Chapter 3: Ice and Water
“For Equestria!” Shouted Bacard as he charged forward at the beast with his retrieved sword. He jumped and slid, slashed and stabbed at the beast, but the sheer mass of it was too much, the gaping wounds looking like paper cuts in it’s presence.
The beast struck downwards with it’s massive claws upon Azure, whom was tossed out of the way by Cherry Pie, who stood her ground, holding the beast with sword grinding against claw. Azure sat on the ground were Cherry Pie had tossed him, staring up in awe.
Black Mist began to focus in the middle of the battle, tensing and un-tensing his muscles, directing his sight toward the fight and hoping to see a weakness he could exploit, and was well on his way to finding it.
Ghost began to meld into the crowd, trying to get to the side of the creature un-noticed, what he expected to do and what the creature wished never to happen, he intended to make one and the same.
Golden sat in the back and tried to keep away from it all, being frightened of the idea of being tossed around by that, unnatural, thing.
The other soldiers prepared themselves for the onslaught, expecting to be next on the creatures buffet menu. The captain of the ship started to lose grip as he turned the wheel to counter balance the beast.
Within the next ten seconds, everything began to unfold, Bacard held the sword firmly in his teeth before dashing underneath and tossing it directly into one of the beasts three revealed hearts, causing it to roar in immense the pain.
It almost collapsed as it climbed to the top of the ship, feeling a sword in one of it’s hearts, and blood trickling down it’s half fleshed legs.
Cherry Pie had since moved out from under it’s paw and was now trying to hack at it’s leg, hoping to take it off or severe the muscle.
Ghost then jumped on it’s back and galloped forward to lift a spear with his magic and shove it into the creatures head. Before another second could pass Black Mists wings shot out from his cloak, allowing him to zoom forward and up into a flying somersault, putting his back hoof out at the last minute and kicking downward on the snout of the roaring lion like beast. The force of the attack cracked it’s snout and did the final blow as it fell to the ground, trapping Bacard under it’s unfinished rib cage and partially inside of it.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After a couple of hours of work throwing the beast off the boat and cleaning off the horrible things that spewd from it in it’s death, the group finds themselves calming down again. Cherry Pie staring out into the distance, imagining it’s death, and rehearsing it in her mind. Azure trying to come to grips with what was almost his immediate death. Black Mist was meditating inside his shared cabin, trying to cleanse his mind, body and soul of the life he just took. Ghost began bragging to the other soldiers over a rum. Golden Leaf was watching the fish in the river below. Finally, Bacard was taking part in something he learnt from his fellow soldiers, sleep when you can.
“Yeah! and then I told the fucking bastard his wife could suck my dick, and he was like, what did you say to me bra? and I was like, you heard me.” Ghost said, managing to keep his vocabulary intact as he talked to the stallions and mares around him.
“And what happened after that?” One of the younger ones asked.
“Yeah man, this is getting good.” Another agreed.
“Well I kicked his ass of course, Then a couple weeks later I met up with his wife and then I bucked her brains out, can you imagine how pissed he was at me?” Ghost boasted in his drunken stupor.
“No way man, you're bluffin!” Exclaimed to one mare at the corner of the table.
“Na man, why would I?” Ghost retorted, only before they all broke out into laughter.
All except for Azure, still sitting there, using the rest of the crowd simply as background noise to keep himself from sinking deeper into his depressive thoughts. After all, he almost died, but Cherry Pie saved him, maybe he needed to thank her he thought.
And so Azure made his way to the top deck and towards the outward staring pony.
“What’a you want?” She asked without turning around.
Azure stepped forward and said, “I wanted to say thanks, for earlier.”
“Is that so? Tell me, what makes you so thankful?”
“Well, I don’t know, it’s in my nature I guess.”
“Really, then can you answer a question for me?”
“Um, yes, sure?”
“When water hardens and becomes ice, does it make it better, or worse?”
What do you mean?”
“On one side, ice is sharp, static, resilient, enduring, and can be formed into whatever it needs to be, whether that’s an igloo, a place to skate, or even a reflection.” She starts.
“But water is peaceful, flowing, and healing, not wanting to hurt, and supplying the world with life, although ever changing.” Azure finishes.
“Yes. Which is better?”
“I’ll need some time to answer that.”
“That’s fine. Be careful then, I’ll be heading to rest.” She then walked past him and to her quarters.
Azure looked up at the stars, “Ice or water… I wonder what she means by that…”