//------------------------------// // Chapter 12: Hunted by the Past (Edited) // Story: Rise of the Crystal Emperor // by Navanastra //------------------------------// Chapter 12: Hunted by the past Proofread by: Cosmic Flash Mateus eyes open, greeted by nothing but the dark and the crystalline colors of his bed chambers ceiling. He groaned, holstering himself upwards on his elbows before fully sitting upright on his bed. Well as upright as his new Equine body allows it. He rubs his forehead. “Even here, the demons of my past still love to haunt me.” He mutters while trying to rub the slight stink in his head away. Whispers and hellish visions are haunting his dreams in an almost weekly basis. Demonic whispers reminiscent of his past choices, his plights and struggles, his conquests and ultimately his death at the hands of Firion and his rag tag gang of wanna be heroes. He would have been rotting in hell for all eternity if his sheer will and fire for revenge didn’t gave him the strength to even overcome hell itself. An act which nearly costed him his soul and what little sanity he had left. Mateus rubbed his eyes as he banished these memories out of his mind. It doesn’t matter at this point anyway. He has to live with is sins now. No matter where he is or what he is now. With nothing left to do and with his desire to rest now shattered. Mateus decides to get out of bed and try to get some more work done until the first morning rays would crick over the eastern mountains. Or maybe just roam around and explore this crystal Palace further. Their where still a lot of sections he hasn’t bothered to visit because…why would he? Feeling mentally drained and…lazy, he decided for option two. His ideas for this city can wait. Not even bothered to put on his robes and armor as he makes his way out of his chambers. Opening the door and stepping out into the silent hallways as he simply picks a random direction and starts to following it. There were almost no guards at this hour. Most of which are stationed at the lower levels of the palace to not cause any disturbance to those living in the upper sections where most of the staff resides. He prefers it this. At least like this he can just roam around freely without any guards pester him. The halls where silent, the only sounds echoing through them where his own hooves and the soft grinding of his ridiculous but still splendid blond tail. He eventually reached a hall dotted with many, many doors on both sides that have still been unexplored by the fallen emperor. He was about to just pick the closest door to him when a distant sound made his ears swivel. Granted he has yet to see his pony ears thanks to his long thick mane but there were still there regardless. The sounds were distant and faint, similar to the whispers he hears in his nightmares, but these were real, they were subtle and not too far. Curiosity peeks him as he decided to follow the sound to see what its source was. He moved along the hall, tracking the sounds as it grew louder and louder with every step he took. At this point it becoming clear what these sounds are and they sounded like…crying? This certainly made one of his brow’s arch. Normally he would just turn around and leave whoever is grieving to drown themselves in their own sorrows. But this specific instance somehow reminded him of the days when he would sneak around the castle at night as a young prince, one memory in particular surfaced, one which made him groan as it involves his own crying mother. He quickly banished these images out of his mind. With a sight he decided to investigate who was letting go of their emotions at such an ungodly hour and pressed forth. Rounding a corner and finding a peculiarly open door, he knew immediately that this is where the sounds come from. Peeking through its cracks, Mateus was somewhat surprise to see none other than Thera of all persons. An individual he previously thought was too proud of a warrior is allowing herself a moment of vulnerability. He does not know what exactly could cause a lady like her so much grief, or what she is doing all the way in here in the middle of the night for that matter? Only one way to find out, especially since he has nothing better to do at the moment anyway. He finds her lying on a carpet, in front of a simple lamp in the middle of the room. A room which looked more like a storage room than anything else, even though it had a fireplace at one end and a dusty old bed resting on one corner. It’s mostly these mountains of crates and barrels stacked at one end of the room that gave him this idea. Mateus made his presence known by softly tapping the door frame, which in turn caused Thera to gasp in surprise. She immediately turned herself around, shocked and surprised to see the new Emperor of all individuals standing right at the door. Without his armor and garments no less. She immediately glares daggers at him. Her embarrassment clearly shown on her cheeks. “What the…WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?” She demands, her voice shaky. “I could ask you the same thing.” He casually asked back which only irritated the mare more. “I asked first.” She retorted back childishly which made the emperor roll his eyes. He mentally decided to play along just to see how long he can stretch this. “Well I am the Emperor and this IS my Palace.” He offered back with a small smirk. Thera on the other end was about to retort before the emperor just raised his hoof to silence her. “You know, it does not matter.” He announced. “If you wish to continue wailing about whatever it is that torments you then go ahead. I was never here.” He added before turning away. “HEY” She shouted which made the Emperor stop. He turned himself back around to look at her, raising an eyebrow at her pissed off expression. “You can’t just walk away like that. How much have you heard anyway?” She demanded while looking ready to pounce. Mateus just kept calm. “Nothing, besides your distant cries when I was walking around these halls.” He answered. This immediately calmed Thera down somewhat. But she was still both embarrassed and extremely annoyed at the fact that someone managed to catch her even at this late in the hour when most ponies would be sleeping. Being a natural night dweller she did take advantages of that. “What the hell were you doing out in this hour anyway, don’t you have to sleep?” She continued on. “Roaming around obviously, and no I don’t, my need for rest has been drastically reduced over the years thanks to my training, both physically and magically, giving me more time to plan and work.” Mateus explained. That was only partial true, while it is correct that his physically and more importantly mental fortitude was greatly enhanced compared to most, his need for rest still is more or less the same, the only difference is that tonight he obviously can’t and wasn’t in the mood too anymore. His night terrors making sure of that. Thera just groaned before turning herself away from the Emperor. “Well, whatever, just…just leave me alone ok…I…I have my reasons.” She asked, the last one having succumbed to more of a whisper. Mateus was ready to accept her offer when something about all of this was just sitting weird with him. Like a feeling of Déjà vu. He began to remember a moment similar to this when he was younger, but his memories are just so clouded before the start of his conquests that he can’t really put a finger, or in this case a hoof on it. He remembers bits and pieces of it but most of them where just fleeting images and emotions. A plight that has honestly been bugging him ever since he had the state of mind to realize that. Free from demonic possession and…reincarnated for some reason in a brand-new world. He should be burning, but yet he isn’t. Yet something else quickly crosses his mind that he hasn’t realized up until now. “Where is this sense of sympathy coming from?” He thought to himself. He knew that this has something to do with this distant feeling he can’t fully wrap his arms around, but it’s still confuses him given what he does remember about himself. He just rubbed his chin in confusion as he watched Thera just standing there. Her gaze turned away with her facial fur still wet. Oh he hated this, he hated this so much. He hated being confused and feeling unsure for once. He needed to know at this point, just to see if what she may tell him would help him crack the haze of that memory and finally give him some needed answers of his childhood. He was probably going to regret this for sure, but then again, he had almost Zero fucks to give at this point. Dying twice and being sent to a completely different world will do that to someone. “Why are you here by yourself anyway. Especially in such a secluded section of the Palace? Shouldn’t you be outside enjoying the night as a nocturnal being?” He openly questioned towards her which did the trick in getting her attention. She just glared at him. “That is none of your business.” She harshly replied which did finally succeed in annoying the fallen emperor. “Oh but it is, especially since I am the new ruler of this place. What you’ve been doing could be flagged as trespassing, especially in such an unused section of the Palace.” He explained to her while glaring back at her. “So let me ask you again. What are you doing here and why? You could have easily found yourself a nice alley or left the barrier all together if you wanted some privacy.” He pushed on. Thera was really becoming irritated but at the same time couldn’t resist the accusing points the emperor was aiming at her. She knows very well that he is not your typical run of the mill unicorn. No, far from it. Very far from it, but she cannot ignore her own pride either, especially when its about saving her face and overall image. She tried her best to quickly come up with some side story or lie he would accept, but really couldn’t think of one. She eventually sighs, as she decided to just give him a small part of the truth that may at least satisfy him. “I came up here for a reason, I had a dream about a… something really…touchy. So, I came up here to just…calm down vent some steam for once.” Thera explained quietly, noticeably tightening her wings around her barrel which the emperor noticed. Mateus simply accepted the loose explanation for what it is. It sounded honest to him and her body language proofs that. He doubts that he is ever going to get the full version out of her, especially now. So, he decided to just drop the rest and be satisfied with what he got. Plus, he has his own issues to deal with as well. “Very well, this can suffice I guess.” He announced before turning around. “Remember to at least close the door when you leave, don’t want anything or anyone else start snooping around besides you.” He added before moving off. Thera on the other hand just seemed unsure as she watched the Emperor leave. “So that’s what he looks like without his stuff on. He looks a bit small now to be honest.” She thought while wiping her face off with a hoof. She groaned after she realized what went through her head just a moment ago, even more so when regarding the fact that she has told him the truth about why she was up here in the first place, even if it was just partially. She is becoming too soft lately in her opinion. Either she has to go out and kill something to make it up, or she should just try and go home. If only it were that easy. To just go home.