Luna POV:
To say that the last three weeks were nothing but… overwhelming, would be an understatement. First came the foalnapping, an unpleasant experience involving a few cultists stealing me from my bed chambers of all places. I must remind Tia about the lack of security around the palace, hasn’t been the same since Shining left us for the Empire. Secondly was the strange creature the cultists had pulled from death’s door. Twilight Sparkle told me it was a “human” latter in the weak. From what I could see at the time, it had massive cuts, scars, a leg and an arm missing, and a beam of metal imbedded into its torso. A sight that has plagued me every night, this I swear. Thirdly was when the cultists healed the human and transformed it into some demonic wolf-Dimond dog thing. I could call it a hybrid, but I’ve never been one for technicalities.
The fourth strange happening was when I myself was changed. Gone was the beloved regal princess everypony knew, now I was a shadow of my former self. A massive muscle toned wolf with razor sharp claws and a hunger for warm flesh… Ugh. During the past two weeks, I’ve had to endure consuming mounds of flesh. Ranging from deer, gull, rabbit (I dare not tell dear Fluttershy), and even Manticore. Which I’ve found to be one of my favorites, though I’ve kept that to myself. Though, to my relief, I’m still able to eat fruits and vegetables. Thank the stars for that! Where was I? Oh, yes… another odd occurrence was when we’d arrived back in Canterlot and… no, wait. My mistake, before that it was when the black wolf attacked and, I do not exaggerate, feasted on the cultists. One of my captures had the gull to approach me with a devious grin, a look of lust and sex driven want in his eye. That is, until the wolf chewed him in half. The first to go was the stallion’s head, chomped into bits before being spat out. The rest of him however was simply tossed at the other’s feet before they too were torn asunder.
Anyway, back to my earlier topic. Once we’d arrived back in Canterlot, I felt an odd touch in the depths of mine mind. I sensed a presence I’ve not felt since… Nightmare Moon. But it was not her. No, this was somepony else entirely, or rather some-one. She came as a mere whisper at first, but soon she grew into a full separate mind. Her thoughts soon grew from random questions into more advanced calculations, though she seemed centered over one primal urge. One I found very annoying over time. The urge to gain a mate. To become ‘bound’, as she would call it, to another being. She…
“Yes Lulu. I have that ‘unreachable ich’ as some would say. Though from what you described, ponies don’t get it as fierce as I do.”Chimed the ever-present voice in my head that was Star. The entity I spoke of earlier.
Please don’t call me “Lulu”, only Tia calls me that.
“Okay, no problem. But shouldn’t we get back to the present, like…. HE’S COME TO RESCUE US AND BRING US HOME?!?! OH MY G.O.S.H.!! HE’S HERE, HE’S REALLY HERE!! LOOK AT THOSE EYES, SO GORGEIOUS...” I cringed from the inner shouting. This was not the time.
Star continued to prattle on as I looked the towering giant of a stal—*cough* wolf-- over. His midnight black coat complimented my own, though without the blue patterns. Which I’ve come to like since first seeing him. The strange markings along his forearm, shoulder, neck, and face were a dark tan color, almost looking like they were painted into the fur. His cloths were torn and filthy with the splatters and metallic stench of blood. Though the pants have seen better days, the shirt had taken the worst hits. The collar was ripped and soaked with sweat. The right shoulder was torn completely off, exposing his markings further, as well as his… rather firm muscles…
No comment.
His claws were still extended, as well as soaked in green and red blood. My eyes slowly trailed up his body until I reached his eyes. Once mine found their target, I froze. He was staring at me. Those nearly black eyes gazing at me with similar interest, analyzing me as much as I was him. The gold rings in them fascinated me. Much like my own, they seemed to pulse with a great fire within, an eternal flame. It was at this moment that I noticed Star had gone quiet. Not good. She’d usually be very talkative, almost nonstop when it came to conversation.
I finally bridged my way back to reality when the scream of an enraged mare hit my ears. Time slowed as I turned to see a sickly black sword come into view, a green mist showering the hilt and broad blade. Chrysalis held the sword as she leaped from her perch of rubble and pounced at me. Her war cry carried through the air like a lion’s roar, hungry for my blood. I quickly raised a shield between me and my attacker, though it did no good. The blade’s tip was already in the barrier before it finished, as it sliced through the energy field. I closed my eyes and raised my arms to halt the sword’s process. I knew it wouldn’t do anything, but I at least tried. Screams and gasps erupted from behind me, all from the gathered ponies and changelings. Though there was one that didn’t emanate fear or shock. A sharp growl came from behind me, echoing in my ears as if it was millimeters from me. A soft but strong rumbling followed, sending chills down my spine. I felt the warmth of breath on my neck. But I felt no pain, nothing. I was fine. A little shaken, but fine. I slowly opened my eyes to see the sword’s tip, but that wasn’t what shocked me. Threatening to make me hyperventilate. It was what the blade was stuck in that made me gasp; a hand. A large fur covered hand, night black fur, stained with green and crimson. Even more red now.
The arm which the hand belonged to trembled and tensed as it pushed against the sword, the blade piercing more flesh between bone. The sickening sound of flesh splitting vibrated throughout the area. Another grunt filled my ears, followed by a hard breath.
“Fear is a liar.” A deep voice whispered in my ear, almost grunting. Not an incredibly deep voice, but a respectfully soft one with a slight gruffness to it. “The Lord watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.”
What? What was he talking about? The Lord? He watches over the alien and fatherless? Frustrates the wicked? What was he…
“Move to my right and under my arm. I’d rather do this without you blocking my path.” He whispered, the sound of his voice snapping me from my musings. I gave him a simple nod and waited for the signal.
“Go.” With that, I quickly dodged under his quivering arm and was embraced by Tia as she kept me close. I watched as the wolf used his other hand and grabbed Chrysalis’ face, his sharp claws breaching her chitin, squeezing. Muffled yelps and screams were heard from the former queen, her grasp on the sword loosening. To pry him off, the former queen dragged her sharp nails over his face. Deep crevices were made, blood poured from the five long wounds, a snarl was heard from the afflicted wolf. He only squeezed harder.
She finally let go and the wolf dropped her, letting her breath the free air. The ex-queen slumped to the floor, gasping for breath as the crimson queen approaches. The towering queen snarled down at the pathetic whimpering changeling, her eyes brimming with furry. The queen huffed before withdrawing two curved swords from her side, then threw one down near Chrysalis’ heaped body.
“Fight and die with what little honor you have.” Was all she said before taking a fighting stance. Both hands rapped around the hilt.
All eyes watched Chrysalis as she half whimpered and snarled, her hands grasping the sword’s long hilt. She then stood and faced her enemy, eyes narrowing with contempt. The two slowly positioned themselves, studying one another, anticipating, and gambling. I took this moment and leaned closer to Tia.
“I’ve never seen this form of fighting. What is it sister?” I asked her, my thoughts racing.
“I haven’t the slightest. I’ve never seen this either.” Her eyes scanned the two, narrowing in interest, not bothering to straighten a loose strap on her dress.
“I’ve seen it before.” Came the wolf’s voice, ending with a grunt. I looked over to where he sat, being tended to by the Element of Kindness, Fluttershy. She was rapping his bleeding hand, his claws now sheathed as she did her work. His face was already rapped in bandages, a slight amount of ointment slipped from beneath. The new wound started at his left temple and ended at his right cheek, the revolting smell of blood mixing with his own scent of pine.
“Where, prey tell?” I asked. “And while we’re at it, what is your name?”
“I was once called Micah Knight, now I’m Obsidian Fang. Or Fang for short.” He informed, his teeth glistening in the light as he spoke with a shrug. “As for the fighting style; it’s based on the old samurai, a two handled sword with a curved blade. From what I remember, the samurai were their people’s protectors, warriors of honor and duty. I can’t remember what the fighting style was actually called, but I can at least remember it was the samurai’s.”
I hummed in thought, but before I could think on the matter further, the sound of hooves clopping, and metal screeching together rang in my ears. I whipped around to find the queens finally attacking one another.
“Who is the red queen, Fang?” Tia asked as she rubbed her chin.
“Carapace.” Tia hummed in acknowledgement.
Carapace spun on her heals, her blade extended out and rushing toward Chrysalis’ neck. The other queen leapt back and spun, blocking Carapace’s swipe. She then parried and knelt, going for the waist. Carapace seemed to see it coming and moved to her left, dodging the attack. She in turn gracefully spun her sword, brought it up, and made to cut Chrysalis down the middle. The green changeling rolled to her right and kicked her enemy’s leg, causing Carapace to kneel in pain as a crack was heard. With both changelings kneeling, Chrysalis swung her sword at Carapace’s head. To which the red changeling moved under, rolled, and elbowed her foe in the gut.
Once Carapace was behind her enemy, she spun and sliced diagonally across her back, cutting Chrysalis’ wings in half. The former queen gasped in pain, a scream following. Carapace took this time to stand over her hated adversary, sword dangling over the hag’s neck. Chrysalis whimpered as warm blood poured down her back, I also heard her spout a few horrid curses at the other queen. In a final act of furry, Chrysalis grasped her sword and swiped at Carapace’s middle, attempting to cleave her in half. Carapace then did something I found amazing. She dodged backward, ignited her horn, teleported beside her enemy, knelt as she slid past, and cleaved Chrysalis’ head off in one swing. The green queen sat frozen, eyes wide in pale realization, and staring at Carapace. The victorious queen then brought her sword up, twirled it around backwards, and sheathed it. The moment her guard met sheath, Chrysalis’ head disconnected from her body, rolling of behind her into a pile of rubble.
Nopony dared move. Not even breath. We all stood shock still. All aside from Fang, who recovered quickly and tapped me on the elbow. I gasped as his finger touched me, a small amount of warmth in that single digit. My feet spun on their own as I turned to face him, Star squealed in joy as the contact was made. I quickly pushed her into the depths of my mind to try and drown her voice out. His electric blue eyes shimmering behind those golden rings, echoing with concern.
“We should probably get going. Don’t want to leave your city in enemies’ hands for too long.” He then stole a glance at Tia before smirking. “They might find Celestia’s stash of cake and burn it.”
That brought Tia Back to the present as she fixed him with a soft glare, trying to hide a small blush. “Need I remind you who’s care you’re in?”
His smile fell and turned serious, “Yes ma’am… sorry.”
She then smiled and let out a giggle. “It’s alright, just don’t joke about my cake and we’re good.”
“Yes ma’am.” He nodded with a returning smile.
He then stood, his impressive frame towering over me by a foot or two. Several pops from his back sounded, making me inwardly cringe. How could he survive without that being looked at? His spine must ach constantly. Come to think of it, how come he isn’t hindered by all those wounds? They must cause extreme discomfort.
Once again, I was interrupted by another voice. This one carrying authority and grace in its words. I also detected a hint of stress. The words of a worried mother. “Fang, please. Come lift this rock, my daughter’s pinned.”
Fang nodded and jogged over, his steps sending tremmers through the stone floor. He nodded with a grunt and faced the boulder, flexing his claws as they extended. I looked down at my own fingers. Could I do that? And if so, what would I do with them? Use them instead of scissors or knives? Sadly though, now wasn’t the time to experiment.
The black wolf then bent down and gripped the rock with his hands, noticeable cracks were heard as the claws dug in. His chest and biceps flexed and bulged with the effort as he lifted the rock. With each passing moment beads of sweat flowed from his neck and back, soaking what was left of his shirt. I was surprised Rarity hadn’t chewed him out for the monstrosity of a top. Time went on, the seconds rolled by. And with them came his scent. It was stronger, more potent. The smell of pine filled my nose among all others, tickling my senses. Star sighed in near bliss as the sensation filled our mind. Once the boulder reached his chest, he switched grips and began pushing up with a growl, as he’d done with young Flurry Heart.
When I first saw him, I was honestly overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with fear of the unknown and my grandniece’s life. I didn’t know what to expect from the behemoth of a wolf as he lifted the stone and was met with the young Alicorn. So, when he spoke in a soft voice and lead her to her parents, all fear had fled and was replaced by relief and joy. And once he complimented of the filly’s cuteness, all doubts were abandoned as he smiled fondly at her. I retreated from the memory as he stopped with his arms fully stretched, grumbling at how heavy the boulder was.
“If you plan to grab her, do it now. My arms are burning, and I’d rather not crush us both into pancakes.” His arms began trembling, nearing collapse.
“Now.” Carapace called as she and two drones rushed to clear the small rocks and lift the ruble that pinned the changeling. Her left leg was held beneath three large rocks, a severed drone horn lodged between her chitin plates.
Once the young queen was freed, Carapace spoke as she cradled her child. “Okay, you can drop it now, Fang.”
With that said, Obsidian yelled as his muscles relaxed and gave out. Free from the stiff position, he let the boulder drop and huffed. When the rock shattered before him, his simply turned and sat on his former weight, breathing heavily. He then looked to his bandages and saw that several of them were pulled and/or ripped. Fluttershy arose from her place next to her friends, giving him a soft frown as she bandaged him up once more. Probably because she had just finished healing him, now she had to do it all over again.
I then noticed that Tia was approaching Carapace, who still sat with her arms rapped around her filly. Her drones tending to the young queen. I snuck a peak over toward Fang as he was surrounded by the Elements, being bombarded with questions. I felt sorry for him. Knowing full well of Twilight’s habit of constant questioning, knowing what it could do to a mare, and the fact that her list of questions reached the floor and rolled beyond… he was in for a wild evening. That and Pinkie Pie’s nonstop rambling. I cringed inwardly at the thought.
Obsidian Fang’s POV:
“Who are you?”
“What’s it like on your world?”
“Are there cute furry animals there?”
“Do you have a spaceship?”
“Are you hiding anything? Talk!!”
“Do you like cake or cupcakes? Or pie? Oh, oh… maybe even really big awesome cake stuffed with cupcakes and fudge?! *GASP* MAYBE EVEN CUPCAKE FUDGE?!?”
These and more questions assaulted my ears as I steadily regained my strength. Lifting that rock wasn’t easy. Heck, it was excruciatingly painful on my arms. They’re still burning. I answered the girls as best I could. That is, before other questions rammed into me and I was forced to listen to constant chattering again. I think my ears were nearing the brink of bleeding. As if I hadn’t last enough blood today. Speaking of that, I was growing very tired as time dragged on, my eyes could barely keep themselves open.
That is, until a certain fanciest gasped and glared at me through hate filled eyes. Seriously, those eyes burned with so much anger that they threatened to pierce my skull.
“YOU!!” Yelled a very ticked Rarity, jabbing a finger in my aching chest. “HOW COULD YOU BE SO CARELESS WITH FATION LIKE THIS?!?! THIS WAS MADE FROM THREE OF THE MOST EXPENCIVE FABRICS ON THE MARKET!! I SHOULD MAKE YOU SLAVE AWAY UNTIL YOU LEARN THE—”
“Uh, Rarity? Ah think yer’ scarrin’ ‘im.” Interjected Applejack, my emotional savior.
I was currently pressed into a rock face, wide eyed, and on the brink of wetting myself. Sad but true. Rarity had her face pressed against mine, her furious eyes were the only thing I dared to look at.
“O- oh…” She stepped back and blushed, coughing into a hand before straightening herself. “I- I’m sorry my dear. How very unprofessional of me. My deepest apologies good sir.”
I nodded before sitting up. I’d never had a girlfriend before, but even so, I still knew to never tick off a female. My sister and Mom included in the bunch. This said to all men, NEVER ANGER A WOMAN…or mare in this case.
“You’re forgiven.” I replied, offering her another nod.
It was after this moment that decided to take in their appearances. Twilight had her usual mane, fur color, eyes, and cutie mark, though she wore a white T-shirt, blue jeans, and a red button-down shirt. Dash wore a crimson beany hat, green tank top, black sports shorts, and a sports jacket tied around her waist. Rarity had a simple blue top with alabaster orchids sown into it, a pair of rolled up jeans, and a rose pinned in her mane. Applejack wore a checkered button-down shirt tucked into her ragged pants, a belt around her waist. Her signature hat on her braided mane. Fluttershy sported a pink hoodie, olive green sweats, and a blue shirt. Her heir done up in a ponytail, pardon the pun.
My observations were cut by a fuming white stallion as he marched his way up to me, glaring down at me. Shining wore an untucked blue V-neck shirt, a pair of worn brown jeans, and a brown jacket. The stallion kept his gaze on me until Celestia approached, to which he spun around to meet her. Though I got the feeling he wanted a more privet talk, I kept an eye on him as the Princess spoke.
“Princess,” He saluted before she could utter a word with practiced precision.
“Captain.” She greeted only out of fairness, probably seeking words with me. She then turned to me, a still slumped mess on the ground. “Hello, I am Princess Celestia, Co-ruler of Equestria. It’s good to finally meet you Obsidian Fang. I’m sorry we couldn’t meet under more… upstanding circumstances.”
I nodded with a smirk before replying. “Hello to you too.” I shook my head, trying to clear away some tiredness. “Could we perhaps get back to Canterlot, I’d also rather catch some sleep on the way. Need all the strength I can get.”
The Princess nodded with a smile, a mask of calm and love that only a mother could hold. “Yes. That would be wise considering your w-wounds.” She shuddered on the last word, taking her first look at my battle scars. She looked somewhat disgusted, though I imagine she hadn’t seen such brutality in a long while.
Celestia then turned toward Carapace once again, her gaze softened. “Might we have a ride back to the capital? The trip is very far, and I…”
The Queen stopped her with a hand, a small smirk playing on her lips. “Say no more. You need only ask. And if you would like, Fang, my drones are quite adept in medical treatments. Should you require aid.”
I slowly stood, hobbling slightly on my weakened legs. “Thanks, it would help with the healing.” I grunted, feeling my left knee pop. “I’d like that as soon as possible… not trying to rush you thought.”
Carapace took a knee, allowing everyone to see. “You helped me reclaim my daughter, I am in your debt.”
