The Dark Mirror Saga: Book 1: The Tale of the Last Caribou

Twilight sat down, moved more by sheer determination than curiosity at this point. Despite everything, she had to know. It was her duty, her responsibility to know and help prevent such a disaster from happening to her home and elsewhere if she could help it.

“Now… steel yourself, Twilight, for what is to come next,” Dainn warned, taking a wheezing deep breath. “It was a public display of sorts. A parade. What a glorious parade it was. I never felt more alive even if I knew my victory was fake. Even so, I felt like a conquering hero! Be glad you didn’t get to see what I saw, Twilight. Shining Armor at the front, sitting on a golden chariot pulled by Cadance! How row after row of captured mares were paraded as trophies of conquest! How most of my Council gloated over the victory! And how I stood atop all, carried by warbeasts with my prize, Celestia, next to me, forced to see my conquest!”

Twilight heard his words and failed to detect any gloating or cheer in them. Dainn was mocking himself in a dead, icy tone filled with contempt. She watched him sit down and leaned forth on his staff.

“I took this castle as my own, too. Heh, ironic, is it not? I saw it as a grand prize, a castle that put even Svarndagr’s castle to shame… but I rarely left it after that day. It became my gilded cage and then, when it was all over, it became my self-made prison.”

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The parade had been a sickening but resounding success. None doubted my rightful place as King of the Caribou and Conqueror of Equestria. The feeling was intoxicating and yet, deep down, I knew it was undeserved… and wrong. But I put those thoughts aside as I approached the throne room. Behind me, Celestia crawled butt naked save for the wing sheaths and the black collar around her neck that connected to the leash one of my followers carried.

“Come, Celestia,” he said mockingly, spitting her name with venom. “Don’t you want to see the birth of a new order? A true and proper Kingdom under the rule of your Master, King Dainn?”

“...”

She said nothing, her eyes reflected little defiance and cold acceptance of her situation. She was weak. All females were weak. What a sordid fool I was. As I approached, two turned pony guards opened the doors to reveal a most spectacular scene. Influential pony nobles had gathered, the mares there were in the same position as Celestia: defeated and conquered.

Have I told you how to spot traitors from those turned by the enchantment? It’s quite easy. The eyes. Traitors have normal eyes. The turned have vacant eyes filled with hunger and malice, a thirst for lust and awful things. That room was filled with eyes of traitors more than turned. It was the first and only time outside meetings that this happened.

Why is this relevant? Because there were only a handful of turned pony nobles. The majority were traitors, like Orestes. Gleefully selling and betraying their rulers just for a spot in the new order. My reign. My rule.

“ALL HAIL HIS MAJESTY, CONQUEROR OF THE SUN! ALPHA MALE! THE BLESSED VESSEL OF MALE SUPERIORITY! KING DAINN!” Orestes announced, always quick to kiss my ass whenever possible. I never put in question his motives nor his true goals. Another folly, another mistake.

As if that wasn’t enough, when I sat on Celestia’s throne, Orestes and the traitors all but shoved a de-horned, sheathed, and bound Luna before my feet.

“Oh, mighty King Dainn,” the treacherous snake said to me. “As you can see, we, true Equestrian Nobles who have been shackled by the Whore Sisters for far too long, offer you as a show of our devotion and fielty the worthless cunt known as Princess Luna. She shall be yours to do as you please, my liege. Let this lowly gift mark our eternal loyalty to you and prove that we follow in the steps of Male Superiority guided by your invincible hands! All hail King Dainn!”

“ALL HAIL KING DAINN!”

Even then, with how twisted and blinded as I was, a single look into Luna’s fiery, unflinching eyes told me everything I needed to know about her: she wouldn’t submit, wouldn’t relent, and she wouldn’t be tamed. It was a hollow gift but one that I couldn’t refuse.

“The Nobles of Equestria swear our loyalty,” more traitors spoke up.

“As do the Wonderbolts,” Soarin, a corrupted version of him, said as he shoved Spitfire down to kneel before me.

“Is there a need for me to swear more loyalty towards you, my King?” Shining Armor asked while Cadance worshipped his cock and balls. He was grinning a cocky yet amused smile. I wish I could’ve seen the horrors that lay behind such a smile.

I stood up, raising a fist to the heavens. “I have heard your pledges and I give you my answer: Your King accepts your eternal vows of loyalty. From this day forth, you are now my loyal subjects and I am your King. I have freed you from the unjust rule of these the cunts who dared rule over worthy males. And now, I shall lead you to a time of prosperity and plenty, a true golden age for all those who follow me and serve me.I promise this as your King: OUR NEW KINGDOM SHALL NEVER PERISH!”

“All hail the new King!”

“For Male Superiority!”

“Down with the Matriarchy!”

“Fuck the cunt-sisters!”

“Rape! Fuck! Plunder!”

I saw them all. An entire room filled to the brim with fools, sycophants, and liars cheering me on. Only two remained true. Gunne at the back, silently sipping on some wine and Oksho, wearing the thickest, most disturbing mocking expression I’ve ever seen while he clapped with thunderous force celebrating my victory with slow, measured shaking of his head. His eyes shining like two firepits fueled by disappointment. It was only then that I realized that only Vestri was at my side among my followers.

“Vestri, where is Ivangri?” I asked in a low tone.

“I do not know, my liege. Perhaps he is occupied with something else?” His reply came dull, almost disinterested.

“Occupied with something more important than being at my side during my victorious moment?” I asked again but I only received a shrug. “No matter. I shall punish him later.”

Vestri didn’t reply. I was not even worthy of an answer in his eyes. I know this now. Back then, I was blinded by ego and power. I saw the spider web of lies and horrors spreading before my eyes but I was too arrogant to admit it. The ‘party’ continued for the better part of two hours. Drinking, fucking, humiliating the females present… none were concerned with forming ties, discussing treaties, forming alliances. Nothing of the sort. And I quickly grew tired of it even when someone praised my name every so often.

“Vestri, I shall leave now. There are… matters I must tend to,” I swear, when I said that, Vestri looked at Celestia and grinned. I knew too well what had crossed his twisted mind. He merely vowed and I left the throne room, followed closely by my followers and Celestia.

I couldn’t help but to admire her form as she crawled, giving her curious glances at every turn. The noise of the throne room became a distant echo and I could feel myself relax. Who would’ve thought that false praise and lying tongues could be so tiring to endure? In truth, I wanted to be alone and be able to think on what was needed to be done next.

That’s when the Spirit of Harmony appeared in front of me in a flash of light. I gasped and came to a sudden halt as I stared at her golden form and accusatory eyes.

“My liege? Is everything alright?” One of my followers asked.

I turned to him and stepped aside, letting him and the others, including Celestia, see the spirit by themselves. But none reacted to it. That confirmed it. Only I could see and hear it. I stared at Celestia for several long moments before finding my voice again. “Everything is alright. I simply remembered I have important private matters to attend to. Take my cunt and see to it that she is suitably prepared for my bedchambers.”

“What about the blue cunt, my liege?” Another follower asked as he held Luna in a tighter leash.

I sighed. Doing anything to her would be futile, but I couldn’t let her be either. “Take her and prepare her as well. Now, go. Let me be.”

“It shall be done, your majesty. Heave, cunts! Heave! Crawl like the pathetic bitches you are!”

I didn’t even have the stomach to watch my followers cattle away the alicorn sisters. Not at that moment when I had much more important matters to focus on. I walked through the unfamiliar hallways until I found an empty room without any prying ears near me. “Spirit,” I said with annoyance, the stupid fool that I was, “why have you come before me again? Are you ready to admit you were wrong and that I was right? The alicorns have faltered, the fourth one shall be located soon enough, and I shall guide this land into a new golden age for all to enjoy and prosper under my rightful rule. I shall do what my mentor and all those short-sighted Kings of the past couldn’t achieve: a perpetual Caribou Empire.”

The Spirit hovered and stopped in front of me, pointing at me with a single dinger and eyes full of sadness. “Nothing lasts forever but eternity itself, only a fool latches to dreams of mist and lies and vacant eyes. You seek betterment and riches for only a few to enjoy; on the backs of slaves does your Empire flow. No matter the day, no colder than night, you are lost within your own delusions to be grand. But stop this madness you can and you must, or all shall become grey and ash by fire and ice - and you alone shall taste the fruits of your demise.”

I frowned, insulted! I was enraged. The gall of this thing to speak such words! “And what are you doing to put a stop to me and my kind? You will achieve nothing with words and threats that are more hollow than the driest well. If you have the power to stop us, then use it. Otherwise, do not get in my way, Spirit. My reign shall be the beginning of something so magnificent that even the heavens shall tremble! We Caribou are the superior species of this world. We are meant to rule and conquer! The weak serve, the strong rule!”

“You claim my power must be used? To thee I say: that's not how it works. Harmony does not harm even if the letters are shared; violence beseeches destruction, the glory you seek is not set on the path you walk. Cut the strings, open your eyes, let the malice go and claim what is right. A forbidden drink you have tasted; glory and falsehood, a poison most vile. You say you will conquer and forge that which you want: a warning to give, and a promise to make - perversion and prosperity do not mix with cake.”

Then, before I could even reply or swat at the Spirit, it began to glow intensely. So much so that I had to cover my eyes yet I still could hear its departing words.

“Tredge along this path and you will find a fiery end and a cold eternity. Sand castles crumble, old wood decays, your salvation is at an end. Blood and bones, can’t you hear the screams of those put down by your thumb? A leash and strings are playing a tune, but you’re a dancer without paragon. Know this as you see everything turn to ash: IT IS YOUR FAULT THAT THE WORLD DIES! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!”

I felt something punch me and I faltered to the floor, kneeling and heaving as cold sweat marred by brow. A second later, the Spirit was gone. The last words… that departing message made my blood freeze. I couldn’t even stand, I was petrified by fear and terror. I don’t know how long I remained there, but by the time I managed to regain my senses, I heard a dull, empty clapping coming from behind me.

I turned around only to find the massive pillar of muscles that was Oksho, his eyes still fiery red and a barely noticeable red glow surrounding him in the dim light of the room. “Oksho? What are you… did you follow me?”

“I did,” Oksho said, closing the door behind him. “Unlike Ivangri, who is so enwrapped in his sadistic, miserable tendencies to the point of forgoing and neglecting his duties, I am always watching and ready to fight,” he said, turning to face me. “This castle is quite something, huh? It is so big and spacious that you can easily get lost without proper knowledge of its layout. Another folly of female weakness, no doubt. I will… appreciate the architecture, like I do when I enjoy the sight of one of my trophies massaging my muscles. But everything else spells weakness. This castle, this… this joke of a conquest is without honor or meaning, Dainn.”

I frowned. Because of course I frowned. How dare a mere Champion speak to his king that way? “Careful how you emply your tone, Oksho. I am your King.”

“You are not even worth calling yourself caribou, Dainn,” Oksho spat, taking a step closer, his clapping coming to a halt replaced by the cracking of knuckles and shaky fists. “First, you accept the loyalty of traitors and wretches that so easily betrayed their rulers? Yes, they were females, but what does that say about their loyalty if that fucking enchantment wasn’t used on them!?”

“Are you questioning my decis--”

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Oksho roared, his rage was palpable and I couldn’t do anything but obey. “See!? You cower and freeze at the merest provocation! Svarndagr broke you and do you expect me to believe that a coward that accepts an undeserved gift, the alicorn cunt, Luna, is to lead our people to a bright tomorrow?”

“Where is the honor? Where is the satisfaction of victory earned through struggle and turmoil!? I hated Svarndagr. I hated him with every muscle in my body. I hate him still. But at least he was able to forge a nation through glorious, deserved conquests starting from mere scraps! You? You rely on cursed magics, the adulation of the masses, the false promises of traitors, and the lies of your Council. I respected Svarndagr’s strength, nothing else. Thus, I followed him for I could not best him.”

“So, this is it? Are you here to kill me and take the throne? To usurp me because I lack strength? Do you so easily forget the ruination of the Cycle?” I asked, finding my voice and standing my ground even as Oksho took another step closer to me.

“I demand answers! That promise you spouted in the throne room. Are you actually planning on delivering it or was it just words for you to grow fat and lazy? Why did you allow your Council to follow the plans and lead of a lowly bitch!? Princess or not, alicorn or not, she’s a female! No plan given by the weak lips of a female should ever be considered, Dainn! And yet, you said nothing!” Another step. “You did nothing! Are you even able to do anything on your own? Do you want to know what I did to my winged whores? I followed YOUR plan! Cruelty for cruelty’s sake is the sign of a coward and a weakling!”

That honestly surprised me at the time. This you already know… but he did, he followed my plan to deal with pegasi and other winged females. Not because it was easy, but because doing otherwise would tarnish his honor. “Oksho…”

“And then there’s that blasted enchantment!” Another step. “Stop using it, Dainn. It will blow up in our faces before we know it. There are already signs that using it is wrong! Never mind the use of it in conquest, handing us a victory so easy and hollow that even my wine tastes like ash! And who handed us this so-called ‘victory’? Traitors and cowards, weaklings and backstabbers!”

“...Oksho… what do you mean by… signs?” This was news to me. Of course, I had seen the extremes in personality flips and the disturbing devotion enchanted mares displayed, but nothing more.

“Are you also blind!?” Oksho shouted, taking another step. “The enchantment is supposed to make females tame and grant males the guiding light of Male Superiority. And yet, everywhere I look, I don’t see submission or enlightenment. I see disturbing depravity! Not even our most devoted red collar sinks to the level I’ve seen mares throw themselves into. And the cruelty on display from males would make Ivangri proud,” he said, spitting venom at that name. Then again, so do I. “Think about it, Dainn. An enchantment that puts down virtually all resistance down? A victory handed by traitors? A conquest devoid of honor and merit? I would think that someone as intelligent as you, oh noble scholar, would find all these circumstances suspicious at the very least. And yet, you seem to be the most oblivious to it all!”

“...Oksho… I don’t have the luxury to doubt right now. If our people is to survive, sacrifices must be made… even if it means going against some of our beliefs and my personal honor. Of all the caribou I know, you should be the happiest at this turn of events! Your voice was one of the loudest to declare against approaching these savage ponies with diplomacy.”

“A mistake I rue to this day,” Oksho admitted. “Dainn… if you truly are a King, then act like one! I have not come here to kill you, but to open your eyes for I, unlike those snakes you keep next to you, unlike the scheming Orestes… I am no traitor. Traitors ALWAYS have a true goal in mind that’s hidden behind their plotting tongues. You are not my King. You are weak, docile, and a coward. But I shall fight for our people as long as you are our best solution to prevent the Cycle from happening ever again. Remember this, Dainn: the reason Svarndagr never accepted peace treaties was because conflict breeds prominent males. True males. Shining Armor… he is, or rather -was- one such male. With conquest and war unaided by the enchantment, you could’ve gained a true ally to your side after we dominated his land. Now? I don’t even know what he is besides the depraved King of the Crystal Empire.”

The Fire Within turned around and only then I noticed he was just a meter in front of me. He was so imposing. His back was huge, his muscles pulsated with energy, his arms were like tree trunks, his legs more so. There was no doubt in his posture. No weakness. Only a proud warrior.

“Remember this, Dainn,” he began. “I’m not only a Champion. I’m the Greatest Champion of our species. I will fight as honor and Male Superiority dictates, for I am no coward nor am I a traitor. But I will not hesitate to do what needs to be done if need be. Be it in conquest or in Ragnarok. I fight not for you. I fight for our people. Now go be a King we can follow, weakling.”

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“I nearly pissed myself when he left,” Dainn confessed. “He was right, though. But I was too blinded and stupid to see it, though I did try to be a better King… at the start. That fell off quickly. Too quickly.”

Twilight nodded, picturing all too well what he meant. “I can… understand his logic to a degree and I applaud his conviction, but he was still a conquering, misogynist, rapist piece of shit in my eyes. But compared to other caribou? He at least had a code to follow. Speaking of Oksho, what in tarnation is Ragnarok?” She said, almost slipping into her ‘Applejack voice’. Like it or not, some of the mannerisms and words her friends used stuck with her, alongside their accents for some mysterious reason.

“Ah, Ragnarok. We called that to the Final War, the End Times, the Twilight of the Gods. But at the same time… it is a title to be feared and a name given to a monster,” he replied bitterly, his voice filled with pain and loss. “You will understand what I’m speaking about.”

“I was afraid you’d say that,” Twilight replied. “Now that I’m more calm… what made Oksho so strong? Conviction and dedication is one thing, but you describe him as an invincible warrior and someone to be feared.”

“Because he was,” Dainn replied. “Only Svarndagr defeated him fair and square and it wasn’t a clean, one-sided victory. They fought for two entire days until Oksho finally fell. There was no outside influence or magic. Just raw power, skill, and endurance. And as much as Oksho detested and openly hated Svarndagr, my mentor earned his respect and his loyalty. How do I know this? I was there. My mentor dragged me and the rest of his ‘students’ to watch how true males fight. I was the only one who didn’t fall asleep or succumbed to the cold.”

“That,” Twilight breathed out, “that is beyond outlandish!”

“It is the way of Male Superiority and that of true warriors. Respect and loyalty are valued more than personal opinions and feelings. Strength determines everything,” he chuckled. “I must confess I found their fight to be nothing short of amazing. It has been, to this day, the most spectacular and breathtaking fight I’ve ever seen. It even inspired me to pick up a weapon and learn whatever little I could about fighting. How to improve my muscles and more,” he remained silent for several moments. “Svarndagr never believed me. How could he? I didn’t change much. As inspired as I was, I knew I was not fit for the way of the Warrior. So, I poured myself into my studies and became a proficient tactician, logistician, and strategist.”

“But Oksho? Oh, Oksho was welcomed and soon unleashed, alone, onto a tribe of caribou who had fallen into depravity and hedonism, indulging in nothing but carnal pleasure and excess. He slaughtered every stag wholesale, on his own. Five hundred stags against Oksho and he only got a single scar for his trouble. He was a one-caribou army. How he did it? I have no idea and no recollection of the event. Only that after that point on he was given the title The Fire Within,” he grimaced, “or as many came to nickname him as Surtr: The Bringer of Ragnarok. Over time his fur became black and his eyes took on a fiery red hue, like the embers on a fireplace.”

“W-What!?” Twilight exclaimed. “And he let you live!? I understand that he followed a code of honor, but he would’ve saved everyone so much trouble!”

“Oksho was, believe it or not, quite merciful. His followers? All warriors defeated by him at some point that he spared and in turn decided to follow his example. But to me? That was his last mercy. If I didn’t become the King he expected me to be, or at least half of it, I am sure he was going to kill me. For better or worse, I think… it is better that he didn’t kill me. I can’t speculate on what could’ve happened otherwise, but I believe this,” he said, referring to everything around them, “could’ve ended in a worse state.”

“Fair enough,” Twilight admitted, her head spinning at the unwanted scenarios playing in her mind. “Answer me this, though… why was Oksho your Greatest Champion?” She asked using her fingers to make quotation marks. “I’m guessing he was more than a strong brute, right?”

Dainn mused for a moment before answering. “How should I put it? Hmmm… ah, yes. Oksho was blessed with exceptional talent, focus, and drive. Warriors are many. But to walk upon the path as he did was insanity even for his instructors. Do you remember bragging about how Luna, in her millennia-old life had mastered over twenty styles of combat?” Twilight nodded. “Oksho had learned and mastered over thirty by the time Svarndagr challenged him to a fight. After the fight, he improved several of those styles, invented over ten more that he also mastered, mastered the use of every weapon available, became a master smith, forger, armorer, and hand-to-hand expert.”

“He would always be the first to enter battle and the last to leave. Retreat wasn’t in his vocabulary. Surrender didn’t exist. He’d rather die in a battle than be a coward and run away. Oh, Twilight, his chest was marred by countless scars, but his back was pristine; not a single scar marked his back! That is why every caribou and our slaves feared him second to Svarndagr. Not because he was cruel or petty, but because everyone knew that you do not get in his way. The Way of The Warrior was his life, he breathed it and embodied it.”

Twilight didn’t know what to say after hearing that. Such dedication and feats were beyond insane. Then, she found a single word that best described one such as Oksho. “Prodigy… he was a prodigy. A true savant!”

Dainn nodded. “Indeed he was… indeed he was. And yet, he is lost to the sands of time. Consumed by fire that ignorance ignited. Cry, oh cry, for the Fire Within, his battle lost,” he said, mourning silently the death of someone he admired.

Twilight sat, her mind focused on the information she gathered. The Cycle, the invasion, Dainn’s slow but evident mental and emotional decline, his lack of foresight, the way he was so easily manipulated or made excuses to justify a steady descent into cruelty and savagery, depravity and self-aggrandizing, the parallels with the story of her home and what she knew too well, the corruption of Cadance, the fall of the Crystal Empire, the defeat of Celestia, Daybreaker… everything. Finally, after what felt like days of silent contemplation, she finally spoke. “Oksho and Surtr… they’re not the same, right? Or rather, they are the same, but different. Like Luna and Nightmare Moon?”

“...Yes..,” came Dainn’s reply. “One is of cold and jealousy, the other of fire and rage. As with all those cursed with great power… another side of you manifests and grows. Surtr was to Oksho as Daybreaker was to Celestia. I asked him once why he had purged that tribe, why he had spared none… his reply was that he had not killed caribou. He had put down depraved, lust-crazed beasts. ‘Let them burn to ash’ he said… ‘Let Surtr’s wrath cleanse these beasts’,” he paused for a moment, letting his icy blue eyes reflect his grinding mind. “Nightmare Moon sought to bring eternal night, to bring cold, ice and death. Surtr was meant to bring forth Ragnarok, the Ending. The Final Battle. I wish… I wish I could’ve understood what that meant. A lone fire burning with rage, destined to bring such calamity,” he said, managing to shudder.

For but a moment, Twilight’s jaw threatened to strike the floor as realization dawned upon her. But to see Dainn actually tremble in fear? She didn’t know what was the full significance of this ‘Ragnarok’ battle he spoke about, but if it made him cower like that, then she could be at peace not seeking that particular knowledge. It took her several moments to collect herself and find her voice once more. “He was just like Luna, but he was alone… how did he manage to cope, to restrain himself for so long? How… no… it doesn’t matter. Thank you, Dainn. I… I am feeling rather tired.”

“Of course,” he nodded. “Go and come back tomorrow. Rest some more. I shall be here, waiting for your arrival. I promised to tell you everything and I shall--”

Twilight shook her head rapidly. “No. I don’t need to go. I just… need a break, if you understand?” She said, her cheeks blushing slightly.

Dainn coughed a few times, realizing what she meant. “Ah, of course. Take your time, Twilight.”

Twilight stood up, cheeks still blushing, and made her way in a hurry to a place she hoped was still intact.

She needed to pee really, really bad.