Appleoosa, the forsaken village, was rampaged by rhinos. Rubbles and white essence scatter.

"Evacuate everyone; we can't win this one!"

The screams and panic in the village are masked by the stampede of the rhinos.

The first knight was able to reach the village, but there was nothing left to save.

Some of the rhinos have already left and can be seen stampeding from the distance, except one.

This one is still near the rubbled village. Perhaps it's still chasing something.

The knight quickly ran towards the rhino, and his hunches were right. A few survivors are running away from the rhinos, but they're about to hit a dead end.

How will he save them? That creature is unkillable—an armor that has only a mouth with multiple teeth that can crush everything that goes inside.

He could not leave his fellow knights at the mercy of these creatures; he gambled and jumped in front of the rhino.

It began to open its mouth, preparing to eat the first knight. And there he saw the insides of the rhino.

It contains the shredded bodies and buildings of its victims, flooded with white essence.

He readies himself, setting his whole body aflame.

Before the creature could chomp him down, he jumped inside with a sword in hand, prepared to lash out inside the creature's body.

The rhino easily chomped the knight.

" What the hell was that!?" said the knights who saw the ridiculous stunt the first knight made.

The rhino would only get distracted for a while and then begin charging right at the knights and civilians, again.

" Ruuun!!"

The rhino gave chase and trashed everything in its path.

And suddenly, the rhino began emitting smoke from its mouth. It began coughing violently, to the point where it screamed in pain.

Later, the small gaps between its armor would begin to shine bright purple light.

Then purple hellish flames would come out of it's mouth and begin to burn from the inside until the flame burned its exterior as well.

Everyone was in shock and awe. What was the cause of all this?

And soon the rhino becomes ash and reveals someone coming out of the flame. It was the first knight with a battered body and armor.

As he moved forward, the flame moved with him.

The other knights would cover their faces, as his flame was too bright and hot.

Seeing this, the knight commanded the flame to come back to him once more, absorbing every fire within his body.

There stood no knight, but a monster.

His glare and exhale would release a purplish flare, while his armor showed wear and tear, revealing his fit and muscular body.

" Holy shit he killed that thing solo," a mistake the knight would soon realize.

Stab!

The loud-mouthed knight slowly turned to essence.

" Why?" were his last words.

Everyone panicked and screamed once more.

_____

" My dearest wife, do not leave me."
There, the warlord sits beside her wife's chamber bed, weak from blood loss.

She could not speak but would hold tightly to her husband.

"Have the mages arrived yet!" The griffon screamed.

" We have sent our finest pegasi to deliver our finest mages here, to do anything we can to save Lady Silver Stream," the cat replied while bowing.

The griffon was restless, as he could not do anything in this situation but wait and hold his wife's claws.

"Has it come? Is this my punishment?"

He stares blankly at his claws, holding dearly to his wife.

" These hands can only take life. Why is it so? What else can you do! Surely there is more!"

" My lord, please calm yourself."

The doors would soon open, and the mages would rush to the side of the dying hippogryph.

" My Lord, leave this to us; we will bring her back to you."

The cat would hold his lords shoulders from the back and say, "Let them cook my lord, for they are professionals."

" Yes, true. Bring her back to me! And be rewarded handsomely!"

He had to let go of his wife's claws and leave the room for the mages to do their work properly.

" I will be back, my dearest. Do not leave me."

As the doors closed. An order was given.

" General Ming, call in all my weapons; I want that knight's head as a gift to her before she wakes up," the griffon commanded.

" As you wish, my lord." The cat would then vanish into the shadows.

_____

" You know he's dead, right?" The mapper told the soft-spoken knight.

"You think so little of him just because he is an earthpony, while you, a proud pegasi, flee from battle?" was her reply.

The mapper could only scratch in frustration. Perhaps he was irritated by the knight's impractical thoughts, or perhaps she struck the cold, hard truth and hurt the pegasi's ego.

" You talk too much," the looter knight replied as he walked around gathering herbs and roots with the first aider knight.

" Anyway, I think I've rested enough." The soft spoken knight stood up and began to limp towards the village.

" Please wait," the first aider asked.

" Let me patch up some potions before you go."

" This will take too long; he might be dead before you're done." She did not heed the healers request and continued to fly off.

" Love can surely cloud one's judgment," the healer sighed.

Soon the detective knight would wake up, healed up, and well.

" I'm still alive?" She looked around and saw the knights that stayed behind.

" Pray tell, who has saved me?"

"Well, technically, the leader, but you could say I helped out by healing you?" The healer replied.

The detective knight would lounge towards the healer and begin kissing him.

"... That could've been me. Tsk," the first aider knight jealously said.

" Perhaps if you finish that potion of yours, the leader might leap for joy and kiss you," the looter jests.

The first aider thought about it and gave it a hard pass. " MmmmmNo... I guess I'll be a monk then."

Author's Note

Boop