Bravery's ascension

by Stucks-24_6

The scent of Fear and Light

Bravery and Fortaancus shook their heads vigorously , trying to block out the forbidding voice and the agony that clawed at their minds.
Finally, after the voice had disappeared for a along moment, the pain was rendered null and void.

"Sombra is not holding back Fortaancus, no mercy is going to be shown this time, to any of us" said Bravery weakly as recovered from the trauma whilst multi-coloured dots invaded his vision. "What mercy was shown before Bravery, the value of mercy means nothing to that tyrant, from life Sombra learned only hate and fear, nothing else." Fortaancus remarked fumbling with his black and white gauntlets.
"On that I agree, but now it would be wise to seize the remaining time we have left, for it could be our last." Bravery responded with an increased presence of urgency in his tone.

As the sun began to slowly rise over the raggedy mountains, Bravery and Fortaancus were nearing the shard surrounded by nothing but air. None of this seemed right. This was the enemy's command and control yet they left it completely unsupervised. Bravery and Fortaancus were both curious as to why this was but another unexpected feeling of fear and uncertainty started to grip at them. Their comrades and family were dying by the actions of Sombra's greed and his unrelenting army of soulless wraiths and demons.
As they continued to run to the shard, Bravery smelt something, something sweet and warm almost like freshly-baked bread but there was no bakery or any kind of building from where he and Fortaancus were. They had stepped into a wide expanse of cinder and ash that surrounded the shard.

"Fortaancus stop!" Bravery whispered loudly, "I smell something, but it almost seems impossible to be real." he continued now that they had stopped running.

"I smell something too, it smells familiar but....." Fortaancus said before trailing off. Fortaancus suddenly then felt the anxiety in his heart turn into mild panic and frustration. Bravery could not be allowed to continue breathing then, he had smelt this smell before and realised what it really was.

Bravery started to feel another pain in his head but this time it was more of a sluggish feeling. "Fortaancus, wh- what, why wh-, everything is every..where, what is- *cough* going on?" said Bravery who was very much unable to speak. He felt like he was free-falling in an endless void of nothingness; the landscape around him was dissolving and changing shape with Fortaancus' figure twisting and transforming into ripples of visual distortion. Bravery felt extremely faint and swayed about rubbing his widening eyes from the feeling of psychological instability.

Fortaancus started to shout mildly into Bravery's ear to bring him out of his self-induced trance. He reached for his mask and from the sides slide two metal plates around his mouth to protect himself from losing it and reached into his belt to grab a mask for Bravery. If Fortaancus had hesitated even for another five seconds then his friend's mind would be lost forever as would his soul. Fortaancus quickly placed the mask over Bravery's muzzle and held him close.

Meanwhile, Bravery had noticed the landscape returning to normal as he stopped falling and landed on stain glass platform surrounded by vast emptiness of space. Bravery stood upright and spotted a dark circle nearby, it was not moving only hovering stationary above the glass platform. Bravery did not think to approach it for he knew nothing of what might happen next.
As Bravery continued to look around he heard the voice he and Fortaancus were hearing earlier. It spoke only ancient gibberish at first but soon turned into a lighter and more powerful voice and in the process the black circle started to change into a exceedingly bright ball of light. It resembled Celestia's sun in many ways but it was white and was not radiating any heat.

As the divine voice grew louder it started to speak normally and direct its speech to Bravery.

Bravery Pureblood of Equestria, the courage and wisdom that you have shown to the world in the past and present have brought you here not by choice.
The tyrant who calls himself Sombra embodies the worst of all sentient life, for too long have I seen dark magics and necromancy plague and defile the magical land of Equestria.
As a long dead God I have been unable to correct the mistakes that fate has brought upon Equestria, so it was until this day that any hope of returning it to harmony had been lost."

Bravery was concentrating his full attention on the bright light that had expanded itself to surround him fully. He was quite lost for words but was able to bring himself up to speed.

"What is this? How do you know my name? Or most importantly, who are you?" Bravery asked, he was now talking to another white void just not falling through it this time.

"I would answer you if more time was available for us, but you must listen to me now!

the voice continued, now with an increasing tone of urgency. Bravery calmed himself and stopped to listen to the voice, there was nothing else to do except that.

"In order to fix the flaws that Equestria has suffered over the long, excruciating years, it had to be done out of the beliefs and hopes of a pure mortal, which happens to be you Bravery, for this is the destiny that has awaited you ever since you were born."

said the divine voice now using a bit more emotion towards Bravery.

Bravery was standing in place, bewildered by the words thrown at him. This conflict was never supposed to be about him, what he did was for the greater good of Equestria.

"But mysterious one, I am no special warrior, I am just another pony trying to relive himself of the fear that currently eats away at the souls of my allies and friends. Speaking of that I must get back to Fortaancus, there is a task left for me and him in Equestria. I must complete it!" shouted Bravery, hopefully trying to get a word in edge ways as the voice grew louder in volume. The voice was louder than that of even princess Luna's Canterlot voice.

"No Pureblood, since the day your mother held you in her hooves I have watched you and your friend Fortaancus when he first came to Equestria and I saw the meaning of heroism and selflessness inside you. You have been the one to overcome physical fear and strike at the heart of evil with great force. With the human Fortaancus at your side, you and he can free Equestria and finish what I could not."

said the voice as the white circle started to turn into a tall, white and midnight blue alicorn that approached Bravery with enormous curtain-like wings trailing behind.

"Now go Bravery, join Fortaancus and save your beloved friends and home, show no fear, the light of hope will guide you to victory as I Zenita Eror Nesira will grant you and Fortaancus your path"

said the alicorn who instantly disappeared and brought Bravery back to the same ruinous landscape where Fortaancus was holding a mask around his muzzle and wearing a mask of his own around his face.

"Bravery, what happened?" Fortaancus quickly asked fearing for Bravery's condition.
"I am fine Fortaancus, but what I saw before has made me question myself constantly." Bravery whispered trying to pick himself up.
"What did you see, who were you speaking to?" Fortaancus questioned afterward.

"Him, our creator, or in specific my creator.......and what looked like Celestia's father" said Bravery.

Author's Note: