The Tales of Oathbound, The Mountain Hermit

This chapter starts after Oathbound reaches the cave and rescues Fluttershy.

Note that this is just an alternate ending, the original ending is still "canon" in my eyes. I just had this idea for the original ending, yet my actual one came to be written by me before this did. Might as well empty my thoughts into this chapter.

The joining was complete. Oathbound was once more one with his negative self. He could feel all the different emotions begin to surface. As he lied on the ground after the barrier of evil had dissipated and left him on the ground, he felt that he was going to have to kill himself. He wasn't sure if that suicidal thought was partly because of what had just happened to him or if it was the only way he could protect his friends.

"Oath, are you okay!?" Twilight half-yelled, quickly moving over to Oath, everypony following suite

"I... I can't..." He said, clutching his head before curling up as he yelled out in pain.

"Applejack! Now!" Twilight said, looking at the earth pony who reached into the knapsack she carried with them. A box was taken out, which opened to reveal the Elements of Harmony. Quickly donning the jewelry, they gathered their power.

"Twilight, what ar-"

Oath didn't have time to finish his sentence before a harmonial beam of energy struck him, once again a sharp pain stabbing his chest as he could feel the emotions being drained from him. This time he didn't pass out from the pain, though his vision was growing blurry. The black smoke that rose from his throat quickly moved towards the end of the cavern before taking pony form, revealing Oathbreaker once again.

"How dare you..." His demonic voice carried out, each syllable in his sentence filled to the brim with hate.

"Stop being so mean to others!" Pinkie Pie said, pointing a hoof at him.

"SILENCE!" He snapped, before stepping back and slowly turning into mist.

"Since you won't let him honour his part of the bargain, your nation shall pay the price. Equestria shall burn!" He said, yelling the second sentence before his horn made a blast of red energy, heralding his teleportation out of the cave. It knocked everypony down to the ground, Oath being knocked out cold. It took the others a while to get back up.

"Oww... That meanie!" Pinkie said, hopping back to her feet before rubbing a bump on her head that was starting to form on her forehead.

"Wait... Where's Oath!?" Twilight said, looking around when she realized that the stallion wasn't lying where he was a moment ago.

He was gone.

"Uhh, girls? Ah think we should git out o' here!" Applejack said as the earth started to shake. The blast must have triggered an earthquake!

"Don't worry! I got just the spell for this!" Twilight announced before her horn started glowing and they disappeared in a flash of purple.

The same flash heralded their arrival on a snow-filled plain, giving them the perfect view of the mountaintop as it was starting to crumble in an uncontrolled tide, leaving only destruction behind. Fluttershy held her hoof out as she yelled at the mountain for Oath, before Twilight comforted her.

"Don't worry, Fluttershy. I didn't sense him in there before I brought us here, I'd never leave a friend to die if there's anything I can do." She said before looking at the mountain's crumbling tip in silence.

"Uhhhh..." Oath muttered, slowly opening his eyes. The scene he had in his dream, of ponies slaughtered around a black stranger inside an icy cave came to rest on his field of vision.

"I must still be dreaming..." He thought to himself before he felt a flash on pain on his cheek as the black pony slapped him on the cheek.

"Quit day-dreaming, fool. I want you to witness your precious land suffer." Oathbreaker said, fixing his gaze on him.

"There will be no more suffering if I have anything to say about it!" Oathbound said, immediately sober as he tried to summon his weapons, but strangely they didn't appear. He glanced at his neck and gasped. The amulet was gone!

"Looking for this?" Oathbreaker snickered, floating the amulet next to him. Oath grunted.

"You won't be needing it any longer." The amulet was then thrown into a chasm, which Oath almost jumped into in pursuit. He could feel his strength slowly draining from him as his disease started to take it's course.

"Oh no you don't. You're not getting off that easy, weakling!" It was the last thing he heard before he felt dark magic coursing through him, sustaining him but slowly eating away at his willpower.

"N...No..." He struggled to force the syllable out of his mouth as he could feel his conciousness slip away as a sleeping spell was taking hold.

"Yes..." Oath's evil side began laughing before he split into 7 parts, each of those parts taking the form of different ponies. They dispersed and began taking control of wild animals and changelings that went feral after the defeat of Queen Chrysalis.

A whole week passed by as everypony searched the entirety of Equestria for Oath, the Princess' pleas being the only thing that kept them going. All except Twilight and her friends, who were in her library thinking about where he could be.

"Manehattan? No wait, we searched there already. No glimpse or even a rumour of him there." Rainbow Dash said, tapping her head with a hoof.

"And the Everfree Forest is as clean as it could ever be, strangely 'nuff. No big creatures that wanna split you in half as soon as look at you. Heck, even the timberwolves are gone!" Applejack said, throwing her fore-hooves to the sides.

"Maybe they went to a party!" Pinkie said, looking at the others with a smile. When they didn't smile back, she got back to thinking.

"I... I think I have an idea, if it's okay for me to tell you.." Fluttershy said, a bit hesitantly.

"It's better than what we had a week ago, Fluttershy, go ahead." Twilight said, putting aside her book, one that covered the subject of tracking magical artefacts.

"I... Uhhh... Didn't Oath say he had this dream? A vision?" The cream-colored mare said, tilting her head a bit, causing her mane to reveal her other eye completely.

"Yes?" Rarity said, stroking her mane a bit.

"Didn't he say he saw an icy cave? That would mean that he is trapped in-"

"In the north!" The others suddenly said at the same time, causing Fluttershy to blush and lower her head a bit.

"Of course! Why didn't I think of that sooner? You're a genius, Fluttershy!" Twilight said, clapping her hooves together before her face fell upon realization.

"But... That means all of Equestria..!" The purple unicorn jumped up and started up the stairs, causing the others to wonder what she was doing up there. As Rainbow Dash went to investigate, she looked at Twilight and recoiled a bit as she saw her writing a letter.

"A letter? I doubt that Oath would be able to answer you, Twilight."

"It's not just about Oath anymore, Dash! The princess needs to ready her armies! We are going to have to fight the horde that Oath's vision told us about!"

The others heard the commotion upstairs and heard her last sentence as they all came up.

"Oh dear, looks like somepony is in need of a little jolt!" The pony gave Oath a lightning bolt which he could only try to endure, the lightning dissipating into magical energy which his body swallowed up to sustain him. Oath could only cry out in pain as the magical bolt coursed through his body. A cruel act, only accentuated by the pony in charge. The evil side of Oath that had split into 7 had left the cruel side to keep him under constant surveillance and "entertainment". His purple fur was clear against the icy background of the cave, his red mane in an almost mohawk-like style. His iris' were not there, leaving only two orbs of blackness for Oath to stare at. His horn glowed red as he launched a second bolt out of spite, laughing at his helpless victim. Unlike his hatred, Oath's cruel side had a normal-sounding voice. But it did little to dissipate the fact that this pony was nothing more than evil taken pony form.

"Enough." A voice said, bringing a cowed pony to the scene. Oath recognized the newcomer as his envy.

"Took your sweet time getting here, Cancerous." Knife Twist said, looking at the shrouded pony.

"You've had your fun, now for mine, Knife Twist. Move aside!" His envious side said, before a purple beam teleported the cruel side of Oath out of the cave.

"Time for you to see what your friends are doing..." Throwing back the cowl, Oath saw the most hideous face he ever saw. Buboes and boils everywhere, covered by bandages that were filthy with dirt and leaking pus. It was as if seeing the pony with the obvious disease cast some sort of spell, for Oath felt like he was gonna pass out. Soon enough he could see a frozen hill, overlooking a mountain, covered in a blanket of white and he felt like he was being assailed by thousands of icy spikes as he closed in on the hill. Upon closer inspection Oath could see cages. Magical cages housing his-

"My friends! No!"

"Ohoho, but it is indeed! Infact, take a closer look." The blighted pony said before stepping back, cackling maniacally all the while.

His view closed in on the cages, revealing more than Oath would have ever wished to see. He was heartbroken to find his friends brutally murdered, great gashes of blood flowing from everypony as the crimson liquid coated the cages floating in the air, the excess dripping to freeze in the snow.

Oath fell to his knees. His tears began flowing of their own accord. He was completely in the throes of despair.

The rest of the 7 evil ponies appeared and merged into one as Oath still wept tears from the scene he saw. Little did he know he was dreaming.

"Fool, falling for a simple illusion."

"Twilight, are you sure about this?" Princess Celestia asked, disturbed by the news she recieved.

"Yes, Princess. The royal family must gather their forces and prepare for war. The frozen north is going to spill it's hordes soon. And Oath is at the center of it all. At least... At least his evil side, Oathbreaker."

Luna was in the midst of doing her duty as the princess of the night, keeping an eye on everypony's dreams. As she listened to the news, she found a strange dream. A nightmare of great magnitude.

Taking a look, she was horrified to see Oathbound.

"I have found him. He is trapped in a nightmare, magically induced no doubt. I will try to rouse him. In the meantime, gather the troops and prepare for battle. It seems like we are going to have to fight if Twilight is correct."

Glancing at the others, Luna gave them a nod before she closed her eyes to dive back into the dream, her voice carrying over to Oath.

"Oathbound, listen to me."

"P..Princess Luna? No, don't... Don't look at me!" He said before he collapsed into a weeping fit, holding the "corpse" of Fluttershy.

"Oath, you are completely fine. This is nothing more than a dream. A nightmare. Fluttershy is safe. As are all your friends." She said in a comforting tone.

"W-wha?"

Oath looked at her and then back at the corpse, recoiling as he sees a changeling instead. The illusion was swiftly thrown aside, Oath's face steeling itself as he kicked the changelings when they attacked. The battle didn't last long.

When they were defeated, Luna spoke.

"Oathbound, my sister and your wife both wish for you to return at upmost haste."

Oath looked at the alicorn as she trotted closer.

"But... Without my amulet I have no chance." He said, lowering his face.

She frowned a bit before she raised his head to meet her gaze.

"You're more powerful than you think, Oath. Look deep inside your heart and you will find what you seek."

Oath looked at the ground for a minute before raising his hoof to stop Luna from severing the connection to his dream.

"Princess Luna. Before you go, can you relay this message to Fluttershy? Tell her... Tell her to return to Ponyville and carry on with her life. Tell her to not wait for me there, because.. I will be there soon enough."

With that the dream started to dissipate, Luna's form twisting as she lost her connection to Oath's dream, nodding at the stallion as she did.

"Hrmm, the fool is no longer whimpering. Must be ready for my plan. Good..." Oathbreaker said, grinning to himself. He lifted the dreamer's body into the air and lowered it into the crevice where he had tossed the said dreamer's amulet into.

"But before that, I have a task to do." He said, stepping outside the icy cave to meet his minions, to give them the order to prepare for war.

He basked in the praise that the changelings and wild animals gave to him as they cheered. Yes. Equestria shall burn. As is meant to be.

Oathbound's eyes slowly opened, his purpose clear and his determination would only be matched by his will. He would stop his negative emotions plans to destroy Equestria or die in the attempt. He had found purpose in his family, his friends and his life. He was a protector. He was a guardian. It was all up to him now.

He remembered seeing that the cave was left unguarded, save for a few changelings. His hatred must have come to the assumption that he wouldn't dare to escape after "witnessing" the death of his friends. He rose up, careful to not alert the guards to his presence as he took in his surroundings. He had been moved from where he woke up from. He was in a crescent-shaped crevice, with no way of getting out by normal means, the wall was completely smooth with no clear cracks or appendages for him to grab onto. But as he looked to the ground, he noticed a faint blue glow from one of the ice piles in the distance. As he located the source, he was exstatic to find his amulet! Quickly donning it on, he felt alive for the first time in years. He levitated himself up with the magic from the amulet, feeling his evil emotion's hold fading in his mind as he was once more in complete control. As he reached the top, he saw his evil side grinning at him.

"So you finally realized how futile your life was. Now join me and we shall forge the world anew!"

Oath's axes came to life, making his hatred raise his eyebrow for half a second before he snarled and summoned his own.

"Still you resist!? There is nothing worthy in your life anymore, nothing to fight for and you know it!"

Oath shook his head. "I saw past your illusion. There is no more darkness in my heart and I will not let it return to me! I will defeat you! By the power vested in me by her royal highness Princess Celestia, I sentence you, Oathbreaker, to death!"

Oathbreaker shook visibly as he was barely containing his anger. Before Oathbound could say anything, he brought his axe to a blocking position as their blades clashed, quickly descending into a whirling melee of blue and red.

"I...

Hate...

You..

That's an understatement.

I...

Hate...

You...

FOR WHO YOU ARE!

I hate you!

And all you stand for!

I don't care.

Anymore!

I gave you

100 chances!

You gave me

**A hundred ways to hate!"

The black-skinned pony was gathering his rage, his form slowly getting surrounded by a red aura before he charged again, his axes crackling with the sound of thunderbolts, his battlecry deafening.

"Hate your face!

Hate your lies!

And the blank look in your eyes!

Hate your needs!

Hate your wants!

Hate the way you love to taunt!

Hate your voice!

Makes me cringe

Everytime I hear you speak!

It's uncomfortable to know you share the same air as me!

Hate your lack of common sense!

And I'm tired of compromising!

Take a good look in the end

'cause it's just on the horizon!

I've been wrong about a lot of shit!

This I know is true!

There's a 100 fucking things that I hate about you!

I...

Hate...

You..

That's an understatement.

I...

Hate...

You...

FOR WHO YOU ARE!

I hate you!

And all you stand for!

I don't care.

Anymore!

I gave you

100 chances!

You gave me

A hundred ways to hate!"

Oath tried to sweep him from his feet with magic, his telekinetic power trying get his evil side to buckle by hitting him behind the knee. It was like Rainbow Dash would have tried to perform a Sonic Rainboom while flying through 5 meters of solid brick. Shrugging aside the feeble attempt to make him kneel, Oathbreaker lifted him with his own magic, throwing him across the icy ground, his axes opening wounds in the stallion's flesh as he was helpless to do anything about it. Impossibly Oath rose up to fight again, as if the blood flowing forth from his hind leg and cheek gave him power. He closed the distance while dodging the incoming axes and bucked his nemesis hard in the face, breaking his muzzle. He grunted as his magic healed it, painful sounds of bone reknitting itself giving away the pain that the black stallion felt. He charged once again.

"

I hate you!

100 ways!

I don't care.

A hundred ways to hate!

I gave you

A million chances!

You gave me

A hundred ways to hate!

A hundred ways!

A hundred ways to hate!"

Oath's axe was swiped aside as he summoned another one to block the inevitable following strike. Quickly grasping control of his situation, he riposted and sent his axe towards his evil side who was eager to get close and personal.

Oath could not hold his eyes on his negative side as the black-skinned unicorn felt his horn shatter on contact with the magic-driven axe. The evil pony burst into a flaming wreck, his cries of agony falling upon deaf ears. His form was fading, as the flames died out.

When the last traces of him were gone, Oath gave a sigh of relief before he fell asleep, tired after his ordeal. When he woke up, he knew that he had to return home. Through a horde of frenzied changelings and wild animals.

Fluttershy was worried. Ever since she had returned to Ponyville, she had gone to the hill where Twilight teleported herself and the girls to escape from the crumbling mountaintop everyday to see if Oath had come back. Two days after her first trip she was losing hope.

This time, however, she could swear she saw a pony walking towards her. A stallion. Bruised and bleeding. An amulet rested on his neck.

Oath.

Oath had come home!

She took to full speed, coming towards Oath at a speed unlike any she had achieved before. If she were given more distance, she likely would have done a sonic rainboom.

The impact took them a mighty distance, throwing snow everywhere. When they finally came to a stop, their lips met and they embraced eachother.

"I love you Oathbound." She finally said.

"I love you too, Fluttershy. It's good to be home. And I swear that I will never leave your side again."