It’s been a dozen days now, and the bridge is still quiet. The lights lining the sides of the bridge burn bright but still fail to pierce the void beyond. I shifted in place, feeling the smooth stony ground of the bridge under my talons. I let my gaze swivel around, taking in more of the empty black sky. I wasn’t worried about anything lunging from the depths or from above, but it was nice to change up the scenery. Even if it was all still dull.
I wish I was back at Blackscale. The siege had its downsides, mainly the alcohol rationing, but there was always something to do. It could be that the yetis were assaulting the walls, the smith needed help with repairs, or even some star-forsaken noble needed to get a message through the blockade.
How do guards stand in place every day for years on end without going mad? I’ve made jokes about them being statues with how stiff they like standing, but I’m starting to wonder if those rigid stances were a farce meant to hide them napping with open eyes.
I let my gaze pass lazily over the bridge again. Same stupid stones as before, same star-damned lights on the sides, and the same annoyingly thick mist rolled in. which was absolutely fantastic. Now my job would be both tedious and difficult. The saying goes, ‘Never tempt fate,’ and I agree with it wholeheartedly.
I sighed as I hefted Mjolnir onto my shoulder. Just because nothing had come before didn’t mean I wouldn’t get attackers this time. It’s only a matter of time before the other boot drops. Fate never lets my life get too easy.
I rolled my shoulders, trying to loosen up as I let my thoughts wander.
I still don’t know if I should thank whoever weaves my fate with a hug or a club to the face. I like excitement, but sometimes I need a break. Blackscale was a good time right up until the booze ran out. I mean, seriously, how am I supposed to focus while doing nothing on a wall for hours on end, while sober, no less?
I stopped whining to myself when I spotted a figure at the edge of the fog. It was a pony, a big one with wings and a horn. I scowled before readying Mjolnir.
Am I finally going to get some action? Oh-ho I wonder how tough they are. I hope they use a shield of some sort. Bashing those to pieces was so much fun, especially when someone was still wearing them!
I grinned as the figure filled out with a white coat and rainbow mane. To my disappointment, she stood alone and wielded a lance made of gold, of all things.
I let my face go flat while I sighed at their stupidity. I could probably bend that metal twig with my bare claws. I pursed my lips before calling out to the silent stranger.
“Halt, who goes there?” I raised my hand with my statement.
She came to a stop before speaking, “I am Princess Celestia Sol of house Aurelian. Stand aside, Guard; I must return to my lands as quickly as possible.”
The fog swirled around her like a watery cloak. It made her wings hard to see and obscured her lance a bit. But the glint of gold still showed through in the dim light.
I snorted in derision at her demand, saying, “Lord Typhon has ordered none pass through Entropy’s Gate. No exceptions.”
Internally I was cheering in excitement. Finally, I’m getting to actually do something! And judging by the stance she’s taking, I might get a fight!
Celestia’s face hardened into a scowl, and I braced for a fight with a savage grin. A moment passed, but it felt like an eternity. However, instead of lunging, Celestia relaxed with a sigh, leaning on her lance.
She looked me in the eyes with a tired gaze. It felt like staring into a pair of magenta pits. She spoke in a firm tone.
“Please, just let me through. My little ponies need me. They need me or so many will die. So many…”
She trailed off as a tear rolled down her cheek. I could feel the fire within me wither at the sight. I was told I’d fight off villains and psychopaths at these gates. That all who Typhon banished to Oblivion were monstrous.
Typhon mentioned Celestia and her sister by name. They had tried to murder him time and time again, with Luna going so far as having a child killed.
But the mare standing before me? she was just a mother—one desperate to get back to her children no matter the cost. Or, in this case, her country. I sighed before bracing again and spoke.
“I’m sorry, Princess, but I have a duty. You may not—“
Celestia cut me off with a sudden strike with her lance.
One moment she was calm as a statue, then next, she stood barely a pace away with her weapon at my throat.
I’d just managed to parry it with my hammer, and my eyes widened at the sight before me.
Her fatigue was gone. Her sadness, gone. Her compassion, her restraint, her weakness, all gone.
Rage and tears were what remained.
I felt the heat.
The fire of passion.
It burned, burned, burned!
I felt my smile return as I whirled my hammer to strike back.
She ducked beneath it before thrusting again.
The lance glanced off my scales, sending sparks shooting off me in fiery waves.
She was relentless. Every block made me feel like I was fighting a falling star.
And every time I landed a hit, it barely moved her.
We went back and forth for minutes on end, caught in a grinding stalemate.
However, she couldn’t hurt me, but I could hurt her.
For me, every hit dealt a little more. For her, every block did a little less.
Bit by bit I wore her into the ground. It took a while; I wasn’t sure how long.
I panted as I leaned on Mjolnir, basking in the afterglow of victory. Celestia lay across from me in a bundled heap. Bones were broken all over, and gashes marred her white coat.
She still glared at me with a mountain of defiance behind her eyes. She was daring me to finish her. My grin widened at the goading.
I gasped, heaved my hammer into the air, and let it fall like a tree forged from iron and justice.
Metal met flesh, then bone, then stone, for the first of many, many times to come.
It felt odd, standing over her corpse. It felt like we weren’t finished. The air strained with tension, just like it did at Blackscale keep.
I smiled as I looked out beyond the fog. Another figure of a similar stature to the goddess I just felled glared from beyond the mist. Their eyes were slitted like mine and glowed softly with a gentle blue light.
Pale, ethereal figures trotted from the mist. Their mangled armor and exposed eye sockets sent shivers down my spine. But I refused to let fear gain even a foothold. I will put these sorry souls to rest, even if it takes a thousand of their deaths.
As I vowed to save the ghosts from their fate, those blue eyes grew brighter as another alicorn stepped forth. It was clad in blue armor, covering a black coat. Its blue eyes pierced my own, seeking any sort of weakness. It gave up in moments.
I laughed when it raised its war scythe and called out the command to charge.
As they sprinted forth, I screamed a final challenge, “Send me your sun! Send me your nightmares! Send me your damned! I will not fall! I will not yield! I am Ironhide!
I would not give in to anything. I was given a duty. I was given a chance to live.
And I will savor it with every ounce of my being.