//------------------------------// // I Live? I Explore // Story: I Serve... // by LE_MALEM //------------------------------// Chapter I: I Live? I Explore Location: Aiur - Protoss Temple Remains Lightning filled the skies of the Protoss's homeland of Aiur as Artanis, hierarch of the Protoss, was struggling with his inner Khala. He knew that Amon, the false God, was taking control and yet he continued to resist. "I... I can hear his whispers" he said as his friend, the Dark Templar, Zeratul, arrived. "Fight, Artanis. Do not let Amon consume you!" He exclaimed as he started walking towards him "He has corrupted the Khala! Your nerve cords chain you to his will. They must be removed." As he said that, he rushed towards Artanis, his verdant warp blade unsheathed, targeting the hierarch's nerve cords, but Artanis suddenly parried with unusual crimson warp blades. He then turned his head, eyes crimson, uttering in a dark tone. "No." As he unleashed malevolent psi energy around his body. Zeratul's reaction was quick as he blinked away to safety. Artanis, now fully controlled, leapt with the intent to murder his old friend, only for Zeratul to momentarily retreat. The latter saw the opportunity to strike those nerve cords after a missed attack only to fail by a hair's length. That failure costed him as he was grabbed by his neck. "This body, all Protoss, are mine." Amon said through the high templar's body as he threw him to the nearest debris and struck him with red psi energies. "I shall shatter this corrupt cycle. You shall not stand against me." he said menacingly. Zeratul slowly stood up, panting heavily. He knew what must be done. He knew he had to do this in order for the Protoss race to live freely. He got onto an aggressive stance, warp blade ready. "My life... for Aiur." he uttered as Artanis launched towards him. Waiting for the perfect moment, both templars clashed into one final strike. Zeratul fell but not without slashing Artanis's nerve cords off. Amon was in agony as he was forced out of Artanis. The latter snapped out of the mind control, only to listen to Zeratul's dying words. "The Keystone... will guide you... to the Xel'Naga." as the mighty warrior finally fell, his green eyes shut as he was picked up by Artanis, who couldn't look at his friend turning into dust in front of him. "Zeratul" he said, looking at the piece of cloth flying away from his mouth. "Forgive me." But as he looked back, he noticed something abnormal: His warp blade disappeared as well. His blue eyes couldn't believe it. A Protoss who passes on does not disappear with his blade. Unless... "Zeratul? Are you... alive?" He questioned as he looked into the stormy skies of Aiur. He somehow knew his friend was alive, but how is he alive and where? These are questions he didn't ponder on. He was the hierarch of the Protoss. He had the ultimate responsibility of saving his people. Wherever Zeratul was, he will find him sooner or later. Location: The Void "Zeratul" a voice was speaking as the dark templar's body was floating into emptiness. "Wake up, Zeratul." The prelate's eyes snapped open as he instinctively drew his weapon. To his surprise, he remembered his fight with Artanis, the moment he got struck, the agony of passing, yet he didn't feel dead. He looked at his blade, astonished on how it got placed into his arm. He touched his face: His cloth magically appeared back into his mouth. "I... live?" he questioned out-loud. "Yes, you do... Zeratul." the voice spoke to him again. Zeratul turned around only to see a mighty creature behind him. A gigantic tentacular creature with multiple black eyes. "Do not be terrified, Zeratul. I am Ouros, one of the last Xel'Naga alive." "Xel'Naga?" "Yes. I am also the one responsible for many things. Such as using your friend's hologram in order to transfer my prophecy towards you." Zeratul was in shock. He thought that his friend Tassadar was somewhere all this time, but it was just an illusion. "What am I doing at your presence, mighty one?" he asked. "As I said, I am responsible for many things. One of those things is saving you from certain death. After all, I could never let my messenger die that easily." "At least I would've died a warrior's death!" Zeratul snapped, probably for the first time since he killed the Matriarch "I wasn't granted even this?" "Do not worry, young Zeratul. Your quest is far from over. I am weakening, dark one. Amon's presence is growing stronger into the Void and I do not have much time." "My quest isn't over? What do you mean by that, Xel'Naga?" "I know what will happen to Aiur, to your people, Zeratul. And their fate is now into your hands." As Ouros's voice started fading from the void, Zeratul tried to reach him but only to disappear in a cloud of dark void. "All... shall be revealed... dark one..." the voice of the mighty one echoed. Location: Unknown Zeratul appeared from the void, falling on the ground heavily. The fall itself didn't cause him pain but he squinted his eyes as the sun was beating heavily on these lands. "In all my life, I have never seen a sun so intense. I feel revitalized" he thought as he woke up to scan his surroundings. There were trees everywhere. Greenery and fertile soil dominated these lands as creatures unknown to the dark one appeared. Zeratul never felt so safe all his life. It is as if the Xel'Naga created this heavenly place to be their eternal sleeping grounds. After checking his surroundings, he checked his equipment: Cloaking device, operational. Warp blade, ready. Shields, active thanks to this planet's sun. He blinked from tree to tree, feeling the breeze passing by, but he knew he was wandering aimlessly. He needed someone to guide him through this place. He turned his cloak on as he walked cautiously through the thick woods. "HELP! SOMEPONY, ANYPONY HELP ME!" he heard a distress scream echoing all over the forest. Someone was asking for help in such a peaceful place? Nevertheless, he decided to check what was going on. Location: Froggy Bottom Bog - Fluttershy - 3rd Person Fluttershy was a pony whose responsibility towards animals did not only limit to the animals of her cottage, but towards all the animals of Equus. The Froggy Bottom Bog's frogs needed to return to the Everfree Forest so they needed to migrate back. As usual, Fluttershy was there to help so she brought her cart and loaded the frogs after locating them. She was happy to see them in plain form as she flew, carrying them. But something sinister slipped out of her mind: In the middle of her flight, a figure stretched its neck towards the sky and snapped its jaw at the pegasus's cart which broke, letting all the frogs fall into the swamp. The sheer force of the jaw also made Fluttershy propel to the nearest rock. Snapping out of her confusion, she looked upwards as four huge shapes were looking towards her: It was the bog's hydra, coming for revenge. Fluttershy was petrified in fear, with nopony near her, she knew that she would be the hydra's snack. Despite all that, she unleashed a desperate cry for help. Zeratul - 3rd Person Zeratul arrived at the source of the cry: He saw a four-headed monster cornering whatever his friend Raynor call an equine in their planet of origin, but this particular equine was yellow with light-pink mane and wings. At first, he assumed that it would be an act of nature for the predator to chase its prey. But as he turned back, he heard the scream again. "That small equine is sentient?" Zeratul thought, surprised. He blinked towards the creature, slicing off one of its necks. The creature didn't flinch as its neck fell into the ground in front of the little equine. Fluttershy - 3rd Person Blood was flowing from the sliced neck as Fluttershy gasped, eyes shrunk. Somepony was going to save her but she didn't approve of the method. She looked up only to see... nothing at all trying to save her, nothing but a green hue slashing all other three necks one at a time. All of the hydra's heads fell over one another as she feared the worst was yet to come. Zeratul - 3rd Person Zeratul was valiantly fighting the multiple headed creature. He noticed that it can see through his cloak as its other heads tried to eat him alive, only to blink from head to head and slice them all in one clean swipe. He saw the body slump and fall as he sheathed his warp blade. He looked at the equine who was shocked, trying to mutter something between her teeth. "I-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-it's not o-o-o-ver yet!" Zeratul barely heard that but he saw the equine pointing at the dead body; the body was actually moving on its own and suddenly eight heads popped back. "Regeneration and multiplication? Even the Zerg do not regenerate that fast." thought Zeratul as he was panicking. He went back into the fray, slicing off another head, only for two of it to grow in its place. He kept slashing, hacking and thrusting his blades, but to no avail. The creature actually grew heads back faster than he could ever slash. Zeratul got tired quickly. "I will not die here to some abomination. I shall end this once and for all. En Taro Artanis!" he yelled, grabbing the attention of the equine who was terrified by his deep voice, even though he knew she could not see him. Zeratul then unleashed his dark powers, creating a void prison on that creature. Time froze around it as he threw singularity spikes towards its body. As soon as the prison ended, the creature let out a deafening roar as it exploded from the inside out, letting streams of blood that made the swamp crimson red. Fluttershy - 3rd Person Fluttershy resisted the urge to faint as she sadly looked at the state of the bog. The hydra's bloody remains were entrapped in her memory forever. She slowly approached one of the dead heads, and tapped on it, crying. "I am so sorry." she whispered to the hydra's dead head. She then dug a hole and buried the dead hydra's head. The frogs came out of the swamp, bloodied. She rushed towards them and washed them all one by one. Zeratul - 3rd Person Zeratul couldn't believe his eyes. The equine who was going to be eaten is caring too much for her predator more than her own safety. She didn't even care to wash the blood out of her coat. He saw her carry those little creatures on her back and wings as she went off. "It was the only way for me to save you." he uttered. The equine turned back to see the source of the voice, only to see nobody, but this time she took the courage to answer. "Your methods were extreme... whoever you are... but... I do not know how to feel... its death was... unnatural..." she sobbed. Zeratul tried to comfort her by stroking her mane. She felt it as she started crying again. "You have seen death before, yellow equine" Zeratul said "But to experience death and see it are two different things. I am sorry for giving you such an experience." Fluttershy - 3rd Person His deep voice didn't matter to her anymore. The feeling of her mane being stroke by somepony/creature she cannot see was weird indeed, but nevertheless it was comfortable. "I... thank you for saving me, whoever you are" she said "You must be tired and lost. I-if that's okay with you, I will guide you to the nearest town." She couldn't depict his expression but his voice was indeed distinct. "That... would be helpful. It would feel safer to reveal myself later on when we reach population." the deep voice declared. "It would certainly will. Now, if you please, follow me" she replied as she trotted away "By the way, my name is Fluttershy." "I am called Zeratul." the deep voice introduced itself as she trotted, looking back down, she saw its muddy footprints: They weren't anything she ever saw in Equus. She needed answers: She needed her friends.