Oathbound

by ChronicleStone

Prologue

That miserable Chimera. Just couldn’t keep its mouths shut, could it?

A lone cloaked figure paced the floor of the dark room. The rain and wind smote themselves against the lone window, as though they themselves wanted to get in from the bad weather. And as the lightning flashed and the thunder boomed, the strange notion came to him that the storm was an appropriate fit for his current temperament.

Everything was going so well. I had the means and the power. But of course, something just HAD to go wrong. Nothing ever goes exactly according to plan.

He went to lick his dry lips only to find that his teeth were clenched shut in frustration. With an effort, he managed to pry open a gap just wide enough to moisten his lips and provide a few moments of relief. But as he began to retract his tongue, an earsplitting blast of thunder broke his concentration, and his jaw snapped shut before he was ready.

“Gah! Ow…” He brought his hoof to his mouth instinctively. Upon inspection, he was grateful to find no traces of blood. Not that such a discovery improved his mood.

“It was that pegasus,” he continued aloud, attempting to forget the stinging sensation in his mouth. “Somehow, he managed to find a way. And not just once, oh no,” he said as his body visibly tensed. “But three times he managed to survive! And the last time, he destroyed my little pet. But not before it had gone and betrayed me!!!!” He slammed a hoof to the floor, shaking several pieces of furniture. All around him, the storm echoed his frustration in a deafening salvo of thunder blasts.

He paused, suddenly calm. “That pegasus—the Council’s pet—now he’s in the Guard. And he’s on high alert for trouble, thanks to my little turncoat monster.” His crooked smile flashed white against a dazzling bolt of lightning. “Some might view that as a setback. But I think that it’s just what I needed.”

He walked to the window, where the intermittent light was broken by the streams of rain as it entered the dark room. The clopping of hooves on the floor was nearly lost amid the roar of the rain. “This is the greatest opportunity my family has had in hundreds of years. And I will use it.” Another blaze of lightning lit up the room. And as it faded, it appeared as though the stroke had kindled a flame in the eyes of its lone inhabitant that did not go out.

“I will not fail again. This time, nothing will stop me.”

The sky exploded as a dozen strokes of lightning fell at once, followed by a tremendous crash of thunder so violent that the window broke its lock and flew open, causing the figure’s long robe to rise up in the wind. He felt the power of the storm around him. And yet, it was nothing compared to what he would achieve.

“Princess Luna, you will have your revenge.”

Comments

[light snow]

If almost seems like this has a prequel