• Published 25th Sep 2017
  • 13,118 Views, 1,222 Comments

An Equestrian Witcher - OblivionShadow



A witcher from the Northern Realms finds himself sitting in Equestria, turned into a pony. When the fight with the Leshen began it was business as usual, but a second attack and a sharp pain to the back find him waking up in a world he can't imagin

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105: A Remnant Falls

Oblivion pieced the newest piece of the map he had been chasing into place with the others. So far the pieces had been coming from the same side of the map and each piece fit together with the others easily. Sasa laid off to the side of him, having grown tired of trying to fit the new piece into place and impose it on the larger map that they had borrowed from Twilight. The aqua mist from her fur flowed easily off her body as she slept. Across the room from him, Twilight went through a new book she had acquired for the Library and they sat in a comfortable silence. He looked at the map as he held it up the light and it showed him where to go next.

“Any idea what place this is?” He asked the purple mare.

His voice startled her and she yelped in surprise. “Huh?!”

“This.” He simply said to her and held it out for her to look at.

“Oh hang on let me look at it.” She said as she looked at the map and her eyes narrowed a bit as she stared. “Oh… I know where that is. It’s a town just outside of the Everfree. Not sure what it’s called though.”

“I do not need the name so much as its coordinates. If possible?”

“Oh sure give me a second.”

Twilight walked over to the shelves and pulled out a book to allow her to figure out what the coordinates were for the town. A few minutes went by and the mare came back with a small paper and handed it to him with a smile.

“There ya go.” She said to him.

“Thank you Twilight.” He said to her as he took the paper and his horn lit as she turned back to him.

“You're chasing another piece of that map aren’t you?” She questioned.

He gave a slight nod as his horn went out and she looked to be getting ready to speak further. “Yes?

“What are you hoping to find with those things?”

“I have no idea.” He admitted.

“Huh?”

“I have no idea what they will lead me to. I’m just following the trail they're leaving behind.” He replied.

“Any clues?”

“When I found the first one it was at the village that had been plunged into depression and near violence at one point. The Unicorn that was sent to help find out why dropped the first one into the town's well. I found it there after a pony recalled their family member mentioned that the Unicorn had dropped something into it.” He informed her.

Twilight looked interested as he spoke and she sat down and focused on his words. “So do you think it could be a spell or something that is going to be interesting to find?”

“It could be anything.” He admitted.

“In your experience though what could it be?”

He gave a slight chuckle. “It might be anything. In my experience, it could be anything. It could be anything from a book to a pony. Or a monster.”

“Usually it’s a monster isn’t it?” She asked with a laugh.

He gave a nod as she giggled. “With my luck the way it is that is probably what it is. But I intend to find out one way or the other.”

“You’re leaving now for it?”

“I intend to yes.” He informed her. “I trust you’re too busy to come along?”

He was not sure why he had offered but it had felt like the right thing to do. Twilight looked thoughtful for several seconds.

“I wish I could actually.” She replied. “I promised to help with the training for the Pegasus ponies for the tornado.”

“Tornado?” He inquired.

“Yeah, it’s to help get Cloudsdale the water that will provide rain and everything for Equestria. So they need to have a certain amount of Pegasus to reach enough wing power.” She explained.

“I see. Well, perhaps next time then.” He said back to her.

“Definitely. I would like to go along one of these days to see what you are finding out there.”

Oblivion got to his hooves and his horn summoned his saddlebags. “You are always welcome to join me on one of these searches.”

“Not welcome monster hunting?” She teased.

“If I thought I could avoid you getting hurt every time, sure.” He admitted with a chuckle.

“I’ll take a rain check on exploring with you then.” She said a wide smile on her lips.

He nudged Sasa and the feline got to her paws with a wide yawn. “Till later Twilight.” He said to her as he focused on the coordinates he had been given. She smiled and waved the hoof as he vanished in a flash of azure flame.


He opened his eyes from his teleport and a sense of immediate disquiet rolled over him. His skin trembled for a moment before he shook himself to free himself from the shiver that threatened to shake his body. He summoned Sasa and the feline sat down heavily. He stared at the town ahead of him and he strained his ears to listen and he heard nothing close by them. There was no sound of ponies or animals near him.

“It’s really… Quiet.” Sasa said to him, even her voice was a whisper in his mind.

“Unnervingly so.” He admitted to her as he took a step forward.

She fell in behind him and he said nothing further as he led her into the town. The further into the town he got the quieter it seemed to become. The silence pressed in on him from all sides and he strained his ears further to listen for anything of note.

Bang!

“Ahh!!” Sasa shrieked in his mind as a loud sound erupted from close by them.

His sword was in his magic a bare moment later as he looked to find the source of the sound. A door banged on its hinges off to their right and Sasa grumbled as she tried to relax and let her fur fall flat on her body. Oblivion sighed and he sent the blade back to the band on his leg and his wings trembled for a moment under their illusion. He reached out and his claws circled the door knob he pulled it shut and it closed with a resounding click.

“Sorry.” Sasa said to him as she looked down at the ground.

“It happens.” He assured her as he moved to walk away from the house and its now closed front door.

“Anything?” She asked, as his ears were sharper than her own.

“Nothing that I can find.” He admitted to her with a shake of his head, his mane settled onto his neck.

Sasa fell in behind him and he followed the street toward what he thought might end up being the center of town. His eyes watched intently ahead of them and so far nothing caught his eye and his ears caught the sound of deep silence around them. He reached the center of town after a few minutes and he looked down to see if there were any recent tracks. He narrowed his eyes to allow his enhanced sight to do some of the work for him. He could see what looked like drag marks in the packed dirt of the road and he focused in on the marks.

“Find something?” Sasa asked, her voice quiet in his mind.

“Maybe.” He said back to her. “It looks like something was dragged.”

“Okay. So we are going to follow it?”

He said nothing and simply nodded as he fell into tracking the marks. His enhanced sight allowed him to differentiate the marks from anything else on the road. He looked up occasionally to allow himself to not develop tunnel vision with his current objective. He stopped occasionally to allow him to ensure that he could act if needed.

Sasa sighed suddenly. “How about you track and I will watch our backs?”

He chuckled and nodded in agreement. “Sounds like a fair plan.”

He allowed the feline to do the work of keeping them safe and kept him on the track. The drag marks were still clear as the dirt began to give way to grass. The forest ahead of them stretched out and he walked easily into the shade of the forest. He heard Sasa grumble about the Everfree but he didn’t respond to her quiet complaints. The drag marls suddenly changed and there appeared to have been a fight in the grass. He looked at it from the angle of the one being dragged and now the marks showed that the pony being dragged was now fighting the pull of something or somepony else. The marks suddenly vanished for several feet and then the drag marks appeared once more.

“Interesting…” He muttered as he fell back into the track Sasa grumbled and once more began to watch around them for any threats.


The hours had fallen past him as he followed the track deeper into the Everfree. Behind him Sasa said nothing and allowed him to focus. The Witcher said nothing back to her as the track began to abate and fade into nothing. He made a short noise as the track faded and vanished. He stopped in his tracks and began to look around him and nothing stood out from the normal for him.

“Lost it?” Sasa asked him.

“Yeah. Let me see if I can pick it back up.”

“I’ll stay here where the track was last.” Sasa reasoned to him.

Oblivion moved in slow deliberate circles from where the track had ended. He didn’t find anything the further from the track he went. “Odd.” He muttered as he reached the outskirt of the small clearing. He walked back to the track and put his nose down to see if he would be able to track a scent. A scent of wildflowers caught his nose and he began to see if he could track the scent instead of the track themselves. He motioned for Sasa to remain where she was, she nodded and sat down where she was. He looked at the feline and she gave a wide yawn as she blinked tiredly. He made a short noise in his throat as he tried to follow the scent.

“Anything?” Sasa asked him.

“A scent of wildflowers is all that’s left of the track.” He admitted. “It’s like the pony that was here was… lifted.”

“Like they flew away? So they are a Pegasus and they escaped?”

“I’m not sure.” He admitted with a slight shrug. “I’ll see what the World Spirit has to say.”

“Oh I had forgotten all about it.” Sasa said with a laugh.

Oblivion reached out to the World Spirit and it lunged up to answer his command. He asked it to find ponies around him and after a few seconds, it found what he was looking for. A large number of ponies were several miles away. They were still and didn’t appear to be moving away or toward him.

“Found them.” He said and he began to follow the World Spirit and its direction.


“How much further?” Sasa asked from behind him.

“A couple more miles.” He replied to her through their connection.

“Great.” Sasa said, sarcasm in her tone. “What is the plan?”

“The plan is to find out why they are there and if they are there for a reason.” He said back to her.

“Any ideas why they are all out in the middle of nowhere?” She asked him.

“The World Spirit did not see anything that it is attached to it nearby. So nothing that it could find. We will see once we get to it.”

“Interesting…” Sasa replied. “So nothing with a spirit that it could attach to or find.”

“Pretty much.” He admitted. “It had nothing to find or connect to. I could try it again but I’m sure there is nothing there for it to find.”

“Odd.” The feline said back to him as she padded after him, her paws silent.

He fell silent as the time went past him. He looked over his shoulder to find Sasa lagging behind him. He reached out to her and he could sense that the Tiger was tired. He stopped in his tracks and called on the World Spirit to reach out to the ponies and see if they were injured or in need of immediate help. He found that they were mostly asleep and still. He was about to stop the World Spirits searching when something stood out to him. He reached out further to see if the ponies were upset or injured and from what he could tell they were either asleep and those that were awake were very afraid. Something had scared them badly.

“Hmm.” He made a noise aloud and Sasa sat down heavily at his hip.

“Can we pause for like an hour?” She asked him.

He said nothing for a moment before he looked at her and nodded. “We can pause for three hours.”

Sasa immediately flopped to the ground and sighed deeply. “Thank you.”

“You can’t help if you’re exhausted.” He said to her. He kept an ear out to assure himself that they were alone out on the forest. He looked back as Sasa began to sleep and he looked up to see the place of the moon and through it he could track the time.


Oblivion had allowed himself to stand in silence for going on three hours when the World Spirit began to heave under his command. He looked up and immediately reached out to the World Spirit and it lunged across the land to focus his attention on the ponies that he was following. They were faltering and their spirits were weakening. He took a step forward and nearly ran when he heard a quiet noise from Sasa as she slept.

“Sasa.” He said to her and nudged her with a back hoof.

“I’m awake.” She yelped as he pushed her. “Well I am now.”

“We need to get moving something has changed. The ponies are in trouble.”

“Oh… Well, let’s go.” She fell in at his hip and nudged him that she was ready to go.

He nearly broke into a hard gallop when caution washed over him. That spike of intuition rolled over him and he stopped in place. He recalled that Equestria had said these were a sense of foresight. He knew that something was ahead of them, he might not know exactly what it was but he knew it was there. Sasa ran her tongue over his hip and then ran her cheek along his leg.

“Something is there with them and they are terrified of it.” He said to her.

“Oh? How do you know?” She asked.

“The World Spirit alerted me to the ponies losing their spirits and before I let you sleep they were afraid of something close by them.” He explained to her.

“Why did you let me sleep if they were scared?!” She nearly shouted at him.

“You can’t help if you’re too exhausted to fight. You needed a bit of rest.”

She said nothing in reply for several seconds before she sighed. “You could have used the World Spirit… You’ve done that before on ponies.”

He looked back at her and then his eyes closed as he realized that she was right. He had completely forgotten what the World Spirit was capable of when used properly. “I’ve used it to calm, but I do not recall using it… Oh, Soarin.”

Sasa chuckled and nodded. “Exactly.”

He groaned quietly as he called on the World Spirit to refresh Sasa and the white fire layered over her. He felt it refresh her and she shook herself free of the white fire after several seconds. The Witcher said nothing as he began to pick his way slowly forward through the growing darkness. The tall grass and low-hanging tree limbs only made the travel more difficult as he followed the World Spirits' connection to the ponies. The closer he got the more the feeling of disquiet rolled over him and made his muscles tremble. Behind him, he heard Sasa grumble quietly.

“Something is strange, Chosen.” She advised him.

“You feel it too?” He asked her as he paused to go under a low-hanging tree limb. “I’m not sure what it is but yes, it’s making my skin tremble.”

“That bad? Great that’s comforting.”

“Hmm. Could be nothing or it could be something.”

Sasa said nothing in reply as he made sure the path through the grass and trees was clear for her too pass. They reached a ridge and Oblivion crept up to it and he looked down to find the ponies held at the bottom of the ravine. They were held in what looked it a fenced cage but as he looked at it the more he wondered why they hadn’t simply escaped by jumping the fence. Sasa crept up next to him and she tilted her head at the sight of the fenced-in ponies.

“Why aren’t they escaping?” She asked him.

“I’m not sure. A healthy pony should be able to jump a fence like that fairly easily. The fact that they haven’t is odd… They might be too afraid to attempt escape.”

“Afraid of what?” Sasa asked.

“I’m not sure. We need to get close to them.”

“You’re too tall to sneak up easily on them, Chosen. Let me sneak up to them.”

“Your fur is too bright.” He argued in silence with the feline.

She looked down at her bright white striped fur and he could see her scrunch up her face a bit. “Can you darken my fur with magic?”

“I can try to.” He agreed with her as he backed up from the edge pulling her with him.

His horn lit and he let his magic cover her as she stood and waited. Her fur began to darken as he stood with her and soon it was as black as his own fur. The mist coming off her was still the same coloring but it did not show any signs of the bright colors of before. He looked at her and she looked down at her fur and a wide toothy grin showed as she looked back at him.

“That should do it.” She said to him as she crept back to the edge of the ravine.

“Be careful. I can only do so much from up here if you get into trouble.” He warned her.

“I will. I’ll be careful I promise.” She assured him.

He watched as the feline crept over the edge of the ravine and disappeared from his sight. He went back to the edge of the ravine and watched the feline as she crept silently down to the fenced in area that the ponies were enclosed in. He narrowed his eyes to try to focus on something that might be stopping them from running, but now that the World Spirit was at his immediate command they were too depressed to even try to escape. Their spirits were a bit broken but not so broken that they had stopped functioning.

“Chosen they are all just stock still and staring ahead of them.”

“What are they staring at?”

“I’m not sure let me see if I can get up there a bit further. I’m not scenting anything major, but they are all so still.”

“Be cautious.” He advised.

“I will be.” She assured him. “It’s almost the same kind of lack of scent as the last time.”

“What do you mean?”

“That black pony from before, the one made of black goo.”

“The Remnant?” He asked her.

“Yes, that thing.” She replied with certainty in her tone.

“If it’s here, then you will need me.” He said back to her.

“I haven’t seen it yet. Hang on.” She said to him.

Oblivion said nothing as he watched the feline stalk forward. Her form was silent as she weaved forward, her body black was his own fur and the night seemed to swallow her as she moved. If he did not have his cat eyes he would have lost sight of her. He looked ahead of her and he could not see anything in front of the fenced cage.

“Why aren’t they jumping free? Is the cage special in some way?”

“It’s made of the same goo as that Remnant was. I wouldn’t want to touch it either.” Sasa informed him as she moved.

He said nothing back as what she said made him think. If their cage were made of the same corruption as the Remnant, then if they had touched it, it would have hurt their spirits badly. He waited for Sasa to alert him to what she was seeing. He saw nothing ahead of her but he was losing his sight the further away he had to look. He began to try to follow the feline from above as he slowly moved along the top of the ridge.

“Chosen stop.” Sasa said to him.

He stopped in his tracks at her warning and went still. He said nothing in response to the warning and waited for her to give him any instructions. When nothing happened he crept away from the edge and stayed away from edge and out of sight from anything that might see him from below.

“Something is here Chosen.” Sasa said to him. “Something moved when you were moving from above. I don’t think it knows you’re here but it knows something is up. Stay back and out of sight.”

He gave a silent agreement to her advice and remained back from the edge. He said nothing and waited for her to say more.


Sasa moved forward and she looked back at the fenced-in ponies. They were all standing in silence with their heads lowered almost to the ground. Their eyes were barely open and they simply stood in silence. Sasa paused at the sight of them and a feeling washed over her fur and she managed not to tremble at the feeling that came off them.

The Spectral Tiger began to creep forward once more and the ponies didn’t say anything or even move at the sight of her. She was certain that they could see her if they looked up a bit but they were too busy staring despondently at the ground. The scent of that Remnant caught her nose once more and she paused as it washed over her. She held back a tremble and crept several feet more. A sight off to her left caught her attention as a pony walked toward her. The mare stared at her and a scream tore from its mouth as Sasa froze.

“There you are.” A voice slid into her ears and she looked up to see the Remnant staring at her.

Her eyes went wide as its form undulated and the scent grew stronger as it walked a few feet toward her. She faced the Remnant and the monster simply smirked at her.

“You’re all alone this time.” Its voice slid over her fur and seemed to soak into her. “Come to me little kitten I can make things better for you. Your master is a weak pony and I can make you more powerful.”

Sasa roared in reply and squared up to fight the pony. “Chosen!” She yelled out to the black Unicorn.


Oblivion galloped over the edge of the ravine and slid down the side of it to join Sasa as she called out to him. He could see the Remnant close by her as a pony stood paralyzed, staring at the feline. He sent out a blast of azure flame to fight the Remnant and get its focus on him. He knew that it would not hurt it, but he wanted it to focus on him. He summoned his crystal blade from the band on his leg as he landed on the ravine bottom and the Remnant had spun to face him when the magic had glanced off its corrupted hide.

“So your here as well.” It growled at him as the blade hovered in the azure flame. “I can’t help but wonder how you’re finding these ponies. What are you exactly?”

“You don’t need to worry about that.” Oblivion said to him. “What do you want with them?”

“They’ll will serve. Their spirits belong to another.” It responded.

“And who might that be?” Oblivion pressed.

“You wish to know, do you? They belong to one who is more than the world can handle. You only slow down my plans to honor him.”

“Him?”

The Remnant sneered as it stopped talking and charged Oblivion. The Witcher said nothing as he also lowered his body and readied for the attack that was heading his way. The Remnant charged him and a blade of corruption formed in its grip and it swung the weapon toward him. Oblivion immediately raised his weapon and the crystal blade sliced completely through the Remnant blade. It carved into the Remnants shoulder and it yelled in pain as it reeled back. White fire surged over his horn as the World Spirits came forth. He said nothing as the Remnant reeled back at the sight of the white flame.

“What are you?” It hissed in anger.

Oblivion said nothing in reply as he charged and the white fire flowed over the crystal blade and it swung down to bury itself in the Remnants neck. Oblivion did not stop as the blade dug deep and corruption fountained from the wound. He said nothing as it sprayed over his chest and legs, leaving his body in corruption. The Remnant reeled back and screamed in pain as Oblivions blade bit deeper and dug as deep as he could command it.

“Get him Chosen!” Sasa cheered from behind him.

Oblivion tilted his blade and put his hoof and claws around the hilt. He spun his body to gather momentum and the blade cut through the Remnant's neck, decapitating it completely. The body stayed standing for several seconds before it crumpled to the ground and began to liquefy. Sasa approached as the corruption and it stayed in a puddle on the ground and it slowly began to move along the ground. White fire flowed from his horn as he covered the corruption in the World Spirits fire and the corruption screamed audibly. The corruption began to burn and disintegrate under the white fire and he said nothing as it burned to nothing.

“Do you think that will be the last we see of him?” Sasa asked as she joined him.

“No.” He said to her.

“Huh?”

“Corruption like that does not truly die. I’m certain we will see him again. Besides if he is as dedicated to his ‘Master’ as I think he is then he does not have just one font of corruption to live off. I’d guess we have a matter of time before he reappears.” Oblivion said to her.

Sasa looked nervous for several seconds before she looked back at the despondent ponies in the pen. Oblivion looked at it as well and his still alight horn sent the crystal blade back to the band on his leg and the white fire covered the fence and began to burn through it till it vanished. He then turned to face the ponies and used the World Spirit to touch each one of them to allow him to pull them out of the state they had been placed in. The mare that had seen Sasa was staring wide-eyed at him and the enormous feline. The World Spirit reached out and touched each pony covering them in the white fire, the mare shrieked for a second before the fact that it felt comforting and soothing made her pause.

“What are you…? Doing?” She asked.

“Healing you all.” He replied.

She fell silent as the stallion continued what he had been doing and the white flame only grew in strength. Sasa sat down and watched as Oblivion worked. She looked at the ponies and saw them slowly recovering. Oblivion was taking it slow to allow them to adjust easily and without injuring them further. The ponies slowly raised their heads as their spirits were freed of the corruption that had taken hold of them. They stared at the black Unicorn as the white flame began to dissipate and fade. Several of them looked around and found the fence was no longer in place and they smiled as the Unicorn was still and then sat down heavily with a sigh.

“Chosen?”

“I’m okay.” He said back to her. “Is anypony injured?”

“I don’t think so.” A dark green pony answered his question. “Let me make sure.”

The stallion backed up and began to weave through the others. Sasa walked up to him and began to look at the back good on front of him. She grimaced as it undulated over his fur.

“Perhaps you should cleanse yourself of that goo.” She advised.

“Hmm?” He said back to her as he looked down to see what she was talking about. “Oh.”

White fire once more covered his horn as he commanded the World Spirit to cleanse the corruption on his body. It disintegrated from his body and Sasa made an approving noise when the green stallion returned to the front.

“Nopony is badly injured. Just a couple of cuts and bruises. Nothing more than that.” He replied.

“That’s good to hear. I can get you all back to your village. It’s a bit of a trek but I can get you there.” Oblivion informed them as the ponies began to look at him.

“I’m not even sure where we are, to be honest.” The green pony informed the Witcher. “You know where we are though?”

“Yes. I can get you home. It will take time but I can get you there.” He replied.

“Who are you anyway?”

“My name is Oblivion Shadow.”

“Well, Mr. Shadow. I can honestly say I am very happy you came upon us.” The green pony said with a chuckle.

“What brought you out this way anyway?”

“I came here searching for a small cylinder like this one.” Oblivion replied and his horn lit as one of the tubes appeared in his magic to show them. “Have you seen one like this?”

“Oh yes. I have one. My name is Forest Moon.” The green pony said to him with a smile.

“Pleasure to meet you.” Oblivion replied. “Where do you keep the cylinder?”

“It’s in my home,” Forest admitted. “My predecessor had it before me. It has been passed down to the Mayors of the town when one is elected.”

“I see.” Oblivion replied. “What are the odds of me being allowed to take it?”

“Well you did save all of us and so far have not asked for any kind of payment,” Forest replied as Oblivion motioned for them to follow him. “I don’t see why you can’t have it. What do you need it for?”

“Inside it is a piece of a map that I have been searching for. Each one holds a new piece.” Oblivion explained.

“What are they leading you to?”

“I have no idea. So far each one leads to the next piece. I have a few of them in my possession and the last one led me to your village. When I realized the village was deserted I began to search for all of you.”

“Well, I do not see why you can’t have it. If you can get it open anyway.” Forest explained.

“Meaning?”

“I’ve never been able to get it open. Even a few other Unicorns have tried to open it but so far no success.”

“Well, we will see if I can work some magic.” Oblivion replied.

“I would think you would be able to open it, Chosen.” Sasa said to him as she trailed at his hip.

“Hopefully. Otherwise, this has been a large waste of time.” He admitted back to her.

“How are you finding your way in the dark?” Forest asked him, his voice cautious.

“I am tracking her paw prints.” He replied and pointed his horn over his shoulder to Sasa.

“Tracking her?”

“Yes, my hooves leave very little to no traces. So tracking her is far easier ttrying to track my own path.”

“It's pitch black out.” Forest observed.

“I am a Witcher. I am designed to hunt and track no matter the conditions. Do not worry I will get all of you home.” Oblivion assured him.

“I’ve never heard of a Witcher.”

“We have been called monster hunters, curse breakers, and trackers. My kind are trained to fight creatures and ponies alike.” Oblivion explained.

“So you can lead us home through the pitch black night and not need light to do it?” Forest asked, his tone giving way to his disbelief.

“I assure you I do not need light to lead you all home. If I need it I will use my horn for light if we need.”

Forest looked uncertain as he looked over his shoulder at the trailing ponies of his village. “Okay. Lead the way.”

Author's Note:

Here is a new chapter for all of you. Been on a bit of a roll with this one.

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