Monsters ravage Equus.

Beasts among Beasts destroy cities.

Purest of Monsters destroy, pillage, deceive, and kill by the score.

And Misunderstood flood the outer wilds, trying to survive.

A Cursebringer, marked by a pure white Skull, stands strong in the white.

Curses are brought to all.

The first few days of Skull's incarceration were slow and mind-numbing. Normally he would just sit on his cot and think, or sleep, but a few times he would play tic-tac-toe with himself using some chalk the guards graciously yet begrudgingly gave him. When he thought, however, he thought of what he would do once he got out. That, or his new friend.

Currently, it was his sixth day in prison, and he had gone beyond the point of boredom-induced mania the previous day. Now, he was just sitting in his cot, staring at the crystal ceiling with a faraway look on his face and contemplation in his eyes. This was not uncommon for him, but the subject of his thoughts was.

'Angel... Can I really trust her? Grandpa always told me to trust only family and myself, and she's neither of those. But...' He frowned, turning onto his side, facing the wall. 'She hasn't stabbed me in the back yet or anything like all the others. Hell, she's been nice to me. And she's just so...' He sighed, sitting up and crossing his arms. 'Ugh... I don't know what to do.'

Then, a memory shot through his mind.

"Son, if you're gonna listen to me, then you better listen now," said an old, grizzled man with tanned skin and graying hair coupled with a light goatee and mustache. He took a long swig of alcohol from a hip flask, then continued afterwards with, "I know I've always said to only trust yourself and your family, but I neglected to mention a part to that."

"What was that, Grandfather?" asked a slightly younger Skull, likely in his early twenties. His grandfather smiled at him, the same cocky, proud smile he always wore.

"You ever find a woman that just draws you in, then don't be afraid to give her a shot too," he said sagely, winking at him. "You're old enough now to understand why." He raised his flask, his golden eyes gleaming in the dim light of the room. "Now, enough of this mushy talk, let's drink!"

Skull sat in his cot for a straight five minutes as he came to that realization. But... All that training, all that time spent telling me to never trust anyone but myself... He sighed, rolling over in his cot. Silence reigned for what felt like hours, before eventually he sat up in his cot, sweeping his legs over the side of it. He looked to the barred window and the sky outside it.

"...Can I really trust her?" He asked himself in a soft, uncertain voice. He sighed, gaze dropping to the dull crystal floor below him. "...All the other girls I dated dumped me pretty quickly, and I gave up a while ago, but..." Thoughts ran through his head as fast as a whirling tornado through a countryside. He scratched his head furiously. "Uuugh...!" A guard banged on the cell door with his spear.

"Keep it down!" he yelled. Skull glared after the stallion, who went back to patrolling the dungeon, then returned his gaze to the floor. He sighed deeply once more. "...I guess I'll give her a chance." He looked back to the window. "Not like there's anyone else I can trust in this world anyways, right? Might as well trust someone I know somewhat well," He reasoned.

Eventually, he laid back down on his cot and tried to let sleep take him. It didn't come easy, but it still came, and he was grateful for it. His dreams came easier than the sleep itself did, and the dreams were filled with uncertain situations. Slowly, however, they shifted to happier dreams, with a certain silver-haired school girl in them.

Meanwhile, a particular blue alicorn smiled while her horn glowed in the dim light of her room.

Shortly after Skull's last day in incarceration, he went to the Princesses to ask if he could build an organization made specifically for fighting the rising Monster threats. They allowed it, and after multiple late nights of doing paperwork and sleeping in a city filled with a race he held no love for, he had gotten everything he needed to create his very own Hunter's Guild.

Today, he was heading to the base of Mt. Canter to oversee the construction of the main Guild Hall and HQ for the Hunter's Guild. This would not be the last of them to be built, however. Many more were to be built in other areas, to build a network that would help with the large amount of cases of Monsters flowing in each day. More might be built beyond Equestria, but Skull was told by the Princesses that that was something they would work on later.

Currently, Skull had made it to the build site, having arrived per his usual way; via Chimera Wing. He was dressed in his usual armor, as he wanted to show he still held authority, as well to intimidate some of the ponies for fun. Skull walked over to the general contractor, who was looking at the blueprints by a table, rubbing her chin with a hoof.

"How goes it, Trowel?" he asked from behind her. She grunted and looked up at him, her hard hat covering and holding most of her orange mane.

"Well, if you're askin' 'bout how much longer it'll take, which I know y' are, we've got at least another couple o' weeks ahead o' us before we finish, maybe a little more," she answered gruffly. Skull crossed his arms and looked to the building, or rather the frame of it.

He grunted. "What's the status on the bar and front desk, then?" Trowel rolled her eyes, but pointed to the singular desk on the floor of the frame, just behind the steps leading up to it. Skull grinned under his mask. "Good." He turned to leave. "Well, you keep up the good work. I got another Monster to wrangle and capture for the eggheads to study." Trowel simply grunted again and returned to her work. Skull spared a glance at the building one last time. "...Well, at least I'll have help soon."

I was wrong. So wrong. I'm gonna be stuck with doing jobs and hunts alone forever! Skull bemoaned in his head. Currently, he was standing on a platform as he watched a good number of ponies, from stallions to mares, sparring with each other. They were...less than subpar. Skull sighed as he watched another duo of stallions simply slapping each other with their hooves. Skull's palm met his face quickly at the sight. "For the Lord's sake..." He groaned. "...fucking prissy noble brats..." He removed his hand from his face, then glared at the two stallions, raising his voice. "You two! Stop slapping each other like fucking pansies and throw some damn punches!"

The stallions turned to face Skull, the other ponies stopping their 'fights' to watch the exchange. "B-But it might hurt him!" one argued.

Skull growled. "Do you want me to come over there and show you something that might hurt him?" The stallions paled.

"N-N-No sir!" they cried in unison.

"Then fight like ya fucking mean it!" Skull ordered. The two nodded rapidly. Skull noticed the others that were just standing and watching. "What are you all looking at? You better get your sorry asses back to fighting, or I'll revoke your breaks, revoke your rights to the drinks in the tavern, and make you all run twenty laps around the fucking mountain!"

The ponies swiftly obeyed and went back to 'sparring.' Skull sighed deeply, palm meeting his face for a second time. "I'm getting too old for this bullshit..."

Author's Note

EDIT: Opening is here!

Welp, here's the long awaited and final chapter to the Redemption Arc. Next up is the Intermission, and beyond that, the Red Hunt Arc!

Thanks for reading!

-Timeless Celestial