//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: A fate worse than death // Story: Unearthed: Curse Of The Undying // by Talion The DARKandBRIGHT //------------------------------// Details *Thoughts* ~Mental speaking~ "Normal speaking" ~"Mental and normal speaking"~ Songs ... (Radio static)... "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." "And Talion, I'm glad that you're willing to fight, but I want you to remember something."Aden said as he slipped the picture back into my shirt pocket. "Remember, always, why you fight... Remember our fathers words and oaths you took. To fight for peace... Always." "I will, Aden. Always." I told him. I replayed the memory in my head again as I sat in front of a camp fire. I had tried so hard to forget everything about my past. Burying it underneath my dutie to protect people. For so long, I ran from the tragedy of my past life, only to face it all again as this strange and magical world digs it all back up. So here I sat, as the memories of a forgotten soldier comes back to haunt me. We had moved the camp away from the hydra, a few miles up the road, as its corpse would most likely attract other predators. I hadn't slept since last night's battle with the hydra. I don't even think Stone or Lura could either. So I just kept watch till the first rays of sunlight peaked over the horizon. Shortly after Iron Hoof spoke last night, he fell unconscious. His body and mind were not used to the amount of stress I had put him through so he collapsed. But despite Stone and Lura's concerns, I had assured them that Iron Hoof was okay, physically. But what I didn't tell them was that mentally he was changed forever. The great sword I had wielded during my time here, is actually a part of me. It was merely an extension of my mind and will made into physical form. So when Iron Hoof made contact with the blade, his mind and mine, merged for a single second. But within that second, I had unintentionally showed him one of my memories of the second world war. The bombing of Nagasaki. It was the first memory to have surfaced when I had arrived in this world and thankfully, was the only memory Iron Hoof had witnessed in my mind. But the damage had already been done. Iron Hoof would never be the same. Everything was happening the same way as it always did in the past. I tried to protect the innocent. I tried to save them, but in the end I had just caused everyone to suffer more. *Just like I had done to Aden.* I thought to myself. A single tear fell from my eye as I looked up towards the rising sun. I had taken a little bit of Iron Hoof's soul with me when our minds connected. I now had the memories of his life as if I had been there with him every day as he grew up. It was a strange feeling, to live through the life of another species, but they were very similar to humans. If a little more pleasant. Ponies like Iron Hoof, never grew up in a society where fathers abandoned their families. Where people hated each other simply because of who they were and differences of opinions. Where the rich stole from the poor and the innocent suffered. No. They lived in a society where happiness is shared with everyone. Where people can live in peace without fear of war and death. Where everyone is treated like friends and family, in a world where the sky was always blue and the hills were green. I learned from Iron Hoof just what kind of world ponykind lived in. It was nothing like mine. With these revelations, I finally had the answers to my questions. There is no place for me in Equestria. I do not belong here. "Talion! We think Iron Hoof is waking up!" I heard Stone call out from the tent. Hearing this, I rushed into the tent and saw Iron Hoof was indeed just waking up. "What happened? Where am I?" Iron Hoof asked in a tired voice. "It's okay Iron. Your safe now." Lura told him. Iron Hoof rubbed his eyes before looking around, but as soon as they landed on mine he started panicking. "Talion, the bomb! I didn't know! I didn't want to look, but the sky, it-! I saw fire! I-I saw-" I stopped his rambling by grabbing him by the shoulders. "Iron Hoof, stop... Breath in. Count to four. Breath out. Count to four. Repeat. Do it with me." He stopped struggling and slowed his breathing down as we both did the stress relief exercise. After a few more times, he stopped shaking and his breathing had calmed down. "Now, Iron Hoof, tell me, what did you see?" I asked him. "I-I saw y-you." He answered in a shaky voice. "Your legs w-were hurt and you were b-bleeding all over... Y-You were surrounded b-by death! Someone called you as you crawled towards the cliff and t-then the flying machines took off over the ocean." He paused as he started tearing up again. "T-The big one went over you a-and then... And then..." His voice trailed off as he tried to continue. "I saw fire... Fire that burned the whole sky... It was coming towards you, but you just laid still and smiled... and then everything went white." He looked up at me with teary eyes. "I'm so sorry, Talion. I'm so sorry for looking." He started crying. When he finished, I pulled him into a hug to comfort him. "No Iron. I'm the one who did this to you... It's my fault, not yours. I'm so sorry." Stone and Lura, joined in to comfort their son as well. We held Iron Hoof until he stopped crying. Iron Hoof then looked back up to me. "What happened to me, Talion." He asked me. I breathed in and let out a long sigh. This was the hard part. "My sword was not made from this world, Iron. I created it with my power, as an extension of my mind and will, made into physical form. You held a part of me in your hands when you lifted the sword, Iron Hoof, but I didn't sever my mental link from it, so it used your mind as a bridge to return to me." I paused for a moment before continuing. "In return for wielding a part of me Iron Hoof, you gave up a part of yourself and for a split second, your thoughts became mine, as mine became yours." I was silent as I waited for their reactions. Stone was the first to speak. "Y-You mean, you have Iron Hoof's memories and he has yours?" He asked me, a bit in shock. I shook my head. "Yes and no. Because, it was my power, my will and not Iron's, he only received a glimpse of a memory I had several days ago. I, on the other hand, received all of Iron Hoof's memories as my sword used him as a link to reconnect with me." They all we're silent for a moment before Lura spoke. "Will Iron Hoof be alright?" I nodded. "Yes, he will. My power left no permanent affects on him when I severed the link between us, other than the color of his eyes and those strange marks on his shoulders." "My shoulders?" He asked and looked at his shoulders. He gasped when he noticed what we were talking about. "I found my cutiemark!" He shouted excitingly before pausing. "I... I killed that hydra... didn't I, Talion?" He asked me. "Yes... It was trying to kill us." I answered. "So I had to kill it." He finished a little grimly. "We killed it Iron Hoof. It was my power that aided you." I told him. "How? What are you, Talion?" Iron Hoof asked. This was the question I was waiting for. The one that is most difficult to answer. I sighed again before answering him. "A long time ago I went to war, Iron Hoof. I went to fight for freedom and to save lives... All I wanted to do was my duty and fight for peace. That's all I wanted." I told him as I looked down at my hands. "What happened, Talion?" Iron Hoof asked me. "I gave my life away and died more than I could live." I answered as my whole body became covered in darkness and my eyes burst into blue flames as I revealed my wraith form to them. Stone Lura and Iron Hoof all gasped and backed away as I changed in front of them. ~"I am banished from death and bound to live an eternal life of never-ending death."~ I told them all, my voice echoing darkly in their ears and minds. My body slowly returned back to normal as I finished. "I am a cursed man... Neither among the living nor dead, I feel nothing, I fear nothing, because I am nothing." They all stared at me in shock and fear as I stood waiting for a response and after a long moment that felt like an eternity, Iron Hoof got out from his bed and approached me slowly as I watched him. "No Talion, you are something." He said before hugging me. I just stood still, completely shocked. He looked up at me again before finishing. "You're my friend." I started to tear up again when he finished. I have been alone for so long, I have forgotten what it was like to be called a friend. I returned the sign of affection and we held each other as I cried a little. Stone and Lura soon came over and joined in. "You're our friend too, Talion. You saved our lives and continued to protect us. You taught our son how to fight and helped him find his true talent. We will never forget that." Stone Hoof told me. "Thank you... All of you." I said to them before pulling away. I let out a sigh as I wiped away my tears. "Come on... The Sun has risen and we still have a little ways ahead of us to get to Ponyville. We should get moving again before midday. We might be able to make it there before the evening." I turned around and stepped out of the tent to let them get ready. "Talion." I heard Stone call me. Turning around, I saw him coming towards me. "Talion, I know we don't have a right to ask you of your past or of anything you've been through, but I want you to know that, we're here for you." I smiled warmly at him. "I know you are, Stone... Now let's get your family home" I turned back around and went to retrieve my things for the journey. After packing up the camp, we continued our journey to Ponyville. Strangely enough, Stone Lura and Iron Hoof all seemed to have accepted me as I truly was. While Stone and Lura had mostly moved past what happened earlier, little Iron Hoof was overly excited about it and the fact that he had found his true talent. He had found it because of me. Now he thinks of me as some kind of a big brother hero like figure. Even though I am far too old to be his sibling. "I still can't believe you helped me find my cutiemark!" He told me as we were traveling. "And the fact that I got it by killing a hydra! A hydra! And it was all because of you guiding me with your powers!" "Yes Iron Hoof, I know." I said with a smile as he continued. "No one's ever going to believe this! I've never even seen a cutiemark like mine!" He said as he looked at the marks on his shoulders. "Wait." I heard him pause. "Do you have a cutiemark, Talion?" "No. My kind don't get cutiemarks. We don't need them to discover our talents." I said. "No cutiemarks? But how do you or anyone else know what your talent is? He asked me. "Through the practice and demonstration of a talent or ability." I answered and began explaining. "We do not need any kind of marks to show off our talents to others. While many of us have the same abilities and talents, there are others who are far better at them, weather by training or constant practice of a talent. Therefore, you would go around not knowing what the people around you are capable of." I answered. Iron Hoof stared at me a little shocked. "That's so strange." I laughed a little before attempting to change the subject off of humanity. "So tell me Stone, what will you all do when you get to Ponyville?" He continued to look up the road as he answered. "Well the first thing we need to do is rent a room at an inn. The second is to refill all of our supplies and replace the ones we lost. Then lastly I can pull all of the money I saved from Durasund out of the bank so I can purchase the materials and equipment needed to build our new home." "Do you plan on constructing an entire house for you and your family alone?" I asked him. "What? Of course not! I'm going to see about hiring a few extra hands to help with the construction. All in all, it might take a little over a month or two. He Replied. "What are your plans for when we reach Ponyville, Talion?" Lura asked me as she drew in a sketchbook. "I honestly don't know. I haven't really thought about it." I lied. I looked to see what she was doing. "What are you drawing, Lura?" "Just sketching something I can use for future reference while painting and no, you cannot see it yet." She said with a smile. "Well, I guess I can wait for the finished product." I said to her and turned my attention back on the road ahead. As we continued up the road towards Ponyville, the trees were starting to thin out more and more to the point that they weren't constantly obscuring the sun. We were getting close to the end of this journey together. I sighed silently to myself as I knew I what I needed to do soon. After a few more minutes of walking, we were all finally able to see the end of the Everfree forest open up to grassy planes. A small village sat amongst the little hills in the distance past a river ahead of us. As soon as we reached the edge of the forest, I stopped walking. Stone had instantly noticed the lack of my company next to him and turned his head to see I had stopped moving. "Talion? What's wrong?" He asked as he stopped as well. I took a breath and exhaled before speaking. "This is it. This is as far as I can go." "What? What are you talking about, Talion?" Stone asked in confusion. "I'm not going with you to Ponyville." I told him. At this, Iron Hoof jumped off the wagon and rushed over to me. "What? No. Talion, you're not leaving us?" I knelt down to his level before replying. "I'm afraid this is the end of our fellowship, Iron Hoof... I cannot stay here in these lands." I told him. "Why? I don't understand, Talion." He asked me as his eyes started to tear up. "Because I don't belong here, Iron Hoof. There is no place for me in Ponyville or Equestria." I answered. Lura came over with Stone, who had taken off his harness. "Of course there's a place for you, Talion. I'm sure that when others see what kind of good person you are, they'll accept you despite what you truly are, just as we have." Lura said to me. I shook my head. "It's not that, Lura. Even if I was welcome in here, I could never stay." "Talion... I don't want you to leave us." Iron Hoof said. I sighed as I looked back to Iron Hoof. "I'm too broken Iron Hoof... I have no place among ponykind. I am a soldier, a man of war. I do not belong where there is peace." "Yes you do! Talion, the war is over." Iron Hoof almost shouted. "That's just it Iron Hoof. The war is never over... Not for me." He looked at me in confusion before I explained. "As long as there is war and suffering, I cannot not rest. I will not rest. I will go where I am needed to bring peace to others. Where there is chaos, lawlessness and injustice." I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out my dog tags and showed them to Iron Hoof. "I took an oath to fight for peace, Iron Hoof. Always... It is my duty. It is what I have been called for. I must answer." I told him. Iron Hoof cried as he looked up to me. "I don't want to lose you, Talion. You're my friend." He said. "And I will always be your friend. You'll still carry a part of me with you Iron Hoof. I will always be with you. Even if you cannot see me, know that I am with you, here." I pointed to his heart. With my other hand, I pulled from my belt a KA-BAR, Full Size USMC Straight Fighting Knife, in a black leather sheath. Grabbing his hand, I set the knife in his palm. I then reached over him and put my dog tags around his neck. "I want you to have these, Iron Hoof. Let them be a reminder of me and the lessons I taught you. As you are a lesson taught to me by God." I told him. After looking at my gifts in wonder, he looked back up to me. His eyes still filled with tears. "What do you mean?" I chuckled before answering. "Because of you and your family, I have remembered why I fight and what I fought for, so long ago." They all looked at me with curiosity. "What did you fight for?" Iron Hoof asked me. I smiled then turned to Stone and Lura as I reached out my hand to them. They had both been crying a little as well while they listened. They both walked over and took my hand as they held each other and Iron Hoof as well. I then stood up and turned them all to face the west, towards the direction of the setting sun. As I held them all, my eyes lightly glowed blue as I connected to their minds and showed them one of my memories. Their eyes widened and they all gasped as they saw in the distance at the edge of the horizon a shining city on a hill above an ocean. It was a magnificent sight for them to behold that left them awestruck. When they looked towards the ocean, they saw a small island with a giant statue on a pedestal, facing east towards the ocean with its back to the city. "A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame is the imprisoned lightning, stands on the horizon, at the edge of the sea and the setting sun. And her name; Mother of exiles. She lifts up her light beside the golden doors and says, "Give me your tired. Your poor. Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. The wretched refuge of your teeming shores. Send these. Your lost, homeless, tempest tossed, to me." As the vision faded away, Stone, Lura and Iron Hoof just stood there staring at the horizon, as if they could still see the Land Of The Free. After a few more moments of silence, they turned back to me. "W-What... was that beautiful place?" Lura asked me. A single tear fell from my eye as I answered her. "Home... That was my home." I breathed in and let out another sigh before turning to Stone Hoof. "Thank you Stone, for your kindness and trust. I wish you and your family all the luck in the world for your new home and life." He smiled at me before replying. "And I, you, wherever the road takes you. I hope and pray to God, that you'll find your peace out there, Talion. But, if you should find yourself near Ponyville, I want you to know that you are always welcome in our home." We both then shook each other's hands. "Thank you. Oh and as for my payment you offered me." I started. "Name it, Talion." He said. "Do you all remember when we first met?" I asked them. "Of course we do." Stone answered with a smile. "No you don't." I said in a serious voice. "What? Why?" Stone asked me in shock and confusion. "For the same reasons that I cannot go with you all to Ponyville. It is best that others do not learn of my existence here, otherwise I'd be putting many lives in danger. Please Stone, keep my secret within your family." I told him. He looked down for a moment, a little sad about having to keep the knowledge of my existence a secret, but he returned his gaze back to me with a smile. "You can trust us with your secret, Talion... All of us." He told me. "I appreciate that Stone. Thank you." I told him, then turned to Lura. "I'd like to thank you too, Lura, for welcoming me as a friend to you and your family. I hope for one day to see the works of art you will create." I said to her. "I hope to see you again too, Talion. You have done so much for us, I am so sad to see that you are not going to be a part of our lives... But I understand that you are needed elsewhere." She paused to hug me. "There are still others out there who need your help just as we needed you. I hope someday to meet you again, Talion. So please, come and visit us won't you?" She finished. "Of course, Lura. Someday we will meet again." I said to her. Finally I looked to Iron Hoof, who was slightly crying while looking down. "Iron Hoof." I said as I knelt down to him. "I'd like to thank you above all... You've reminded me of my duties and obligations to help and protect others. You've helped me feel alive again and for that, I can never repay you." I pulled him into a hug as he cried again. "Do not morn for me Iron Hoof. I have chosen my path to follow, but you still must find your own." "Will I ever see you again, Talion?" He asked me. "Yes, we will meet again. All of us. Either in this life, or the next, in the presence of our father." I held him for a bit longer in silence, before speaking again. "Remember what we fight for Iron Hoof. Remember why we fight." I whispered to him before pulling away and wiping the tears from his eyes. "Go now, Iron Hoof. Practice. Train your body and mind and always remember our lessons. Always focus on the quality of your training, not the quantity. Grow your abilities and always fight for peace." "I will, Talion. Always, as long as I shall live... I swear it." He told me with a smile. As he looked down at my dog tags, he suddenly turned and went into the wagon. He quickly came back out with his guitar and walked back up to me. "I want you to have this, Talion. So you can play your beautiful music and be reminded of us whenever you do." I reached down and accepted his gift. "Thank you Iron Hoof. This is a wonderful gift that I will forever cherish and I will always remember you all in my travels, wherever I go." We pulled each other into one last group hug and stayed that way for a little while. "Goodbye Stone, Lura and Iron Hoof. Fare thee well." I told them with a smile as we separated. "Goodbye Talion." They all said to me with teary eyes. Stone and Lura then turned and guided Iron Hoof back to the wagon as he watched me. When Lura and Iron Hoof were back in the wagon, Stone Hoof put his harness back on and began the trek to Ponyville. I remained at the edge of the Everfree forest as I watched them go. When they got a little up the road, they all turned in my direction and waved to me one last time. I smiled and waved back to them in a final farewell. I stayed for awhile longer as I watched them travel to Ponyville, until they passed beyond my sight. I let out a sigh and turned west while pulling out a map Stone had given me a few days ago. Now that I had a picture of the layout of the land, I had a much better sense of direction for my next journey. I would travel west for awhile, towards White Tail Woods. Then I could make my way northwest to the Smoky Mountains. From what I have heard from Stone Hoof, no one has lived in those mountains, other than dragons, for many years, but there are a few nearby settlements around them. I needed to leave Equestrian territory and I would be able to hide my presence from ponies and any other peaceful folk in the undiscovered west. Closing the map, I put it back into my coat and strapped Iron Hoof's guitar around my back next to my sword. I then took one last look towards Ponyville. The sun had finally set and the small town was lit up on the small hills. I smiled one last time at the beautiful sight before turning back to face the west and set off on my next journey.