//------------------------------// // Chapter XXII // Story: Papa Gehrman // by SolidArc5542 //------------------------------// “It is time.” Gascoigne looked down at his freezing white knuckles. His almost sickening purplish veins were clearly visible, beast blood being pumped through them by a heart that is darker than the night itself. Slowly nodding his head, Gascoigne looked up at Sombra, his eyes hidden behind the pieces of bandages. “Will this plan be successful?” Gascoigne asked the evil king, earning a grim chuckle from him. “Of course it will,” Sombra replied. “It is my plan, after all. Once we reach and penetrate the magic barrier that is preventing me from entering my Empire, we will commence our combined attack. We will head straight for the Crystal Palace without getting sidetracked. Whatever they say to you, whatever they do to you, you will run straightforward. Is that clear, Gascoigne?” “You could not be any clearer,” Gascoigne replied. “What shall the body count be?” he asked, tapping his axe. “Whatever pleases you. Once I gain control over the empire the first thing I will do is making sure there will be a successor to the throne… perhaps even two, if I feel the need for it.” Sombra replied, grinning wickedly. “I see,” Gascoigne mused, shaking his head. “You never had a wife? Never had children?” he asked, getting Sombra to look down at him, confusion written on the king’s shadowy face. “I never felt the need for it,” Sombra replied. “I thought my reign would last for all eternity. I always considered myself a force to be reckoned with, and I was… I still am. But everypony makes mistakes, right? Well, my mistake almost cost me my life.” “And why is that?” Gascoigne asked, tilting his head. “From what you have been telling, it sounds like your Empire was taken from you.” “And it was,” Sombra replied. “A long, long time ago, I was known for my unbendable will of steel. Nopony dread to oppose me. For if they did, they would be beaten into submission… or face the consequences of their betrayal. I was a stallion who did not talk very much. But I always got what I wanted, one way or another I always did. No matter who stood before me, I stood my ground.” “But someone beat you into submission, right?” Gascoigne asked, crossing his arms as he felt the icy snowflakes of the frigid outskirt of the empire slice against his exposed face. Someone defeated you and they took what was rightfully yours.” “If you call two against one a fair fight, then: Yes, they did take what was rightfully mine.” Sombra replied. “There were two?” Gascoigne asked. “Yes,” Sombra replied. “Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Along with Princess Cadance; they are the only three Alicorns living in Equestria. One raises and lowers the sun, while the other does the same thing for the moon. Celestia and Luna defeated me… by fighting unfair and dirty. One attacked me from the front, while the other attacked me from the back. I held my ground but I was ultimately defeated. Those cowards are not only treated as royalty, but also as some sort of heroes. While in reality they are cowards. Oh what I wouldn’t give to fight against one of them. Just to see what the outcome might have been had it been one versus one. Then I would have won, I am sure of it.” “Spineless cowards,” Gascoigne spat at the king. “I have faced against many foes. Normally they would try and overwhelm me by force, but I would never submit. I slaughtered them one by one. I killed them because they deserved to. Because it was my duty. But on some occasions I would get a fair fight. Oh I can still smell the scent of freshly cut meat, blood oozing out of it as I continuously slashed down upon my foe. I only stopped when I grew tired, or when my wife called me home. Then, and only then would I stop hunting. Heh, but I would never quit, much to my wife’s irritation. She always told me to stay at home… but I never listened. I always shrugged it off and went outside. I would meet up with my fellow comrades and we would hunt until we bathed in their blood.” “Who’s blood?” Sombra asked in interest. “The blood of old. The blood of beasts. Whatever name it has been granted, blood is still blood. And once you taste it, you will yearn for more,” Gascoigne replied. “And so did I. I still yearn for more blood at this very moment, but I try to suppress it. For should one be consumed by their lust for blood…” Gascoigne trailed off. “Then you will turn into an abomination that has no place in this, or any other world. And when that happens, others come to bring you down.” Gascoigne looked down at his feet as he silently laughed at himself. “It’s funny once you think about it. It’s basically an endless cycle. You hunt, you taste the blood, you get overwhelmed by your bloodlust and you turn into a monster… and then another one hunts, fated to have the same outcome.” “Quite depressing,” Sombra remarked. “I like it.” Gascoigne turned around and looked off into the far distance. Having laid his eyes upon the magical barrier protecting the Crystal, he turned to Sombra once more. “The barrier will not stop me, and when it is destroyed, we will conquer.” “We will,” Sombra replied. “Now make haste, Gascoigne.” Nodding his head, Gascoigne turned around and started to walk away from the evil king. Was this the right choice? Perhaps not, but it was his only choice. A hunter must hunt, a hunter must kill, a hunter… must complete his mission. And he was about to do that. ‘So you are allowing your thirst for blood to take over. You would rather kill than to let live?’ “Get out of my head, Formless Oedon.” Gascoigne snapped at the form-lacking Great One. “I have a duty to fulfill. A family to return to.” ‘You would be satisfied, returning to your family as a cold-blooded murderer?’ Oedon asked, his voice full of skepticism. “Cold-blooded? I like that,” Gascoigne chuckled as a reply, shaking his head in a dismissive, yet sarcastic way. “You see I have always been interested in hunting. Ever since I was a child my father always took me with him when he went outside, hunting for our next meal. You see my family was very poor, and unfortunately for them I wasn’t their only child. I had a brother and a sister, and we all had to fight for our lives. Every day was a new struggle for us. Sometimes our father would get home drunk; sometimes it’d be our mother. Heh, either way we always ended up with a few cuts and bruises... But that is what made me into the man I am today. That so called ‘cold-blooded’ aspect you mentioned earlier. Courtesy of my father.” Gascoigne chuckled grimly. ‘I see,’ Oedon replied, sighing to himself. ‘But what you are doing will not bring you any closer to your family. It will only be your downfall.’ “I have had enough of your failed attempts of talking me out of my mission,” Gascoigne said, gritting his teeth in anger. “Don’t try and talk me out of this. I will not stop until I have laid eyes upon my wife’s face once more. I will not stop until I can cradle my children into my arms once more. So leave me alone.” ‘Very well,’ Oedon replied, chuckling to himself, ‘But please promise me one thing. When you and the so called Great One: Sombra have concurred the Empire, please ask him this question: What color is my wife’s brooch?’ Gascoigne did not reply as he continued to walk forward. His eyes fixed upon the magic barrier, the hunter was filled with determination he quickened his pace. Gehrman rested his hands on the railing of the balcony that he was standing on, his eyes fixed upon the empire as he scanned the area for any evil. It had been one or two hours ever since Twilight and their friends had decided to leave the Crystal Palace. The old hunter truly hoped that they would find something useful. But something kept bothering him. It was the thought of another human in this world. Was it another hunter? Or worse: A human gone mad. Either way, Gehrman had to put them down if they posed a threat to either him or his friends. Friends… that word meant so much to him… he almost forgot what it truly means to have friends. Looking back at the balcony’s exit, the old hunter couldn’t help but overhear a conversation between Shining Armor and Princess Cadance. They were talking about a fair. Why they were discussing such a strange topic under these dire circumstances he had no idea. ‘Whatever it is, it is probably important,’ Gehrman thought to himself, smiling as he leaned on the balcony’s railing. ‘I am growing too old for this. I hope that when all of this is over, I might finally be able to get some well-deserved rest.’ Gehrman was shaken out of his thoughts when Shining Armor walked through the door leading to the balcony. Setting foot on the balcony, Shining nodded his head to Gehrman. Walking towards the hunter, Shining spoke up. “I have some good news. Twilight and her friends are preparing fair. Apparently this fair will bring out the love and light of the Crystal ponies and protect the Empire against the darkness. They’re preparing the fair as we speak,” he said, walking over towards the railing and peeking down at the Empire. “Matter of fact, I think they’re almost finished.” “I see,” Gehrman replied. “So this fair will keep evil at bay? Quite interesting.” “Indeed,” Shining replied. “Hey, Gehrman. Can I ask you something?” Shining asked, turning to Gehrman. “Of course, Prince Shining.” Gehrman replied. “How does your kind deal with evil?” Shining asked. “Well, there are many ways we humans deal with evil. But the most common way—at least in Yharnam—is to hunt it down. We hunt down evil and when we finally find it, we kill it, ridding the world of it and making sure other are safe.” Gehrman replied. Shining raised an eyebrow at the old hunter. “Is that the most common way of dealing with evil?” he asked. “The evil in Yharnam is something that cannot be bargained with. No fair will stop this evil. The only way to stop it is to end its life. Prince Shining, in my days as a hunter I have seen many of my comrades—ones who I considered family—fall before my eyes. Maimed by beasts until their bodies were unrecognizable. What has happened to Cadance is nothing compared to the horrors I have seen. I had to tell someone’s wife that her husband had died, and that the only thing we were able to retrieve was his eye. Think about that for a second. Could you tell someone that a loved one has died, and bear to watch as they fall to their knees, bawling their eyes out in front of you as their hot tears stain the ground underneath them? Could you bear to watch someone fall apart from the inside?” “It’s hard to give you an answer to that question,” Shining replied. “Since it has never happened to me. I’d have to be in the same position you were in that day to know if I have the courage to tell someone something that horrible.” Gehrman nodded his head, understanding the Prince’s answer. “Trust me, Prince Shining. When you have done it one time, it eventually becomes easier. For me it became a daily routine. I never felt the slightest emotion, nor compassion for the woman who had lost their husbands… and I scolded myself every time it happened. Even when some of my hunters laid in my arms, drawing their last breath, asking me if they were useful for mankind, I did not show any emotion. I always told them that they were useful… but deep inside they all knew I was lying. I was just too blind to see it at the time. I loved my hunters, treated them like family, but something inside me died and… I just didn’t view them as family anymore. I viewed them as… expendable.” “Wow, that’s… unexpected.” Shining commented, earning a chuckle from Gehrman. “Indeed it was, my friend,” Gehrman replied. “But I eventually regained my senses and felt compassion for a little while… I just wasn’t the same man as before, and everyone knew it.” “I see,” Shining replied. Taking a quick glance at Gehrman’s hip, the young Prince continued. “Hey Gehrman, mind showing me that sword of yours?” Nodding his head while smiling at the young Prince, Gehrman un-sheathed his Burial Blade. Raising the blade, Gehrman made a few swift, yet elegant slashes at the wind, his sword cutting through the air, sweeping noises coming of it. “Such beautiful craftsmanship,” Shining said in awe, staring at the blade. “Who made this?” “I did,” Gehrman replied with a hint of pride. “Amazing. Simply amazing,” Shining said, never taking his eyes off the blade. The slashing continued for a little while, until Gehrman noticed a lavender blur in the corner of his eye. Stopping his slashing and sheathing his blade, the hunter turned to the lavender blur. “Twilight,” he said, bowing his head to her. “How have preparations been going?” “I have some very bad news,” Twilight said, teleporting the book which she had been carrying with her ever since she had found out about the fair and how it would fend off the darkness. Flipping through the pages, the young unicorn reached the last page of the book. “There’s a page missing,” she said. “Is that a bad thing?” Gehrman asked, raising an eyebrow. “It is probably the author’s note, or something.” “No, it’s not,” Twilight replied, smacking her forehead as she sighed in frustration and defeat. “I know now what the Crystal Heart is. It’s not the fair that defeats the darkness; it’s the heart. The heart is fused by the power of the Crystal ponies. But we haven’t got it. We don’t have the heart.” “Then we must find it immediately,” Gehrman said. Before anyone could reply, a loud moan like roar echoed through the Crystal Empire. Everyone turned their heads to see the barrier fading away, revealing the frigid outskirts of the Empire. Shining rushed inside, already knowing something was wrong with his wife. Twilight soon followed him. Gehrman was about to follow as well but stopped himself from doing so. Placing his hand of his blade’s hilt, the hunter looked off into the frigid outskirts. There he saw it. The shadow from before. The evil king Sombra. “So you have arrived,” Gehrman said. He was about to turn around and run down to fend off the threat, until the magical barrier suddenly reappeared, blocking out the evil king. Gehrman shook his head as he rested his hand beside his hips. The threat was gone… for now. “Gehrman!” Gehrman quickly turned around and saw Shining Armor rush towards him. Panting heavily, the Prince spoke up. “Cadance fainted, but she’s all right now. Twilight is going to search for the Crystal Heart, but I fear that it might be too late. Gehrman, what I am about to ask you is something I would never ask anyone… but it has to be asked. Would you serve as the first line of defense against Sombra?” “As the Prince request, I shall obey,” Gehrman replied, walking past the young Prince. “We just have to hope Twilight gets to the heart before Sombra does.” “We can only pray that she will, Gehrman.” Shining replied. “Do not pray for a miracle, Shining. It is what caused the death of many Yharnamites.” Gascoigne stood in front of the magical barrier protecting the Crystal Empire. Looking up at the icy sky, the hunter nodded to himself. “It appears there is a slight change in plans,” Sombra said, appearing behind Gascoigne. “You will go in first. The barrier is still strong enough to withhold me from entering. Go to the Crystal Palace and find Princes Cadance. Once you find her, kill her and every single pony who tries to protect her.” Nodding his head, the hunter dashed forward and ran through the barrier, ready to face off against anyone that dared to stand in his way of reuniting with his family.