Hecate's Orphanage

by BlackRoseRaven

Hurricanes And Butterflies

Chapter Twenty Six: Hurricanes And Butterflies
~BlackRoseRaven

Thorn sat on a wooden fencepost, watching curiously as Tender Trust and her family fed the various animals inside the corral. He could see everything from cute little ferrets to hellhounds to a huge marsh drake, but all of the animals seemed to be getting along just fine, obediently waiting their turn to be fed as the Phooka pulled carts of food from beast-to-beast.

Antares was sitting nearby with his friends Aphrodisia and Avalon: the former kept staring at him, and the latter was shooting him nasty little looks now and then... and Antares, of course, was just grinning from ear-to-ear, apparently enjoying the chaos as he always did.

Avalon Apple was quite an odd Pegasus: to start with, she was the smallest pony that Thorn had ever seen, roughly the size of a foal. She had a golden-yellow coat, and a blonde mane streaked with bright red that was cropped short, just like her tail. Her eyes were sharp crimson, and her cutie mark was of a line slicing through an apple, although it was faintly faded. That, and the thinning feathers over wings that were becoming leathery, were both distinct tells to Thorn that she was a half-demon.

Considering that her marefriend was Aphrodisia, Thorn thought he knew what had happened, but he was also aware it would be impolite to ask. Whether it was because of pacting or blood-bonding or accidental emotional feedings, that was their business, not his. The two certainly seemed very fond of each other, even if Aphrodisia kept looking at him like she wanted to gobble him up.

He could hear Avalon grumbling at him, but thankfully, he was given an excuse to ignore the three eccentric ponies when one of the Phooka approached. She smiled up at him from behind her smoky mane, her glowing blue eyes kind and warm as she said softly: “Would you like me to take you on a walk through the care center now, Thorn?”

“Thank you, Miss Fluttershy. But please don't feel you have to rush on my account. I have the rest of the day and tomorrow morning still.” Thorn replied politely, bowing his head to her. Fluttershy smiled kindly in return to him, nodding once before the stallion glanced towards the animals, asking: “How do you keep them all in line? Hypnosis?”

The Phooka gave a soft laugh at this, shaking her head before she replied kindly: “Communication. That, and they've all had the chance to get to know each other, and understand that we take care of them here. Besides, as I'm sure you know yourself, even the hellhounds are remarkably intelligent.”

Thorn let his eyes linger for a moment on the terrifying hellhounds: demon-dogs made of bones and ice, with visible, pulsating blue organs, they were hideous and frightening to behold, but as monstrous as they looked, they were also extremely smart. They could learn commands and were often very attached to the 'family' they grew up with, and rarely tried to challenge the hierarchy that was established from their birth.

“I remember when I lived in Helheim, teams of hellhounds were often used to pull both sleds and sledges. It was the fastest and safest way to travel through the tundra.” Thorn replied, giving a quick nod to the Phooka, and Fluttershy smiled with a nod back. “Maybe you could let me see the animals, then. I didn't get much of a chance to do any close examinations earlier.”

Fluttershy nodded once more, then gestured at him politely with a wing, and the stallion hopped off the fencepost, ignoring Antares as he called loudly: “Just don't get too friendly with any of the animals, Thorn, we all know the real reason why Hecate sent you off Decretum!”

“I'm glad your brother seems to like you so much.” Fluttershy said gently, and Thorn gave her an amused look. “Well, siblings are always hard on each other, I know. I've had lots of experience with my own children and their... antics.”

Fluttershy glanced up, and Thorn couldn't help but follow her gaze to the Phooka triplets: Tender Trust and her two brothers were pushing at each other childishly while Nirvana, their father, watched with a look of exasperation. The sapphire stallion smiled briefly at the sight, wondering silently if that was what their own family would have been like... well, except I think it would have been Twilight looking down on all of us like that. And looking out for all of us, from what I remember...

He shook his head quickly, then returned his attention to the matter at hoof as they approached the hellhounds. Most of them had finished eating, and they barked happily as Fluttershy approached, one of them bouncing back and forth on his large, bony claws, but not even the youngest one did more than do a little hop. They were well-trained, Thorn thought, even before he dropped to a kneel and whistled sharply as he beckoned at one, and it immediately bounded over.

Thorn smiled slightly at this, stroking over the dome of skull, unintimidated by its large teeth or frosty breath or blue-fire eyes: in fact, as he rubbed over its skull and then scratched it behind one flayed ear, the pleased rumbling of the animal brought back old, pleasant memories of the few excursions his family had taken out into the winter wastes of Helheim, sledding across the tundra and enjoying the rare beauty of the frosty mountains and endless forests of snow and ice formations.

He shook his head briefly, then gently scratched under the hellhound's chin as he leaned down: it was passive and relaxed, and the stallion was unafraid as he examined the creature's large teeth, then gently grasped one of its paws and rose it so he could look at the claws, murmuring: “Very good. High calcium, and you've taught them good habits. Clean, no signs of cribbing or pawing.”

He let the claw go, and smiled when the hellhound set it down instead of trying to grasp at him. “Very well trained indeed. I'm impressed.”

“I just talk to them, that's all. They're just as smart as we are. We just forget that sometimes, I think.” Fluttershy said softly, and Thorn nodded in agreement before he straightened, absently reaching up to stroke along the demon dog's skull, making it wag its little stubby tail in pleasure.

“Would you consider helping us train animals in Decretum? I wouldn't ask you to train them for war or combat or anything, but hellhounds have a lot of particular skills and abilities that would be very useful in other instances.” Thorn said calmly, and Fluttershy cocked her head curiously.

“I thought that Decretum used Drones and Dogmatists for that sort of thing. I don't mean to be rude, but I'm not sure that these animals would be as comfortable or as capable.” Fluttershy said politely, and Thorn nodded, giving a brief smile.

“Then would you consider coming to check out our stable facilities before you make any final decisions? I'm sure that Hecate would appreciate it, at least, and we could go over in detail what you'd be comfortable training the animals to do.” Thorn persisted, and Fluttershy looked thoughtful before she hesitantly nodded.

“He's not bad.” Antares remarked, and Avalon grumbled as Aphrodisia smiled in agreement. The three watched as Thorn navigated through the animals while negotiating with and reassuring Fluttershy: something that wasn't quite as easy a feat as it had been in the past. Sure, once upon a time anypony would have been able to walk all over the shy mare. but that was before she had become a Phooka, and accepted as an elder of the tribes.

“I don't like him.” grumbled Avalon as she flitted up into the air, crossing her forelegs as she narrowed her eyes. “He gave me that look, Mir. That 'I know what you are' look. I hate that look.”

Aphrodisia smiled in embarrassment up at the mare, and Antares only shrugged a bit and tilted his head pointedly towards Avalon, who grumbled and lowered his head before she sighed a little and mumbled: “I mean, I don't... mind at all but... you know. It's not about me. It's about him. He's stupid. I want to punch him in the face. I think I will punch him in the face.”

“You can go ahead and try, but he'll totally stop you. My little brother might be a dick and stuff, but he's got like crazy...” Antares paused for a moment, just long enough that Aphrodisia and Avalon noticed as his eyes flicked back over his shoulder, the stallion's expression tensing slightly as he continued: “Instincts. He always seems to know just how to react in every given situation.”

There was silence for a moment, and then Antares spun himself around, letting his hooves drop into his lap as he gave an almost-pleasant smile to the two Pegasi that were standing like ghosts in the grass, both simply looking calmly and coldly up at him. “You guys better keep that in mind too. You got some fancy armor there, but I bet my little brother would mash either of your faces in.”

“Get out of our way, pup.” growled the bearded stallion as he stepped aggressively forward, before he sneered as Avalon and Aphrodisia both leapt down and set themselves. “Look at these scraps. Cute, how these worthless dregs think they can get in our way.”

Antares only continued to smile, shrugging easily before he asked curiously: “So who are you, and what are you doing here, huh? I mean, wow, you both are way too ugly to be demons or angels. You're definitely not mortal, either, so... I'm guessing you guys are the Voidborn that Thorn was-”

A knife shot through the air, but Antares dropped forward and slashed his horn out, deflecting the strange silver blade as he dropped to all fours, still smiling as he said mildly: “Whoops. Sorry about that, my big dumb horn got in the way of your itty-bitty knife.”

The Pegasus stallion snarled, before he frowned as he looked over at the mare. The mare, who was still only standing with her head cocked strangely, her eyes gazing intently past Antares, the faintest of trembles visible in her body as she looked dead ahead is if she couldn't even see the three ponies standing in front of her. When Antares let his eyes shift towards her, when he focused on her, the malice, the hate, and the rage he felt from her was almost unbearable with his acuity, making him physically flinch-

She was on him in a moment: Antares felt agony tear through his body as she thrust a hidden blade into his breast before throwing him aside into Aphrodisia, and a second later, she was past the ponies and inside the corral. And as Antares sat up with a cough, the Pegasus stallion grinned coldly before he said softly: “Well. Looks like you're just all talk and parlor tricks after all.”

Antares coughed again, blood splattering out of his muzzle before he grimaced and caught Apps by the face when she began to lean down, the stallion instead reaching up to yank the knife free from his breast and yank himself to his hooves as he muttered: “I got it. I'm fine. Totally cool.”

He looked uneasily up, keeping his eyes on the Pegasus in front of him even as his senses stretched back behind him, feeling the malice, the disgust, the cruelty as the Pegasus mare gazed past Thorn and at Fluttershy with contempt and hatred.

Fluttershy trembled, but forced herself to straighten as she slowly strode up beside Thorn, facing the mare with wide eyes and shaking limbs. Her voice quavered a little, even as she ordered: “Nirvana, take... take the children and the animals and get inside. D-Do not... do not leave the barn under any circumstances, no matter what happens, no matter what you hear-”

“Daughter.” Sol Seraph said coldly, and Fluttershy's breath caught, her attention drawn again to the mare before her as Thorn narrowed his eyes, assessing the situation as quickly as he could. “Well. What a surprise. You've become the very thing we once hunted. And you have lain with the animals as well, I see.”

Sol Seraph calmly reached down, extracting a cigarette as the Praetor laughed loudly, asking mockingly as he started to walk forwards: “What, your spawn has turned out to be an even greater piece of filth than you are, Sol Seraph?”

“Hey, you don't talk about her like that, you-” Before Avalon could finish, a hoof smashed into her chest, knocking her backwards into the fence as a savage kick slammed into Aphrodisia when she tried to lunge, dual hidden blades popping free from the guards around his hind legs and burying deep into her chest.

The Praetor revolved smoothly, flapping his wings once to twist Aphrodisia forcefully through the air before he kicked viciously off her, dropping back into Avalon to slam his elbow down between her ears and knock her bonelessly to the ground. Antares lunged with a snarl, but a moment later he was driven to the ground by a tremendous blast of antimagic from a grenade that shattered in front of him, the Praetor grinning coldly through this before he savagely stomped down on the stallion's face, then easily leapt the fence, striding away from the three ponies he had savaged and across the corral as he said contemptibly: “I'll let you make up for your mistakes now, daughter. Kill the Phooka whelp and her whole family. I'll deal with the machine-child.”

“Do not order me to accomplish the task I came here to complete anyway.” Sol Seraph said quietly, not looking towards her father, and she further ignored him when he slapped her roughly across the face, her head twitching only slightly to the side.

“On behalf of my status as regent of Decretum, and by the power vested in me by Empress Hecate, I order you both to surrender.” Thorn said fearlessly as he stepped forward, Fluttershy's eyes widening in surprise. “Otherwise, you will be met with lethal force.”

“Somehow, I'm not afraid, whelp.” the Praetor growled, and a moment later he flung a knife that he seemed to produce out of nowhere.

The blade halted in front of Thorn, then simply fell out of the air in front of the stallion, the Praetor snarling as Thorn said calmly: “Then lethal force is hereby authorized.”

The stallion grasped his mechanical foreleg, which crackled ominously with electricity as he narrowed his eyes slightly and straightened, his head raised high as the pistons on his shoulder began to pump. And from behind the Voidborn, Antares couldn't help but grin a little as he hauled himself over the fence, breathing a little easier as his supernatural regeneration began to kick in, healing the wound in his breast. He could hear Aphrodisia growling, the damage to her body far from what was necessary to keep her down for long.

The Praetor snorted, his eyes flicking back over his shoulder as he shifted his stance slightly, but Sol Seraph didn't seem to notice or care about anything except for the Phooka in front of her, her eyes burning as she whispered: “A mockery. Filth. That is all you are. And I will see you purged. I will see your entire family eradicated.”

Fluttershy whimpered a little, trembling as her head lowered before she looked to the side in surprise as Tender Trust stepped up beside her mother, saying quietly: “I do not fear you, wendigo. My okâwîmâw is more than a match for you.”

“Tender Trust, what are you doing? Why aren't you with the others?” Fluttershy asked almost urgently, before her eyes widened as her husband stepped up on her other side.

“We will not abandon you. I will not abandon you.” he said quietly, and Fluttershy looked at him silently as he gazed back, his emerald-fire eyes gazing into hers before they shifted towards Sol Seraph.

The Praetor was looking with contempt at his daughter, but Sol Seraph had eyes only for her daughter, visibly trembling with fury as a cracked grin spread over her face. Her head tilted slightly to the side, the mare breathing harder in and out as her body flexed and tensed against her armor, the Voidborn whispering: “This is the way it should be. I am a predator. And you are nothing but prey. Prey in mind, and now prey in body. I will slaughter you, and your animal kin. I will bury you as I should have buried you when you were born, and already showed such signs of weakness...”

“Stop talking and kill her.” The Praetor growled, turning towards Sol Seraph, and then his eyes widened and his head reared back in shock as he found a hidden blade at his throat a moment later.

Sol's eyes were still locked on her daughter, her twisted grin cracking her features, her eyes mad with hatred and rage as her foreleg trembled slightly, grinding the hidden blade against her father's neck, and then the deadly weapon withdrew suddenly back into its bracer, the Voidborn mare saying softly: “You may do what you like with the others. But do not interfere. This is between a mother and her daughter.”

“Do not threaten me or tell me what to do.” the Praetor snarled, shoving his daughter's hoof away angrily as he regained his composure, but Sol Seraph didn't even seem to notice him as she stepped forward, her eyes locked back on Fluttershy.

“You don't understand what she's like, Nirvana. You have to run.” Fluttershy whispered, as she looked at her husband almost pleadingly, but the Phooka stallion only smiled at her before he turned his eyes back ahead.

“Even if she is wendigo, we will overcome.” Nirvana said quietly, and Tender Trust nodded firmly as she and her father both readied themselves.

The Praetor snorted, before he scowled over his shoulder as Antares and Aphrodisia leapt into the corral. His eyes narrowed as he rose his head, saying contemptibly: “Fine. We'll deal with all of you at once, then, and-”

The antimagic crystal he had been palming out of one of his packs suddenly glinted in his hoof before exploding, and the Praetor was almost knocked off his hooves by the flash and bang, roaring in frustration as he was disoriented. Before he could recover, Antares crashed into him, slamming him away from Sol Seraph before dropping both elbows into his back and crushing him to the ground.

The Praetor snarled as he rolled quickly, swinging a hoof up at the same time to try and drive it into Antares' stomach, but the black stallion dodged quickly backwards, then leaned suddenly forward and blew a raspberry loudly in the Praetor's face, making his eyes widen in surprise before the black stallion said cheerfully: “Bet you can't catch me!”

“This isn't a game, boy!” the Praetor roared as he immediately leapt after Antares, but Antares only grinned and danced away, his crystalline wings spreading before he flapped them firmly once, and they gave a brilliant flash that distracted the Praetor and made him stumble.

Before he could recover, Antares leapt forward and slammed a hoof across the Pegasus' face, knocking his head to the side before he grabbed him by the nose, backpedaling rapidly and yanking the Praetor along by the muzzle as the Pegasus stumbled quickly forward, his eyes filling with shock that quickly turned to absolute fury.

The Praetor slapped Antares' foreleg away, then leapt at him, hidden blades popping out of hiding as he roared and bore savagely forwards, using his powerful wings to keep himself balanced as his forelegs lashed and stabbed his weapons back and forth. But Antares gracefully moved out of the way of the attacks, continuing to lead the Praetor backwards and across the corral as Tender Trust's brothers hurried the last of the animals into the barn.

“You really suck at this fighting thing!” Antares mocked, and the Praetor snarled as he leapt backwards, his whole body moving like liquid as he flung a volley of knives at the black stallion. But Antares only grinned as he dropped flat on his stomach and propped his head up with his hooves, waggling his eyebrows at the Praetor as the knives harmlessly shot over his head. “But if you're trying to get my attention, well, you definitely got it.”

The Praetor flung an antimagic explosive, but this time Antares was ready for it, rolling backwards and shielding himself with his crystalline wings: the boom of light and sound and vibration still hurt like hell, but he was able to shrug off the worst of the damage, even as he felt his horn sizzling with painful electricity.

Antares felt the Praetor smash into his wings, and he gritted his teeth as he flapped them hard out to either side, the crystalline appendages slashing into the Praetor and knocking the Pegasus backward. But the black stallion didn't even have enough time to look up before a tremendous explosion ripped across one of his wings from the bomb that the Praetor had planted on it, knocking Antares sideways-

The Praetor slammed a hoof into Antares' face before he could hit the ground, then smoothly moved forwards like liquid, using his other front leg as an axle so he could smash a ferocious double-kick from his hind hooves into Antares' muzzle, knocking him through the air in a boneless arc. And as the Praetor leapt forward again, he drew two knives from his seemingly-endless supply, beginning to aim at Antares before his eyes flashed and his wings flapped suddenly, half-flipping upside down as he flung both knives sharply into Aphrodisia before she could slam into him.

The demon gasped as she was knocked onto her back, hitting the ground at the same time as the Praetor stomped down on Antares' body and drove the black stallion flat, knocking the wind out of him. A hidden blade gleamed as the Praetor shoved it down, going for a deathblow-

A metal hoof on a chain wrapped tightly around the Praetor's neck, making him gargle before he was yanked savagely backwards off of Antares. The Praetor slammed down on the ground, grasping at the chain before he roared in frustration as massive arcs of electricity ripped along the length of the metal and tore over the Praetor's spasming body, Thorn looking coldly at the Pegasus as he stood with his mechanical foreleg extended, pistons pumping as he poured as much electricity as he could spare down the length of chain feeding out of his mechanical limb.

Thorn only hoped that Fluttershy and her family would be able to deal with Sol Seraph by themselves, but that was the way she seemed to want it to be, he thought, even with the fear that was visibly emanating off her.

Sol Seraph certainly didn't seem to care about her father, as the Pegasus looked towards the bearded stallion, watching as he finally yanked loose from the chain to spin around and fling an anti-magic sphere at Thorn. But Thorn's horn pulsed sharply as the chain rapidly retracted into his foreleg, steel hoof locking back into place before the stallion simply caught the glass bauble in the steel appendage.

He tossed the defused sphere aside as it sizzled faintly, and the Praetor began to snarl before Aphrodisia appeared in a burst of black smoke beside him, smashing into him and ripping several of his weapon-filled packs free from his body at the same time. Sol Seraph smiled thinly at this sight, then turned her eyes slowly back towards Fluttershy as she said softly: “Your grandfather has always been foolish. A biting dog. Stronger than any other Guildmaster, certainly. Stronger than the dragons that he so loved to hunt. But to be stronger than one does not mean to be stronger than all.

“Look at him. He knows they cannot harm him, so he fights without guile, without cunning. Brutally.” Sol Seraph said contemptibly, her eyes locking on her daughter's as Fluttershy trembled a little. “He is fearless. He will kill all of your friends. And alone, he could destroy every single one of them with his bare hooves. But he is also a mad dog, the opposite end of the spectrum. And you, what are you, Fluttershy? Do you know what you are?”

“I am Phooka. I am a mother. I will... I will not let you hurt my family. I am their protector.” whispered Fluttershy, even as she shivered in fear, and Sol Seraph gave her cracked, twisted grin again, her eyes blazing.

“No. You are not even prey. You are only worth killing because you are a blot on my name, a stain upon my honor. Otherwise I would overlook you, as I would overlook an insect that wanders beneath my hoof, a parasite that would be crushed by even my shadow passing over it.” Sol Seraph said softly, setting herself as Fluttershy flinched and lowered her head meekly. “No one can save you now.”

“We will protect her, as she has always protected us. We will not let you harm her, wendigo.” Tender Trust said quietly as she stepped forward, and Nirvana rumbled in agreement.

Sol Seraph smiled thinly; a moment later, she was in front of Nirvana, smashing him backwards with a vicious punch, but Tender Trust was just as quick to counterattack, striking Sol Seraph hard across the face and knocking her staggering. But as she stumbled, her body twisted slightly, and her hidden blades sang as they popped free from her bracers, slashing back and forth through the air at the Phooka mare.

Tender Trust dodged backwards, yet one of the blades nicked her all the same, and the Phooka's eyes widened as they cut through her ethereal body. She shouted a warning to her father in their own language as Nirvana leapt back to his hooves, rattled but unharmed by the blow, and his eyes widened before he glared at Sol Seraph as she turned towards him.

His emerald-fire eyes glowed, and Sol Seraph grimaced slightly before she yanked a snare of silver wire free from one of her pouches, snapping it towards Nirvana. He wasn't able to break away in time, the coil snapping around his neck and choking him before Sol Seraph yanked him savagely to the ground as he bled smoke out of the thin wound in his throat.

Sol Seraph leapt forward, meaning to deal a killing blow to the Phooka, but Tender Trust leapt in front of her father and caught the Pegasus' foreleg as it snapped forward, redirecting her attack before she slammed her head into Sol's face. The Pegasus barely flinched, however, roughly yanking her limb back and slashing across Tender Trust's face to send her down with a cry of pain before she thrust the blade down-

Her forelimb was caught as the blade grazed Tender Trust's face, and Sol Seraph and Fluttershy looked at each other silently as the Phooka squeezed slowly into her mother's foreleg, before she said in a quiet voice: “Stop.”

There was no tremor in her tone, no tremble in her body, as the two looked at each other for a few long moments, until Sol Seraph gave a slow, cold smile before she asked, gentle and venomous and challenging: “Do you think that you can make me, daughter?”

“I will do what I must, mother.” Fluttershy replied with the same soft fearlessness, and the two looked at each other before she almost pleaded, humble and gentle: “Please don't make me stop you.”

Sol Seraph responded by yanking her limb free and making a wide, slashing blow aimed at Fluttershy's face-

The Phooka's hoof slammed into Sol Seraph's breast in a powerful preemptive strike, and Sol Seraph was sent flying backwards, her eyes wide before her wings flapped automatically, body flipping itself as she landed and skidded backwards on all four hooves. Fluttershy's face was calm, her eyes narrowed slightly, her hoof remaining fully extended as she looked at her mother, who had been knocked some ten feet away by the powerful blow.

They looked at each other for a few moments, and then Sol Seraph snarled before she leapt forward, yanking two knives free from her belts and flinging them sharply: Fluttershy deflected one of the daggers and dodged the other, then ducked smoothly when a hidden wire gleamed and lashed the knife back towards her, as Sol Seraph closed in at the same time.

Wires and blades and hooves danced around her, and Fluttershy flowed with them and through them, evading every strike and attack, her expression still calm, a silent sadness in her eyes as she weaved through her mother's attacks and closed with her. A hoof lashed at her face, but with ease, Fluttershy blocked it: Sol Seraph drove forwards, the wires still singing and dancing around her like silver serpents with steel fangs, but the Phooka evaded every bite of metal as her hooves moved with grace and precision, deflecting and stopping every single punch and kick from her mother.

Sol Seraph's hidden blades sprang out of her bracers, stabbing them both towards Fluttershy's eyes in a vicious rending strike, but the Phooka calmly swung her forelegs up between Sol Seraph's attack, knocking her limbs open before she caught her by the shoulders, the Voidborn's eyes widening as she almost fell into Fluttershy, a moment before her daughter's head slammed into her face.

Sol tumbled backwards, but Fluttershy caught her wrists before she could fall completely over, leaping up and bringing both rear hooves in a savage kick into Sol Seraph's face with a tremendous crunch, the Pegasus flying backwards in a low arc with a spray of crimson, eyes wide with disbelief before she landed with a dull thud on her back.

Fluttershy stood calmly as Sol Seraph laid prone for a moment longer, and then she slowly sat up, rubbing at her face with a look of disbelief.

“Please stop. I don't want to hurt you, even if I know... you would gladly hurt others.” Fluttershy shook her head slowly, and then she rose her eyes, silently and grimly determined. “But if you make me... I will stop you. I won't let you hurt my family.”

Sol Seraph calmly climbed to her hooves, looking down at herself for a moment, and then she smiled thinly before she reached up and pulled a dagger free from her sidepack. She flipped this over in her hoof, squeezing into the handle for a moment before she flung it at her daughter's hooves, leaving it buried in the ground in front of Fluttershy. “Then you will have to kill me, daughter.”

Fluttershy looked silently down at the dagger, and Sol Seraph smiled coldly, a strange, intent eagerness filling her eyes. Not even the sound of the Praetor clashing with Antares could draw her attention away; not even the sound of her father howling in sudden pain as a scythe buried deep into his back could distract either the Phooka or the predator from their confrontation.

The Praetor staggered to the side as Aphrodisia yanked her scythe free from the Voidborn's body, sending up a gush of energy. The Praetor gasped, then snarled and flung an explosive at the ground as Antares tried to close in, before he and the others were driven backwards by the blast of black, sulfurous smoke, Antares shouting at the reek: “It's toxic, stay back!”

Thorn quickly created a holographic screen in front of him, using it to scan for the Praetor's energy inside the cloud, as Aphrodisia snarled, her features tightened into a skull-like mask, her deadly scythe with its massive, fanged blade and gnarled pole easily resting across her shoulders as it glimmered with energy, the demon hissing: “Elska hates him. Elska says we have to stop him quickly.”

Antares opened his mouth to reply, and then he swore when several shurikens shot out of the crowd, the stallion deflecting two with his horn and dodging the third as they sparked with electricity. “Hey, watch where you throw your toys!”

The stallion began to grin, and then he felt something slam into his back, Antares staggering forward before he howled in agony as electricity crackled over his body, Aphrodisia's eyes widening before she leapt towards him and slashed through the air, cutting through an invisible string before another shuriken could be guided around into Antares' back. But the distraction gave the Praetor the chance he needed to leap out of the cloud of poison and smash into her, a blade tearing into her chest as Aphrodisia gasped before the Praetor yanked her scythe free as he flung her to the ground, and then he spun it around and slammed it viciously down, the demon screaming as she was left pinned to the ground by her own scythe.

“Stay out of my way.” he growled, and then he turned his eyes towards Antares before he simply flung several anti-magic explosives at him when he began to push quickly up to his hooves. They went off with three tremendous bangs, driving Antares to the ground with a howl of agony as his crystalline wings cracked and his horn reverberated agonizingly.

The Praetor turned his eyes through the clearing smog towards Thorn, saying contemptibly: “And now let's deal with you. I think I'll kill you now, while your little friends are helpless.”

Thorn only smiled thinly as he dismissed the holographic screen, and the two faced each other before the Praetor suddenly charged forward, zigzagging at the last moment to try and flank the sapphire stallion. Thorn was undaunted, however, his eyes following easily after the Pegasus before he agilely quickstepped out of the way of a wild blow-

Thorn felt the wire brush against his body, and he narrowly ducked in time to avoid the steel noose: it still managed to cinch tightly around his horn, but the stallion channeled his energies immediately into the spire as he yanked backwards, slicing through the wire before he unleashed the channeled magic in a concentrated telekinetic hammer into the Praetor's face.

The Pegasus was knocked backwards with a curse, but the Voidborn recovered quickly, flinging an antimagic explosive as he did so. Thorn simply deflected the glass bauble, however, grimacing slightly before the pistons on his mechanical limb pumped as lightning shocked along it.

The Praetor leapt in for another attack, and was greeted by Thorn's electrified hoof smashing into his face, knocking him to the ground: he rolled almost the moment he hit, however, flinging himself up into the air with a mighty flap of his wings before he flung several knives down at the sapphire unicorn.

Thorn barely moved, taking a single step backwards as he blocked the knives with a barrier before he narrowed his eyes as he saw the glinting of the wires attached to the weapons. His horn glowed as his shield vanished, and the Praetor cursed as the knives were violently repelled by a pulse of electromagnetic force.

The Pegasus dropped back to the ground, then charged recklessly at Thorn: Thorn slammed his steel hoof out, before he gritted his teeth when the Praetor ducked beneath the punch, hidden blades shooting free from his bracers before he slammed these up in a savage tattoo over the stallion's limb, ripping through the slots and chinks in his armor plating as Thorn's prosthetic squealed in protest.

A shockwave of electricity tore out of the limb, Thorn wincing and the Praetor hissing as he was driven backwards again, but a moment later, the stallion's mechanical leg fell limp, the Praetor smiling coldly as he slowly straightened and asked: “What are you going to do now, boy?”

Without looking, the Praetor drew a knife and flung it to the side, and Antares gasped as this sank into his body just above his collarbone, trembling for a moment before he collapsed onto his face. Aphrodisia cried out from where she was pinned beneath her scythe, and Thorn's eyes widened slightly before the Voidborn said in a soft, deadly voice: “I am out of patience with all of you.”

Thorn silently looked at his mechanical leg, and then he shook his head slowly before he reached up and grasped into his shoulder as the pistons hissed to a halt. He pressed down and twisted, then grimaced as he pulled the leg free, letting it fall to the ground before the three legged stallion faced the Pegasus defiantly, saying quietly: “I'm waiting.”

The Praetor grinned coldly at this, and then he ran forwards, closing in for the kill. He slashed at Thorn, but to his shock, Thorn dodged, twisting out of the way before he slammed his front hoof into the Praetor's face, then dropped his elbow hard into the side of his neck, driving the Pegasus to the ground.

The Praetor shoved himself immediately back up, and was greeted by a telekinetic hammer that knocked him rolling backwards. He recovered again by performing a quick hoofspring back to all fours, but his cheeks were burning with humiliation as Thorn simply readied himself, flicking his mane out of his eyes before he repeated coldly: “I'm waiting.”

The Voidborn roared in fury and charged straight at Thorn, and Antares grinned weakly as he crawled towards Aphrodisia, who was trembling hard beneath her scythe, watching the fight intently, before her eyes widened as she felt Antares grasp into the pole of the weapon, the stallion wheezing: “You gotta... put him down fast. Thorn can't keep him distracted forever.”

Aphrodisia rumbled and nodded quickly, then she gasped as her scythe was slowly pushed upwards, blood spilling out of her ripped-open stomach around the weapon. She grasped into the pole, whimpering in pain... but the soulbound scythe was pouring every ounce of spirit it sucked out of her back into her body. It was the sheer pain keeping her pinned, but as it began to tear free... “Oh, Elska, don't apologize... we'll... we'll get him. We'll make him pay...”

“Protect, Apps. Destroy him to protect. Not for revenge. Don't let your Wrath take over.” Antares said quietly, and Aphrodisia snarled, but then nodded reluctantly before Antares said softly: “Love you, little sister.”

“Love you... big brother.” Aphrodisia's expression broke into a smile, and he felt that determination, that fire in her becoming... cleaner, for lack of a better word. A demon like Apps was all but a force to be nature, something not to be taken lightly, but on the other hoof, Aphrodisia was fighting an endless struggle to control and rule her own violent instincts, even after the years of training she had seen here and in Helheim.

The scythe tore free from her body with a final gush of blood, spinning violently up into the air, and Aphrodisia leapt up into the air and caught it before she burst apart into a stream of dark smoke that streaked straight for the Praetor, who was closing in a bloodied and battered Thorn.

The Praetor growled in frustration as he was forced to take his focus off the stallion he was closing in on, half-turning and flinging an anti-magic sphere, but Thorn's horn glowed brightly as Aphrodisia's black-smoke form twisted smoothly up out of the way of the defused bauble. Immediately, the Praetor spun back towards Thorn with a sound of frustration, lunging at him and smashing his bracer-covered foreleg down, and Thorn was barely able to shield himself from the worst of the blow by ducking behind his own foreleg, swearing in pain as he was driven to the ground as the bones in his limb fractured from the brutal blow.

The Praetor began to turn, but Aphrodisia solidified in midair above him before he could, rolling with her scythe to neatly scoop him up with the crescent blade and fling the Voidborn skywards. The Pegasus allowed himself to be carried into the air, but then flipped his body backwards, wings flapping once to stabilize himself-

And Aphrodisia's scythe seemed to leap out of her hooves, spinning violently through the air to slash off one of the Praetor's wings, which became nothing but strings of energy as a gush of blue mist burst from his body. He fell from the air with a gasp, his eyes bulging in shock before Aphrodisia leapt up and slammed a hoof into his face, knocking him backwards.

Her spinning scythe twisted up into the air, then dropped smoothly as Aphrodisia leapt forwards, the demon snarling as she caught the weapon and dove in for the kill, but the Praetor snarled even as he bounced painfully on his back, his hooves grasping at one of his empty pouches before he flung it sharply at Aphrodisia's face.

The demon slapped this away with her scythe, and the Praetor immediately launched himself upward, seizing the pole of the weapon. The two grappled for a moment as they fell towards the earth, and then Aphrodisia managed to roll him beneath her and pin him under her against the ground, her scythe blade biting into the earth beside him, ready to decapitate.

The Praetor grinned coldly up at her, and Aphrodisia trembled as she glared down at him before there was a tremendous explosion of sound and light, the demon screaming. Something agonizing hammered cruelly through her stomach, and a moment later she collapsed, gargling, her body lined with knives, her hooves badly charred from the sticky explosive gel that the Praetor had detonated, and his own body healing rapidly; all except for the wounds caused by the scythe.

He snorted as he climbed up to his hooves, then he glared as Antares began forward, the Pegasus reaching out and putting a hoof on the slumped demon's face as he said coldly: “Take another step, runt, and she dies.”

Antares halted, swearing under his breath, even though he could clearly see the Praetor meant to murder her anyway, no matter what he did. He had to think this through, though, stall for time, hope that he could distract this asshole or that-

“I resign. I'll forfeit my life for hers.” Thorn said calmly as he approached, and the Praetor looked up almost in surprise, but then he grinned in sickening amusement as the wounded, three-legged stallion lowered his head to the Pegasus. “I'll come with you willingly.”

“No, Thorn! Don't!” Antares shouted, but Thorn only smiled briefly as he looked up, not turning towards Antares, meeting the Praetor's eyes.

The Praetor nodded shortly, and then he gestured irritably to the stallion, keeping one of his hooves on Aphrodisia's face as he said contemptibly: “At least you seem to know your place. A worthless gimp like you does nothing but weaken the rest of the pack. Rare to see any of you wastrels figuring that out, though.”

Thorn only calmly approached, glancing down at Aphrodisia, and the Praetor followed his gaze before he smiled coldly, then flicked his eyes up towards Antares as a hidden blade shot out of his bracer. He rose this up to Thorn's throat, keeping it pressed tightly there as his other hoof stayed on the demon's face, the Pegasus saying coldly: “Choose which one dies.”

Thorn cocked an eyebrow, looking almost disappointed, and the Praetor snorted before he said disgustedly: “I don't need you alive. Any more than I need her alive. But if your friend doesn't choose, I'll kill you both. You're my prey: helpless and at my mercy. I have all the power here.”

“You have none whatsoever.” Thorn said quietly, and the Praetor glared at him. “You're nothing but a coward, abusing his physical strength and immortality from the Void to try and relive his glory days... glory days where even then, you killed out of fear and prejudice, didn't you?”

“Shut up.” the Praetor growled, and then he began to yank the blade back across Thorn's throat, before his eyes widened as the sapphire stallion gave the slightest of smiles when the blade refused to bite, wrapped in sapphire magic. “What have you-”

The Praetor started to turn with a snarl, and then there were six loud thunks, one after the other, as the knives buried in Aphrodisia's body tore themselves free and ripped savagely up into the Praetor's. He stumbled backwards, gurgling in horror, clutching at the weapons as misty energy steamed up around his stomach, and Thorn grimaced as he hugged his own body, saying tiredly: “Aphrodisia, if you'd please?”

The ring around his horn glowed brightly, and the Praetor began to leap forwards, but like a puppet, Apps lunged up off the ground, slamming a wooden-moving yet terribly fast hoof into the Praetor's face and knocking him crashing sideways. The mare's eyes snapped open with a gasp as her consciousness returned, and then she snarled, seeing her chance as the Pegasus scrambled to get up, but was crippled by his missing wing and the knives buried halfway through his body.

Elska howled through the air, returning to the demon's hooves as she leapt forwards and slashed down with it, and the Praetor gave one last cry of fury, of frustration, of disbelief, before his head was cleft almost in half, then separated from his shoulders by a savage lash of the polearm. Energy gushed from the wound as the Praetor's head hit the ground and rolled several times, his mouth working wordlessly before he stared upwards in horror as his smoking body began to dissolve, but Thorn's eyes narrowed as both head and body gave echoing screams, coat and flesh flaking away into blue ashes that and smoke that rapidly dissolved into the air.

Sol Seraph broke off her fight with Fluttershy to look sharply to the side, her eyes widening slightly as she saw the last of her father dissolving, and then she slowly closed her eyes, lowering her head and whispering: “So we can die a death we cannot return from...”

“Yeah, you can. So you better run while you still have the chance.” Antares said sharply as he turned towards her, readying himself, and Aphrodisia snarled in agreement as she leapt up beside the stallion. Thorn joined him a moment later, and Sol Seraph smiled thinly, her eyes flicking towards these wounded warriors, but any thoughts she had of turning on them were stopped by Fluttershy.

“Please leave, mother. I don't want to see that happen to you.” she murmured, and Sol Seraph looked slowly towards her daughter as the Phooka took a slow breath, then straightened and said quietly: “Even now... part of me still wants to love you. For... for so many decades... I longed for a mother's love. For a mother's touch. I went to... incredible lengths to experience even a mask of that feeling... and as much as I know you are evil, you will hurt others, you and I are not alike... we aren't nothing alike. You don't love me, but that doesn't mean you never loved me.

“I know you're broken. I know you're... sick, mother. I know you hurt. I know you'll take any chances I give you to... hurt me, or hurt my friends. But I know that you could have killed me, like you could father, and you never did. I know that in some way, you loved me. You loved my father.”

“Do not speak of Ardor. He has nothing to do with any of this.” Sol Seraph said coldly, her eyes narrowing, and Fluttershy smiled faintly.

“I think you still love him, in some strange way. Even when you tortured me, before you... passed on... you still wanted me by your side. You tried. But you're not a pony, any more than you're a predator. You're something different. Something hurt. Something cursed. They called you volk, and maybe that is what you are. But you have also been called scorpion, and I think that's closer. Because you will kill, and you will kill, even if it means your own death...”

Fluttershy trembled, shaking her head slowly, but there were tears in her eyes as she looked up and whispered: “Please, mother. If I can't fix you... then please stop. Please go. Don't make me be the one to kill you. I am not a volk. I am not a scorpion. But I am your daughter, and I do not want to stain my hooves with your blood.”

Sol Seraph slowly reached into one of her packs, pulling loose a cigarette and sticking this into her mouth. She lit it after a moment as she looked down contemplatively, and then she glanced towards the remains of the Praetor: nothing was left, except for his broken armor and his now-useless tools: even his equipment seemed to have had the energy burnt completely out of them.

“The Praetor... my father... killed my mother. I did not care. He killed my sisters. I did not care. He killed my brothers. I did not care. He killed my former lovers. I did not care.” Sol Seraph looked up calmly, meeting her daughter's eyes. “Together, we killed the entire guild. We killed the guards, we killed the priests, we killed the soldiers, we killed the slaves. We killed the hunting animals and their handlers, we killed the lords and ladies alongside the prisoners and criminals and the foals.

“And then he tried to kill me. I killed him, because I was superior. But never once did I care about my own life being at risk. That is merely how things were.” Sol Seraph took a deep drag of her cigarette, then she blew the smoke out to the side, clicking her tongue in disdain as she looked away with disgust. “You have always been so weak. So pathetic.

“Yet I wonder if this weakness is not my fault.” Sol Seraph calmly looked away, meditatively tapping her hoof as she grimaced in disgust. “I should have let the Praetor kill you. That was why I killed him: to 'protect' you. Yet what have I done instead? Stained my own honor and name, made myself seem weak, and eventually... cost myself my own life, out of foolishness and weakness.” Sol Seraph shook her head slowly, sorting in disdain. “What idiocy. I should have let the Praetor kill you. Yet, all the same... perhaps I am glad that I did not.”

Slowly, Sol Seraph turned towards Fluttershy, then she reached up and pulled her cigarette out of her muzzle, tossing it away as she said coldly: “You will kill me, Fluttershy, or I will kill your entire family. You will either prove to me that you are not a failure, or you will accept your fate as nothing but a worthless, broken link in the food chain, and all your friends and family will pay for your sins and weakness along with you.”

“Okâwîmâw, we will stand beside you and-” Tender Trust began to run forward with Nirvana, but Fluttershy spread her wings and put her forelegs out to either side to block them, shaking her head quickly as she straightened and looked across at her mother, as tears spilled down her cheeks.

“No. This is something I must do alone. I... I understand, mother.” Fluttershy took a slow breath, and then she bowed her head quickly to the Pegasus, closing her eyes for a moment as she whispered: “Please rest, when this is over.”

“No, Fluttershy. I will never rest. I will never stop hunting. I will never stop fighting. Now, more than ever, I am closer to becoming the apex predator: your grandfather is dead, and his energies unbound.” Sol Seraph smiled thinly, leaning forwards as she challenged softly: “Unless you think you can use that demon's toy to end my existence completely.”

Fluttershy visibly flinched at this, but then she shook her head and looked up, saying quietly: “I'll... I'll stop you as many times as I have to.”

“Not if I rectify my mistake first.” Sol Seraph said calmly, and then she charged forwards. Fluttershy flinched instinctively, and the Pegasus smashed her daughter across the face, knocking the Phooka to the ground before a blade sprung free from her bracer, driving it savagely down in a killing blow aimed at Fluttershy's neck.

But the Phooka was faster, blocking Sol Seraph's hoof with her foreleg before she seized the bracer and slammed her hoof upward, bending the thin blade. Sol Seraph grimaced in distaste as she immediately leapt backwards, undoing her bracer in one smooth movement and flicking it free from her limb to toss the now-useless weapon aside.

In almost the same moment, she drew a shuriken free from her pouch and flung it sharply at Fluttershy, but the Phooka dodged to the side, then ducked as the wire attached to the throwing star gleamed when Sol Seraph yanked on it and redirected the attack. It whipped past Fluttershy's head, then shot towards her again even as the Pegasus began to close in on her daughter while snapping the coil back and forth, aiming to either tangle Fluttershy in the deadly silver or sink the fangs of the shuriken into her like a hook.

But Fluttershy dodged smoothly, the shuriken never more than scratching her, the wire never finding the purchase to wrap or cling into before the Phooka suddenly leapt forwards: immediately, Sol Seraph spun the wire in a rapid circle to try and coil it around her daughter in midair, but Fluttershy gracefully arched her back and instead reached up to catch the loop between her hooves before she dove forward with it, slipping the noose of steel string over her mother's head as she twisted her body to lunge past her at the same time.

Sol Seraph's eyes widened in shock before Fluttershy revolved herself rapidly and pulled back hard, even as her eyes clenched tightly shut, and Sol Seraph choked loudly as she clutched at the wire around her neck, her expression turning to horror and disbelief as energy began to rapidly steam up from the wound torn in her throat. She convulsed, shaking herself roughly back and forth before she attempted to buck Fluttershy off, but the Phooka moved with her mother, refusing to let her slip away or twist free, ignoring the blood spilling down from hooves torn-open from the force she was yanking on the wire with as she whispered: “I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, mother.”

Sol Seraph gargled, her eyes burning with rage, her hooves finally grabbing at the bags on her body as she rose a knife in a trembling hoof, and then she suddenly snarled, spinning the dagger around in her hoof before she stabbed it savagely backwards. Fluttershy's eyes widened in shock as she flinched, and Sol Seraph was finally able to get a gasp of air: her last, as she whispered: “I will not let things end this way.”

Sol Seraph slowly yanked the dagger free from her own stomach, touching the edge of the wound as it bled energy, the Pegasus slowly slumping and beginning to dissolve into blue motes as she whispered: “The thought that you could be stronger than me... is madness... and yet why is it that... why am I...”

The Voidborn blinked a few times weakly as the knife slipped from her grip, the wire loosened from around her neck, and then her eyes widened as Fluttershy caught her, pulling her back into a fierce hug as she buried her face in her mother's mane, her voice trembling as she said: “Why can't you, just once, love me... w-why do you have to be this way...”

“Because I am a predator. Because... this is the way, that we are made strong.” Sol Seraph murmured, her eyes flickering before they closed as she dissolved fully into sapphire miasma, leaving Fluttershy hugging only thin air as Sol's echoing voice wondered: “And yet why...”

“Because I am not like you, mother... and our definitions of strength are very different.” Fluttershy whispered, as she looked down at the ground and shook her head, trembling a little before her eyes slipped closed. “Mother...”

Tender Trust and Nirvana ran up to her side, and Antares shook his head slowly before he strode over to Aphrodisia and Thorn. The sapphire stallion smiled briefly, then he looked over at the demon, saying quietly: “I apologize for using you like that.”

“It's okay. I understand. And we're all alive because of you.” Aphrodisia replied with a shake of her head, before she smiled a little in return. “But I am gonna do one thing.”

Thorn frowned a bit, and then he winced when Aphrodisia leapt forward and hugged him fiercely around the neck, the sapphire stallion tensing up, but then slowly relaxing and sighing, eventually reaching up to awkwardly pat the mare on the back. “Alright.”

“Not done.” Aphrodisia grumbled, burying her face against his neck, and Antares grinned a little despite himself before the demon looked up and asked worriedly: “Wait, what about Avalon?”

“She should be okay. She just took a hell of a hit. Don't forget she's barely half-demon.” Antares replied with a brief shake of his head, and Aphrodisia grunted as she pulled away before she glanced at her scythe, and the runes over her back glowed before the weapon vanished in a puff of the same-colored radiance. “Why don't you go wake her up? She'll be less grouchy if you do it, anyway.”

“Yeah, but then she'll be mad at all of us for making her skip the fight.” the demon said pointedly, and Antares nodded thoughtfully before Aphrodisia asked in a quieter, more serious voice: “If someone like that can come back... is it possible that...”

“I don't want to think about it.” Antares muttered, shaking his head briefly before his eyes flicked towards Thorn, studying him for a few moments before he said finally: “You did a good job, kid. I'm kind of surprised, actually, that you could keep up with us big boys. Even if, you know, you kind of cheated and all, too.”

“Sometimes deception is key to victory. I'm not without my honor, Antares. But if an opponent has no honor and no respect for me, then I will not hesitate to treat him the same way.” Thorn replied calmly, shaking his head briefly before his eyes roved towards Fluttershy. “Will she be...”

“Yeah. In a way, I guess it's... good that Avalon didn't see this. I know she'd want to support her, but at the same time...” Antares smiled briefly, shaking his head as Aphrodisia blushed and lowered her own. “She would have jumped in the moment she saw them fighting. And then... well...”

Thorn only nodded, and then the stallion strode carefully around Antares, the black stallion quirking an eyebrow before he remarked mildly: “You aren't going to make that crack in your leg any better by walking on it, you know.”

The stallion only shrugged and smiled briefly, and Antares rolled his eyes in wry amusement before he turned and headed towards the edge of the corral. He looked up in surprise as Aphrodisia bounced indecisively on the spot, and then the stallion sighed before saying loudly: “Go on and follow your new coltfriend, Apps, I'm only a little offended.”

“Okay!” Aphrodisia said brightly, but her eyes were thankful for Antares' guidance as she nodded firmly and spun around to run over to Thorn, and Antares couldn't help but give a brief smile: she either really liked Thorn or really respected him, from what he'd seen, he thought it was probably both.

Thorn glanced up as Aphrodisia approached, gently tapping him on the shoulder before she offered him a warm smile and said quietly: “I can um, sort of help you with the pain if you want, Thorn. You just have to trust me a little.”

“I appreciate the offer, but I'm alright.” Thorn flexed his limb absently: it did hurt like hell, but he had a high pain tolerance, and he could tell from the wound that the bone was cracked, but not completely broken, although he couldn't be sure of the extent of the damages he'd taken until he checked himself out at the Clockworks.

Aphrodisia bowed her head politely to him, then she hurried after the stallion, adding almost embarrassedly: “Well, I'd like to try and help you somehow, Thorn! I mean, you're kind of like a super important Inquisitor and you just... I mean, you weren't afraid at all of that big meanie, and it really... I mean, I thought it was really amazing! And you're kind of like my uh... I don't know. Antares and I are cousins but we're more like big brother and little sister and I don't know if that makes me your normal age sister or your big sister but either way I want to help you, cousin-brother.”

Thorn looked blankly for a few moments at Aphrodisia, who looked back with a lame grin, but after a second, he couldn't help but smile a little and nod briefly, saying quietly: “Of course. Let's attend to Fluttershy first, though.”

“I think Fluttershy's family has that covered, Thorn. We probably don't want to go poking into that too much.” the demon suggested, but Thorn only gave a brief smile before he turned and strode towards Fluttershy.

Aphrodisia followed almost hesitantly: Thorn approached the trio with the same calm and professionalism he did everything, even though Fluttershy had her face in her hooves and Nirvana and Tender Trust were quietly comforting her in their own language. The stallion politely cleared his throat when he reached them, then leaned forward and said gently: “Thank you for helping us. I admire your resolve in protecting your family. And I apologize for drawing this danger to you.”

“Oh, Thorn, I...” Fluttershy glanced up meekly after a moment, uncovering her face hesitantly before she shook her head quickly, murmuring: “No, no. It's not your fault at all. I'm sorry that I couldn't do more.”

“Don't blame yourself.” Thorn almost instructed in his serious voice, and Fluttershy blushed and dropped her head, nodding once before the stallion shook his head and glanced between Tender Trust and Nirvana: “Do you need anything?”

Nirvana shook his head, and Tender Trust smiled a little before she reassured: “Temperance and Virtue will return with help soon, I am certain. But they are fleet of hoof and not so fleet of mind, especially in a panic.”

Thorn chuckled quietly, but then he looked up at the sound of hooves, saying softly: “All the same, it sounds like help is coming now. Still, I want to offer what help I can. And I want to thank you, again, Fluttershy. You saved a lot of lives today, and I won't forget what you've done here.”

Fluttershy smiled faintly, shrugging a bit as she looked up at him before giving a brief nod, and he nodded back before the Pegasus asked quietly: “Are you okay?”

“I'm alright. And focusing on putting together what we've learned about these Voidborn.” Thorn said, glancing up as he saw Sleipnir easily leap the corral fence, followed a moment later by Pinkamena. They both hurried towards Fluttershy, but the earth pony was already slowing, looking relieved as he glanced back and forth and realized everything had settled.

“Damnation, phoenix. It seems we were too late!” he said with a click of his tongue, and then he turned a warm smile towards Thorn, studying his bruised body for a moment before he asked teasingly: “And what, art thou even more like thy parents than I had thought, stealing all the glory of the battle?”

Thorn smiled briefly, and then he nodded to Fluttershy, saying softly: “Fluttershy, Aphrodisia, and Antares handled the brunt of the battle. The Voidborn were defeated and one may have been eliminated completely thanks to Aphrodisia's scythe. From what I've put together so far, they're energy lifeforms: physical death exiles them to the Void, but weapons capable of causing spiritual death or damage burn away their cohesion and cause them to degenerate.”

“I have no idea what thou just said, but I must say, thou says it with great confidence.” Sleipnir said positively, nodding firmly once, and Pinkamena rolled her eyes before she smacked Sleipnir, then reached out and grasped her daughter's shoulder gently, giving her a soft look as the mare smiled warmly back at her mother.

“Goddammit.” grumbled another voice, and then Avalon shot in and dropped down in front of Fluttershy, leaning forwards and asking worriedly: “Hey, are you okay?”

Fluttershy smiled a little, nodding slowly before she looked around and murmured: “But we should make sure... there's no one else. Thorn, you need treatment and to get somewhere safe, they came for you...”

“I can't sense any other Voidborn in the area.” Thorn said, and then Antares strode up and nudged him firmly, making him wince a bit as he grasped at his fractured limb.

“Yeah, but you're not the best flier in Equestria.” Antares said pompously, and Avalon immediately shot him a horrible look. “Oh, fine. Go do your thing, Ava. Contribute.”

“I hate you.” Avalon muttered, but then she nodded shortly before leaping into the air and shooting quickly away through the skies to patrol the area.

Thorn began to open his mouth, and then he wheezed in pain when Sleipnir slapped him on the back, his fractured leg buckling and sending him flopping face-first on the ground as the enormous earth pony winced. “Apologies, nephew! Oh, here, let me aid thee!”

Sleipnir gently picked Thorn up by the scruff of the neck, the stallion blinking a few times as he was carefully brushed off, before Pinkamena said dryly: “You better take that broken table out of here. And someone better grab his prop, too.”

“I'll get it!” Aphrodisia volunteered, and Antares rolled his eyes in amusement before he gestured quickly at Sleipnir, who smiled and nodded before he gently laid Thorn across his older sibling's back.

“You rest up for a few minutes. Let's get you over to Scarlet to fix you up. Don't want all your marefriends worrying about you, now.” Antares said mildly, before he turned around and added meditatively: “Or, well, Hecate, either. I really don't want Hecate to think I didn't take proper care of you. Somehow, I don't think that would end well for me.”

Thorn shifted uncomfortably on top of Antares, but then he only sighed and nodded, deciding it was better not to argue before he closed his eyes and lowered his head, wondering just what he was going to tell Hecate about this.

But he thought he knew what he was going to say: how amazed he was by how even the meekest of ponies here had a burning strength that could match even the strongest of their Orphans, and that if they were going to win against the Voidborn, they would need every bit of help they could get from these strange ponies of Looking Glass World.

Comments

[Mira Starlight]

OH YEAH! YOU ROCK, FLUTTERSHY!