Scootaloo's Guardian

by Dirty Bit

Chapter 24

Scootaloo and her friends discussed what the element bearers could be up to with each whimsical and hypothetical situation possible. When they ran out of ideas, they all turned to see Astaroth still faced away from the three fillies and engrossed in his own secretive work. When her curiousity reached its peak, Scootaloo trotted up to Astaroth with a quizzical glance "Hey, Astaroth? What are you doing over the-"

Without warning, Astaroth gave a roar and quickly stood on his legs, turning around to swing a new object at Scootaloo. The orange filly yelped and dodged the attack by the skin of her teeth as it crushed its way into the ground. When she got a better look, she gasped to see that Astaroth had made himself a giant makeshift ax from the timberwolf body parts he collected. The pole was jagged as it made up of the arms and legs of the wooden animals, and the skull of the alpha male rested as the helm of the ax as its opened mouth held the blunt blade. Astaroth sneered when he noticed Scootaloo in one piece "Damn...I missed..." He muttered to himself.

Scootaloo ignored the new weapon forged by the dark golem and glared up at him "What is wrong with you!? You could've killed me!!" She snapped up at Astaroth with slight fear in her voice.

Astaroth grunted "I only wished to beat you within an inch of your life, runt. You should count yourself lucky you made yourself useful in the past, otherwise I'd aim for such a thing!"

Applebloom glared "Doncha have anythin' better t' do than play destroyer all th' time, Astaroth? Ah mean, like a hobby or somethin'? This is startin' t' get mighty old here!" She stood her ground despite hearing Astaroth growl at her.

Sweetie Belle was frightened for a moment until she noticed Astaroth's new ax "So that's what you've been working on this whole time?" She eyed it with curiousity "Who knew you were so creative!"

Scootaloo recollected herself and eyed the ax as well "So you miss your ax that much, huh? Well, at least it'll be enough for you for the time being! Maybe you can slay a manticore with it!" She grinned as she imagined the thought.

Astaroth looked around "I wanna try it on one of these little maggots..." He flashed a dark grin as he noticed they didn't pay attention to him. The dark golem always loved a surprise kill, even in the remains of his home.

Scootaloo glared "No, Astaroth! You can get your fill of killing in the Everfree Forest! At least there, they can give you a challenge!"

Astaroth glared back at Scootaloo "Bah! Those mongrels aren't worth the effort! And besides, none of them screamed when I drove my fist through their skulls!"

Scootaloo sighed "Timberwolves don't scream. They whimper. Simple as that..." She gave Astaroth a deadpan stare "You really SHOULD get a hobby or something."

Astaroth growled as he raised his ax and caused the three fillies to cower and back away "I already found one..." He uttered darkly as he went to strike. But before he could, the familiar shot of pain emerged in his chest and brought him down on one knee once more "Agh!! Damnit!!" He shouted as he clutched his chest with his free hand.

Scootaloo gasped "It's happening again!" She then galloped to the dark golem's side.

Applebloom watched in disbelief "Scoots, he was about t' hurt us!! We shouldn't help 'im like this!" She followed after the orange filly.

Sweetie Belle did the same, but casted a thoughtful glance "Do you think he has diabetes? I've read about it once. It's not a good disease to have..." She gasped "Oh no! I might've made it bad when I gave him a cupcake that one day!" She looked frightened as she muttered 'Oh no' repeatedly to herself.

The three fillies surrounded Astaroth as he caught his breath, and Scootaloo stood on his knee "Get it together, Astaroth! Come on!" She looked up with a hopeful glance. There was a pause from the dark golem, but then he began to cough as he covered his mouth with his free hand. The coughing grew worse in a small moment of seconds. Scootaloo looked scared as she turned to Applebloom and Sweetie Belle "Girls, he's sick! We gotta get him over to Ponyville Clinic pronto!!"

Applebloom pushed her head on one of Astaroth's legs as she moved forward and grunted in strain "Maybe if he'd move his big legs, we'd be there in two shakes of a lamb's tail!"

When Astaroth's coughing fit ceased, he caught his breath before he hacked up a substance onto his hand. The three fillies noticed and quickly drew themselves back as they watched in disgust and gave an 'Eeeeeewww~' in unison. Scootaloo kept her disgust, but it left when she noticed a familiar purple substance on Astaroth's knuckles "Hey, wait a minute!" She trotted up and looked closer "That's the stuff I got from the Diamond Dogs that brought Astaroth back to life!"

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were now curious "Really?" Applebloom trotted next to Scootaloo and looked up "What do ya suppose it is?" She squinted her eyes at it.

Sweetie Belle got a look herself and widened her eyes "Girls..." She grabbed the attention of her fellow crusaders "Purple icky slime...and it somehow brought Astaroth back to life as a killer! You don't think it's..." She leaned in towards Applebloom and Scootaloo and held a look of utter fright as she whispered "Smooze?"

The two fillies blinked at this question and looked back up at Astaroth. Before they could get a better look, Astaroth grunted as he swung his arm and flung the slime away on a nearby tree "Whatever it is, if it actually brought me to life, then perhaps I should get more!'

Scootaloo looked concerned "But what if it's the same thing that's been causing you pain the past few days?" Unbeknownst to the group, the droplets of the purple slime slithered inside the roots of the tree.

Astaroth leered down at Scootaloo "If that's the case, then I should beat you senseless for doing this to me!!" The tree near the group began to shake while they were talking and slowly escalated in speed and intensity.

Applebloom snapped at Astaroth "Ah'd say it's karma fer th' way y'all 've been actin' 'round us!! Ya should start actin' nicer towards everypony ya meet, Astaroth!" The tree began to grow and sprout more branches, most of them appearing vine-like in form.

Scootaloo glared at Astaroth "It wasn't even my fault, you know! And you should even be grateful you're alive, because I'm beginning to like you better as a sleeping body than a big, ugly, giant..." When they heard a screeching roar, the group turned to the source, and Scootaloo drooped her ears with widened eyes "...monster?" She spoke in a scared and confused tone.

They beheld what appeared to be a large monster in place of the harmless tree that once stood in its spot. On the treetop, a large eye opened and looked down at the group, and it gave another roar as it attracted the attention of other ponies, scaring them in the process. They quickly retreated towards safer areas to keep their distance from the newly-emerged monster.

The fillies backed away up behind Astaroth and Applebloom looked up in fright "Astaroth, ya love t' kill things, right? Could ya please kill that there monster 'fore it gobbles us up!?"

Astaroth grunted as he readied his wooden ax "Finally! Something with a spine worth cracking!! I'm gonna enjoy this..." He then rushed into battle and braced himself for the several vines coming his way.

Scootaloo looked frightened "Astaroth, look out!!" She, along with her friends, quickly shut their eyes and looked away when they heard crunching sounds, but when they heard a pained roar, they looked to see Astaroth striking at the monster's center after he crippled some of its vines. Scootaloo beamed "He's doing it!! Astaroth's got this!"

While his hits were successful, Astaroth felt that not enough damage was done to the beast. Remembering his helmet, he drew his head back and gave the monster's center a mighty headbutt and elicited both a sickening crack and another paiend roar.

Applebloom beamed at the critical hit and raised a hoof "Yeah! That's usin' yer noggin, Astaroth!! Keep it up!" She gave a cheer as she rooted for the dark golem. Sweetie Belle did the same with hope in her eyes.

"Sweetie Belle!!"

When she heard her name being called, the unicorn filly looked behind the battle to see her parents in the crowd of bystanders with looks of utter shock in their eyes "Mom! Dad!"

Magnum broke into a gallop towards Sweetie Belle "Hang on, Sweetie Belle! Daddy's coming!!" He looked ahead with determination in his eyes.

The monster roared while it tussled with Astaroth, and it noticed Magnum nearing the fillies as it raised a working vine and smacked him out of its range towards the crowd.

Sweetie Belle watched in fright "Daddy, no!!" She galloped over towards him, but got caught by the same vine that smacked Magnum. The unicorn filly screamed while she was being held captive.

Pearl gasped as she placed her hooves on her cheeks with a face of sheer horror "My baby!!"

Applebloom looked up in fright and turned to Scootaloo "We gotta help her!"

Scootaloo looked down and gritted her teeth in frustration "But what can we do against a monster that size!? We need a plan!"

Applebloom looked around "Oh, if only there was a chainsaw 'round here!" She then gasped as she noticed the remains of the timberwolves "Scoots!! Gather some of those sticks! It's time we fight fire with fire!!"

Scootaloo wondered what the yellow filly meant until the thought came to her and caused her to smile "Good thinking, Applebloom! Let's hurry!!" The fillies rushed to rub the sticks together fervently as they began to heat up "C'mon..." When they finally caught fire, she grinned "Yes! Let's go get that beast!!" The two fillies grabbed their own torches and rushed towards the tree monster with blind ambition.

When they rushed past Astaroth, they steered clear of his visible bloodlust, but did not manage to reach the center when two tentacles flew in front of them and snatched them from the ground, causing them to drop their torches in shock. The two fillies then joined Sweetie Belle in screaming while they were hoisted into the air while in the monster's grasp. Scootaloo looked down pleadingly "Astaroth! Save us!!"

Astaroth held his own, and grew annoyed at the sound of the fillies screaming. He looked up in surprise to see them constricted by moving vines and he gritted his teeth "You ignorant little-..." He growled as he gave his ax a mighty horizontal swing and struck the monster's left side. The monster roared in pain, but the dark golem didn't stop there. He kept striking the same exact spot without pause until a cracked gap began to open up.

Soon enough, the monster screeched while it began to topple and fall down on its left side. When it collided with the ground with a loud thud, its eye rolled up to the back of its head as it shut away. The fillies that were once captive dropped to the ground when the vines loosened their hold on them. The droplets of purple slime emerged from where Astaroth cut the monster and withered into a pruned black matter before dissolving into dust and blowing away in the wind.

Astaroth growled "Damn...I forgot to take its soul..." He then looked down to see three little fillies grin up at him with joy and glared "What are you looking at?"

The crusaders galloped to Astaroth's legs and hugged them without hesitation "You saved us, Astaroth! You saved our lives!!" Scootaloo said with barely contained glee.

Astaroth was not too thrilled with those words and went to shake him off until he noticed the crowd of ponies trot out of their hiding places and slowly advance towards Astaroth, murmuring in confusion and curiousity. When Magnum helped up by Pearl, he looked to see Sweetie Belle happily hug Astaroth and looked up at the dark golem with a smile "He saved her...He saved our daughter! That big guy's a hero!!" At that, the crowd of ponies resounded a cheer as they stomped in applause.

Astaroth looked around and glared at the cheering crowd, and it intensified when he noticed they did not let up 'Bad enough the runt thinks I'm her guardian...but now they think I'm some kind of bleeding heart!? Time to change things...' He went to raise his ax and begin the slaughter, but stopped when he noticed Scootaloo climb on his back "Get off of me! They're asking for it!!"

Scootaloo smiled at Astaroth "Don't you see, Astaroth? They like you now! Now they won't be afraid of you after all!!" She turned to the crowd and waved towards the dark golem with a hoof "Take a good look, everypony! This is Astaroth! He's my guardian!!" The cheering grew in volume when Scootaloo made her proclamation.

In the crowd, Cherilee looked to see the crusaders with Astaroth. While she was happy that he saved the fillies' lives, she couldn't help but see that the dark golem didn't mean for such a thing, let alone get praised for it 'Oh, Scootaloo...' She gave the orange filly a worried glance, but it slowly left when she noticed how happy Scootaloo looked on his back while Astaroth tried shaking her off. Cherilee gave a sigh and softly cheered with the rest of the crowd while she kept a careful eye on Scootaloo.

When they stopped cheering, Mayor Mare emerged from the crowd and made her way towards Astaroth. She was one of the only ponies that haven't seen him yet, and she was instantly shocked by his appearance "Oh my!" She looked up at Astaroth shyly "Erm....E-Excuse me, sir...Were you the one that saved these children form the danger I heard about?"

Astaroth growled and barked down at Mayor Mare "What if I am!?" She, along with the rest of the crowd drew themselves back after he snapped at the mayor of Ponyville.

Mayor Mare regained her composure and straightened her glasses "W-Well, if you are..." She grinned as she held out a hoof to Astaroth "Thank you for protecting these fillies as well as the rest of Ponyville from danger! We're happy to have you here, and we hope you enjoy your stay!"

Astaroth twitched an eye and went to strike Mayor Mare with his ax. Scootaloo saw this with widened eyes and quickly zipped down from the dark golem's back and stopped in front of the mayor "He's a bit shy and beat at the moment! I think we should give him some air!!"

Mayor Mare grinned down at Scootaloo "But we should throw him a celebration for his noble deed!" She was unaware that Astaroth grew more livid when she mentioned the word 'noble'.

Scootaloo twitched an ear and quickly replied "He likes to keep to himself most of the time, I think we should respect his wish of being left alone for now!! I mean, we don't want things getting out hoof by making him feel uncomfortable, right!?" She flashed a wide and nervous grin.

Mayor Mare looked up at Astaroth and obliviously passed off his visible ire as an expression of shyness "Hm...Well, if it's what he wants, I suppose..." She smiled "But know that you'll always be remembered as a hero for saving these children's lives!"

Astaroth twitched an eye and stuttered in outrage while he began to shake horribly. He then let out a loud yell that cuased everypony around him to cover their ears.
_____

The element bearers and Zasalamel continued their pace and stopped when they heard a strange yell. The cloaked man only looked up while everypony else looked around in confusion.

Fluttershy stood beside Applejack and shivered while she looked around "Wh-Wh-Wh-What was that!?"

Applejack tried to track down the source of the sound herself "Don't sound too pleasant, Ah know that much!"

Rarity winced "Sounds like somepony stepped on either a tack or something gross..." She shuddered at the second thought, knowing she would do the same.

Rainbow Dash elevated into the sky and kept her eyes peeled "You think it came from Everfree Forest? Maybe like an Ursa Minor?"

Twilight looked around "I doubt an Ursa Minor would make that sound since we saw one up close, Rainbow Dash."

Pinkie only giggled and said nothing.

Zasalamel looked back and spoke "Enough dawdling...We have to keep going." The element bearers agreed and followed the cloaked man as he took point.
_____

Raphael, Amy, and Trixie kept walking on their trail until they heard a distant yell. The vampire stopped and turned back with an annoyed sneer "What the devil is that noise?" He asked in irritation.

Trixie held up an ear with a raised eyebrow "It sounds like somepony is angry...Perhaps we should ignore it and move on."

Raphael scoffed as he resumed walking "At least you're able to produce coherent thought..." He ignored the hateful glare that was sent by Trixie.
_____

Braeburn and Little Strongheart beamed when they saw the distant city of Fillydelphia in their sights "Alright! Iffin' we pick up the pace, we'll be there by sundown! Hopefully the city folk won't mind us passin' by while we look fer that cloaked figure!"

Little Strongheart nodded "I'm sure they will understand!" Her ears perked up, and soon the pair of travelers looked back when they heard a loud yell "What was that!?" Little Strongheart asked in surprise and bemusement.

Braeburn winced "Don't sound too pleasant, I know that much!" He then looked back at the distant city "But we shouldn't let that stop us now! We gotta get movin' for that feller does so himself! C'mon, Li'l Strongheart, let's shake a leg!" He said as he trotted forward. The buffalo calf followed shortly behind while she casted a nervous glance behind her.
_____

Astaroth finished his yelling and he breathed deeply with ire while he looked around. His anger softened when he noticed everypony around him stared with widened eyes and drooped ears. Magnum and Pearl were equally frightened, but the purple mare slowly shifted towards Sweetie Belle and waved her over "C'mon, Sweetie Belle...Time to go home and leave Mr. Astaroth alone for now..." The unicorn filly agreed and the family went back to Carousel Boutique.

Applebloom and Scootaloo stared up at Astaroth, and the yellow filly turned to Scootaloo apologetically "Ah better move my flank back home, too, Scoots. Ah'll see ya later, maybe?" She then trotted away back to her home.

Soon enough, the entire crowd silently moved away from the dark golem and tried to mind their own business while fighting off the intense shock that was weighed upon them with Astaroth's massive yell, leaving only Scootaloo, an angry Astaroth, and surprisinly, a concerned Cherilee.

Cherilee slowly and cautiously inched towards Scootaloo while Astaroth looked ready to kill "Scootaloo...Is Astaroth always like this?" She whispered in concern.

Scootaloo gave a sheepish chuckle "He is VERY shy...and angry...But he's getting better! Promise!" She grinned.

Cherilee looked up and instantly winced when she laid eyes on Astaroth as he hyperventilated "But are you sure you're safe arou-"

"She's fine..." Were the only words that came out of Astaroth's mouth slowly and malevolently as he took more deep breaths.

Cherilee blinked before she flashed an awkward grin "A-Alright then...Since you're Scootaloo's guardian and all, I suppose you're doing your part in keeping her safe..." She looked at Scootaloo with worry 'I hope...'

Scootaloo nodded "He is! He just needs some..." She looked up and flinched at how he looked "...time...maybe lots more..." The orange filly gave a hopeful smile while she looked up at him.

Cherilee frowned at Scootaloo's words and wanted to say something about it. But she didn't want to further antagonize Astaroth and decided to trot back to her home after she gave Scootaloo one last concerned gaze.

When she was gone, Scootaloo gave a relieved sigh, but felt very frightened when Astaroth slowly leered down at her. The orange filly paused before she grinned awkwardly with a chuckle "Everfree?" She asked.

Astaroth kept his glare on Scootaloo "...Everfree..." He uttered in anger.