Chapter 2
Darkness. All he could see around him was complete and utter darkness and nothing or nopony else as far as he could tell, which wasn’t very far since he couldn’t even see his hoof in front of him in this darkness.
When he woke up, he found himself floating aimlessly in this dark void. He didn’t know where he was, how he got here or how long he’s been there. All he could remember was that he was fighting the Khalai heretics on Zhakul but he couldn’t recall how the battle ended. The only other thing he could remember was that he needed to return to Umoja and back to Orchid Dew’s side no matter what.
Unfortunately, since he couldn’t remember how he got here in the first place he didn’t know how to leave this place either. Nevertheless, that didn’t stop him from trying as he started looking around for a way out of the void. But after what felt like several hours, which was hard to tell due to the darkness, he wasn’t any closer to leaving this Celestia-damned void than he did when he started!
Frustrated and disheartened by his fruitless endeavor, he was about to give up on seeing his beloved wife ever again when a light suddenly appeared in the distance. Having been in the darkness for an extended amount of time, he was blinded by the sudden brightness as he instinctively closed his eyes and turned away.
He eventually adjusted to the brightness and slowly opened his eyes to get a better look at this mysterious light. It was of a brilliant golden hue, reminiscent of the many beautiful sunrises he witnessed growing up on Umoja. The light pulsed in a rhythmic fashion similar to that of a beating heart, which put him at ease as he felt the feelings of doubt and despair plaguing him being washed away.
Thinking that the light could be a way out of this darkness, he started, for the lack of a better word to describe it, swimming towards the light. As he headed for the light, he thought about Orchid Dew who was probably waiting for him back at their homestead on Umoja but as he got closer to the light, he started having second thoughts.
He believed that the light was his best and only chance at escaping this darkness but part of him told him that it won’t lead him to his wife. Deciding that discretion was the better part of valor, he turned away from the light and started moving away. However he didn’t get very far when he felt something stopping him dead in his tracks.
He looked back and gasped when he saw the light turning into an ominous green hue as the pulsing became fast and erratic, which filled him with a feeling of fear and dread. He tried to escape but the same force that held him in place was now pulling him towards the light. He struggled as hard as he could against the invisible force though it did nothing more than tire himself out, as he was steadily dragged closer and closer to the light.
As he was pulled closer towards the light, the pulsing grew even more erratic as the light became even brighter than before. His eyes watered from the stinging brightness and screwed his eyes shut but the light easily penetrated through his eyelids, causing him to cry out as he was blinded. He covered his face with his forelegs to shield it from the light but it merely grew brighter in response. And it kept growing brighter and brighter until he couldn’t take it anymore…
…and screamed.
He stopped screaming when he opened his eyes and found himself no longer being pulled towards a light but inside a large glass capsule. After he calmed himself down, he looked around the inside of the capsule, which had many magic markings that glowed dimly around him. He wasn’t a unicorn so he couldn’t understand what they do.
However, the capsule itself reminded him of the healing pods the Order of the Dawn used to heal Crusaders who were injured in combat so he assumed that he must have been injured during the battle on Zhakul and was recovering inside one. Though the capsule was filled with a strange swirling mist that clung to his body was new to him.
Putting the mystery of the mist aside, he wiped the fog off the glass and looked through it. His eyes widened when he saw several rows of more glass capsules lining the walls of a massive chamber. Each one exactly the same as the one he was in. Some of them were filled with the same strange mist inside his own capsule but they held nopony inside them
His ears twitched when he heard the sound of hoof steps in the distance and turned to see a yellow unicorn mare wandering through the chamber. Judging from the emblem of the Stars and Moon on the robes she wore, he knew that she was a mage from the Order of the Arcane and was probably the best pony to get some answers from so he started tapping on the glass to get her attention.
The tapping worked as the mage turned around and let out a frightened shriek when she saw him inside the capsule. He was confused by the mare’s reaction but guessed that he would be startled too if he had turned around and saw a random pony staring right at him. He opened his mouth to apologize to her for scaring her and ask why he was inside the capsule.
However, he was surprised to find that no sound came from his mouth. At first, he thought that his throat was just dry and tried to say the same thing again but realized something was wrong when he couldn’t hear any sound from his mouth, not even a cough. He knew he wasn’t deaf since he definitely heard the sound he made when he tapped on the glass so he touched his throat to see his something was wrong with it.
The mage, who had been watching his actions so far, realized that he was trying to speak so she approached the capsule and fired up her magic as she did something to the capsule that caused the runes inside of it to glow brightly. He winced at the brightness as it reminded him of the light from his dream and asked the mage to stop before he realized that he just said something.
With the ability to speak again, he first apologized to the mage for startling her before he asked where they were and how long it would be before he would be well enough to be released from the healing pod. The mage became confused by his question and asked what made him believe that he was inside a healing pod.
He told her that he was injured while fighting the Khalai on Zhakul and blacked out shortly afterwards before waking up in the capsule, which resembled healing pods used by his Order so he logically assumed it was one. The mage then shook her head before she hesitantly informed him that the capsule wasn’t a healing pod at all. It was actually a containment capsule for the souls of fallen Crusaders and that he was dead.
At first, he thought it was some kind of dark humor on her part and laughed a little before insisting that she tell him the truth but the mage told him that she wasn’t joking. Tired of the charade, he demanded that she drop the act and answer his questions from before but the mage insisted that she was telling the truth. He became angry at the mage’s lies and swung his hoof at the glass, but when he struck the glass, his hoof dispersed into a cloud of mist just like the one in the capsule.
He let out a terrified scream before he pulled what was left of his leg away from the glass and stared at what remained of his leg. Mist was flowing around the stump where his hoof had been but was surprised when the mist started gathering around it. He watched in horror and disbelief as the mist flowed into the stump and formed into his hoof. He flexed the regrown limb and felt exactly the same as his old hoof.
He then gasped out in pain and clutched his head between his hooves as his memories of the battle on Zhakul flooded back into his mind. He remembered the heretics ambushing his squad and of the Templar he had slain with his Rune Saber and the Templar who shot him. He moved a hoof to his chest as he recalled the searing heat he felt when he was shot and was left to die in the mud.
The mage lowered her head and said how sorry she was for his demise but he didn’t hear the rest of her words as he fell to his haunches as he came to terms with his ‘conscription’ into the Eternal Legion. He thought he would be more distraught over this but he knew that this would happen when he became a knight though he never expected to die in his very first battle.
Now, he was fated to fight and most probably die repeatedly in the Vatican’s crusade against the Khalai until the day his contract expires. Unfortunately, since he died so early on in his military career, it would be many years before he would be allowed to pass on into the afterlife. It was a truly bleak future for him.
His thoughts then turned to Orchid Dew when he remembered how he had called out to her in his final moments. He was saddened when he realized that he had left her a widow at such a young age. The only comfort he had was that in exchange for his indentured service to the Eternal Legion, the Vatican would provide Orchid Dew with a stipend to live off of so in a way, he could still provide for her.
The mage pulled him out of his thoughts when she asked him if there was anything that she could do to help him cope with his recent death, but he turned his head and said that he just wanted to be left alone with his thoughts. The mage obliged his request and turned around to leave but just as she was about to leave, he called out to her and said there was something she could do. The mage smiled and asked what his request was.
He told her that he wanted to see his wife again.
However, the mage shook her head and explained to him that a soul must serve in the Eternal Legion for a year before they were allowed the privilege to have visitors. The rule was put in place to ensure that newly conscripted souls wouldn’t be tempted to desert the Legion to be with their loved ones. This also gave them an incentive to fight harder for the Vatican’s cause.
He asked if she could make an exception for him but the mage shook her head again. She informed him that only an elder had the authority to make such exceptions and she was a mere acolyte so she couldn’t fulfill his request even if she wanted to. He then asked if she could at the very least, help him write a letter and deliver it to Orchid Dew for him.
To his relief, the mage said that it could be arranged as she conjured up a pen and blank piece of paper with her magic. Putting the pen to the paper, she asked him to say what he wanted to say to his wife and she’ll write them down for him.
He closed his eyes and imagined himself standing before his beloved Orchid Dew, who was crying her eyes over the news of his demise, which caused his heart to ache even more. He first greeted Orchid with his pet name for her, his ‘Precious Flower’, so that she would know that the words in the letter were truly his. He then told her how sorry he was for not keeping his promise to her. He wished things could have turned out differently as he wanted nothing more than to hold her close and never let go. He knew how much she wanted to have a family together and watch their foals grow up, find love and have foals of their own. He was sorry he couldn’t make that dream come true and hoped that she would find it in her heart to forgive him for breaking his promise to her and that-
He paused when he heard the sound of sniffling and opened his eyes to see the mage trying to choke back her tears and failing miserably at it as her tears dripped to the floor. She dropped the pen and paper in embarrassment when she realized he was looking at her. The mage apologized for her behavior as she wiped the tears off her muzzle with the sleeves of her robes.
He smiled at the mage and assured her that there was nothing to apologize for. He admitted that he actually felt touched that she would shed her tears for a complete stranger like him and for that, he was truly grateful. He then bowed his head to the mage in gratitude, leaving her flustered at the gesture.
After she regained her composure, the mage thanked him for his kind words before she retrieved the fallen letter and pen off the floor and asked if he wished to continue where he left off. He nodded but said that the only thing left he wished to add was that Orchid Dew would keep him in her prayers. The mage nodded wrote down his words before she put the letter away and assured him that she’ll send the letter out as soon as possible.
The mage then told him that she had to go soon and asked him that if there was anything else that she could do for him. He shook his head and said that as long as the letter reached Orchid’s hooves, he would be happy. Satisfied with his response, the mage turned around to leave but before she could take a step forward, she heard him calling out to her. She turned around and asked if he had another request.
He said that he would like to know her name so he could thank her properly for helping him. The mage said that caring for souls like him was simply part of her duties as an acolyte and required no thanks in return. However, he insisted that she tell him as it would make him feel more at ease if he knew her name. The mage smiled wearily as she obliged his request and told him her name.
Crystal Clear.
He smiled and told Crystal that it was a beautiful name and thanked her. He could rest easy knowing that he had such a kind pony as his caretaker. Crystal blushed at the compliment and said that she was glad to be of help before she bid him farewell and walked away down the row of capsules.
His smile waned as he watched Crystal walk out of sight but he was glad that he had met such a gentle soul in this darkness. He then let out a yawn, mildly surprised that he could still feel tired as a spirit but didn’t have the energy or the desire to question it as he laid himself down onto the mist-covered floor of the capsule.
After he made himself comfortable, he rested his head over his forelegs and closed his eyes, hoping that he would dream of happier times with his ‘Precious Flower’.
Stats
Page generated in 0.036 seconds
Total duration
596 users online
1,224,767 hits today, 2,139,894 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Hopefully, we see more of this story, I love the premise of this story, especially cause the Vatican gets so little coverage in the main story, or any side stories.
I kinda wish also that a lore page could be made for the umojan Vatican and the Kel-Morian consortium, like was done with the other three factions. It's definitely a wonderful start, and I love any story which helps expand on the Koprulu sector.
Why is this on hiatus?
8630152
Writer's block and procrastination. I've been sitting on a couple of chapters that I honestly forgot about due to work. Gonna publish them after some editing to make up for that.