-???, Skelly-
I walked through the woods towards home and the smell of something hit my nostrils… the last thing I could ever remember smelling really. In the distance I saw pyres of smoke twisting, curling and rising into the sky slowly in the distance.
Something was terribly wrong and it didn’t take me much to guess that my home was set aflame. I had to hurry up and find out who was attacking our home. Could it have been the winged ponies coming for my mother, could it be another tribe coming after us for some minor slight?
These memories weren’t going to end well, I just knew it. I wouldn’t remember this day in such a poor light if something horrible hadn’t happened.
I looked about and then started making my way for the village with haste while carrying a heavy load of wood on my back. My worn, but still viable, tool was at my side. The trees rushed by, the light of day was falling and when I arrived I saw what our people were fighting against.
They were horrors of rotted flesh, monsters that unfortunately had new life pushed into them… they were Draugr.
The town had been lit on fire to help fight them off. Even at the detriment to our homes, the fires were taking down a good number of the offending horde of undead monstrosities that the many earth ponies were currently fighting.
Dropping the wood on my back, I grabbed up a single piece and lit it on fire. I started running straight for home. The home I was born in, where I grew up, where I was raised and spent my youth with my loving parents at the edge of the village in the forest.
I was accosted by several Draugr on my way there, but the fire I tagged them with eventually burnt them away to nothingness with a single hit. Still, it took them a minute or two to succumb to the flames and until, then they were still dangerous and had to be evaded.
The village had its defenders, all armed with swords, axes and spears. Even bows were firing and they were slowly tearing down the small army that invaded our home and started dragging the bodies of freshly slain ponies away for who knows what purpose.
The memories of thinking that maybe my parents hadn’t been attacked yet grew firm in my mind.
Only when I arrived, I saw a several Draugr unmoving on the ground and already slain. Beyond that the bodies of my parents were being dragged away by a lone Draugr.
Seeing red and charging it, I took my tool in hoof and leapt to plant it into its inattentive spine and felled the Draugr with that a single blow. Said blow sent bits of metal and wood flying everywhere as my tool shattered against its neck in the effort.
Afterwards I took up a vigilance against any other Draugr that may come by, but none did.
I had already set fire to the Draugr that invaded my home, especially the one that tried to take my parent’s cold bodies.
Eventually the fires stopped in the distance and then they started up again for an entirely different reason. It was then that I started to mourn as those fires weren’t for defense, but for the dead.
I placed both my parents’ bodies together on a prepared funeral pyre, I put some of their stuff with them and watched as it all burned away. The wood I had gathered that could have been used to boil food for a hearty stew tonight, was instead used to send my parents off.
I had thought about throwing my father’s axe into the fire with my parents, but I kept it and held it close.
There I sat, at their funeral pyre for hours until it was nothing except ashes, well beyond the point that I could not cry and grieve anymore.
Taking up the silver axe with the magic runes implemented into it, I started to track down where those monsters came from.
I absolutely had an axe to grind with whatever was behind this, it was all I had left to do.
-Ponyville, Skelly-
Grind it I did, I made sure that another tragedy like that one could not be fully repeated upon anyone else. Though I suppose there might be one memory left… how I became what I am now. I had forgotten the most traumatizing moment that led me to being skeleton, but what remained was a pure hatred for Draugr and the unicorn behind them.
I shook my head and continued to follow Fortitude and Flamberge to this party Pinkie Pie is throwing in my honor for just visiting this large village. I didn’t feel like I was worthy of the effort that was going into it, I would just make the best of my situation as it is and go along with it.
I no longer had that writhing and squirming fuel of endless anger to keep me going, but I was still here.
“You okay, you zoned out again Skelly!” I was still slightly upset at Flamberge, but I eventually conceded that, yes, I was okay with a gentle nod.
Well at least I was okay physically, didn’t know about emotionally. I was once mortal and was never meant to live like this.
We were starting on route to the party, having spent some time relaxing in the park we’re leaving behind, Cheerilee had already gone ahead to talk to Pinkie about some things concerning me.
It didn’t take long before we were sidetracked slightly.
“Whoa, would you look at that, that’s amazing!” We were halted by a pair of stallions that approached us, they were looking at me with curiosity more than wariness or fear. “Excuse me, miss!”
There weren’t many ponies out this late in the evening, much less interested in a skeleton pony like me. In fact any pony that saw me was a little wary, even if my shape was familiar to them. I’d be wary of me too, if I was someone else that saw that I had a real weapon strapped across my back.
“Okay, what do you want and why are you looking at Skelly like that?” The stallion was about to get cross with Fortitude, but he cut the pony off before an argument could start. “She is mute and cannot answer you.”
“Well I’m Mister Fairytale Climax and this is my associate Mister Logic Sheet, we’re here in Ponyville looking around for monster related incidents to get some ideas from. I must say your friend there has a really awesome costume.” Yes, let’s go with that Fairytale. “I was just wondering if we could use that skeletal visage, with a few alterations of course so that it’s not exactly the same as your friend here, for Ogre’s and Oubliettes.”
“You guys look like you appreciate live action role playing and we could use some of that to help us with some new ideas for villains to fight.” The one introduced as Logic Sheet stated as he nodded along. “We’re kind of having gamers block and need to come up with some new ideas for more sets.”
“Wait, you’re that Mr. Fairy Climax!” What was Ogre’s and Oubliettes and why was Flamberge so excited about it all of the sudden?
“Yes and we’ll definitely compensate her for the partial use of her image.” Fairytale pointed at me when he said this. “Just name your price, we have quite a budget to work with here since Ogre’s and Oubliettes is a rather popular game I’ll have you know!”
“We know, we’ve played it with our friends!” Judging by Fortitude’s excitement it seem that it was a game of some great popularity.
“Ah we have some fans, especially one with a good eye for Nightmare Night costumes!” Nightmare what, Fairy? I wasn’t exactly following this and my confusion must have shown through. “Don’t worry we’ll try to push for the popularity of the design we make from you’re appearance, how would you like your character to work for the Squizard miss…? Wait… what’s her name?”
“She is being Skeletal Noria, the superbly spirited. I am Fortitude, the fantastically fragrant. That is my brother Flamberge the fiercely flammable, or loudly obnoxious to some.” The two stallions looked at each other, then they turned back to us.
“Yep, definitely fans of ours it seems. So what will it take for you to help us make history in the world of gaming together?” Fairy looked quite hopeful.
“Well…” Fortitude was going to do the talking, but I would have to interject silently when I heard something I didn’t like.
-Thirty minutes later-
I signed the contract we wrote up, Fortitude and Flamberge got some autographs and would be mailing some extra ones home.
If it helped that Airship Mauled place that Flamberge and Fortitude think is so important, then I would gladly let my character be a villain working for a squid wizard.
The absurdities of this day and age had to be explained to me by Flamberge, but I understood it well enough as a make believe game that can be played with friends and he would introduce me to it at a later date.
“So we’re going to call this bone warrior we’re making Skellinore. She’ll be a skeleton pony in places with ore, because she’ll be working with a bony crew of skeletons in some mines or various other locations… we could make her a recurring warrior the Squizard sends out on quests for nefarious purposes!” Tuning out Fairy’s excitement as he turned to Logic Sheet, I waited for him and my friends to be finished with hashing out some details.
“This might actually create our biggest hit yet, thank you three for helping us with our creative block.” Mr. Sheet was a nice stallion, as was Mr. Climax. “We’ll get to working on our next Ogre’s and Oubliettes set this instant! Oh and we’ll send some people, along with a few free copies to Airship Mauled when we’re done.”
With that they were off and we continued on our way towards this Sugar Cube Corner place.
“Do you think we did the right thing selling our images to them?!” Flamberge questioned lightly.
“I am thinking things will work out.” Fortitude sound quite sure of it and I believed him. “Let us now get to Pinkie’s party!”
We arrived at the place. It looked colorful at least, wished I knew what it smelled like and we saw Cheerilee waiting outside for us. I’m never going to remember the smell of fresh baked bread again.
“Hello boys, and Skelly, Pinkie’s ready and wants you to go right on in!” She was smiling, why was she smiling like that? “Oh and don’t go for your axe Skelly, nobody is going to hurt you here in Ponyville and honestly…. no one here is a fighter unless my sister is visiting.”
What did that mean? I nodded and thought about how Cheerilee’s sister must have been some warrior to match Cheerilee’s great knowledge.
We opened the doors and stepped into a darkened room that suddenly lit up and… there were lots of ponies here. Maybe half the village was here, all this for me?
“Surprise!” The many ponies shouted out happily and I didn’t reach for my axe, but then they all froze and stared at me.
They all screamed in a panic and scattered when they saw me and here I stood with a flat look on my strange magical eyes.
Pinkie just started giggling as she fell to the floor.
“Oh my goodness, I got you all so good! I hope everyone here was as surprised as our guest of honor is.” Pinkie apparently hadn’t warn any of her friends about my appearance. “Uh… Fluttershy? Are you okay? She’s not that scary looking is she… oh great, I think we just traumatized one of my best friends for life to not like Nightmare Night!”
I really didn’t know what Nightmare Night was, but it kept getting mentioned within my general presence. Pinkie dragged the pony named Fluttershy over to a bench and gently laid her on it before coming back to me.
“You don’t know what Nightmare… er… hey Skelly, let me talk to you off to the side. You know like good friends wanting some privacy!” Blinking, I followed Pinkie’s stare to a bunch of ponies that started to look a little sheepish. I was led over to a table covered small things that looked vaguely like food. The brothers followed us smiling, they took up one of the things and then started to eat them. “Don’t worry everyone, she just really likes wearing realistic Nightmare Night costumes!”
“So… I think that went quite well.” I just gave Fortitude a look. “It is true! See for yourself, all ponies are coming away from their fear quite quickly and are laughing about it!”
Quite a few ponies started to laugh about how silly it had been that they were surprised by me, I didn’t see what was so silly though. I actually was a living skeleton wearing a nifty blue scarf.
“Yep, but you’re not a ghost I can laugh at, Granny Pie never told me how to handle this kind of situation though. What happens when your friend is a creepy and ghostly thing… or is somewhat like one anyway?” There was some confusion on Pinkie’s face as she put her left hoof to her chin and looked to be thinking of something really odd. “Eh, I’ll just be you’re good friend Pinkie and we’ll leave it at that!”
Well okay then.
“Oh my goodness, I almost didn’t recognize you… why the work on that costume is positively exquisite!” That’s when Rarity approached us and then her nose crinkled up a bit. “What is that familiar, yet completely repugnant smell? I thought it was Sweetie Belle trying to care for a skunk as a pet again, but now I know otherwise!”
“That would be me. For I am Fortitude, the fantastically fragrant!” Fortitude’s smell made Rarity’s face turned a bit green. It was a few seconds later that her face returned to normal. “Sorry I am needing to control my smell better.”
“Yeah, I’m still not sure how you learned to control it recently, but I’m not going to ask too many questions if you can keep it from my nostrils brother!” It seemed like Flamberge didn’t care that his brother smelled horrible.
My nose doesn’t work, so I'm good.
“Huh, no wonder you haven’t gone for a freshly baked cupcake yet… also no, I can’t read minds.” If she can’t read minds, then how did Pinkie know what I was thinking well enough to answer it? “Oh, I just have my ways… it’s not like I can read the text or anything.”
What?
“Here have a cupcake!” Pinkie grabbed one of the things and it had a smiling skull on it resembling my appearance.
I took the cupcake into my bony right hoof and looked at it, It was not like I could be poisoned. Hoped I didn’t splatter this cupcake everywhere eating it.
I opened my jawbone and took a single bite.
I began chewing... this thing was like Elysium itself!
“That’s a pretty strange special effect for a costume.” Rarity commented idly as the bits of cupcake stayed within the bounds of where my cheeks were supposed to be.