Come Dawn or Darkness

Aw you've gotta be kidding me! Why did I think this would be a good idea, I can't see a thing down there! She sped on ahead, hoping that the woods might become a bit less dense up ahead. It didn't. She had been sure splitting off from the others by way of air would give her an advantage over their grounded targets. What she hadn't counted on was the canopy of unfallen leaves that still remained down below her, forming a near-endless canopy over the forest floor. Stupid, stupid, stupid! She would have smacked herself on the head as she thought it were it not for the fear of dropping the long ghostly sword she had clenched between her teeth.

She was just bout to turn back and try to catch up with the rest of the group when something suddenly shot out of the trees below her; a dark shadow cloaked in an explosion of leaves. She heard it as it sped toward her, the sound of leathery wings beating the air as it climbed to her elevation. "You're not going to get far like that! As long as you don't mind slowing down for me I can track those creatures by their scent trails." The wanderer had to shout to make himself heard over the wind at this height.

Wings? He's got wings now? Well that's just great; he's got Twilight beat with magic, he's better with these swords than me and AJ combined, and now he can fly... I figured I at least had air dominance to make me feel a little less inadequate.... Oh well, still no where near as fast as me, haha!

As he drew closer she was able to get a better look at the wings that were holding him up. It appeared as though they were growing directly out of his cloak, the same bizarre metal fabric that comprised the long shroud quilted the bat-like appendages as well. The joints connected to a point just below his shoulders while the wings themselves extended out behind him like two great sails. Huh, did he have those when we scared Scootaloo and her friends? How weird, I can't even remember anymore... Eh, no big deal!

Though the wings were enough to hold Torrent in the air, he seemed to be having a great deal of difficulty maintaining his balance and speed once airborne. "You sure you're up for this, Torrent," RD called out as he approached. The sword fell from her mouth as she spoke, falling a few inches away from her before stopping. The glow surrounding it intensified as the spirit within the blade held it in place beside its new mistress. "Your lookin' a little... tilty. How long can you stay up here for?"

He came a few yards closer before suddenly falling a foot, forcing him to pumping his wings considerably faster before he could regain the height. "Oh I can... keep this up for... as long as I have to..." His breathing became progressively heavier the longer they flew. That was a thankfully short amount of time, as they was able track down the first creature easily enough. They landed in between a tangle of trees; Rainbow Dash alighting skillfully on the forest floor, Torrent crashing through the twisted branches a few feet away from where he had been aiming.

The moment the two touched down, however, the flayer that had been hiding in the underbrush dart off, racing deeper into the Everfree. Dash was was after it in seconds, flying between avoiding branches and tree trunks as she fought to keep the creature within her sight. The little monster was fast, faster than she ever would have believed from looking at it. Its bizarre body shape and the unfamiliarity of its new surroundings should have hindered it far more than it actually did. Charging headlong through the foliage, its six spined tails flailing wildly all around it as they cut down anything that might have slowed it down. She caught up with it, came up on its left, clenched the sword tightly between her teeth, and swung in a vertical arc that spun her entire body in the air.

The effort was wasted, the beast slowed itself just in time to avoid the slash, digging its tails into the ground to act as anchors. Rainbow Dash recovered form her spin just in time to narrowly avoid a fast-approaching tree. Ya put far too much power behind that one, lass! Tone it down a bit and ya might be able ta get a little more accuracy outta yar swings.

"Ugh, I know, I know! I don't need you to correct me on every little thing that goes wrong." The voice had been a nasty shock the first time she heard it, the surprise had caused her to drop the blade mid-flight. She had been even more shocked when the weapon had proceeded to catch itself in midair and scold her for dropping it once she retrieved it. The spirit had been kind enough to introduce itself, taking a bit of the mystery out of the situation, but it still didn't make the whole thing any less weird. "I'll just loop back around and take him on my next pass. No sweat!"

She sped around an upcoming tree, hugging the turn so tightly that less than an inch separated her from the rough, grey bark. However, once she flew back the way she had come, she found herself completely unable to locate the creature again. Oh come on! I lost track of it for a couple seconds and its already managed to get away?

Aye, it certainly would appear that way. Course, it ain't likely that its gotten too far. If I still had a sense of smell I'd probably be able ta tell ya exactly where the little demon's hidin, but just judgin by our surroundings..... I'd say he's buried himself in here. Look where he skidded to a stop, his tails left some deep imprints and they all lead up to an even deeper burrow there!

The hunter was right, as Dash soon discovered. A small hole connected the six little trenches the creature's tails had dug. Small, but certainly big enough for the little abomination to have squeezed itself into. Ok, so... its underground. What are we supposed to do about it. Dash had come to a halt above the hole and was hovering in place a good two feet off the ground.

Well, first of all, don't land! We touch down on the forest floor while that thing's just sittin around waitin for us and before ya can even blink yer gonna be impaled on them tails o' his... Nah, our best bet would be wait and ju-GGAAAAAHHHHH!?!?

The old wolf's thoughts were cut off by a deafening CRACK that filled the night like a clap of clap of thunder. It was followed immediately by a blinding flash of light, so dazzling and intense that it nearly knocked Rainbow right out of the air. The purple inferno blazed through the forest like a wall of violet wind. As it disappeared from sight the night suddenly seemed blacker, the shadows deeper and more sinister. It took Rainbow Dash a good minute or so to get her eyes readjusted to the low lighting, during which time she was left completely unaware of the soft rasping sounds drawing ever closer from the underbrush behind her. With her ears still ringing from the explosive din that had accompanied the light, she never heard the light hissing noise the creature made as it read up, preparing to pounce. It was not until the last possible second, as its merciless, gleaming claws unsheathed and the cold metallic razors of its tails unfurled, that Dash thought to look behind her...

LASS, LOOK OUT!!!

"Gah!" The shock of the freezing metal digging into her skin caused her to cry out. She had seen it, had known it was there, she had even gotten her sword up in time to block the strike it was aiming at her with its long, silvery claws. But just as she had turned to face the creature jumping at her from behind, the one she had followed to this very spot to begin with made its move; striking out from below the ground with its tails. She parried the first one's claws, but as the living steel raked her at her side she cried out, dropping the bright orange sword in the process. It plunged toward the ground, its angle changing slightly as the spirit inside it aimed for the creature below them. The second flayer was on the blade before it ever reached its target, however, wrestling it to the ground with all six tails pinning it in place.

Agony surged into the young pegasus' as the creature dragged her to the ground, its tail-spines digging into her wings and sides in an attempt to keep her from flying off. Fortunately, it failed to subdue her legs, allowing her to deliver a series of fast, thunderous kicks to the monster's armored carapace. The blows thudded off the vermin's shell, but their concussive force drove it back into the dirt it had emerged from, freeing her from several of its steely barbs. Dash fell to the ground, one of its tails still embedded in her left wing, and crawled away from the spot where the other beast was struggling to pin her new sword. Crixoth... He... he said his name.... his name was Crixoth.......... The world was starting to spin, her vision beginning to fade as her mind scrambled to focus on any sane thought that it could hold onto. He was... he was hunter... and he hunted these things... he can take them. Haha... of course he can... He was a knight, after all... A knight like...... like....... like........ "...Torrent... Help!....." She called out desperately in a voice that was little more than a whisper, the last of her strength leaving her as her vision blurred to nothingness.

...Darkness took her...

The world spun, the wind howled, and overhead a massive white moon gazed down upon the scene through tangles of twisted branches. So bright, so beautiful, stunning in its near-full state, a glorious sight to behold. It flew overhead, unburdened by the limits of the mortal plane to which its admirers were bound. And suddenly Rainbow Dash is flying with it, basking in the comfort of its radiant glow. She's above the forest again, the trees rushing past below her like a vast, verdant river. The pain in her wings and her sides is gone, not even an echo of the cold agony remains. She flips and spins, reveling in the freedom of the skies, all the while under the watchful eye of the midnight moon.

"Child. Thou must not fly so far. It will not do for the to be lost here."

The voice was familiar. Soft, soothing... sad. The voice of some who had known great sorrow in their life, and great loneliness match. She knew the voice, but the words made no sense to her. "What are you talking about? I won't get lost, I can see Ponyville from here! And even if I lose sight of it, I can just fly higher and I'll see it eventually. There isn't a cloud in the sky tonight!"

"Beware. Thou must heed our warning. Turn back, return to the ground and find thine way back."

The thought made Dash shiver. "The ground? But its so dark down there, under the trees I mean. There's nothing there but the dark and the cold. I'd rather stay up here where its comfortable and where I can see everything."

"Beware..."

The voice was fading, leaving Rainbow Dash alone as she flew onward. Suddenly the world seemed so much darker. So much colder. She looked up, hoping to be reassured that everything was alright by the peaceful glow of the moon. But the moon was gone. The stars were fading as the shadows grew around her. "P-P-Princess?" She could see her breath puff up in front of her as she came to a hoping stop. "Princess Luna?" No response, nothing but the empty silence of the night.

It was not until the shadows covered the entirety of the sky and the frigid wind had chilled her to her very core that Dash finally heard it. Far away, dulled by the trees, a scream rang out followed by the sounds of battle. A ghastly shriek, an ungodly roar, the terrible scrape of metal against metal. The memories of pain began to rush back into her mind. Its okay, Rainbow Dash. The pain is gone. There's no reason to think about it now. Your past all of that, its naught but a distant memory now. Fly on. Ignore the sounds you hear, warmer sky's await you further on. There's no need to burden yourself any further, your journey is almost done. Your so close now. Just fly a little further and you'll see.

She began to descend, her wings beating slower and slower as she neared the tree line. The voice continued to insist that she just keep flying, the sounds coming from down below seemed to suggest the same. The things she heard emanating from below the beneath the canopy of leaves would be enough to turn any sane creature away. Still she descended, no longer allowing herself to look at the sky. She braced herself, closing her eyes and clenching her teeth as she reached the top of the forest.

Pain flooded back into her body, her legs, her wings, and her sides all flaring with freezing agony. The shrieks were coming from all around her, voices screaming out in pain and terror as some unholy storm descended upon them. They cried out in voices as sharp as knives, their words gibberish in her ears. She couldn't open her eyes, it was still all she could do just to hold on to the world around her as it was. Another voice roared with bloodlust, its own words closer to those that she knew, but still far beyond her mind's ability to comprehend. A soft voice from further away broke through, but was quickly drowned out by the din of battle. Twilight?

Something brushed up against her face, it was cold, but lacked the razor edge she had been dreading when it made contact with her skin. Curiosity got the best of her as the icy appendage quickly withdrew off of her face. She began to open her eyes, but all she could see was darkness. Her left eye closed again of its own accord, but her right eye managed to stay open a bit longer. She blinked away the darkness, struggling to keep her eyelid from closing on her once more. As she battled with her own consciousness Dash slowly became aware of the war being waged around her. No, no that's not quite right. War would imply that both sides were contributing. This was a slaughter, a massacre rather than an actual fight.

Three shadows danced in the foreground of her sight; one tall and distorted, the others long and low to the ground. Screams were echoing through the air; some in a high hissing growl, others in a nearly coherent cacophony that she could just barely make out as normal speech. Behind her, someone was shouting her name, a voice she almost recognized but for the strange tone that the ringing in her ears had given it. Did... Did I hit my head or something? She had had bad injuries before, but nothing had ever knocked her for this much of a loop.

A sudden jolt of pain ripped through her leg, bringing her senses back for a split second and revealing the scene that was unfolding around her. Her sword was stick upright in the ground with its blade buried deep into the soft forest floor, its glow illuminating the area with a deep orange light. Something squirmed at the top of it, but it took her fevered mind a moment to register what she was seeing. Suddenly it came into focus, one of the creatures that had attacked her, now impaled upon the sword's hilt, the handle protruding through its severely cracked shell. Its tails were gone, a thick blue liquid leaking from where they had been attached. She saw a few of them scattered around the ground, but it wasn't until she took in the entire scene that she noticed the last two, their barbed ends buried into the flayer's eyes. It screamed and struggled as it tried to break free, but no amount of effort could set it loose. A slow but steady flow or pale mist was drifting off of its wounds, all of it being drawn toward the source of the roaring voice she heard overpowering every other noise around her.

There, just a few feet away from where she was sitting, two abyssal shadows were locked in combat. The little one had already lost three of its tails, one of them being ripped away before Dash's very eyes as the tall one tore it apart piece by piece. It held the creature with one clawed hand, the bony fingers slowly breaking through the metallic shell of the elongated parasite. Two more tails soon met the same end as the dark figure tore into the its prey. Blue, iridescent blood dripped down the length of the creature's body in small rivulets, adding some much-needed color to the whole scene. A crack rippled through the air followed closely by a screech of unparalleled agony. A moment later the flayer's shell was lying on the ground at its assailant's feet, rent in two by the pressure of his grip and a single sickening strike from his clawed left hand.

"SJEV FUSEIS APPROPRIATE! VESQUEJES SHVU BE FLAYED FDKIEJ MES MALACAE!" He turned his attention to the one impaled upon Rainbow Dash's sword. "PERHAPS YOU GDITDU NIYGHU TU DEM HIU? BECAUSE I THINK SHA JI ARRANGE THAT! Hahahahaha!!!" It dropped the tormented, exposed creature to the ground, allowing another stream of mist to rise off of it and be guided into his mouth. He made a step toward the sword before a voice rang out deeper in the forest, giving him pause.

"No! That one stays alive, you said we need it in one piece. You've had your fun now go! Crawl back into the darkness and plague this world no more with your presence!" She saw Torrent step out of the shadows, sword in hand, and motion for the monster to depart. Just as she was about to call out to him, however, Dash felt a something grab her mane and suddenly she was being pulled backwards.

"Its alright, sugarcube. We're gonna get y'all outa here and back home. Yer gonna be just fine, them scratches ain't nothin to worry about; just stay awake, ya hear me?" The last thing Rainbow Dash remember seeing as Applejack pulled her into the shadows was Twilight striding forward, her horn glowing as she marched toward the wanderer and the demon.