//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 // Story: Night Stalker // by dragovin08 //------------------------------// Through the day Aeon sat waiting for the night to come again like an owl. Shoeshine was working and didn't really talk to Aeon since she was busy. She poked her head from the shop's lobby,"Oh, I didn't notice your cast is gone," Shoeshine said drawing away his attention. "Yeah," He replied. "How?" "I did it myself," Sounding irritated in his voice. "Oh, okay just make sure you don't do that again," She said turning around getting back to work. Aeon was tired from his lack of sleep from last night, though he's been having trouble sleeping for the last few nights. He decided just to try and get some sleep, so he hung his head and quickly fell asleep. The sky became orange and the black clouds were racing backwards. All the dead and impaled zenthains were reaching, trying to grab Aeon and pull him towards them. His eyes were filled with fear and his body began shaking once again. Aeon looked at one of the dead zenthians, its jaw was hanging by just a thread of skin, eyes yellow and mindless wanting nothing but to seek death. "Leave me alone!," He screamed waving his arms," Go away!" The corpses didn't respond, they only were trying to get closer but couldn't since they hung in the air moaning, hungry for his blood. Aeon's vision became blurred and he wanted to panic thinking that something was going to grab him. Shortly his vision was restored and standing in front of him was the hooded figure, his maroon colored eyes and small slits for pupils stared like gun barrels at Aeon. "Weak," The figure uttered, grabbing Aeon, bringing him to his knees. "Just let me go," Aeon began cowering. The figure said nothing, only having a large grin on its face. It grabbed both Aeon top and bottom jaw and began to rip it off. "Don't you remember, don't you remember what you've done?" It scolded, Aeon began to recognized the voice for it was his own. tears were streaming down Aeon's face as he felt his jaw being ripped off. The agony of his fear and physical pain was too much to bear as he felt blood rising out of his mouth and flowing down his neck. The figures claws were digging into the roof of his mouth, the tips sticking out the top of his snout. The figure cackled as it made one last push to finish it; Aeon's jaw broke and his flesh was ripped off his own body with blood leaking out non-stop he woke up realizing it was a dream. His breathing was heavy and his focus was not in the right place. He peeked out of a curtain and saw it was night out. *sigh* "It's time," He murmured. Aeon reached down grasping both the axes that were rest next to the chair, that he forged the night before. Shoeshine was about to head upstairs, but she saw Aeon with the axes in his hands. "What are you doing?" Concerned of his intentions with those weapons. "I'm going to take care of this thing once and for all," He replied. She moved away towards him, worried," Why- why are you doing this?" Aeon got down to his knees setting the axes on the ground," Cause it's something I have to do." "No-no you don't have to, you promised that you wouldn't fight it," She begged with tears in her eyes," You promised." "This is something I have to take care of myself," He proclaimed," Something that's kept its grasp on me." "But you'll die!" She sobbed," And I don't want you to die." Aeon put both hands on her cheeks and touched his snout on hers," I won't, I'll be fine." "And what if you do?" She whimpered. "Then I'll die for good reason." Taking his hands off her cheeks, he opened the door and walked outside with axes in hand. The moon was full this night and it shined brightly. Aeon turned to the right and saw the Night Stalker standing in the street knowing that Aeon would do battle again. Its chains rolled up onto its forearms putting the hooks into its hands, giving a deceiving smile. Aeon looked at the Night Stalker holding his axes tightly in his hands," I'm going to put an end to you here demon," All the Night Stalker did was chuckle slightly waiting for Aeon to make the first move. "You're still filled with fear of us," The Night Stalker said. "Shut up! I'm only filled with rage towards you." "Then show me." Aeon began charging at the Night Stalker at full speed, with his axes above his head he swung at the Night Stalker but missed. Like thin air the Stalker disappeared from Aeon's sight and Aeon looked every where from where he was standing. "Aeon," He heard a soft feminine voice behind him," Aeon." He turned around to see who it was saying his name and he was shocked to see who it was. It was a young zenthain woman around the same age as Aeon standing behind him, her skin was a winter red color, her eyes a majestic turquoise and her feathery hair was black with orange tips. "H- Hazel," Aeon said dropping his axes and falling to his knees. "Yes Aeon it's me," She smiled at him," We can go back to the time when we were together... Don't you remember?" She put her hand on the side of his face. He nodded with tears filling his eyes," I do, Hazel, I do," Putting his hand on top of hers, a single tear ran down his cheek," Can you really take me back?" "Yes, I can." Shoeshine snuck out through the back of her house and ran to get help from Twilight and the others. "Then take me away, take me away from this suffering I live it, so we can just be together," He begged. "But do you still love me?" She asked. "Yes, I have always loved you and I still do." "Then let us leave," She raised up her arm with a knife in her hand to kill Aeon. "Aeon!" Shoeshine yelled seeing Aeon in submission, Twilight and the others were with her as well but all they could do was watch. Aeon came back to his senses, grabbing one his axes he swung it and Hazel's body disappeared. One of the Night Stalker's large hands swung at Aeon, yet he dodged it having it strike the air. He grabbed his other axe before getting to his feet. "Where are you?" Aeon growled. "Here," The Night Stalker's voice echoing in his mind. "Show yourself!" The Night Stalker jumped down from above landing on top of Aeon, slamming him to the ground. Aeon rung his tail around the Night Stalker's neck and threw it off of him. Aeon got back up though the Night Stalker was already on its feet. "I know all your weaknesses, all your fears," The Night Stalker said. "you know nothing demon," Aeon responded. Charging at the Night Stalker again, it tried to strike Aeon with its large appendages. Yet dodging them it figured out that Aeon knew how it would strike using them. Aeon now in striking distance of the Night Stalker swung his axe over his head. Using its hook to block the axe, the Night Stalker kicked Aeon back. Only moving back a couple steps he swung again, as the Night Stalker did also. as the battle ensued they were equally matched in skill with their weapons. Aeon hit the Night Stalker in the face making it move back, he held out his axes now with many chips in the blade. The Night Stalker's hooks were unscathed with no chips on the blades of the hooks. Lunging forward at Aeon the Night Stalker pulled down Aeon's axes using its hooks. "You and I are the same accept it," The Night Stalker said overpowering Aeon's strength leaning him back. "I'm nothing like you," Aeon snarled. He head butted the Night Stalker and swung his axe. The Night Stalker grabbed the axe crushing the handle, then the white stripe on its chest opened. The stripe was a mouth with large sharp teeth, drooling with a black slime. Aeon swung with his other axe but the Night Stalker grabbed that one, also crushing the handle. He looked down at the large mouth watching it make a horse chomping noise trying to reach Aeon. "I shall devour you nice and slow," It chuckled. "Then do It!" Aeon yelled. The mouth opened as wide as it could ready for that first bite. Before it could even touch Aeon, he bit the Night Stalker's neck. The Night Stalker released Aeon's hands and Aeon threw the Night Stalker down the street just enough to be out of arm's reach; it landed crashing to the ground. Getting to its feet it sighed," Then I'll just make it easier, unfortunately it'll be less fun, but oh well." The Night Stalker unraveled the chains off its arms, it swung both chains like whips. Aeon had no weapons now, so all he could do is to trying and catch them. Yet the chains came at him with lightning speed striking him, knocking him to the ground. "Looks like this is the finale," The Night Stalker chuckled looking at Aeon who was trying to get up, yet he was tired from the long fight," quite anti-climactic for my taste though." Swinging its chains overhead the Night Stalker whipped them down sending falling towards Aeon like boulders falling off a high cliff. Shoeshine ran moving Aeon back so she could take the hit; the chains had struck with such force they instantly knocked her unconscious. "Shoeshine?" He said crawling towards her unconscious body, she had two large slash marks on her back and there was blood running down her body," Shoeshine." "Oh, looks like I missed," The Night Stalker joked. Aeon's hands were shaking and his had a look of shame," You bastard." "Oh my di- did she really?" Fluttershy said bewildered by what she just saw. "Yeah Fluttershy, she took the hit instead on him," Rainbow Dash said. The Night Stalker swung his chains at Aeon, but in the blink of an eye he caught them. Aeon turned his head back, all color in his eyes was gone leaving them glowing white. His skin turned from orange to a dark grey and his tail grew long barbs on the end of it. The mane five were horrified by what they were seeing Aeon turning into some kind of monster. Snapping his arms back, Aeon threw the Night Stalker towards him. He hit the Night Stalker with his foot and slammed it on the ground. The Night Stalker grabbed Aeon with its large appendage hands throwing him; he landed on all fours letting out a screeching horsed roar. Aeon charged at the Night Stalker with such speed that he was almost unseen, he swung upper cutting the Night Stalker. Grabbing the Night Stalker's neck he slammed it to the ground; the Night Stalker hit the ground looking into Aeon's glowing white eyes, all it could see was a mindless monster that would not reason, that would fight just out of instincts and survival. The Night Stalker began cackling," We really are the same, we are mindless killing machines, you can't deny it." He lifted the Night Stalker into the air and dug his claws into its chest. Yet the Night Stalker did nothing but it only kept on laughing. Aeon's hand came out of the back hold the Night Stalker's heart that was still beating, he brought his hand back and crushed its heart but the Night Stalker was still alive, still laughing. "I can't die," it said," I will haunt you till your death." Aeon threw the Night Stalker on the ground, grabbing its jaw. The Night Stalker was on its knees not doing a thing, not fighting back, not even pleading it didn't make a sound. Aeon using his strength tore its head in half, then threw both the head and the body away. He roared with his frill fanned out in victory. Hearing a voice he turned his head and saw a guard coming towards him," What is that?" Aeon growled at the guard ready to kill him. "Let's get it!" "No!" Twilight yelled. Aeon charged at the guard quickly killing him, slashing his claws across the guards face. Then he ran into the forest disappearing without a trace. Twilight looked at the forest. What are you Aeon? Twilight thought. Hearing a noise Twilight saw the Night Stalker get up holding the top half of its head, it reattached its head," We will meet again," It said disappearing into a puff of smoke. "Twilight!" Applejack called. Twilight ran over to her," Yeah." Applejack was with Shoeshine," She's not dead but she's unconscious, we need to get her patched up though." "Okay let's get her patched up then," Twilight used her magic to lift Shoeshine to take her to the hospital. Now Aeon has unleashed his true nature and must be found before he can do more harm to others or himself, but they know they need Shoeshine's help to get him before others do.