Moonlight shone through the burnt rafters and broken ceiling of the castle. Heavy metal footsteps echoed throughout the passage as a single armored man limped through the aftermath of a slaughter. Broken and burnt bodies littered the floor, none were recognizable save for their human shape The corrupt Luna left a bloody trail as she went, and the man wasn’t sure what she could be looking for. His heartbeat rang in his ears like a drum.

“It’s you.”

The armored man continued forward without stopping, blood dripping from his leg and mixing with the blood on the floor. The broken door at the end of the hall fell off it’s bent hinges. Ash filled smoke blew past him from the impact. He continued on, coughing and gasping. The gash in his leg meant nothing as long as he still drew breath and his heart still beat. He would find Luna and save her from whatever ailed her, as was his sworn duty.

”Save me? How nobly droll.”

The beating of his heart carried on, it’s pace rising as he continued to exert himself far past his limits. Passing through the doorway lead the man outside. His breath ragged and the cool night air mixing with the heat of the embers left by the disaster. The capital was in ruins, flames still lit up the distant homes of the townspeople. There was no sign of Celestia having come to save her subjects from her sister yet.

”She knew she could not best me. She was weak, but I was foolish.”

The beating of large wings behind him went unnoticed as a large figure landed. He could hear little else but the rhythm of his heart echoing through his head as he pressed on. He had no idea what he would do when he found her, all he wanted was to make her better. To know she was safe. Hoofsteps from the corrupted former princess followed behind him, the man none the wiser. He tried to draw upon his magic to try and quell the pain, but there was nothing left. He was in so much pain, but he wanted nothing more than to continue forward. To save the princess he would die for.

”That was the problem wasn’t it? She didn’t want you to die for her. She was smitten, and desired for you to live by her side forever.”

The man took one last step before his breath left him, though not from exhaustion. His helmeted head looked down, eyes wide. The top of a midnight black horn pierced through his chest, glowing with sickening dark magic. His pain increased tenfold, agony becoming something more, something unbearable. His heartbeat weakened yet his pain did not. With a flash of light the horn was gone, and so was the beat of his heart. He collapsed, unable to stand any longer. He looked up to see the smiling face of the corrupted Luna, in her magical grasp was what he knew was his heart.

“We can be together forever now, Pyre! Thou shalt never have to fear death again!” Nightmare Moon exclaimed maniacally. Pyre Light could finally hear clearly, his heartbeat gone along with any hope of saving his princess. A flash of white wings behind The Nightmare caused Pyre to close his eyes. Celestia had come. He could finally rest.

The last thing he heard before he slept was maniacal laughter, and a blast of intense magic.

Pyre Light woke up in a cold sweat with a gasp, grasping at his chest. His draconic orange eyes glared at the scar tissue on his chest. It would never heal, not with the dark magic used to create it over a thousand years in the past. The scar on his back right between his leathery grey wings was much more severe. Both were grim reminders of the nightmare that haunted him whenever he slept. He glanced around the simple inn room he had rented for the night on the far outskirts of Manehattan and noticed a reflection of light from a telescope across the street peering into his bedroom window from the roof. No doubt more of Celestia’s goons monitoring him.

The events of two years ago did not miss his notice. The return of Luna to Celestia and her people, and her purging of corruption by the elements of harmony in Ponyville. The ascension of two young women into the bestial Alicorn royalty and the birth of a fifth did not miss his attention either. None of those events interested him, but Celestia had been tracking him since Luna’s return regardless. Pyre’s hand lingered on his chest, hoping futilely that his heart might magically return to him and that he might become whole again.

He sat in bed for another few seconds to catch his breath and thoughts before standing up, his black hair falling into his eyes. He made his way over to the bathroom attached to the bedroom, he didn’t care if Celestia’s watchmen saw him in his underwear on the way there. After a quick shower he got dressed with a pair of sturdy black leather boots, jeans, and a red hooded zip-up sweatshirt with holes for his wings.

It always amazed him how far technology had come. Although it would never outshine magic, it was still a staple of the ponylands nowadays. Often technology and magic would mix to create new and wonderful inventions. Pyre picked up his backpack stuffed with spare clothes and bits and stepped out the door. He walked into the main hall of the inn and waved to the woman at the desk, her feathery wings stretching as she yawned and waved back. Pyre stepped out the front door of the inn into the cold autumn day, ponies went about their day by hoof or wing. Weather Pegasi began to pull in rain clouds for a late morning shower.

Pyre brough his hands up to his face and let out a small puff of flame to warm them, startling a horned woman that was exiting the inn beside him and causing her to scurry off. He gazed at the city of Manehattan in the distance, It wasn’t his destination but it was absolutely a sight to behold. He could only imagine how many people a city like that could hold. Pyre Light then turned his gaze to the mountain range far to the southwest of Manehattan and saw the precarious city of Canterlot. He knew the sisters would find him when he was ready. For now, he was going to make his way to the former capital. It was time to go into the depths of the Everfree Forest.

Author's Note

Sorry to start another story and leave you guys hanging on Dinky and Her Monster for now, but I was in the mood to write something adventurey and worldbuildey tonight and DaHM isn't really suited for that. Tell me what you think as always, I'd love to hear your feedback.