Epilogue
Thank you to everypony who has supported me in writing this, and has given me the courage to continue to write more! I hope you enjoyed "Tales from the Equestrian Others- the Fallen Angel of Ponyville"!
Keep an eye out for my next story, "Tales from the Equestrian Others- the Lunar Prince of Hearts"! I'm also starting an Ask Blog-Story within these next few months, if your curious please feel free to comment on my user page!
Warning, this chapter contains:
- Heavy Gore
- Dark tones, undertones, and imagery
- Dramatic Events/ Feelings
- Sexual implications (NO CLOP)
- Surprises that will leave you wanting more
Enjoy!
A white hoof turned the shower knob all the way to the left. The pipes began to whistle something fierce, a high-pitched scream of protest. Steam filled the air.
Scarlet Thorn stepped underneath the scalding water without a second thought.
The instant the water hit she winced. Pain shot through her entire body, prickles of heat which stabbed at her tender flesh. The pegasus gave no further reaction than that single wince to the pain.
Suddenly she screamed. A long and trembling wail of anguish and fury.
The wail ended in a sputtering cry and a desperate gasp for air. Scarlet immediately collapsed to the tiled floor, and began to cry.
It hurt.
The truth that she had put off for so long. It was her fault. Today had only been a reminder of that. Her thoughts turned to the pony flesh that she had accidentally eaten, and she promptly vomited all over her forelegs. The mare was glad that she was in the shower, and she simply let the water wash it away.
Phoenixes were not supposed to die. But hers had. Her little Phoenix had died. Her Phoenix had died because of her own incompetence and reckless behavior. The pegasus mare felt her stomach upset again, and the results were the same.
Scarlet could still remember her little yellow-white coat, and her orange and red mane. Her little ragged wings, the joints twisted completely upside down like her mother's. Her eyes had been pink. She had been so cold. Scarlet couldn't understand it; how could such a little creature be so cold upon its own birth?
She could still feel it inside of her. The death. She still denied it. She never had a daughter. So she told herself. But there was no more evading it now. She had tasted death today, she had waddled through its gullet, and she had nearly met its embrace many times. And none of it even began to compare to what she had felt that day, to what she felt now.
The silver-maned mare wasn't sure how much time had passed once her sobs had subsided. The heat of the water had completely numbed her skin, leaving it raw and tingling. At one point, the pain from the water stinging her flesh had become too great and she had been unable to stand any longer and had fallen to the floor. Scarlet weakly kicked out her hind legs, her hooves thumped dully against the glass. With much struggle and cries of protest from her body she slowly pushed herself off of the floor. Her drenched mane fell into her face, the heavy locks clinging to her cheeks. She didn't bother to part or move it.
Regret, anger, sorrow, guilt, and self-pity all swarmed around in her being at once, creating an elixir of venom that was anything but pleasant. The mare's thoughts slowly turned from her lost daughter to the daughter she had made. Sound-Off's life had been put in danger because of her. And not just Sound-Off, Zecora had also been dragged into this war because of her. Even Vinyl would have been better off never having saved her, she would have never learned about Z.O.D.I.A.C. if the pegasus had never accidentally told her with the slipping of her tongue. If it weren't for her, they would all be safe.
Her fault, it was all her fault.
Scarlet suddenly struck out at the glass with her hoof. The glass shattered upon impact, creating deep slashes that ran up the length of her foreleg. The mare hissed in pain, immediately drawing the bleeding limb closer to her. Which was a mistake as the water from the shower head only pricked at the wounds more. She stumbled out of the shower and over to the cabinet, leaving a red trail that marked her path. She fumbled to open the doors, and once she had she pushed bottles and other hygienic products to the floor. Eventually she found what she was looking for, a pair of tweezers.
The mare cursed out her frustrations as she once again regretted not being able to properly use her wings, taking the tweezers in her mouth and fighting to keep the sharp metal edges from jabbing into her flesh. The shower still ran, now beginning to soak the ground. It took her a bit and a few mishaps, but Scarlet had somehow managed to remove most of the glass shards from her body. She trot back into the shower, using the water to rinse out any remaining slivers. She became memorized by the swirling stream of crimson as it entered the drain, mindlessly watching its path and pattern; ultimately losing track of time, and herself.
***
The Ponyville Hospital was currently in a state of panic.
Doctors and nurses ran from room to room; more than anything, they scrambled to and fro from the emergency room. A caramel-coated unicorn stallion with a brown mane galloped into the hallway, a determined look in his blue eyes. He quickly turned the corner to the ER, and slammed open the doors.
"What's her status?!" He demanded of yellow earth pony mare.
The blue-maned mare trot over to him, her head hung low. "Not good Doctor Horse, the patient's magic levels are still at a critical level."
"And the patient?" Doctor Horse inquired.
"Well, that's the odd thing. She appears to be fine." The nurse pony stated, offering the unicorn a clipboard.
"Thank you Nurse Snowheart. You may fall back to your previous duties." Doctor Horse ordered, taking the clipboard in his magic. As Snowheart walked away, the unicorn began to mutter out the clipboard's contents. "Brain waves, stable. No signs of emotional distress. There appears to be some physical damage to the body, but not enough to cause any lasting damage to the epidermis or nervous system. Breathing is stable, no changes to intake or output of air. Patient is responsive to light, no anomalies with the natural reflex test. Heartbeat, normal. It would appear that the only concern is the state of her magic, her horn is putting out unnatural amounts of a previously undiscovered form of magic that when tested appears to be love-based but with a distinct imprint reminiscent of dark magic. Results, inconclusive."
He reached the patient's room, and gently opened the door. Sitting up in the bed was a rather agitated looking Vinyl Scratch, who had her forelegs folded against her chest. At her side was a relieved and concerned Octavia, who had absolutely insisted quite strongly- and by that, she had forced her way though the nurse ponies and guards- that she was to remain by her friend's bedside until the DJ was able to leave the hospital.
Vinyl's ears flattened against her head, and her eyes narrowed. "So what? Are you gonna let me go or not? I told you, I feel fine."
"I think what my friend is trying to say," Octavia interrupted. "is that she is concerned about herself just as much as you or I, but since she's feeling no distress whatsoever, perhaps it is time we went home?"
"Well you see Ms. Melody," Doctor Horse began, flipping over to the next page of the clipboard. "that's exactly what I'm concerned about. It would indeed appear that Ms. Scratch is not suffering from any physical pain. For a unicorn exhibiting such incredible magic levels, to put it simply, that amount of magic should have backfired into her skull by now."
"Backfire... into her... skull?" Octavia asked, swaying on her hooves before she fell over and fainted.
Vinyl quickly caught her in her magic.
"DON'T DO THAT!" Doctor Horse suddenly shouted, rushing over and swatting at Vinyl's horn.
Vinyl yelped in surprise while Octavia fell to the ground with a thud. The blue-maned mare hit his hoof away.
"What the buck was that for?!" She demanded with a growl.
"DO NOT USE YOUR MAGIC!" Doctor Horse yelled into her face.
Vinyl waved her hoof in front of her muzzle. "Jeez, a little heavy on the garlic much?"
The other unicorn's ears folded back, but he tried to keep a calm demeanor. "Ms. Scratch, you must understand that the slightest usage of your magic and the energy will backfire down your horn and into your skull. Please, refrain from using your magic under any circumstance until we have found a way to safely channel the access energy, or I will be forced to subdue your magic with a magic-prohibition ring."
"Look, how many times do I have to tell you?!" Vinyl snorted, beginning to lose her patience. "I'm. Fine. I don't feel sick. My horn doesn't hurt or anything. And the only thing wrong, is that you and these other health-freaks are getting on my nerves!"
"Ms. Scratch! You must calm down!" Doctor Horse exclaimed. "We are only doing our job, and you are in danger of-"
"In danger of losing my temper!" Vinyl suddenly shouted. "I said I want to leave, Doctor. Now."
"That is not an option!" Doctor Horse stated. "I have almost three-quarters of my hospital staff working their flanks off to find a way to help you. Your life is at risk. We need to keep you here to monitor you for any changes, no matter how slight. I'm sorry, but you are not leaving this room."
"Oh, yeah?" Vinyl growled, throwing the blanket off. "We'll see about that."
The mare leapt off of the bed, much to the shock and distress of the stallion.
"Ms. Scratch!" Doctor Horse protested, trotting alongside her. "You must get back into bed this instant! Please, don't make me call the staff to sedate you!"
Vinyl swung around. "Sedate me?! Excuse you?! Just who in Tartarus do you think you are, trying to tell me what I can and can't do?!"
Doctor Horse began to step backwards as the enraged mare confronted him. "I'm- I'm a- a doctor! I know what is b- best for my pa- patients!"
"Oh really?!" The DJ snarled as they both stepped over Octavia. "You think just because you have some fancy piece of paper that you have the right to tell me when I'm okay to go home?!"
"Ms. Scratch! Please, calm yourself!" Doctor Horse pleaded. "I'm sure that we can talk about this like mature ponies if you just- YOOOOW!"
The unicorn stallion yelped as the unicorn picked him up in her magic and threw him across the room and against the back wall.
Vinyl's feral posture suddenly dropped, and she blinked away the shock.
"Oh crud!" She quickly galloped over to the dazed stallion. "I'm so sorry Doctor Horse! I- I don't know what overcame me! I didn't mean to- to- to-"
Vinyl caught the scent of blood.
Doctor Horse's back had been scraped open by the sink faucet, which he had impacted against when the mare had thrown him. The wound was now bleeding freely; not enough to be anything more than a minor discomfort, but enough to throb slightly and cause the unicorn to groan in pain.
The stallion pushed himself up, holding his head. He caught sight of the DJ's outstretched hoof, and smacked it away with an angry scowl. "You! You are lucky if you ever leave this hospital now! I am putting you in the Mentally Unstable Wing with all the other nut jobs and basket-weavers!"
"Wha- what?!" Vinyl exclaimed as the stallion pushed her aside.
Doctor Horse suddenly spun around. "You heard me! I'm going outside to warn the staff that there's a violent patient in here."
He picked up Octavia in his magic.
"Tavi!" Vinyl cried out, galloping over to them.
Doctor Horse quickly erected a bubble around the oncoming mare. "You're not going anywhere! That bubble can withstand anything you throw at it! Princess Cadance taught me that spell personally, and when combined with a regular shield spell there is nothing that gets in, or out."
"Tavi! Tavi, no!" Vinyl cried out, ramming into the bubble. "Let her go! Tavi!"
Doctor Horse paused just before he could reach the door. He glanced back at Vinyl. "I'm sorry. This is for your own good."
"TAVI!" Vinyl screamed.
And then everything went white.
...
Vinyl woke up to a pounding headache.
"Ugh, what happened?" She wondered aloud, rubbing her head as she stood up. "Tavi? Tavi!"
The blue-maned mare rushed over to where her friend lie unconscious, and snatched her into her forelegs.
Octavia's eyes slowly fluttered open. "What- what happened?"
The earth pony rolled onto her hooves, and gasped.
In front of them lie Doctor Horse, or rather, what remained of him. The stallion's limbs had been ripped clean off of his body. The legs were scattered around the room, one lie near his body, another was thrown into the corner, the third was tossed across the room and underneath a large pony-shaped bloodstain, and the final leg lie no more than a foot away from where Vinyl had woken up. That leg had what appeared to be bites taken out of it. The unicorn's body itself had sustained the most damage; deep marks were engraved into his flesh, as if something had gripped him with claws. His horn had been broken in half, the top half was missing. Worst of all, his belly and back had been ripped into and now his intestines hung out of his body; they too looked as if they had been munched on.
Octavia scrambled back, and begun to pant. "H- H- HELP!"
Vinyl stood there in shock. She couldn't believe what she saw. Her stomach lurched, and she held back its contents. Her mind was immediately taken back to the caverns, to the ponies that she had eaten. The mare's stomach threatened her again.
"VINYL!" Octavia cried out.
The DJ shook herself out of her memories, and stumbled back before galloping over to the other mare. They burst out of the room together, startling a nurse that had been just about to enter.
"Ms. Scratch!" Snowheart exclaimed. "What are you doing out of bed?!"
Octavia suddenly threw herself at the nurse. "Nurse Snowheart! You must do something at once! Something got into Vinyl's room and killed Doctor Horse!"
"Killed? Doctor?" The yellow-mare breathlessly began, before bursting free of the shock. "SECURITY! SECURITY!"
The mare's cries caused a fuss, doctors and nurses alike stopped whatever they were doing and poked their heads out to see what the commotion was about. A brown stallion with a buzz-cut white mane galloped over.
"What is it Snowheart?!" He demanded.
"It's- it's Doctor Horse!" Snowheart shouted. "He's- he's dead! Something murdered him Night Watch!"
Night Watch's ears folded back. "What do you mean something murdered him?!"
The stallion burst into the room, as the worried whispers of the hospital staff filled the air. A few minutes later Night Watch trot back out, closing the door behind him.
"Well?" One of the nurses spoke up.
Night Watch vomited all over the floor, before collapsing.
"Ev- everywhere! There are pieces of him everywhere!" Night Watch stuttered out, his voice shaking. "And whatever it was, it- it- it ate him! Oh Faust, it ate him!"
One of the nurses rushed forward to console the stallion, helping him to his hooves and away from the door.
The whispers grew into confused and frightened shouts as the staff began to panic.
Another doctor, Doc Top as his identification card promoted, suddenly took charge of the situation.
"Everypony quiet!" He yelled. Once the cries of hysteria had passed, he spoke again. "Redheart, Tenderheart, and Sweetheart, go check on every patient in this wing!"
The three nurse ponies nodded their heads in confirmation before running off to check the individual rooms.
"Lilac Hearts and Snowheart, go check the Mentally Unstable Wing to make sure none of the more violent patience somehow found a way to escape! Night Watch, I need you and your guard split into the Mentally Unstable Wing, the Foal's Wing, and the Maternity Wing. Now!"
Lilac nodded her head, taking the quivering stallion with her. Night Watch managed to find his voice, and spoke into his walkie-talkie.
"Candy Mane, Foal's Wing!" Doc Top barked out to the apricot-coated mare. "Take Nursery Rhyme and High Spirits with you! And I don't want a single word of this making it to their ears!"
The pink-maned earth pony saluted him before galloping out. The yellow-coated pegasus mare, and filly nurse-in-training followed.
"Sunlight, Icy Drop, Cerulean Skies, Maternity Wing!" Doc Top ordered. "I want that entire wing triple-checked!"
The three stallions dashed off into the halls, disappearing around the corner.
"Everypony else, you're with me." The stallion finished. "We'll be splitting into groups of three to cover the rest of the hospital. You are not to separate from your group for any reason, understood?"
A series of confirming nods and cries followed.
"Good, now find your partners!" Doc Top sighed once everypony else had left. He then trot over to Octavia and Vinyl. "The two of you go home, and be sure to lock your doors and windows. If something is loose in Ponyville, I want you to be as safe as possible."
"But what about Vinyl?" Octavia asked.
Doc Top glanced over at the unicorn mare, and pushed back up his glasses. "She looks just fine to me."
"But-" Octavia began.
Vinyl stuck her hoof over the cellist's mouth. "Will do doctor!"
The DJ then quickly ushered her across the halls, down the stairs, and out of the hospital.
"Vinyl?! What are you doing?!" Octavia demanded. "You need help!"
"No, I don't!" Vinyl stated. "You heard the stallion, I'm fine! Besides, do you really want to stay someplace where a pony just got bucking murdered?!"
"Well, no. No, I don't." Octavia said, her brows furrowing in worry. "Oh my, I do hope everypony else is safe!"
"I'm sure they'll be fine! I mean, they have all of security on look out, right?" Vinyl assured. "Come on, let's go home!"
"Alright then, carry on." Came the earth pony's response as she joined Vinyl's side.
Vinyl Scratch suddenly shivered. Her entire body felt cold, even though there were still plenty of warm nights left until autumn. As they passed a house, she couldn't help but to notice the thermostat on the wall boasted of an even ninety-degree temperature. And despite everything, Vinyl strangely felt, hungry.
***
Zecora chased around Rover with a broom. She was suddenly beginning to regret having agreed to watch him until Vinyl was discharged from hospital care.
"Just what is it you are trying to do?! My home is no zoo!" The zebra exclaimed, gesturing to all of the knocked over potions and herbs.
Rover whimpered, dodging the broom's furious swipes. He ran over to the door and began to scratch at it.
"If outside is what you need, then I will take you to do the deed." Zecora said, grabbing a rope from a nearby shelf.
She then looped it around the dog's collar, and opened the door. However, what she didn't expect or could have anticipated, was that even in this form, Rover still had all of his strength. The second the door was open Rover burst into a charge, immediately dragging the bewildered and startled zebra behind him and towards Ponyville.
"HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEL!" Zecora screamed out, smacking against roots and rocks.
The two soon disappeared into, much to Zecora's dismay, a patch of very thick brambles.
***
The streets of Ponyville were free of any life other than the trees and flowers growing from their boxes, well, almost empty anyway.
Trotting down one such empty street was a pegasus mare. Or at least that's what an onlooker would have thought. That mare, was actually a stallion. He was built much smaller than other stallions, with a shorter muzzle, and less bulky legs. His parents liked to say it was because he never grew out of his youth. Of course it didn't help that he kept his golden mane and tail long and trailing. But he had become famous enough in Equestria to the point where a mistaken identity was just as rare as a day without over-enthusiastic fan-ponies or the ever-intrusive paparazzi.
Cobra Strike trot through the Ponyville streets, enjoying the freedom that the curfew gave him.
Normally, he would have had to fly home to avoid public confrontation. But thanks to Twilight and Mayor Mare's orders, every other pony was safely locked away in their homes with the curtains drawn shut. He couldn't even remember the last time he had been out like this, simply enjoying the warm summer air and the beautiful night sky. The pegasus paused to glance up at it, from where he was at he could see the Scorpio constellation glimmering in the heavens.
He smiled, the golden-maned pony couldn't wait to get home and see his special-somepony. It had been far too long since they had spent quality time together, as mare and stallion. And he felt as if tonight was the perfect night for romance. They both needed to unwind after all. And thankfully, it seemed that Black Dawn was out for the count. With that thought in his head, Cobra picked up his pace with renewed vigor.
A couple of more streets and then he was on Saddle Row. Saddle Row itself was one of the larger streets in Ponyville, and was where all of Ponyville's more aristocratic families tended to live. The Rich family, for example, lived on this particular road. As did Silver Spoon and the rest of the Silver Polish family in their mansion. The structures themselves were decently spaced out, with a good half-mile of wildlife in between each fence. Cobra's cloud mansion actually floated above the road.
To a bystander the mansion appeared to be simply tethered to the ground; however, the cloud home was actually protected by an invisible force-field. And the only way to bypass this force-field, was to know the code. Cobra Strike moved the box for Dragon Pits from underneath his wing to his back, being extra careful not to disturb his son as he did so. The pegasus then unfurled his wings and took to the air. He pressed a hoof against the barrier, and a small pink text box appeared.
Call
CODE:
Cobra quickly glanced around for any signs of the paparazzi before entering the code.
PHEONIX
A few seconds went by, and then the text box closed with a happy chime. A hole appeared in the bubble and Cobra flew through it, the hole itself quickly mended once the pegasus was across. He landed on the cloud's plush surface, and opened the door. The mansion was dark, but this was nothing abnormal. Scarlet often spent her days in her office with her typewriter, shunning the outside world and negating even the simple things such as eating or drinking.
Cobra dropped the Dragon Pits box off on the table as he made his way upstairs. Thankfully, the cloud floor padded his steps and helped to not disturb Black Dawn. Within a few minutes the older pegasus had reached his son's room. The little colt's room was filled with toys- probably more than one colt or filly could possibly ever need- so the golden-maned pegasus was careful where he stepped. Cobra transferred Black Dawn into his bed, and pulled the covers over him. He then smiled lovingly at the little colt, who curled into a ball and immediately latched onto a toy bat.
"Sleep well." Cobra whispered as he exited the room, slowly and gently closing the door behind him.
Cobra Strike's smile suddenly turned lecherous. He slunk down the hallway like a cat stalking its prey, feeling the excitement and anticipation build up. The pegasus stopped outside of Scarlet's office and slowly twisted the knob so that he could peek inside without being noticed. Much to his surprise, the office was dark. Bewildered, and worried if only just a little, he turned his attention to the room that he and his special-somepony shared. However, Scarlet was not in their bed either. Cobra's frown deepened, until he heard the sound of water hitting the floor of the shower.
The pegasus stallion flared out his wing and puffed out his chest, before setting the cake box on the nightstand. He then trot over to the bathroom. His grin widened and he repressed a growl as he drew closer to the door. The golden-maned pony suddenly threw open the door to the bathroom, ready to pounce. Then he noticed the chill in the air and the state of the bathroom.
"Scarlet?!" Cobra cried out, his hooves crunching against glass and sploshing in the water as he rushed over to her. He yelped as he entered the shower and the freezing water hit his back. "By Celestia's flaming tit! What in Tartarus happened?!"
The mare before him, who was leaning against the wall with her uninjured foreleg, muttered in a hoarse voice, "The water was hot when I first got in."
"How long have you been in here?!" Cobra softly asked, braving the cold and putting a hoof over the smaller pony. His face paled upon seeing her bleeding foreleg. "What happened to your leg?!"
Scarlet shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. Accident."
The stallion's face grew into one of even more concern and a desperate need for consolation, but he knew not to press the situation at the moment. At least not while his special-somepony was bleeding waterfalls. With a wing he turned off the shower, and led the dead-eyed mare into their bedroom and over to their bed where he patiently dressed her wounds in silence. Scarlet allowed her limbs to be as limp as a rag doll's as the stallion dried her fur and wrapped her foreleg in gauze. Once he had finished, Cobra turned his attention to bathroom; within almost half an hour he had swept up the glass, dried the floor, and returned everything to its proper place. The entire time Scarlet simply sat there on their bed, wordless with her head hung down.
As Cobra flew into their room after throwing the towels into the wash, his face furrowed into one of a pony who felt troubled by something that he had no control over. "Now what happened? Please, talk to me."
"I- I- The Everfree- Sound-Off, Zecora, and Vinyl- The Tree of Chaos- Grim Noise-" The pegasus mare stuttered out before taking a deep breath. Upon exhaling she looked into Cobra's concerned ice-blue eyes, and began to recount the day's events to the best of her memory and with as much detail as she could.
...
Cobra Strike stared at his mare in shock as she finished telling him everything that happened.
"YOU DID WHAT?!" He suddenly yelled.
Scarlet winced. "Cobra, please."
"No!" The stallion exclaimed. "No Scarlet! How could you do this?! Why didn't you come get me?! You know I would have dropped everything for you! We could have faced this together! But instead you chose to be reckless and foalish, just as you always do!"
"Cobra, please."
"What were you even thinking?! For that matter, do you even think?!"
"Cobra, please."
"Don't you even remember what happened last time you went and did something like this?! When is it enough Scarlet?! When is it enough?!"
The silver-maned pony's face fell. She felt the flame in her stomach push itself up into her throat, scorching it. Her breathing quickly grew ragged and uneven as her jaw tightened and stiffened. She snapped.
"SHUT UP!" She roared, her voice a throaty growl.
Cobra flinched.
"Don't you think I know that?!" Scarlet shouted, her ears flattening against her head as more tears filled her eyes. "How could I forget?! It's my fault! I put Sound-Off in danger, she could have died! I could have lost her! Just like I lost my daughter!"
Cobra's mouth hung open just a little, before he managed to find his words. "Scarlet I- You know that- Nopony is- Ugh. We've been over this. It wasn't your fault. You should know that Scarlet."
"It is my fault!" Scarlet argued. "I was the one who was reckless and cost us the mission! I was the reason those ponies died that night! It was because of my impulsive and thoughtless behavior that Phoenix Feather died! And it was because of me that the ponies that I care about were nearly killed, just like today!"
He wrapped a wing around her. "Then, if you were so worried, why didn't let me come with you?"
"Because you just would have treated me like some porcelain doll!" She snarled. "Ever since I lost Phoenix you've been treating me as if the slightest breeze is going to break me! I can't even clean up after breakfast without you asking if I need your help! And I haven't gone on any missions other than the rare patrol because you've been taking on every task Luna offers us alone!"
"Are you kidding me?!" Cobra withdrew his wing. "You think that I'm holding you back?! I'm only trying to show you that I care! And do you think losing- losing her- was easy for me either?! I don't even get to see you anymore! Ever since we lost our daughter, you've done nothing but lock yourself away in your little office and have done what exactly? Sit there and twiddle your hooves? Staying up all night with the door closed? Write your crummy books? Well look how well that's going! How many copies have you even sold?! When's the last time you even finished an actual chapter?! I know that you're way past your deadlines, so what have you been doing?! When's the last time you even paid any attention to me?! Or for that matter even appreciated just how much I do for you?! How hard I try to pretend that everything is okay just to make you happy?! By the way, I got you a cake you ungrateful-"
He immediately stopped himself upon seeing the vast hurt in his mare's eyes and her quivering lip.
Cobra took a shaking breath. "What I mean is, when's the last time we've gone on a date? Hmm? I don't think you've even left the house since we first moved in, and that was almost five-years ago. I know that I'm gone a lot too, but I always try to be here with you whenever I can. And what about our son? He needs his mother. You don't spend any time with him either."
Scarlet sniffled. "I spend more time with him than you."
Cobra growled in frustration. "Are you trying to start a fight? All that I'm saying is making him something to eat and taking him with you on errands, that's not actually spending time with him! You know that he nearly pitched a fit because he wanted to play Dragon Pits with you? And what about your friends? I haven't seen you spend any of the time with the girls like you use to. I'm concerned Scarlet."
The pegasus mare's hooves grew cold in realization. She hadn't thought of herself as a factor to the problem. She had vented herself to Vinyl about how Cobra was never there for her, when in fact it was quite the opposite and she was never there for him.
"Oh." Came her soft response. "I- I didn't realize that..."
As her words trailed off, Cobra gave her a sympathetic look. He took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. That was uncalled for. I shouldn't have let my emotions get the best of me. It's just, I miss you. A lot actually. You've blocked yourself off ever since that day, built a wall so high that not even I can climb over it. And that's honestly why I treat you as if you're going to break, because I know you are."
Scarlet looked down at her hooves, and gulped. "I'm- I'm sorry too. I overreacted, didn't I?"
Cobra's eyes rolled upward, and he shrugged his head.
"I just- I just can't seem to let her go." Scarlet squeezed her eyes shut.
The pegasus mare opened her eyes when she felt a warmth spread along her body. Cobra had thrown himself against her. "Nopony is asking you to let her go. I'm not asking you to let her go. But I am asking you to let go of the pain. Please Scarlet, stop trying to carry this burden on your own."
The pegasus mare snuggled into him, feeling immediate relief. "Cobra..."
"It's okay." He gently assured, his own eyes beginning to glisten. "I'm here."
He stroked her mane, letting her cry into his chest and curse out her frustrations until her wails became whimpers. If there was one thing he knew about his mare, it was that she wouldn't be able to feel at peace until every last tear had been shed.
Cobra couldn't help but to smile at her once she had finished.
"What?" Scarlet demanded, wiping the wetness from her cheeks.
"Nothing." Cobra teased, playing with her mane with his wing. "Only that you're just as beautiful as the day we first met."
"C- Cobra!" Scarlet blushed.
"And that you'll still be this beautiful on our wedding day." He stated, draping a foreleg around her and pulling her against him.
Scarlet squeaked. "Cobra please!"
"Please, what?" He asked, gently massaging her lower back with his hoof.
"Please stop this- Oh who am I kidding? Come on my mischievous fox," She pressed herself atop of him with a kiss to his nek. "let's have some fun. We need it."
"You deserve it." He said with a sultry wink.
***
A little cottage sat upon a hill, one half painted various shades of purple and the other a peaceful shade of brown. This one little cottage stood out from the rest of the homes in Ponyville; it was musical in itself, with a chimney designed to look like organ pipes, flower boxes that resembled keyboards, and a hedge shaped to look like a flag eighth note. The lights were all turned off at this point in the night, but a shuffling followed by various crashings could be heard from within.
From within the darkness of the kitchen, a shadow could be seen- illuminated by the weak light of the refrigerator- scouring through the ice box; it bit into various foods before tossing them carelessly over its shoulder in dissatisfaction and growing impatience.
Vinyl Scratch tore open a plastic carton of blueberries, raising the box into the air before dumping all of the little violet balls into her mouth. She chewed a little before spitting them all out in one giant blue glob, horrendous. The mare continued deeper into the fridge, stepping a back hoof onto the cold plastic and becoming sticky with boysenberry jam.
Behind her lie a disaster zone; a mine-field of food that littered the entirety of the floor, everything from kale chips to parts of daffodil sandwiches. As she knocked about in the fridge various liquids tipped over and began to pour from their containers in a faucet of multiple smells and colors, which made a mess of the floor below. She stuck her head underneath a stream of milk; it was good, but nowhere near good enough. Vinyl wiped her mouth and continued her search before suddenly finding herself at the back of the fridge.
"No, no!" Vinyl protested, frantically searching the shelves. Her belly began to rumble louder.
She quickly galloped over to the cupboards, throwing them open in her flurry. Her eyes came to rest on the first thing she saw, uncooked pasta noodles. Without any qualms Vinyl tore open the box and began to shovel the raw pasta into her mouth. She choked down as much of it as she could before throwing it aside in trade for a tub of frosting which she anxiously licked up. She gagged, nasty.
"It's not enough!" Vinyl Scratch snarled, scarfing down a hoof-full of pretzel sticks with such sheer animosity that a starved dog would have looked well fed.
Why was she so hungry? No, hungry didn't even begin to convey the pain in her belly; she was starving. Beyond starving even. Her belly felt as if it was twisting inwards, attempting to eat itself. She had awoken in the night covered in a sheen of cold sweat to such a foul and unspeakable pain in her body, a hunger to beat all hungers. All she could think about was satisfying that hunger, ending the excruciating pain.
But almost as bad- if not so worse- was the cold she felt throughout her mutilated body. And she had only been growing colder since leaving the hospital. Perhaps it was simply from practically shoving herself inside the refrigerator, but this cold felt much deeper. Her bones themselves felt as if they had been covered in a sheet of ice, and her gums ached incessantly either from biting into multiple raw foods or from the terrible chill inhabiting the mare's body.
Vinyl stumbled over to the counter top where a bowl of fruit had been placed. She fumbled with one of the fruits before bringing it up to her mouth and biting into a genuine crimson Sweet Apple Acre's apple. And she immediately spat it out. It was absolutely vile, and she actually had to keep herself from vomiting. Her stomach growled again.
The unicorn gripped her belly in agony, why did it hurt so bad? She threw the apple angrily across the room, where it bounced off the wall with an audible thud. The mare couldn't help but to notice how the red glinted in the darkness. The color itself looked, appetizing.
"Vinyl? Vinyl is that you?" Came her roommate's voice from down the hallway. "Are you alright?"
Vinyl's stomach went from a growl to a roar.
The hunger was unbearable. It demanded satisfaction with an iron hoof. Vinyl crawled over towards the entryway, nibbling at various foods she had previously discarded as she inched forward.
Disgusting. It all tasted disgusting. As if she were eating sand, her mouth dried up and she choked as she tried to swallow. Finally the mare collapsed against the floor and began to sob as she curled up into a ball from the hunger pangs.
"Vinyl?! Vinyl what's wrong?! What happened?!" Octavia demanded as she galloped to her friend.
"Ooooooh." The unicorn moaned. "It hurts."
"What hurts?! Vinyl, tell me what hurts!" The light grey mare pleaded, cradling Vinyl in her hooves.
Vinyl's body was racked by a chill, causing her to tremble. "Oc- Octy? Why is it- is it so bucking c- cold?"
"What do you mean?" Octavia inquired in confusion. "It's at least eighty-two degrees in here. Vinyl what's wrong? Do you have a fever?"
"No!" Vinyl angrily groaned. "It's freezing! And I'm so- so-"
Another bellow from her stomach stopped the mare.
"Are- are you hungry?" Octavia worriedly asked. "I'll make you something, and- and I'll turn up the heater too."
The cellist picked herself up, but the white-coated mare clung to her like fur to static.
"Don't leave me!" She begged, burying her face into Octavia's warm fur.
Yes, warm fur. A spark of envy lit up the unicorn's heart. Why was Octavia so warm when she was so cold? Why wasn't she sharing her warmth? She could hear the other mare's heart beat in her chest, pumping warmth throughout her body. Thump. Thump. Thump. Vinyl's frown deepened into a scowl, and then from scowl to sneer. Ice, there was ice in her veins. She was so cold. She was so, hungry.
Vinyl's own heartbeat began to slow down. Surely Octavia wouldn't mind sharing, right? That's what friends did after all, they shared. Sharing is caring; since Octavia was her friend, her best friend- who obviously cared about her- it was only right that she shared.
"Vinyl?" Octavia asked, her voice little more than a gentle whisper.
Vinyl Scratch began to smile, it was the smile of a predator who had worked its prey into a corner.
"I'm so cold, and so hungry." The mare repeated, hiding her eyes in the crook of Octavia's shoulder.
"I'll go get you some blankets, and then make you some soup." Octavia promised as she smoothed down her best friend's mane. "Don't worry Vinyl, I've got- AAAAAGH!"
The earth pony suddenly cried out in pain as Vinyl sunk her teeth into her flesh. The coppery taste from the blood sliding down her throat was delicious. Octavia's natural instinct suddenly kicked in, and with a mighty kick to the unicorn's belly- and the painful ripping of skin and muscle- the mare had knocked Vinyl away. The white-coated pony crashed against the counter with the crunching of bones.
Despite the fear and surprise pounding at her heart and every instinct screaming at her to run, Octavia took a step towards her fallen friend. "V- Vinyl?"
Like a zombie rising from its grave, Vinyl slowly pushed herself up and twisted her body around. Her head faced the black and white tiles below, giving Octavia no way to anticipate the unicorn's next move. Vinyl suddenly growled, a deep resounding growl that came from the depths of Tartarus itself. When she did raise her head- Octavia gasped- her eyes were little more than two red pinpricks of glowing scarlet set back into deep black empty eye sockets. There was a sharp cracking sound.
Vinyl's stomach began to cave inwards, almost to a nonexistent state. Her ribs poked out just underneath her skin, and all the muscles and fat drained away from her body. Her limbs stretched out, not to disproportionate lengths but just enough to make her Celestia's height. Black fur began to rapidly grow from her chest, forming a gorgeous and luxurious black collar. Her hooves began to split apart until the point where they became cloven, and the edges grew sharp but short claws. Her gums began to bleed as her teeth lengthened and sharpened; and, where she had been missing teeth before, long icicles began to grow out of the holes left behind. Finally a pair of deer antlers sprouted from the top of her head like a tree growing from sapling to maturity, it shot up like a shoot and then branched outwards.
The illusion spell fell away, revealing her ugly scars and twisted horns.
Octavia scrambled back in terror, bumping into the hallway wall behind her and knocking down some pictures of Vinyl and her. The glass frames cracked and splintered off.
Vinyl suddenly roared, a sound that shook the entire house and burst Octavia's eardrums. The mare began to run without even realizing it, making her way towards the door.
"Come back!" The hideous thing that was Vinyl pleaded in a voice not at all unlike hers, but with a slight distortion to it and an echoing whisper that followed each word. "I'm so cold Tavi! Please just give me a little of your warmth. Won't you help an old pal out?"
Octavia didn't answer, she just galloped ahead without looking back.
When there was no reply the once-Vinyl roared again in anger, and began to charge after the mare. Octavia heard her crash into the wall behind her, and acknowledged the crunching of glass as the monster stepped on their photos. Suddenly the hoof-stomps came thundering from behind her, and Octavia couldn't help but to risk a glance back as she approached the upcoming corner. The thing that had been her friend was quickly gaining on her, tearing up their fragile floorboards as it ran.
Octavia suddenly hit the wall, the force of it was just great enough to daze her and knock her off her hooves. Vinyl slowed down as she approached, putting one hoof in front of the other she stepped closer and closer to the earth pony. When Octavia's vision had cleared enough, she found the monster only a few feet away. Her tail underneath her grew warm and wet, she had soiled herself. This was it. She was going to die, at the hooves- or rather claws- of her best friend. The grey mare closed her eyes, knowing she very well couldn't escape at this point, and waited for death to embrace her.
It never did. Octavia slowly opened her eyes to find Vinyl staring at her, and then she realized that the monster was looking above her. The mare followed Vinyl's gaze upwards, to find a large circular mirror that they had placed there when they first moved in. Perhaps it was that memory from that day, or maybe it was the image that was reflected in it, but Vinyl stopped.
Her growls died down, and the dots of crimson in her eyes expanded outwards to the size of a normal pony's pupil. Her shoulders hunched. "T- Tavi? Tavi what happened? Why are you looking at me like that?"
Vinyl suddenly caught sight of her reflection, noticing it for the first time as her conscious self.
"Octavia! Look out! It's a Vanished!" The monstrous unicorn suddenly spun around, ready to defend her friend.
Her glare softened when she realized that there was nothing there. She turned back to face her friend and the mirror; sure enough, the monster was still there. Vinyl blinked, and then raised a hoof into the air. The monster did the same. She then gradually approached the object in question, as if attempting to figure out if it was a trick mirror or not. Standing over Octavia- who trembled underneath- Vinyl pulled the mirror off of its hook and stared at herself.
She certainly looked like a Vanished, but there were a few missing details. Her eyes lacked the mad swirls that the Vanished held, and her body was missing the natural armor that each possessed. She wasn't as tall, nor was her body- excluding her thin belly- elongated to such extraneous limits. Her antlers were also plain, her horn the same length, and there was the matter of the silky mane around her neck. But of course, most astounding of all were the icicles that made up her teeth and the chilled breath that she exhaled each and every time.
"Vinyl?" Octavia squeaked, her voice unsure and bewildered.
Vinyl placed the mirror back onto its hook before falling back onto all four hooves and collapsing onto her haunches. She caught the scent of blood, and then took notice of her friend's bleeding shoulder. She had to fight back the hunger; tears began to leak out from the corners of her eyes. "Tavi, Tavi what's happening to me?"
The earth pony- despite her protesting mind- crawled over to Vinyl. She wrapped her hooves around the monster's thin middle, heart beating rapidly. "I- I don't know."
Vinyl rested her head on Octavia's good shoulder, drawing the mare closer with a pitifully skinny foreleg. She still felt hungry, and she still felt cold; but mostly, she felt scared. A single word came to her mind. She didn't know where it had come from, or why she had thought of it. The word had almost come to her on its own, popping suddenly into her mouth as if it were meant to be there. It just felt, right.
"Windigo."
***
Sound-Off yawned, nearly falling asleep over the old tome.
Currently, she was lying on her stomach atop her nice plush bed. Around her lie several different large tomes opened to various pages, three of which were written by Star Swirl the Bearded and the others by the elemental dragon lords. Each tome was easily over a thousand, perhaps even two-thousand, years old; written before the elemental dragon lords came together under a single proud flag.
Sound-Off repressed another yawn, and flipped the page.
Metal Dragon Lord Metalicana had such interesting musings about the most trivial of things. His spells and incantations, well articulately written, were only sidelined because of his excessive margin notes about the world around him. More often than not, most of his ramblings focused around some character only referred to as, 'the Little Black Fox'. For a dragon famed for having such an impenetrable hard shell, Metalicana was rather soft.
She pushed away Metalicana's black-covered book, and picked up a light-blue one.
Unlike Metalicana's writings, Wind Dragon Lord Grandeeny's spells were written like formulas. There was no room for error on her fine pages, not even a single drop of ink had been smudged. She was always spoken of in the dragon kingdom as being the most reserved and judgmental of the elemental dragon lords. However, she also was famous for her abilities as a healer. Most of her spells were not designed for any form of combat, in fact, almost every spell was supportive magic. But Sound-Off's favorite by far was a spell referred to as 'Milky Way'. The spell actually allowed the user to summon the soul of a long-since dead dragon.
Which brought Sound-Off to her next tome, a dark red-covered book that reeked of sulfur and ash. Fire Dragon Lord Igneel's Spell Book. The dragoness had always grown-up hearing tales of the great dragon lord. Most of the stories portrayed him as kind and benevolent towards all creatures, although others described him as violent, rash, and arrogant. From his tome, Sound-Off was able to tell that he was indeed all of those things. He too, like Metalicana, kept records of a special being Igneel deemed, 'Salamander'. These journal entries spoke fondly of Salamander, recalling days of innocence and many difficult training sessions. They were, however, separated completely from the spell portion of the book which was just as detailed as Grandeeny's.
Sound-Off yawned again, her eyelids began to grow heavy.
The little dragoness's ultimate goal, was to master every spell known to dragon kind. Which alone proved to be a difficult task even with her perfect memory. Even more so considering the nature of Draconian magic. Unlike Equestrian magic, Draconian magic did not follow the Law of Equivalent Exchange. Draconian Magic was based off of the ingestion of a particular element to make the energy needed for spell use. Sound-Off herself, being a fire dragon, did enjoy munching from the fireplace every now and then.
However, her ultimate goal was to learn and master Grandeeny's 'Milky Way' in order to summon the soul of Fire Dragon Lord Igneel himself. The problem with this was that dragons can't really learn each other's magic. Not to say it was impossible, cases were rare but in some instances a dragon was able to master two distinct elements. But even with the growing number of mix bloodied dragons, or Impures as they were derogatorily referred as, the ability to successfully use magic different than one's own was still just out of reach.
Sound-Off scanned over the page in front of her before turning to the two books to her side. The black-covered tome of Shadow Dragon Lord Skiadrum, and the white-covered tome of Light Dragon Lord Weisslogia.
Skiadrum and Weisslogia were the most famous of the elemental dragon lords for their ability to freely use each other's magic. According to history, they were the very first dragons to master an element other than their own. Perhaps, the answer lie in their tomes.
The little dragoness's eyes suddenly caught sight of the final tome.
Compared to the others it was rather mundane, the cover was a mud-brown and lacked in decor, while the pages stuck out at odd angles. However, this was the most important tome in all of dragon history. It was the spell book of the very first Dragon Lord, the one that had united every species of dragon and brought a golden age of knowledge that turned dragon from savage beast to an intelligent creature, and the one who had ultimately united dragon and pony kind together.
It was the tome of Dragon Lord Belserion. With the wisdom of Dragon Lord Belserion, Igneel, Grandeeny, Metalicana, Skiadrum, and Weisslogia had managed to kill the tyrannical, cynical, greedy, and war-hungry Acnologia; the Chaos Dragon Lord. But not before Acnologia had cursed dragon kind; all dragons would now experience dragon greed, which if left unrestrained would revert a dragon back to the dark-ages where dragons were no more than primitive beasts without mind or heart. His second curse however was far worse, all dragon eggs can no longer hatch on their own and require a powerful magical radiation to birth a new dragon.
Sound-Off herself had been hatched as part of the Draco-Solar Pact.
The Pact itself was strictly between Celestia and whomever was current Dragon Lord. The details of it were simple; the dragons were to give up their clutches to Equestrian authorities, who would then deliver the eggs to the solar princess herself. Celestia would then use the eggs as part of her 'test' to see which unicorns were powerful enough to join her precious School for Gifted Unicorns, and the unicorn that hatched the dragon would be required to help raise them until the time came for the dragon to decide whether or not they wanted to remain in Equestria or return to their homelands.
Most chose to leave, but some- like the case with Fillydelphia's Dragon Town- remained in Equestria. Although even with the Pact being common knowledge, most of Equestria chose to ignore it. Dragons were some of the most discriminated creatures, demeaned to the savagery of Cockatri. And thus many of the dragons in Equestria who lived outside of Fillydelphia such as herself, chose to live a reclusive life no matter how outgoing their patriarch or matriarch may be. As such, they were rarely seen. The only exception was the royal dragon, who was hatched by Celestia and then immediately returned to their dragon parent.
Sound-Off herself had yet to decide whether or not she would stay in Equestria or return to her awaiting family in the Dragon Lands. And she was actually terrified at the thought.
She could choose to stay in Equestria, but eventually she would grow. Not to ginormous portions so long as she monitored her greed, but at least to a state of where most Equestrians wouldn't be comfortable around her. Well, much less than they already were. And like it or not, she would eventually have to leave Gallant's side. And not just Gallant, Scarlet, Luna, Missy, Tornado, and all the others as well. What else was she supposed to do? Live with Zecora out in the Everfree? Wouldn't that be perfect? A fire-breathing creature of pure destruction living with all the other monsters in the forest.
Sound-Off gave out a frustrated sigh, and closed the tome in front of her.
"Sound-Off? Are you still awake?" Gallant Aurora demanded upon hearing her sigh.
He opened the door to her room and Sound-Off immediately felt as if her privacy was being invaded. She snorted out a small flame as he entered, and rolled her eyes.
"Yeah dad, I'm still awake." She dully stated.
The reptile only referred to him as dad when they were alone, away from the judgmental eyes of pony society who would have thought of their father-daughter relationship as blasphemous.
"What could you possibly be studying at this hour?" Gallant inquired, trotting over to her bedside.
Sound-Off scowled at him. "It's rude to peek over someone's shoulder you know."
"Are those the tomes of the Dragon Lords?" The unicorn asked. "When and where did you get those?"
"Nana Luna." Sound-Off quickly said.
Nana, was also what she typically called Luna outside of the public's eye. Luna herself was both fond of the nickname, but had also developed a distaste for it. She enjoyed the connotations of it meaning that Sound-Off thought of her as family, and also because it simply sounded so cute when the dragoness had first learned how to speak. But the lunar princess was definitely displeased with the implications of age, Luna was still in her youth after all. Or at least that's what she insisted.
"I can't believe mother lent you these tomes! These are precious one-of-a-kind spell books!" Gallant exclaimed. "Still."
He picked up every one of the books in his magic, closing them before telekinetically stacking them atop one another.
"Hey!" Sound-Off protested, pushing herself up. "I was reading those!"
"No, you're supposed to be sleeping." Gallant stated. "And I'm going to be holding these hostage for the night. You can have them back tomorrow."
"That's not fair!" She whined, clenching her fists together. "I'm not a baby anymore! I'm almost thirty!"
"In dragon years, but in pony years you're still only six." The unicorn reminded, extinguishing the purple flame in her lantern. "So stop arguing with me, and. Go. To. Sleep."
He then walked out of the room, books in tow.
Sound-Off growled out her frustrations, falling back into the bad habit of biting into her pillow. A few minutes and some angry chewing later, the dragoness spat out a couple of feathers and flopped down onto her bed. For what felt like hours she tossed and turned; repeatedly throwing the pillow over her head before tossing it elsewhere, flipping from her side to her stomach, wiggling her toes, shifting her arms and legs, and pulling the blanket above her head before popping out for a breath of fresh air. She looked at her alarm clock and groaned, it had only been little over half an hour since Gallant had taken away her books.
She just couldn't sleep. Not only because she wanted to continue studying the spell books of the original six dragon lords, but because she also couldn't get the big question out of her mind. When the time came, would she choose to stay in Equestria with the family she had grown up with? Or would she leave her long-time home to be with the family that had been patiently awaiting her return?
The reptile squeezed back the tears. She didn't want to leave Gallant or Luna, but she very well couldn't expect to live with her foster family forever. Gallant would one day grow old and die, everypony she loved and had or would ever know would die during her lifetime. Dragons lived to be thousands of years old, some even hundreds of thousands. There wasn't a creature in all of Equis that could outlive a dragon, except for the alicorns but even they too aged if only exceptionally slowly and would also come to pass one day. Staying in Equestria would only be for the worse in the end; there were plenty of cases of a dragon going mad and on a rampage after their patriarch or matriarch passed on. Although Sound-Off knew that even if she chose to leave her friend's and family's deaths would still follow her, she would never truly escape it.
And the little dragoness's time to make her decision was quickly running out. Within two years she will have exceeded her time in Equestria, the Pact having been fulfilled. She had already started her growth spurt, almost three-quarters of the size of a full grown stallion in comparison to the drastically undersized Spike. Day by day Sound-Off was becoming more and more of a true dragon, and life in Equestria had already become dangerous for her; the 'Bunny Incident' was proof of that. Since that day the ponies in Ponyville had never viewed her the same way again, speaking in hateful whispers of her inability to control her brutal instincts. She was no Spike the Brave and Glorious, she was Sound-Off the savage and monstrous. Of course she hadn't meant to kill all those poor defenseless bunnies, but she had just felt so hungry. It was the first time she ever ate meat.
Her cheeks began to grow wet and Sound-Off suppressed a sob. It all hurt too much to think about. Even mature as she was for her young age, she was still young and with youth came confusion and impulse. Eventually her tears did dry, and her quiet whimpers did desist. One day, she would have to make that choice; and when she did, she could only hope that she had made the right one.
***
Cobra kissed his mare on the forehead, snuggling against her soft frame. "I love you my perfect little songbird."
"I-" She was interrupted by an adorable yawn. "Love... you... too."
The exhausted mare pressed against him, her eyelids already beginning to droop. He wrapped his forelegs around her, almost purring. Scarlet herself felt immensely relieved. She could finally put this terrible day behind her.
***
The shabbily cloaked figure trot up to the beautiful Romaneian-style house. A spiraling horn peeking up from the fabric revealed his unicorn origin. Nopony even knew that he had returned yet, not even his own family. He sincerely hoped it wasn't too late, not in the matter of the hour of the day but rather at this point of her life. She was everything to him, and he only wished that he had seen that sooner.
It wasn't necessarily the stallion's fault after all. More so, the blame was shared upon both him and Fleur de Lis. It had been one night, a single night. That night had changed his life forever. He never should have given her up, but Fleur couldn't keep her. What would the other royals and nobility of Prance think? So Fleur, without any warning or even a notion of her conception, had left her on his doorstep.
Once the stallion had been the talk of every town; the apple of every mares' eyes, and the envy of every other stallions'. He had been living in the high life, eating grapes from the stem and increasing his bits by the second. He had been a foal. He had been, naive. When he had first laid eyes on the little filly, he couldn't help but to feel utterly disgusted and disappointed in himself. He, had made that? At first the stallion wasn't convinced that she was his, they weren't even in the same species; as a manner of speaking. She didn't even look a thing like him, if not for the coat; but that could have easily been from her mother. But he had recognized his aunt's eyes in hers, those same kind yet furious eyes that betrayed nothing and nopony. So moved by those feelings of loathing, regret, and fear, he gave her up. He gave up his only foal.
And he had never regretted anything more. The agonizing pain of watching his filly grow from afar. Watching her suffer, unable to ease her strife, her unwillingness to give him more than a passing glance; he was left a broken pony. He had tried to forget his filly but her image haunted him daily and nightly, she- unintentionally- refused to let him sleep peacefully at night. Many times he had sought to take her back; beg for her forgiveness, make her understand. But had he the heart? No. The stallion was a coward through and through, there was no changing that. But his time away from Equestria had taught him something, it had taught him the importance of family.
Having had his life threatened more than once while he had been away, had shaken him into a new realization. He could have died without ever having told her, he could have left this world without giving her the apology she deserved. He had stolen this innocent creature's fillyhood right out from underneath her, and for what? To keep his own reputation from risk? So he wouldn't have to be reminded of his mistake? Selfish, he had been the most selfish pony to have ever breathed. But even as he stood just outside of her reach, the fear gnawed away at him.
"Leave." It said. "Leave before it's too late. Go back home, and drink away the memories."
But it was already too late. He had waited too long. His little filly was now a full grown mare, with a foal of her own no less. He should have been there for her, for his grandfoal as well; but he was two years too late for his grandfoal's birth when he had caught word of it and far longer- too much so- for his daughter. And yet, and yet here he was. Here he was about to fall to his knees and beg for her acceptance. And if she shut him out? Demanded that he never speak to her or his grandfoal ever again? Well then, so be it. He knew he didn't deserve that bond, he knew he didn't deserve her.
The stallion miserably looked into a puddle. The murky water revealed a disheveled and an unshaven bearded face. Age certainly had caught up to him in these past two years. His golden mane had begun to grey, slowly but surely turning a shade of hornet's nest silver. His blue eyes were hollow, carved out from all emotions other than self-pity and regret. Even his blue-grey hooves hadn't had a proper hooficure in over three years. He looked away at the puddle in shame. He would be introducing himself to his daughter for the first time as a complete mess. He supposed it was only fitting.
The grizzled unicorn blinked away the tears as he stumbled over to the intercom. With a shaky hoof he pressed the call button.
"Hello?" A sleepy voice asked.
It was the beautiful and musical voice of his little filly. Gentle and velvety as a rose petal, but just as sharp and commanding as the rose's thorns.
The stallion gulped in the cold air, struggling to find his voice. A million thoughts raced through his head, jumbling together and slurring his words.
"Hel- hel- hello? I'm- I'm looking for some- somepony. I'm looking for- for my daugt- my daughter, Scarlet Thorn. I was told she- she lived here." And with that, the stallion known as Prince Vladimir Blueblood spoke his first ever words to his daughter.
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You do realize that Divide and Conquer is definitely your best writing to date!
For starters, great use of text modification to set up the intensity of each scene!
Great character development!
Once again, amazing-splendid work on capturing the individual personalities of the cannon character!
Way bucking better rhymes with Zecora!
I can tell you poured some of the best of your creativity in each line!
The action scenes where as well written as RWBY was animated by Monty!
Good focus on the consequences brought upon their decisions!
Great integration of spells, and bloody great back-up lore! (The explanation for the learning spell made me eep!)
THE GORE WAS EXQUISITE. Great use of words such as "impregnated". I'm sure sadists will love the intense violence.
My favorite scene was by far Trixie's speech!
I found this chapter to be more comical than the last by how cleverly implemented they where!
But what I have to praise the most where the references!
The ending was odd. It felt like a reference to the first silent hill film. I'm eager to read the epilogue because chapter twelve left me with a downer.
Over all, BLOODY (Insert proper words to describe sheer awesomeness here) GREAT WORK!
8804186
Thanks!
The long awaited chapter was well worth the wait!
Story Criticism:
Trixie! You twat!-
)
Good: The story's plot was barry!
I enjoyed the villain's personality. It felt very realistic in relation to the MLP cannon story!
The scene with Trixie was spectacular, but it was a clarty move against my Twilight.
(The great and powerful Trixie takes no responsibility-
The gory descriptions where very bowfin to which I held my gut and read on through!
The individual character development was fantastic!
Overall, This final chapter leaves a sturdy arch towards your next installment. I enjoyed every moment of it!
Great work lass!
The Bad: A couple of typos around the chapter. The ending left a lot of questions unanswered. Luna has some over powered healing spells. It bugged me a little to see the badly damaged ponies nearly resurrected, but she's a god so it's justifiable.
I'm eager to read the epilogue!
Keep up the great work lass!
PLOT TWIST!
But seriously, great story even at the end. I can't wait for the new story to arrive! I'll be on the lookout.
P.S.- I can't believe Blueblood of all people is the father of Scarlet. It makes me feel even more sorry for her.
8805122
Glad you liked it!
I'm working on that next story now actually, hopefully I'll have that first chapter published soon.
Btw, you might want to add a spoiler to that last thing. Just saying!
8805217
I already did. And thanks for the reply.
8805223
My pleasure my destructive friend.
I am awed by the complexity of your writing!
Fantastic job on chapter twelve!
I have yet to read the rest of your tale, but i am sure it will not disappoint.
Nǐ hǎo! I am friend of Dany. It's nice to meet you. I like your story. If cobra strike dies, Scarlet will be like Lady Mu Guiying. I don't like gore a lot but the story is too epic to stop reading.
惊人的工作！
you make My Little Pony 20% cooler!
I am exited to read your next story!
8810033
8810093
Thank you so much, to the both of you!
I'm truly happy to know that you enjoyed my story.
And, appreciate the feedback!
I'll do my best to continue to provide those new stories for you!
Looks like im late...
A'ight i see how it is.
Anyways i think your story is ligit! You need to write some books!
I had more to say but im baked. Talk to ya when i aint.
You gotta homie with me.
8810178
I didn't expect you to comment, or to be fond of reading for that matter.
8812036
Nah man, I like the story.
Blood and gore is what's up!
Besides, the characters are legit. Zecora my sister kicks flank!
it's about time i signed up for fimfic anyhow.
Now this, THIS, this really is an awesome story!
8819224
8812052
Thank you both!
I'm glad that you like It!
The next installment of the series is coming soon! And this time, there will be more than just ponies involved! Keep an eye out!
Thanks again!
I finally finished the Epilogue.
I am shocked by the amount of emotion.
The way you manage to captivate a reader into sympathizing with each character is well done!
The erotic scene with cobra and scarlet was an "aye right" moment for me. I don't think a lass would consent to coitus after having her heart strings pulled. Even if the stallion managed to make up for it. Although, it does demonstrate Scarlet's desperation.
Advice- Heroins(Female Protagonists) become hated if you make them weak and desperate. (Avoid this)
Great job on everything else!
I really enjoyed the focus on everypony's personal conflicts.
At the end of a long day, ZODIAC is formed by ponies that are jest like every pony else.
Thank Faust for Spring Break!
I finally have a few hours to myself.
Anyhow, i enjoyed the idea behind the epilogue more than i did the focus on drama.
As always, fantastic writing!
I love the transition from your previous chapter to the epilogue.
The hospital scene was interesting. I enjoyed the idea of having a large hospital separated into an emergency room, nursery, and mental ward.
I very much enjoyed the integrated consequences that Vinyl has to face!
With great power comes great side-effects.
Nearly the entirety of the epilogue was heartbreaking.
Yeah!
Practically literally in my case.
Especially the first scene...
But that's what made this chapter rich in character development!
The emotional connection that is invested into each individual character is a solid -
Lastly, i agree with Dany. An example being Sakura Haruno.
Overall, great set-up for the next story!
)
(P.s. Wonderfully written ending!
8820431
Thank you for agreeing lad.
Hello there!
The work invested into the creation of the individual chapters is exquisite.
Your story is of a blinding category!
I am enticed by what i have read thus far.
My only advice to you is- attempt to polish out all accidental grammatical imperfections before submitting.
Bloody great work!
I am eager to read your future pieces.
8820375
8820431
Thank you for pointing that out, I'll be sure to avoid it in the future. I will say this though, there is a reason for that scene that fits into the second story.
Also, I apperciate the feedback.
I did my best to capture the emotions of each of the characters. I wanted to show just how much each character was effected by this adventure.
Scarlet learns that she can't keep running from her past.
Sound-Off comes to find that nothing is meant to last forever, so she must become more bold and daring.
Vinyl must give up a part of herself for power, and Zecora does the opposite having to regain a part that she lost.
So I hope that I handled those right.
8820465
I'm very happy you think so!
I do my best to invest detail into the story, building not just the setting and characters, but the world itself too.
As for the typos, I'll do my best to fix them.
I do my own proof-reading, so it's easy to miss a few mistakes. I went back and reevaluated the epilogue for errors, fixing the ones I did find.
If you do happen to find a major one, like a sentence missing a word or such, would you mind terribly pointing it out?
I write on my phone too, that may be another cause for mistakes.
My dyslexia isn't helping either
8786321
What about Grim Noise? Who would voice him?
I thought I put it in, I will have to check.
Grim Noise would sound like:
Shadar the Dark Dijin from Ni-No-Kuni