//------------------------------// // Odds // Story: To be Redeemed // by shattered_sky //------------------------------// “Is she a Vampire?” Dolores asked. “Vampony I guess?” She offered uncertainly. She looked at Blue Moon, the unicorn was sweating and he trembled. “Blue Moon?” The magneta mare was lounging on top of the cavern. Her bat wings cast a shadow over the two. Her were visible in her condescending smirk. Her Cutie Mark was a well with red vine wrapped around and instead of water was a pool of blood. “I do believe I had you exterminated you filth.” She lay on her barrel and tapped her chin in thought. “Well, they decided on using me as a bargaining chip instead.” He replied, he calmed himself and flipped his man on one side. “For me it does seem dumb. I’d just slaughter you animals the same.” She rolled her eyes. “But then again I see Celestia’s point, one does need lesser creatures to lord over.” “Isn’t she your master you mongre-“ The Therestral let out a roar and spread her hooves, her body lowered and her wings splayed. “YOU DARE!? I serve my father only!” Her silver colored mane seemed to spike in response to her anger. Dolores just stared at the two uneasily. She was still overwhelmed by recent events, and it took most of her focus to not collapse right now. She felt that she was somehow floating but her head was sinking. She chose not to speak up. “Well this changes everything. I can’t teleport far enough, longer the distance longer casting time , she’d just catch us.” Blue Moon addressed Dolores, not bothering to whisper. “And even if could come up with a plan I couldn’t share it with you, her ears are sharp. She is stronger, faster and she heals insanely fast.” He listed down. “Smarter I’m not so sure.” He whispered to Dolores. “You do realize I can hear you?” “Which proves my point about super hearing.” He ended his statement with a nervous laugh. “So what can we do then?” Dolores worriedly asked. “The only thing we can do.” He replied with a steely expression… which lasted for all two seconds. “WE SURRENDER!” He raised his hooves in the air. The Sand Raiders stumbled out of the cave with their weapons drawn, they came just in time to hear his proclamation. Tense silence filled the air and a tumbleweed crossed between the two groups. The Therestral glided down, it looked like a broadsword materialized in her mouth. She stuck it in the ground and raised her head. “All of you are pathetic.” She snarled. The Raiders slumped over and crimson stained the sand. Dolores screamed and Blue Moon paled. “I should clean up this mess. What did I even expect from that cat’s associates? They can’t even keep prisoners.” “Everypony here is dying today.” She then grabbed the sword and assumed a combat stance. Immediately Blue Moon raised a shield spell, the Therestral blurred forward and strike. The surface cracked under the power of the blow. He dropped the shield and teleported the two of them few meters away. Dolores pulled out her guns and shot wildly, none of them hit the bat pony. The bat pony charged at her, the suitcase was thrown at her. She turned to slash it but the strike deflected off the suitcase and it nailed her in the face, dazing her. Blue Moon took the opportunity to slam the bat pony up and down several times. She didn’t lose the grip on her sword however. She struggled in his magical grip, eventually she managed to break free. Blue Moon recoiled and clutched his head in pain. She turned around to attack the unicorn but a shot hit her blade. Dolores guns were shaking in her grip and she let out a scream before firing again. The bat pony slashed at her, Dolores fell back trying to keep her distance from the bat pony. A few shots grazed the bat pony, before healing almost instantaneously. This gave Dolores pause and the bat pony took the opportunity to strike. She slashed through air as motes of light hung where Dolores once was. She flashed a few meters forward and she was sprawled out on the ground. Blue Moon fired a few stunning blasts in quick succession. Dolores remembered about the suitcase and she crawled towards it. She pulled out the tome and flipped to the spells section. She replaced the Flash with Ignite and the barrier with the healing spell. She managed to use the healing spell, her insides still burned but she felt that she could stand properly for a while. Following the instructions on the book she thrust her paw towards the bat pony and yelled. “Ignite!” Nothing happened. She tried it a few more times with the same results. The bat pony was already getting up. “Sweet Faust that should have taken out an elephant.” Blue Moon muttered in disbelief. Firing a few more of the stunning spells didn’t seem to deter her much. “I cannot hold her off any longer!” Dolores got up and opened fire. Most of her shots missed and the ones that did hit had no lasting effect. The unicorn stopped firing, his horn smoking. Dolores grabbed her side in pain, reminded for the hundredth time of her injuries. “You’re done now?” She asked, unimpressed. She grabbed her sword and slowly advanced, shaking off the remaining effects of the stun blasts. “No… It can’t end here.” Dolores whispered to herself. She was kneeling, her paws limp on the side. Something caught her attention. Her ears flicked and she turned her gaze to the side. A few minutes later a cloud of smoke could be seen by the two. One of the sand boats came into view. The sand underneath rumbled and formed bars of sand which surrounded Blue and Dolores. The bat pony paused as the boat neared. The unicorn, pegasus and Duke got off. “What brings you here?” The unicorn asked. “Boss didn’t say you were coming.” He glanced curiously at the cage. The Duke was waddling towards the two. “Duke knew! Cat work with blue pony! Both word for goldie pony!” He triumphantly declared. He then sniffed the air. “Blood?” He wondered for a moment. He looked to the two in the cage. He didn’t see any new injuries on them. His eyes narrowed, processing things. “I don’t need your master’s permission to be here. Step aside Amber Find.” The Pegasus spat. “Damn bat. You’re in his territory right now.” He grinned with rotten teeth. “Ya hear that Amber, no permission? Careful there bat, might end up as bones round these parts. It be a shame.” He chuckled. Amber Find scowled. “We’ll have the cannon in a week’s time. Something unexpected happened.” He glared at the occupants of the cage. He turned back to the Ideal. “So go back home to your cave. We’ll sort this out.” “Oh, I’m afraid that’s not necessary.” She smiled. Duke was growling now, Amber raised an eyebrow and looked at the dog. Seeing his gaze on the sword, wet with blood. The two ponies looked at the occupants of the cage and put two and two together. The Pegasus extended his wings, blades glinting underneath the bandages and Duke pulled out his gun. “Traitor!” Duke yelled, firing two shots at the Therestral. She grabbed her blade and deflected the shots. The Pegasus charged and twisted trying to slice her neck open. She parried and cut one of his wings off. He let out a scream and leapt back, Amber threw spears made of sand at the Ideal. She managed to deflect the projectiles while still going offensive, giving chase to the Pegasus. The Pegasus desperately deflected the strikes of the Ideal while backing up. Eventually he stumbled and the sword pierced his chest. His eyed widened then narrowed. He let out a gurgling laugh as he bit the blade down and wrapped his hooves around her neck. She beat him with her hooves, trying to get free. Then she was skewered by three sand spears. He floated the Pegasus away he pulled out a bunch of herbs, he chewed on them and soaked them with alcohol pressing them around the wounds. He wrapped bandages around the sword, forming a knot before wrapping the bandage around his barrel. He poured alcohol on the severed stump before wrapping that up too. He worked quickly but he came to an abrupt halt. “I’m at the end of my knowledge.” He sighed. He lay the pony down on his side and ran his hooves through his mane. “It’s just a flesh wound. Maybe not the wing but you’ll survive this Dessert Storm.” “The lungs are filling up with blood. You’ll need to pump it out.” Blue Moon spoke up. “Can you do it?” Amber leveled his cold gaze on him. Blue moon lowered his head. “Didn’t think so.” He floated him slowly unto the sand boat. “You killed two of us.” He addressed Dolores. Dolores paled as he neared the cage. His gaze sending chills down her spine. “But it was fair game I suppose.” His gave a wicked smile. “Then again, so is leaving you out here to dry.” Two more gunshots rang out. He slowly turned to Duke, just drilled two holes into the bat pony’s head. Duke holstered his gun and spat. “Got that out of your system?” “Duke is not yet satisfied. But Duke knows there are more important things.” He gazed at the sand boat. “Will he live?” “He’s strong. But we need to find a doctor as soon as possible.” He turned back to their prisoners. “Put the ring on the-“ They were interrupted by unholy screeching. The sand spears were slowly pushed out as she screeched louder. She then fell over coughing up blood and two bullets. “Jesus Christ.” Dolores paled. “Sweet Faust.” Both unicorns muttered in disbelief. “DIE BAT PONY DIE!” Duke yelled, trying to shoot her in the head twice again. She managed to charge at him, slamming her hooves into his gut. An audible crack could be heard and he rolled a good distance away. Streams of sand knocked her away, scraping chunks of her flesh. He barely managed to inflict more damage than what she could heal. Blue Moon closed his eyes and was muttering something. “We’re getting out of here. Grab my hooves.” Dolores did so and blue aura flowed from her and into Blue Moon. His horn glowed silver as he charged up the spell. Amber turned as Blue used his magic to throw a spear at him. This distraction was almost fatal for him, the Ideal released a red magic blast from her mouth which he narrowly avoided. He then surrounded her with walls of sand. He compressed the sand and formed a spear. He charged it with magic and hurled it at Blue Moon. Another layer of magic surrounded Blue Moon’s horn. Then as the two disappeared from the cage the spear struck his shoulder. He leaned against the cage, seeing cracks form along the sand cube he made. The cube shattered explosively, knocking him through the cage and sending him tumbling through the sand. He coughed blood and sighed. Slowly getting back on his hooves the mare stood there with a furious expression. The Ideal barred her fangs at him and hissed. “You filth! This ends now!” Blood trickled from her nose, forming a sphere of crimson liquid floating next to her. “You think your dirt can stop me!? The vultures will feat on what little remains of you!” Tendrils from the sphere lashed forward. Amber scowled and kicked up a large cloud of sand. The tendrils slashed at nothing, they flailed wildly trying to find their mark. She reared up and beat her wings, dispersing the cloud. She saw the sand boat speeding off in the distance. She trembled with rage, her prey escaping humiliating and unthinkable.