Chapter nineteen
While the short flight out towards the Ever Free Forest to go on a hunt, doesn’t take a pair of winged ponies no more than an hour or so. A rather ticked mare, extended this towards the near setting of her dear sister’s sun, with the help of several fast fly byes of the colt in travel with her as she ignores his pleads all together. Letting out some of her pent up anger in the form of several choice spells that would dazzle any pony, or creature close enough to see them.
The shower of sparks, and colors from the simple enchantments doing more so to put her mind at ease than to cause any sort of real damage. Being that they aren’t aimed towards anything particular, and are left to detonate in the air harmlessly. Though even her in this state of silent anger, after she left Midnight without a word sense their departure of the castle. The colt himself, has still not managed to realize that the best thing he could possibly do right now. Is to allow her to let it all out.
Not tap her on the shoulder in midflight, as Midnight catches her hovering enough to do so, “Luna…Can we talk?”
Even the mere sound of his voice in the princess’s ear, after his foolish act, causes her to lash out at whatever she can at the moment, and in this case, it would be the ground below. A dark blue aura encapsulates her horn, and in a few seconds a single cobalt beam laced with strands of pulsating aqua light and sparks, rockets down towards the forest floor. Impacting the surface with a small crater left over, before the energy buries itself in to the soil. For a moment, everything is quiet. The only sound that fills Midnight’s own ears is the soft breaths of Luna panting after an exertion of a spell at that magnitude. Though before he can say anything to try and calm her down.
Part of the forest floor is lifted up in to the air several feet from the enchantments work.
Uprooting many of the foliage, which lies around the impact point, without any effort. Then after a split second, the spells energy dissipates in a torrent of sparks, dropping the forest floor in one go. Trees snap in half as they fall back to their original positions, and the weight of themselves becomes too much for the trunks and various branches to handle. All the while, the sparks start to ignite the twigs that remain there as kindling. Quickly lighting up the tinder, before it jumps to the trunks with help from the magical kick start. Even from his position high up in the air, Midnight can see the thick clouds of smoke rising up to meet himself and the princess. Deciding that he better take care of this problem before it gets out of hoof, he flies in amongst the fuming forest.
“I’ll take that as a no,” the colt shakes his head at the fault of his own self, watching what it has caused her to do out of sheer frustration.
Taking a deep breath, the colt fills his lungs to their max capacity, before clenching his lips nearly together. Pouring some of his magic in to his lungs, Midnight releases the torrent of breath infused with a spell from his very being. While the icy embrace of his enchantment starts to engulf the area in a frozen mist, putting out the fires in a pillar of steam. Though all of this, to fix what he caused, has its own effect on the colt. The use of such magic puts even more strain on his feeble mind, as Midnight shakes his head at the awareness of one he wishes he didn’t hear from again anytime soon.
‘Well you sure seem to be having quite the effect on the princess, now don’t you?’ The voice of his longtime companion calls out.
“That’s putting it lightly, Shard. Did you really have to come back?” Midnight rams his head in to an oak. Thrashing his cranium about against it, while kicking himself still for not only ticking off the princess, but choosing to use such strong magic when he is already weakened from earlier, “Now of all times too.”
‘Well did you expect me gone so easily?’ Shard chuckles back at the colt. Mocking his every attempt to rid his mind, and body of the one he shares it with. ‘After all I have to say that you can’t try that blasted trick of over loading yourself now. The forest is a dangerous place after all. Especially for a mare to be watching over the unconscious body of a colt by herself… princess or not,’ the steady flapping of wings, beckons Midnight to turn his head back around from its wooden punching bag, ‘well speak of the devil.’
The graceful form of Luna, flutters her way through a puff of steam. Still just as attractive as he noticed the other night, even when she’s the one sending him a death glare. Midnight hasn’t a clue how to suppress her anger at the moment, especially when she is willing to set a forest on fire just to make a point. The only thing the hapless colt can think of, is too simply bow his head in respect for the one before him. Though with his eyes to the ground, Midnight can never see the slight smirk on her face while she walks closer to him.
‘Even when he is at fault for the whole thing…’ she holds her tongue, ‘He still shows nothing, but respect. Even if it isn’t for his own safety…’ The night mare argues amongst herself. Knowing full well that she should be mad at him, but unable to hold that sentiment for long, “rise now, Midnight.”
Her words are met with nothing but compliance, as he stands on all fours with no further thought on the matter. Midnight’s golden orbs remain flat, showing not a single trace of emotion in them. Luna’s attempt to gaze eye to eye with the colt, only results in her craning her neck up to meet him. Though Midnight does not return the favor, only giving a thousand yard stare through the forest itself. That she would have expected if she had addressed a guard, while they stand at attention.
“Look at me,” She commands, as he glances down for only a moment to take in her cerulean irises, “Better now.”
A strong wing swings around her petite frame, and meets Midnight’s cheek as the feathers she is adorned with, act like a whip against the soft coat. Even after taking another hit from the princess, the colt does not move an inch, and only stands there and takes it. After several more hits from the likes of the princess’s wings. Midnight can certainly feel the sting rising up more and more, with every successive hit, as the blood rushes towards his cheeks for a reason he is less than pleased with. Though towards the end of it, even Luna has had enough. In the wake of her letting out some of her frustrations, a single tear beads down towards the ground from the lunar princess, as it falls to the dirt now cracked up from the heat of her previous spell.
“Why… Why did you think you needed to impress me?” The monotone voice, which is normally so soft and sweet, runs the blood in his veins cold. Leaving Midnight to pick himself up mentally, to formulate an answer.
‘Come on lover boy,’ the snickering of his unwanted companion remains all too real in his ear.
“I just wanted to impress you, princess. A small part of me wanted to push my limits a bit to see if I could with stand the abuse also, but…” His vision never departs from hers during his entire sentence. Noting the subtle changes in her demeanor the more he explains, “…I wanted to show what I was capable of. Even I don’t know sometimes what my gift can do, and to have a pony who doesn’t take it as wicked magic. That has had an entire village chasing after me with pitchforks, and torches,” Midnight pauses to recall some of his less than stellar times, “Well… I’m delighted to see that twinkle in your eyes that you got when I was casting spells, and I just wanted to see it again.”
The mare only takes her travel companions words in to heart for what they really were, the truth. Luna knows that it wouldn’t be hard for one such as Midnight to drain himself with his special gift. Having that happen is just as much of a danger to himself as it is to those around him. Pushing limits is understandable, unicorns do it all the time. But impressing? That is something that Luna is new to having another pony try and do for her.
‘He shouldn’t have,’ she mutters to herself.
The light sound of a graceful hoof lifting from the ground, beckons Midnight to wince, having not expected another hit. Though now fully embracing the next one to follow, as his muscles go tight. Said hit never comes though, as the same hoof comes to rest on the side of his face while Luna rubs in slow circles to ease the pain that she caused him with her wing. A light smile coaxing away some of his strain in the wake of her outburst.
“You really have been around for a long time, if they were using pitchforks and torches…” The slight message of understanding in her voice seems to break up some of the silence around them from the crackling of wood and embers. The wondrous orbs of hers mellowing out a bit even in her speech.
“Does that mean-?” Midnight wonders for a moment, before her eyes turn furious once more.
“Oh I am still mad… but that doesn’t mean I can’t ease some of your burden,” She motions him for a stroll in the forest, while they stick to the shadows.
In reality the princess hasn’t a clue what they came out here to hunt. Only hoping to find some sort of red meat to fill him. Still the search does give her time to chat, “You have nothing to try, and impress me over Midnight. After all you can do things that I haven’t see any pony do before,” The gentlecolt holds a branch up for her while they pass through the foliage, “Thank you kindly. I never underestimated your gift, after your little demonstration while back at the empire with the pitcher.”
“Really now?” Midnight reads some of her tells on her face.
“Okay maybe once, or twice,” She rolls her eyes at him while trotting ahead a bit, and forcing him to catch up, “Though it didn’t take long for me to see that there was more to you then, and now.”
“That sounds more like it,” He says proudly. Lightening up a bit after being scolded by royalty. The still enraged expression shows clearly in her eyes. Although at the same time a simple flicker in there of a concerned mare, lets him know that it is all for the better, “you’re never going to let me live this down. Will you?”
“Nope!” The mare gives him a light kick in the hind leg, “Now I hope to never have you reminded of this mishap, and leave it at that,” She sticks her muzzle up in the air in a prudish manner while walking with him, “I understand that sometimes a unicorn must be pushed to the limits, and in the end they may be hurt for doing so… but let’s not go seeking that, shall we?”
The first chuckle for him to give her comes out of Midnight’s throat finally, as some of his worries melt away from just the sound of her voice. However, any attempt he may have to speak on his own behalf is cut off. When Luna starts speaking on a matter she had hoped to fill him in on while they were back at the castle.
However, his current condition forces her hoof now, “Though I may have an idea how to correct your problem.”
“You didn’t go to bed last night when we parted, did you?” Midnight already puts together.
“Well… maybe just for a little,” She keeps up the coy attitude with him.
Luna launches in to a full explanation on how the patching of his mind could allow Midnight to control his magic so he isn’t at the whim of it more often than not. The colt is fed all sorts of information about the dark magic she, and her sister use, but aren’t harmed by it. His weakened mind being a possible cause, and solution to it all. On top of that Luna goes in to several cases where ponies lost their minds while trying to master the dark arts, but not being able to cope because something in their life broke them on the inside as well. Allowing the corruption to fully take over.
“Patching up your mind may work, or it could blow up in our faces. I don’t know,” Luna shrugs, “Whatever it may be, it’s better than nothing right?”
“You certainly make a point…” he mulls it over, “Though I can’t think of where to start.”
“Oh don’t be such a sour puss-” A playful shove to his side from her doesn’t even move the colt at all, while Luna instead just pushes herself a few paces off to the side and almost in to a bush.
“Oh sorry was that meant for me?” Midnight holds a hoof to his chest while teasing the bashful mare. Both of them going silent for a few seconds before bursting out laugh again. Each sharing the same blood filled cheeks with one another.
‘You two are just so cute together,’ another two cents from the ego maniac in his mind, is thrown in.
“Oh hell,” the golden pair of eyes roll about in the colt’s skull, while he is reminded again that they aren’t completely alone.
“Midnight?” Luna can tell the displeasure in his face from a mile away. Much less right next to her, “What’s the matter?”
“He’s back…”
Luna knows instantly what he means. Having already experienced the colt when he has completely lost it, “Are you still…sane?”
“Don’t worry Luna,” Midnight eases her own burden the same way she did his, “Just dealing with Shard’s voice.”
‘For now…’
Any more conversation in the matter is cut off when Luna takes a few rapid steps forward. Getting to the edge of a small stream before jumping across, and turning back towards the colt with a pained expression on her face as she balances on a fallen trees stump, “We better get you something then, and fast.”
________________________
After wandering about for an hour or so in now the long sense dead of night. It doesn’t take the two long to find something to make their late night snack. Just a small group of deer that have managed to find a slightly grassy spot in amongst the trees next to a cave. For the pair this is a rather lucky find, considering that many other creatures would have long laid to rest for the night, but with winter still fast approaching. Some of the late bloomers of the fall still try to stock up on whatever they can get their hooves on.
‘If it wasn’t for the fact that one of them is going to die, this might just be a picture perfect moment,’ Luna ponders while the golden pair of eyes shifts left and right at each one.
After being through many hunts on his own, Midnight knows all the signs to look for when choosing a member of a herd to kill. What looks hefty enough to fill, but not get away? Are any of them sick looking? Do they have young? Which ones look old? Going through the usual checklist with himself his eyes instantly click on to a single deer standing slightly away from the rest of the group. Nudging her in the side he motions the mare to the one that he has chosen to bring down. With only a nod, Luna knows exactly what to do. Though she didn’t bring any blades, seeing it better to actually just use the more modern method of magic. Quick, simple, and clean of all things. Luna puts a simple enough spell in to her mind to cast out. One that would instantly immobilize her prey, and allow them to close in to finish it off easily.
“Sorry about this,” She mutters under her breath.
“Gotcha!” The mare hears yelled out near her.
A red blur rushes by out of the woods from a bush. Propelled even faster by the mighty flapping of the leathery appendages. The deer Luna had in her sights is crushed under the colt’s weight as Midnight wraps his bat like wings around the deer’s form to hold it in. Any scream that it tries to let out, are cut off when the colt’s pair of blackened fangs dig deep in to his prey’s neck. The knife like additions puncture the flesh easily, tearing through the tissue, and blood vessels as the life fluid starts to spurt up, and over in to the colt’s mouth. The pure ecstasy of having another creature’s blood running down his throat. Sends Midnight in to a blood rage as he lifts the deer still clinging to life with the sound of gurgles in its throat from its own blood pool, and drops it flat on its back.
Shattering some of its bones under the impact, the crunch fills the night air and the ears of the princess there to watch this. The shocked mare steps out of her comfort zone, after seeing a creature brutally killed. Not something she is unfamiliar with. After all she has done her fair share of violence in the past, and killed many in some pretty spectacular ways.
Though when it comes to the hunt she is used to either a quick kill with horn, or blade. The limp body lies at the colt’s feet now devoid of all life after it was painfully ended. While Midnight bears his fangs mere inches from its gut. Ready to take the first dive in to something that he finds himself craving more when it’s so close to him. In the heat of it all though, his blood hazed vision leaves him well aware that he isn’t alone there.
Luna stands there flabbergasted at what he had done, watching him only turn around awkwardly with few words coming to mind, “I ahh get like that when I’m hungry.”
“You need not explain,” She holds up a single hoof while trying to return her face back to normal, “I certainly have seen worse from some of my lunar guards while they would feed.”
Surprisingly the colt takes a side step. Letting the mare take full view of what he did to the animal. Though instead of diving in to it, Midnight offers it up fully to her, “Would you like to take first pick, ma’am”
“Hardly the time to fall back to being a gentle colt,” Luna sniggers at his act of generosity of the most grueling kind. Her own lips start to drip saliva from the anticipation of the tissue touching her tongue. Even if it isn’t cooked, after all, she and her guards would just eat it raw if they were too hungry to wait, “Though, still just as sweet as can be… I must-”
A growl from the cave next to them draws their attention away from the fresh meat of the kill. Readying themselves for whatever may come out of the cave in the middle of a forest, known for its variety of creatures that would love to gobble up any pony that dwells in here for too long. The lion like body of a large male Manticore comes out of the cave growling, and snarling at the pair. Having the same issue of hunger, the creature was hoping to make a member of the herd its own dinner. That was until its ambush got interrupted. It allowed the ponies to do the killing to make his job easier in the end. Plus as far as the blood thirsty animal is concerned. A deer body, and two ponies is better than maybe nabbing one deer at most from the herd.
Making a second decision. The Manticore decides that getting the seemingly easier mare would be better than trying to deal with the colt too. As it dives head long towards the princess in a quick pounce, baring its fangs and claws in front of it. However, it has seriously underestimated the blossoming protective nature that Midnight has towards the lunar princess.
“Don’t even think about it!” A bloodied hoof, both in a metaphorical sense, and literal, makes contact with the lion like jaw. Enough force is put in to the swing from the powerful colt, to knock out a fang, and even send the creature spilling over in to the ground stunning it for a moment. Midnight turns back to Luna, who stands there in a trance at the suddenness of the actions, trying to figure out what exactly is going on at the moment, “Luna! Get out of here!”
Snapping too at seeing the Manticore standing back up. The lunar mare leaps back in to action, scraping her hooves against the ground, “Fat chance!” She sneers back at him.
Her horn glows bright as it lets out her own blizzard of ice. Wrapping it around one of the claws that it extends towards her, and freezing it solid. The following up buck from her hind legs, wounds the creature even more as the solid ice block, shatters to pieces while only parts of bone remain sticking out while the flesh is frost burned closed. The penetrating screech latching out from the Manticore’s throat reverberates through the night air, as it swipes right back at the mare with its good paw. The agile princess manages to dodge the first swipe and the claws with it, but a follow up from the club of a limb now does her in. The blunt side strikes Luna in her own ribs, and causes her nimble frame to skip across the ground like a stone rolling down a bumpy hill for a second. Before coming to a restful stop against a tree.
“Luna!” Midnight calls out after her, but no response is heard. The impact had knocked her out for a second.
A second they really can’t afford right now, as the hungry critter draws in further for the kill of the easy target lying there flaccid on the ground. The stampeding Manticore charges at her with its jaw hanging low ready to latch its fangs around the pony before it, completely ignoring the pain in its own limb as it still uses the stump.
“Hey you!” It hears the colt yell out towards it.
Turning around, and not even bothering to close its mouth. The overly sized cat gets more than it bargained for, as the colt dives straight down his throat with force and in to his gullet with an audible thump being heard after hitting the back of its guts. The collision in to the creature’s stomach even sends the Manticore back a few feet from the intrusion.
“Midnight!!!” Luna screams to him after coming too just in time to see the colt’s tail slipping past the mandibles.
The only one now keeping the princess company is the stumbling Manticore, while it wobbles about on the ground, clenching its gut at the stallion’s intrusion in to its bowels. Whatever that colt is made of, certainly isn’t agreeing with his stomach. The eerie gurgling in the lower intestines teems higher, and higher as it works its way up. As the temperature does the same. Clasping a paw, and stump over its mouth. The only result is a massive burn to his paws pad as emerald flames make short work of his throat, and mouth. The internal organs don’t fare any better from the angered colt inside going to work on them, toasting everything in his path with a gout of envious flame. Not being able to take it anymore, the Manticore falls over to its side with a dull thud. Only a pair of smoke trails rise up from his nose while the eyes start to char away, and turn to ash. Luna rushes over to the corpse. Listening in to catch if there is any movement from the one that literally dove in to the belly of the beast.
“Can you hear me?! Are you there?!” She pounds her hoof against its chest, “Midnight bucking answer me!”
Not soon after that, a blood covered hoof of the colt punches through the skin, and rips a whole big enough for him to fall out. To which he does right in to the open hooves of the mare with him, while he drains the fluids out of his nose, mouth and ears. Coughing up blood that isn’t in fact yours, is something that no pony could see themselves doing. An interesting thing to experience, but not one that Midnight looks forward to doing again any time soon.
“Easy now, let it all out,” Luna pats him on the back like she would Snow Bolt when he was younger, or Rosebud even more years ago, “How do you feel?”
“Well for flying down the throat of another, and being eaten,” The blank expression even under the red hue tells her all she needs to know on that matter while he just rest his head back on her chest, “I’d have to say, not half bad.”
“Okay poor question, sorry.”
“It’s not the worst you could have asked,” He winces from the experience.
Not so much the idea, but the magic that drained from his body did not help his pervious state. Now far wearier after using a fire spell while inside to cook, and more, or less eat his way out of the new kill. The meat may be in his system after he chomped away to work himself out, but that doesn’t mean the darkness can’t try, and fight back before it’s absorbed in to his blood stream. Midnight’s eyes flicker from their forgiving golden color to the hated solid black as he loses it. Along with his touch of reality, as he has only his old companion to fill his ears of his blackened vision from not the night time atmosphere, but the view inside a dark canvas of his mind.
‘You can’t hold on forever,’ Shard taunts him. Managing to still have some sort of grasp while it antagonizes the colt it harbors in, ‘I can even feel you slipping.’
‘I should also be gaining my strength back soon from what I ate,’ Midnight snickers back at him as best he can.
‘That may be true, but it won’t work forever you-’
‘Midnight!’ Another sweeter sounding voice cuts Shard off as it enters the fray in a sort of internal battle with the other, ‘Stay with me now! You’re still in there, I know it!’
‘What is this? That blasted mare again?’ The fading voice starts to whimper more, and more, ‘Well I was going to say that Luna was a cute one. Though she is hampering my fun, ergo… I dislike her,’ Midnight can all, but picture the snooty image of Shard’s darkened form, ‘I will see you… again.’
Snapping back to reality, Midnight finds himself still in the fore hooves of a wonderfully close mare that called him back from the storm. The soft whimpers of her cheek against his, quiet breathing of her chest pressing against him with every intake, and even the slight wetness on his side as she sheds the occasional tear for him. All beckon the colt to follow the light back to her night time embrace.
“Please Midnight… Come back,” Luna clenches her teeth to hold back a tide of emotions, “You are still in there. I know it… Just… come back to me.”
“Don’t worry…” She feels the embrace returned to her, while one of his massive wings wrap around her light form, as they both sit up better, “I’m not going anywhere.”
“You’re back!” Luna squeezes out whatever remains of breath from Midnight’s lungs. All but crushing him in her hooves.
By sheer desire, and not thought alone. Luna leans in and plants a simplistic, but all too compassionate, kiss on the colt’s cheek. Ironically, the one she beat earlier for what he had done. Just from that touch, Luna feels the rising heat in Midnight’s coat. Completely ignoring her own, while she allows the subtle spark to pass between them in this moment of bliss and fantasy. Once her mind has finally caught up with her lips though. Luna retorts her advance, while at the same time trying to suppress urge to do more. As she leans back from him, and strains to almost get away.
“I ahh… well…” Her fumble is only met by a slight chuckle from the colt, instead of the shock she was expecting.
“You know, if it’s my place to say at least,” Midnight takes a moment to add that last bit in, to cover his bases, “You’re cute when you lose your ability to speak.”
“Ohhh… you,” With a good hearted shove, she gets back up to her feet while attempting to hide the massive Rosie red cheeks she now wears. Helping him up afterwards, they turn their attention back to the corpse of the Manticore, “So… what do we do?”
“Well… it is cooked after all…” Midnight laps his lips at the smell of the simply charred flesh. Having not gotten his fill when he was on the inside, and being robbed of eating the deer earlier for the most part.
“…And I’m starving,” Luna feels her stomach growl, just as much as the Manticore’s did before meeting its demise, “It has been over a millennia sense I’ve had Manticore.”
The light batting of her eyes is all the colt needs to hear, or see, as they both look at one another, and just nod in agreement. After all, it would be far more wasteful to leave it out here to rot. On top of that, to look for another thing to eat takes up to much time, and they are fairly tired after all. No use flying back home on an empty stomach.
Considering now they need to not only make it back to Canterlot tonight, but also carry a dead deer along with them for a snack later. So for now, the two gorge themselves on a meal that was not really intended, but will hit the spot just as much as any. Though the company is better than the cut in this case, even if they are both now the color of a rose from snout to hoof. Though not all of that is because of the blood on their coat, as much as it is the blood under it.