As fast as the purple light had flashed before Kyle’s eyes, now it faded away just as quickly. He felt his stomach twisting from the teleportation, and judging by the looks of discomfort on everyone else’s faces, they were experiencing similar side-effects. Still, they all appeared to have survived the trip unscathed. As his stomach began to settle, Kyle glanced around to take in his surroundings.
They were once again on the surface, standing upon the hard, sun-baked earth that comprised nearly the entirety of the Badlands. A number of large, rocky pillars jutted out of the ground periodically around them. It was significantly warmer and brighter than it had been earlier, indicating that the sun had now risen and been in the sky for some time. However, when he glanced up, all he could see was a swirling vortex of black and white. The sun was obscured, hidden behind the raging energies that filled the sky, expanding in all directions to the horizons and beyond.
And yet, the Sha was not here.
As if answering his unspoken question, a low rumbling filled the air. Black mist seeped from the ground to the south, swirling around itself to form the monstrous shape of the Sha. Where before it had been small enough to fit into the room, now it rose higher and higher into the sky. Its height far exceeded any of the Sha that they had previously faced. It was a behemoth, a colossus of twisted, dark energies.The Sha of Hatred was unleashed.
As the Sha finished forming entirely, Twilight spread her wings. She took a step forward towards the Sha, but paused as a high-pitched hissing filled her ears. Kyle turned his head towards the hissing. From the north, a swarm of Changelings surged towards them.
As they drew closer, Kyle noticed that their eyes were no longer the light blue that he had become familiar with. Instead, they were solid white, granting them a terrifyingly zombie-like visage. This monstrous appearance was further enhanced by their hooves, which had been transformed by the Sha’s energies into horrible, jagged claws. Their eyes stared vacantly towards their targets, their faces dull and expressionless. Uncaring, unfeeling. Mindless.
The Changelings were upon them within seconds, fighting relentlessly to defend the monster who had enslaved their minds and obliterated their independent thought. Though this was clearly not the majority of the hive - there were far too few Changelings for that - they still numbered in the hundreds.
One swooped down towards Kyle, baring its fangs towards his throat. Instead, it found a blade in its own as Kyle raised his staff, impaling the Changeling upon the sharp point. He pulled the spear back and kicked the Changeling’s corpse off of his staff before spinning it around, cracking another Changeling upside the horn.
Around him, his allies were likewise under attack. Twilight’s horn flashed repeatedly as she used her magic to repel her attackers, while Rainbow Dash utilized the same, semi-clumsy movements she had demonstrate in the throne room. Though not as effective as she would be in the air, it was enough to hold her own.
Scootaloo, meanwhile, fought with more vigor than anyone else. Her hooves were fast as lightning, striking with incredible speed and dexterity. Her small size allowed her greater agility, and she utilized it to full effect as she easily took on four Changelings at a time. More often than not, their own attacks wound up harming their allies as Scootaloo dodged and rolled around them. All the while, her visage was that of peace and harmony, never once betraying any fear.
Nearby, the guards and the SI:7 Agents worked alongside Yxia and her Changelings to hold off the majority of the incoming Changelings. Their attacks were swift and lethal - not even Yxia held back against the mindless creatures that had once been part of her empire. The Changeling corpses began to pile up around them as they worked to try to keep as many Changelings away from Twilight as possible.
And yet they kept coming, swarming around the front line to reach the others. Try as she might, Twilight could not break free of the battle. Every time she took a step towards the Sha or tried to take to the air, another Changeling would swoop down and force her to step backwards or fall to the ground again.
The Sha, meanwhile, had begun to set up for the ritual. The Crystal Heart was sat on the ground in front of it, with the five Sha Crystals surrounding it. Already, the faint hum of energy filled the air as the Crystal Heart began to glow once more. This time, it wouldn’t fail.
Kyle felt a pang of fear shoot through him as he too found himself blocked from the Sha by a Changeling. Though he quickly buried the point of his staff in the Changeling’s heart, it was simply replaced by another. And another And another. Panic began to set in as he realized he’d never reach the Sha in time. He tried to force back the feeling of fear, but found that he couldn’t. It rolled off of him in waves as he fought with growing desperation.
He felt his movements slow as he tried to fight on. The fear was debilitating. His movements became awkward and clumsy, and it was almost pure luck that kept him alive as he continued to fight. The Chi would not answer him as he tried to harness its power. His mind became clouded by the fear flowing through him
“I sense your fear, Monk,” The Sha hissed mockingly. “You know the end is near. You know, and you fear it.”
As if to counter the Sha’s taunts, a small voice echoed in the back of Kyle’s mind as he brought his feet up in a Rising Sun Kick to snap a Changeling’s neck. A soothing voice. Soft. Encouraging. Familiar. True courage… the voice said. You know what it is. Why do you fight it?
“I don’t,” Kyle hissed under his breath as his fist pounded another Changeling to the ground. “I’ve tried to hold my fear back. But it’s too much!”
But that is not true courage. The voice murmured. Now Kyle recognized the voice. It was his Master, Cheng. True courage is not fighting and hiding your fear, as you have done for so long. True courage is moving on with your fear. Accepting it, and fighting anyway.
As much as he tried to fight it, his master’s words rang true. He sighed as realization set in. Despite his master’s tutelage, despite what he had taught Scootaloo... he had never once moved on with his fear. Instead, he had always shoved it aside, forced it away. Locked it deep inside, so that he could continue to fight without it. He had fought bravely, but never courageously.
But now, with his fear uncontainable, his bravery had run dry. Fear ran rampant, uncontrolled. He had long ago learned to bury his emotions, but never to accept them. He had always taken the easy road. But now that he could no longer keep his emotions in check, his movements became sluggish, and his mind too clouded to reach out to the Chi that he relied upon. And with each passing second that he struggled with his own inner turmoil, the Sha drew closer and closer to enacting its final plan.
His expression hardened. No. This would not be the end.
So what if he couldn’t force his fear aside? There was nothing to lose here. Would he give in to his fear and watch as the Old God was reborn? No! He growled softly, and despite his fear, despite the pangs of dread and terror that ran through him, he fought on.
Kyle glanced towards Scootaloo, who continued to fight with the same power she had demonstrated time and time again. As much as his clouded mind would allow, he reached out to her and felt for her emotions. Despite the whirlwind of battle raging around them, he finally managed to connect with her.
And inside, rather than the harmony that he saw on her face, he found a maelstrom of emotions.
Fear and dread flooded through Scootaloo as she fought. But it didn’t seem to hinder her. Far from it, she fought with more vigor than Kyle had ever seen from her. Unlike him, she had never buried her emotions. They had always been too strong. But she had learned control, far more than Kyle ever had. Control not to fight against her emotions and shove them aside, but to fight past them and ignore them.
Perhaps he could learn a thing from his own apprentice.
Kyle sidestepped another attack and, despite the fury of the battle around him, closed his eyes. He felt his own fear and dread, and began to instinctively shove them aside, But he forced himself to stop. Instead, he stared his fear dead in the eye. And for the first time, he accepted his fear, and moved on.
And suddenly, it clicked.
It was as if time itself slowed around him. Suddenly, everything was clearer, more focused. His body was faster, stronger, more energized. Changelings were flung from him with frightening speed as he powered through those that stood before him.
“Yes… I am afraid,” he hissed quietly. “But that doesn’t matter. I am a Monk. Fear holds no power over me.”
A large swarm of Changelings broke past the main group of defenders, surging towards Kyle as he threatened to break free. Once again, he found himself surrounded on all sides, cut off from his allies. Alone, with over a dozen Changelings swirling around him.
No. separated, but never alone.
His eyes flashed blue as his connection to the Chi around him returned, stronger than ever before. He felt the energy welling up inside him, and found that he could not contain it. As the dozen Changelings charge at him in unison, he let out a fearsome shout. A blast of jade-green power expanded from his body - an explosion of Chi energy that sent the Changelings flying away from him.
And suddenly, the way to the Sha was clear.
Kyle surged forward, breaking free of the battle. He reached for his belt and ripped one of the pouches free before draining it entirely of its contents. He smirked as the effects of his Tigereye brew surged through him, and he ran even faster towards the Sha. He stretched both hands out to the side, and they both flashed with green energy. His body took on a translucent, red hue, while two copies of him materialized next to him - one green, and one blue. As one, the three copies ran forward towards the Sha.
By now, the flashing light of the Crystal heart had reached a fevered pitch. The Crystals had begun to glow as well, and were hovering in the air as swirls of black energy rushed past them. The ritual was nearly complete. It was now or never.
The red version of Kyle - the real one - leaped high into the sky, his newfound strength pushing him higher than ever before. He raised his spear high into the air as he came back down, and brought it down hard onto the base of the Sha’s spine.
But it did not penetrate. Instead, the point merely glanced off, and Kyle slammed hard into the Sha. The Sha turned its head towards him and sneered. “Pitiful,” it hissed. “That you thought You could ever harm me.”
“Wasn’t trying to,” Kyle smirked as the hum of energy died down.
The Sha whipped its head back towards the ritual in front of it.
The Crystal Heart was gone.
Kyle chuckled as the blue version of him ran back off into the desert, the titan artifact tucked under its arm. The Sha, meanwhile, screamed in rage. It brought one of its legs down towards Kyle, but he was already on his feet and running away.
The Sha charged towards the blue version of Kyle with terrifying speed, quickly closing the gap between them. Just as the Sha caught up, the green version suddenly swept past. The Blue version was crushed by the Sha’s claws, but the green one had the Heart now, and was running directly towards Kyle.
The Sha roared again, and unleashed a geyser of black flames from its mouth. The flames struck the green version, and it evaporated, dropping the Heart. But before the Sha could recover the artifact, the real Kyle was there, no longer red. He scooped the Heart up and ran back towards the group as fast as he could. Behind him, he could hear the thunder of the Sha of Hatred as it barreled towards him.
But Kyle paid it no heed. For the first time, he felt free. Free of the shackles he had always placed on his emotions, free of the burden of fear. Free to do as he wanted.
And right now, he wanted to win.
A pillar of Sha energy erupted directly in front of him, forcing him to dodge around. Though it took less than a second, it was still enough time to let the Sha shorten the distance. Another pillar appeared, and another, and another. Kyle felt the vibrations through the ground grow more powerful as the Sha drew nearer and nearer.
But he was also drawing closer to the battle. Closer to Twilight. If he could get there, the Sha would not be able to approach without risking Twilight’s touch. If he could get next to her, he and the heart would be safe, and the Sha’ plans foiled once and for all.
All at once, an unspeakable pain shot through him. Kyle stumbled and fell to the ground as black flames washed over him, and a scream was torn from his throat as his skin was seared by the Sha’s energies. Despite the agony, despite the fall, he clung tightly to the Crystal Heart, falling on top of it to shield it from the Sha.
Another blast of pain blasted into him as one of the Sha’s claws slammed into his back. He felt several of his ribs shatter, and his breathing suddenly became much more difficult and painful. He hissed in pain, but despite the attack, he still struggled. He reached out and tried to drag himself forward, closer to the battle. Through the pain, he vaguely noted that the skin on his arms was now bright red and blistered from the flames
“A valiant effort,” The Sha hissed, its voice filled with venom. “But futile. None can stand against Hatred. Now, I’ll be taking that Heart ba- Gah!”
Kyle felt, rather than saw, the Sha raise a claw and swat at something flying through the air. “Away, gnat!” Its voice echoed across the wasteland.
“Don’t you dare!” Kyle’s eyes opened wide as he heard Scootaloo’s voice. The crackle of electricity pierced through the air, followed by a pained grunt from the Sha. More electricity, and the woosh of the Sha’s claws slashing through the air at its attacker.
Kyle, meanwhile, continued to drag himself forward. The pain in his chest was sharp, piercing, agonizing, but he refused to stop. Only four hundred yards separated him and Twilight. Three hundred and fifty. Three hundred.
Suddenly, the woosh of the Sha’s claws was punctuated by a cry of pain. Kyle felt a thud next to him, and looked to his right. A small crater ha formed next to him, with a glowing green bubble inside of it. The bubble faded to reveal Scootaloo, battered and bruised and very much unconscious.
A silent scream was torn from Kyle’s throat again as something hard and sharp slammed through his stomach. He slowly realized that the Sha had stepped on him, its spike-like leg punching a hole right through his lower torso. The Sha sneered down at him victoriously. Without a word, its claw reached down and gripped the Crystal Heart. Kyle clung to it weakly, but found it torn from his grasp.
“Now that this little distraction is over, I suppose I’d better finish what I started,” it said menacingly.
Kyle felt his vision growing dark as his blood flowed from the hole in his stomach. But even in the face of death, he refused to give up. It was in his very nature - even at the end, he would never surrender. He reached down and, with surprising strength, wrapped both arms around the Sha’s leg. He closed his eyes and grunted as Jade Lightning surged through his hands, sending millions of volts of power coursing through the Sha’s body.
The Sha yelled in rage and pain and raised its spiked leg, shaking it furiously in an attempt to knock Kyle free. And with Kyle quickly weakening, it was working.. Despite his best efforts, he found himself flung away from the Sha. Several burst of lightning flew from his fingers towards the Sha as he fell away, but even that quickly faded as he fell.
He landed hard on his right side, and felt his arm snap as he hit the ground. But it didn’t matter. He had done his best, and yet still failed. The Sha had the Heart again. His body was broken, and he knew he was dying. But even now, he defied his inevitable end. With what strength remained, he raised his head towards the Sha…
And spat.
The Sha snarled in rage and stormed towards him. The colossal behemoth of black and white energy towered over him. It curled its claws up into a fist-like ball as it stared down at him. “I had hoped to drag your death out, but I suppose you aren’t one to go out quietly,” it snarled. “Your head will make a fine trophy…” It raised its fist over it shead. Kyle closed his eyes and braced himself.
The blow never came.
As the second dragged on, Kyle slowly opened one eye. Though his vision was clouded and foggy, he could clearly see the expression of shock on the Sha’s cruel features. The Crystal Heart slid from its grasp and fell to the ground. From it, a dark mist rose and swirled into nothingness as the darkness that had twisted it faded.
“Game over.” Twilight’s voice, though little more than a whisper, resonated through the air as she removed her hoof from the Sha’s leg.
There was no explosion. No yelling. No cries of vengeance or ‘this cannot be!’. Nothing. The Sha simply dissolved silently into a fine, dark mist. The mist swirled around itself and coalesced into a small, dark crystal, hovering a few feet off of the ground. As the mist faded,, the crystal feel to the ground and laid still.
Hatred, the last of the Sha, was dead.
Kyle heard the galloping of hooves, and soon Twilight’s head popped into his field of vision. “Oh… oh no…” he heard her murmur. “Oh uh… it’s… it doesn’t look too -”
“Don’t lie, Twilight,” Kyle murmured. “I know how bad it is.”
A small, wet drop fell onto Kyle’s cheek. “No… no you can’t… we can get one of your healers over here, they can -”
“Twilight.” Kyle found his breathing becoming more and more difficult. His vision was almost entirely obscured by darkness now. “It’s too late. But it’s over. The Sha are dead. The Crystal Heart is purified. We won.”
“But you… you’re going to -”
“Die. I know.” He let out a small sigh. “But this is how I hoped I’d go down - on the battlefield. Just make sure… that Scootaloo gets a proper mentor, alright?”
“Only the best.”
“Hey Twilight!” Rainbow Dash’s voice echoed over the Badlands. “You did it! The Sha is… what the…”
“Hey Dash,” Kyle called out weakly.
“”Twi, we’ve got to get him to the hospital!” Rainbow Dash’s voice had taken on a new sense of urgency. “He’s bleeding out! C’mon, teleport him or something!”
“It’s too late, Dash.” Kyle’s voice was barely a whisper now. “Half the shit in my body isn’t where it’s suppose to be anymore. Take care you two. And tell everyone goodbye for me… And tell Scootaloo… I’m sorry.” His head fell back and came to rest against the dirt once more.
“Wait! Twi, what if we use the…”
But the rest of Rainbow Dash’s words faded away into nothingness. Kyle’s vision completely blacked out, and his breathing began to slow. His eyes grew incredibly heavy… so tired…. he had to sleep…
Though his eyes no longer saw, his life began to flash before his eyes. His childhood in Lordaeron. Fleeing from the Scourge as they overwhelmed the kingdom. Training as a rogue to fight in the Alliance Army. The countless battles he had fought in, innumerable monsters he had helped to slay. Training as a Monk under Master Cheng. The war in Pandaria, and his role in the Siege of Orgrimmar.
And of course, his time in Equestria. His arrival, his recovery, his introduction to the rest of the world. All of his battles against the Sha and the Changelings. All of the friends he had made. Finding Scootaloo, training her to become the Pony she was now... a small tear leaked from his eye. Now he would never see her at her full potential. He had guided her along the road to this point, but now someone else would have to lead her.
His life had been filled with war and struggle. defined by the very conflicts that he had participated in. Shaped by the hardships of battle. Equestria had been peaceful - a nice change of pace for a time. But he had almost been looking forward to returning to the battle. Returning to fight against the Horde and defend the Alliance.
But that wouldn't happen now.
So this is what death feels like, he noted dimly as his consciousness faded. Not as bad... as I feared…
Darkness consumed him.