The Queen is Dead...
Proofread by TehSporkBandit
I killed him. It was so simple.
The blade passed through the Gremlin with shocking ease, biting clean through his collarbone and halfway into his chest before stopping just short of its lowest rib. You’d cut through most of its vitals and it had died in a few seconds. But those few seconds seemed like ages, they still do as time ticks by at an indolent crawl.
Sure, the Gremlin had an axe and would have tried to kill you. But you were alive and now it lays in a pool of blood that silently creeps across the floor. There was no surreal red fountain like a box-office movie and it wasn’t some gory display with chunks of red ‘bits’ ripped out like a video game either. It wasn’t like chopping through a block of wood at all, and neither was it done in slow motion. You’d almost jerked your arm into a swing and bright it down, having missed its head which was the original target and… what happened, happened. Acting on the impulse had been easy, but looking over the grim results was hard.
“Hey, c’mon. Suga’cube?” An insistent prod shakes you back to your senses. Applejack’s concerned face hovers almost in front of you. She'd reared up on her hind legs, and now set a forehoof on your chest to stabilize herself while the other gently taps your cheek. The bright emeralds blaze in front of you, but she says nothing more.
“I, oh, Applejack. I’m good, just…” it catches in your throat as you slide a foot back to avoid the creeping tide of crimson spilling through the stone cracks in the floor.
“Nithingers!” A furious shriek booms from the stairwell. “Get back here! Where are they?!” A voice calls from down the stairs. It was certainly not Ulf, but it has a commanding air of authority. The scrambling scuttle of feet subsides.
“Ah guess we ain’t got much time.” Applejack looks back at the door to the stairwell and away from the revolting scene of bloodshed. “Listen, forget about that’n. You an’ Fluttershy go on and fetch Rarity an’ Twilight. Ah’ll hold em up a spell.” The orange mare starts to unwind some of her outer garments.
“AJ-” Fluttershy begins before being interrupted by a hoof clamping over her muzzle.
“Ain't no two ways about it, Fluttershy.” Applejack shakes her head before heading straight for the door. She shuts it with a bang and hops up to brace it with her hind legs. Them’s a narrow set a' stairs. Nopony and no Gremlin’s gonna' get past me, ah aim ta’ keep it that way! Now don’t neither of ya’ll fret none, Bucky McGillycuddy an’ Kicks McGee have got this well in hoof, uh, in manner of speakin’.” She bobs her head in finality.
“Come on.” You reluctantly pull Fluttershy away.
Tremors course along the Pegasi’s spine as you touch her, “The Crystal Eyes… Huh, are we going home? Where are... where are they?” Her eyes glaze over as she stares at the body of the Carrion Lord.
“We’ve gotta find Twilight, bring her right back here. AJ’ll keep them out! Ain’t that right, Suga’cube.” You give the farmpony a wide wink. You don’t feel it, your voice is still shaky and hollow as you try to avoid the macabre sight.
“...Sure as sugar.” The hesitant lack of conviction is just as apparent in her voice as yours. Still, she tries on a smile, but the craggy lines and telling dimness of doubt betrays her.
You set off through the doubled door where the Gremlins had fled and gently guide the Pegasus along. She follows, as if nothing more than a wagon to be pulled along behind you. Fluttershy's legs occasionally cross over themselves, making her stumble and awkwardly plod along at a painfully slow meander.
“Fluttershy, come on, don’t quit on me now. I need you.”
“W-we kil… it was alive one second and we just… we killed…” The kindly Pegasus takes a rattled breath that sets her limbs to shaking as her breath turns to an uncontrolled gasp.
“You did nothing, I killed it.” A shortness of breath grips your chest. You had stood there watching the Carrion Lord’s eyes roll up into the back of its head. You were there when its skin started to turn pale as a grotesque stream sprang from its blood slicked robes. You had even listened to its last choking breath as it spasmed on the ground. What did that mean? You recalled questioning the Gremlins in the loft; there wasn’t too much fundamentally different between them and ponies. Was Rainbow Dash right to look at you like she did? Were you a monster in disguise?
It had been an unforeseen shock, there'd been no accounting for something like this happening. There'd been no question of whether or not she, or anypony else, could take something like that. It had been a mistake, but without her you might have been torn to pieces by those Ravens. Or, worse still, you may have been blinded by the Ravens long enough for the vicious Carrion Lord to tear into you with that axe and leave you bleeding and ripped apart by his minions. No, it was no mistake, nothing more. For Twilight, for Rarity, Fluttershy had to be here, despite the toll it could take on the good natured mare.
Gently tracing a hand over Fluttershy’s withers, you mumble, “C-come on, can’t leave Applejack doing all the hard… all the work.” Your words feel token and hollow, but they are no lie. Still, Fluttershy stumbles against you once before bobbing her head. The sudden shift of weight, even from a slender Pegasus, is nearly enough to topple you. With your nerveless hands and shaking limbs, all that is left to do is gently coo and massage under her jaw before setting out. Now supported, side by side, you resume your awkward advance in pursuit of your friends.
A short hallway lies beyond those doubled doors. Pillars on either side show a great deal of architectural thought; massive stone slabs are held up by equally impressive columns capped in admittedly primitive carving and spiked with wooden gables spanning the length overhead. Up ahead, a giant stained glass window dominates the room, with a bisected staircase leading in both directions left and right. In the jagged and shattered jigsaw of coloured glass, you can see the dull unilluminated picture of a great white Alicorn, with hair as fiery as ruby, head tilted down, and wings tucked in. Around her brow is an amber circle and below it rests an empty throne, flanked by two humans. Both figures are instantly recognizable: Ulf and Olaf, each backed by a host of Gremlins like some Luciferian horde.
You select the left path, just like you had in the Castle of Twin Sisters, far away in the Everfree forest. Heading up the tall, unrailed steps, you look back at the tall narrow corridor. It resembles Canterlot's royal palace; in fact, it feels like a deja vu of your first few moments in that long, sprawling hallway in the depths of night when you’d first arrived in Equestria. That felt like ages ago. However, something else resonates in your mind. This also resembles the hallway Twilight described when she had recounted her vision of Theophilus.
Shaking your head, you look into the open hallway. It is dark, almost pitch black. Unlike the rest of the tower, there are no lights here, just a bank of windows on the right and a half dozen doors on the left. At least, you are fairly certain they are doors, It was possible that they are really nothing more than shallow alcoves. Several shrine-like banks of dwindling candles glint at the end of the hallway, some twenty paces away. They shed very little light, just enough to grant an illusion of a single portrait that, if you squint, vaguely resembles Twilight.
“Wait." you squeak out, surprised at the raspy quality of your own barely recognizable voice.
Clearing your throat, Fluttershy bobs her head and places her cheek against your stomach. A wetness spreads across your shirt as she nuzzles against you, her tears soaking through the fabric. She snorts and whimpers in a far less than dignified fashion, merely waiting for the world she knew to return and whisk away this nightmarish realm.
“Something’s wrong here.” The doors are all cracked open and the suffocating pall of incense lingers heavily in the air, masking some other cloying smell lurking just beneath the sticky pall. Rot. It was just like the first time you'd stumbled across the aery at the mouth of the mountain.
“It’s all wrong.” Fluttershy trails off, but once more nuzzles the fabric as you realize she was just wiping her face clean. She stops simpering and slowly opens her mouth to draw in a few deep breaths.
You look back across your shoulder at the other hallway. It’s lit by torches. “Come on, lets take that o-” raucous shrieks fill the air as flocks of Ravens spew from the darkened doorways. “Fluttersh-”
“You will stop this very instant!” Fluttershy’s voice cleaves through the din, causing an immediate halt as the birds wing down and settle on the unlit wall sconces, the floor and even the door knobs, albeit with some difficulty.
“Go.” Fluttershy sharply commands in stark contrast with the quivering remorse stricken mare from moments before. Her red-rimmed eyes stare at the veritable sea of black birds. “Now.” It isn’t a shout, but it might as well be.
“You need some protect-”
“I do not. We can’t just walk through them and if we let them by, they might go hurt Applejack. Just go. Find our friends.” Fluttershy is speaking sense, but it feels not only risky, but wrong. You are leaving them both, her and Applejack.
They understand, it has to be done. Besides, they’re both fully mature mares, capable and reasonable. They don’t need protection.
The Pegasus flairs her wings, blocking you from view of the Ravens and letting you slip out without being a distraction. There's little choice except to nod as Fluttershy clears her throat and finds her voice again. “You think that you can just pick and peck on whomever you like? Anypony at all? I know what you are, I know what you eat. Each step in nature has its place.”
She breaks into a lecture as you step back, crossing the stairs to the far side and giving the Pegasus one last look. With her legs widely set and wings flared out, she is dug in and wouldn't be moved. Determination. That is her choice, and now you have to make yours.
Stepping foot into the other hallway, it is still properly lit. Every step down that discomforting and now quite lonely corridor is wrong; every panting breath and every footsteps’ echo sounds far too loud. Thankfully, every door in this hall is firmly shut. You are rapidly coming up to the portrait and shrine at the landing of the stairs, a mirror of the same trappings that existed in the other hallway as well. Whether it is the incense, or the parchment script, or the candles and iconographical shrines, the whole upper story is steeped in a liturgical ambiance of a church cloister.
Turning the corner, it goes up only ten more feet, then bends sharply to the right again. As you crest the stairs, you stumble upon a very different world.
You emerge into a cavernous room. Plush bearskin carpets have been strewn across the floor while large wooden couches covered in pelts cozily face an enormous hearth that blazes away with a suspiciously merry charm. Censors hang from large staves on either side of the doorway, the wafting scent is fairly pleasant and masks the scent of death and decay. The room's walls are covered in tapestries to reflect the warmth from the fireplace. The charming incandescent glow that caresses every sharp corner and dulls its rugged features provides a pleasing warmth that your body can't help but be thankful for. The whole room spans the length of the tower, windows are placed at either end, though, their shutters remain tightly sealed A single, monolithic, alabaster door stands in the middle of the room, dwarfing every other display and edifice.
It isn’t until you draw yourself up and move towards the center of the symmetrical room that you hear the low, lilting trill behind those massive doors.
“... When thy blazing sun is gone,
When She nothing shines upon,
Then ye’ show thine little light,
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night…”
The voice is distant but its lilting trill is unmistakable, “Twilight?!” You rush headlong for the doorway, “Princess Twi…” A shadow descends over the far end of the room, cast by a tall figure cloaked in red and clad in brass.
Ulf the Red, the Unicorn Slasher, emerges and even flashes you a wry smile. He holds a rope in his mailed hand, a lead that trails off into the darkness. With a single beckoning hand, he waves you closer to himself. His weathered face is chipped and scarred like a granite cliff face, carved and lined with the weight of innumerable ages and countless experiences. He doesn't stop you, he just tugs the lead taut. A gagged Fluttershy trails along behind him like a pet. You hadn't been gone more than a minute. Was he right there in that hallway, merely waiting for the moment to swoop in like the angel of death?
As you reach for the brazen rings of the door, behind which the song’s melody continues unabated, Ulf’s hand flexes across a narrow stabbing dagger in his waist belt. “I really didn’t think you would come, Angle. By all means, go ahead.” He gestures with the hand holding Fluttershy’s rope lead, cinching the rope taut around her neck, showing where its rough fibres had already rubbed against her throat. “Burst into Her majesty’s throne room covered in the blood and say you’ve come to rescue her from her palace.”
"Palace?" You look down, realizing you were spattered in blood, but the Alicorn was so close. Your friend was just on the other side of the door, but as Ulf keeps the rope halter lead tight, Fluttershy seems so far away.
Ulf wanely gestures towards the door, “Go on. Call her. Alternatively, you can listen to an offer.”
Another rattle and rustle echoes from behind you. A pack of Gremlins slink up the staircase accompanied by a familiar growl. Applejack is shoved into the light, restrained by no less than six rope fasteners around her limbs while two crude iron chains wrap around her waist, each held by a pair of Gremlins who keep her under some token semblance control. A small cadre of grey robed figures lead her along with a motley band of others staying close behind. Some of them look broken and bloodied, nursing limbs, and one in the lead sports a rapidly swelling black eye. Applejack hadn't gone quietly, though it was certainly quick.
Ambushed, you had all been ambushed. The look the mare gives you is readable: her bright emerald eyes narrow and she gazes at the door and nods. ‘Go on! What happens, happens.’
“Well, Ulf," you reply with some caution, "am I just supposed to trust the promise of a murderer”
“Which of us is the one covered in someone else’s blood? I kill, and by that stain, so do you.” He breathes deep and sighs. The giant of a man doesn't revert to some berserker state, his voice remains firm, but still inviting. Instead, he just lets out a small huff of breath as Twilight's humming pricks your senses. “You don’t have to trust me, you only have to listen. I give you these,” he pulls on the lead and then nods to Applejack, “Keep them, sell them, eat them, it’s not my concern. I promise you will leave here alive and unmaimed: no death, no bloodshed, no tricks. Take them, and any creature else skulking around and go. Just give me that axe, and you will come to no harm. Otherwise, I let them decide what to do with you and your animals.” He pointedly stares at the mob of Gremlins.
You swiftly search for a solution, there is just one and it relies on hoping Gremlins are fundamentally cowardly. “I’ll fight you, Ulf. A du-”
“No.” It’s almost too quickly dismissed.
“Are you afraid? Has all that courage leached out like your hair colour?” His eyelid twitches and he grinds his teeth. It is antagonizing him, but to no end.
Ulf jerks hard at Fluttershy's lead as Applejack bucks against her assailants. For a second, it looks like Applejack is about to break free, and she very well may have just as you might have thrown the doors open, had you not seen the glitter of steel. Ulf's lightning quick motion dragged a long stiletto from his belt and pricked Fluttershy's neck. “That's your choice, Angle?” Applejack settles down, seeing the blade as well.
You pray for some miracle, for Pinkie Pie or more likely Rainbow Dash to just appear, to solve all your problems. Seconds pass, but there’s still no divine intercession.
“I’m waiting.” The Viking growls.
You hear your own teeth grind together, it would have been a genuine relief to take that axe and throw it right at the man's head. Mel Gibson could do something like that, but it was really a one in a million shot. You could scream, shout, rage and spit at the man, but looking at the wide-eyed Fluttershy as she jitters and shakes like a leaf, there's little you can do without compromising your friend. Fluttershy finally wavers and crumbles, slumping to one side with a faint gasp of fright. And yet, Ulf keeps a tight hold around her neck, the dagger pressing under her chin.
With a final snarling grunt, you toss the axe to the ground. The murderous blade makes a low thump and stains the dark brown fur carpet where it lands.
“A wise choice.” Ulf’s evident smirk of self-satisfaction is strangely devoid of any particular malice. Instead, he merely walks towards you and sheaths the stabbing dagger in his belt before almost offhandedly gesturing to the cluster of Gremlins, “Escort them to the quarters, prepare them some food. Now that I know you are, hmm, reasonable, I have a better offer for you-”
“Ulf, is that you?” The weak voice of the Alicorn echoes from behind the door, making your heart jump. She sounds worse, ensorcelled, entranced, as if under some foul spell.
“Yes, Lady Sparkle, Queen of Twilight.” His booming reply is respectful, regal, and the small smile that hovers around his face is nothing but genuine. “It is nothing.” He eyes you. You bite your lip, ensuring your silence. “Just a few new house carls. Nothing to be concerned about.”
“… Oh." she replies as if only vaguely concerned, "It’s cold, it’s cold…” the Alicorn princess’s feverish voice breaks the uncomfortable pause.
“I’ll add some more wood and charcoal to the fire, your majesty.” He promises before fixing you with a steady gaze. A pair of armed Gremlins arrive on either side of you and Ulf merely nods before unceremoniously dismisses you with a casual wave. Ulf stoops down to pick up the axe, cleaning the edges on the furs as you are herded back towards Applejack.
Twilight lets out a deep sigh before quietly intoning, “Thank you, Ulf.”