The Hunter and The Prey
With blood dripping down her drenched clothing, Applejack rested on one knee; breathing in and out, struggling to retain not just her breath but the sanity that was left of her. Around her was the dead: the dead in which the corpses were piled upon each other of many species, like some graveyard feast for the creatures of the night that resided within the vile town of Ponyville. She was almost close to accomplishing her task, so close to finishing off her prey so that she could gain that thrill of the hunt. The hunt: yes.. That was it. That was all that mattered to the southern mare that lost everything. Her family. Her friends. Her humanity.
All that stood before her was the hunt and the prey. As she slowly limped along the way, dragging along her massive scythe crafted from the scales of the undead dragon; the scraping edges left behind small trails of fire that lined down her path to the hunt. Oh, the sweet smell of blood; how exquisite it was to feel those smooth liquidated substance douse her form. How many did she hunt down and slain? Four? Seven? Oh, the number was difficult to remember, very difficult to even tell due to the carnage that was before her path.
She could not even remember the day this all began: The day Celestia and Luna placed a curse upon the living, that day it was all their fault for trying to stave off the end of their age. Now they were the victims, and deities that ponies look to and try to justify, when in the end they are all the same: hungry fools in need to sate their appetite. The hunger for the flesh. The Flesh...the Humanity that resided within their soft shells.
When our dear hunter finally made it to the center of town she carried a frenzied look. The look of bloodthirst; a berserker. Her scythe was all she could hold close to her for when fellow ponies who befallen the curse spotted her. Their hunger took over their minds, and so they charged towards her with thirst for her flesh. They were fools though: for they only thought of humanity when in truth their survival instincts had been badly damaged since the time this curse began. Death is death though, we all should know that very much.
Applejack was a fine fighter, ruthless and without hesitation. Cunning to put down any foe that endangered her or as much as had humanity to begin with. She was not lost though, not like these ravenous monsters. No, she was intact, she knew intentionally what she was doing and enjoyed every moment of it, for that was the reason of the hunt. The hunter should take pride in their work. Should they not?
Swift and fast, the sharp scythe desecrated the running fools and destroyed them ruthlessly as their sides were split in twine, all in one swift motion. Organs flew into the air, even a few lower limbs and body parts to coax in the blood mist that latched upon Applejack’s trench coat. While the corpses landed upon the ground, twitching in response to the fierce attack, more visitors approached her from the alley. Each with white eyes as hungry as the next, none fearing that death was present. They all came at once, seeking to claim their prey. Few looked like hunters themselves just out of training. It was a pity that they fell to the mingling naked crowd of the nude and skinned.
One by one, two by two, it was like a choir playing the orchestrated theme for Applejack’s insatiable lust of brutality. The streets were beginning to grow even crueler looking than it had been before. Blood began to seep through the lines of the cobblestones and walls were painted crimson by the rotting decay of the cursed ones. The beauty of annihilation was so pleasant in the eyes of Applejack, reminding her that the cursed ones deserved this more than her. They deserved to suffer for taking the lives her beloved ones.
A roar escaped her mouth. Becoming more like an animal than human as she rushed towards the approaching crowd, hacking away left and right, cutting through upwards and sideways without missing a single predator in her presence. It was only a second before she began twirling around like a cyclone, cleaving through and shredding apart the wretched. She was picking up more speed, ending her cyclone attack. Then sliding, slicing the legs off her prey before leaping up with her strong legs to knee one in the face so hard, the skull fractured instantly snapping back.
The crowd of the cursed watched as if there was something left in their minds to tell them that what stood before them was a greater beast far grotesque and deadlier than themselves. But that left their minds when their hunger for humanity started to grow fiercer and so they put their lives on the line and rushed towards her in groups, working together to strike down their food. But the food fought back, not tired from the ruthless display of power and endless stock of stamina. Applejack gave them no satisfaction but the swift merciful gust of death.
The God of War, Celestia’s distant cousin, would have have been proud if he were to see this honest mare who put family before everything (stuck to a good path) now turned into a wrecking machine that slain countless of the wretched ones without batting a single eye or flinching even a bit. Due to the curse and the end of Luna and Celestia, Ponyville was forever stuck in the night cycle, so as the moon peered down upon them, ladening its bravado, its rays reflected upon Applejack’s blood stained coat and drenched stetson.
When an hour passed, countless of cursed ones lied upon the street and there stood in the center was the insatiable hunter who waited for the day that her own hunter would claim their reward. That she would gain that benefited hunt she ever so craved. It was her dream after all, to enact vengeance, she became what she despised.
It was then as if there were actually any good left to exist in this hellish world that Applejack got her wish. A hunter like her, approaching through the doors where the Mayor once resided in. A hunter she never imagined seeing again, or maybe struggling to remember. The curse fogged memories, only harboring traumatizing ones. Applejack could not tell if it mattered who this hunter was to begin with, but this hunter knew her very well.
Scarlet hair that once was pink and bubbly, now was straight with strands resting upon her shoulders. A cloth wrapped around her mouth where holes were poked in for her nose to breathe through and a massive cleaver in her right hand. Who was this familiar hunter? Why Pinkamena Diane Pie of course; a victim, too, but one who fought against the terrors and madness the curse had put upon its victims. Now here she stood before one of them. Her old friend, Applejack.
BGM
Each one looked at one another, each one gripping their weapons tightly, and each one bearing one thought in mind. Kill. Here, there were no second chances, no such thing as rekindling friendships and no such thing as the Elements of Harmony. For there were no happy endings in this world and there was no sad endings. Everything was a curse, for existence placed them there to do one thing: Survive.
They both knew clearly then what they had to do and when the wind blew, they moved on instinct. Blades collided with one another before they leaped back to gain space. With how Applejack fought, she rushed towards Pinkamena the second she landed on the ground and swung left. Pinkamena rolled backwards before lifting up her cleaver, using the sides to block another incoming strike from her formal friend. Oh dear poor Applejack, she knew nothing anymore but to hurt others.
Pinkamena could relate, but did not let her feelings get in the way. Her old friend was no more and to put her down was the greatest mercy she could give. The greatest gift she can provide. By this fleeting moment, this was the last party they would have together; where blades would clash and blood would spread. A memorabilia that both would hold and both would die with.
Applejack was not letting up, each strike sent sparks of fire around Pinkamena as the fellow hunter was backing up, blocking as many as she could while avoiding those flames that sent its tempest around, beginning to set some areas on fire. This was what Applejack wanted; the thrill of the hunt, the thrill of the fighting and the thrill to feel death right there at the doorstep. Pinkamena only wanted this curse to end, and so this dream they ever-so-were forced into to be free.
Neither had a choice; this was a fate that they cursed and sealed. When Pinkamena noticed Applejack stagger a bit, she took this as her opportunity and elbowed her in the face, providing her room to swing her cleaver swiftly. Though, Applejack was rebounded a few feet, she twirled around, feeling the rusty metal carve against her arm with a jagged cut. The pain was not felt, but the blood leaking out of it was surely smelt, intoxicating her mind and enraging her to unleash her fury.
The Scarlet Hunter ran forward to swing her cleaver another time, but this time it was blocked and her left foot was swept by the staff, part of the scythe, tripping her over to the side. When she hit the floor, her eyes widened when Applejack brought the scythe down to finish her off. Pinkamena used her cleaver’s hole that usually is placed upon her belt to hang and dangle, to block the scythe where the tip of its end was through the hole, locked, and just inches from her left eye. Both were at a struggle where Applejack tried to pull her scythe out, Pinkamena kept it in. This resulted with the Blond Hunter to start kicking the sides of her formal friend.
The relentless assaults were attempts to break her free from the hold and when proven successful, Pinkamena though reversed those opening chances for Applejack to come up with an opportunity to slice down her prey. Pinkamena rolled to the left, holding her cleaver tightly as Applejack twirled her scythe and ran towards her, leaking out more blood than she had before due to the open wound.
When Pinkamena leaped up, her cleaver was tossed in mid-air as she ducked a vicious swing from Applejack’s scythe. Going around her after capturing the falling cleaver, Pinkamena used both hands on the handle to twirl around and hit it deep into Applejack’s back. The amount of pressure put into that swing managed to successfully cut through her very skin and flesh forcing Applejack to cry out in agony. But just as the Scarlet hunter believed she performed a fatal blow, she did not expect the claw jabbed into the side of her stomach, piercing through her flesh instantly.
Pinkamena stood there with eyes widened, for claw belonged to Applejack’s left arm; a claw resembling that of a wolf’s. While blood poured out from the sides and some from her mouth drenched the cloth, Pinkamena forced her cleaver out along with the claw and backed away, staggering a bit as she gripped her wound, glaring at Applejack in terror. What has her dear hunter become?
Applejack’s back faced her: breathing in and out heavily as cold green eyes slowly turned to face the shock and awe hunter; eyes that soon became slit with a vicious need to hurt Pinkamena. Applejack was slowly transforming, her body taking a whole new form as a yellow tail popped out from the sides of her coat that started to rip up a bit. Her figure enlarging a few extra inches, but as her scythe dropped to the ground, there remained sharp claws with long jagged nails meant more for shredding than piercing.
This was no longer Applejack, the fellow hunter and formal friend she once knew, this was simply the monster that killed Applejack. The monster destroyed her family and existence. For the truth was, this curse forced many to feed upon those with humanity, with a very soul, with the speck of skin. When Applejack was placed under this curse, she committed the greatest crime of all: familicide.
Pinkamena had no time to use a remedy, she had to act fast. For Applejack turned her body and went on fours, revealing yellow blood stained fangs. And as she dashed towards her with a desiring need to tear her apart, Pinkamena knew one hit could cost her her very life. She stood at her spot, digging into her right pocket. Taking out a flash bomb, she squeezed it tightly till it cracked and started to shake. As Applejack finally got close enough, she dropped it onto the floor.
A massive bright light exploded, blinding the vicinity and causing Applejack to cry out in an animalistic yell. Pinkamena who shut her eyes and used her hands to assist her as she blinded herself, pushed towards the blinded beast and swung her cleaver with one hand. Due to the wound, it made her fighting style a bit difficult; forcing her to change tactics and set sights in taking out a limb. When her cleaver landed, Pinkamena's power put into the rusty blade managed to dig rightly deep and half way through Applejack’s left arm, snapping her out of her daze and into a fit of rage.
Pinkamena pulled her cleaver back and rolled to the right dodging a swift swing from those bone cutting claws before twirling around to slam the side of the cleaver into Applejack’s stomach, while resting on her right knee. Blood splashed upon her face, before she pulled it out and rolled back from another massive swing from the other claw that was uninjured. When it missed its target, it slammed deep into the stone street, before being pulled out revealing the strength and power that the cursed gave Applejack’s lost sense of humanity.
Pinkamena sadly was realizing the strain she was putting on her body in this. Applejack had no will to stop, for even the greatest wounds would not stop her but make her angrier and even more aggressive. Pinkamena was the only one between them really injured and struggled to fight with one usable arm while the other occupied the open wound. Pinkamena struggled to her feet, before rolling under another swing from the vicious beast. However, a swift smack from the formal hunter’s tail knocked her to the side, skidding across the floor. Such a blow was not seen coming as she was upon her back trying to regain her thoughts.
Looking down, Pinkamena gasped as Applejack lunged with one claw out to impale her, life before flashed in her eyes as she rolled back, dodging the massive claws that dug into the street. Taking this as an advantage, she knew with how Applejack needed a few seconds to pull her working arm out, this would leave her open. Not taking any chances, Pinkamena launched herself towards the beast and slammed the rusty cleaver into the side of Applejack’s shoulder hard, before backing away from a vicious chomp by those razor-sharp teeth. And as the cleaver was left there lodged deep into the left shoulder blade, Pinkamena pulled out two throwing knives and launched them at Applejack; managing to strike them into both her eyes, blinding the beast.
Applejack managed to pull out her claw, but was swinging it everywhere in fury, trying to find a target to slash and tear. As Pinkamena backed up noticing how Applejack was already approaching her, she felt a bump against her foot. When she looked down to see what object tapped her foot, it was the Undead Scythe that Applejack carried around, using it to her advantage, Pinkamena took her chances and lifted it up with her hand, doing her best to ignore the weight.
She only needed the beast to get closer and closer, before going in. Blind rage proved to be both deadly and useful in combat; Applejack’s awareness no longer present. Failing to allow her to see the incoming scythe that found its sharp tip beneath her chin and through her skull. Pinkamena felt blood from the chin pour down the scythe and onto her hand as she struggled to withstand the weight and still body of Applejack pressing further down as her head was hooked to the scythe. It was over.. Finally over.. The prey was slain.
Pinkamena pulled it out, falling back onto her back, leaving the scythe upon the floor where Applejack remained standing with her head pointed upwards towards the sky. The hunt for Applejack has ended.
-The End-
