Afraid Of My Shadow

by Deyeaz

XVI - A Bad Distraction (Praxis)

Afraid Of My Shadow

Written by CraimerX and ShadowWeaver

Proofreaded by the onlyoneofmeisyou

XVII - A Bad Distraction (Praxis)

"Dammit! No!" I kept pounding at the door, trying to open it still. What had happened?! Did he kill everypony?! Did he make them vanish?! What happened?!

I started to cock back my arm at the door furiously, trying to get it to open. I landed a right straight punch at the door, the Black Magic’s power making a good sized hole. I kneeled down to the hole and peeked through, and what I saw shocked me. Umbra had left, but not until he left his mark. Everywhere on the ground was black, pitch black. To the point where you would think you would fall through the floor.

I tried to look everywhere, and I saw ponies scattered about, some crying, some passed out from fear. I could see that some were weeping over crumpled up forms on the ground, possibly the dead.

"Motherfucker..." I whipped my head around to see Jace slowly rising to his feet, the side of his head caked with blood. "I'll rip him apart limb from fucking LIMB!" He ran at the door at full speed, and I dodged quickly enough to get out of the way before his magically charged leg made contact with the door, and turned it into toothpicks.

The crowd screamed with fear, but when they saw Jace's face, they just stared. Jace paid no attention to any of them, and walked down the aisle to the throne. He walked up the steps, and went behind the throne, and then came back into view holding Vinyl in his arms. She was shaking in his arms, face buried in his neck. He made his way back to the doors and then turned to the crowd.

“Everypony, I am truly sorry for all of this. I didn't plan for this to happen, I did not set this up, I am not responsible. Umbra has come to Equestria to exact revenge on the two who ruined his life, one of these two being myself. I don't know if I'm strong enough to defeat him.. But I'll try..." He looked around and then bowed his head. "I pray that your dead are in Heaven, going through the gates by God's hand. You are each worthy of a place there... That much I can promise." With that, he turned back to face me.

"Find Wubsy and the other little ones. Bring them home. We're gonna have a little talk when you get to the mansion." The look in his eyes were like fire. I didn’t need to read his emotions to see that Jace was obviously beside himself, but still: who was his anger directed? Me? Umbra?

He made his way down the corridor, still holding onto Vinyl tightly. He was soon out of view when he turned the corner and all I could do was stand there and watch him go. I gulped and stepped inside the room, ignoring the pitch-black floors that seemed to be endless. Shockingly, I didn’t fall through. “Everypony!” I hollered. “Please, follow me! We’ll get you somewhere safe!”

Again, since my herding and rustling skills aren’t exactly top-notch, it took me some time to wrangle everyone together. But eventually, I did just that: stallions, mares, and all children were gathered. “Baba, I’m scared!” Riku cried as he held onto my leg. I lifted him onto my shoulders and instructed him to grab my horns.

“Don’t worry: it’ll be okay,” I reassured him, patting his back at an awkward angle as he buried his face into my hair. I felt a wetness on his face: he was crying.

...What kind of a father am I, that I can’t be able to keep my own son safe?

“Uncle Praxis? Auntie Trixie? Where’s Daddy?” Wubsy whimpered as Trixie came over to comfort him with a one-legged hug.

“Jace went inside,” Trixie said as she used her magic to levitate Wubsy onto her back.

“Praxis Moradov...”

That voice... That voice I so despised. It sent chills down my spine, but it sent my rage ablaze. I turn around and see the figure from earlier: the tri-horned, four-armed monster whose disgusting black hands bear the onus of much suffering and misery.

“Umbra,” I growled in a low voice. I looked down at Trixie on my right. “Take the adults and children to the train; I’ll handle tall, dark, and gruesome while you make the getaway,” I mouthed.

“But Praxis!” Trixie silently exclaimed. “He’ll kill you if you try to beat him!”

“Relax: I’m gonna fight long enough for you guys to escape. I’ll catch up once the train’s gone.”

“But-”

I cut across her statement by placing a finger on her mouth. Just then, I felt a warm feeling creep into my cheeks when I examine Trixie more clearly. What... what was going on? My mind cries ‘stop’... but my heart and my instincts shout ‘proceed’. My legs, strong and durable as they are, were shaking like jelly under her concerned, even slightly tearful gaze. My breathing felt rather ragged. I removed my finger from her lips, but with... reluctance?

Was I... falling for her?

What? No way... I was far too out of her league.

Regardless, I must return to pressing matters... like dealing with Umbra while Trixie and the others make a getaway.

“You be good,” I said as I lifted Riku off my back and placed him onto Trixie’s. I knelt down, took Trixie’s chin in my hand and looked at all three of them: her, my son Riku, and my technical nephew Wubsy.

Damn it, Praxis! Don’t be a coward. Say it now, while you still can!

“....I love you.” I leaned forward, lips slightly parted, and placed them in between Trixie’s eyes. Her cheeks immediately flushed and rosy at the contact. I tussled Riku and Wubsy’s hairs in a fatherly manner before I too placed a peck on the tops of their heads. “Now go!” I barked, my caring manner vanishing instantly.

They didn’t hesitate in leaving as quickly as possible. Trixie looked back at me for a last second with shining eyes before taking off again. With the entire room now vacated of anypony alive, it was just me and Umbra.

“They can’t run forever.” Umbra walked towards me and stopped a few feet short. “Once I’m done with you, I’ll come for them.”

“What have you done with the princesses?” I ask, my voice calm and collected.

“Oh, fret not about them: they are kept safe in the dungeons. To make sure they don’t use magic to break themselves out, I placed Shadow Collars on them, negating their magic.”

“Pretty smart, I’ll give you that.” I stood at attention. “But the Elements of Harmony will stop you."

"Those? Hah! I took away the Elements: besides, what would the magic of friendship do to someone of my caliber?"

I smirked. "Regardless, that doesn’t mean I can’t stall you.”

“Are you challenging me to a fight?”

“If it means keeping them safe, then yes.” I bowed low, and Umbra did likewise. “May the best monster win?”

“Indeed.” He held out one of his hands and I heard a sound that was like a whirring helicopter blade. I turned behind me and then quickly jumped up, Eclipse flying underneath me.

“Whoa!” The handle was caught by Umbra, and it slowly faded to black. The blade of the scythe, the beautiful silver was tinted to a dark violet color, looking black if you tilted it to the light just right.

“What? You thought I was going to be fighting fair?” Umbra chuckled darkly, showing his white teeth. The appearance made him look like the lovechild of both Slenderman’s black cousin and an orthodontist.

“I gotta admit, no, no you weren't.” My fingers lengthened and sharpened into blades again, the eye glowing red once more. “But that doesn't matter.”

Umbra charged at me, with Jace’s scythe in hand. He was moving so quickly, I wouldn't be able to dodge in time. All I could do was raise my arm in defence, but instead of the scythe slicing through, the Black Magic arm... protected me from the attack. I buckled under the strength of the blow, but still held strong. Even when Umbra started to operate Eclipse’s chainsaw method, I was still defending myself. I kicked Umbra off of me so that I could get some breathing room. I glanced at the eye, which was glowing brightly, hardening itself into something like a titanium alloy so that I don't get diced.

When I looked at him to see the effects of my kick, the only thing he did was float across the ground, like it didn't even do anything. “I’ll give you this, that arm is a work of art.” Umbra’s teeth showed again in his wicked smile. “But so am I...” Umbra’s form seemed to change before me, as he melted into the ground. Only problem was, the ground was pitch black, and he himself was also pitch black...

Damn it... he was trying a sneak attack. I’m gonna have to use a sense other than sight to get him.

I closed my eyes and tried quieting my breathing. It was hard work, what with my heart drumming like crazy and my mind on the fritz, but soon, the sound of my breath seemed to vanish entirely. My ears swiveled this way and that, listening for anything that would betray Umbra’s location. All was quiet as I listened patiently.

*WHOOSH*

Almost at once, I heard the sound of something soaring through the air, about two metres behind me. I whipped around to face the sound, which was Umbra raising Eclipse to strike another blow. I backflipped just in time, but not before he could shear off a hair or two from my legs.

“I’m going to destroy you, Moradov! Then I’ll destroy that brat, Romero!” He lunged for another attack, but I blocked with my arm again. He reeled around for another, yet when I tried to move just in time, I ran right into Umbra’s sweep attack with his legs. The blow knocked me off my hooves, sending me into the air. Quickly acting, I landed on my hands, descended onto the area between my shoulder blades, and spun my hooves in a clockwise motion, a kick from the windmill technique hitting him in the chest and sending him back a metre or so.

“You’ll have to try harder than that.” I wiped my brow of the light sweat that had accumulated.

“Grr... not a bad form.” Umbra rubbed the spot on his chest where I kicked him.

“What? You thought I spent the last four years trying to be the world’s best garden gnome?” I asked.

*WOOT-WOOOOOOOT!*

The sound of the train’s whistle going off blared loudly in my ears. “Excellent point, but I’m afraid you’re going to have to hold that thought. I’ve got a train to catch!” He started flying quickly towards the exit, the malice and wanton bloodlust made apparent by the look in his eyes.

NO!

“Come back here!” I threw my right arm at him, the appendage elongating at the right length to grab Umbra by the throat. I cocked my legs, turned around, jumped up about five meters, and brought my arm in front of me, slamming Umbra down into the ground. “I’m not done with you yet!”

“Oh, but I will be with you!” Umbra landed a punch into my chest. The pain... it was so intense. I watch crimson blood expel itself from my mouth like a busted can of spray paint. It felt like a wrecking ball had just slammed into me, or like Applejack had bucked me with deadly precision and shocking accuracy. Umbra opened his palm and slashed, the claws slicing my flesh from my right shoulder to the left side of my waist. More anguish ravaged through, like a broken dam in the middle of a monsoon. I bellowed in agony from it all as I fell off him. I had to act quickly, or I was done for.

I can’t think right... I’m starting to lose too much blood.

Blood...

Blood! I think I have a solution.

With as much speed as I could summon in my damaged state, I quickly swiped my thumb over my slash marks, wincing from the immense pain it caused me. I hurriedly swabbed a crescent moon and a star upon Umbra’s torso: the Islamic Crest.

Here goes everything....

“What? What are you doing?!” I didn’t answer the foe before me. In as fast a voice as I could, I placed my palms on the symbol and muttered in Arabic:

((In the name of God who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; the Most Gracious, the most Merciful. Prevent this wretched demon from leaving this place. For those who stray from the path of righteousness, may they neither leave nor enter here. Amen.))

Please let this work, please let this work, please let this work!

Instead of the crest working in some form or another... it just sputters pathetically, like a fire in a downpour.

“What the fu-!” Instantly, Umbra punched me in the face, blasting me away several yards, through a window until I landed on the ground, hard. I looked at the train out in the distance vanishing past the mountains and hills to another town... Ponyville, maybe? I think so, since the train came back from Whinnyapolis. If so, I hope the others made it safely.

I would’ve smiled.... if I wasn’t in serious pain. “Ow...” I groaned, my face feeling worse than a fish with its brain dashed on a rock. Regardless, I shook off the pain and faced Umbra again.

“Hmph... Pathetic. ‘The Heroes of Equestria..’. More like the fools that get lucky...” He said, turning from the window. He snapped a pair of his fingers and the glass from the broken window repaired itself, changing its glass colour to black and red. The symbol on it was a skull with a stake through the length of it, his mark. “Let the games begin...”

The sky, rather than being clear and blue, turned a dark, tainted scarlet. The white clouds became as black as shadows. The sun was almost completely shrouded by the thick armour of black clouds, letting out only so little sunlight. “Shit... not good.”

“Consider yourself lucky I’m letting you live, boy,” Umbra’s voice rang. I looked back to the castle to see it slowly be enveloped with shadow, Umbra’s eyes shining from the top of the castle. “Don’t worry... I’ll finish off you, and Romero soon enough.” With that, the eyes disappeared, and a eerie laugh rang throughout the air. A large black hand erupted from the shadows and grabbed me in a vice-like grip, angering my wounds and squeezing the oxygen from my lungs. The hand cocked back and threw me beyond the red horizon like some horrible caricature of a catapult.

“SHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-!” I wailed as I was flung through the air. Hopefully Jace and Vinyl got out in time. The wind in my eyes stung them till they were watering like rivers. I’m pretty sure I would’ve made a twinkle sound if Umbra was looking at me zoom off against my own will.

*SPLOOSH*

With the force of a raging Spaniard bull, I plow right into a deep pond.

Wait... deep pond?!

Oh, no!

Quick, Praxis! Get outta there!

I kick my legs as much as I can, flailing out of the water that washed away my wounds and drenched my tattered clothes. Once I’m on land, I removed the clothes and discarded them on the grass; sure, Rarity would be after my blood, but I’d rather go with that than die of being a hydrophobic ninny.

Oh, right... I guess I never told you. When I was a boy, my mother decided to take me out to a zoo/aquarium on my eighth birthday, and she brought everyone in our family along with her. On that day, when I went to go exploring the aquarium section, I saw my brother Osama sneak into a personnel-only room next to the mako shark tank. I knew he was up to no good, so when I followed him, I found this massive room where all three mako sharks - one female, two males - were swimming in. I told Osama that it wasn’t safe to be in there, but instead of listening to me, he...

You guessed it. He pushed me into the tank.

The common shortfin mako shark, or isurus oxyrinchus, feeds mainly upon cephalopods like squids and octopi, or bony fishes such as mackerels, tunas, bonitos, and swordfish. However, it may also eat other sharks, porpoises, sea turtles, and seabirds. Like all sharks, they go in a frenzy when they smell blood, which they can do from a mile away. But, I was newly eight at the time, so I thought all sharks were big, scary, and had a hunger for all things fleshy and fattening. I was already a bad swimmer, so to be knocked into a tank full of huge, sharp-toothed shark would've loosened my bowels and cause me to shit myself.... twice.

Thankfully, I clambered onto the edge of the tank and floundered aboard, dry-heaving and crying from the experience. The zoo and aquarium had terrible staff, so they didn’t catch Osama. However, when they saw me with wet clothes, I was the one who was punished, by both the management and my mother. Not only did I get my family fined for “disturbing the peace” of the makos, but my mom whooped my ass in public. Dear God, it was horrible.

Ever since that day, I had been afraid of any body of water higher than my chest. It was also why I was so scared and panicky when I was sucking into that pool/scrying glass that Lyra had created a while back.

...Ahem... moving on.

Once I had been fully dried and my heart stopped pounding, I ripped up the tuxedo and used the shreds to bandage the wounds on my torso. It was amateur, but it’ll have to do. I sighed and walked towards the highest and nearest hill. Scanning the horizon, I spotted the blip-sized town of Ponyville about three and a half kilometres away.

I was far too wiped out to run there. Instead, I took a deep breath and walked there.

This was gonna be a long trip....

~End of Chapter XVII~

Author's Note:

Shadow: Criminy, Craimer. Every time I try to get to writing my stories, you INSIST that I write this one. I'm tired of keeping my fellow readers waiting!

Anyway, hope you guys like this chapter. Several ideas (most of them were mine) were scrapped in order to prevent loopholes in this.

Comments

[the other sans]

Was I... falling for her?
What? No way... I was far too out of her league.

Oh no... don't tell me... please don't tell me...

“....I love you.” I leaned forward, lips slightly parted, and placed them in between Trixie’s eyes.

I have no idea on whether to be proud of Praxis... or just outright claim that he is desperate... I can only imagine how Trixie looks when blu- *HNNNNNNGGGG*

[Fireeaters]

Maybe praxis' arm is like atsuma's from the game "Enchanted Arms" ...

[lolz anonymous]

and the story picks up pace! great chapter by the way.