louder and more painful than before. “Godammit!” he swore. “Why are there so many weirdos in this fu-” the ground suddenly exploded from underneath. The frail woman managed to jump out of the way, giving her a clear view of her partner flying cartoonishly in the air.
The landing was easy for her, being used to falling from great heights and all, but she could only cringe as Iron fell on his back. His armor rattled, his bones stuttered, but he kept his diligent stance. He pulled out a syringe from his pocket and stabbed his neck, tossing the needle aside once he had drained it.
From the dust of the explosion appeared a giant rat, three stories high, furless, coated in orange-soaked armor plates and with an extra arm. It growled eerily, raising an encased arm and slamming it to the ground.
A loud cackle roared across the dusty plains, spawning goosebumps across the pink-haired lady’s body. The monster dropped on its knees and bowed its pea-sized head. From the spines on its back climbed a pair of topaz ovals. As it drew closer to the light they could see that the yellow objects were glowing eyelids under a sickly green sack. “Yes-yes!” the mask squealed. “Rat-slaves bring me nice prey-subjects! I much-much need them alive-well..” it's raised a brass staff. “Rat-slaves!” it squealed. “Bring-take them!” With a tremor, thousands of rat-men burst from the ground. They were armed with rusted swords, rotten bucklers and manila hemp ropes. They surrounded both the humans, snarling as they blocked their bodies with their shields.
“Can’t we talk…” Fluttershy began before being cut off by a screech.
“NO!” it cried. “I, Lord-Prophet Epidemius demand-order you surrender to me-Lord!”
“If you want to own us you’re gonna have to go through me.” Iron retorted, pulling out his shield.
“Bonecracker will kill-kill you!!” the rat screeched. “I shall feast on your body!” The hooded figure slammed its staff on the beast’s helmet.
Bonecracker, if that was the titan’s name, lurched forward with a pained moan. With ghastly grunts the monster retracted its third limb back to the torso. With a cry, it pulled out a dozen flesh-coated tentacles.
“That’s not good.” Iron muttered. “Fluttershy, I need you to run to the wall. Hopefully there will be some form of ladder. You get to high ground as fast as possible while I hold them back.” He said, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Ready, Now!” he yelled as he shoved her forward. “GET READY TO EAT THIS!” he shouted, holding the bastard blade in both hands and running into the mob.
Even while sprinting for her life, yet again, Fluttershy could see what was happening. Iron crashed through the mooks, swinging his blade through wood and flesh. The chorus of pain was a good indicator that the attention was nowhere near her, which was great for her. The soldier’s pack was starting to weigh her down. But she kept on, breaking from her sprint and easing into a jog. If her instinct was working, she could find her way out in a few minutes.
As she raced past the shambling houses, she could see several eyes glaring at her from the darkness. In response, she quickly returned her gaze downward, hoping that her eyes wouldn’t spook the nest.
Once she was at the bottom of a really moldy ladder she looked back. It was impressive what her ten minutes of running did. The battle was clearly too far away, and aside from the glaring amber orbs there was nothing for her to worry about. She sat down on a nearby rock to catch her breath. Even with the putrid smell, leering eyes and the symphony of pain, she found it easy to relax.
The few seconds she spent were clearly not enough to recuperate from her situation, but the fighting was getting closer and she needed to begin climbing. With a deep breathe in her lungs, she walked to the rotten ladder and began her ascent.
The noise was getting closer by the second, and if she was hearing right, getting bigger too. She dared not look back, instead focusing on raising her arms in a simple rhythm. If she could just handle that, then Iron could focus on stalling.
The ten minutes it took her to climb felt more like a decade to Fluttershy. Her hands bled from the splinters she got, and her feet were blistered heavily. But despite the pain, she felt so happy. Why? She really couldn’t say. Maybe it was because she was safe from the rats, or it was because she didn’t suffer a heart attack.
As she sat down to catch her breathe, she decided to see if there was anything to reward herself with. And the three filled canteens were a good reward for her. She unbottled one and took a sip. The water felt like heaven as it coursed down her throat. For all she cared, she could have been in a sauna and it was just as relaxing. And not only that, but she could revel at the fact that the cuts in her hands melted away. Her feet sighed in relief as the tumors disappeared, and even her bruised body eased back to health.
And the water replenished her strength, even adding more than she thought possible. For a second her brain began demanding another sip, even if it was just a drop. And she admitted to being tempted, after all, it was an incredibly refreshing drink. But She couldn’t bring herself to do it. After all, these belonged to Iron. He’d probably be mad for the sip she took. If she downed a canteen there was no telling what he’d do.
So to keep her mind off everything, she began searching for a way out. Just to know where they would be headed next.
But before she could walk anywhere a growing scream forced her to take a new look at Cankerville. The source was a flying purple sphere, heading rather rapidly toward her. She ducked as Iron Cross crashed into the dirt, rolling like a bowling ball and slamming into a nearby wall. The sickening crack of the armor forced Fluttershy to whince. If the noise was right, the soldier must have broken at least part of his spine.
With shock out of her system, Fluttershy’s instincts took her to tend to him. His weapons were still on him, which was a small comfort when considering the extensive damage sustained by his armor. There were dents everywhere, so much that the breastplate looked more like a ball of crumpled paper than it did a piece of protective metal. His arms were naked and covered in pus-ridden scars, while his face sported so many bruises it looked like there was more purple than pink.
“Oh dear…” she whispered to herself. “Are you alright?” she asked Iron. But the soldier didn’t respond. Her hands began to sweat. He was probably dead. He had to be. Still, her gut told her he wasn’t, so she at least had to make sure. She neared her head to his mouth, if he was still breathing, she would feel it.
The warm, moist breathe dispelled her fears. It was not regular, but at least is was there. She considered taking off his armor, but there was a high probability that the metal was keeping blood inside. So instead she turned to her flask of refreshing water. He was no stranger to it, so there shouldn’t be a problem with giving him a sip.
She carefully placed her thumb on his lower lip and gently pulled it back. Once his mouth was open she uncapped the canteen and poured a trickle of water. The magic liquid quickly passed down his throat, immediately eliminating the bruises from his face. His arms began extruding large amounts of pus, while bones contracted back into shape. The wails were short, finished just as quickly as they had begun, and these told Fluttershy that she was done for the moment.
She slumped to a nearby mound of dirt and sighed heavily in relief. She had managed to save Iron Cross, a soldier, from death. That’s not something she could say every day. But she could say it now.
With a victorious yawn she pulled out the sleeping bag and prepared to rest, unwilling to think of the dangers that could stalk her.
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Chapter 6: Night Blade, The Eternal Sentinel
A rude shake woke Fluttershy from her dreamless night. Iron Cross was sitting crossed legged in front of her, holding a small bag on his left hand. “Prepared lunch… at least according to my watch.” he said as he shrugged his shoulders. “Honestly, I’m not so sure that there’s a use to remember our time.” he then handed her the bag. “You might want to eat it fast. These things were never made with flavor in mind, so the less you chew the less you’ll hate it.”
She picked it up and mused at her meal. With the poor lighting she had she guessed it was some type of pasta, probably with a red sauce. She ingested a spoonful, quickly realizing that the soldier was right. The food was there, technically. There was no flavor that if she didn’t chew she wouldn’t have realized she was eating. She swallowed, letting the pasta go down her throat and hit her belly. Instantly, her stomach remembered its hunger and demanded more. She wolfed it down, barely breathing in between bites, until her rations died. Her stomach growled in protest, but a stare from Iron discouraged any attempt at seconds.
“We need to get moving.” He said, tucking the sleeping bag back into place. “Hopefully we’ll be able to see the top today.” He held the backpack in a gesture that asked her to pick it up. “If all’s well we might avoid picking a fight.”
She simply nodded and slung the pack. With the dragon’s dagger stowed unsafely on her belt, she prepared herself for the path ahead.
The only path available to them was another pitch-black cave. They walked slowly, constantly checking to see if there were more rat-men about. This path and paranoia lasted for about half an hour, constantly battering them with the rancid smell and small squeaks.
As they left the cave they were greeted by a cold, bright light. In front of them was a large dirt plain, with nothing but a cobblestone path leading them to a mass of ivory. The various towers and cathedrals shone like dying beacons against the arctic light, lamenting their broken glass and defiled masonry. Some of the smaller structures had an eerie orange glow, as if there was still a faint flame on this city.
The stone road led them to a pair of rusted gates. The green and orange tarnished the once opulent doors, with once great statues now reduced to oxidized piles of metal.
“Look,” Iron said as he pointed at the pale light. As she turned her eyes she could see that the white was hoisted above the tallest, most opulent tower. Each of its limestone tiles seemed impervious to the savagery that plagued the rest of the city, giving it a strange eldritch feel to it. Her vision was soon blocked by a mass of midnight blue metal. “In the Most Holy name of Luna, who dares cross the gates of Pandemonia?” A hollow voice boomed across the expanse. “Know that the Angel of Night has ordered than none pass.”
Fluttershy instinctively stepped back, while her soldier prepared his shield. But before any could speak, an even larger mass of silver fur climbed through the wall. This monstrous wolf jumped down onto the street, snarling as it approached them. Iron immediately prepared to withstand the force, lifting his shield with all his strength. But the heart-haired woman merely stepped forward, with her hand stretched.
“Ma’am, please step back.” The soldier ordered, soon realizing that his commands fell upon deaf ears. As the lady stepped forward, the canine ceased its growls, moving its nose to meet her frail hand.
“What are two untainted humans doing in this hell?” The voice boomed. “Those that have resisted this curse have long since fled.
“We’re sorry,” Fluttershy shouted, “but we seemed to have fallen in this odd place.”
“You fell?” the voice asked. “Do you mean to say that you are from above?” This time it asked with a curious tilt of what one could assume to be its head.
“That’s right. We were-” she stopped as the metal bulk jumped into the air and landed in front of her. The sheer weight of the suit of tarnished armor cracked the stone, sending clouds of angered dust in front of her.
“Then you must leave immediately. This is not a place that was ever meant for your eyes.”
“And that’s what we want to do.” Iron intervened. “But there’s no way for us to contact my superiors to get us out of here. So if you could please open the gates-”
“The gates can never be opened again.” The knightly armor responded. “My lady made me swear my life to defend these doors so long as there is a soul inside this hollow armor.” He knocked on the metal, allowing an unnerving hollow tone cover the silent plains.
“Then how do we get out?” Iron protested. “Our best, and most probably our only, option is to get to that tall tower. Once we’re there I can call my superiors and they’ll get us out of here.”
“To attempt to enter the Primal Cathedral to invite death!” The iron suit roared. “There is no one that could best the Two Guardians.”
“And yet that’s the only way.” The purple-armored soldier smirked. “I’m not about to let two dudes stop me from getting back home!”
“Very well.” The hollow knight responded. “If you wish to try, I wish you speed. But I cannot allow you to enter the city without providing some form of aid.” With a sharp whistle the titanic wolf laid down, tilting its spine toward the two mortals. “Fenrir will take you over the gate. Climb on back.” he commanded as he mounted his titanic pet. Fluttershy stepped forward to grab a fistful of fur, while Iron laid flat on his chest.
The leap nearly sent them flying, as the canine’s hind legs contracted before springing up. The short period of airlessness reminded Fluttershy of the fear she felt on her first flying lesson back in Cloudsdale. She couldn’t stop herself from yelling in horror as her skirt began to envelop her arms. A quick glance back could tell that Iron was terrified, with eyes tightly shut and more pink on his cheeks.
As soon as Fenrir landed, Fluttershy slowly slid down from the fur and landed on her feet. This was in complete opposite to Iron, who fell face first onto the stone floor like a dropped pancake. Night Blade approached them and offered the downed soldier a hand.
“Please forgive him. Despite his size, Fenrir likes to behave like a pup.”
“Don’t sweat it.” Iron replied. “So, where do we need to go?”
“Head for the tower,” the knight said as he pointed at the nearest tall structure. “inside you will find a map spread across a table. Take it, and take any supplied that you may need.”
“Thanks man. You sure you don’t wanna come with us? I bet seeing Equestria again has got to be a good change of scenery.”
“I would like to accept your proposal, but I was tasked by Princess Luna herself with keeping the peace here. If I were to abandon my post then there would be no one to protect my homeland from the terrors. Not to mention that Lord Kvasir is still keeping the field afloat. If I left his sacrifice would be for naught.”
“You sure?” Iron asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow. “Then I hate to tell you, but that dragon is on her belt.” He pointed at the dagger. “We’re on our way to take this field apart and get the hell out of here.”
The suit looked at him, with two small sapphires dawning on the slits of his helmet. “Then it means that my end is approaching,” he sighed. He unfastened a black horn from his belt and turned it over to Iron. “If you ever run into trouble beyond your abilities, signal me. I will arrive in mere moments to aid you in whatever plight you may have.”
“Thank you.” He replied as he quickly slung the horn around his breast. He opened his mouth to say more, but a large bolt of green lightning drove his instincts to take control and slammed him to the ground. Thousands of bolts followed, most of them crashing against the walls. Debris and dust began to fill the air, breaking the calm monotony that had prevailed for a while.
Chapter 7: Eris, the Last Witch of Chaos
Fluttershy was on the ground the second the first emerald flew past her, managing to singe a strand of pink hair that was a bit too slow. She rolled on her back to see if there was anything behind her, only to find an open door. She turned to see what was behind her and saw Iron Cross already on his feet.
“Ma’am!” he yelled, before a flash of viridescent smashed against his chest and sent him flying against the other side. He crashed against the wall, cracking the polished stone. Fluttershy rushed toward his shield, immediately letting her instincts take control and stopping another bolt. The force was enough to produce a loud crack from her left arm, and send waves of excruciating pain across her body. She fell to the floor, letting the shield drop as she clutched her broken arm. She couldn’t help but scream in pain, letting each gasp release as much energy as possible. Her eyes met with Iron’s. The soldier was already on his feet, both hands clutching the bastard sword.
“Fight me witch!” he roared in anger, letting his ire echo through the wasteland. “I am the one you want!” Fluttershy turned to see who he was addressing, and saw an effeminate figure riding what seemed to be a whirlwind. He grabbed his shield and slammed it on his back, gripping his steel with both hands. “I was made to fight monsters like you!”
While the soldier taunted his enemy, Night blade approached the wounded woman. He stretched a cold hand, which she met gladly, and pulled her up. “My Lady, you must flee to the tower.” he said, sounding worried, despite his hollow voice. “I will join your guard while you and Fenrir escape to the tower. Do not flee into the city, but stay there. Hopefully we will be able to destroy this-” a bolt of lightning struck his helm, sending me reeling back. The next bolt crashed against a midnight barrier.
He stretched his hand, sending a quiver of ultramarine arrows back to the target. Fluttershy grabbed the backpack and ran to the door. Fenrir was behind her, occasionally jerking as he ran.
The door leading to her safety was about her size, and fortunately ajar. She rushed inside, quickly scanning to see if there was anything she could use.
Aside from a few desks and chests, the round looked barren when painted by the pale light from the window slits. She began rummaging through the chests, hoping that she could find something to use as a sling for her broken arm. She managed to find a large piece of cloth under a mountain of parchment rolls and wax. After a few minutes of straining effort, she managed to get the knot ready for use.
She began looking around, hoping that she’d taken one of Iron’s magic canteens to ease her pain. With a heavy sigh, she trudged to the nearest chair. Her arm still hurt like hell at the touch, as if her bones were nothing more than splinters. Wincing, she prodded her arm. If her bones were anything similar to that of any of the animals she knew, then she was confident her arm had at least three simple fractures at the best of times. Worst case scenario, she had two comminuted fractures. Either way, it was not something that could heal quickly.
She began rummaging through the other chests, hoping that she’d be able to find some sort of sheath for her dagger. After digging through several scrolls, she found a knife about the same size, although its form was more akin to that hunting knife Rainbow Dash got last summer. She quickly dumped it on the ground. As the blade clanged on the ground, she worked on tying the blade across her waist.
Once that particular task was done, she got back on her feet. She went up a flight of stairs, keeping the dagger ready in case there was something preparing to pounce. A bright flash caused her to turn and look through the window. A small gasp was all she could manage as the battle raged below.
.oOo.
Iron Cross spat a mouthful of blood as he stepped back from a barrage of lightning. So far the fight was not looking good. He was still on his feet, but he knew the barrage had to stop at some point. If it didn’t, he might as well kill himself. One of his healing canteens was almost empty, and so far he’s been unable to make even a dent on this witch’s barrier.
He wasn’t the only one feeling despair. Night Blade’s moves were beginning to be more erratic, and he seemed to be focusing more on using arrows rather than swings. And who could blame them? The witch was doing her best to stay airborne. Nothing could knock her down.
The titanic knight jumped off the wall, yelling as he stabbed the twister that served to keep their enemy in the air. With a paralyzing screech, she fell to the ground. As he looked down, he was shocked to see that the witch had grown in size.
Before she looked to be short by human standards, but now she seemed to be almost at the same height as Night Blade. With a clap, she summoned a large brass staff holding a large black opal in an iron basket. She slammed her weapon on the ground, setting the stone ablaze with a myriad of colors.
“Learn mortals, the power of Chaos!” she cried as she swung forward, her cackles booming across the wastes. Abysmal ooze bled from the opal, landing on the ground and contorting into a macabre interpretation of the human form.
Night Blade swung his sword, cutting through the sludge as if it were butter. The monsters cried in pain and returned to blobs. “Know this heretic: You stand against the Commander of the Lunar Guard. I have fought abominations much stronger, and so long as I have-” he stopped as a bolt punched against his shield. With a snarl, he fired a large quarrel at her.
The bolt crashed against several tentacles, all emanating from the ooze on the ground. “I know you are not dissuaded by my powers.” the witch cackled. “But the question is if he will be able to resist it.” And she fired a large blob at the wall.
Iron needed no coaxing to get as far away of the eldritch mass as possible. He ran, his brain beginning to snap as the abysmal sludge contorted into the form of a large beast. He swallowed hard as he stared at the hollowed rubies that were its eyes were beginning to form. His body wanted to turn tail and flee, but he knew that he was the only thing standing between this monster and Fluttershy.
He quickly dug his fingers through his uniform to clutch a small iron amulet pressed against his chest. He rushed to unclasp it and stared. It was a small sword made of cheap iron. Most would discard its power, but he knew better. Kneeling down, he began to tie the amulet across his right hand. The screen on his wrists blared alarms, demanding that the user use a dose of Med-X. He began to whisper a soldier’s litany:
“The cries of the meek fuel my rage
The blood of the Fallen heals my wounds
The laughter of His children eases my soul
For there is no greater sacrifice than my own,
And through my faith I shall prevail.”
As the words left his mouth, he could feel his gut warm up. He stood up and gripped his sword, chanting as he prepared to face his end.
“I am His Blade, I am Her Shield
Each breath must serve, each thought must guard
For I am a servant of the Great Lord Areion
And death does not scare me!”
He roared the last words, releasing his newfound rage on the taurine beast in front of him. The creature was darker than the night, with hair bristling with the arctic light of Pandemonia. Its brutish hands held some sort of axe. The eldritch beast snarled, releasing gusts of boiling air with each heave. Its hooved legs cracked the floor with each step, and its horns with the pale light.
“Areion, guide my steel!” Iron Cross cried as he charged, using every bit of his limited magic to ignite his blade. The monster slammed its weapon, sending a shockwave of stone and dust at the soldier.
The force of the blast pushed Iron back as if he were made of paper, showering him with shards of the floor. He nursed a gash on the cheek, cursing as the monster approached. He charged again, letting his instincts take control of his body. The taurine beast swung its axe, aiming at Iron’s diminutive figure. The mallet fell, whistling the doom of the soldier as it hit the ground. Iron rolled away just in time, letting the gust carry him off out of harm’s way. He charged, this time yelling incoherently as his rage mounted.
The taurine beast turned its head and swept the floor, hitting Iron’s ribs. The soldier could feel the strength of ten ogres crumpling the steel and digging into his flesh. Fortunately for him, it seemed the axe was not sharp. If it had been, his two halves would have been cleanly separated. His body slammed against a pillar, cracking the other set of ribs.
Iron fell on the ground, writhing in pain as his body protested at the beating. His hand reached for the healing flask and uncapped the top. He took a small sip, knowing well that he’d need the magical water for the future. As the miraculous nectar passed through his throat, he could feel as his bones knit together. Soon the pain was gone, leaving ample room for the flame in his gut.
His attack managed to connect, letting his shining blade pierce through the thick ooze. The monster bellowed as it removed its harmed arm from danger, letting dark red ichor drip from the wound. With its other arm, it fired a fist.
Iron pulled out his shield and dropped to one knee, his mind solely on stopping the attack. He succeeded, forcing the minotaur back as it recovered. The beast bellowed in rage, revealing a raging furnace on its mouth. It stood on its legs and spit a ball of fire. Iron simply stretched his arm forward. The flames parted in front of him, pressing hard against his mental barrier.
He lifted his sword, preparing for an overhead attack. The monster jumped, swinging its axe as it bellowed in rage. Iron rushed through, rolling under the gargantuan ooze in an effort to dodge the attack entirely. The floor began buckling under the weight of the eldritch hooves. With a slash of the bastard sword, Iron managed to sever its scaled tail.
The monster roared, jumping with unnatural agility and sweeping the ground. The swing drove him against a wall, returning his body to a crippled state. He groaned, letting his eyes stare at a small slit in the watchtower. He could feel the eyes of the innocent Fluttershy watching him. He turned around, hoping that somehow his effort had been worth something. He grabbed the canteen and drained the last drops of Kvasir’s water.
He stared at the beast as it swallowed the air, trying his best to hide his thoughts. Deep down he knew he was dead, his body was not going to handle this much punishment. Kvasir’s healing water was a finite resource, and it wasn’t as miraculous as it first seemed. He began praying, doing his best to recite the litanies.
He charged one final time, doing his best ignore the monster that was preparing to roast him with its eldritch flames. He kept running, raising his sword and mentalizing himself to jump as high as possible. He focused what little magic was left to gaze a few seconds into the future. He managed to jump over the sweeping axe, but he never managed to see the arm reach out to him.
.oOo.
Fluttershy could see Iron fighting tooth and nail for his life. She could see glimpses of Night Blade fending off a myriad of magical strikes, doing his best to hold back the witch. And all this dumb veterinarian could do is sit back and watch. A small part of her began gnawing at her conscience. Was she going to sit back as others died protecting her? Or would she do something?
Then came another question: what could she do? She didn’t have neither Applejack’s strength nor Rainbow’s bravado to join the fight. She didn’t have either Rarity’s or Twilight’s magic to heal or even support, and she didn’t have Pinkie’s agility to at least do something. Even Spike could use his flames to fight back. But her? She had nothing but a broken arm and a love for animals. A useless skill.
She began rummaging through the crates to see if there was something that she could use to help out. She found knives, maps, and even an occasional letter, but nothing that could help out. Then she turned to one of the larger locks. Kvasir’s dagger was enough to split the iron lock in half, giving her a chance to gaze at the loot.
To her surprise she found an ebony longbow, beautifully decorated by silver linings and an oval-shaped piece of pink gems on each side. She grabbed the weapon, feeling her hands cool at the touch of the wood. To her surprise, the bow was lighter than she’d expect, almost feeling weightless. The second thing that caught her eye was the warm hum that it produced. The box held three dozen arrows, all of them held inside a beautiful white burlap quiver tied by a brown belt. She grabbed the bow and thought about the window. If she could lock the bow somehow, she could fire at the new sludge-monster.
She worked her hand to get the weapon stuck in between protruding rocks. Once she was satisfied with her work, she grabbed the first knife and thrust it against the glass pane. The iron broke with a shrill, cracking the thick window. A shard cut through her arm, leaving a thin red line across her arm. She winced in pain, steeling herself to grab another one to stab the window.
As the glass shattered against her arm, a faint hope blossomed in her soul. Without the window, she now had a clear shot at the eldritch bull haunting Iron. She pulled out an arrow and set it on the string. She began pulling back, wishing that her arm was well enough to avoid this ridiculous scenario.
Holding her breath, she let the arrow fly. It whistled through the air as it approached the taurine monster. The quarrel crashed against the mouth of the beast and exploding in pink flames. She sighed in relief as the creature dropped Iron from its clutches. She grabbed another arrow and pulled back the string. This time, the arrow exploded on its left shoulder. The pink explosion tore through the ooze, separating the entire limb from its target.
She let out a victorious squeal. It was hard to contain her excitement as the sludge contracted back into the abyss. She knocked another arrow and hit the beast right between the eyes. The beast roared in pain as it slowly melted away. She could see Iron coughing for air. She slung the bow on her back and tied the quiver on her hip, rushing down in hopes of reaching Iron in time.
Up close Iron seemed in worse condition than before, with his armor looking more like crumpled paper than before. His silver hair was now caked with dirt and blood, and a large gash decorating the right side of his face. She shook the body, letting Iron groan loudly in protest.
She reached out to his belt and grabbed the closest canteen, and swore when she found it empty. She grabbed the next one and uncapped it. She neared the flask to her lips, but stopped. Her hand froze, protesting against the healing water. She decided to pour a small stream on his mouth, hoping that the power wouldn’t die now. Iron choked violently, making it look like his throat was protesting at liquid coursed down to his stomach.
He sat up in alarm, gasping for air. “What just happened?” he asked.
“You were out for a few-”
“I was supposed to be dead! How.. Who…” he stared at her eyes, then at her chest, then her bow. “You killed it?” She smiled and nodded. His face turned to surprise. He mouthed something to himself, then stood up. “Get back to the tower. “ he ordered as he pointed his right arm. “I’ll help Night get rid of that-”
An emerald bolt shot past them, followed by Night Blade. The titanic knight looked scorched from helmet to boots. His left arm dangled lifelessly, sporting a charred gash across the shoulder. Iron handed Fluttershy the canteen of magic water and let his eyes repeat his order.
Fluttershy rushed back to the tower, leaving the two soldiers to fend off a witch.
Chapter 1: The Everfree Intrusion
Fluttershy had only one reason to venture into the dark, anarchic mass of wood known as the Everfree Forest. And even then, she sought to find an alternative that could keep her away for as long as possible. But there were some plants that could only be acquired from Zecora, the only sane resident of the chaotic woods. Only the rhythmic shaman could procure the healing herb of Kingsfoil in a usable condition, a plant used in a lot of her poultices and unguents and always in great demand.
This was the only reason why Ponyville’s animal specialist would even think about walking through the dirt roads, letting malicious eyes leer at her all the way. It was hard to keep a calm expression on her face as her nostrils were filled with the stench of decaying meat. Her morale soon crumbled, letting her legs break into a run. With each vicious roar her steps quickened, up to the point where she had to think hard so as to not trip over her green skirt.
“Why did I have to do this alone?” she asked herself, knowing the answer perfectly. It was because everyone else was too busy to help her. If only she had waited for a day she would have been able to ask Rainbow Dash to keep her company. But that was not the case. Right now she probably had a conga line of chimeras, cockatrices, timber wolves and other carnivorous beasties lining up to tear her apart.
Her senses were oversaturated with panic the second a large explosion roared in the distance, shaking her off her feet. “What was that?” she asked herself. “Was it a geyser? No, it can’t be. There are no geysers here.” And then she heard a sound she had hoped never to hear so close to her, unless it was coming from a screen: gunfire. The roars sounded far too close for her liking and if her ears were working correctly, getting closer by the second.
Fueled by fear, Fluttershy broke into a run without care for whatever could be hiding in the shadows. She was forced to stop the second a large mass of green fell down and blocked her path. She froze in place, her senses starting to collapse due to the oversaturation of panic in her system. Standing in front of her was the charred corpse of an ogre. The next thing she remembered was her own scream. It wasn’t voluntary, not by a long shot, but it was loud enough that it sent birds out of their nests.
She clasped her hands over her mouth almost immediately, but she knew it was too late. Where there was one ogre there were dozens nearby, specially if it was killed in a fight. And in response to her fears, a pair of bulky ogres crashed through the trees. Their glowing yellow eyes began staring at her, growling like a pair of rabid timberwolves. They raised their rusted axes, taking a lumbering step each as they tried to approach her.
“Oi!” one of them asked. “Wai’s dis ‘umie no’ fightin’? Fink hee’s no’ a killa?” this achieved a swift pommeling from his teammate’s axe.
“You’z a zoggin’ git you iz.” it retorted. “Oll ‘umies is made fer fightin’!” it turned its eyes back to her, nearly burrowing its eyes inside its massive brow. “I’z gonna rip yer teef an’ get a shoota!” Then it charged. Fluttershy had barely a second to dodge the axe swung downward. She jumped back, letting the next attack pass harmlessly in front of her. She began dancing around the attacks, changing her footing every few seconds to avoid getting axed. “Stay still ya runt!” the ogre protested. “I’z wanna kill ya roit kwik!”
Fluttershy stared, legs now frozen in place as the green mass of muscle raised its weapon to end her. She curled down into a ball and squeezed her eyes shut. The next thing she heard was a sound like the crackle of thunder, then the quacking tremor as something heavy fell. She opened her eyes and widened them at the sight. Both ogres were dead, their necks were now charred stumps of an oversized body. And from behind the corpses stood a human, clad from head to toe in violet-red plated armor and a black leather duster.
“Are you alright ma’am?“ the soldier asked, his male voice a bit garbled by the speaker on his mask. He asked again, this time shaking her violently. “Ma’am! I need you to respond!” But the shock was still too great for her. This forced the soldier to slap her face, which turned out to be the fastest cure. “Equestria to Traveller!” he screamed. “Are you alright?”
“Uh… Yes, I’m fine.” she replied, shaking her head. “I’m sorry. I was just.. I…”
“Ma’am, are you aware that you’re in the middle of a war zone?” she shook her head. “Well then, let me be the first to welcome you to hell. Now, if you’ll follow me, I’d like to guide you out of here.” he said with a welcoming hand. She gladly took it. “Good.” he pulled out a small necklace from a small pouch on his belt. “Put this on and hope we don’t run into more than a dozen ogre.”
Their run through the forest was calmer than she’d expect, and it wasn’t until they arrived at a large clearing that they saw the green brutes again. The ogres lumbered forward, cutting off their escape route. Out of the dozen monsters, two carried metal objects glued together with duct tape and sheer ignorance of physics that resembled guns, the rest carried a variety of melee weapons.
“Would you jackasses mind getting out of the way? Twelve isn’t really worth my time.”
“Oi! Iz dat Two Sluggas?” one of the ogres asked, raising an inquiring eyebrow. “Eh, ‘oo cares. Kill ‘im!” it roared, hefting its slug-throwing weapon to bear.
“Hit the deck!” the soldier said, shoving Fluttershy to the floor, just before her ears were filled by the deafening roar of the two guns. The world around her slowed down to a crawl. She saw hundreds of bullets rip past her, some striking against the soldier. She could see as the bolts of iron bent and contracted as it chipped away the paint. The soldier toppled over, letting the sheer power of the bullets slam him to the ground, pulling out a pair of pistols from under his cape and unleashing a storm of blue magical bullets.
Fluttershy could do little but listen to the ogre’s wails as chunks of muscle disintegrated from the green masses. A gunner lost its head, splattering blood and gore to the trees behind him, two ogres lost limbs, crying in anger as they prepared to charge. “Fine! Let’s see if you babies can handle the real Two Sluggas!” The soldier roared as he set his arms in a fighting stance. The brutes finally began struking their blows, each impact of their weapons causing the ground to shake.
Yet for all of their strength, they could not hit their purple target. He dodged and weaved through their blows and his movements were so fast that they gave the impression that he was teleporting. As an axe cleaved through the dirt, the trooper somersaulted over the ogre and fired several shots at its head. The body promptly toppled to the floor, releasing an unnatural quake. As he rolled away, the soldier fired his pistols, each shot drawing the monsters’ attention back to him.
With three casualties, the ogres seemed to be growing even more restless. Their attacks became even stronger, as seen when they managed to turn a tree into splinters when they bludgeoned them. Each time they missed a strike, the soldier planted them more bullets until they fell down. He later followed it with a shot to the head. It was going well, at least according to Fluttershy’s naive mind.
Her opinion swiftly changed as soon as the biggest ogre in the lot fell. The second the body hit the floor, a violent earthquake shook the clearing. The earthquake did not stop, as large chunks of the floor began disappearing into an unforeseen abyss. Soon Fluttershy found herself falling down, as the soft earth gave way. The last thing she saw before entering the void was the purple soldier, jumping toward her.
