The church was one massive room. At the other end of the room was a tremendous statue. The marble statue was of a pegasus mare posing in a angelic fashion. Its right hoof was stretched out to anypony who was standing in the middle of the giant room. Its wings were spread wide in a glorious manner and it wore a long cape that fluttered in nonexistent wind. It was by far the most prominent feature of the relatively empty room. The brooch of the cape was a pink butterfly. The walls added flare to the church with wonderful engravings and stained-glass windows depicting pony refugees escaping the terrors of war.
The warrior walked towards the center of the church. A giant chandelier hung above her, showcasing brilliant pink lights that illuminated the entire room. However, she was not looking at the lights or the statue, but the single pony kneeling in the exact center of the room.
This pony was muttering something to herself. It sounded like a prayer. Her voice was soft and soothing. The warrior could not see her face as she had her back to her. Yellow wings popped through two holes in the pony's white robes. The robes were lined with gold trimmings and made the pony appear almost regal.
As the warrior approached, she realized that the pony was not praying, but singing a tune in her quiet voice. She drew her sword as she knew who this pony had to be. The pony before her stopped singing when she heard the sword be unsheathed. Her head lifted and she turned to see the warrior, showing her light pink mane and her large, worried eyes.
"Yes, warrior?" she asked in her sweet voice. "This is not a place for violence."
"You are the Bearer of Kindness," the warrior began, "and I am here to get what is mine."
Fluttershy turned completely around. Her eyes inspected the threatening warrior. Her lips quivered slightly and she took a deep swallow. The warrior took a step forward with her sword raised. The Bearer did not move and stayed sitting upright where she was. The Element of Kindness was on her chest, glowing vibrantly and pulsing as if it was a heart.
"I knew this would happen one day," the pegasus sighed.
"I want my Harmony," the warrior said.
"Harmony is given to those that deserve it," she replied in a lower tone.
"I'm not asking for it!"
Fluttershy began to breathe harder. "Then take it!"
She stood up and arched her back, spreading her wings. She cried in pain as a dark substance engulfed her. Her high-pitched screaming echoed through the church. The dark substance wrapped itself around her wings, transforming them into massive bat wings. Wicked fangs grew from her teeth and tongue became forked. Her ears grew twice the size they were and long fur reached from the pointed tops. The once delicate eyes became a wild red. Claws grew from her hooves and she scratched the marble floor. Her total size grew, making her rip open some of her robes, but most of it stayed wrapped around her.
"What in Equestria!" the warrior shouted.
The warrior barely had time to react when the Bearer took to the air. Once in the air, she shrieked and dove at the warrior with her claws out. The warrior dodged the attack and readied for another. The batpony pounded the stone floor, cracking it, before letting out another ear-piercing scream.
For the first time, the warrior felt outmatched. Her heart raced not with the fury and intensity of combat, but with fear. The sword in her mouth rattled as she trembled. This monster before her was nothing like she had faced. Why? She did not know exactly. The wings, the fangs, the wicked shrieks all told her that she was in the wonders of nightmares.
Fluttershy's claw reached the warrior, sending her rolling across the floor. The warrior tried to get up, but the monster dashed on top of her and pinned her down. The batpony shrieked once more, sending vile spit across the warrior's face. The warrior struggled to get free, but the Bearer of Kindness held her there. Her jaws went wide, showing her rows of horrific teeth. It was the face of horror.
"Rheeeee!" Fluttershy screamed.
She lifted her clawed hooves up and brought them down on the warrior's torso. Armor and flesh was torn off as the Bearer ripped through her body like it was nothing. Bone fragments were flung to the air along with cold blood and flaps of skin. The warrior let out a howl that made her sword fall from her mouth. She had never experienced such agony. Her vision blurred and all her awareness disappeared. She could not think, she could not move. As her vision darkened, she could only watch the Bearer tear her body apart.
Then she died.
"Listen, my love. Never give up. You know I won't. Equestria can become better. We can overcome this curse. Eleanor, my love, remember our endeavors."
The first thing she saw was her outstretched leg. Embers and sparks gathered around them, forming the familiar shape of her body. Then she could feel. She felt her hoof touch the soft dirt followed by the rest of her leg. Even her armor formed around the legs through the power of the embers.
The warrior used her legs to pull herself forward. The embers were reforming her whole body. Her helmet appeared around her vision and she soon felt its weight. She turned her head to see her body appear from nothing except the small sparks. Soon, she was all there in front of the small fire she had found in the swamp.
"I'm alive?" she looked down at her hooves.
"Not entirely," a voice said next to her. "You've been reborn in the flames."
In a startled reaction, the warrior turned to see Octavia sitting on a log just feet from her. The former cellist had her usual frown as she looked back the warrior's shocked expression. She did not know what to say and waited for the other to speak again.
"Well, you found Fluttershy, didn't you?" Octavia smiled in mockery. "Good on you."
"You went through the cavern?" the warrior asked.
"Obviously. I said I would help you if you got through. I keep my word," she answered. "I see you need help."
"I was caught off-guard. It will not happen again," the warrior looked down in shame.
"Fluttershy became a vampire batpony-thing not long after the curse got here," Octavia explained. "Even with that, she somehow gained refugees for her church. I never understood it. She may look like the nicest pony in Equestria, and she was once, but that is long gone."
"The Firekeeper never told me..." the warrior snarled at the memory.
"Of course she didn't. She just wants you to go blindly slaughtering everything. You need lots of souls to rekindle the First Flame. The Bearer has souls. So that's why I'm going to help you kill her."
"You are?" the warrior smiled in relief.
"I'm a bit rusty in combat, but I think I'll manage. You don't know how much you remind me of an old friend of mine. That's why I like you. Together we can take the Bearer down and you'll get your old body back with her Harmony."
"Thank you."
Octavia shook her head. "Don't thank me yet. The Bearer is still living."
"She's waiting for us," the warrior told Octavia.
The two mares stood before the closed church doors. They could hear the heavy breathing from the batpony monster inside. They could not stand there forever. Octavia took a step towards the warrior and placed her hoof on the rotting shoulder.
"I'll go first. Unlike you, I actually use a shield."
The warrior could only nod.
Together, they opened the church's doors. Their heads faced the beast in the center of the room. They rushed at the Bearer, Octavia in front of the warrior with her shield up for protection.
"Back again?" Fluttershy hissed. "You must know if you keep this up, you'll both go hollow!"
She pounced at the duo. Octavia kept her large shield up and Fluttershy's attack landed straight on it. The Bearer pushed the mare back across the floor. Octavia's armored hooves slid on the marble, making a scratching sound.
The warrior sprung in for a flanking attack. Fluttershy almost instantly turned around, grappling the warrior by the face before chucking her across the room. The warrior bounced off the floor and recovered on her hooves.
"Nice going!" Octavia shouted. "I can't deal with her alone!"
The Bearer screeched an ear-shattering shriek that made both Octavia and the warrior grimace in pain. Like a bolt of lightning, the Bearer jumped at Octavia, who barely had time to react. The mare was shoved into the wall where the monster continued to swipe at her with her large claws.
The warrior saw her companion in trouble and rushed over with her sword in mouth. When she crossed the room and reached the backside of the Bearer, she swung her sword into Fluttershy's lower back, making her howl in pain. Her victory was short as the Bearer backhanded the warrior, sending her once again to the floor.
Fluttershy growled at them as she backed away from the duo. Her fangs were covered in dripping saliva and her eyes were blood red. The blood from her wound was not as much as the warrior had hoped, but the sight of it on the floor was almost relieving. Even a Bearer of Harmony could bleed.
"You don't want to do this!" Fluttershy said in a less-threatening tone.
"Now you beg when you find out you're mortal," the warrior chuckled.
"I mean it..." she uttered.
The warrior charged at the bleeding monster. Fluttershy dodged the attack by flying into the air. She let out another hellish shriek. While she flew up towards the church's ceiling, Octavia stepped in front of the warrior holding her sword straight up in her hoof. The sword began to glow yellow with sparks of lightning jumping off it. She reeled it back, letting the surge of power grow, before swinging it forward and unleashing a large bolt of electricity at the monster, knocking her right of the air.
The Bearer crashed into the floor, where she hissed like the beast she was. The warrior looked at Octavia in bewilderment. An earth pony that could perform magic? Even in her faded mind she knew this was absurd.
"How did you-"
Octavia silenced her. "Knowing a skilled smith has its rewards," she told her. "Now get back into the fight!"
The wounded Bearer held her ground in a corner of the church. She gnashed her large teeth at them both. Her actions made her seem fierce, but her eyes displayed concern.
The warrior led the charge, but jumped back as Fluttershy leaped at her with her wide mouth. It was like approaching a cornered wolf. Octavia tried to charge up another lightning spell, but the Bearer was ready this time. The monster pounced on top of Octavia clawing some flesh and armor off her.
"Gah!" Octavia screamed.
The warrior stabbed the Bearer in the leg, but this time, the Bearer did not squeal. Instead, the Bearer just turned her focus on the warrior. She knocked the warrior to the ground and bit onto her right back leg. Like a wild animal, Fluttershy began to shake her head about, trying to rip the leg off completely. Bits of armor flew off the warrior as she was whipped back and forth.
"Help!" the warrior shouted as she desperately tried to hit the beast with her sword.
Octavia slowly got up, clutching her side as blood poured out from under her armor. "Can't let it happen again..." she muttered to herself. Her sword started to glow again. A bolt of lightning flew from the tip, striking the unsuspecting beast. Fluttershy shrieked, letting go of the warrior's leg in the process.
The warrior was quick to take advantage. She got up and stabbed her blade into the belly of the Bearer. Fluttershy lost all strength at that instant and her body fell on top of the warrior. It did not last long as the Bearer clutched the warrior and slammed her straight into the floor.
The beast walked away from the two mares. Blood trailed her as she tried to free herself from the fight. Once far away enough, she sat down on her haunches. Her claws wrapped themselves around the Element of Kindness. The crystal butterfly began to glow brightly. As the Element glowed, the wound on her stomach and her back began to heal. The separated flesh met each other and not even a scar was left. The Bearer had healed herself completely.
"Damn it!" the warrior shouted and slammed the floor. "What does it take to kill her?"
"We need to be patient, "Octavia told her. "We'll have to kill her in one swift move if she can heal her wounds so easily."
Fluttershy let out another screech, telling them that she was reentering the battle. With her being fully healed and the two warriors both holding their wounded body parts, the fight seemed awfully one-sided. However, the two mares refused to give up. They held their swords up and readied to commence the battle once more.
The beast crept up to them, her back arched like a lion on the prowl. Her white robes slid along the cracked floor. Her clawed hooves stepped in the blood that had once poured from her torso. Her eyes shifted from one mare to the other in anticipation.
Octavia held her shield up front with her sword glowing at her side. The undead warrior strafed away from her companion to get into a better position. Any second the beast could attack them and they waited eagerly for that very moment.
Fluttershy swiped at them suddenly with her claws. They both rolled away in opposite direction to avoid the sweeping attack. The Bearer decided to focus on the warrior and dived for her. The warrior was quick and jumped directly backwards to dodge the assault.
Octavia swung her blade at the backside of the beast. The sword contacted no flesh and only chopped the Bearer's long tail off. Fluttershy bucked at the mare, but her hooves only met the protective shield. Octavia held her ground.
The warrior dashed in, taking a mighty swipe at one of the Bearer's front legs, giving it a nasty gash. The mare then ducked as she rightly predicted the Bearer to send a claw her way and it sailed harmlessly over her. The warrior followed with an upward strike that sliced open the Bearer's right wing.
The screech from the batpony shattered the glass lamps on the church's walls. Her senseless shrieks stunned the two mares as they placed their hooves over their delicate ears.
Blood coated the floor more than ever. With a scratched leg and a torn wing, the Bearer once again sat in a praying position, her hooves over the Element of Kindness. Octavia was the first to see this bold move by the monster and charged with all her might. She sent her sword straight into the side of the Bearer, who squealed loudly, unable to complete her healing ritual.
Octavia, however, was not prepared for what happened next. The Bearer took her clutched claws and slammed them squarely on Octavia's head, sending her whole body into the floor. The clash of the metal armor on the stone floor was a sharp noise that instantly had the warrior's attention. Octavia's face was flat into the ground and her body lay there without a single movement.
"Octavia!" the warrior shouted.
Fluttershy took hold of the sword in her side and forcefully pulled it out. Seeing the warrior before her, she chucked the sword at her. The flying blade was knocked to the side by the warrior's skillful movement. Seeing that it was now one-on-one once more, the Bearer crept forward to settle the battle.
The warrior felt her heart race. She could feel the blood rushing through her veins. It was an unfamiliar sensation. Never before in her short memory had she felt so alive. As the Bearer painfully made her way to her, the warrior lowered her head and tore at the floor with her hoof. This was it, she thought.
"Another Champion of Ash come to ruin!" Fluttershy hissed. "Another contender that fails to rekindle the First Flame. You will be forgotten like the rest!"
The beast's mouth was hanging open, showcasing her rows of horrifying teeth. The warrior was not perturbed. The feeling of fear had left her. Octavia, her companion, was motionless on the ground, a victim of the beast before her. Seeing the pony in such a state angered the warrior and she bit harder on the handle of her sword.
With a sudden sprint, the warrior galloped right at the Bearer of Kindness. The beast responded in kind by reeling up and sending her claws at the pony. However, the Bearer was a half-second too slow and the warrior's sword dug through the chest, straight into the heart. Blood splattered out and the beast could only watch in horror.
The warrior kept digging the blade deeper under only the handle stuck out. She felt the claws of the Bearer on her flanks, but they lacked the strength to penetrate her armor. She was almost fully blinded by the blood that now smothered her face. However, she could see the pink crystal right in front of her eyes. With a hoof, she took the Element and ripped the necklace off the Bearer.
"You don't know what you've done..." the Bearer pleaded, "Do not kill me....I am an agent of Harmony..."
As she said this, her beast form began to diminish. The claws retracted into now normal pony hooves. The Bearer's size also shrunk to what it was before. In a matter of long moments, Fluttershy was nothing but the pegasus the warrior had found.
"Please..." Fluttershy begged. "I am not your enemy!"
The warrior pulled her sword out. "You have contradicted yourself enough, monster. The time for mercy has long passed."
At these words, Fluttershy fell to the floor and died. Her body was sprawled out and her eyes stared blankly at the high ceiling. Then, her body began to disappear in embers and the souls she possessed were transferred to the warrior. The mare could only sigh in pleasure as the souls enveloped her and calmed her.
It was not only the souls that gave her strength, but a new, powerful sensation as well. In her hoof was the Element of Kindness, now a dark and shadowy pink instead of its vibrant color before. This new sensation not only made her feel relieved, but seemed to broaden her mind. It felt like a sudden revelation that now made unclear things, understandable.
"Is this Harmony?" she asked the Element.
In the corner of her eye, she saw Octavia's body and instantly remembered about her companion. In a short burst, she ran over and leaned over the mare. In a panic, she violently nudged the pony to register some sort of reaction.
"Octavia! Octavia!" she called.
After a moment, she did gain a response. One of Octavia's hooves slid across the floor, but no sound came from her. The warrior did not know what to think of this action and decided to flip her over on her back. In doing so, she saw Octavia's bloodied face. At first, the wounds looked severe, but the mare's smile told otherwise.
"Oi, that was a pain," Octavia chuckled. "Let's not do this again for a while, eh?"
"I agree on you with that," the warrior smiled back.
"Wow, you're beautiful," Octavia said almost absently.
"What? How is this beautiful? I'm rotten!" the warrior gestured to herself, but paused upon seeing a clean hoof covered in bright white fur.
"You're not rotten anymore," Octavia said. "Look in my shield."
The warrior took Octavia's shield, which was laying a few feet from her, and gazed excitedly into it. Its reflection told her something she never thought she would see. The mare that stared back had almost perfect facial features and vibrant sky-blue eyes. Matching blue hair escaped her helmet. She was amazed by her own looks and stared speechlessly at herself from some moments.
"You look awfully like a pony I knew once," Octavia spoke up to pull the warrior out of her trance. "Well, you fight like my friend too."
"I'm sure she was incredible then," the warrior remarked.
"Indeed," Octavia nodded. "Indeed. Warrior, do you have a name?"
The warrior frowned. "No. I still don't remember."
"Then can I name you?"
"Yes," the warrior smiled. "Yes, you may."
"From her on, my friend, you are Scratch. I'll call you Scratch."
"I like that name," Scratch looked back at herself in the shield. "I like that name."
~~~