Kildeez and Sifty's Shameless Self-Insert Adventures in Equestria!

by kildeez

Entry XIII: Many Happy Returns, by Siftstone

I was mostly silent as I traveled through the Everfree Forest with the pony. She had a bit of a motor mouth; blathering on and on about how many things I've missed. She finally allowed me a moment to speak, and I told her of my transformation. From the tainted blood that runs through my veins, to the dragon soul that fuels my form, to the Witcher's body that I now possess. As I finished, I asked one simple question.

"Tell me, girly." I sighed, "Have you seen another human around? Maybe came through here, dragging a Changeling along with him?"

"Why would a human be with a changeling?! No, I've not seen anything like that!"

"...Shit."

Finally, as we cleared the last bit of brush, we came to the edge of Ponyville, near Twi's library. Twilight flew ahead. "I have to go check on Spike! I'm sure he'll be delighted to see you again!" With that, the pony took off, into her home. The earth beneath my feet felt... familiar. Homely. It brought upon me the realization that my own home was still in a time loop. It's been so long that I've forgotten all the things I left within it.

As I stepped forward, I took in the sight of something in front of Twilight's library. A bulletin board. As I got closer, I began to realize it was a bounty board. Above all the pictures of missing ponies and posters begging for the destruction of certain monsters, I saw the words "Help urgently needed". Well, there's only one person that can possibly do anything about any of these contracts. Even if it was only an ego boost for me, I scratched out the word "help" with my knife, and replaced it with my profession.

"Witcher Urgently Needed!

Missing: An Old Rival Bounty: Anti-Magic Hive Guardian, 5,000 bits

Bounty: Black Gorger, 11,000 bits Bounty: Horde of Mannequins, please save my boutique!

Missing: Cutie Mark Crusaders, SOS! Missing: Bushel of ballistic cabbages

Bounty: "Gladiator", 30,000 bits Bounty: Alpha Nightmare, negotiable!

Bounty: Something Ghostly Bounty: The Tall Horse

Missing: Precious little angel!"

"Sifty! Hey, man!" Came the familiar voice of Spike. He quickly ran over, and I knelt down to give the little dragon a quick fist-pound. "Dude! I haven't seen you in ages! What happened?"

"Long story. Tell me real quick, little man; how often does this board get changed up?"

"Never! We get a lot of bounties, but most of them are just the same old thing. 'Nightmare in my farm' or something. There're so many Nightmares around, now, that we don't even bother posting their bounties on the board. Not like anybody's taken any of them. Ponies are just too scared... And what's a 'Witcher?"

"Go talk to Twilight. She'll fill you in more. In the meantime, I'm gonna get to work. This is the Champion's duty."

I stepped up to the bounty board and snatched up the Missing Pony report for the CMC.

"To anypony that might be reading this,
The three of us are extremely concerned for three little fillies that mean the world to us. So adventurous, always wanting to help, it's no surprise that they got lost somewhere in the forest, and with all the Nightmares about, we can only assume the worst. Please, please, find our little sisters! Their names are Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Bell! Scootaloo is an orange pegasus pony with a violet mane. Apple Bloom is a yellow earth pony with a red mane, usually with a big bow in it! Sweetie Bell is a white unicorn, her mane splits into purple and pink. They all share a blank flank. They were last seen in their clubhouse.
Signed,
Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity."

The contract was signed hardly four days ago.

The CMC's hideout was on the other side of town, so I checked my swords and began my trek over. Some ponies shot looks my way- at first, looks of fear, looks of surprise, until they realized who I was. As if a great weight had been lifted from them, those that recognized my face immediately shot up, clapping their hooves together. Some gossiped, and others ran off, as if to tell someone the news. As I made my way through town, occasionally waving to a friendly face, more and more ponies got up and brightened. As I neared the edge of the town, barely a ten minute walk, the whole atmosphere of the town was changing.

It was less grey, less depressing. No, there was hope, now. Ponies spoke of a savior, an end to their troubles. "The Champion is back! We're saved!"

News was spreading quickly. But I had a job to do; I couldn't waste time with a welcome-back party. When I reached the CMC's hideout, I found it in tatters. There were blade marks all over the door and stairs, but thankfully, not a spot of blood.

Still, there were signs of a struggle. There was a rattling on the inside of the building, so I drew my silver blade, Aerondight. Cautiously stepping forward, I pushed the door open with the tip of my blade, peering inside. As soon as the door was open, my senses were telling me to shoot my blade upward, and so I did; with good timing, as I had barely stopped the blades of a Nightmare Unicorn. Without a second's hesitation, I was headbutting the blue-eyed creature in the face and pushing it backwards.

As it tumbled to the floor, I stuck the blade of my sword at it's throat, and a foot on it's stomach. With no leverage to swing it's blades, it's arms twitched like an insect's legs. It peered up at me, and I could swear I saw the creature gulp.

"CHAMPION?"

"Aye, slime. I'm on the clock, mate. Don't dilly-dally. Tell me why it is you're here and I might not decorate this shack with your skin."

"SEARCHING FOR CLUES." The Nightmare squeaked out, it's voice a flanging of multiple others. Clues? How interesting.

"What sort of clues?"

"ENEMY OF OUR ENEMY. ALPHA SAID OUR KIND DOES NOT ABDUCT THE UNRIPENED. SOMETHING ELSE TOOK THEM. I WAS SENT TO INVESTIGATE."

"Why the hell do you bastards care about what happens to these ponies?"

"PERHAPS OUR MOTIVES ARE MORE COMPLEX THAN YOU BELIEVE."

"Your motives being?"

"I... I AM NOT AWARE."

"Newborn. No wonder you're being sent here, when your hive is well aware of my arrival. You're expendable."

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THAT WORD?"

"Easily given up. Capable of being lost. You're little more than a unit to be disposed of, the knowledge in your corpse the only valuable part of your being. How sad."

The Nightmare did not respond. Instead, it looked to the right, and I felt it's body go slack. It stopped struggling. For the first time in my war against these beings, I found myself finding a Nightmare looking... helpless. Vulnerable. Emotionally damaged. Deep in thought, as if truly realizing it's purpose.

"HOW CAN YOU BE CERTAIN, CHAMPION?"

I released my boot from the Nightmare and sheathed my blade. "Because I've been fighting your race long before you were born. I know what you are. More than likely, they'll know about what I just told you, too. They'll want you dead so you don't betray them."

"I AM NOT A COMBAT FORM. WHAT CAN I DO? IF I CANNOT RETURN TO THE HIVE, THEN WHERE CAN I GO? CHAMPION, I DO NOT WISH TO PERISH."

Eyeing the Nightmare, I thought for a moment. Nightmare Unicorns were a wet clay, easy to mold if caught early, such as this one. They are susceptible to suggestion by those they view as superior, and nearly killing it very quickly earned my authority over the creature. Asskicking equals respect, they say.

"...I can take you in, beastie."

"DO YOU NOT WISH TO SLAY ME? ALPHA TOLD US ALL THAT YOUR SOLE PURPOSE WAS TO SEE OUR END."

"The 'Alpha' lied to you, mate. All I wanted to do was keep this world safe, but your kind just wouldn't have that. But I need allies. I need assistance. I can't fight a war by myself. Join me and you'll discover a world in a whole new light. One of happiness, one of love. Perhaps one day, you can pursue your own path."

I stood up, holding out my gloved hand to the Nightmare. The Nightmare eyed me up and down, and after a moment's hesitation, placed a blade in my hand, and thus we performed a handshake of alliance. My eyes glowed briefly, reflecting off of something shining on the far side of the shack. Stepping closer, I found it to be a large, heavy bone-blade, rammed deep into the wood. The skin still clinging to the blade was black as char, and I knew immediately what it could have belonged to- a Black Reaper.

"Oi, beastie? I think I might know what we're looking for, here."

"THAT SWORD-LIMB HOLDS A SIMILARITY TO MY OWN. IT SEEMS MUCH STURDIER, HOWEVER. THE JOINTS SEEM MISALIGNED, AS WELL."

"This is the limb of a Black Reaper. I fought a few of them back in my older days. Come on, let's find out what those lanky fucks have to do with this."

As we began to exit the shack, the Nightmare collapsed on a single knee. Despite being on the axis of it's race for so long, I felt a connection to my newfound ally, and rushed over to see what the problem could possibly have been.

"Beastie? You alright, mate?"

"I FEEL WEARY. MY THOUGHTS SWIM. LIKE A LINE TO MY LIFE HAS BEEN CUT."

"Shit, I think you may have gotten your connection to the Hive severed. We need to get you somewhere that can mend that. I think I know a pony, but she'll need a lot of convincing."

"Who could possibly be so powerful?"

In that instant, the Nightmare and I looked at each other. Gone was the distinct flanging of it's voice, the multi-tone echo. In it's place was a decidedly feminine voice, with the barest of an english tone. Perhaps the remainder of the mare the creature once was? An interesting effect, and I voiced my thoughts to the beast. Even more interesting was the fact that this little beastie was quite possibly a girl.

"I cannot walk on my own, Champion. We cannot move from here-"

The creature let out a small yelp as I hefted her over my shoulder, opposite my swords. She wrapped one of her back limbs around my neck to steady herself, and craned her neck to see ahead of us. It was honestly cute, the way back- the Nightmare was testing out her new voice, making different kinds of vocalizations, and even mimicking any sounds she heard on the way there. That childlike innocence was what convinced me, long ago, that Nightmare Unicorns deserve the benefit of the doubt.

I took the long way to Twilight's library, as not to attract too much attention from the townsfolk. Using my Quen sign, I kept the Nightmare safe from that odor shield that repelled the rest of it's kind. I knocked on the door with my knee, and Spike was the one to answer it. He was as optimistic to see me again as the first time, but when he saw what I had slung over my shoulder, he let out a cry of fear- before I silenced it with my boot on his snout. Gently.

"Ssssshhh. I can explain. Where's Twi?"

"I'm right here, Sifty! Spike, what were you screaming abou-"

With that, the alicorn began screeching, tossing herself about her library to find something to cover herself beneath. In the meantime, I had placed my new friend on the ground and began to chase Twilight about, until I finally managed to catch her by slapping her with a low-power Aard sign. She collapsed in some branches, and I quickly ran up to her to shush her screaming with a hand over her mouth. Before I could explain, I took note of my new friend's voice. She had struck up a conversation with Spike.

"-Truly? Your kind must be a sight to behold when you age. The Alpha never told me of dragons."

"Oh, yeah, we're awesome!"

"Warmed up quite nicely, you two." I interjected, releasing my grip on Twilight, who had grown transfixed on the sight.

"Dude! Where did you find this one? Why doesn't she sound like the rest of them?" Spike quizzed.

"I'll tell you both in just a moment."

I explained to both Spike and Twilight that Nightmare Unicorns can be changed before they fully succumb to the morals of the Hive, and that the one I had rescued had her bonds cut from the hive mind. As she was so new, she posed no threat, and I had earned her respect with my prowess, and my legend. Then I asked Twilight to help with my new friend's weakness.

"What? Sifty, I understand what you said, but how can we trust a Nightmare?"

"Are you saying you don't trust me, Twilight? Do you honestly believe I would be stupid enough to endanger the both of you by bringing a live Nightmare here, one incapable of being reasoned with?"

"Well, no, but-"

"But nothing, Princess. Now, you help this girl out. I am not going to ask again."

"Okay, okay! I'll do it... If you'll give me just... One thing."

"Being?"

With that, Twilight dashed forward and slammed into me at a speed even my Witcher's reflexes couldn't track. She wrapped her forelegs tightly around me, hugging me. It was wordless what the girl wanted. She didn't want some make-up hug in the forest, some sob story about failure or loss. What she wanted was to feel the warmth of one of her old friends. To truly feel that the man who once loved and protected her still felt that warmth, that emotion.

As I pondered this, I felt something tug at my icy, cold heart. A tug I had not felt in the long time that I have been gone. A longing, a desire for something more than the swing of my blade and the blood of my enemy. A desire for warmth.

For friendship.

I hugged that pony. I hugged her and I squeezed her and only my Witcher's emotional whipping kept me from sobbing out the blackness of my life into her silky mane. My medallion even had the decency to move on it's own accord, to avoid stabbing the pony in the head with itself. Twilight was openly crying, but there was a smile on her face. There was one on mine. It felt like we sat in that embrace forever, but when we released, my new friend was looking at us with a smile, likely having finished with her conversation with Spike some minutes ago.

"Something on your mind, beastie?"

"Though I am but a newborn, my race has always had implanted instincts and knowledge. I knew very well that we are naturally repulsed by emotion as powerful as what you just expressed, whereas ordinary beings in this world radiated it when in the company of good kind. I have not felt that revulsion to your expression. In fact, I believe I may have felt some of the very same energy in my own being. I cannot explain it. All I know is that it makes me feel something that I never before have."

"Empathy." I rumbled, my voice deep and hearty.

Suppressing a quiver, I looked up. "I have to go. I need to find the Cutie Mark Crusaders. I've wasted enough time. Twilight, we will speak more of this later, but until then, please, please, PLEASE do all you can to repair my friend's shattered mind."

I turned to my Nightmare. "You, this building is filled with information. Once Twilight finishes, she can teach you about this world in a way your race never could. I will return."

"Champion." Rumbled my friend, "You each have a title. My race never had such a concept. The dragon is Spike. You are Sifty. The Princess is Twilight. What am I?"

"Hm. You do need a name. I can't just call you 'beastie' all the time."

"There is a sound, deep in my memory. The sounds of the forest, of laughter. I cannot pinpoint a specific voice or word, but there is one sound that echoes louder than the rest. I believe it may have been my proper title. Bear... Berry... Beryl! Royal Beryl!"

"Beryl... pretty. Okay, Beryl. You and Twilight play nice. I must go."

"Good luck, Sifty!" Came spike, soon followed by Twilight. "Please, come back safe."

"Thank you, Champion. Your mercy has granted me a new life. I will assist you as soon as I am well enough."

With that, I was off again, uncorking one of my Cat potions. I took some residue I snatched off that Black Reaper's arm, and added it to the potion. The mixture sizzled and glowed a hateful, aggressive red, and then settled. With that, I chugged it down, and in that instant, the whole world grew grey again. However, there were spots of red in the distance. Echoes of where my prey once was. Following the red could lead me to my contracts.

Once again, I drew my silver blade, and set off into the forest.

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I stalked through the forest like a ghost. My potion would last a good few hours, so unless my prey took off on a bloody day trip, it couldn't escape my gaze. It left it's mark in the grass and trees; long, humanoid footsteps, parted as if walking. But only one set glowed red. There were at least five Reapers in the group, and the one I was following must have been either a grunt or the Omega, because a trail of blood accompanied a smaller set of footprints alongside the rest.

The footsteps went a good few miles into the forest. At the edge of a cliff face, they made their way into a discreet cave, unnoticeable due to the amount of foliage almost purposely grown in front of it. With a twirl of my blade, I brought it down in front, and pulled a small bottle of hissing, angry, red fluid onto the gleaming silver of my weapon. Capsaican oil, gently mixed with poison sumac and nightshade, with a hint of fire salts, to create a poison that would burn a wound for a great span of time, regardless of the severity of the wound, before causing a seizure in the victim as the neurons in the brain are obliterated by the true toxins mixed in.

Black Reapers were fast and tough, especially in the dark. To a Witcher, there's no such thing as "overkill". This amount of pain was a needed measure. Holding my silver blade aside, I pulled my trusty, rusted bush machete off my belt and sliced clean through the bushes blocking my path. Sheathing my old blade, I tightened my grip on my silver blade and made my way into the cave. My Cat potion had the added effect of lighting up the dark to a much handier degree than my natural night vision could.

The cave was not immense. Little more than five hundred yards in, I came upon the fallen Omega of the Black Reapers. It's scythe arm was completely severed, and it had thousands of scars along it's back and chest. It must have had a difficult life, being mistreated by it's Alpha whenever a display of power was necessary. Judging by the lack of identifiable blood at the scene, it brought me to the assumption that the Omega tried to kill the fillies, which would disrupt the Alpha's plans, whatever they were. Perhaps that is why the Reaper lost it's arm.

The cave came to a dead end there. With a sharp inhale, I held my breath. Silence. Nothing more than the corpse of one Reaper. But there were multiple sets of footprints around it, and they were fresh. I cocked back my silver blade in the darkness, and I moved it around, until the gleaming, mirror-finished blade was facing the roof of the cave. At first, all I saw were my own, glowing, yellow eyes- but as I shifted the blade around, four pairs of green eyes were looking down at me. My blade caught the gleam of their green glow reflecting on something, something falling down rapidly.

Exhaling, I dive-rolled forward, rolling hard on the cave floor and whirling around in the nick of time to face a Black Reaper, which had just sprained it's bicep on the failed dropkill it had attempted on me. It's arm flailed loosely behind it and it shielded itself with it's weaker left arm, as it's comrades fell down from the ceiling. One of which had some sort of cage contraption affixed to it's shoulder, which contained my contracts; Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo.

"Hey! Watch it, mister!" Shrieked Apple Bloom, a quiver in her voice. Through the dark, I could see all of the fillies clinging to one another, fur on end, shaking endlessly.

"Sweet Celestia, do you jerks always have to be so rough?! We're just kids!" Came Scootaloo, more annoyed than afraid.

"Human." Followed the voice of, what I assumed, was the Alpha Reaper. I didn't hear it, so much as perceive it mentally. Reapers had no vocal chords, communicating solely through the act of telepathy. "You have moved very quickly."

Though I could bark back a reply by merely thinking it, I wanted to get those little girls to stop shaking. With a smirk, I growled back to the Reaper in the most commanding voice I could manage. "Watch your tone, vermin. You address the Champion of Celestia."

"The Champion?!" Came the voices of the three fillies, in unison. Their eyes instantly brightened, and they looked towards the source of my voice.

"We assumed your death had occurred many months ago, human. Your title means little. You interrupt our rest. We were just about ready to begin our feast. We will allow you time to leave."

There was a slight pain in my leg. I chose to ignore it.

It was true that I was lucky. The Reapers wanted to draw out their walk to their lair, to frighten the girls as much as possible. Having intermingled with Nightmare mutation somewhere in their past, these fiends found frightened food to taste a lot better.

"You have no further warnings, human. Leave, or become our next meal."

Another wicked grin stretched across my face. With hardly a breath, I cast forth low-power Aard sign, staggering the four Reapers, and giving me my moment to strike. Within an instant, my silver blade was slashing through the shoulder of the cage-keeper, knocking free the little fillies. Though it was cruel, they were a priority, and before the cage hit the ground, I knocked it- and the girls- towards the exit of the cave with a rough shove of my shoulder. A rough ride, but they'd live.

The cage-keeper fell to the ground, clutching it's dismemberment and shrieking telepathically, before it's voice faded, and it's body locked up. Using the momentum from my first strike, I immediately whirled around and slashed the previously-wounded Reaper across the face, finishing it off. The next Reaper came in with a low swing, one which I parried to the left, just before flicking the heavy, solid pommel of my sword upward, striking the Reaper in it's jaw. Before it could recover, I swung my sword low and struck it in the thigh, which brought it to a knee- and then my knee met it's chin. Another telepathic shriek echoed in my mind, before falling silent, my victim locking up as I squared off with the Alpha.

"So the legends speak true, human. You are indeed formidable."

"Quit with the mind invasion and raise your arm. I'm on the clock."

"You may have bested my subordinates, but you have never faced the true power of a Black Reaper Alpha!" The Alpha shrieked, before charging forward, it's blade dragging behind it, sparking against stray stones in the dirt. An Alpha was far more muscled and much, much faster than a standard, making it so that a parry against it's blade would be virtually suicidal. I had no doubt that it could break through my sword and cut me asunder, so before we crossed blades, I dove to the side of the Reaper, which caused it to miss it's blow. As I recovered from my roll, I immediately snatched a throwing knife off of my shoulder armor and hurled it into the Reaper's calf.

It barely even flinched as it effortlessly pulled the blade out of it's leg, turned, and flicked it right back at me with expert precision. My reflexes kicked in, and I swiped the knife out of the air, barely having enough time to perform a backroll to dodge the Reaper's retaliation. As I recovered, the Reaper was bringing it's blade straight down, aiming to split my skull like a tulip. There was no time to think, and I quickly unleashed a shout; a skill I had almost forgotten I had.

"Fus!"

The energy blast that tore from my lungs had just enough force to stop the Reaper's downward blow, which gave me ample opportunity to roll under it's arm and bring my silver blade clean through the tendons in the Reaper's knee. This was enough to bring the Reaper to the earth, it's heavy blade falling forward to crutch the creature, keeping it from falling on it's face. I didn't hesitate- before the beast could recover, I cast a full-power Aard sign, knocking the creature forward. It's arm had stuck in the dirt, and due to the forward momentum, the Reaper dislocated it's own shoulder. A howl of pain ushered out in my mind, but the Alpha was far more resilient than it's fellows; my poison was not enough to kill it.

Taking a short sprint, I switched my sword to a reverse grip and leaped high in the cave, crashing down into the back of the Reaper's neck, impaling it with overwhelming force. My blade split it's spine and decapitated the creature, in all technicality. The screaming instantly stopped. Pulling my sword free from the Reaper's blackened flesh, I wiped the silver to gleaming on the bandages wrapping my left arm. Sheathing my blade, I left the corpses where they lie.

There was a very distinct pain in my leg, now. Greater than a sprain. However, I had no time to waste. I had to get the fillies back to Ponyville. I found the cage close to the edge of the cave, and the fillies within were less than pleased with my handling of their binding. Regardless, they near-instantly abandoned that anger with the realization that they had a savior; not just for themselves, but for the entirety of their world.

"Sifty!" Apple Bloom squealed, as soon as her bindings were loose. She pounced forward, clinging to my face. Scootaloo was not far behind, and Sweetie Belle had already begun wiping her tears against my thigh. "Oh, Sifty, I'm so glad you're back! You have no idea how bad Applejack had gotten without ya'!"

"Rainbow Dash wouldn't even let me over to her place anymore because she was afraid I'd see her cry!"

"Big sis was an absolute wreck, Sifty!"

"I know, I know. Twilight gave me the brief." I sighed, pulling the fillies off me one at a time. "And, Sifty? What's with the new look? Your hair, your eyes?"

Not this shit again-

"And what about that cut in your leg?"

Oh, son of a bitch. Finally back in the light, I could much easier see the cause for my pain- though I had narrowly avoided getting a corpus colosscopy with my dodge-roll from that falling Reaper, the bastard still managed to nick my calf, splitting a good five inches of flesh apart. My Witcher's pain tolerance and adrenaline were the only things keeping me from noticing it until the fight was over. Surely, not an issue. I would just need to get a healing potion off of my be-

My White Rafford's Decoction bottle was empty. I had forgotten to refill it. Oh, son of a whore!

Regardless of the situation, I had my charges. The fillies were safe, if shaken up. I'm not calling the waaaaaambulance just yet; I've gotta get them home. Without another word, I scooped the girls onto my shoulders, and began my painful- if determined- trek back to Ponyville.

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Pain. Blood. Pain. Blood.

That was all I could think of on my way back to the town. The girls rambled on about their adventures after my departure, about how their sisters could hardly stand to function for weeks on end without my aid. Indeed, I felt the guilt, the sadness for having left the way I did, but even so, the pain took over that emotion. I may be a mutant, I may be a custom-made killing machine bent on the destruction of anything ghastly, but I was still inherently human.

As we passed the mark of the last stretch towards the town- where the trees begin to thin, and you can hear the birds begin to chirp again- a wail ripped through the treeline. A very familiar wail. Instantly, my mind was filled with a blur of pink and yellow, the pain and blood ignored. My breath began to pick up, and I changed course towards the shriek. Something in my body was pulling all the stops. Almost an instinct, a virtual drive to protect something incredibly dear to me ingrained into the very fiber of my being. Another wail, this one far more desperate. One word overrode all other thoughts in my head; KILL.

The fillies hung on for dear life as my legs fired into overdrive. Blood oozed out of my wound and pooled in my boot, but I ignored it completely in favor of hurdling over fallen trees and underbrush. Finally, I pierced the brush, and fell into a clearing. The sight within brought my very piss to a boil.

There was a mare. A familiar one. The mere sight of her could soothe the pains of a thousand battles- and it often did. A silky, pink mane, gently curled and out of place due to the sheer fright of the one who wore it. A gentle, lemony-yellow coat of fur, shining with sweat and fear. A black bandanna- my old one, from ages past, worn around her neck. Her wings, gently preened by the creatures of the forest, standing high and rigid, their owner incapable of escaping her situation, absolute fear anchoring her mud-stained hooves to the earth.

A Hive Guardian. Several Nightmares. All encroaching, slowly, drinking in the fear of one of their most hated adversaries. The mare did nothing wrong, herself, but the level of kindness, the amount of good will the girl bore, was enough to make her the enemy of the Nightmare race. There was too much purity, too much wealth. She was a cancer to them, keeping all their hatred and fear from spreading to the populace of the forest. She needed to die, in their eyes.

I understood the true meaning of hatred, in that moment. My body was filled with little more than the desire to watch these beings suffer. Old emotions, old love, it all poured into my icy, mutant heart, mixing with my hatred. Mixing with my bloodlust. Nothing hurts that pony.

Absolutely.

Fucking.

Nothing.

The soul of an ancient being spoke, then.

A dragon I had slain, during my initiate days, before I took the mutations to become a full Witcher. I had absorbed it's soul then, but knew not what to do with it. Words echoed through the forest, the ancient tongue of dragons tearing the very fabric of reality apart. The earth rumbled, the birds flew from their trees.

"KRII- LUN AUS!"

Kill. Leech. Suffer. The ancient shout of the Dovah, used to wither away armor and rot away life, a shout of rotten origin, used for rotten gains. The blast wave of magical power, a sickening purple in hue, tore into the Hive Guardian and it's charges. The effect was almost instantaneous. The Nightmares that couldn't resist the shout immediately began to rot, their teeth falling free and their blades yellowing. Others managed to barely keep from giving in to the Voice of the Dragonborn.

But I was going to mend that very quickly.

As soon as I had let that shout loose, the fillies let go of my shoulders and dropped, scurrying over and hiding beneath the pony. With a singular goal in mind, I had drawn the heavy chainsword from my back, it's thousand teeth thirsty for blood, it's engine roaring to life. The Nightmares had hardly finished staggering before I was leaping into the fray, my weapon screaming as it sawed through a Nightmare's spine in little more than a second. The body hadn't time to drop before I was launching a hate-fueled kick into the mouth of another, nearly snapping it's neck with the force of my blow. It's weakened state caused it to lose it's balance and drop, only to finish with a pus-splattering stomp of my mighty boot.

My heavy charge splattered mud up my pantlegs, my blade coughing and ejecting bits of bone and gore, as I locked blades with a Hive Guardian. My sword screamed, sparks flew, but ultimately, bone failed against blade. I tore through the Guardian's blades, tore through it's neck, tore through the rest of it and just kept going, blood going every which way, until I came upon the realization that I had fully bisected my opponent. The uneven halves of the Guardian fell to the earth, the scent of iron thick in the air.

The remaining two Nightmares, the only ones unaffected by my shout, began to flee. Choking down on my sword, I began to give chase-

But instead, I merely fell to the mud. My leg had finally given in. In my hate-fueled rampage, I had completely disregarded the injury, and it had grown damaged and torn as I laid down the utmost fucksmack upon my enemy. I couldn't pursue them. But I would see them again. I knew it.

I shifted my gaze to the pony. She was huddled against a tree limb, shielding her eyes and the eyes of the fillies, as I had dished out my punishment. Tears stained her cheeks, and the fillies were quivering. All but Scootaloo. She had a smile on her lips and a blush on her cheeks. She was the first to open her eyes.

"Sweet mother of Celestia, Sifty! You are a beast! And here I thought Rainbow Dash was just speaking out of her tail when she was talking about how scary you get! That was AWESOME!"

"Heh, so it was-"

"Sifty?" Came a sweet, angelic voice. Truly, like an angel's harp in that moment. The pony had finally opened her eyes, locking shyly to mine. The tears stopped flowing, as she realized who exactly her savior was. It was not some beast, come to claim her in the place of the Nightmares. No, she knew, then. Realization filled her eyes, and the tremble in her body stopped. She stood to all fours, as I barely crutched myself against my motorblade.

The fillies looked on as the pony ran over to me, immediately launching herself into the most powerful hug a Witcher can possibly experience without his medallion knocking him in the teeth through the sheer power of the magic in it. The rain was cold in my armor, but this pony managed to warm me up in an instant. Despite my mutations, despite my scars and my changes, despite the amount of time that passed, this pony still remembered her hero. She still remembered the face of her savior, the voice of the one who protected her.

She still remembered who carried her torch in the darkness.

With my task complete, I decided to finally rest. The pony gasped gently as the arm holding my chainblade gave out, and I lapsed into a gentle sleep, the loss of blood firming it's grip on my consciousness. I fell with but a single word on my lips.

"Fluttershy."