//------------------------------// // 93: Capture // Story: An Equestrian Witcher // by OblivionShadow //------------------------------// Oblivion was silent as he looked to the trail behind him. Soarin raised his head quickly, giving the impression that he had been surprised by the appearance. Sasa arched her back and a loud hiss escaped from her. Oblivion raised his head and he watched as a pony in light leather armor came toward them. He stopped once he had entered the clearing and he looked, smugly at the pair of ponies. “Where is it?” He asked. “Where is what?” Oblivion asked coyly. The ponies face flashed angrily for several seconds before the expression faded from his face. “You know what I am after. Don’t pretend that you don’t know why we are here.” Soarin’s face twisted in anger as the ponies approached and surrounded them. Sasa growled and she turned until her flank bumped Oblivions hip as she was now facing a different direction. Soarin acted in the same manner and moved to put his flank at Oblivion's other hip. The Witcher held his silence as the annoyance from the lead pony grew. Sasa snarled as a Unicorn came from the side of them and her horn was covered in magic as she held her aura ready. One Earth Pony came to their leader’s side and tapped his shoulder. He leaned his head back and the other whispered in his ear. Oblivion tuned his ears forward to listen in. “That’s a Wonderbolt, Lock. What do we do with him?” Oblivions ears flicked at the name that he heard. He could see Lock's eyes land on the Wonderbolt that stood with the Witcher. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the Wonderbolt and he shook his head. Oblivion was sure he knew that meant that the Wonderbolt was not protected and could be killed and left to rot. Lock looked back at the Witcher as the other pony backed away, and his face screwed up slightly as he spoke once more. “You carry one of the Elements of Harmony. It would be best if you would give it to us.” He growled. “I will have to decline,” Oblivion replied. “Though I have to ask how you were aware of me.” “We heard through our sources that a Unicorn holds the final Element of Harmony. You will give it to us if you want to live through this conversation.” ‘So they heard the rumor Blue spoke of. I asked him to use different variations of the same rumor and we can see where the leak is in the Nobles. Now we can cover that hole in the information.’ Oblivion thought to himself. He had asked Blue to vary the rumor slightly after considering their options. It had been an afterthought on his part when he had spoken to Blue about it. “I will live through this even if I don’t give it to you,” Oblivion commented. “I trust you realize that I mean you will not be leaving here unless I allow you to.” “Pretty confident for a lone Unicorn. We have a few Unicorns that can counterspells so you seem to be unable to gauge the odds stacked against you. Why they gave the Element to such a fool I will never know.” He replied. The ponies took another step forward and Oblivion closed his eyes for a moment as he listened to his own breathing for a second before his orange eyes reopened. His eyes gave off their signature slight glow and he felt his wings flick against his sides. He could see the Unicorns across from him lower their stances as they prepared to counter whatever he did. He had read about counterspells and he was aware of their drawbacks. They could only be done at close range and he knew that they would need to get close and he would need to allow them to do so. “Oblivion?” Soarin whispered. The Witcher gave a slight nod and he felt the Wonderbolts tail-flick his leg as he brought his wings from his sides and readied himself for the fight to come. He could sense the ponies that surrounded them and he listened as they charged all at once. Soarin took to the air and took the fight to the Pegasi that had taken to the air. Lock charged for the Witcher and Sasa roared as she leaped toward the ponies that charged her. He focused on the ponies ahead of him and found himself with four ponies, including one of the Unicorns. She charged in close and he spun as his flank collided with her, disrupting her spell. His claws snaked out and raked the nearest pony and he heard a scream of pain as the pony reeled back away from him. The Elder Witcher charged in and his magic hummed over his skin as azure flame licked over his body, dissuading anypony from touching him for fear of being burned. The Element around his neck rocked on its chain as he began to move forward. His ears flicked as Sasa roared and Lock charged toward her. Oblivion watched him as he moved toward the feline, he could not tell what had possessed him to go after the cat instead of him but he chose to take advantage of the lapse in judgment. The single Unicorn that he had hip slammed began to recover and her horn lit as he did in response. She balked at the intensity of the flames that flowed over his horn and he charged her once more. Sasa roared off to the side of him and he sensed that she was not injured and he pressed onward. The other two Unicorns came into the fray with him directly as a Pegasus was thrown to the ground off to the side of him. A glance up told him that Soarin was doing the job asked of him. The three Unicorns charged their horns and he felt the medallion around his neck shudder at the amount of magic that was being channeled. The Witcher said nothing as his lips pulled back in a soundless snarl and he charged in the last few feet to reach the Unicorns. Under the illusion, his wings flicked and he fought back the desire to use their strength to throw them off their hooves. His shoulder thudded into the three Unicorns and the one stallion was thrown back over a foot as the mares braced and were able to withstand the impact. His hoof reached out and his claws wrapped around the horn of one mare and he used it to throw her violently to the ground. She screamed as she struck the ground and he contemplated breaking her horn to render her harmless but chose not to after a moment’s hesitation. The remaining mare’s horn went dormant as his claws snaked out and ran across her face and she reeled back with a scream. The medallion stopped shaking as the magic was stopped and the ponies using it had been rendered useless. He allowed the mare to reel back from him as she covered her eyes with her hooves. “Duck!” Oblivion threw himself down as a Pegasus tore through the air above him, Soarin on their heels. Sasa roared and he sensed pain from her as he looked back to check on her. She was getting to her paws as Lock bore down on her. He lunged to gain on him and his hoof gripped the tail of the other. A shout told him that he had enough of a grip as he pulled him back and tried to throw him to the ground. The stallion in leather whirled on his heel and a sword cut through the tail that the Witcher held in his hoof. Oblivion leaped back as the blade fell and the strands fell from his grip. “You’re good. I’ll give you that much.” The other sneered. “I can’t help but wonder if you were waiting for us to come to you.” Oblivion said nothing as another Pegasus was thrown to the ground and a mare screamed as Sasa savaged her. The Elder Witcher looked closely at him as a slight grin tugged at one side of his mouth, betraying his reply. The other stallion growled and charged into the fray with the Witcher. The light armor helped him to move quickly and Oblivion reared as he lunged to collide with the taller stallion. Oblivion spun on his heels to push his hip into the other shoulder. The stallion leaped back and was able to avoid the Witcher. “Careful with him Chosen.” Sasa warned. “He’s hiding something.” He said nothing in reply but his eyes flicked to the she-cat for a moment in reply to her warning. Oblivion charged forward as his sword came from over his shoulder as the eyes of the other went wide at the sight of the blade. They were both armed but it was clear which weapon held more power between them. The crystal sword with the runes buried within it glittered and glowed as the weapon hung in the azure flame of his aura. Soarin came to ground on the other side of him and then Oblivion flicked an ear to him and he suddenly put his hooves on Oblivions back and vaulted over him to the other side. His hooves collided with an Earth Pony that had been charging the Witcher. Oblivion had known he was coming but he appreciated the Pegasus tending to him. The lead stallion said nothing as he seemed to be looking over the weapon the Witcher held and then his eyes flicked to his own. The other grip on his own sword tightened and Oblivions ears flicked forward as he took a step forward. Both stallions charged forward and the blades collided in a shower of sparks. The rune for flame activated and fire poured down the crystal sword. The other stallion cried out and took a step back as the weapon glowed and the flames flowed as the Witcher spun the blade in his aura and he lunged forward. The other spun to the side to avoid him but the blades fire burned into his shoulder and he shouted in pain and spun further away. “What are you?” Lock gasped as he looked at the burn to his shoulder. Oblivion said nothing as the seconds dragged past him. His first inclination was to say nothing but the desire to speak went through him and he gave a rare smirk. “I am the Eldest Witcher of the School of the Wolf. I have been trained and made to fight monsters the likes of which you will never see. Battling you… Is foals play.” He replied, his smirk still in place. He heard Sasa laugh in the back of his mind as she roared. Lock stared at him as fury went through his eyes. He looked away from the burn that plagued him and focused on the black Unicorn once more. Azure flame still danced over his form and that still gave them pause. His opponent snarled as he spun the blade across his hoof. Oblivions claws spread as he took the weapon from his magic and the other stallion's eyes went wide at the sight of the claws that now gripped the crystal blade. Oblivion let the blade spin across his claws as the azure flames danced across his body. The Element he bore trembled on the chain and he let the side of his lip pull up into a slight grin. “You wish to see the Element?” He asked, his tone derisive. “Here it is.” The silver armor tore from its place around his medallion as it slid across his fur and into its place. The silver shone brightly in the dull light of the clearing and Lock stared at the brilliant armor that covered the black Unicorn's body. Oblivion watched as he stood stunned and his wings flicked under their illusion as he watched him in return. “You seek what you will never have.” Oblivion snarled and lunged forward. The medallion around his neck shuddered and he gigged to the side as magic tore into the ground where he had been. He glanced up to see a pair of Pegasus holding a Unicorn stallion between them, allowing him to rain down magic. Oblivions eyes refocused on his target as the sound of wings caught his ears. “Soarin!” He roared out. He heard nothing in reply as the sound of wings grew louder as the Wonderbolt tore through the air above him, his target ahead of him. Oblivion heard the Pegasus growl as he soared and he heard the sound of bones crunching a bare second later. He had a feeling that Soarin had been on the opposite side of the clearing but his speed would have allowed him to cross the distance in a bare second if needed. Lock cursed and leaped to clash with the Witcher once more. Swords clashed and sparks flew as the pair of weapons collided violently in between the stallions. Oblivion set his rear hooves and pushed ahead, forcing the other pony to try to push against him. He may not be a heavy pony in general but his height gave him the advantage he needed. Oblivion tapped a hoof and Quen slid over him, its golden glow mixing with the silver of the armor. The stallion stared as Oblivion's horn remained dormant, no magic flowed from him. Oblivion gave a hard push forward and the other groaned as he fought to stay on his hooves. Oblivion kicked his fore hooves into the air and slammed them to the ground a bare second later. Aard pushed out from his hooves and the lead stallion yelped as he was thrown backward. Oblivion tossed the crystal blade into the air to chase down his foe when his ears flicked and he leaped to the side. An Earth pony slammed into his shoulder and the Witcher grunted under the impact. The impact should have knocked him off his hooves but his evasive maneuver allowed him to remain on his hooves. The sword embedded itself halfway into the ground and stayed in place. Oblivion said nothing as Lock had gotten to his hooves and now had two more at his side, making four if Oblivion included the Earth pony that had struck him. “Not so confident now are you? Just give it up and we can end this.” The lead snarled. “You have to know by now that it will not happen,” Oblivion replied. He growled as his fellow ponies lunged toward the black Unicorn as he lunged for the crystal blade. Oblivion growled as his magic began to lash out for the weapon when his magic went silent. He looked to the side to find a Unicorn that had jammed his spell casting and he looked up as a startled sound came from Lock as he tried to lift the crystal blade from the ground. He strained to lift it but it remained embedded in the ground. Oblivion was a bit surprised by the sudden weight of the weapon but he ignored it as his magic lashed out and summoned his own Wolven steel blade to his magic and he charged in with it at his side. He chose to abandon the crystal for the moment and he would retrieve it later. The earth ponies scattered as the blade spun in his magic and they lunged to take down the Unicorn that was furiously trying to cast another counterspell. His blade tore into her throat and blood fountained from her as she tried to scream. He turned and bucked her away from him as she bled. He had already chosen several ponies that he would try to keep alive to take them, prisoner, at Shining’s behest. Lock looked stunned for a bare second before he gave up on the crystal sword and held his own up once more. The earth ponies with him stared at the still form of the mare before their faces warped into fury as they squared up with him. ‘Hmm, there is some loyalty among them… Interesting.’ He thought to himself as he waited for them to come to him. He looked past them as Sasa raised her head and plunged her fangs into the flank of a pony she had gripped in her claws. A scream sounded out as the earth ponies in front of him were spurred into action by the sound. Oblivion spun to the side as the group of three charged the Witcher and he spun the weapon through the air and it lodged into the neck of one of the ponies. The pony dropped to the ground with a thud and the Witcher pulled the weapon from the ponies flesh in a swift motion that also spun the blood from the surface of the blade. Lock howled with rage as he lunged and the weapon glanced off Quen which exploded, knocking the pony from his hooves, sending him rolling backward with the force of the explosion. “Just die already!” One pony screamed out as a blast of magic was thrown at the Black Unicorn. Oblivion braced and the magic glanced off the silver armor and he spun away to once more be facing them. He dropped the steel weapon into his claws and twirled it over his claws. His magic hummed under his skin and he felt his wings flick under their illusion. The Elder Witcher said nothing as the ponies seemed to come to a stalemate around him. The remaining ponies gathered behind their leader while Sasa and Soarin rejoined him. He glanced at each of them and found them to be blood splashed but in good shape. The ponies across from them were not in the same good condition. Their leader looked at the bleeding and ragged band and he growled under his breath. “You're better than I gave you credit for.” He growled. Oblivion said nothing but raised his head high and the ponies seemed to shrink back a bit. Soarin lowered his body slightly to show he could keep going and Sasa licked her tongue over her bloodied front fangs and a growl poured from her. Oblivion could see that out of the four Unicorns they had only one remained and that one was ragged and he could tell that she was out of magic. Her spirit was dull and her magic was low or completely exhausted. One Pegasus remained as well but they had one wing on the ground, clearly broken. Three Earth Ponies remained including their leader and he was watching Oblivion and his force closely. “They have lost.” Sasa crowed. “Not yet.” Oblivion thought back to her. “You told me to be ready. I pass that advice back to you.” “Fair.” She replied. Lock raised one hoof and Oblivion watched as his spirit flexed within him and his horn lit to create a shield that would cover the three of them as the other brought his hoof down to the ground. A concussion wave went over them and he jolted as his magic was disrupted and the remaining force took to their heels. “Shit!” Soarin yelled. “We need them!” “Stay!” Oblivion roared his command and took to his heels after them. His magic lashed out at the slowest pony and a set of hobbles were tossed onto their legs. They somersaulted head over heels and came to rest on the ground with a stunned shout. Oblivion had taken a number of hobbles and inhibitor rings from Shining when their plan had been created for him to capture as many as he was able. He charged after the next pony and he could see that it was the remaining Unicorn. He summoned an inhibitor ring and a pair of hobbles as he drew up on her flanks. She looked back and her horn lit with what magic she had left. He lunged into her and the ring was tossed onto her horn and the hobbles placed as she fell to the ground. The Witcher dug in and raced for the remaining three. He was most intent on their leader, if he had to kill the remaining ones to get to him then he would consider it an even loss. He could see the remaining Pegasus, Earth pony, and their lead ahead of him, and his claws dug in, asking his body for more speed. “Faster!” The Pegasus shouted as the group raced ahead. He saw their leader look back and his eyes widened at the sight of the hard-charging Unicorn. Oblivion's magic hummed and flowed easily as he gripped the remaining hobbles in his magic. His magic lashed out at the lagging Pegasus and the hobbles went into place, sending him reeling. The remaining Earth pony slid to a stop and spun to take on the Witcher. Oblivion’s steel blade spun in his magic as he raced ahead, showing no sign of slowing or altering his course. The weapon spun and he altered his hold on the weapon as he lunged forward and the blade tore through the ponies throat as he executed a spin as he neared him. The spin was designed to allow him to kill his target and keep his speed and balance as well. The pony cried out as his throat was slit and the stallion charged by. “Shit.” He heard Lock curse as he fought for more distance. He veered into the deeper forest and Oblivion stayed on his heels. The stallions were both tiring due to the long fight from before. Sweat coated the lead pony’s fur and Oblivion could feel fatigue beginning to come into his muscles. He got closer to Lock as he suddenly slid under a fallen tree and Oblivion had no choice but to either go over or under. One look at the tree told him he could not go under. He gathered himself and leaped the tree, his hind hooves nicked the tree, but not enough to destabilize his jump. He saw the leader look back and his eyes were wide as the Witcher charged forward. He heard a loud groan as Lock once more looked forward and charged deeper into the Everfree. The Unicorn said nothing as he drew closer to the pony. His claws dug into the soil and propelled him forward, despite the earth beginning to give way under him. He chanced a look around and he realized they were getting into the swampier areas of the Everfree. He dug in deeper, intent on getting to him before they ran out of solid ground. His magic lashed out as he was now close enough to see the ponies churning legs. Magic tossed the hobbles into place and Lock gave a loud cry as he fell forward into the mud and grasses. Oblivion slid to a stop beside him and he panted as the exertion was beginning to catch up to him. He said nothing as he reached out a hoof and rolled the panting lead pony onto his side to keep him from suffocating in the growing mud. His eyes were wide as the Witcher watched him closely. “You say you hunt monsters?” The pony spat at him and the Witcher nodded. “Must be easy when you are one.” “I know many ponies who would agree with that,” Oblivion replied easily. Sasa paced in the clearing and Soarin was sitting down in the bloodied grass staring at the path the Witcher had taken. The Wonderbolt looked around the clearing at the bodies that littered the ground. He had been trained to go to war but the need had never come to actually use the skills he had been taught. He glanced at Sasa and the she-cat was still as she waited for the Witcher to return. His lips pursed as he suddenly shuddered, his ears flicked as Sasa growled to gain his attention. He looked back at her and she tilted her head at him, her expression questioning. “He gonna be okay?” He asked her tentatively. She gave an easy nod and waited for him to go on. Her ears flicked as she watched him. “You’re sure?” She gave a toothy grin and nodded again. “Not your first battle is it?” She shook her head and her grin remained for several seconds as she got to her paws and came to sit close by him. Her fur rubbed against his shoulder and warmth came from her body as she sat by him. “I have to admit I never thought I would be wading into a battle like… This.” He admitted and the cat closed her eyes for a second before she gave a slight nod. “I mean we are trained for battle but all we do is perform and train for that. I guess I didn’t think it would come to… All of this.” He said to her as he motioned to the carnage around them. She nuzzled his neck and ran her tongue over a shallow gash in his upper right leg. He smiled thinly at her as several ponies were plopped down in front of them as the Witcher came back into the clearing. His eyes were wide as the four ponies were bound and to his surprise, they were magically gagged as well. “Wow,” Soarin said to him as he watched the clearly tired Witcher. “I see you got them all, Chosen.” Sasa praised. “Well done.” “They were fleet, but not fleet enough,” Oblivion replied. “Are you both all right?” “Nothing but cuts for me,” Soarin replied and got to his hooves to show what he meant. Oblivions horn lit as azure flame covered both of them and magic flowed to heal their wounds. Soarin looked surprised as the shallow gashes to his body healed and nothing was left behind. Sasa purred loudly as she went to the Witcher as his magic faded and she looked at the pile of captured ponies. “Are these the ones you had planned on getting?” She asked as she looked at them. “All but one.” He replied to her. “Everything work out the way you wanted?” Soarin asked him. “For the most part. I didn’t plan on them being able to take off but that was easily worked within the moment. Now we will take them back to Canterlot once the bodies here are tended to and they will be held there.” “How did he disrupt your spell though?” Oblivion's magic flared as a band hovered in his magic. “He used this. I have seen items like this one used before but I did not notice that he had one as well. It works well but it has limited use and a time limit. He could not use it on me again as I chased them.” “Interesting. I’ve never seen anything like it.” Soarin replied as the band hovered. “Then again I have never had much to do with magical items so my knowledge is pretty base on that.” He admitted. “I will hand it over to Celestia and Luna and they can have it examined. See if it leads us to more of their fellows or if it’s a dead end.” He admitted as the band vanished into his magic once more. “I had hoped to have more of them but this will do for what we need.” Soarin said nothing as Lock snarled against his gag and he tried to thrash against his binds. The others seemed resigned to their situation and didn’t fight back. Oblivion could see their spirits and they were subdued and he could see the exhaustion and pain in them. He didn’t feel anything for the fate that awaited them should they choose not to talk. He knew that Equestria would mourn what he might need to do to them to get them to talk but he knew that she trusted him to repair what he did in the same instant. Sasa said nothing as she got up and padded over to lean against his shoulder. “What do we do now?” She asked. “Now?” She nodded. “We call on help to remove the bodies and we move these ones to Canterlot for interrogation. If I am needed for that then that is what we will do. Breaking them should be fairly simple if needed."