Fallen Angel: Caim's Revival

A Time Long Forgotten...

She grunts silently as she continues running through the dark woods. Scampering and distant voices echo through the darkness, and she constantly feels as if she's being watched.

Suddenly, she trips and falls. Her bright green hood continues to cover her head, as the rain pours over her frail little body.

She opens her eyes and lifts herself up, where she sees her own reflection in a small puddle.

Her eyes are light blue; almost as blue as the lower corners of her jacket. Her hair is long and black, and her skin is pale, with small freckles on her cheeks.

She turns around and gasps as the glowing blue eyes continue to taunt her from the darkness. The monsters are surrounding her, leaving her to silently beg for mercy... but being mute, her only option is to use sign language.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work. They continue to approach her with their pitch black insectoid hooves trotting closer to her.

As she tries to stand up and run, one of their horns lights up with a bright green aura, which suddenly encases the girl. She wheezes as an attempt at screaming, but her efforts are in vain.

One of the creatures approaches her... the tallest of them all.

It is a male one of the creatures with glowing red eyes.

He trots closer to her, until she's staring eye-to-eye at it. Then it grins wickedly, before opening its mouth; revealing its bloodied fangs. Finally, as its fangs get closer to her vision, it speaks in a tone that sends shivers down her spine.

"A҉T ͞LA̛S͏T, I'VE ̸F͠O̢U̕ND̕ ́YOU͞!"

The battle is fierce for Caim. With every attempt at blocking one of the manticores' strikes, he quickly has to evade one of the other two, only to find the third nearing him from behind. Then they fall back and circle him, keeping him on his toes.

While he may be able to strike from all sides with a gust of wind, he still needs to conserve his energy, should Amon attempt anything. Plus, with his rival's eyes focused on him the entire time, he knows that he would only be giving himself an opening if he tries spreading his wings out.

Finally, after dodging once more, one of the manticores leaps over its friend, lunging after Caim with full force.

He quickly blocks the attack, only for the third to approach him from behind and swipe horizontally.

It cuts through the chainmail, and leaves four scratches in his flesh.

Slightly injured, he hisses before reaching his hand behind his back and casting a small energy blast at the manticore.

It flies backwards a few feet, giving him the opening he needs.

With the manticore that's locked on his blade still attempting to crush him, he rolls under it, but lunges his sword upwards, piercing the beast through the back, and lifting it up into the air.

With another blast, he manages to toss the creature into the air before leaping up with his sword at hand.

As it slows down, it uses its wings to regain balance in the air, only to growl in pain at its injury. It then looks down, only for Caim to appear below it, and within reach.

Before it could swing at him, however, he slices towards its vision, shortly before everything goes dark.

Caim lands on the ground with his sword glowing even more red from its fallen victim. Behind him, the body of the manticore lands, with its head falling down on the other side of him, and rolling forward slightly.

The two remaining manticores roar as their brother lies dead, before rushing towards the fallen angel at full force, no longer under the influence of the spell.

Caim smiles slightly as he notices their lack of control over their bodies. He has them where he wants them.

Leaping up in the air once more, he manages to use his wings to sweep through the air quickly, before folding them back as he soars towards the two opponents. Then, with his feet close to the ground, he kicks himself up to boost his height, and swirls through the air, sending his blade through the manticores in a circular pattern.

He lands on the ground while the manticores fall behind him. Rather than cut in half, however, all of their limbs were quickly severed, with the momentum of their running scattering the pieces a great distance away.

Caim stands back up and breathes heavily. Has this world truly sapped that much of his energy?

His eyes quickly turn to the side as he remembers that the battle isn't even over yet.

Suddenly he hears the flapping of a pair of large wings, and turns with his sword held in a defensive position. No sooner than that, does he barely manage to block the blue bladed, gold handled longsword being held by Amon.

He struggles as Amon glides over his form, smiling menacingly, and adding downward pressure to their weapons.

Caim's glare intensifies as he makes an attempt to push back... but try as he might, he knows that Amon's strength exceeds his own far too much. And so, he watches as his own blade inches closer to his face, with the tip of Amon's blade gaining a closer proximity towards his vision.

Finally, Amon's sword starts to glow white. The brightness forces Caim to close his eyes for a brief moment.

To his surprise, however, he feels the pressure lift. He rubs his eyes before quickly opening them back up. Amon isn't standing there, anymore.

He grips his sword's handle with both hands and braces himself. Looking around, he holds his breath, trying to avoid concentrating on his aching muscles, and instead, searching the surroundings for any signs of his enemy.

A distant branch snaps behind him, forcing his vision towards the direction. He lifts his sword again and holds it defensively as he notices Amon rushing towards him at a blurring speed.

To his shock, though, Amon vanishes before his eyes.

And at this point, Caim realizes that it is too late. He fell for the trap.

He hears the footsteps behind him, only a few meters away, and his back is turned; his sword in front.

He turns his head quickly, right as he sees Amon's sword lunge towards his chest.

And then, a sharp pain fills his entire body. Blood quickly surges out of his chest as he feels the tip of the blade leave his chest, with the force of the impact lifting him up off his feet.

And the pain only continues, forcing him to drop his sword and grip onto his chest, in an attempt to remove the blade holding him in the air.

He hisses in agony as the blade only lifts him higher, until the only thing he feels between his back is the handle of the sword.

His back arches back, where his vision is upside-down. He then notices that Amon isn't even carrying his sword with his hands, but rather, through magic.

"Tell me, Caim... how does it feel? Being powerless, that is..."

The blade shifts slightly, causing Caim to grunt in pain. Blood slightly lurches from his mouth, as he coughs it up.

"It doesn't feel too good... does it? Knowing that you, the newest 'Slayer of Legions', have finally been defeated by the one whose legions you have slain?" He walks closer to Caim and looks him in the eyes. "Pity, though... I would've thought that you would've at least struck me once."

And with that, Caim spits some of his blood into Amon's face.

Amon wipes some of the blood off of his cheek, and stares at it while rubbing the crimson liquid in his fingers.

Then, he chuckles before smiling at Caim amusedly. "Oh? Is that the best you could do?"

Caim grits his teeth before reaching his right hand out. Amon's eyes quickly widen as he notices the gesture too well.

Before Amon could react, Caim shoots a blast of red energy directly into Amon's chest, sending him flying into a tree, which topples over upon impact.

Amon's grip on his blade is lost, and Caim falls directly onto the ground. His vision blurs as the pain in his chest intensifies, with the blade's handle piercing through his body the rest of the way, only deepening his wounds.

He grips onto the flats of the blade and, with a pained groan, pulls it out and tosses it aside.

Then he feels a magic grip hold his entire body in place. He then finds himself lifted up again, with an enraged Amon approaching him with the sword in-between the two angels.

"Oh, why you little..." Amon takes a deep breath and claps his hands together as he stops his movement. He then opens his eyes after a brief moment of collecting his thoughts.

"So you do have more fight in you, then. Too bad you just used the last of your energy just to push me back a few steps."

Caim weakly opens his mouth and coughs more blood out before chuckling. "And yet you still took the strike."

Amon rubs his chin in thought before smiling smugly. "Ah... well, then. I suppose not all victories could be flawless. Regardless, though, I'll be sure to tell my helpful friends that I've managed to put the monster down."

Caim raises an eyebrow at his statement. "Friends? Monster? The only monster is you, and the only friends you could have are mindless servants!"

Amon chuckles and shakes his head. "On the contrary, I've been in this world longer than you have, Caim. The locals here, heroes and commoners, all look up to me as their divine protector. I've even befriended the rulers of this world... and they gave me the all-clear to eliminate the threat that roams their old kingdom."

Caim glares at him again. "So you're cowering behind royalty, then? That seems unlike you... what are your true intentions, Amon?!"

Amon shrugs his shoulders. "For now, I only wish to serve my princesses, and their faithful subjects! I will be what you couldn't be... and I will start with you." Amon grabs his sword again and approaches Caim once more.

Caim sighs before closing his eyes. He knows that this is it. "Very well, then... end me, and be done with your mission. Know this, though... I was not the one who killed your father."

Amon stops, and tilts his head confusedly. "Oh? So you expect me to believe that, knowing that you were well intent on killing me, had it not been for Zeus's intervention?"

Caim opens his eyes again. "And you believe me to lie about someone I did not kill, knowing that all lives I have claimed, I openly admit?"

And now, for once, it is Amon who glares at Caim. "You had your powers, then. You stand before me in a weakened state... how am I to believe you're only saying this to save your own life?"

Caim sighs and closes his eyes again. "I don't. That is why I say for you to go ahead and finish me."

Amon stands there, staring at his fallen brother with a blank look. He senses the truth in Caim's words, but still holds the vengeance of his legions in his heart.

And yet, he feels something else... pity.

"You know... I was intent on killing you, Caim... but in this state, you do not even pose the same threat you did then. Mayhaps this planet's magic has clouded my judgement."

Caim raises an eyebrow again, but remains silent.

Amon finally tightens his grip on his sword. "Caim... you have slain my legions... you have banished me to this world! I have every right to slay you, here and now! However... I do not wish to kill you just yet. Therefore, you are at my mercy... but not this world's."

He inches his face closer to Caim's and deadpans at him. "I no longer wish for you to die... no. I wish for you to suffer... and so, I shall grant you your life... but at the greatest of costs."

Caim's eyes widen as he notices Amon's eyes trail down to his back... or more specifically, his wings.

"Amon, you... you sick bastard! So help me, if you do this, I shall rise again, and..."

Amon's magic covers Caim's throat, causing him to choke, and his body to twitch.

"Hush, Caim... you wouldn't want to hear yourself after this..." he lifts his sword up in the air and licks his lips, while Caim's muffled cries fills the immediate area.

The forest grows silent. Even the crickets stop chirping, as if to silently watch the monster that invaded their planet receive the heaviest of punishments that any angel could ever receive.

Then, a whoosh fills the air. A nasty hacking shortly follows suit, with a loud, muffled scream to conclude. Several birds fly from their nests, so as to avoid the backlash of the power that was just stripped from the entity below them.

Blood gushes from the black lumps on Caim's back. Without his powers present, the pain he felt before has been intensified in his new mortal form.

His vision blurs even more as he feels his life quickly fading away. Even the impact of the ground on his back fails to register to his senses. He barely sees anything, anymore. All that he could see is Amon standing over him with his wings folded in one hand, and the sword that claimed them in the other.

"With these as proof that you have been dealt with, my princesses should be able to rest easier." His voice begins to echo as he looks at Caim one last time. "Do not disappoint me and go dying, yet. You still have so much more to live for! Think of this as a new life for you."

And with that, Caim's consciousness fades.

Amon stares at Caim's unconscious form. Blood continues to puddle below him as his wing slots continue to bleed out.

Rolling his eyes, Amon turns to look at the distant mountain, or more specifically, the massive city that rests on top. Then, with a flare of his wings, he flies into the sky, and zooms towards the city... the City of Canterlot.

From the nearby bushes, the trio of guards stare at the destruction before them with a worried expression.

"W-whoa... t-that was... not what I expected of Sir Amon at all!" the leader of the trio mumbles.

"S-should we report this as a success, then?" the skinny pegasus asks.

The unicorn nods before the big pegasus asks, "What of the changeling, though?"

They look ahead, only to notice the changeling filly already approaching the creature's unconscious form.

"Uh... what is it doing?" the little pegasus asks.

The big one squints his eyes to get a better look.

The changeling appears to be carrying a small saddlebag in her mouth. She quickly places it on the ground next to the creature before opening it up and going through it quickly.

She pulls out a small cloth towel, a mortar and pestle, a few glowing blue leaves, a small jar of green mud, and a tiny scalpel.

"I... think I've seen this before, actually!" the big pegasus states, causing the other two guards to look his way.

"Do go on, Quick Draw."

Quick reaches into his field saddlebag and pulls out a small notepad, before flipping through the pages. As he does, the other two guards study the changeling's actions.

The changeling grinds the leaves into the stone tools with the mud already dumped into it.

"Everblue Leaves, and Evergreen Mud..." Quick begins reading from the notepad.

The guards tilt their heads, but gasp when they see the changeling filly lift the scalpel to her foreleg with a determined look on her face.

Then the guards flinch as she lightly slits her leg, dripping a small sprinkle of her green blood inside the concoction.

"... Drizzled and topped with Changeling Blood. A cure for the wounded, whose life it restores, should Death come knocking upon their front doors."

They look at him confusedly. "Wow, Quick... didn't take you for the poetic type."

Quick sakes his head and puts his notepad away. "I'm not. I got that from a Zebra that lives near here. She helped me with a mortal wound once."

The others nod their heads before realization dawns upon them. "Wait... so that changeling is making some sort of Life Elixir?!"

At that, they quickly turn to the changeling, who is now pouring the concoction over the creature's wounds.

"Oh, no... someone has to warn Amon!" Light Speed, the unicorn leader, half-shouts.

Silence fills the air.

"So should we be the ones to warn him?" Quick Draw asks, keeping his eyes glued to the changeling as she medicates the creature's back.

"Heh... buck no! I'd rather just keep my head where it is, thank-you-very-much!" Light says, followed by a nod from his companions.

"If anything, that job at the nearby Rock Farms looks mighty promising right about now..." Quick Draw states.

"I think I'll stick with Guard Duty, actually. I'm kinda done with scouting for now, and wouldn't mind getting paid for standing still all day." Split Second, the smaller pegasus, suggests.

"Y-yeah. That sounds better, Split. Let's get going, then!" Light says before the three quickly gallop away from the scene, ignoring the changeling filly that's tending to the creature, and the former angel whose eyes slowly open back up.