It was cold, quiet and lifeless just like any other day in this wasteland. For a hundred miles in any direction, there was no life or civilization spare an explorer, or the odd icelot wandering in search of a new home. It would be a thousand miles in every direction if it weren’t for the Crystal Empire to the east just recently brought back from its accursed non-existence.
Even then, just one city it made this wasteland a bit livelier and dangerous, with their celebrations and fireworks creating new cracks in the floor of the ice. A hundred miles to the west was the ocean with new icebergs breaking off to drift south and melt away in the warm summer oceans, before cycling back to the ice caps of the north.
As another celebration in the Crystal Empire occurred, its sounds of joy and laughter spread throughout the wasteland. For a thousand years only the occasional giant iceberg had broken away from the continent, but now that the Crystal Empire was back its sound helped to widen the existing cracks in the ice.
As the racket continued, another iceberg threatened to break away from the continent, with loud thunder-like cracks of ice sounding as it strained with its job of holding up what was inside. Inside of the iceberg, stood a giant monster brimming with hatred for those that made it, then tried to kill it fearing its power. Towering over two-hundred feet, spines taller than most beings and scales blacker than the night itself and overlapping scales that made it almost impossible to pierce, it had been feared by the past rulers of the planet.
They had conquered nature itself, bent it to their whim, exterminated entire species and even traveled to the moon. Their entire existence had been based on war so when a monster awoke and wrecked destruction of a massive scale upon the inhabitants, they sent all their most powerful weapons to stop it. When they realized they couldn't kill it they instead settled for sealing it away in the ice.
Those that had sealed it away had killed themselves by throwing away their greatest weapon when they needed it the most. Forty years after they sealed it away, an alien race came and exterminated them, not noticing the weapon of unrivaled power, that had been sealed away. Over the millions of years it had been frozen away, the ice had slowly worked the monster back to the ocean. Now it was almost free and just a few more cracks would let its built-up furious fire ravage the surface of the entire planet again.
It had remained dormant the entire time, the only thing that changed from its previous encounter with the insects millions of years ago, was that its radiation had begun to reach a critical level. With the combined weight, hot radiation and massive noise the Crystal Empire was making it wasn't long until the beast awoke. With another thunderous crack, the iceberg shifted to the right as the ice on the left broke apart into little shards and tumbled down into the freezing waters below.
It hung there for a few seconds almost as if deciding on whether or not to release its mighty prize, before with a anti-climatic snap of ice signaled its drop into the ocean below.
The ice fell into the ocean’s near-freezing waters, but instead of floating south like all the other ice it sank, deep and deeper into the ocean’s depths, the cracks on the ice feeling the pressure of hundreds of tons of water on top of it. With water bullying its way into the cracks, the pressure of the water beating upon the ice, it didn't take long until large pieces of ice started to fall off.
As the first pieces of ice fell away, cold freezing water rushed to fill the gap and woke the monster inside. Unable to move, but knowing that it should it started wriggling around in its icy prison, adding even more to the forces that were ripping apart its prison.
And the more ice that cracked away, the more the monster’s conscience returned and the more it struggled to break free. Resting for a moment it gathered its strength for one last push against its prison and with an explosion of ice and rage it was finally free again.
As it slowly drifted downwards the monsters eyes finally opened, revealing its rage-filled orange eyes. The eye itself moved back and forth over its surroundings to try and find the drill-ship it had been fighting. Despite how the ship had attacked and hurt it, and how it chased it all the way to the north it had ran away.
Typical of the little demons, chase it up north and then leave it alone and hope it dies. Maybe they forgot how it could tell where their greatest cities were and how much it hated being tricked. Maybe just a little bit of a rampage would remind them of who they’re messing with.
As a slight grin grew upon the monster’s face, it curled its tail before launching through the water, its body winding in a serpentine fashion the dark, freezing water unable to lace its icy cold fingers into its scales. As the water grew brighter and slightly warmer, it slowed down wondering how to get on top of the ice.
A thought came to its mind and it let itself float in the water to get a moment to rest. Opening its mouth water rushed in before it slowly started to boil, along with the water around its spines. Slowly the spines glowed a dull blue before it grew brighter and brighter and the same thing was happening in the monster’s mouth.
Instead of the water boiling now, it practically dissolved when it came near its spines or mouth. When the glowing reached its peak, the monster let out the energy that had been growing in its spines. Out of its mouth a beam of pure energy flew out dissolving all water near it and blowing apart a huge portion of the ice-cap, making it rain boulders of ice and a tidal wave of water.
After the ice flew up a few hundred feet it all came crashing back down into the water, sending even more of a ripple through the icy land. The monster meanwhile propelled itself to the hole in the ice with its tail, before gripping the edges of the hole and pulling itself up with all of its might. The ice started to crack underneath its weight before pieces started to fall through the ice floor.
Despite this the monster kept pulling itself up and after some struggling it was finally on top of the ice, the water highlighting its hose-sized spines and giant claws on its arms. Looking around its head swiveled before it saw something shining on the ground a few steps away. Walking towards it, the monster noticed that it seemed to be stepping on solid ground now.
As it stood over the shining piece it noticed the shining continued into the distance of the east and towards the south too. Dropping onto one knee it looked at the shining object and noticed it was just like the ones that those insects used to travel around the world and ruin it. Looking towards the east and then south it decided that since the insects like warmer areas usually, if it headed south along these shining lines it would find another of the insects abominations they called a city.
Stepping forward it took a deep breath in before letting out its mighty and iconic roar that would make most of the insects run for their lives.
00000
Nighttime was when most ponies went to sleep, due to the fact they had all been for the day working, playing or teaching or etc.. A few stayed up to consummate love or those annoying distractions, but one pony didn't have any of that on his mind at all. He was focused on the manticore that was in front of him.
He had come out here earlier to look for some meat for his pet and had been jumped by a manticore, of course. As for here he was in the Everfree forest, living in it due to the fact he didn't get along with most sentient beings, he much rather liked his pets.
But back to the matter at hoof. Right now he had spaced his hooves apart and pointed his horn at the creature, waiting for it to make its move. The thing shouldn't have even seen him with his green coat, and ash colored mane, but that was what he got for getting fish and not bothering to cover up the smell.
The manticore had been slowly circling him for a minute in the middle of a clearing making sure he wouldn't make a run for it, no doubt thinking he was easy prey. Licking its lips it lowered itself to the ground its muscles rippling across its body, in preparation for lunging for his throat. But he was ready.
Its legs launched itself forward and its claws stretched outwards intending to rip him in half. Smiling he simply gave the manticore's neck a simple twist and stepped out of the way, letting it lifeless body tumble on past him and into the brush. He shook his head at the manticore's stupidity before turning around as if to continue on his way home, when he took another glance at the body.
He looked at his basket of fish and then back at the body, and looked again at his basket. Under the moonlight he could be able to get a good meal for his pet this time... shrugging he magicked away the basket of fish and instead levitated the manticore's corpse towards him. As it glowed his signature dark red magic, he turned around back towards his pets den and his home.
He walked through the forest's prickly paths, ending up with many cuts and scrapes as usual and yet again he vowed to grab some type of hoof-wear even though he knew he'd forget come morn. Rolling his eyes at his stupidity he maneuvered the body around another cluster of trees, grunting at the effort he was going through to bring his pet a decent meal for once.
As the body cleared the tree he thought to himself, how fast it had grown and how, pretty soon it'd probably be able to get all it ever wanted to eat. As the cave came to into his sights he grinned as he saw hints of his pet near the entrance, and then started jogging when it retreated back into the comfort of its cave.
"Come 'ere boyo I got's ya something to eat!" He said happily. Bringing the manticore around to the front of him, and more importantly in front of his pet he sat down on his haunches and watched with glee as his pet slowly extracted itself from the cave. Well partially anyways, but even though only its head came out he could clearly see that it was twice as big as even the largest Hydra, and judging by his estimates it'd double in the next two months.
He watched with fascination as it slowly opened its gaping maw and ate the manticore in one bite, not bothering to chew. Not that it needed to when one looked at the size comparison. It threw its head back to help with swallowing its meal before looking back down at him.
Smiling he teleported onto its head, and started scratching behind its ear. It let out an almost, primal purr, his beautiful pets always liked it when he scratched behind their ears, too bad he had to let his favorite one eat all the others. But when it came to something as rare as this beast, as glorious and deadly, one simply did not complain.
Laying down on top of its head, he let it carry him back inside the cave and watched as it lay down, to sleep on the cold rocky floor. "You don't deserve to be treated like a monster do ya boy?" He muttered to his pet quietly as he too fell asleep with its warm coat and body providing all the hat he'd ever need.