Alone in the Dark

The flashes and booms ceased soon after Fire and Shadow disappeared over the yonder. Silence fell over the city. There was no birdsong to be heard, no wind to rustle leaves, not even insects chirping or buzzing. The only movement was the plumes of smoke rising straight up from the burning buildings.Despite it being far too distant for the sound to reach your ears, you could still hear the crackling of fire.And even though you couldn't even see the buildings themselves, you still watched how the flames devoured the remnants of someone's home.

Then a shout reached your ears. A gruff male voice came from somewhere below, a voice hoarse form too much yelling. You stuck your head out of the window and looked at the courtyard below. A line of ponies, each clad in a camouflage-pattern uniform, trotted through it. An odd feeling of elation overtook you as you saw it, like a balloon was inflating in your chest.

It was not until nightfall that you got some clue of what was going on. The fires had long since been put out, the protective dome had vanished without a trace, and dark clouds had appeared over the horizon in the direction Fire and Shadow had flown off to. A faint yellow and orange light lit the clouds from below. It would occasionally brighten to match a sunrise momentarily, then nearly disappear before returning to a steady constant. It was then that you understood. You had seen it before. Soon after crossing through the Rift. Back then, you had been taken towards it. But you only arrived to see the aftermath. The shattered windows, collapsed buildings, burned-out vehicles, spent casings. And those who got left behind. Both your kind and theirs. You were told to ignore them and do your duty. So you did. But that did not stop them from staring at you. The only thing that did was the time you'd spent in the dark cell. They had left you alone while you were there.

You were not sure when you fell asleep. You only realized you had when the door was slammed open and you jerked awake, nearly causing the chair you fell asleep on to fall over.

“Rejoice, human! For it is over!”

It was a lot like the warm, caring voice you'd learned to both love and hate. But it was neither caring nor empathetic. It was dry and harsh, like a wildfire. You barely had time to open your eyes and let out a groan when the chair you were sitting on was turned around. Her appearance both did and did not surprise you. On one hand, you had seen her before, if only for a split-second. On the other, she was completely different. She no longer had a mane and tail made of aurora, but ones made of living flame that painted her surroundings in a yellow and orange tint. Her coat was no longer pure milky white but had a hint of orange to it. But the greatest change was her eyes. What used to be large, round and pink eyes that always seemed to regret what she'd done to you and offer hope were now a pair of slits in her dark red eyeballs through which you could see the fire that burned inside her. She had ditched the tiara-like crown she'd had when you last saw her and now wore a red helmet that covered her skull, and the chestpiece she wore now extended onto her wings as some form of armor.

“Rejoice, for your kind is being driven from Equestria!”

You swallowed a tiny bit of spittle with a loud gulp, and doubted this would end well.

“Why the glum look?”

Your eyes had found your toes and you felt the corners of your mouth droop as your mind grasped the full meaning of her words. It meant an end to conflict, but at what cost? The clip-clop of her horseshoes came closer until you could see them, now made of red metal, right next to your feet. She lifted a forehoof off the floor and used it to force your chin upwards until you stared right into her fiery red eyes.

“You should be glad. It is because of you that we did not eradicate your kind for the filth it is.”

A wide grin spread onto her face, letting you see the short but sharp fangs she now had. She pulled her hoof away from your chin. You had just enough time to think that maybe she was about to leave when her horn flashed orange and the chair was suddenly pulled from underneath you. Your hands shot forwards in an attempt to remain upright, but it was in vain as you tumbled backwards nevertheless.

“A-ha! Pathetic!”

Maybe she just wanted to humiliate you for a tiny bit. But as you elbowed yourself to a slightly more upright position and saw her wide open eyes, the brighter than before fire burning inside them and the mad grin on her face, you gave up. Maybe she'd be done with you faster if you didn't resist. You tried to keep your face neutral as an orange glow enveloped your right hand and pulled it upwards, until it was so high in the air that nothing but the tips of your toes touched the floor.

“You are weak...”

She swung you to the left so your left shin banged on the sideboard of your bed, sending a spike of pain up your spine.

“...slow...”

She swung you to the right, and this time there was nothing in your way.

“...and stupid.”

She threw you towards the ceiling and let go. Your limbs flailed in the air as you tried to land on your feet. You fell on your knees and hands, and then let yourself fall onto your stomach. She should get bored if you didn't react. Should. Had to.

You did not like the silence. It lasted a bit too long before her hoofsteps filled the air.

“Giving up?”

Clip. Clop. A red horseshoe appeared right before your eyes with a loud stomp. It made you flinch.

“It's fine. I shouldn't expect more from you than the others.”

Something hard and flat touched your back. But it was a gentle touch, more like a stroke or a pet than something meant to torment you.

“We all have our breaking points and what you've seen must've taken you beyond yours.”

The hard thing on your back was lifted off before coming back for another stroke.

“But you know what?”

This time, it stopped halfway.

“I don't care.”

It pushed hard into you, edge first. You gasped in pain. Then it was gone, and you breathed out in relief. But immediately, something smacked the back of your head, hard.

“And you WILL look at me when I speak.”

The ringing in your ears made it hard to make up what she was saying. Some force grasped your shoulder and pushed you around onto your back. You stomach was starting to feel bit unsteady. An orange glow filled your vision and your head was turned towards her.

“There we go. Not so hard, was it?”

There was a smile on her face which you would've called mellow if not for what she'd just done. A part of you wanted to be angry at her, hit her and hurt her. Her actions would have justified such means. But another part of your mind, which spoke with the voice of a young colt, had seen enough of violence. So, you forced a shy smile onto your face and extended a shaky hand upwards, towards her head.

“You...”

Suddenly, she looked different. And sounded, too. Her eyes were round and pink, and her voice melodic and full of emotion. A single tear formed at the corner of her eyes. Then she blinked.

“...you wish for something different?”

And the glimmer of her old self was gone.

Her head swung downwards, towards yours. You closed your eyes and cringed away in fear. But the only thing that happened was that you felt a scorching hot breath on your cheek. Then a pair of equally hot lips pressed onto yours. Her tongue forced its way into your mouth and licked your front teeth. You weren't quite sure how to feel about her advance, but decided to play along in hopes she wouldn't hit you again.

“Then perhaps I can oblige.”

She whispered into your ear. You felt the extreme heat radiating from her skin move down your cheek as the knot on the strap of your bathrobe – still the only thing you had to wear – was undone. Afraid of what her quite literally fiery head might do to your more sensitive parts, you shot up into a sitting position. Or tried to, at least. As soon as you moved a muscle, an orange glow appeared to push your shoulders to the floor with so much force you couldn't do anything.

“You suspicion wounds me. But I guess it is not completely without reason.”

You could only watch as she swept aside the only layer of cloth covering you.

“Not the most eager, are you?”

She glanced back at you, a mischievous smile on her lips. Her wings shot out to the sides and beat the air with a loud flap. Another flap brought her around, and her rear hooves thumped onto the floor right next to your ears. You found yourself staring up at the twin mounds between her rear limbs. Then she took half a step forward and slowly bent all four of her limbs to gently lower herself onto you. Her tail, made of living fire, was right in front of your face. The intense heat radiating off it made you freeze in fear. You flinched as she flicked it right at your face. It... passed right through. You felt the blistering heat as it did, but it did not hurt you. It wasn't like anything you'd felt before, you felt the flames lick your skin and the heat was there, but it did not burn.

“You know what I wish for.”

With her tail out of the way, you were presented with a sight you were more familiar with than you wanted to be. Only this time, she was dry. You considered just giving up and not doing anything at all, but were too afraid of what she could do to you to actually do it. Plus, it was not like it was entirely unpleasant. So, after sticking a finger in your mouth to wet it, you ran it down the side of her nethers to test how she felt. Her skin felt skin felt even hotter than last time, nearly scorching, but not quite so hot as to be unpleasant to the touch. At the same time, you felt her blistering breath between your legs and on your very soft self. You settled on massaging her flanks while slowly working your way inwards as she prodded you with her tongue. It seemed like she wasn't quite sure what to do, but you couldn't really help it. Unless...

Letting go of her buttocks, you gave her lips a few quick strokes before plunging your forefinger as deep into her as you could reach. She drew a short, sharp breath and jerked as you did so, caught completely off-guard. You felt around her smooth, blazing hot insides before pulling out and sticking your damp finger into your mouth. It tasted of...

Kind of like the hottest chili you had ever tasted, mixed with some honey and something earthy, that was on fire. You were quite sure it tasted of fire. But one thing was certain. You had to have more. Your mind was suddenly filled with how blissful it had to feel to lick her, how it would be like to lap at her juice as it drooled down from her entrance and onto her clitoris, how you would wait for her to reveal it to you before digging in...

You barely noticed yourself growing hard. You were too busy massaging her mound and licking her slit, making sure you could get more of her nectar. The way her tongue wrapped around your member and how it felt like a wreath of molten rock that somehow didn't burn was irrelevant to you. The only thing on your mind was taste of her. How you could get a touch more every time she winked and you licked what she showed you each time. How you would coax it from its hiding place by sticking a finger in her and tapping a certain spot almost as far inside as you could reach. How her breathing grew more and more labored and how she moaned was insignificant. The only thing that mattered was that you could see your prize again.

“Hnnn!”

You were pulsing despite her no longer even touching your member. Then she jerked and clamped down on your fingers. And you were rewarded. You drank her liquid fire as her insides spasmed and she moaned.

“Ahn... Mmmh... You certainly haven't lost your touch.”

She panted and laid limply on top of you for a short while as you did your best to clean her up. Something orange appeared around your head and pushed you away as she got on her hooves.

“Stand.”

You pushed yourself off the floor and onto your feet. Your eyes were fixed on her twin suns. Her tail was in the way. That you couldn't see what you wanted to see consumed your mind. Yet some distant corner of your mind noticed how she looked at you over her barrel and how she paused for a second to ponder something. Then she flicked her tail out of the way.

“Come then. Show me what you have.”

You didn't need to be told twice. She was still drenched after her orgasm and swollen with arousal. You stepped up to her and placed yourself at her entrance – and then paused. Your eyes found hers and looked for... something. What that something was, you weren't sure. But it wasn't there. All you saw was the fire behind her eyes and a flash of orange.

“It is rude to keep a lady waiting.”

You were pushed into her. Into her tight, wet, blazing hot self. As deep as you could go. You pulled halfway out of her, then plunged in as deep as you could again.

“Mm. Not bad.”

You placed your hands at the near end of her barrel, where her hip began, and settled into slightly shallower, rhythmical motion. She felt different, but no less incredible. It felt like a flame licking you, and you could also feel her contract herself in a rhythm matching yours. Slap. Slap. Slap. You involuntarily started going deeper again as you felt yourself nearing your peak.

“Ah, going already?”

Her voice was a purr full of pleasure, but you could tell she wasn't as into it as you. You gasped for breath as her insides turned into two rings that moved up and down your shaft, always in opposite directions. It was too much. You slammed into her for the final time and twitched in pleasure as she milked you of everything you could give. Spasm. Spasm. The sheer amount of pure pleasure nearly caused you to faint.

“That was far from unpleasant, but you need some work if you wish to match those fingers of yours like that.”

You pulled yourself out of her, which produced a quiet smacking sound, and took a staggering step backwards.

“Now try to behave while I'm gone, there is a war I need to finish and you have yet to play your part.”

What? You shook your head to clear your thoughts and looked at her. What did she mean with that?

“Oh.”

She read your flabbergasted face and flashed a sly smile.

“I never told you, did I? You were meant to be used as a pawn in the peace negotiations.”

Her hooves tread the stone of the floor as she turned around and walked right next to you.

“Of course, your kind was never interested in negotiations. I was quite insulted when my courier was returned as a corpse.”

You were uncomfortable with her standing so close she was touching you, but you didn't dare to move.

“I, of course, returned the favor by burning a few thousand of your soldiers...”

She turned her muzzle upwards so she was facing the ceiling and wrapped a forehoof around your leg.

“A little... vengeance.”

Her eyes flashed as she blurted it out, as did her mane and tail.

“But worry not. You are safe.”

Her hoof let go of your leg and she took a step back.

”Wait!”

She paid you no heed, only flashed a smile at you before you heard a crack, she turned into flames, and vanished.