Prologue: The Tome and a Brief History Lesson
View Online
Prologue: The Tome and a Brief History Lesson
Sombra hummed as he levitated about the Canterlot Castle Library, in only a pair of linen slacks, whilst humming 'Winter Wrap-Up' and approaching the thousands of journals the princesses kept in honor of retired Captains of Royal Guards, Servants, and even several students. However, the ones Sombra enjoyed were the beaten, tattered, and torn, leather-back journals from the old days, where freedom was pretty much restricted, meaning he could learn from his mistakes as well as the ones of other would-be masters of Equestria.
As he passed over into the 'Dark Ages' where chaos was free and always ruining everyday life, he read those because getting hit by pies raining from the sky was comedic relief whenever he was feeling down, he noticed a section completely barren save a single book. It was gray in color with a binding of crimson rope, a fist in thickness and about as big as his torso, with silver pages that felt like skin to him as he opened it, after landing lest he drop it and ruin it, littered with blood red letters written by quill.
"Imprisoned...", "...betrayed by kind and kin...", "...left to rot..."
Sombra flips through the pages, reading small chunks as he goes.
"...a blade to slay the tyrant...", "...awaiting death's sweet embrace...", "...truly a monster to be feared...", "...slayer of Alicorns and all who dare oppose him...", "...ally of chaos, lust, and wrath...", "...known as 'Grim Reaper'...", "...cannibal."
He flips to the very end and pales, his body glistening with sweat despite the chilly air and reads:
"...birth of a shadow, the first tyrant in eons, that shall shroud a kingdom for a millennia, only to fall at love's power. Son of Grim, may you learn about your father at his prison, the Atlas Stone."
Sombra flipped through the book, trying to read the whole story, but the words became faded, as if time had finally caught up with it, then the book started to wreak, as if it was a rotting corpse. Upon inspection, Sombra discovers what looks like scarring on the back that read: "Tome of Tan kap vini, his last visions carved from his very flesh."
Sombra screamed, a bloodcurdling, bass filled noise, threw the book away from him as his legs gave away, dropping to his hands and knees as he retched, vomiting the contents of his breakfast onto the floor as a maid arrived, then collapsing from a sudden wave of exhaustion.
Upon waking, Sombra finds himself at the base of a blood red, octagon pillar, with what appears to be a reverse mountain of granite pushing down. He was at the Atlas Stone, the foundation of the city of Canterlot.. As he rose, he cut his foot, leaving a bloody smear on the ground in it's wake, and if the crystal wasn't ominous enough, the blood seamed to trigger a pulse from the crystal that began pulling the blood towards the crystal as as shadowy figure formed in the middle of it, reaching a tendril towards it.
"Sad, isn't it?" A soft, melodic, sad, and powerful voice chimed, causing Sombra to turn around and find himself staring at a glorious creature. It was a male Alicorn, taller than Celestia, clad in a simple toga, his coat a silver sheen with gray along his arms, his mane a crimson hue, and his eyes simple white orbs. "Grim had such a wonderful life, only to be tainted by fate."
"Pardon my language, ancient one, but who the fuck are you?" Sombra asked, glaring at the Alicorn. "And how the fuck did I get here?"
"You know know me as Tan kap vini, and worry not, I'm merely an after image, brought about by your touch. I brought you here so you may know of your father... and maybe grant him a second chance, as Llum did for you."
"I don't know a mare named-"
"Her name in the present would be 'Celestia'."
Sombra sat down as the shadowy figure approach the blood, revealing it to be nothing but a horribly altered skull, with a set of fang-like, pure white teeth, accompanied by a unicorn horn on it's forehead, atop an above average sized skeletal structure, almost as if it was a hybrid of sort.
"He's a Kirin, the first hybrid to be exact. Born to a wandering scholar named Aurora, and a black dragon named Orion. He was born with talents such as the ability to talk to dragons, using dragon breath and change it's property with magic, and break granite with his bare hands. He was, in every sense of the word, a masterpiece."
Sombra choked as he suppressed a laugh, finding it hard to find the creature trapped as a 'masterpiece'.
"Let me tell you his story, and THEN tell me if he's unworthy."
"Deal."
Grim lounged in his hammock, whistling little tune as he enjoyed the blistering heat of the Badlands' merciless sun.
The Badlands were the one place the Alicorns dared not venture, making it an ideal home (not including the giant serpents, scorpions, and other creatures) for heretics. In his time, Grim watched as several dozen ponies crossed the gorge separating the Badlands from the Motherland, on nothing but an old rope bridge... and built a settlement from scratch.
One of the first thing the newcomers did, were tame beasts named 'Wyverns', armless cousins of the dragons hiding in the Motherland, and used them on what would be labeled as 'raids', swooping from the sky to take much needed supplies: food, lumber, and water.
After about a decade of those, the city of Haven became reality, where resources, save earthen minerals, were abundant and the Wyvern Masters were tasked with covert retrieval of new heretics. Despite his wishes to be alone, the heretics came to him, offering a new home, more food, and protection... that was until he chased them away by breathing fire... and they returned offering coin for rare earth he finds. Being part dragon, he couldn't resist a hoard.
He now lives in the Mining district of Haven, able to relax until the people needed him, either to mine for gems, hunt legendary creatures, or craft equipment for the masses. In his free time, he made many friends, forgetting their names... except Odin, King of Haven, he was kind of important.
Alas this peace he had been enjoying for decades comes to an end when somebody shouted,
"The four are upon us, all is lost."
Chapter 1: War for Haven I
Război flew above the others, his blood red skin a vibrant cherry red in the sunlight, and his grayish hair a stunning silver. He WANTED to be at the front, but he was the only one strong enough to carry is sister's casket, or her transport case, by himself.
"How much longer until I can put her down?" He shouted, his hearty voice booming over the passing wind. "I REALLY want to see these heretics in action!"
Ciuma, his tall, malnourished (yet he eats forty times more than him), bone yellow skinned, stark white haired, and milky white orb for eyes brother, ascends to his altitude and rasps, "Patience, brother, we know your urge to slay the heretics, but we want to play with our food. Causing their society to collapse from the inside before we play makes it much more fun."
The two look down at there mute, plague-bearer of a brother, Foamete, whose wings, skin, and pretty much everything ruined with EVERY disease known to the Alicorns and all the other races. Foamete didn't eat, sleep, or do anything required to build a healthy body, but nothing about him seemed to be working properly.
"Silence brothers." A soft, yet icy voice in their mind demanded sternly. Meaning they disturbed Moartea, and she's not exactly 'friendly' when she's tired. "Do you WANT to have to take me down, again?"
The duo shudders and fall silent... then start weaving as they dodge a volley of arrows. Război setting down Moartea before breaking into a pure, adrenaline-fueled, ground-level flight towards the city.
Odin, a white-haired, barrel-chested Yak, clad in gold armor with a matching eye patch covering his missing right eye, walked along the wall surrounding the Agricultural district of Haven, his spear Gugnir in his grip as he eyed the horizon. He refused to seek peace with the Alicorns, especially since they drove a wedge between him and his family ever since they had him exiled.
"You summoned me?" A deep voice ask as Grim appeared on the edge of the wall with his back to the wasteland, his black coat and scales covering his arms somehow appearing darker in the sunlight.
"Archers, ready another volley, three-arrow yield, target the top flier. Mages, prepare lightning spells, forked, target between the top and middle. Guardians, ready wing slicers, target the middle." Odin barked, his orders being answered with the knocking of arrows, the smell of ozone, and the sound of spears being slid out of their holders, then turned to Grim. "Care to say hello to our low-flying friend?"
Grim turned around and watched Război, now less than twenty miles out, for a few seconds... then dropped.
Război watched the black figure fell off the edge, thinking that the pour soul lost the will to live, but quickly changed his opinion when the figure landed with a loud thud inches in front of him, and slammed its fist into his jaw, knocking him back, rolling and bouncing through the jagged landscape, several feet into a rocky spire.
Grim smirked as his crimson adversary rose, the latter spitting a tooth out.
"Greetings, Alicorn." Grim called, the Alicorn looking up with a glare at him. "I am Grim, son of Aurora and Orion, forge master of Haven."
Război groaned as 'Grim' invoked a formal challenge. This meant if Război refused, he would be branded a coward, and Orgull does not accept cowards.
"Greetings, Grim." Război responded reluctantly, rising to his full height. "I am Război, eldest of the the four, bringer of war."
Now that the formalities were out of the way, Grim dropped to the ground, assuming a draconic stance, and launched himself through the air towards Război, his opponent summoning a greatsword twice the size of the wielder and blocking Grim's next punch, then countering by slashing at Grim. Grim leaped diagonally, the vicious blade almost severing his foot and inhaled, changing the properties of his breath attack to smoke, and exhaled, blasting smoke reeking of sulfur into Război's face.
Ciuma and Foamete watched the conflict from above, baffled by the spectacle of Război being matched in strength by a hybrid, and were about to swoop to their brother's skirmish when one word boomed over the wind.
"FIRE!!!"
Ciuma howled in agony as arrows shredded his wings and pierced his skin, Foamete using his magic to deflect the lightning as the spears melted upon touching his skin. Ciuma then brandished a staff and swung it in front of him, watching as the soldiers turned on each other. Ciuma, or 'Famine' didn't necessarily mean 'no food', it meant people were starved, craving love, food, and even blood. It removed every inhibitor regarding restraint... resulting in pure, untouched anarchy.
Odin roared as he kicked one of the guardians off, cursing the fact that they turned after their attack failed, that or something in the wind caused them to go berserk.
"Form up!" He bellowed, trying to establish some semblance of order.
This was going to be a long battle.
