Chapter 8: In the Woods Somewhere
We found him alone and dying amidst a host of corpses, staring vacantly across the forest. Sif caught his scent long before I saw or heard him myself. The knight was lying against a tree, pressing a hoof to a fresh wound on his side. Dried blood and filth sullied his armour, while his axe, shield, and helmet lay in a pile beside him.
The western road and all its horror were long behind us, but there was just as much carnage to be found all over the Everfree. This was the third such scene that Sif and I had run across since leaving Zecora's, but the first where we'd found any survivors.
Our approach disturbed the crows, who all panicked and flapped away at the first sight of the grey wolf padding along at my side. The dying Cleric-Knight noticed us soon after, slowly twisting his head our way and giving us a tired look. We stopped just in front of him, as he cast his eyes back to the ground.
"I always wanted to die in battle," he said, unprompted. "For the glory of the goddesses, I told myself, but it was always a lie. In truth, I wanted glory for myself, a legend to be told... Celestia, I was a fool..."
I lay beside him, and passed him a flask from my saddlebags. He took it, thanked me, and drank long and deep.
"I should've known the Four would punish me for my vanity." The knight wiped his mouth. "This is no less a fate than I deserve. After all, I wished for it, didn't I? Death by battle... I just didn't know it would take this long."
Sif caught the scent of something and wandered off, leaving us alone.
"...I'm sorry you think that," I said quietly.
He looked sideways at me, puzzled.
"That you deserve this, I mean. I don't think you do. Nobody does."
The knight's eyes drooped.
"The goddesses would not condemn me to this fate for nothing. If I have been judged and found wanting, maybe this is the price that I must pay. Why else would I linger here, if not to atone for my sins?"
There were many answers I could've given to that, but none of them would have brought him any comfort. I saw no divine purpose in his noble suffering. There was no reason for this but simple bad luck. But what good would it do to tell him so?
"...Is there any way I can help you?" I asked, knowing his answer already.
"Any way you can save me, you mean? No. I fear I'm long past that point... But if you would be so kind... grant me mercy."
I sighed and stood.
"...As you wish."
I drew Trixie's broadsword instead of Brightflame. Awkwardly, I paused and looked over him, wondering how to do it. The knight seemed to take my meaning, and leaned forward to pull off his armour. He gave a pained groan, so I stepped in to help him remove it.
Once done, I positioned my blade over his heart, but faltered and dropped it. It wasn't the idea of killing him that stopped me. It was just the bluntness of it all. It was such an abrupt end to a life. It felt wrong.
"Do you have any last requests, or anything?" I said, lamely. "Relatives I should inform? Any message to take back?"
He leaned his head back against the tree.
"Only one I ever cared for was my mother, bless her soul. She's passed now, gone to meet the goddesses. Them willing, maybe I'll see her again. That's the only thing I still want."
But you won't, I thought. Witchcraft said it doesn't work like that.
"Can you at least tell me your name, Sir Knight?"
"Bluecrest," he said with a hint of a smile. "Sir Bluecrest of Baltimare."
I readied my sword again.
"You die with honour, Sir Bluecrest. Whatever awaits you in the next life, I hope you find peace."
"Mmm." He closed his eyes. "Have at it then, boy. And thank you."
I didn't cry for him. Not like I did for Notch. But I did stay to bury him under the tree, digging a shallow grave by hooves and horn, until the former were raw and the latter ached. Though he never asked it of me, I wanted to at least spare him the crows. By the time I was done, setting day had arrived, and I had precious little time left. I had the day to find Pilgrimage and get her back to the Acres. If I failed, I would be left stumbling blind and surrounded by enemies.
Well, nothing else for it, I thought as I turned away from Sir Bluecrest's final rest. Best press on.
Chapter 8:
In the Woods Somewhere
I was exhausted by the time we reached Froggy Bottom Bog. Our path through the Everfree had been going too well for too long, and so fate had decided to balance it out with something horribly unpleasant. What I'd initially mistaken for an ordinary rock had turned out to be a monstrosity of living stone in a form somewhat resembling an alligator, and I was very nearly caught and crushed in its jaws, only escaping by sheer dumb luck. Sif and I had elected to run rather than fight the monster, creatures of living stone fortunately being rather heavy and not very fast, but the chase had still lasted longer than I would've liked.
Galloping in full plate armour is an incredibly unpleasant experience, and by the time we reached the edge of the bog, the stone monster now long behind us, I was drowning in my own sweat. Sif, on the other hoof, seemed to have energy to spare, and happily ran out into the murky swamp to splash through the shallows.
"Celestia, where do you find the strength?" I rasped, removing my helmet.
We were at the end of the treeline now. The woods and their thick canopy were giving way to reeds and rushes under an open orange sky. The damp dirt of the forest floor had become thick mud that squelched underhoof. Ahead was a lake of stagnant brown water, its surface dotted with patches of algae, frogs on their lily pads, and dragonflies hovering just close enough for them to catch. Muddy islands and rocks rose out of the swamp in places, but there was no obvious path across to the other side.
"Hrmm..."
I looked down at the rusty iron chain around my neck. It didn't seem like anything special, but Madam Zecora had said otherwise. I didn't have any reason to doubt her, did I?
I took a breath and fitted my helmet back on. "Okay... let's give it a try."
With a tentative step, I lowered a forehoof into the shallows of the bog. There was an elastic feeling beneath my hoof, like the water was a solid sheet that was sagging under my weight. I moved another hoof out, and stepped further across the water. To my surprise, the water's surface maintained its integrity, but still dipped slightly. I felt like if I jumped on it, the water would bounce me into the air.
I took another step and slipped slightly, before catching myself.
"Ohhhhkaaaaay..." I muttered. "Not very much friction, either..."
Sif swam past me, fur soaked with muddy water and a lily pad on his head. His tongue hung out, and he tried to jump out the water to get to me.
"No! Down, boy!"
It was no use. Sif toppled me over and tried to climb on me, only to slide off into the water again. In the process I discovered that the enchantment applied to my whole body, not just my hooves, because I bounced on the water's surface just as I predicted I would. This did not, however, save me from getting wet. I pulled myself up while Sif swam in circles around me.
"You see what you do?"
Sif had nothing to say for himself. I just grumbled and tried to find my balance again.
On closer inspection, the water's surface wasn't too slippery; I could move on it at a reasonable pace if I just watched my steps. I moved carefully, making sure not to drag my hooves. Since I didn't slip, I upped my pace slightly, still watching myself. Soon, I was trotting across the water as easily as if it were dry land, Sif paddling along beside me. It was a surreal experience, but it certainly wasn't a bad one. If the circumstances were less dire, I might've even been having fun.
Navigating by the sun, I followed the stagnant water southwards, hewing as close as I could to the Everfree treeline on my left. Eventually, I'd reach the southern end of the forest, and then I could walk right around the worst of the fighting, and go straight east to the castle to find Sister Pilgrimage. It was a good plan. I just had to watch out for the hydra that Madam Zecora had mentioned. If I saw it, I would... run, I supposed.
Sif climbed onto a rock and shook the swamp water out of his fur. I stopped for a moment, and tried to visualise where I was relative to Ponyville. On my right, westwards, a line of cliffs rose up in the distance, while northwards, behind me, more trees curled around to enclose the swamp. I suspected that I was directly south of the town, and that the back end of the orchards on Sweet Apple Acres might have been somewhere on the other side of those cliffs. But I wasn't entirely sure.
"Maybe I should check my map..." I mumbled.
Then something closed around my hind leg.
"Wha—"
I didn't even have time to finish the word before it dragged me under the water. The elastic surface snapped, and I sank like a stone. Water poured through my open visor and started filling my helmet. I tried to suck in a breath, but only got a nose full of swamp water. I tried to swim up, but my armour weighed me down, and the thing holding my leg kept pulling.
Moments later, my hooves hit a soft bed of mud. My lungs hurt, and my eyes were squeezed shut. I used my magic to pull my helmet off, and started loosening the rest of my armour as quickly as possible. If I didn't get it off, I was going to drown.
The thing let go of my leg, instead closing a pair of limbs around my midsection and preventing me from removing the barding of my armour. I struggled to throw it off, but the water made my movements slow and sluggish. My lungs were on fire. I turned back to the thing, pointing my horn towards it, and unleashed a blast of blind telekinetic force. I felt it reel, but it didn't let go. Instead, it grasped for my face, and cold metal covered my cheek. My eyes shot open, even as they stung from the swamp water. I screamed out the last of my breath in a stream of bubbles.
The helmet of the black knight glared back at me.
You can't be here! I killed you in Ponyville!
The edge of my vision was going dark. The black knight shoved me down. My back hit the mud, and its hooves pressed down on my neck. It wasn't enough that I was drowning. This thing wanted to strangle me, too.
Somebody, anybody, help me! I prayed.
Just as I was reaching my limit, something very big and very fast slammed into the both of us, and we breached the water's surface.
My body spun in the air. I hit the surface of the swamp, bounced off, rolled, hit the water again, and lost my loosened barding. I didn't see where it went, but it made a splash behind me. Seconds later, I slammed into a rock, and pain shot through my side as I cracked a rib. I let out a scream. I don't know if the bone pierced anything vital, but it was definitely stabbing into something.
A wolf's howl sounded somewhere behind me. I turned over on my rock, lying back as I stared up at the gargantuan beast rising out of the swamp. Its half-submerged body was a singular great mass of brown and yellow scales, but its four heads sat atop long, thick necks that writhed and twisted in the air as water dripped off of them. Two of the heads glared down at me with burning emerald eyes, while the other two trapped the black knight between their mouths. I didn't see any teeth, but they gnashed and chewed at it, crushing its armour like a tin can.
I snorted out swamp water and tried to stand.
"Erggghhhhh..." I groaned, holding a hoof to my broken rib. "Alrighty then... let's get this over with."
The two heads rushed towards me. I rolled out of the way and onto the surface of the swamp, another lance of pain shooting through me. I still had my rusty iron chain on, so the surface kept its integrity and allowed me to run across it.
"Come on, come on..."
I didn't have a plan for this. My armour was beneath the swamp, and I had no earthly clue where my weapons had gone. All I had were my legs and my horn. But I didn't need anything more than that to run.
My eyes darted to the treeline. I didn't know if the Everfree could protect me, but I didn't exactly have many options. I had to hope that Sif could make it to safety, too. I weaved around rocks and tripped over lily pads, desperately racing towards the swamp's edge. The hydra's heads crashed into the water behind me, sending a wave rippling across the surface that I didn't see coming until it caught up with me. I was thrown into the air and landed on my back.
I grunted as I fell, and screamed out as the hydra's mouth closed around me. I thought that it would just crush me with its jaw, like the knight, but instead it tossed me skyward.
"Waaahhhhhhhhh!"
I looked below, to the hydra's waiting mouth. Instinctively, I tried to grab ahold of my own body with telekinesis in an attempt to slow the fall. I immediately broke my hold when it felt like I was encased in concrete. Self-levitation always just felt wrong like that.
As I flew into its mouth, I reached out a hoof and grabbed the edge of its lip, bringing me to a sudden stop. I dangled on the edge, the hydra's gullet below me.
Its tongue reached up and tried to push me loose, but only jostled me about. One of the hydra's other heads came into view, glaring at me with hateful intensity. It opened its mouth slightly, and I caught a glimpse of the mangled black knight still trapped inside, along with...
Trixie's sword!
I grinned, gripping the broadsword with my magic. It was lodged in the other head's gums, but I tore it loose. A geyser of steaming green slosh burst forth from where it had been stuck. The other head let loose an infernal screech, and Trixie's sword flew free.
"Yes!" I brought the sword over, pointing it back towards the head currently devouring me. "Not so tough now, are you?"
I didn't have a good view for obvious reasons, but I aimed for where I thought its eyes would be, and stabbed. The head I was in thrashed and flailed, flinging me from its mouth and down into the swamp again. There was an audible crack as I broke a leg in the fall, and pain shot through me again. I cried out, but stubbornly kept ahold of my blade.
"Gah! Okay! You still got this, Firelink!"
A shadow loomed over me. I twisted about to face the oncoming hydra. The first head I'd attacked, bleeding from the mouth, spat a glob of green blood at me, and it splashed all over my front.
I screamed loud enough to wake the dead.
The blood was like liquid fire. Searing pain flared everywhere it touched me. In my panic, I tried to brush it off with my hooves, but then they were burning as well. I lay down on the swamp and rolled over the water's surface, trying to get rid of it, but the pain wouldn't go away. It was like the blood was eating through me.
Four hydra heads rushed in as I writhed in agony. They slammed into me all at once, crushing me against their foreheads. More of my bones cracked, and my breath was driven out of me, but that was barely even a blip on the radar compared to what the hydra's blood felt like. The heads drew away, and I had a chance to look down at my chest and forehooves, where it had splashed me. My skin was melting and sloughing off my bones as a thick, fleshy paste.
I couldn't articulate any coherent thoughts. It was like the changeling venom all over again, but somehow a thousand times worse. Being stabbed through the gut by Patches seemed like a fond memory at this point.
A hydra's mouth closed around a foreleg, and lifted me a short ways off the ground. I dangled helplessly in the air. Liquidised skin dribbled down my side, spreading the burning sensation further. Driven by a sudden, desperate need to cut my own legs off, I tried to reach for the sword that I no longer had. I'd dropped it again after the blood splashed me, so I didn't know where exactly it was, but I knew the general vicinity. I felt around in the water with my magical field, searching frantically. I needed to find it; the burning was creeping down from my foreleg all the way to my flank, and I needed to make it stop.
I found it. Blindly, madly, I pulled from the swamp and floated it up as the head lifted me higher. Another head loomed below, ready to eat me, but I didn't care at anymore. Perhaps I should've, because the sword burst through its lower jaw to reach me, causing another spurt of hydra's blood to sail through the air and wash over my legs, belly, and sensitive parts.
My screams renewed. My sword dropped again, but I caught it before it hit the ground. The head flailed about, and the hydra kept making that awful screeching noise. The head grabbing me tightened its grip, snapping the bone of my foreleg and causing me to drop and land on the hydra's back. All my senses by this point were being drowned out by the burning.
"Aghhhhhh! Celestia, what is this?!"
I tried to bring my sword over to me. My magic was shaky and weak, but it was coming. The other two heads arrived first, leaning in so close to me that I could smell their breath. One had the broken black knight stuck in its jaw still, while the other was yet undamaged.
I tried to focus, but my mind was flooded with jumbled thoughts and emotions. Most of all, there was fury. Fury at the idea that this thing was going to win by bleeding on me. Unbidden, memories of my fight with the Asylum demon surfaced. I had been doing so well against it, but then it had just flopped over and crushed me like an ant, and the fight had been over. I'd never even had a second chance against it, for redemption or revenge. It had all been so unfair.
I wouldn't have a second chance this time, either. If the hydra's blood could reduce me to this state, then there was no way I was coming back from being digested. I had to kill this thing before it killed me, no matter what.
I brought around Trixie's broadsword, and slashed sideways at the uninjured head, cutting across its nose and one eye. I ducked my head as green blood showered over my back. By now, I was sitting in a puddle of my own flesh, but my nerves were still intact enough to feel like they were on fire. The only places on my body that weren't in total agony were bare bone.
Hydra blood trickled over my face. I howled as it pooled in my eye sockets and blinded me. It dripped around my muzzle and into my mouth. My tongue tasted vile poison for a second before it too melted away, and my entire lower jaw fell off. I couldn't even scream anymore, but I still had my horn, and I could still lift my sword.
Why do I do this to myself?
I drove the sword down, digging it into the hydra's flesh just above me, and pulled the sword towards myself. The act opened a wound in the hydra's body, big enough for a pony to fit through, and I buried the sword further inside. Deeper and deeper I thrust it, feeling through my magical field as the blade ripped through the beast's soft innards. I imagined that it was screeching still, but if so, I couldn't hear it; my ears were part of the soup now pouring down my neck.
The body beneath me shifted. More hydra's blood trickled down from the wound and washed over me, finally melting through the soft enamel of my horn. I lost my sword just as I stabbed into something big that I could only hope was a major organ. Then the hydra seemed to completely lose balance, as it toppled over into the swamp, taking me with it.
I didn't so much slide off of its body as I flowed. I was blind and deaf, but I still felt the motions as I dripped down its side and tumbled off onto a rock. A wave crashed over me shortly after, possibly from the hydra hitting the water, but it barely registered through the haze of total agony. I wasn't even immediately aware that I'd fallen at all.
For a while, I simply lay there on the rock. I don't know how long it was before I regained enough clarity of thought to piece together that I had moved, and I had no idea if the beast was still alive or not. I waited for another mouth to close around my body, for more blood to splash over me, for the hydra to try crushing me with its heads, but nothing came. If I'd still had an intact mouth, I might've breathed a sigh of relief. Or, more realistically, I might've still been screaming. Not to put too fine a point on it, but my entire world was pain, and the mere fact that I was still alive and aware was proof that the gods had it out for me personally.
Still, I didn't relent. Though the pain clouded my every thought and made it difficult to concentrate on anything else, I focused all my effort into moving my legs. Three of them didn't respond at all, too badly damaged for me to even feel them. One foreleg twitched slightly, but that was all I could manage. Without a horn, I had no access to my magic, either. Only my neck had enough working muscle to allow me any freedom of movement.
With a grim determination, I leaned as far forward as I could, and hooked the teeth of my upper jaw around a jutting piece of rock. By the strength of my neck alone, I dragged my limp and useless body along, managing only an inch before I had to let go for fear of breaking my teeth. Then I tried again, dragging myself another inch. My exposed bones scraped against the stone, and my flesh still dripped off me. I moved another inch, and then rested again.
For what felt like hours, this continued. An inch at a time, I crawled across the rock, literally dragging myself by my teeth, trying as best I could to block out everything I was feeling. Multiple times, my concentration lapsed, simply because I couldn't ignore it any longer. I kept stopping, overcome by my urge to writhe and scream, which manifested only as a few limp spasms that I could barely feel. Each time, I pulled myself back from my madness and returned to the task at hoof, biting the rock again to continue my journey forward.
Need to reach it... I reminded myself. Need to get there...
Finally, after an eternity of struggling, I reached the edge of the rock, my head now dangling over the water. With one last breath of relief, I dunked it below the swamp, and stayed there until I drowned myself.
I rarely considered the sensation of being dead. Time never seemed to pass at all between my lives. One minute I would be dying, and the next I would wake up in a newly restored body. But in truth, there was always more to it than that. Death is akin to a dreamless sleep. I never had any sort of awareness in death, but... there was something in there. Death isn't just a cessation of existence. It's a gentle, quiet darkness, always beckoning me to stay a little longer.
And whenever I awoke from it, I always felt... cold.
My eyes opened to darkness, and I let out a little gasp. Everything still hurt, with a raw burning pain that put the aftermath of the changeling venom to shame. Yet it was but a gentle summer breeze compared to what I'd just gone through; I had a feeling that any other death I could experience would pale in comparison to that.
I leaned back and waited for it to pass. There was a chill, worse than usual this time, so I wrapped my forehooves around myself and shivered. It took me a second to realise that I was no longer in the swamp. Or at least, I didn't think I was. My surroundings were dry, and my back rested against a rocky wall. With a wince, I lit up my horn, revealing the inside of some kind of cave. Small animal bones littered the floor, scattered amidst a layer of dust, or possibly ash. The whole place smelled of smoke, as if a fire had been burning in here recently.
"...Huh..."
The pain turned to numbness. I pulled myself up, leaning against the cave wall. To my right was a dead end, while from my left, the cold drifted in. I wasn't sure where I was, but it definitely wasn't where I'd died. Someone or something had dragged me here. Going by the recent fire, probably something sapient. A monster? Something that wanted to eat me? Or had I been rescued?
"...Sif?" I called out to the barely illuminated darkness. "Are you there, boy?"
I hoped, somehow, that it was my faithful wolf who had brought me here, but I didn't know. I heard no howl in response, no padding of paws on stone. There was only empty silence, and the sound of distant wind. I realised with a sinking dread that I'd completely lost track of him in the chaos of my battle with the hydra. I had no idea if he'd even survived. I hoped he'd just run off to safety, but unless he came back, I would probably never know.
"Oh, Sif... Where are you, boy?"
It took me a moment to remember how to walk, but I started moving, following the wind towards what I hoped was the exit. There was no light when I reached the end. The mouth of the cave revealed only the moon hanging against a field of stars, just barely illuminating the surrounding wetlands. The light of my horn helped to hold back the darkness, but also attracted fluttering moths. Nothing I saw looked familiar.
"Ah, damn it..." I muttered.
I had no wolf, no armour, no weapons, and no bags. Feeling around my neck, even my iron chain was missing. I was as naked as I could possibly be. And on top of all of that, I was lost in the Everfree Forest on a dark day.
Okay, okay... There must be some way out of this...
I needed to reorient myself first. I still seemed to be in the vicinity of Froggy Bottom Bog, but I didn't know which way anything was. Without a compass, a map, or even the sun to work from, I was walking blind. So... I needed to find somewhere familiar. If I could at least get back to where I'd fought the hydra, I could work out the cardinal directions from memory. And how hard could it be to find something that big?
Since my regular hornlight was too dim to navigate by, I conjured a small fireball to light my way, holding it at the tip of my horn. My pyromancy burned brightly, and the swamp revealed itself. I was standing atop a steep incline that led down to the water, the dirt beneath my hooves becoming mud further down. I descended to the banks of the swamp, and turned right at the bottom of the incline. I didn't know if I was going the right way, but I had to find out somehow.
As luck would have it, I chose well. A short walk later, I came across the hydra's corpse. The monster's necks sprawled across the swamp, some resting on the rocks while others sank into the depths. Chunks were missing from its flesh where scavengers had picked at it, the wounds caked with dark green, conjuring disturbing thoughts about what could have possibly eaten such a creature. Surrounding the corpse, dead fish floated amongst patches of green foam, which bubbled lazily atop the brown water.
"...Yeesh."
I kept walking along the bank, but my eyes remained on the corpse. For a moment, I forgot about trying to work out my position, and instead just marvelled at the sight. It was ugly to look at, but at the same time, it was amazing. The hydra easily dwarfed even the timberwolf king, taking its title for biggest monster I'd ever seen. I doubted even dragons grew so big. And I had killed it. It had broken my bones and melted my flesh, yet it was dead, and I was still here.
Captivated by the sight of the beast, I almost tripped over the big hunk of metal in my path. I stopped, and for a second, chanced to hope that it was a piece of my armour.
Instead, it was the mangled remnants of the black knight that lay at my hooves.
Incredibly, the thing was still alive. Its helmet angled towards me, and the mass of metal that had once been its armour shook slightly. The knight didn't seem like it could move. Maybe its armour was too badly crushed, or maybe the knight itself was too injured. My money was on both. Despite its impairment, it still roared at me, just like back in Ponyville. Now that I thought about it, the black knight's roar shared the same echoey quality as Vamos's voice.
I reached out with my magic and yanked its helmet off, exposing a bare skull underneath. It thrashed about and snapped at the air, as if trying to bite me.
"...You can't be the same hollow I killed in Ponyville," I said quietly. "So I'm guessing there's more than one of you. At least two, very likely more. You probably came from the same knight order... but... why are you both skeletons? Did you die together, the same way? Then how did you end up so far apart? Your armour wasn't removed before you were burned, so... you weren't cremated. I want to say... death by dragon? Were you dragonslayers?"
The black knight did not answer. It just snapped at the air and growled at me. Something told me that I wouldn't ever know its secrets.
"Ah well..." I sighed.
I put a hoof on the mass of twisted metal, and gently shoved it back into the swamp. The black knight sank under the murky water, and disappeared from my sight, hopefully forever. I gave it a little salute.
"Thank you for your service," I said dryly.
Once it was gone, I turned my gaze back to the dead hydra and the surrounding area. Based on what I could see and what I recognised, I was facing west. Which meant that the cave was south of the hydra, and that I had gone north to find it again. So now I knew. I could keep going this way to get back to Sweet Apple Acres, or I could turn around and head back towards the cave to continue my journey.
Truthfully, I wanted to do the latter. I'd lost a day at Madam Zecora's, and now another day being dead again, so getting to Pilgrimage was starting to feel like a more urgent task. But carrying on without any equipment seemed like a bad idea, even for me. With my armour's protection, I'd survived the hollows of Ponyville, the timberwolves, a duel with a Chaos Paladin, and even Darkwraiths. Without it, I'd been stabbed, poisoned, decapitated, crushed, and now melted.
There was no chance in hell I'd win this fight without armour. I needed to go back to Anvil and get a fresh set, or at least scavenge something from one of the many desolate battlefields I'd come across in the Everfree.
I closed my eyes and sighed. Brightflame, the red eye orb, Zecora's charm, Sunset's soapstone, they were all gone now. I didn't think that I was that sentimental about them, but it still hurt to lose them all. And Sif. I was still troubled by the question of where he'd gone.
As if in answer, something furry and covered in filth slammed into me, and I was on my back in the mud. I screamed and held my hooves up over my face, while the wolf tried to lick me and nuzzle my neck. He jumped back and ran in circles around me. I climbed to my hooves, only for him to jump up at me again. This time, I caught him. His fur was encrusted with dried dirt and leaves, and he smelled awful, but I nevertheless grinned as he howled and jumped around me.
"Hello, boy!" I said, grabbing Sif on one of his passes and rubbing his side. "Did you bring me to the cave? Did you drag me out of the swamp?"
Sif yipped and rolled onto his back in the mud, curling his paws up while I continued stroking him.
"Good boy. Good, good boy."
He rolled upright suddenly, and ran in circles around me some more, before quickly lying back down and wagging his tail. I was so happy to see him again, I didn't notice that we weren't alone.
My smile froze on my face as the golden form of Sir Loving Heart fluttered into view from the corner of my eye. He almost seemed to seep from the shadows themselves. Already my neck hairs were raising and my heart was beating faster. Sif must've sensed my apprehension, because he went still and silent.
I stood up slowly, taking a cautious stance and getting ready to run if need be, before turning to face him.
"...Sir Loving Heart," I said carefully. "I wasn't expecting you."
"Nobody ever does." He made some horrible rasping chuckle, and I reflexively stepped back. "I've been waiting for you to revive for over a day now. I confess, I was not expecting you to awaken with all your faculties."
I said nothing. Sif bared his teeth and let out a low growl.
"Your wolf doesn't like me, but he is loyal. When you were attacked, he ran to find help, and led me here to you. Alas, I arrived too late to save your life, but I kept vigil over your corpse. I am glad to see you are still yourself."
I blinked, unsure of how to react to that. It wasn't as if Sir Loving Heart had never helped me before, so it wasn't entirely out of character for him. But last time, it had been repayment of a debt. This time, I honestly couldn't fathom his motive.
"Um... Thank you, Sir Loving Heart."
There was an uncomfortable silence, until Sir Loving Heart broke it with a cough.
"Come," he muttered, turning southward. "I have your things back at the cave."
He started off before I could respond, fluttering above the ground to avoid walking through the mud. I trudged after him, shadowed by Sif. My hooves and Sif's paws squelched with every step, but Sir Loving Heart's wingbeats were eerily silent, little more than a whisper in the air.
"You recovered my gear?" I asked, wearing a puzzled expression.
"Of course. I had little else to do while waiting for you to heal. Your wolf was again a great help with that."
I lapsed back into silence, but Sir Loving Heart had more to say.
"Was it you who slayed the hydra?"
"...Yes," I said, not quite believing it myself. "But not without difficulty."
"I do not doubt," said Sir Loving Heart. "You were in quite the sorry state when I found you. Most of your body had melted away, and what remained was still deteriorating. I had to burn the afflicted flesh."
I again had nothing to say.
"However did you manage to slay the beast? It must have been quite the feat."
"I just sort of... stabbed it a bunch of times..." I mumbled.
"...Hmph. Well, it was a respectable kill, in any case. Slaying a hydra is a brutal endeavour, one which only the most foolhardy warriors attempt. Even undead are hesitant. Did you know that the Free Cities use hydra's blood for undead executions?"
"Uh... no, I didn't."
"I saw one once. An undead execution. It was quite gruesome. The blood liquefied even the undead's bones. Thankfully, they had already been killed by the sword first... To be alive, and feel its sting firsthoof, is said to be an agony beyond mortal comprehension."
I coughed awkwardly. "Yeah... it wasn't fun."
We came to the cave shortly. Sif excitedly ran in ahead of us, while Sir Loving Heart stopped at the entrance to land on the ground at last. He removed his helmet, letting his long, stringy mane tumble out, and gave me the same dull, contemptuous expression he always bore.
"I saved what I could, but I'm afraid much of it is still damp," he said gesturing towards the cave entrance with a wing.
If he thought I was going into a dark cave ahead of him, he had another thing coming.
"I'm sure it's fine," I replied, resolutely not moving. "At least I won't be naked out here."
Sir Loving Heart evidently took my meaning, dropping his wing and stepping towards the cave. He stopped when Sif came bounding out, clutching something in his mouth. My wolf ran over to me to drop a broken sword at my hooves, tail wagging furiously.
I slowly floated it up to inspect it. It was Trixie's broadsword, or at least what remained of it. Most of the blade was missing, and some of the hilt too. It didn't look like the pieces had been snapped off, either. The edges were marked by small curves and patches, and off colouring where the upper layer of the metal had been eaten away by the hydra's blood. I almost wasn't surprised after what it had done to me.
"Huh... okay." I tossed the ruined sword aside. "Well... thanks for trying, boy."
Sif made a whining noise and went to pick it back up. He held the broken sword in his mouth and padded back over, sitting in front of me with the hilt clenched in his jaw.
"Right..." I said, taking it off him again. "Okay, boy. Thank you."
He excitedly ran back into the cave. When Sir Loving Heart also went in ahead, I threw the broken sword back into the bushes and followed them, my fireball still lighting the way. The cave wasn't very deep, but it was winding, and full of small alcoves. It was no surprise that I'd missed many of them on my way out. Sure enough, in an alcove near the back of the cave, Sir Loving Heart had left all my armour in a heap. My eyes widened as I beheld it, while Sif struggled to drag Brightflame out of the pile.
Somehow, my full suit was there, damp, but otherwise no worse for wear. Brightflame remained in its scabbard, and even still burned when I removed it, releasing a cloud of steam. I found Trixie's kite shield and my saddlebags underneath the pile, too.
"The bags were unopened when I found them, so I believe nothing escaped," said Sir Loving Heart, standing behind me. "But your inkpot cracked, and most of the parchment inside was ruined."
I hurriedly checked through the bags. The inkpot and the map were absent, as was most of the blank parchment, but a few crinkled sheets still remained. Miraculously, Witchcraft's spell scroll had survived, which made me breathe a sigh of relief; everything else was an acceptable loss, but the scroll would be difficult to replace. I resolved to sit down and read it as soon as possible, in case I ever lost it again.
Besides the papers, everything was still present. The red eye orb, soapstone, binoculars, bag of gold, and quill were all accounted for. All I was missing was the rusty chain. Or at least, that's what I thought, until I fished that out of the bags as well. Hydra's blood had melted through part of it and broken the chain, so I had no idea whether it still worked, but it was definitely the same one Madam Zecora had given me.
I gave Sir Loving Heart an incredulous look. He shrugged as he leaned back against the cave wall.
"Floating metal is hard to miss," he said simply.
I returned my attention to the armour pile, and stared down at the rusty iron chain. If he was telling the truth, then it still functioned, even if I couldn't wear it anymore. I decided to wrap it around my hoof and cover it with my leggings from now on.
"I... I don't know what to say. Thank you, Sir L—"
Metal hooves gripped my shoulder and shoved my head forward. I instinctively rolled onto my back and blasted Sir Loving Heart away with a wave of telekinetic force. Good to see I still had enough magic left to fight. He staggered and hit the cave wall, grunting from the impact. Sif snarled and circled around to his side, while I unsheathed Brightflame and pointed it at him.
"Stay back!" I shouted, shadows flickering off the cave walls as I waved my sword. "I'm warning you, sir! Not a step closer!"
Blood dripped from Sir Loving Heart's nose, but his dull expression remained completely unchanged. He casually wiped the blood away with an armoured hoof and drew himself up.
"I apologise," he whispered, his breathy voice making my skin crawl. "I was merely attempting to see the mark on your neck."
I paused, and thrust Brightflame a little closer. Sir Loving Heart stiffened slightly.
"What?" I asked.
"I thought I saw a mark on the back of your neck. A small black spiral shape."
"...It's a birthmark," I said. "It's nothing."
In truth, I was surprised he'd even seen it; normally, it was obscured by my mane.
"My wife had one just like it," said Sir Loving Heart, eyes flicking to the floor. "In the same place, too. Ran in her family."
I lowered Brightflame.
"Really? The Apples all have this mark?"
He shook his head. "Only Apple Bloom's descendants, which right now, is just Honest Heart. Though, curiously, the Doctor has it as well, despite a lack of any relation to the Apples."
"...That is curious."
"You and he are both from the Griffish Isles, are you not?" Sir Loving Heart asked. "Do the two of you bear any common relation?"
"None that I know, but it's possible."
I sheathed Brightflame, though my fireball still lit the cave. Sif calmed down slightly, but kept between us and the exit.
"There's a noble family in New Griffonstone who have these birthmarks. House Songbird. I had a great grandfather who was a bastard of their line, so that's where I get it from. The Doctor could be related to that house as well, but... I don't see how anypony from the Apple family could be..."
Either way, this was an interesting coincidence, if Sir Loving Heart was telling the truth. I didn't believe in fate or destiny, but this still felt significant somehow. Myself, the Doctor, and Honest Heart... what linked us? Was there a reason we all met, or was it really just a coincidence? But how could it be? What were the odds that I'd travel halfway across the world and just happen to bump into two distant, unknown relatives, who didn't even have a clear relation to each other? How could that possibly be random?
While I pondered, Sir Loving Heart took a single step in my direction. Immediately I backed away and Sif growled at him, making the knight stop in his tracks. He tilted his head slightly.
"...You really do not trust me, do you?"
"Can you seriously blame me? You're a murder suspect lurking in the woods, who lured me into a dark cave and tried to grab me from behind."
Sir Loving Heart remained placid. "If I made a poor impression, I apologise for it."
I almost laughed. "Why did you rescue me, Sir Loving Heart? Why did you really help me?"
"I am a knight," he answered. "I swore a vow to protect others."
I glared at him, expecting him to give a real answer, but he just sighed and looked away.
I wouldn't have questioned a random act of heroism from any other knight in the world, but Sir Loving Heart was just so overtly sinister and creepy, it almost didn't make sense coming from him.
"Hmm, I see," he muttered. "You believe I am guilty."
"...Maybe" I said, uncertain. "I'm trying to reserve judgement, but you're not making it easy. It's just..."
Sir Loving Heart gave me an expectant look.
"...It's just... Sir Loving Heart, maybe you don't know this, but you're... unsettling. Everything about you just puts me on edge. I'm not saying it's your fault, but..."
He remained still for a moment, unblinking, unchanging. I wondered for a moment if I'd offended him. But if I had, how would I even tell?
"Yes, I see," he eventually said. "That is regrettable. But not an uncommon reaction. Honest Heart has much the same opinion of me. So did my wife, in the beginning... She always told me I should smile more, but I never mastered the art."
He tried to smile at me, just like he had when I'd first met him. Again, it was an unnatural look, just bared yellow teeth with an empty, joyless stare. I couldn't help but wince.
Sir Loving Heart dropped it and cleared his throat.
"Well... if I make you uncomfortable, perhaps I should depart. Unless you would like my assistance navigating back to the Acres?"
I shook my head. "I'm not going back. I have a purpose in the woods."
"Hmph. Off to rescue a nubile young cleric, are you?"
My eyes widened.
"Oh, don't look so surprised. Madam Zecora and her new student told me all about your quest. If you mean to continue, I would still lend you my blades, if that is your wish."
"...You know Madam Zecora?" I asked.
"Where else do you think your wolf found me?"
I closed my eyes and sighed. This should've been an easy decision, but Sir Loving Heart frightened me deeply, and had since the moment we met. Every time I saw him, it inspired only a sinking dread, even when he came to help. But that was just the thing: he kept coming to help me. His demeanour, appearance, and voice were all creepy and menacing, but by his actions... I really had nothing to hold against him. As much as it pained me to admit it, there was nothing rational about my fears.
And besides all that, I was in the Everfree Forest on a dark day; I needed all the help I could get.
"...Fine," I said. "I suppose it'll be easier going with the two of us."
"My service is yours, for the time being. But we should move quickly. The deer would not dare tread near the castle ruins, but... other things lurk in these woods. Fortunate that you have me then. I have quite some experience as a hunter of beasts. Eheheheh..."
There was nothing quite like one of Sir Loving Heart's dry, raspy laughs to remind me that the gods hate us all and that everything will eventually die.
Froggy Bottom Bog wasn't as big as I'd thought, so it didn't take us long to get out of the swamp. The water gave way to mud, the mud became dirt, and I was soon noticing a lot more trees all around us, prompting me to lower the intensity of my fireball for fear of starting another inferno. Despite the darkness, it felt good to be out of the swamp and back into the forest itself. It felt safer. For as bad as all the desolate battlefields and timberwolves were, none of them had ever melted me alive.
The wildlife also started changing as we made the transition. In the swamp, I'd noticed insects everywhere, moths and dragonflies and such. In the woods, there were spiders. Weird little blue spiders with star shapes on their backs, which wove their webs across our paths so that we had to push through them to move on. They seemed harmless, but I was still wary of them. My experiences with Everfree fauna so far had not been positive.
Still, I was quite disturbed when Sir Loving Heart at one point ate one of the spiders. The thing had landed on his nose, so he shot out his tongue and pulled it into his mouth like a frog, swallowing it live. I stared incredulously at him, but he offered neither comment nor explanation, simply continuing as if nothing had happened. After my experiences with the Chaos Paladins, I felt I should be more jaded to such bizarre behaviour, but Sir Loving Heart was uniquely strange.
Further along, we started encountering mushrooms. Walking mushrooms, with hands, and faces. They were just a head shorter than a pony, and padded around on two stubby little legs, squinting at the three of us through beady black eyes. They kept their distance, and waddled away as we approached, but Sif didn't like them. He growled at any he saw, the hair on his back pricking up. I wasn't sure if it was just predator behaviour, or if he was trying to warn me about something. Either way, I found them very creepy.
"It's okay, boy," I said, keeping my magical grip around Brightflame's hilt. "They won't come any closer."
"Hrmm, you don't know that," Sir Loving Heart grumbled. "They may simply be biding their time, waiting for their parents."
"Parents?" I echoed.
"I've heard tell from other crusaders of the deer sending mushroom creatures into battle, but they always described them as great hulking brutes, not small shy things like these. I would wager that these ones are mere children, and that mother and father are out on the front lines somewhere. If they return, the little ones might find some courage, and that could be a problem. We may find ourselves mobbed."
"So what would you suggest?" I asked, keeping my eyes on the mushroom creatures. "Killing them preemptively because they might be dangerous? Must say, not an attitude that benefits you. And if mommy and daddy could return at any moment, I'd rather not give them a reason to be angry at us."
"Hmph. Point taken."
He said no more on the subject as we trudged deeper into the woods, shadowed by a small entourage of curious mushroom creatures the entire way. I called out to them a few times, gauging to see if they were intelligent and willing to communicate, but the results were inconclusive. None of them responded to me, and a few ran to hide behind trees whenever I looked their way. I quickly gave up on communication attempts, putting them out of my mind once it became clear that they were neither friends nor threats.
Still, the pitter-patter of their stumpy feet weren't the only sounds in the dark forest. Every now and then I'd hear spiders skittering by, or owls hooting somewhere above us. But it wasn't until the howls rang out in the distance that I started feeling a tingle of dread. I went to reach for Brightflame, but stopped before I drew it.
"...Damn," I muttered.
I came to a halt, and Sir Loving Heart fell into line beside me.
"What is it?" he asked. "The wolves?"
"Brightflame," I said with a sigh. "It causes forest fires, and I lost my only other weapon."
"A forest fire in this region would not be the worst thing," said Sir Loving Heart. "We would not endanger any crusaders here, as the deer would undoubtedly move to extinguish it quickly, and their distraction would be to our benefit. It would serve to drive away monsters, as well."
"And what about the other animals?" I asked, pointedly. "The rabbits? The birds? Just because they can't control their instincts and don't speak our language, we should let them all burn to serve as a distraction? No. A life is a life, no matter how small. I will not kill so callously."
Sir Loving Heart grunted. "I see. As a matter of practicality, I would argue that we should consider our own lives before those of others, and do whatever is necessary to preserve them. But, from a moral stance, I respect your decision. If you wish, I could lend you one of my shotels?"
"Please."
He removed one of the wicked curved blades from his belt and passed it to me. I floated it up and gave it a swing. It didn't have the same satisfying swish that my sword did, but beggars can't be choosers, so I thanked him and hung it next to my shield.
"You don't need them both to use them effectively, do you?" I asked as the thought occurred to me.
"I am more comfortable with two," Sir Loving Heart admitted. "It is the style we Embraced Knights are trained in. But no, I do not require both. My wing-blades are more than sufficient."
We resumed our steady progression, Sif running ahead of us to scout the path and warn off the mushroom creatures. As we walked, I voiced another question on my mind.
"What are the Embraced Knights of Cadance, exactly? Anvil said your order are changeling-hunters."
"We are indeed that." Sir Loving Heart chuckled darkly in that creepy way he did, and I found myself struggling to imagine what his normally expressionless face must've looked like when making such a noise. "But only when we need to be."
"...When you need to be?"
"Such as when the feral population in an area needs culling, or a rogue changeling forsakes the Fire to feed on his neighbours. My order are a countermeasure to legitimate changeling threats only. We do not exist to persecute the innocent."
"So... no association with New Griffonstone's Holy Inquisition then?"
"None," Sir Loving Heart said, much more fiercely than I expected. "I am a servant of Cadance. My purpose is to defend love. Ferals and rogues must be hunted, for they profane love by stealing it from others. Yet a changeling who does not succumb to such base urges understands the sanctity of love better than any other. Love is the lifeblood of a changeling, and the persecution of their kind is not something than any true follower of the Goddess of Love should abide."
I blinked, taken aback by Sir Loving Heart's sudden display of principle. He truly sounded angry about the mistreatment of the changelings, a feeling that I shared and thus fully understood. But, again, I didn't know how to take it from him. It further suggested that I'd initially misjudged the golden knight, but at the same time, I couldn't help noting that a pony so outraged by bigotry and intolerance probably wouldn't have gotten along well with his fellow crusaders.
Might have even been driven to murder, a little voice in my head whispered.
I considered that for a second, but only for a second, because I was interrupted in the middle of my thought by a timberwolf barreling out of the underbrush and slamming into me.
I cried out as I was sent sprawling, and grappled with my attacker as it jumped on top of me. Sir Loving Heart's wings flared as more timberwolves came bounding out of the woods. Sif rushed in, growling at the wooden wolves, all of which, I noticed with no small amount of concern, were at least slightly bigger than him. He closed his mouth around the throat of one timberwolf, while Sir Loving Heart eagerly jumped into the fray, slashing furiously at a group of others. The whole scene quickly devolved into total chaos.
I threw off the timberwolf pinning me, and drew my shield and shotel as I rolled aside and onto my hooves. It recovered and lunged at me, but I bashed its head with the kite shield and stuck the shotel in its neck.
Remembering the technique Anvil described, I buried it deep, and then tore it loose with one savage motion. Were it a living wolf, the result would've been quite bloody. As it was, all I tore loose was a layer of bark around its face. The timberwolf howled in pain, treesap dripping from under its jaw. I thought I'd really hurt it for a moment, but to my dismay, the bark I'd removed floated off the ground in a swathe of emerald green, and reattached itself to the timberwolf's face.
As I panicked and tried to mutilate the beast again, I was distracted by the distressed cries of my companions. Sir Loving Heart was being overwhelmed, breathing heavily as they came at him from all sides. He was having the same problem I was with his weapons, unable to damage the timberwolves faster than they could repair the damage. But at least the two of us were encased in armour. Sif, a non-magical wolf without instant healing, had no protection whatsoever as a gang of three wolves pounced on him. One bit his hind leg, and another went for his throat just like he'd done to the other. He yelped when they sank their teeth into him, and blood ran down his coat.
I kicked aside the wolf I was dealing with, and used telekinesis to smash another against a tree as it went for me. As soon as I was disengaged from my fight, I gripped all three wolves on Sif with my magic, and forced them off of him. They were very confused for a second, and then started snarling in my direction while the two I'd pushed aside piled back on me. I was shoved back to the ground, but luckily, the wolves seemed either not strong enough or not heavy enough to damage my armour significantly, at least not with only two of them. So I paid them no heed, instead focusing on holding back the other three while Sif limped away.
None of you creatures can harm me, I thought with a grin as they bit at my joints and neck, trying in vain to find something exposed.
An unexpected scream from Sir Loving Heart told me that I might've spoke too soon. I twisted to look his way, and gasped at the timberwolf that had closed its jaw around the back of one of his wings. Though his wing was as well-armoured as the rest of him, and sharp enough to become embedded in the timberwolf's mouth, that hadn't stopped the beast from twisting it backwards. Sir Loving Heart thrashed and tried to pull it loose, but the timberwolf kept on him. A sickening crack rang through the forest, followed by another guttural scream from Sir Loving Heart. He dropped to his knees, and the wolves biting his other limbs began dragging him away.
"No!" I shouted. "No, you monsters! Get back here!"
Another timberwolf climbed onto my back, and now I was starting to get seriously worried about the possibility of being crushed. I wasn't strong enough to push them all off, not even with magic, unless I let go of the ones that I was already restraining, which would then attack me as well. My magic wasn't strong enough to hold back the entire pack with telekinesis alone. In fact, three at once seemed to be my limit. Not bad for a unicorn, but not good enough at the moment. Sir Loving Heart was already disappearing into the forest, the glint of his golden armour shrinking into the darkness as the timberwolves dragged him further and further away.
I weighed my options. I didn't want to risk a forest fire with Brightflame or my pyromancies, but it wasn't my own life on the line here. My companions were more vulnerable than I was, and if I didn't act fast, their lives could be lost. Then I remembered the fireball floating above me, the one I'd been using to light our way. If I'd still had the freedom of movement for it, I would've smacked my forehead for being so stupid. I didn't need to risk starting a forest fire to use fire as a threat.
I magnified my fireball's intensity, turning it blindingly bright and blowing it up to the size of my own head. The timberwolves attacking me yelped and leapt back, and I waved the fireball back and forth through the air. Feeling a strain on my magic, I let go of the three I held in my telekinesis, and they immediately fled. The ones that had been attacking me ran as well.
A miniature sun floated before me. I picked myself up, and galloped into the woods, bringing it along with me. Its brilliant light shone through the trees, illuminating the woodlands as clear as day. Small rabbits and rodents, lumbering mushroom creatures, birds and bats up in the trees, and everything else around me all panicked and ran from view as they were suddenly exposed by my light. Up ahead, the timberwolves dragging Sir Loving Heart also tried to escape, but I wasn't going to let them.
I closed the distance with ease. The weight of a fully-armoured knight slowed the timberwolf pack enough that they didn't get far. I drew Brightflame and swung it at them threateningly, getting them to back off and freeing Sir Loving Heart, who shakily climbed to his hooves with laboured breaths. His wing was still twisted at an unnatural angle, and I imagined that he must've still been in great pain. The timberwolves started circling us, clearly apprehensive of the fire, but not as terrified as the others had been. A few howled.
I swung Brightflame and waved my fireball about whenever any of them got too close, hoping to drive them back, but still the pack wouldn't break. Unless I actually burned a few of them, I suspected that they never would. Maybe they knew from my hesitance that I was bluffing. Maybe they could smell my fear, and thought that their numbers still gave them an advantage. Either way, it was clear that we couldn't wait them out.
"What's the plan?" Sir Loving Heart gasped out, as he turned to cover our rear.
"You're asking me?" I shouted back. "You're the knight!"
"I'm a crippled knight. You're the one who's defeated these things before. What is the plan?"
I gulped and took a breath.
"...They'll keep reassembling from conventional damage," I said. "And they'll keep coming. We need to destroy their darkwood hearts. Fire is the only way I know how."
Sir Loving Heart and I stood back to back as the timberwolves surrounded us. Soon, more came to join the initial group, the ones I'd scared off before, no longer so frightened.
"Use whatever means you must," he said.
I hadn't been looking for his permission. Indecision still paralyzed me. I knew our lives were in my hooves, but so were many others. Killing monsters in self-defence was one thing, but I couldn't justify sacrificing a whole forest as collateral damage. We needed another plan.
I swallowed, holding steady. "Close your eyes and get ready to run."
"What?"
"On my mark. Three... two... one..."
I unleashed another burst of brilliant flame, aimed at the empty air. For a split second, the timberwolves all went blind, and Sir Loving Heart and I slammed them aside as we galloped past them and through the trees.
We didn't get far before they were on our heels again. I waved around a fireball behind us to discourage them from getting closer, and tried to ignore the burning in my lungs as the run took its toll. For all the experience I'd had in wearing it, my armour was still heavy and exhausting, and I was no earth pony. We couldn't keep this up for long before fatigue took me. I just hoped to get Sir Loving Heart to some place of safety before then. The worst the timberwolves could do was crush me to death, and I could come back from that, but my companion was another matter.
It was only after we'd already been running for a few minutes that I noticed their formation. The timberwolves weren't just behind us, but had actually formed a kind of loose semicircle. Most of the pack was to our rear, but some were to our sides, and we were already moving to avoid them without even thinking. I was too out of breath to voice it, but I realised then that we were being herded. To what or where, I didn't know.
I found out soon enough, though, as a horrible screeching noise rang out in the distance, and seemed to come closer and closer. The underbrush gave way to barren dirt, the trees were replaced by dead hunks of wood and twigs, and soon the two of us ran into a clearing littered with the bones of various animals. In the centre of it all, illuminated by my fireball, the gnarled, twisted form of the screaming tree shook violently, its leafless branches writhing like thick, black tentacles. The trunk of the tree twisted about, revealing a crude face formed of three deep holes in the bark, which shrieked at us with an ear-splitting cry that chilled my very soul.
Sir Loving Heart's shotel dipped from its ready position. "What manner of beast—"
I didn't let him finish. There was no time to explain, anyway. All my reservations vanished upon first sight of the tree, and I slammed the fireball into its trunk.
The thing was already screaming anyway, so its cries hardly became any worse. But its movements became even more wild and erratic as the flames engulfed it. We dodged to avoid its branches thrashing against the ground, pulverising the dirt and kicking up twigs and fragments of bone. The timberwolves all cried out as one, some collapsing in convulsions, and others staggering about the clearing.
I breathed a sigh of relief. Killing the tree meant killing the pack it controlled, or so Witchcraft had said. For a moment, I naively thought the battle settled, but it wasn't so simple. As the screaming tree's movements slowed, a number of green pods on its branches burst, and a black liquid trickled down its side. It looked like oil, but it smothered any flames it dripped over, and the fire didn't spread to any bark it dampened, even as the rest of the tree was charred black.
I prepared another fireball, and readied to throw it, when the light on the end of my horn flickered, and the flame sputtered out. The telekinetic field around Brightflame vanished as well, and my sword dropped to the ground. Its flames licked the dry twigs and branches of the forest floor for but a second, before they winked out as well, leaving only the burning tree itself to light the forest.
"Firelink?" Sir Loving Heart called out, sounding tense.
"It's draining us!" I shouted back. "It's eating our magic! We have to get out of here!"
Growling timberwolves surrounded us before we could even move our legs, having shaken off their trauma just as quickly as the tree had. They wasted no time in pouncing on us, knocking me to the ground with their sheer weight, grabbing my limbs and pulling, gnashing at my helmet, and generally trying everything in their power to kill me. Not enough of them were on top of me to risk crushing, and their jaws failed to deform the plate, but they were still physically stronger than I was, and now I had no magic to fight them with either.
Sir Loving Heart had it worse. Just as before, they gripped their teeth around his wings, pulling and twisting as he screamed louder than the screaming tree. There was a crunch and a visceral tearing as they ripped his wing off. A clatter of metal followed. I stared on helplessly at Sir Loving Heart lying on his side, splashes of red marring his golden armour, while the beasts clawed at the stump on his back and tried to pull his other wing loose.
His screams died down, giving way to pained groans and grunting. He tried to physically resist, but there were too many timberwolves on him. And then, as the final nail in the coffin, his helmet came off.
I saw it coming before the timberwolves did. It had been just a little too loose around the neck, and soon the regular jostling of their attacks had knocked it completely off. Sir Loving Heart's crowned helmet fell from his head and onto the forest floor, exposing his gaunt face and messy long mane. His eyes were red and wet, but his face was otherwise as blank as ever. He stared at me from across the clearing, and to this day, I have no idea what he must have been thinking in those last moments before the timberwolf closed its jaw around his neck and ripped out his throat.
Sir Loving Heart's face fell into the dirt. I screamed out his name, tears falling from my eyes. I tried to reach out toward him, but my hooves were held in another timberwolf's mouth. And deep within me, I felt an icy cold sapping my strength, a feeling of overwhelming weakness which was slowing my every movement.
I thought for a moment it was the shock of Sir Loving Heart's death, but that would've been too easy. No, I recognised the feeling soon enough. It was uncomfortably close to my first death, that numb feeling of total weakness immediately after Trusty Patches had betrayed me and stolen my soul. It was happening again. The screaming tree was done with simply disabling my spells, and was now pulling out the magic within me, the soul that had been Sunset's gift.
"S-Stop..." I muttered. "Not again... Not... again..."
A few of the timberwolves let me go. I blinked, disoriented. Had I commanded them, somehow? No. They were simply distracted by something else. Something new had entered the clearing, and some of the pack had broken off to warn it away. The timberwolves growled. There was movement in the corner of my eye. I mustered my strength and kicked away the ones biting my ankles, pulling myself up.
Sif ran around the outside of the pack, bounding back and forth with something clutched between his teeth, growling at any that came close to him. There were far too many of them. He was going to die just like Sir Loving Heart, and then this monstrosity was going to eat his soul as well and make him a part of its hivemind.
"Run, Sif!" I called. "Run!"
My voice momentarily confused the wolf. He hesitated, cocking his head in my direction, and the pack pounced on him too. Whatever he was carrying flew into the air and bounced off the screaming tree's trunk. I let out another anguished scream as yet another friend of mine was torn to shreds right before my eyes.
The timberwolves didn't have to pile on me this time. I dropped to my knees by myself, as if in surrender. My eyes squeezed shut to stop the tears, and I shouted curses to the tree as loud as I could, in hopes that it might hear me over the din of its own infernal screeching. I sensed the pack encircling me once more, ready for another attempt at pulling my armour open. I opened my eyes, ready to face them...
....Just as one of the mushroom creatures came lumbering into the clearing. It was much larger than the ones I'd seen before, twice my height standing, and quite bulky for its size, but plodding along at a ponderously slow pace. Like its smaller counterparts, it squinted in my direction through beady black eyes, though it was notably braver than they were, making a beeline straight for the timberwolves rather than running to avoid them.
This must be mommy, I thought.
The timberwolves took its challenge, encircling the mushroom creature and growling out their usual warnings to it. The screaming tree also twisted about to face it, the flames on its exterior having now died down to almost nothing. Its branches creaked and twisted, and slammed down towards the mushroom creature, only for the creature to catch the branch in a hand as big as a bear's paw and snap it off.
I blinked, staring. The mushroom creature took another step closer to the tree, then another. As soon as it was in range, it wound back its arm, fingers curling into a fist.
The mushroom punched the screaming tree, tearing the trunk clean off its roots. It flew across the clearing, and smashed through the line of dead trees surrounding us with a thunderous crash. I swear I saw the air igniting around its fist.
"What the blazing hell?!" I screamed, recoiling as much in alarm as shock.
The timberwolves agreed with my sentiment, as all of them seemed to start having seizures at this. They collapsed in unison, spasmed for a bit, and then quickly fell limp. Seconds later, whatever magic held them together dissipated, as they all fell apart into formless piles of wood. Without the screaming tree's... screaming, a deathly silence fell over the forest clearing. I lay on my back, completely still, staring in terror at the mushroom creature which now stood where the tree once was, fist still outstretched.
It slowly turned my way, focusing its eyes on me. I gulped and scrambled back to get away from it, but backed up straight into a dead tree. The mushroom creature didn't move for a moment. Then it lumbered a few steps forward, leaned down, and picked up something on the ground. I recognised it as the thing Sif had been carrying in his mouth, which upon closer inspection, I could see was a tiny mushroom arm.
The mushroom creature stared at the severed arm for a while, losing all interest in me. I remained quiet, lying back against the tree and trying to make myself as small as possible. When it was done, it turned away and lumbered off again, stomping out of the clearing and back to wherever the hell it had come from.
I stayed there for a minute, trying to comprehend what on Earth had just happened. As best I could tell, Sif had killed one of the mushroom children or... something, attracted a wrathful mushroom parent from somewhere, and led it here. Was it supposed to kill the tree? Had it just been meant as a distraction for the timberwolves so that we could get away? They seemed to be universally hostile, so it wasn't a great leap to assume that they'd attack a mushroom parent wandering into their clearing, but... I never knew that Sif was smart enough to come up with a plan like that.
Sif... saved me...
I walked to the middle of the clearing. Where the screaming tree had once stood, now there was only a stump. The things that were once timberwolves were now just piles of sticks and logs. And Sir Loving Heart and Sif, once living, breathing beings, were now bloody corpses. I collapsed next to Sif's remains, taking off my helmet and holding an armoured foreleg to cover my eyes.
I knew then that I was resilient enough to grief that it wouldn't hollow me. No more holding back my tears. No more running from tragedy, trying to forget. Sif and Sir Loving Heart had stuck by me to the bitter end. I would give them the burial they both deserved. The burial I should've given to what remained of Notch. And I would mourn them properly. They had earned that.
Then something behind me suddenly grabbed my hindleg and let out a loud gasp, making me scream and twist around. Sir Loving Heart, throat very much intact, if somewhat bloody, sucked in a breath of air. He stared wide-eyed at the forest ceiling, clawing at his face with his free hoof and flexing a new, unarmoured wing.
"Graaahh!" he screamed, before biting his lip and seething in obvious pain. "Firelink...! What... foul sorcery...? By Cadance, this is agony!"
I scrambled to my hooves and backed away, dropping my helmet to the ground as I stared at him, dumbfounded. Unable to say anything, I stayed there, frozen in shock. Then Sif padded up beside me and offered comfort the only way he knew how: by licking my cheek. I let him, remaining stock still as my eye twitched and my brain tried and failed to process what was happening.
...I should've been a Fire-Keeper, I concluded.
"Hahah... Was thine eye glancing hither? Thou needst not hide thy wonder. I am a mushroom, after all."
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- DannyJ · 3.7k words · 48 6 · 1.4k views
- DannyJ · 14k words · 35 5 · 1k views
- DannyJ · 62k words · 35 12 · 1.5k views
- Visiden Visidane · 45k words · 66 8 · 1.7k views
- Gapeagle · 24k words · 32 2 · 917 views
- Rollem Bones · 113k words · 37 1 · 953 views
- ColdGoldLazarus · 11k words · 55 6 · 2.6k views
- That_Gamer_Scout · 1.2k words · 137 13 · 4.4k views
Stats
Page generated in 0.139 seconds
Total duration
644 users online
1,237,629 hits today, 2,707,512 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.®
8897862
GUESS AGAIN SON
Maybe I give this a chance, I finally played Dark Souls 3 myself as my first darksouls game, because it was cheaper.
Not sure if it's the hardest or not, but I wasn't happy with my assasin after reaching the road of sacrafises or something like that. I also hardly brought any aditional items from the shop beside arrows and well I think I messed the assasin up a bit.
I thought I had to deleete it when I started a new characters and because of that I tried out to kill a few of the friendly people. Now I noticed I still have that character and that I can't use any of the shops anymore. HHHHhhhhmmm well I couldn't asked because the people on steam where either jerks or didn't replied at all when I asked for tips in the diskussions.
Sorry, but I thought I could name the problem here too since I found it and it interessted me a bit.
Now that ending was unexpected.
9037283
Generally speaking, killing merchants isn't a big deal in Dark Souls 3. Any other game in the series, and yeah, that'd probably screw things up majorly, but in DS3 all the merchant characters you can kill will either respawn or drop their ashes. If you collect their ashes, then you can give them to the old lady in the shrine, and she'll sell everything that the dead merchant would have. Also, she can't be killed herself. She'll just respawn when you reload the area, and hike up her prices as a punishment. So, don't sweat it. If there was anything you needed to buy, you can probably still buy it. The only thing this doesn't work for is unique services. For example, the old lady can't teach you magic like the tutor characters can. But if you're running an assassin build, you probably don't need much magic anyway, and most spells can be found other ways anyway.
Well I'm glad Sif's alright, but...what? Why did they revive? How?
9037411
The undead curse is triggered by premature loss of one's soul, such as how Firelink became cursed because Patches stole his soul before murdering him. As Witchcraft explained in the previous chapter, screaming trees are thaumivores just like changelings are, meaning that they feed on magic. That's why Firelink's spells stopped working. Loving Heart and Sif both had their souls consumed by the tree during the battle, so both became undead.
9037454
...it's been a year and a half since the last chapter; I skimmed the end of it, but I don't remember anything else that happened.
We're back in business baby!
9037303
Thank you, but it looked as if the old lady didn't wanted to help me anymore either at first.
I just found this story and love it so far! Can't wait for the next chapter.
9038461 Both the handmaid and Andre will respawn if you kill them at the shrine. Andre will refuse to smith for you anymore, but the handmaid will still sell you stuff. She'll just jack up the prices unreasonably.
Anyway, despite the general absence of the All-Nana (though we can infer that the mushroom which intervened at the end was a post-transformation Firelink crossing over from the Sunlight For Life universe), this wasn't a bad chapter.
mmMMM FUCK YEAH. That is all.
Tonight, Lautrec joins the hunt!
I've just read through the entire story and it's very impressive. The story seems to take characters and elements from all three of the Dark Souls games. The Covenants for example, have been implemented well so far. I liked how the Flame of Friendship from the Heartwarming Eve tale has been reworked into the First Flame. The way the Changelings, Hollows and Undead all work, in regards to the curse as well, is nice. I've enjoyed how all the characters have been portrayed so far, except Patches. In all the Souls games, Patches punishes you for what he perceives as your own greed. But in this story he killed Firelink for his own selfish means. I know it's a story borrowing elements of the series, but that's the one thing that stuck out to me.
I also see references to Bloodborne, though I assume those are just winks and nods to the games and their story. I don't know if there were any Demon's Souls references in the story besides Crestfallen, but you could always throw in a reference to Boletaria or the characters in that game, like King Allant, The Slayer of Demons, Yuria the Witch, Biorr of the Twin Fangs, or Old King Doran and Garl Vinland.
Also hoping to see Spike in the Castle of Friendship in a role like Seath or maybe as the Ancient Dragon of Ash Lake? As for this chapter, nicely done, I like Sif so far, hopefully the doggo survives the story with Firelink. And learns to wield a sword.
9064372
Thanks very much. I'm glad you're liking it so far.
I'm trying very hard not to spoil future plot points right now, but I will say that we haven't seen the last of Patches, so don't render your final judgement on him just yet.
The story is primarily a crossover with Dark Souls 1, but as you pointed out before, there are elements from DS2&3 in here as well. I'm treating Bloodborne in the same manner. For now it's just little nods like the Fire-Keeper's Dream and that snake guy, but there will be more explicit stuff later on, in a similar vein to what I did with Gavlan.
The Demon's Souls references are sparse right now, because I haven't played much of it, but there is already a fairly explicit one in the World on Fire lore document.
9064481
Think of Demon's Souls as the clunkier older brother of the series. It lacks the speed of Bloodborne, Dark Souls 3 or games inspired by the series, like Nioh. Also I recommend using the Duping glitch, because it's basically the only way to get enough of all the resources for blacksmithing. Assuming you want to craft everything for all the trophies. (Which I did, only thanks to some online help, before the servers shutdown.) Nice to see there's some more Demon's souls lore in the lore document as well. I hope they killed the Dragon God with the Dragon Smasher from Demon's Souls, it's the best way to do it XD.
9064698
I'll keep that advice in mind. Thanks.
Damn, this was a good chapter. Hope the next one comes a bit faster. :)
Spotted this in my tracking a lot earlier, but I figured 'hey, DannyJ, made me wait a year, I'm sure he won't mind if I put this off for a while'. Anyway...
Weird awkwardness in this sentence. Probably the shift in voice. I'd prefer the active voice, of course, so...
Dried blood and filth sullied his armour, while his axe, shield, and helmet lay in a pile beside him.
I'd appreciate it if the crows were mentioned earlier while describing the initial scene. Having this described here makes it seem as if the crows only materialized as soon as they started approaching. I've noticed that Sif caught the scent of this pile of stinky corpses, but Fire Link smelled nothing all throughout the description, which leads me to believe that hollowing has robbed him of his sense of smell. He's apparently gone selectively deaf too as the caws from all those crows would have been quite the racket.
I like the integration of the rusted iron ring.
This figure of speech comes off very out of place unless there are radars in Equestria/Lordran. I suppose Gwyn has to watch out for those demon stealth bombers.
I do like the visceral struggle against the hydra. Some smelling would be appreciated though. There's been a lack of smelling all throughout the chapter.
He wouldn't be a Dark Souls character if he didn't end dialogue with a sinister laugh.
I like the ending, very grim.
9084661
...Yeah, I guess I have that coming.
Changed to your suggestion. Thank you.
I'll see if I can do something about these on my next revision.
My editors brought this up as well, but considering that Ponyville has a hydroelectric dam of all things, and has had since season two, I decided from the outset to embrace the schizotech. Granted, though, I probably should have made that clearer early on, considering what this is a crossover with, and that most of the areas Firelink has been to have been rather primitive. The mentions of railway travel after he arrived at Sweet Apple Acres were meant to convey that, but I admit I could've done more.
I'll also grant that Firelink has probably never encountered a radar in his tiny backwater of a village, but I think the concept and expression would still be just common enough for him to reasonably know of it.
What, you're not going to beat me with your criticism stick for One Punch Shroom? Who are you and where is the real Visiden?
Oh man I'm loving this fic. I hope you keep updating it!
Of course you did, Firelink.
That makes four, Danny.
And five!
A stab, a slash and now burning. Might as well add the fetish tag at this point.
9709410
i3.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/facebook/001/146/898/c9c.jpg
I deny everything.