Silence reigned over the village as the sun drifted towards the horizon. Where once was a bustling community, now only ruins remained. A lone figure plodded through the streets as he examined the crumbling buildings, still warm from the fires used to purge the town of the corruption that had once ran rampant. The cloaked figure placed a hoof against the door frame of what was once the town hall and sighed at the devastation.
Lifting his head a silver glow emerged from his cowl, revealing the presence of a horn, as he cast a spell over the area. A globe of pure silver spread from his location, and as it pass ghostly images began to form. Soon the entire town was once again alive, the spectral forms of ponies moving through the streets as if it was a normal day. That was not to be as the transparent forms began to rear back as if in a panic before a red wave passed over them, distorting their forms as the collapsed to the ground unmoving. As the bodies began to shrivel up the cloaked figure shook his head and canceled his spell.
He moved in the direction the the red wave had come from in search of the source of the catastrophe he had just witnessed. As he paced along, the damage got worse and worse as the scars of flame were joined by clumps of a black, tar-like substance which had managed to escape the flames. The stallion wrinkled his nose as he passed the clumps, the stench enough to drive even the most iron-stomached of ponies sick.
Coming upon what he assumed was a tavern, judging by the partially burned sign showing a mug of some variety, he found that the entire building had been leveled and set to the torch. In the center, around where the main hall used to stand, he found a seething mass of the black substance that was slowly succumbing to the flames. Lifting a hoof, the stallion presses it against the side of the mound, causing it to melt away leaving a pale object behind.
“As I feared. What I had thought lost to time still has a hold on this world.” The stallion lifted the object in his hoof, revealing it to be a unicorn skull engraved with runes over every visible surface. Bouncing it in his hoof he noticed an odd weight to it and dropped it to the ground before smashing it open with his hoof. Inside was a still beating, black heart which was the source of the massacre that had happened here.
“It is sad that something has brought the Blight back into the world again. To pervert that which they have no understanding of. Death is not a toy to be meddled with like some foal in a candy shop. It is to be respected for what it is, and those with mastery over its ways should know what it truly means to know death.” The stallion shook his head sadly as he lit his horn and sent a cool wave of magic into the heart, slowly evaporating it as it was removed from existence. Heading outside the stallion turned his head left and right as he surveyed the damage caused and tried to determine the secondary cause of the devastation. Lowering his head he sniffed at a hoofprint on the ground and frowned.
“Hmm, standard issue, royal guard greaves. Judging by the depth and imperfections of the imprint, most likely and earth pony or a unicorn burdened with some weight. It appears to be leading... that way.” Turning off towards an alley the stallion follows the tracks until he detects a malodorous stench in the air. Following it it came to the source and looked on it sadly.
“So it begins again.” Bodies. Bodies of ponies, blackened by the flames that had consumed them were piled in a mass grave just outside of the town. Young, old. It mattered not, all were treated the same as those that came to clear the town did what they could to erase the blighted threat. Even after the purifying flames had consumed them, there were still traces of the blight that had twisted their bodies into horrible shapes as they painfully died.
“So many lost, yet how many survived? How many more shall fall to the twisted creature that is responsible for this travesty? Must I return to the world once more?” Looking over the grave he eventually sighed as he turned away and started to walk towards the horizon, knowing what would happen before the sun fully set. Yet something kept him from leaving just yet. A feeling that spoke to him from his very soul in a way that he had not felt in a long, long time. Reaching down within himself, he felt a faint pull in the direction of the village. It took him a moment, but he soon came to realize just what it was that he felt, the faint pulse of life.
Curious as to what could still be alive in the blighted place, he broke out into a gallop as he had little time to spare. He sped through the town, ignoring the wreckage as he homed in on the source of the feeling inside of him. He soon came to a small cluster of buildings, but as he was about to enter he heard a quiet cry from behind a stack of crates. Moving over to them he used his magic to lift them out of the way and found a hidden alley hidden behind them. Looking closely at the ground he found many hoofprints of the royal guard going by it, but none going inside.
Moving forward, he found nestled between the buildings a small garden which had a large oak tree at its center which had somehow managed to survive the flames. Peering up at it, he found that it had somehow managed to escape the devastation caused by the fires and only had minimal damage from the blight that had struck the town. As he peered up, he heard the cry yet again from the far side of the tree. Circling around he came upon a small hollow at the base of the tree and inside was what he had been seeking.
“Oh you poor thing.” Nestled within the hollow was a young unicorn filly of around eight or nine years if he had to guess. It was hard to tell though as, unlike the tree, she had been hit by the full brunt of the blight and it was a miracle that she was still alive. Her entire body had been twisted by the blight leaving her skin wrapped around her bones as if she had a severe case of starvation. It also had the appearance of the black tar he had found earlier which left her with a rather lumpy appearance. It was so bad that he could see through her legs as the blight caused her skin to wrap around the individual bones in her legs making it easy to mistake her for a skeleton. Not only that but her mane and tail had rotted away leaving her naked to the elements, as well as making it impossible to tell her natural colors or cutie mark if she had one.
The filly continued to make the occasional sound of distress as he carefully lifted her out of the hollow, yet she failed to react in any other way showing her catatonic state. Carefully placing her on his back he looked to the sky to see it slowly brightening, showing that he had to hurry.
“Don't worry, I will do everything that I can to help you. I do not know how you are still alive, but for you to do so long enough for me to find you?” The stallion shook his head as the cloak around him began to flutter. Great wings of silver slowly spread from beneath them before giving a powerful flap, sending the two into the sky. Not moments later, a stream of light burned outwards from the sun, striking the town and burning everything away leaving the two being the only witnesses to its final fate. The stallion looked back at his young passenger before turning towards the rising moon and the face of the mare it held.
“Well little sis. It seems that the foul ones rise once again. I just hope that this time things go better than before.” With a surge of power, the stallion flew off towards the heart of Equestria with the young survivor safe atop his form.