Fading Suns: A New World

by David Silver

98 - Butterfly Hunting

Snips sat across from a filly about his age and a larger colt who looked pointedly uninterested. "So, um... that went... well," Snips began, working his hooves together.

The filly raised an ear before it fell almost as quickly. "They are barely looking at her," she grumbled softly. "I didn't expect the visitors to be so... frail," she said the word with disgust rather than shock, as if it offended her.

Snips lifted his shoulders softly as he leaned forward, sipping loudly on the drink before him. "Funny, huh?"

"Something's off about you today." She leaned in with a frown. "I can't put my hoof on it..."

Snips began to sweat even more than he had already been. "Did you see that explosion?!" he blurted out with wide eyes.

"We weren't anywhere close to it." She waved it away. "And it wasn't that bad. The two ponies in it didn't even notice it."

Bon Bon softly nodded across the way to where Laud was hiding. They'd been watching and listening, and it seemed clear they had the right target.

"Demon!" roared Laud as he burst free of the bush he had been hiding in, his sword drawn in the same motion in an elegant display only mildly ruined by the various bits of branches and leaves clinging to him. "Surrender now."

Spike hopped out behind him, his sword coming out not as smoothly, though the way was made clear by the passage of his older teacher and he looked less roughened for the journey. "Yeah, give up!"

"We have you surrounded," noted Bon Bon with less fiery anger, more of a careful scowl on her face as she walked with purposeful slowness towards the table. "Make this easier on yourself."

"Or," suggested the filly as Snips dove for cover under the table. "I could just leave." Suddenly pegasus wings burst from her back and she lifted into the air. "I like that option. C'mon, let's--"

Starlight appeared with a flash right in front of the filly, floating in the air. "You know two of us can fly, right? And one of us is hormonal and already annoyed. Give it up."

The colt that had been being quiet until then suddenly hopped free of his chair with enough force to send it flying, green flames overtaking his form as he became a massive manticore with a lashing stinger of a tail and great teeth. He roared at the two bladed warriors, fur bristled and ready for battle.

The filly's eyes narrowed to points. "You!" With a burst of heat, she became as she truly was, Chrysalis revealed to the world. "How dare you of all ponies dare to face me!" She lunged for Starlight, who vanished with a flashing pop, and the two began to dart about in the air.

Bon Bon shook her head. "Starlight's on her own for the moment, let's get this thing under control."

Spike backed a step. "You two take this, I'll help Starlight." And into the air he went.

When the manticore's eyes followed Spike, Laud stepped forward, shoving his blade into the view of the beast. "Don't forget who you're fighting." Did the demon even speak? He wasn't sure, but he hoped it understood his threat.

Bon Bon crashed into its back, grabbing its wicked tail between her arms as best she could, though it thrashed around dangerously in the space provided.

Chrysalis and Starlight were engaged in a game of high-stakes tag, with bolts of angry magic lancing from the former-queen's twisted horn and missing Starlight by the barest of degrees, even singeing her fur in places. "Stand still so I can exact my well-deserved revenge!"

Her next beam barely got a few feet away before it struck metal and deflected wildly into the air, caught in a wild swing by Spike's sword. The magic struck with such force that Spike was knocked off course, but with rapid flapping he righted himself. "Stop right there. You're fighting two of us!"

Chrysalis burst into delirious laughter. "You, Spike? Really? What box of snacks did you find that at the bottom of?" She flew in closer towards him with a deadly smile. "Get out of my way before I make you."

Then he stabbed her. He had imagined it would be so much more dramatic. Grand parries and thrusts. Epic dodges and elegant movements. He thrust the sword forward, and she didn't even register it as a threat until it was lodged in her chest. She looked down slowly, her movements jittery, until she could see the sword sunk into her chitinous front. "You... You worthless worm!" She brought a hoof in and smashed the sword away, cutting herself open in the process in a spray of her blood. "I will destroy you!"

Starlight appeared next to him suddenly, gaping at her. "I think she has lost every shred of sense she had left. Chryssie, really, you're--" Her words were aborted with a flash, dodging a ray of deadly magic.

Spike didn't have that choice, trying to parry and dodge as best he could. It seemed Chrysalis had truly lost it, firing wildly and not always at him in particular. "Only one thing left to do..." he muttered as he flew towards the danger instead of away from it. Magic blasted his shoulder, that arm going numb instantly. He clutched his sword all the more firmly with the arm he had left.

---

Laud was forced back, shoved with great paws and sharp claws against his blade. The manticore learned that swords were sharper than most things ponies fought with, gaining a gash across the underside of one of its paw in the process of shoving the knight.

Bon Bon dodged to the left as the stinger curled on itself to get at her, letting it go entirely. It began to wave and thrash as if in celebration, however brief, then lunged for her. She bounced up into the air just over it, sailing under her with precious few inches between and she landed on it with a satisfying crunch, bringing down her hooves to mash it into the ground.

The manticore roared in pain, wrenching its abused stinger away from Bon Bon and turning to roar at her.

"I don't need you alive." Laud brought down his blade, embedding it into the shoulder of the manticore. Blood sprayed, though it wasn't the usual red, as unnatural as the beast he was fighting. Sure, he had been aiming for the head, but it wasn't standing still for him.

The cut wasn't as deep as he figured it should have been, had the flesh been normal. A man could have lost his arm to such a swing, the manticore seemed more angry about it than anything else.

---

Spike twirled his blade and it deformed in the motion, becoming a shield he was holding by the hilt in an odd hybrid of blade and protection. It was just in time to catch the next bolt, sending him flying backwards. "Calm down!"

"I'll show you calm," roared Chrysalis, chasing after him. "You think you're some big dragon? I can be a big dragon too." With a rush of flames, she was, a great and terrible red dragon, still bleeding heavily from her chest from a wound that did not close just for her shapeshifting. "I will devour you!"

Starlight appeared on the dragon's back as quietly as she could pop. "Time for a little nap." She set both forehooves down on the dragon's spine, intensely glowing.

Spike bashed aside her incoming teeth to little effect other than not being bitten. "You're hurt."

"You'll be more hurt," she spat out, not noticing Starlight. "I have a little toy sword too. I have so many." She brought up her hands, each finger capped with a deadly claw. "Let's see how you like it when I put them in you!" She grabbed and slashed at him, forcing him to desperately try to block and parry, but she was too large and too strong. His sword-shield was sent flying, soaring towards the ground. Along the way, it returned to its usual sword shape and embedded itself in the dirt on impact.

Chrysalis laughed maniacally, even as her movements were slowing. "Time for you to bleed," she hissed, slashing his good arm and leaving several trails the welled red quickly. "Time for you to suffer." Her other hand raked his front. "You think you can challenge me?!" She grabbed him between her claws, bringing him right up to her face. "You're only good... for..." Her eyelids drooped, fatigue catching up with her.

Was it the blood loss or the magic being poured into her? It would be hard to measure exactly, but she was slipping quickly.

---

The manticore jumped for Bon Bon with great jaws gaping, its tail lashing at Laud in the same instant and catching him in the leg.

Laud felt a new pain he hadn't before. It wasn't like being stabbed, he'd experienced that. Was that tail as poisonous as it looked? He felt a hot fire surge through his leg and he staggered back with a foul curse in the human tongue.

Bon Bon didn't dodge, instead spinning around and bucking with all of her might. Her back hooves caught the oncoming manticore in the jaw and twisted his entire head sharply.

Suddenly the manticore was a little changeling, bleeding viciously, and sobbing. Even Laud had to pause at the suddenly pitiful display. "Do you... surrender?" He fell to a knee, the pain only getting worse, but he was still holding up his sword, ready to continue.

"I think we beat the fight out of him," Bon Bon reported as she closed in with the trembling form. "Stay calm and we'll keep you from getting more hurt. You are so under arrest." She pulled hoofcuffs out of nowhere and slapped them on the changeling's trembling arms and another on his back legs before they hooked together. "How are they doing up there?" She craned her neck to see the aerial confrontation.

---

She opened her mouth wide, trying to shove Spike in there despite her lethargy. The instant she let him go to fall in, he darted around her clumsy fingers and flew free. "Come... back here." She clumsily swung her hands at him as if trying to swat him rather than grab him. "I'm not... done..."

Starlight brought a hoof back. "I think you are." She slammed it down with a flare of magic and the great beast she was atop of began to fall towards the ground.

With a rush of flames, she became a changeling queen, plummeting from the sky. She let out the barest of grunts as she stopped. Spike caught her, crashing into her and carrying her towards the ground as quickly as he could in barely better than a free fall. They slammed into the grassy dirt at an angle, sending both tumbling and rolling, but seemingly intact.

Starlight skipped magically from the air to just beside Spike. "You alright?"

"Yeah, I think." He put down a hand to push himself up and slowly sat up, head wobbling with obvious dizziness. "Did we get her?"

A sudden shout caught their attention. "Help! Starlight, get him to the hospital!" Bon Bon was pointing at the collapsed form of Laud desperately. "Yesterday!"

Starlight cringed, vanishing just to appear next to Laud. "On it, you get Chrysalis." And with another sparkle, she and Laud were gone.

Bon Bon let out a little breath, nudging the changeling she was near. "You'll live." The changeling only made a miserable noise and she got to bandaging the prisoner. "Good work, Spike."

"Huh?" Spike was back on his feet, jogging over to Bon Bon and the changeling. "Starlight's the one that took her down."

Bon Bon raised a brow. "That gushing wound didn't come from Starlight, call it a hunch. You also distracted her. I'd say you did an amazing job, Spike. Now, let's get these two somewhere secure."

Author's Note:

Yay fight scenes! I always get nervous about those. How'd I do?!

Written early for patreons who got this ahead of everyone else. Want to get early chapters, or even your own story written? atreon!

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Comments

[Venerable Ro]

How'd I do?!

Excellently. I was on the edge of my seat!

[A.P.O.N.I.]

How'd I do?!

The only change that I would make would be to throw another of those ===***=== between these two:

Spike didn't have that choice, trying to parry and dodge as best he could. It seemed Chrysalis had truly lost it, firing wildly and not always at him in particular. "Only one thing left to do..." he muttered as he flew towards the danger instead of away from it. Magic blasted his shoulder, that arm going numb instantly. He clutched his sword all the more firmly with the arm he had left.

Laud was forced back, shoved with great paws and sharp claws against his blade. The manticore learned that swords were sharper than most things ponies fought with, gaining a gash across the underside of one of its paw in the process of shoving the knight.

Also typo on sharper. Other than that, I love this story. More, please!

[Xanderfox]

Gotta feel bad for the little ling, he can't be very old so he clearly had his ageing accelerate so he's mentally barely past a child, he's only know Chrysalis his entire short life and he got severely wounded and defeated on his first mission.

[David Silver]

10102499
Typos, in MY battle?! Not on my watch!

[redmar]

This was a nice chapter and I wonder if Chrysalis is willing to talk later about her plans.

[BestinDworld]

In reaction to spike in the words of Batman.....”good solider “

[Superbowl]

I usually skim through fight scenes as they are boring for me, but you made it exciting and concise enough that I didn't do that and read it all through. 👍

[ssokolow]

but with rapid flapping her righted himself

but with rapid flapping he righted himself

[David Silver]

10103516
No typos in our climactic battles!

[Reese]

"Was it the blood loss, or was it the magic being poured into her, it would be hard to measure exactly, but she was slipping quickly."
"Whether it was the blood loss or the magic being poured into her, it would be hard to measure exactly, but she was slipping quickly."?

"The Manticore jumped for Bon Bon"
"The manticore jumped for Bon Bon"?

I think the scene went pretty well! :)

[tsaukpaetra]

Here's to hoping changeling-emulated Manticore venom is less potent than the real thing...

[Booster Spice]

Pony boom is different to normal boon, manticorevenom is different to normal giant scorpian venom, the larger, the weaker, compensated by Equestrian forms being so much more powerful?

[howard035]

Awesome fight scene.

Hoofcuffs on a changling are probably pretty ineffective though.

[David Silver]

10107188
As a long term deterrent, one imagines.

[lordelliott]

...missing Starlight by the barest of degrees, even singing her fur in places.

Having your fur burst in to song has to be disconcerting.

I liked how Spike just suddenly stabbed her. It's absurdly fitting, and something I can easily imagine happening to Chrysalis. It's just lucky for her it wasn't a serious attack, or she'd have been done in.

[David Silver]

10116328
You led me down a short rabbit hole of literary discoveries to figure out the proper spelling of that.

[son_of_heaven176]

Good fight scene. Two typos, though:

Was it the blood loss or the magic being poured into her, it would be hard to measure exactly, but she was slipping quickly.

There are two ways to fix this:
1) Was it the blood loss or the magic being poured into her? It would be hard to measure exactly, but she was slipping quickly.

2) Whether it was the blood loss or the magic being poured into her, it would be hard to measure exactly, but she was slipping quickly.

Bon Bon didn't dodge, instead spinning around and bucking with all of her might. Her back hooves catching the oncoming manticore in the jaw and twisting his entire head sharply.

Second sentence is a sense fragment. Replace the intervening period with a comma.

[David Silver]

11097154
Old typos set to rest.