The King Without a Crown

by Greyson

Facing a Familiar Foe

Dreaming The Nightmare

When he opened his eyes, Cyrus realised that something was afoot. For a start, he wasn't in bed. Or in his quarters for that matter. Instead, he was standing in the middle of a road, surrounded by familiar buildings. It only took a few moments for a sudden wave of recognition to hit Cyrus.

"No... It can't be..." Slowly kneeling down, he ran his hand across the ground, feeling the stones roll against his palm. "Is this a dream? It... doesn't feel like a dream." He was no stranger to dreams of the more lucid kind. Having experienced his dreams hijacked by a certain princess in the past, he had become accustomed to the feeling of knowing that he was in the lands of fantasy. This did not feel like one of those times.

Standing within the city of Eden itself, the people were going through their daily chores. To his left, a blacksmith hammered away, pounding what looked like a sword into shape. To his right, a baker was putting out a freshly baked loaf of bread, the smell enticing nearby customers towards it. All around him there were people shouting and talking, advertising goods or trading gossip about their neighbours. It all felt so surreal, yet so normal as well.

For a moment, Cyrus genuinely believed that he was home. But then he realised that such hope was most assuredly misplaced. He knew he had to be in Equestria; fighting off an invading Changeling army whilst learning of his people's extinction was something that he doubted he could simply dream up on the spot.

A sudden gasp from behind startled the Aeternan. Jumping to his feet, Cyrus spun round to find himself face to face with a little girl .Stammering something unintelligible, the child quickly attempted a curtsy and instead ended up tripping over her own feet in the attempt, landing hard on the ground. As he came over to pick the poor child up from the floor, he couldn't help but find the entire situation stranger than it already was. For a start, he could have sworn he knew this girl from somewhere, but he couldn't place where exactly.

For now, there was a seemingly terrified child to tend to. Instinctively, he knelt down to her level, placing a comforting hand upon her shoulder.

"What troubles you, child? Why do you tremble in fear before the sight of me?" The words felt strange in his mouth. It was as if he was saying them, yet at the same time he wasn't. Her shaking lessened, though she remained evidently fearful to be in presence.

"I-it's not y-y-you, Your M-m-m-Majesty, that s-scares me." Alongside the words she spoke, even her voice was familiar to the king, perplexing him even further. He could not recall her name. Did he even know her name?

"Then what is it that you fear?" He questioned gently. As he did so, to his right came a bout of boisterous laughter. Following the noise, Cyrus saw a pair of men, one old and the other young, shaking hands, joyful smiles upon their faces. The older man seemed to be a merchant of sorts. Eden's king had to guess that they had just settled a friendly trade of sorts. Or perhaps the two were good friends.

"The dark." He was still looking at the two men when she uttered those words. He was still looking when they both turned and met his gaze, their once joyful faces melting away to an unnerving, blank expression. Cyrus stood, his eyes now wide and fearful. His questions were all answered at once and, for a brief, agonising moment, he understood everything.

Just before the Great Enemy had launched its attack upon the city, Cyrus had taken this particular road as a shortcut to the castle. It was on this road that he came across and spoke to this exact same child. It was with a disturbing sense of déjà vu that he realised something unsettling. The girl's words, her trepidation? He had seen it all before.

He had seen it just before the attack. Even as such an alarming fact registered in his mind, Cyrus's eyes remained upon the two men as their smiles returned. Unlike before, these ones were not smiles of joy. They were corrupted. They were evil.

Then he blinked.

The surrounding area had shifted into one of a devastated ruin. The street was awash with fire and screams as homes and stores were burnt to the ground. A group of armed guards ran right past the king as if he wasn't even there, charging headfirst towards an unseen foe, shouting out their loyalty to their kingdom and their king.

He did not look behind him, for he did not wish to look upon the cause of the screams that followed - even if he already knew their cause anyway. He had more pressing matters to deal with.

Namely what lay in front of him.

The little girl no longer existed. Standing almost two heads smaller than Cyrus, a manifestation of the Great Enemy stared up at him, its piercing red eyes blazing with sheer hatred. In the place of a hand instead was a sharp black talon, glistening from the light of the surrounding fire.

It had no opportunity to lash out with it, however, as Cyrus sent the creature to the floor with a backhanded strike. It hadn't even landed before the Aeternan's armour had appeared all over his body, with his sword following suit a moment later. Undamaged, the creature rose up, growling at its foe. Before the two could battle any further, a thick fog of onyx rolled in around them, snuffing out the light and forcing the Aeternan into sheer darkness. A moment later and the fog had vanished as soon as it had appeared.

He was met by the snarling creature again, though it was not alone this time. Surrounding Cyrus on all sides were many more of them, their hateful gazes all fixated upon the lone Aeternan. Ignoring them for the time being, he saw that he was no longer standing in the middle of a road. Instead he stood within the centre of a temple dedicated to some sort of Aeternan deity that he had never cared to learn the name of. Around him lay at least a dozen or more figures. His ever faithful bodyguard, loyal to the end, had stubbornly refused to leave his side.

As if struck by some unknown force, Cyrus recoiled. Recognition flashed through his mind as he looked over the temple, recognising it as the place in which he and his men had fought in their final moments before the cataclysmic conclusion.

Cyrus had never been one for religion. He respected his people's wishes to believe in a power higher than themselves, yet he despised how divided it left certain parts of his people, especially when faced with a crisis such as the one that had desecrated this very temple. He couldn't help the grim chuckle that escaped his throat as he thought of how ironic it was then that his supposed final acts were to be in a temple.

Everything remained silent for what felt like hours, before one of the creatures let out a terrifying roar, amplified when its fellow monstrosities echoed alongside it. Pointing his flaming sword towards the many pairs of red eyes in the darkness, the King of Eden readied himself for battle.

"Shall we end this, then?" They did not answer. Instead, they began to make way, creating a gap between their numbers. Through this gap walked a being that Cyrus remembered intimately. The moment his eyes landed on it, they narrowed in hatred and disgust. One could almost feel the sheer malevolence that pulsed through its being. There was no good within, only pure, unadulterated evil. Through the gap walked the physical manifestation of the Great Enemy itself.

More accurately, through the gap walked the creature that had heralded the doom of Eden itself - the first to walk through the shattered gatehouse at the city entrance. Both the creature and Cyrus stared each other down for a few moments, before the former raised its arms, gesturing around the room with a sickening grin upon its face.

"Welcome home," It's voice echoed all throughout the temple, bouncing off of the ruined walls, "King of the Aeterna... Cyrus Perennem." Cyrus would hear no more. He knew the outcome already. Why should he indulge this nightmare any further? Gripping his sword, he charged the beast, thrusting for its heart the moment he was in reach.

Just before the tip of the blade could meet its mark the stained glass windows of the church all shattered, flooding the temple in a blinding light. Both the Aeternan and the creatures were engulfed in the radiant colours that followed, and promptly fizzled from existence. The creature's foreboding laughter was the last thing he heard before his senses dulled.

"Prepare..."

Then he awoke at last.

Author's Note:

Spooky shit.

Comments

[Master of Shadows]

To his left, a blacksmith hammered away, pounding what looked like a sword into shape. To his left, a baker was putting out a freshly baked loaf of bread, the smell enticing nearby customers towards it.

Are the blacksmith and baker supposed to both be to his left?

[Aqua_Puma]

Real good stuff here. a thought/ an error I had/found:

Stammering something unintelligible, the child quickly attempted an attempt at a curtsy...

I don't actually know if this is proper or not. On one hand, you used the same word twice, on the other I don't know what other word would work here. maybe just shorten it to

Stammering something unintelligible, the child quickly attempted a curtsy...

I thought I saw another one, but I guess I was seeing things. Reading too many stories with lots of errors will do that to ya.
Anyway, Loved this. Gonna read the next chapter then hit hay. probably gonna post a comment on it In the morning.

[Greyson]

9574880
Fe-ixed.

[Emperor]

So far, still not very much detail revealed on what this Great Enemy was. Maybe we'll find out soon. After all, if Cyrus returns, then the narrative of course means the Great Enemy has to as well!