Sanguine Souls

Push back against the dying of the light

Everything was quiet. A harsh quiet. The kind of quiet that screams in your ears.

The throbbing of Soul’s heartbeat was all he could hear. His vision pulsed red, and his body burned as if it was lit ablaze every time he tried to move. Ira began watching Soul’s movements closely, while still keeping an eye on Haimon and Alphinx.

“Jeez, make up your damn mind! Vampirism or mind control?!” Ira shouted towards Haimon in an annoyed tone “I’m not allowed to take any more pony lives, so says ‘Sunny Sunshine’ over there, so it’d better be the former!”

Haimon chuckled a bit before responding “Both, in fact” He pointed towards Soul, who looked as if his body would collapse any minute “If he keeps resisting the control, he will resort to vampirism, which will become stronger and stronger every time. If I do not control him, a thirst for blood will instead”

The word ‘Vampirism” suddenly jogged Daring’s memory, and she quickly moved to pull a bottle of Zecora’s medicine for Soul from her saddlebag. Soul realized her plan as she hastily trotted over to him, and stayed as still as he could. Daring managed to slip the medicine through Soul’s lips after a few tries, and the world quickly returned to Soul. He shook his head a few times to recuperate from the episode.

“Ah, right. That medicine of yours. I almost forgot your friend had supplied you with that” Haimon remarked as if he was holding back laughter “Don’t worry, it will fail soon enough”

“I wouldn’t be so sure, Haimon” Soul replied as he took hold of his previously scattered mind “The feelings are gone, and my strength is returned. You’re going to need more than a petty virus to overthrow me”

“Hmm...we shall see...” Haimon spoke as he slowly caressed his chin in thought “I would think all I need is to do is lead the horse to the water!”

Haimon quickly raised his hand up, which began to glow a dull red once more. Instead of pulsing, however, the red aura suddenly shot towards Soul in a stream. The spell reached Soul within a second and spun around his head, then dissipated after passing through him. A moment passed before the very same symptoms hit Soul, along with a shrill white noise that filled his deaf ears. The shrieking sound disoriented Soul, and sent him into slight vertigo as his mind spun violently. He nearly lost his footing several times as he struggled to keep his body in his own control.

Can’t...give up...I’ve got to fight this! Soul’s only thought hopped and skipped along his mind I’m not...going to stand by and watch...ANYMORE!

Celestia and Luna were trading worried whispers when they ,and everypony else nearby, had quickly took attention to Soul. With seemingly his own force of will, Soul had begun pushing Haimon’s spell out of his body. The red energy swirled around Soul in a fiery aura as it intensified, increasing it’s speed gradually. Suddenly, it exploded outwards from Soul in a small crimson bubble, leaving a glowing red aura along his body. Soul stood resolute as if he had been previously unaffected, and his iris' shined a bright emerald green. The energy that pulsed through him formed a powerful gust around his body, which blew his mane and tail about violently. Ira reacted as most ponies had to him; his eye’s widened in shock and he stepped backwards from Soul a few times.

“The power...his life sign, it just...” Ira stuttered as he quickly found his words “He was never giving off such power before!” Ira dashed his gaze from Soul to Haimon and back again several times before continuing with a devious smirk on his face ”How ironic! He’s taken the power directly out of that cheap little spell of yours! You just gave him the means to your own demise!"

Haimon grimaced at the scene, the shock on his face barely visible through his aggravation “I gave him nothing but a command!” Haimon snapped back towards Ira, a smile growing on his face “He may have just become more powerful to kill you, anyways. That is indeed what I ordered of him”

“The only one I intend to take down here is you, Haimon!” Soul shouted at an unnatural volume “I bring death to those who oppose Equestria. I am vengeance! I am punishment to the wicked!” Soul floated up into the air on his wings and equipped his scythe, then pointed it towards Haimon “And you will be punished for your crimes against this land!”

“Pretty cliche, but I’ll deal with it” Ira remarked, quickly taking a stance “Now that you’re not crippled like a vegetable, let’s finish this!”

On his words Ira quickly rushed forward and leaped into the air, coming down of Haimon sword-first. Haimon reacted by merely holding his axe’s flat end towards Ira. As soon as Ira hit the axe, a red bubble of power threw him back with nearly enough to force to send him through a nearby window.

“Ira, stop. I’ll handle this” Soul commanded, holding a hoof out towards Ira “It’s about time for Jay to return, anyways”

“Like hell it is!” Ira snapped back, quickly jumping to his feet “I came here for this guy’s death, and I’m not leaving until I have it!”

As Ira rushed forward once more, Haimon quickly slammed the ground with his axe, catching Ira’s sword and arm in his crimson roots when the tip of the blade was just inches from Haimon’s face. Haimon seemed unphased, and proceeded to spin around the roots and catch Ira in the side with his axe. The force of the attack dislodged Ira’s arm from the roots and sent him flying through a pillar, slamming him hard against the wall behind it enough to leave cracks in the stone. In the plume of dust the pillar’s destruction had created, Ira slowly slid down the wall until his lower back naturally stopped him on the floor.

“I would agree with the pony on this one, Guardian. Fighting isn’t worth it” Haimon remarked, a smug grin growing on his face “And as much as I’d like to stay and do so, I’m afraid I must get going” Haimon tapped Alphinx on the shoulder before turning his back and walking away. Soul had nearly attempted to stop him when a piece of stone rubble bounced off Haimon’s back.

Haimon turned to face Ira, who stood hunched on his feet as if he would fall any moment. A few small streams of black blood coursed down his left arm and dripped onto the floor. He was breathing heavier than normal; every heave he took filled with a low growl of anger that could be easily heard through the silence in the room.

“What’s wrong...huh? Leaving...so soon?” Ira spoke in pauses through his breathing. He held up his wounded arm and allowed his blood to fall onto itself until the dripping could be faintly heard “Yeah...is this what you want? Well...is it?! I don’t think so, you’re scared...aren’t you?!” Ira laughed to himself, then threw his arm back in anger, causing a streak of blood to hit the wall behind him ”Go ahead and run away! Flee from your battles like the coward you are!”

Haimon’s expression of annoyance seemed to intensify as he spoke “Fine, I’ll make the exception. We’ll see who the coward is when I have you begging for your life” He threatened while pointing his axe at Ira.

On his words, Haimon held up his axe in preparation for an attack. Ira quickly averted his eyes to Soul and nodded his head towards Haimon as Soul caught his gaze. When Haimon moved in to attack, a sudden burst of lightning grazed his left shoulder, causing him to stop in his tracks as he flinched. Along with most of the room, Haimon turned to see Soul pointing his scythe at him. Electricity sparked and crackled along the steel of Soul’s blades before another bolt jumped at Haimon, who managed to dodge away from the attack within the second it was cast.

“Give him no regard. I’m your enemy” Soul said in a tone that sent chills down Daring’s spine “You can try to walk away, but I wouldn’t advise turning your back again”

Haimon quickly glanced at Alphinx, who returned a look that showed both annoyance and worry “I didn’t expect this to be so tedious” Haimon gripped the handle of his axe tightly with both hands as he continued “If I want something done, it seems I’ll have to do it myself”

As Soul raised his scythe in preparation, Haimon looked back at Alphinx, raised one hand, and made a few signs with his fingers before finally pointing towards Celestia. Alphinx slightly nodded before drawing her own weapon and locking her gaze on the princesses. Ira managed to catch himself and stand straight before taking off parallel to Alphinx as she ran towards Celestia. Just a few feet from the guards, Soul managed to fly in and tackle Alphinx down, in which Haimon followed by placing his axe’s flat end onto the ground. The motion caused a large red hand to emerge from the ground, and swipe towards the princess. Ira had just barely gotten in front of her in time to stop the grip of the infernal hand.

“Help would be capital right now, chap!” Ira yelled through his teeth towards Soul, who quickly responded by flying towards him and slashing through the crimson hand. Within seconds of the spell dissipating, Haimon retrieved his weapon and dashed forward, landing an unexpected shoulder bash on Soul’s side that threw him against the wall beside the windows. Haimon then followed up his assault on Soul by raising up his axe and bringing it down two-handed upon Celestia. Celestia ducked down as Ira took the initiative and jumped into the air, stopping the axe mid-attack by dashing against it’s hilt. He flew back over Haimon with the axe in tow, landing several feet behind him, and quickly realized the opening he gave Haimon. Ira attempted to stand up as Haimon formed a red ball into his hands and threw it at the princess, who managed to counter the spell by shielding herself in time.

“This is getting ridiculous!” Haimon shouted out as he leaped forward at Celestia, intent on using his fists to finish his work. His intentions were only met by Soulless Reaper flying in at the same moment and catching Haimon in the chest with a double-legged buck that sent him soaring towards Ira.

“Dibs on k.o!” Ira quickly snapped as he grabbed the flying haimon by the foot and pulled him towards his own attack. The fist that met Haimon smashed him into the ground just as Alphinx appeared in to stop Ira with a swift jumping kick. She was then pounded in the chest by Soul swooping in and tackling her away, then dropping her onto the ground as he gained altitude. Haimon quickly recovered from his blow and backwards tumbled from the ground to Alphinx's side where his axe lay. As Ira stood up to his feet, he took a similar positions opposite of them at Soul ‘s side.

Haimon’s expression seemed to grow in frustration as he scanned his gaze between Ira and Soul “It seems as if aimlessly fighting is all you fools know” Haimon spoke in a harsh tone through small heaves of air “Alphinx...” Haimon looked back at Alphinx, who noticed his attention and quickly reached into her back pocket. She then threw a small tablet at the ground, which clouded her and Haimon in smoke within a second.

“Ah, what a cheap trick!” Ira yelled as he took to running into the smoke “You’re not getting away that easily!” Ira took a few steps in the smoke before one of the opposing humans tripped him, causing Ira to stumble and slam his chin on the ground.

Soul quickly took to Ira’s intentions and flew into the smoke after the humans. He passed through only to find that they were already gone, and looked around hastily as the smoke cleared. Suddenly, he noticed the door at the end of the room close and soared towards it immediately, opening it with the end of his scythe so he could slip through. Ira managed to recover from his fall and sprint after Soul, simply crashing through the doors as Daring took to tailing the both of them.

“Sister, we must aid the justified ones” Luna spoke from behind Celestia as she walked up beside her “Perhaps we could send word to those guarding the castle of the enemies attempted escape?”

“Indeed, that would be best” Celestia agreed, her eyes still on the door of the room. She gave her attention to one of the winged guards as she continued “As Luna said, you must take this chance to inform your captain of the situation, and please hurry”

“Yes, princess!” The guards spoke up, and took flight outside the broken window towards the front gate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The surprisingly empty halls of the castle echoed with the sound of Ira’s footsteps as he scoured the building, checking every corner, nook, and cranny for the humans he hunted. His frustration grew larger as he continued to find every room, hallway, and closet empty, eventually causing him to be reckless in his search. He tore open stone doors and threw furniture aside in anger, growling in rage every time he found naught but air and furniture

“Fucking cowards! Both of you! I know you’re in here somewhere!” Ira’s furious shouts echoed throughout the dining room he stood in “Let’s see how well you run and hide when I have your legs!” Ira sprinted off towards the exit of the room as Daring appeared in the doorway.

“uh...have you found anything?” She hesitantly asked as Ira continued his stride towards the door “Soul flew off somewhere, and i-”

“I don’t have time to talk with you! Outta the way!” Ira cut Daring off as he pushed her aside and he ran forward down a hall, curving into the next room before the sounds of glass and wood breaking could be heard. Daring could faintly hear Ira’s frustrated grunts as the sounds of furniture destruction persisted.

"Jay, er...Ira, I don’t think they're hiding!” Daring yelled towards the room Ira was in “As a matter of fact, I think Soul was chasing them when I lost him!” The sudden and complete halt of any sounds upon Daring’s words sent a small stifle of fear through her. Suddenly, the ground in front of Daring erupted as Ira leaped out from it and landed inches from her.

“Where did he go!? Where are those bastards!?” Ira pressed, standing a few inches from Daring’s face “Answer me, dammit! I haven't got all day!”

Daring was withdrawn to nearly lying down against Ira’s stare as she realized her situation. A reinforcing thought crossed her mind as she attempted to regain her composure Just keep it cool, Daring. He’s not gonna hurt you if he needs your help. He’s at your beck and call if he really wants to find these people Daring slowly stood back up and faced Ira as best she could.

“Well...maybe if you calm down and give me some space, I’ll lead you there” Daring confidently replied, trying to keep a smug grin from forming on her face “After all, you’ll be stuck here searching aimlessly without my help” Daring stood resolute for a few seconds before yelping in fear as Ira picked her up and dangled her from the collar of her coat.

“You flying little rat! You think you can command me like that!?” Ira spoke harshly through his bared, jagged teeth “You may be the Underworlder's friend, but that doesn’t mean I won’t gut you like a fish with my own claws!” Ira dropped Daring on her rump as he crouched and slammed the ground beside her before continuing “Tell me where he went or I’ll show you what it feels like to be physically empty inside!”

Okay, maybe I was a bit off on an obedient response... Daring thought as she nearly shivered in fear. She slowly stood up and took to the air, motioning Ira to follow as she headed towards the hall which she last saw Soul I’ll really need to watch myself around this guy...

Within a minute or so, Daring and Ira stood in what seemed to be the main hall, which linked to several different smaller halls in the castle. A long, red rug at the front of the hall was disoriented and dotted with curled ends, reinforcing the thought that someone had ran across it in haste.

“I barely caught a glimpse of Soul turning in that door towards the foyer, but when I entered, the room was empty” Daring slowly flew across the hall as Ira walked behind her, inspecting every corner “I didn’t hear any sounds of movement either, and the front door was closed”

As if response to Daring’s words, a faint sound of a door closing could be heard within the foyer. Ira perked up from the closet he was checking and turned to face the door. Daring could see Ira dashing his gaze from the closet to the door, and suddenly noticed him grow a devious smile that planted a feeling of worry inside her.

“Hehehe, I'd bet that’s those cowards moving now! They must’ve given Reaper the slip...” Ira delved deeper into the closet before backing out and striking fear directly at Daring with the item he held. Ira was carrying a large, heavy-duty chainsaw that gleamed against the indoor lighting as he fondled it’s controls “Rather bad timing for them, I’d say! I’m going to really enjoy this!” Ira laughed maniacally as he yanked the chainsaw’s cord several times before it roared back in response and spouted out a small puff of smoke. He then sprinted past Daring to the foyer with the chainsaw high in the air and kicked down the door. Both Haimon and Alphinx were standing at the main entrance when they turned to see Ira at the left side doorway above split stairs. He quickly leaped over the railing and landed at the end of the steps, the chainsaw revving violently in his claws.

“Looks like you owe me. I told you he’d use the chainsaw, we should’ve stopped to destroy it” Alphinx said to Haimon in a smug tone, keeping her eyes on the slasher-esc demon that stood before them.

“...I’ll pay you when we get back...if we get back” Haimon responded, a slight tone of worry in his voice.