Beyond Earth and Heaven

by normandyman

0-Prologue

In the insides of a tent, a soldier was sitting in front of a table. He wears a full body plate armor with prominent shoulder pads, and over it a black-scarlet tabard. This man has a small stature and his face, yet serious, reflects an expression of solemnity and tranquility. His hair, red as a hot coal, performs a large mane tied up in a pigtail. Almost as if he ignores the rest of the world, he submerged a feather inside an ink boat and began to write.

“Commander Libringer:

Lately, the nights become very cold and the days extremely suffocating. I can feel it not only in the weather; all the nature is being affected by the recent rifts along the Mirrormoon River. In the moment I write this letter, we’re fortifying the Pylon Amena. Both, Qart and me, have several reasons to believe that the demons will try to destroy it and call reinforcements. Probably a garrison will be left here to protect it when we march tomorrow. Qart are doing an excellent job tracing the demons’s track. He hopes to reach them tomorrow in the midday if we march at full speed. But that’s not the matter. If I were you, I would not worry about his capabilities. You know them very well. I’m sure that you understand why I write these letters. Sir, I’m informing you first instead of the Marshal because while more time pass, more Qart…”

In that precise moment, a huge soldier entered inside the tent. He was with a steel helmet on the head, and the armor that he wears, with the same design of the other knight, barely can contain his colossal body.

“Did Qart return?”

The other soldier put down the feather and breathed deeply.

“No, not yet.”

“How is the situation?”

“Poisoned land and probably all the riverbed is corrupt.”

A deep silence reigned inside the tent. The seated soldier attempted hiding the letter, but his companion noticed that.

“Are you…? -The other one only looked at him in silence- Again? Dude, let it be.”

“I can’t. Do you saw him this morning? He went to explore alone.”

“He is certainly fine. Do you think a demon can harm him?”

“That’s not what I mean.”

“Oh, man. – Said the tallest in a low voice- I see. Well, then talk to him or something.”

“Yeah? For what? The only I obtain is more excuses at best, mostly is that strange philosophy of him. I’m beginning to think he ignores me, and probably everyone.”

“Je je, yeah. Is almost like if you talk with a catapult. At the end, it will shoot wherever he wants.”

“You aren’t helping Kanto.”

Kanto took off his helmet, revealing a gray hair in tresses. Next, he took a sit beside his companion, put an arm on his left shoulder and breathed deeply. The other one stared upon him.

“Let me repeat: let it be. Or if you prefer, bind him up if that bother you so.”

“Thanks, Kanto. I’ll keep that on my mind.”

“At your service.” He said in a funny accent and making a reverence. “Will you drink it?”

Kanto signed with the head a jar and a cup on the table. The smallest knight did a gesture of permission. Kanto took jar and cup and served himself, drinking all the content in one swallow. When he finished, he dropped off the cup and drank directly from the jar. A long silence dominated the place for a few minutes, although the sounds of metal being hammered, soldiers marching were heard strongly. The atmosphere continued very heavy and uncomfortable for a while, in spite of the noisy drink of Kanto. The giant eructed, and gave a friendly slap in the shoulder of his colleague.

“Take it easy, Metaurus. All will be alright.”

Metaurus shrugged his shoulders. He bent the letter and stored it in his belt. Both men stand up and prepared to get out. Suddenly, another knight appeared in the tent. This knight has a brown skin, dark and thick hair and a severe expression on his face. His armor is a light version of the protection of his comrades, consisting only in a short chainmail and the tabard, without gauntlets or shoulder pads. He had a strange insignia too, held by the straps on the chest of his armor. This insignia was a circle with three lines coming out from its inside.

He was hurried, and barely paid attention to the others two. Kanto opened his arms in a fraternal signal and presented him a grand smile.

“Talking about the king of Rome!”

The knight ignored the greeting and took many things from a table, including a map. Before abandoning the tent, he turned to his comrades, who kept looking at him amazedly.

“We got them.”

He said, and as fast as he entered he left. Metaurus and Kanto hastened to go after him, taking all his equipment at full speed. The three knights left the tent behind and walked through the campsite.

“Qart, what’s happen? What did you saw?”

“They’re coming for us. I calculate they will be here for the sunset.”

“Jo jo. And we will receive them right here. -Qart assented with the head- Wonderful! I’ll prepare the stockades. Men! Tonight is free party!”

The soldiers stopped working when they heard the barbarian’s irate shout, with a mixture between confusion and terror on his faces.

“What are you looking at? Anyone wanna a tea with the demons?! Keep going!”

Metaurus did a small smile and was observing Kanto until he disappeared, roaring, among soldiers. The two knights walked to the center of the campsite and reach the pylon. The levitating-stone pillar shimmered with a green thin glare. Many men were working raising turrets and barricades around it, and artillery pieces already had been installed in strategical positions.

“What said the specialists?”

“The same image of healthy.”

Metaurus gave a small whistle, surprised. “So fast” he thought. Both kept looking the stone for a moment, hypnotized. In the pinnacle of the monolith, four men in blue robes did a signal of satisfaction to Qart.

“Come here -said Qart-”

The two knights walked to a nearby table. Qart unrolled the map and marked three points in it.

“Look: here, in the northwest, are the demons coming for us. This is the Pylon Amena and our bulwark. The plan is deploying so many phalanxes as can be possible to cover the tight passage between the river and it’s affluent. The demon we are facing is a Magna Proeza. You know what that mean. No horns, great size, cracked skin, hard to kill and hardest to look. His name is Baayai, and he is the new alpha. He is the reason why we will fight them here.”

“So many details. How do you know that sort of things?”

“I’m very good at my job. Now listen: the north pass is unprotected. -Said indicating the third point- A small force must defend it and with it the main army. A little exposed but close enough to send reinforcements.”

“And here is when I fit, right?”

“No.”

“Kanto then?”

“Not at all! Both of you will be in the reinforcements forces. If the situation gets complex you charge and stabilize it.”

Metaurus looked at him indignant. Qart, without noticing it, picked up the map. He almost goes away, but his comrade caught him firmly by the arm.

“This is the plan? Me and Kanto in the rearguard?”

“It is as important as any place in the battlefront. And if someone will protect my back I prefer the most trustworthy ones.”

“Oh no no no. I’ll go to the battlefront. I’ll be right there from the beginning.”

“You are forgetting our principles. We exterminate demons for security, not for glory.”

“This is not a matter of glory! What is happening to you? Each day you become more and more reclusive. Libringer excused you with Aga’s incident and he believed that you would recover in time. Now I think the situation is even more critical.”

“How you dare to put the commander Libringer inside this matter! You are no one to give opinions about my life.”

“I’m your friend!”

“Wrong! First, you are a soldier, and I…”

Metaurus stood up firmness right in front of Qart, so close that he can feel his friend’s breath. His eyes showed a furious expression. Qart got muted with such appearance, like if all his strength, or courage, disappear instantly.

“Say it! Say the word!”

He only obtained silence, Mataurus was practically crushing Qart’s position with his presence. With the absence of an answer, Metaurus recovered his composure. All the workers stopped to view the scene in the middle of the camp. Metaurus looked his surroundings and gave a signal to the other men. They reinitiated the work immediately dissimulating the incident like if nothing would have happened. Then, the red haired man get close to his companion, speaking in a more discreet tone of voice.

“I’m getting Libringer into all of this because is better deal with him than with the marshal the possibility of you being the next one to fall!”

Trying to relax, Metaurus combed his hair backward and walked away from Qart very fast.

“Where do you go?” Qart asked.

“To my goddamned rearguard. We’ll talk about this later.”

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Pylon Amena. Six hours later. 11:40 pm

The night comes with a deep darkness. The sky, filled with clouds, hid moon and stars, immersing the campsite in an abyss of nocturnal creepy sounds and total obscurity. Only the torches and the light provided by mages illuminated a few steps beyond the camp perimeter. A large column of men was formed on phalanx, with a deadly wall of pikes pointing forward. Behind of them, in the wood walls, the archers and magicians took position. Then silence. The soldiers gazed the darkness, anxious and trembling. Multiple yellow eyes began to appear in the limits of light.

“Light!” Said an officer and some magicians threw huge fireballs to the eyes’s position. The burning vegetation revealed a legion of monsters of any size and type. The monsters started to scream and to hit the ground in a terrible spectacle. “Great Ludmila, help us!” Muttered a soldier totally terrified.

The demons charged between roars against the pikes. All resulted in a great commotion. In the same instant of the crush between the two factions, the sanity lost any meaning. The smell of sulfurs, the maddening cries and the dying light bring as result a nightmare in the real life.

However, Qart was in the same battlefront running from side to side in the battle in a whirlwind of chunks and lightnings, giving orders and relieving the situation where it was more unsustainable. With flash steps, he charged alone against the monsters and did enormous damage to them. In a demonstration of pure strength, he destroyed the more sized demons fulminating them with savage and scorching fire. The soldiers got encouraged and attacked with bigger strength. In a few minutes, the human forces started to gain advantage.

Suddenly, an explosion shook the earth. Everyone turn back to see the origin of the detonation of such magnitude. Like an infectious disease, all man and woman present there was stunned. A man with blue robes went to the army screaming the name of Qart with all his forces.

“What happened back there?!” Qart asked.

“The demons… they destroyed the north pass’s garrison. No one survived.”

“What?! How?”

“We don’t know. The attacking force is not even enormous.

“And the lieutenants?”

“Lieutenant Metaurus teleported me here to report you. Right now, they must be fighting close to the pylon.”

Using his flash steps, Qart disappeared instantly due toward the pylon. The soldiers got nervous. The demons, apparently knowing the Qart absence, reinitiated the attack with an unstoppable charge.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Camp center. 12:05 AM.

Metaurus was involved in a very difficult situation. An entire army was vaporized and the demons began to corner the fortification. Kanto was fighting against an enormous monster with tusks similar to gigantic blades. Metauro gave some orders attempting to recover the discipline, but over the half of his men was already dead. Some demons tried to attack him at the same time in any direction possible, but he swept them out casting earth spells. Another demon appeared, but this was different. His aura was more powerful, he has no horns and his skin looked cracked, very similar to the dry clay. “Baayai I suppose” he thought.

“You have something I want.” Said the demon in a deep voice.

“No one is stopping you. You’re free to come here and take it.”

Both fighters attack each other with tremendous violence. The tranquil appearance of Metaurus contrasted with the fierceness of his blows. However, the lesser demons stopped the fight and created a circle around his master and the knight. Each wound Baayai obtained was healed consuming one of his minions.

“I know what you are.” Said Baayai pointing Metaurus, “And I’m prepared.”

The demons constringed the siege around Metaurus. He attempted to attack them but all the times Baayai interrupted him. Then, Metaurus felt a huge amount of magic energy. He formed a stone cocoon and enclosed himself inside. A colossal lightning hit the ground making a deafening clash. With the flash steps Qart took position beside Metaurus.

“And the rest of the army?” Asked Metaurus coming out from his shell.

“They’re fine. What happened here?”

“Another rift, right in the middle of the north pass.”

The demonic aura intensified. Baayai, consuming the remnants of his forces, got up again. Qart and Metaurus braced themselves.

“This one can consume his underlings. Perhaps he is about to evolve.” Said Metaurus getting close to his friend.

The two knights attacked Baayai at the same time in a perfectly coordinated combo. A thin green glare shone at the distance. Metaurus looked back, but Baayain hit him in the stomach. Qart counterattacked piercing the demon with a lightning spear. Baayai stepped back, but Qart threw him plenty more lightning spears. Metaurus used his flash step to attack his enemy with a stony fist. Baayai dodged the attack and immobilized Metaurus holding him by the throat. Another green glare shone but now more intensely, almost blinding.

“Qart!” Shouted Metaurus striving. “The pylon!”

Before Qart may look the pylon, a massive explosion happened. A green nova covered all the zone under its intense flash. Qart saw all in green, then white and finally all became black.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Twilight’s Castle. 12:50 AM.

Twilight was sleeping in her castle. All that friendship stuff tired her, and principally now with Starlight’s celebration. She is a heroine now and Twilight, as her mentor, feels so proud, and also happy because Starlight didn’t abandon her. She was so excited that she couldn’t sleep. She rolled in bed but she didn’t get it.

She got up from bed and walked to the bedroom’s exit. “Only a little walk” She said to herself. She passed through a small bed containing a tiny lizard into it and she slipped out of the room. As she walked, she stopped in front of a window and enjoy the view of Ponyville. How many memories she has of this small town. How many time passed since she was a naive pony without knowledge about friendship. She sighed, entranced in her thoughts, until an earthquake woke her up her fantasies.

An intense green light flared in the town, catching her attention.

“What was that!”

Instantly, she teleported to the entrance of the castle and ran toward the town.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Ponyville. 12:55

Qart was so confused. The darkness disappeared to reveal a blurred image of the world. His armor was shattered and he had not boots. The headache was unbearable and the mere act of walk seemed impossible. The sounds, first so distant and inaudible, slowly became more and more strident, mixing screams of confusion, surprise and fear. His vision was still vague, and only made him get scared of the beings were began to surround him.

He tried to shoot some lightnings, but this only scared the creatures and them to Qart in turn. The knight, hardly, woke up and ran so fast as he can until he reached a nearby forest. He leant on a tree, panting. He felt a great pain in the right clavicle, enough to immobilize his arm. However, this little shelter demonstrated being even more dangerous. He perceived so many menacing entities staring at him, and the thrilling noises didn’t help it. He ran back to the town passing through the creatures and entered inside a house in a jump for the window. The inhabitants screamed in terror and Qart, in self-defense, made a psychic force-camp. The psychic wave knocked down lamps and candles, leaving the room in darkness. Qart felt a strange movement on his feet, and rapidly he caught whatever it was and held it strongly. More screams and more headache. His prisoner tried to escape but he increased the strength in his hand.

The door opened abruptly and some voices gave orders to the inhabitants that Qart, in his state, didn’t understand. When all the presences got out, another one entered in holding a purple thin light, although the said light was not enough to illuminate the impoverished vision of the knight. Qart took a closer position to his hostage and adopted a threatening posture.

“Easy. I’m not here to harm you. I want to help you.”

The voice sounded female, with a conciliating and tranquil tone, but evidently nervous under the circumstance. Qart felt relieved because they spoke the same idiom.

“What is it? Where am I?”

“Probably you’re a foreigner. Although this doesn’t explain the green glow where you come from… and the explosion”

“What happened?”

“That’s what I try to respond, and you can help me. We can help each other in fact, but holding a hostage will not.” The figure tried to get close to Qart, but he exhaled fire from his nose. “Are you a dra…”

This time Qart expelled a large breath of fire, and the figure had to step back until the scared knight showed signs of calm.

“Get away from me!” He scratched his eyes strongly. His vision was continuing being blurry, and the headache was impeding him to order his thoughts. “Who, or what, are you? Where I am?”

“Well, you are in the Kingdom of Equestria. I’m Twilight Sparkle, a pony who lives here. Well, I’m an alicorn exactly, but that’s irrelevant for now.

Qart did a large silence before that answer. The headache increased the intensity, his vision got worse and the darkness in all the room didn’t help him to verify that story.

“A pony? You?” Said Qart skeptical, but also with a bit of pain in his voice.

“Of course. Have you never seen a pony before?”

Twilight spoke with a little of sarcasm in her voice. She couldn’t believe that nopony never had seen, well, a pony before. She boosted the brilliance of light, and both of them saw mutually face to face.

“A human” said Twilight in a low voice

“So… that mean…”

Qart observed more carefully his hostage. A little filly trembled with a dread expression on his face. He was holding her by one of her front hoof. Now Qart saw Twilight confused.

“She is a filly. In your world she would be a kid”

The headache increased further. Qart freed the filly and she ran out from him, meeting Twilight.

“Look” Said the alicorn “Obviously this is a great confusion and you didn’t want to do this. I’m sure the other ponies will understand. But first you must relax and come with me peacefully.”

Qart raised up the arms and waited for a while. The pain now was extremely strong. His head was practically spinning. He never felt so much desire to puke in his life.

“I’ll take that as an acceptance. Please, accompa… ¡hey hey!”

The knight collapsed and fell flat. Twilight gave some orders calling for help, but by Qart the sounds extinguished slowly. The last thing he saw, like in the moment he came to this world, was a complete obscurity.

Author's Note:

Sorry if you find any technical error. I don’t know how to make the cursive for the quotes.