Vengeance

by Icare

Disappearance

The next morning , Ponyville got surprisingly active .

StarShock was trotting around in the town , when he heard a young foal shouting :

"Ask for the Foal Free Press ! 3 Ponies missing ! Any clue about their position is crucial ! Ask for the Foal Free Press ! ..."

As the young pony walked away , Shock was wondering if somepony knew something about that night .

He was pulled out of is thoughts when a guard walked to him and asked calmly :

"Are you Star Shock ?"

The batpony didn't answered , but instead , he got scared . Scared that somepony had discovered the truth .

With a gulp , he answered .

"Yes , can I help you ?"

His tone was the calmest possible , but even a guard who just started the job could notice the doubt and culpability in the eye of the bat.

"I need you to come with me . Don't resist . Everything that you'll say will be held against you ."

The calm and deep tone of the guard sent shiver down the young stallion's spine .

Shock was wondering if he could ask "Why ?" to the guard , but he knew that this kind of action could be taken as resistance against the law , so he cooperated and followed the guard .

"Where are you taking me ?" Dared to ask the stallion .

"You'll see . Plus , I asked for silence . Break my rules one more time and you'll need help to be able to walk ."

This answer filled Shock with fear , and where they were going wasn't helping : they were going to the cave .

When they arrived , Shock saw a lot of people : families of the victims , scientist , guards , even princess Celestia was here.

The guard pushed Shock to kneel before the princess , and he pushed hard . Shock was forced to obey .

The princess was standing in front of him , studying every movements , every breath that the young stallion took .

Suddenly , a book felt right in front of Shock . The book was stained with blood and had an horrible stench.

The book was followed by the knife , who ranged when it hit the ground .

The eyes of the princess were filled with anger , and Shock knew what was coming .

"Are you responsible for this ?" A loud voice asked .

The temptation to lie was pulling Star Shock to it , but he decided to tell the truth .

"Yes , I'm the one responsible for this crime ."

The princess stepped back , but not in disgust : the honesty of the answer surprised her , as most criminals would lie when confrontated to their crimes .

After reflection , the princess said "Guard ! Take him to the castle !"

The noise off armor pieces moving against each other sent fear rampaging in the killer's brain .

He knew prison was obvious , and asking for mercy wouldn't help , so he cooperated and walked along the guards .

They were followed. Followed by several eyes , and Shock could feel what their expressions meant : Fear , disgust , curiosity , sadness , and even more ...

Once they arrived at the castle , Shock got something quite unexpected .

The princess voice wasn't as loud as in the cave , and her voice , even in the gigantic castle , didn't echoed .

"Now."She said , " You have a lot to answer for . To start , the obvious questions . What is your name ?"

Shock was hesitating , but he was set to answer .

"My name is ... Abyss Kiln."

He knew he was lying , and he hoped the princess wouldn't notice his doubt .

"Now, I read the book you wrote , and , even tough I must judge ponies for their crimes , it's the first time I saw such madness. Why did you killed these foals ?"

"I...I..." It was hard to choose what he was going to say . He could lie , but he would be sent to tartarus for etenity , but he chose wisely .

"The shadow told me to..."

Truth was burning his throat .

"A shadow ? What shadow ? Who are you talking about ?"

Even tough he couldn't look her eyes , he saw fear starting to emerge from the princess.

"Erm...His name is Kaomet , and he told me to give him the souls of ponies , in exchange of what he would answer my questions."

The princess didn't responded .

He saw she was completely frightened by that answer.

"Abyss Kiln...You need to tell me where and when was the last time you saw him ."

The mind of the broken stallion flinched .

"I saw him in the cave , while I ..." He hesitated ," But I didn't wrote it down in the book..."

The princess started to flip the pages as fast as she could read , trying to find something about the shadow.

She stopped on the last page , slowly reading the words wrote in blood.

"Kiln...Why did you accepted his offer ? What were the questions you were talking about ?"

He responded , filled with fear.

"Why am I friendless , that is my question . Why does everyone avoids me ? What did I do to deserve this ?"

The princess suddenly realized something , something that could even scare her.

"You lied..." She said.

"Uh?"

"You lied . Your name is Star Shock . You were born on the moon an you trained your wings there. You helped nightmare moon to escape and people got aware of you . One day , you tried to escape the moon by flying . You landed with too much speed and you killed 8 ponies in Ponyville . That's why people avoided you for these years , because you killed their beloved ones."

The mind of Shock blanked out .

The princess had the answer .

He did all of this for nothing .

"Now you must answer to your crimes. Shock , I condemn thee to be sent to Tartarus for a 100 years . You won't see anyone during the travel to Tartarus and the convey will be secret . Guards , take him to the wagon !"

Shock didn't fought at all when the guards took him to his fate , but instead , he cried .

During the transport , he swore to himself that he would avenge himself from Kaomet , bringing down his world of pain and anger with him .
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This night , a young fillie with a red mane and brownish coat was sobbing alone .
Suddenly , her eyes got wider as a dark figure appeared .

"Don't be sad , my dear, I'm here to help you."